Innholdsfortegnelse for July - August 2024 (155) i Homes & Interiors Scotland

Everyone knows the therapeutic benefits of immersing yourself in the outdoors or being by the sea, and value of getting enough vitamin D -but you don’t have to go abroad to indulge in these things. (Well, maybe the sunshine is pushing it a bit.) In this issue, we’ve shone a spotlight on what makes Scotland a brilliant summer holiday destination. Flick through the pages and you’ll see the golden sands of Gullane, where eternal traveller Laura Thomas fell in love with East Lothian’s laid back vibes and put down roots (page 22). Head north to Aldourie (page 44) on the shores of Loch Ness for a pristine restored castle and gardens that would wow the most jaded of tourists. Or how about an off-the beaten-track getaway, like North Berwick’s Lookout…

THIS LIFE Laura Thomas can trace her connection to nature all the way back to her childhood in rural Perthshire. Growing up on a farm, life was busy and the working day was long. Laura would get on her horse and spend hours in the forest, just riding around, heading home only when she got hungry or when darkness fell. It was a different time; screens weren’t really a thing for kids then, and her home life revolved around the outdoors. You could say that’s where the idea of using nature in her working life first germinated. Those early years of picking flower petals and smooshing them into a homemade perfume, smelling of pine after a day spent kicking about in the woods near the farm; it was here, even…

Ormus Gallery FIFE IS A HAVEN FOR CREATIVES, so there’s a lot of excitement about a new opening in Aberdour. The dog-friendly Ormus Gallery, founded and curated by artist Patrick Allan, is in an old butcher’s shop with a fantastic spiral staircase. “We started the gallery store in response to ‘fast art’ and the homogenisation of retail,” Patrick explains. “We wanted to bridge the gap between white-walled galleries and friendly retail shops. Access to independent artists and creative pieces for your home shouldn’t be elitist or restrictive.” Patrick, an illustrator himself, champions local talent, though Ormus also stocks art from the farthest reaches of the globe. “We love to keep things fresh and interesting, so we’re always getting new work in,” he says. “There’s an indescribable quality to a piece…

Curtain call Curtains are the most obvious starting place if you’re contemplating window treatments. Our ancestors might not have had windows, but they would have draped animal hides across the entrance to their caves or mud huts. We still like our curtains to have a functional element (keeping out draughts and prying eyes) but it’s fair to say we probably pay more attention to how they look and how they can enhance a room. There’s an infinite variety of designs available. Take Glasgowbased No Rules Wallpaper, which has recently diversified into fabric. Unlike most of its rivals, the brand’s patterns don’t repeat, and that’s deliberate – to avoid waste. The collection also comes in much longer lengths, to cater to the higher ceilings of Scotland’s traditional tenements. You can get…

BRIEF To create a kitchen in a family home that meets the needs of a professional chef and connects multiple living spaces DESIGN Garde Hvalsøe COLOUR SCHEME File Under Pop Kitchen designers are often met with a long list of demands. This space, after all, needs to be durable and serve every member of the household. A strong grasp on layout planning and a hefty book of swatches might be enough to satisfy your average client, but what about the crème de la crème? How does one design a kitchen for a chef? Carefully, and collaboratively, it seems. For this project, Copenhagen’s Garde Hvalsøe took on the challenge of creating a kitchen for the home of renowned Danish restaurateur and chef Mikkel Egelund. Søren Lundh Aagaard, a director at Garde…

What would've been a dingy corner has been opened up by adding glazed doors to a cloakroom. Sheer curtains offer some privacy while still allowing light through. The doors have been painted in Annie Sloan's mustard yellow Tilton to brighten the area even further. A repurposed cabinet serves as a utility area that's ideal for preparing floral arrangements. Dead space is turned into generous storage with a wall-mounted lamp and simple shelves. A striped curtain takes up less space than cabinet doors and adds to the modern cottagecore feel. anniesloan.com Shaker cabinetry makes this corner feel effortlessly organised. Benches with integrated storage are installed below a panelled wall with simple pegs for jackets and coats. Tall cupboards hide warm wooden interiors, with bespoke shelves for pantry items or more outdoor…

ART WORDS FIRST PERSON With the invitation to make work for Jupiter Artland came the challenge of deciding where my work should be situated. It was a uniquely exciting opportunity. Should I make something for one of the galleries; to inhabit the wood or parkland; or to go in the field next to the pygmy goats? While it was daunting to receive a commission with so many possibilities, it became the catalyst for an entirely new body of work. Perhaps the piece I am most proud of is a tall fountain which consists of five large ceramic snail shells sat one on top of the other, held in place by golden wedges, with water bubbling from the top and cascading down into the pond below. The water and the sound…

Jungle fever Black & white Free pattern…

CITY CENTRE EXTERIORS | CASE STUDY PLANTING SCHEME “The garden is an interesting shape as it sits on the corner of two streets, so I started by looking at it from all angles and levels. It slopes upwards to a very dark point where a Viburnum plicatum f. tomentosum ‘Mariesii’ sits like an umbrella at the top. Hellebores and snowdrops are followed by fritillary and white daffodils. The spring always brings a mass of Euphorbia amygdaloides var. robbiae which has become a real backbone of the garden with its acid green and yellow.” Alex Knubley ARTISTIC INSTINCT “I have these cube sculptures, each representing a different thing (woodland, a pylon, the night sky). I like to think of them as poems. You can put them together and create your own landscape.” Andrea…

SPIRIT OF THE SEASON It’s understandable if you associate whisky with fireside nips in the depths of winter. But the humble dram is a drinks cabinet staple during summer, too. Whether you’re filling a flask for a beachside camping trip or you want to sip on a sophisticated sundowner with none of the cloying sweetness typically found in summertime cocktails, nothing hits the spot quite like good ol’ uisge beatha. Go for a smoky, peat-infused malt such as Laphroaig or Ardbeg for a postbarbecue tipple or an aged single malt combined with muddled citrus and botanicals if you’d prefer something brighter. Here are the latest launches from some of our favourite Scottish distilleries. LIGHT MY FIRE It’s officially summer and you know what that means. Yes, it’s time to dust…

Making Waves in Colour is an apt name for Alison McWhirter’s upcoming solo exhibition at the Russell Gallery, London. The abstract artist enjoys significant and deserved acclaim at home in Scotland and more widely across the UK and internationally -something she’s not too humble to acknowledge: “Making waves makes me think about where I’m at in my career, and I’m really excited about what’s coming next. It’s also about honouring female artists who inspired me.” The exhibition’s title is fitting in a literal sense, too: “It examines this notion of the ebb and flow of life; the tides, the seasonal shifts. I paint predominantly from nature, capturing the impermanence of it and coming to terms with the fact that everything is cyclical.” That concept is vibrantly captured in the work…

A DOSE OF SUMMER…

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS Draw, in your mind’s eye, a generic Scottish castle. Does it have imposing grey stone walls capped by turrets? An interior steeped in stately reds and oppressive swathes of tartan? Mahogany furniture and mounted swords? Yawn, yawn, yawn. Aldourie Castle might have the conical turrets and crenellated tower (as well as an idyllic position on the shores of Loch Ness that would inspire envy in its contemporaries), but it’s no tired old cliché. Since being ushered into the well-dressed bosom of Wildland, the Danish-owned hospitality and conservation group, this baronial castle-for-hire has received the kind of ‘you, but better’ treatment the Scandinavians deploy so exceptionally well. Especially these Scandis. Wildland’s co-founder Anne Povlsen and her concept and design manager Ruth Kramer are renowned for their uncompromising vision, having…

No drama THE LLAMA FEVER OF THE 2010s passed me by, largely because my gran had a farm full of them (seriously). But I do recall the long-necked beasts capering across tote bags, T-shirts and glasses cases with gay abandon, replacing the poor pineapple (which had been everywhere and on everything for years). Still odd but slightly less twee is this reinvigoration of the llama trend: a rattan bar cabinet. It’s the brainchild of the masterful Kenneth Cobonpue, who is to rattan what Willy Wonka is to chocolate. He does create tamer pieces, like outdoor seating, but also delves into things like lampshades depicting gossamer trapeze artists (Limbo collection) and truly perplexing pieces of furniture. This bar cabinet sits somewhere in the middle, with its shortened proportions creating quite a…

TILES The perennially popular subway tile has a new lease of life, thanks to unusual layouts (middle), but it’s also being challenged by slimmer rectangles and the return of the square. Zellige tiles are cropping up in kitchens too, with an emphasis on texture and interest rather than simple uniformity. Bold patterns and unexpected colours are also popular: think earthy tones, terracotta, peach and bronze. SPLASHBACK Large-format, grout-free solutions are where it’s at. A seamless run of marble from counter to ceiling makes for an undeniably luxurious experience in the kitchen. More affordable options, like porcelain, glass or aluminium are also finding their way into design-led homes. High-performance paint works well as a truly budget-friendly option: wipeable and unfussy. WORKTOPS Things have quietened down here, with minimalist surfaces being the…

GET IT WHILE IT'S HOT Pronteau, the new range of boiling-water taps from Abode, keeps aesthetics as well as function in mind. The Scandi-E tap comes in a soft grey matt finish, as well as black and white. “The hot tap is reportedly now fitted in 40% of new kitchens,” says Abode design manager Paul Illingworth. “Given how varied personal tastes can be, the market needs to ensure this in-demand appliance is a seamless part of every setting.” £1,249. pronteau.co.uk PETAL PUSHERS Top off your summer tablescape with a smattering of these hand-printed linen napkins from Molly Mahon. The pretty petal pattern is also available in green or blue. £16 each. mollymahon.com Rolling stone The Himalaya Crystal surface from Neolith is a practical option for countertops. It’s crafted from sintered…

WET WET WET Wall & Deco’s waterproof wallcoverings are ideal for the bathroom. They come in an incredibly wide range of patterns and are designed to be highly durable, even in moist environments. Shown here is Oxygen, a whimsical mural with oversized lilypads, strings of seaweed and fish dotted about. Paired with this characterful metal bath, the pattern feels grown-up and right at home in this room. £POA. wallanddeco.com BRASS NECK Ever considered jewellery for your bathroom? Well, the Georgian collection from Perrin & Rowe is about as close as you can get without incorporating diamonds. Ths single-lever basin mixer has a seductively curved spout and looks particularly majestic in a satin brass finish. If that’s too subtle, try the polished gold. £810. houseofrohl.design That's a wrap The Mini Twine…

ARCHITECTURE Lorna and Themis Agorastos were on their honeymoon in Sardinia in 2012 when they spotted a house for sale on the ESPC website. They’d been thinking for some time about relocating from Leeds to be closer to Lorna’s family in Edinburgh, and had been keeping an eye out for suitable properties. Little did they know then that this house in the seaside suburb of Portobello would shape the next decade of their lives. “We’d been looking for a family home that we could take on as a long-term project – something we could put our stamp on,” says Lorna, director of Edinburgh-based Agora Architecture and Design. “We could see that this property would be a challenge, but we went and took a look at it when we got back…

Blue moon Hall together Green eyed…

ESCAPE Sanctuary. What does that word conjure up for you? A 200-year-old willow tree to sit under and read a book? An outdoor sauna in a wooded glade? A plush sofa to sink into and nap for a few hours? A dimly lit room to lounge around in, listening to records on your own? All of these things, and more, are in abundance at Boath House. The beautifully restored Georgian manor house, between Nairn and Findhorn near the Moray Firth, has recently become a retreat for artists and creative types. They come here from all corners of the UK and beyond, seeking mental breathing space. It can sometimes take a few days into a holiday until you start to loosen up, but a palpable sense of calm is felt as…

IN THE FRAME How has your style evolved? My style has certainly matured. I'm partial to beautiful vintage pieces, colour and pattern. I really appreciate craftsmanship. Who is your biggest influence? Mother Nature, probably. Who is your design hero? I'm not sure I have heroes. I do always follow Kelly Wearstler, though - she's an inspiration. What's your favourite building? I suspect I haven't yet discovered my favourite building… But I do always love visiting the V&A in London and the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. Describe your dream home It would be light and bright with large windows and breathtaking green views, containing all my favourite things and people, and possibly in southern France. I love the countryside and the city, but I think the tranquillity of the countryside would…

Let's hang out THIS REALLY IS A SPECIAL piece. It was created by Serena Confalonieri, an Italian designer best known for her graphic and colourful glass vessels. Birdie, however, was crafted as part of a collective exhibition entitled Sul Trespolo (On the Perch), presented at Rossana Orlandi’s gallery during this year’s Milan Design Week. It’s unlike any of the designer’s usual work. An irregular column of geometric shapes builds beneath the highest point, the most easily recognisable ‘perch’. Each of the different sections could wear that title, though, as a small table, a hanger and a petite mirror all feature within the stack. The various elements can be dismantled, breaking Birdie into three separate modules, each with its own distinct flavour. The same three types of wood were used to…

KITCHENS | CASE STUDY “Home was the key word here,” says Adam Peden, director and one half of bespoke kitchen company Peden & Pringle. “It is very much a family space first and foremost.” This sociable, pastel kitchen was part of a three-year project which saw the owners’ Georgian house in Edinburgh stripped back to its bare bones. The original kitchen was opened up, with Peden & Pringle brought in to overhaul the new space, utility, boot room, library and office (which, as all offices should, now features a bespoke whisky display and bar). With so much space to play with, Adam knew the layout of the new kitchen needed to be perfect. “There was a large stone chimney mantel that had to be demolished as it was unsafe, but…

This magazine is packed with inspiration from wildly different homes, but there’s one strong thread of advice running through it all: be bold. With so many uncontrollable elements in this world of ours, it makes sense to find peace in your own home and fill it with things you actually love, not things you think you’re supposed to have. Going bespoke is the best way to get exactly what you want, especially if it’s something creative like one of Emma Britton’s designs (above). Her glass splashbacks tell the owner’s story and are made to measure, guaranteeing no drama at the installation stage. There are plenty of standard materials ready to be tangled together to create your dream scheme, of course. Stick to natural options if you’re scared the design might…

You might think the process is purely creative, but designing knitted textiles requires a deep understanding of geometry and pattern cal cula tions. It is intricate and often mathematical. I have learned that knitting demands a constant balance between artistry and engineering. Creating a new textile involves not only selecting colours and yarns but also considering the tensile strength, elasticity and drape of the material. That way, I ensure the final product is both aesthetically pleasing and functional. To me, this blend of creativity and technical precision is a fascinating aspect of knitted textile design. I studied textile design at Glasgow School of Art (GSA) and graduated last May with first-class honours. We had the opportunity to explore all four disciplines (knit, weave, print, embroidery) before specialising in one. I…

DETAILS What An extension to a Victorian school house Where Somerset Architect Bindloss Dawes Main contractor Gregory Renovations Sometimes, the plan you had to alter your home turns into something else entirely. Rather than fight it, Joa Studholme and her husband Andrew embraced the potential to radically remake their 19th-century grade II-listed school house in Somerset. Initially, they thought they simply wanted some help with a bathroom. Through a friend of an architect-friend, they found George Dawes of local practice Bindloss Dawes, who was intrigued when he heard of the trouble they’d been having. “I went to have a look,” reminisces the architect, “and one thing led to another, and our ideas ended up expanding.” George, whose efforts have been recognised at this year’s RIBA regional awards, where The Old…

DETAILS What A family villa Where Brentwood, Los Angeles Interior design Tomèf What’s the best compliment an interior designer can receive? ‘Excellent cushion selection’ is up there, sure, but it’s repeat custom that truly flatters. In this case, Tommaso Franchi, of Tomèf Design, doesn’t need to wonder in vain if his clients are pleased with his work. Pro golfer Francesco Molinari asked him to refurbish not one but three different houses in London, and when the family moved to sunnier climes, Tomèf was still their first choice. “They decided to move at the start of the pandemic,” explains Tommaso. “Francesco is a golfer, and the tournaments continued in the US, unlike in Europe. He moved to California with his wife and their two kids, ending up in Brentwood, LA, at…

PROMETHEUS EFFECT This unusual lamp is crafted from clay. It’s by Clayp, a luxury lighting brand from Ukraine that’s known for its focus on sustainability and pushing artistic boundaries. The tallest version of the Zakohani floor lamp is shown here: six feet of warm clay with a central LED bulb. All Clayp products are dried at just 34ºC (rather than being fired, which requires well over 1,000ºC), thus greatly reducing energy consumption and environmental impact. £3,349. clayp.com GIMME SHELTER We can’t get enough of rattan just now and it seems as if contemporary designers are eagerly keeping pace with the demand. This Francia floor lamp from Cult Furniture has a brass stem and base and a sharp conical shade made from sustainably sourced rattan. It would look right at home…

GO WITH THE FLOW If keeping house plants alive is the bane of your existence, familiarise yourself with Frond. The company specialises in self-watering planters that remove the stress of remembering to feed your leafy pal. This hanging model, Flo, has a transparent reservoir at the base, to keep an eye on water levels. A wick system allows the plant to draw up as much liquid as it needs; you just have to keep the level topped up. An array of these hanging planters would make for a gorgeous display. £70. frond.uk Double bonus The OUT system from Wall & Deco is a series of wallcoverings designed to be waterproof and resistant to stains. It’s made of a fibreglass fabric, with a clear coating to protect it from the elements.…

LIFESTYLE I always enjoyed wearing nice clothes and looking good, but I never had huge aspirations to work in fashion. My parents owned clothing stores, so I was brought up in a retail environment. As soon as I was old enough, they had me working in the shops, cleaning windows and doing the odd jobs nobody else wanted to do. It wasn’t until I joined the business about eight years ago as a director that I started to take it seriously. My parents’ business, CCW, has been going for nearly 40 years. They sell wellknown brands like Barbour, Patagonia and Fjallraven, but the issue with selling multiple brands is that a customer can always find it cheaper online elsewhere. That’s why I ended up setting up an ‘own-brand’ for CCW…