Sharon Lillywhite

Spear’s Review

Sharon Lillywhite founded Oliver Burns Studio in 2004 and over the last two decades has become an esteemed interior designer to some of the world’s wealthiest families, luxury brands and property developers.

Lillywhite’s incorporates ‘thoughtful luxury’ into her designs through a focus on craftsmanship, artisanal sourcing and attention to detail. She tells Spear’s: ‘What brings [a design project] together is an absolute attention to detail and thought and the narrative that goes into everything.’

Projects include Belgravia townhouses, a residence overlooking Buckingham Palace garden, Italian lakeside villas and country estates. ‘For us, it’s about quality, not quantity,’ Lillywhite says. The designer has also refurbished the luxury lounges at Heathrow’s VIP terminal, which are frequented by royalty, A-list celebrities and senior statespeople making their way through the airport.

‘It’s the world’s best private travel space,’ she says, adding that she took inspiration from the ‘icons’ who have visited the airport over the years – to one wall she added a picture of the late Queen’s corgis descending the steps of Her Majesty’s private plane. 

Adviser Profile

Oliver Burns Studio is an award-winning luxury architectural interior design studio, a global force in design where beauty and function combine to deliver thoughtful luxury. The team work on the world’s finest interiors across residential, marine, aviation and hospitality, from listed heritage buildings through to lakeside villas and beyond. 

The studio is at the forefront of innovation and creativity; as thought leaders in super-prime design, they strive to push the boundaries of what is possible. They act as a creative partner to craft the client’s vision for their project, creating original and thoughtful concepts that are sensitive to the building, its location and its heritage. 

As founding partner and creative director, Sharon is a well-known name in British Luxury, recognised as one of Walpole’s most influential people in luxury on ‘The Walpole Power 50’ list. Her exceptional credentials and high level of personal service means that over the last 20 years she has become a trusted adviser for the world’s most affluent families, developers, luxury brands and commercial clients, delivering UK and international ultra-prime projects with a combined value of over £1 billion to date. 

Sharon’s vision for the studio, ‘thoughtful luxury’, underpins everything the brand does, from the way they curate, collaborate and narrate, to delivering designs that go beyond the aesthetic. With such dedication and attention to detail, Sharon personally oversees the bespoke commissions undertaken by the studio, giving each project the exceptional level of service that they deserve and working with world renowned artisans and craftsmen to deliver elegant, quietly luxurious spaces that are felt, rather than formulaic.