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Built in 1900, this Victorian Sligo home had “lovely bones”, interior designer Nina Watson explains, but its owner contacted her to help align it more with her lifestyle.
“It had three-metre high ceilings, cast iron fireplaces, and original sash windows, but the decor was bland and disjointed. Many of the original features had been removed, and it didn’t reflect the client’s personality, or how she wanted to use the space,” Nina says.
“She wanted her new house to celebrate all of the things she’d collected over the years, to be a mix of colour, texture and pattern.”
Other key issues included a collection of around 300 books that required a home, many pieces of art that had been collected over the years and family heirloom furniture that were to be incorporated into the scheme.
“We balanced the deep blue and green (Farrow & Ball Inchyra Blue and Green Smoke) chosen for the walls of these rooms with Farrow & Ball Pink Ground for the ceilings and timberwork in both, in order to keep the rooms feeling like the cosy hug she was after.”
In terms of textiles, velvets and layered patterns were chosen, as well as vintage Persian rugs. “I felt that floor to ceiling antique curtains would draw the eye up to the high ceilings,” Nina says, “elevating the rooms, giving them more elegance, softness and warmth. In the dining room, they’re 19th Century cream silk, with embroidered swallows. These were originally from a French chateau – the quality is extraordinary.
The curtains in the bedroom are antique silk damask, originally French, but shipped over from a contact in the Netherlands.”
A nod to the home’s history but with a more modern interpretation, the chandeliers are midcentury Gaetano Sciolari. “By sourcing these statement chandeliers for each space by the same designer, we could create a visual language between the rooms, whilst retaining a unique personality for each. We sourced vintage Maison Jansen brass and smoked glass side tables and brought playfulness to the space with a modern take on the classic Maison Jansen palm tree floor lamp from Rockett St George.”
To create the cosiness the client desired, the bedroom has been colour drenched in Hicks Blue from Farrow & Ball. “We’ve balanced this deep cool colour with warmth,” Nina says. “Salmon pink silk curtains, walnut and brass furniture and lighting, bringing the room together with a new teal patterned Turkish rug- beautifully soft and cushioned underfoot.”
The furniture that was added complements this scheme, including a geo-patterned yellow sofa was from Finline Furniture, a Jindrich Halabala H269 pair of armchairs that were reupholstered in Fleur velvet from Tatie Lou, and a 1930s brass bed.
It’s a home that now feels totally different. “It’s wonderful,” Nina says, “vibrant, textural, with colours that sing together and there’s a coherence and flow between them, filled with her beloved collectables without feeling cluttered or overwhelmed.”
Her favourite aspect of the design is how it reflects its owner’s personality. “The book collection is settled in its forever home, easy to reach and enjoy. Her varied artwork is now championed, but there are also many other eclectic delights to be appreciated – the textural joys of velvet, silk and brass, a blend of old and new, with her heirloom mahogany furniture at the heart of it all. A place to make her feel happy and calm in equal measure, just what home should be.”
Photography: Fred Corcoran