Watergate View Apartment

Interior Design Project for a new development of apartments on the coast road at Porth.

My clients first approached me last year, having recently purchased the apartment. They were looking for a designer who could undertake both the interior design and management of the project, as they do not live in Cornwall.

The ground floor, three-bedroom apartment, benefits from the most amazing views over Whipsiderry Beach, Porth Island and Newquay beyond.

My clients were looking for a design scheme that echoed the colours in the fantastic views but also wanted a really comfortable and liveable space, as they planned to spend a lot of time in it themselves, having family close by.

We started planning the design scheme, primarily around a palette of colours which include turquoise, teal, yellow, and salmon pink, which are the shades often seen at sunset from the front terrace.

The living area:

The relaxed sofas chosen were both from loaf.com. One is upholstered in a luxurious and vibrant turquoise velvet and the other from a turquoise wool. Both chosen for their durability as well as their beauty. Velvet and wool cushions were chosen from the same colour palette. Walls were kept a neutral off-white to ensure a blank canvas for the brighter colours and for the paintings yet to be added to the walls.

To reflect the relaxed coastal vibe, driftwood style side tables were chosen, along with a beautiful carved top coffee table in a grey wash wood finish. Texture and cosiness are added with the addition of a pebble grey knitted rug.

Natural wood furniture from PR Home was carefully selected to create a feeling of warmth, including a low media unit and stunning sideboard.

My client’s love the work of Tom Raffield, so a standing lamp and a table lamp were chosen from his collection of bentwood sculptural style lighting.

It was difficult to source just the right dining table and chairs for the apartment so I commissioned a bespoke table which closely matched the colour of the wooden floors. I then added old school style chairs with both leather seats and backs for comfort. Dark grey and teal green leather swivel bar stools add just the right amount of vintage style.

Pale blue kitchen units and smart chrome accessories, give the space a stylish coastal edge.

The Master Bedroom:

The starting point for the master bedroom was the beautiful Designers Guild ombre linen fabric for the curtains. I just knew that it would be perfect for the location, being both relaxed in feel but also in colour.

I chose a dark teal green shade for the feature wall behind the bed, but chose to leave the rest of the walls off white, in readiness for some stunning artwork.

We commissioned a bespoke padded headboard and matching ottoman base for the super king bed using Ian Sanderson Ink Blot fabric which pulled together the other colours in the room. To add an interesting mismatch of texture, we added both heavy knitted and stunning cut velvet cushions for a touch of luxury. The quilted grey velvet bedspread completes this look.

The natural wood furniture in this room all came from PR Home. It was chosen for it’s curved, organic shapes, reminiscent of the coastline outside. A soft grey sheepskin covered stool sits in front of the dressing table.

Oversized ceramic table lamps were chosen to enhance the design scheme and add a little drama.

Bedroom 2:

Designed for my clients’ son, bedroom 2 is lacking in natural light, so I decided to play on this and added a dark blue feature wall for drama and mood. This works brilliantly alongside the remaining white walls. Bright yellow table lamps and tweed wool cushions add a pop of colour. Art was carefully selected to bring the space to life.

A pair of zip and link beds maximise flexibility for guests.

Storage was in short supply in the apartment so we had one complete wall fitted with floor to ceiling cupboards. A wall hung, space saving dressing table and stool was added in the small amount of remaining space.

Bedroom 3:

Bedroom 3 was designed for my clients’ daughter. It has the benefit of opening out onto the rear terrace which has recently been fitted with a luxurious and generous hot tub. The room itself has a lovely feeling of cosiness, so I enhanced this by adding a gorgeous, contemporary four poster bed. Keeping the rest of the furniture simple in design, by adding a natural wood chest of drawers with a rattan framed mirror over. A sculptural clothes rail is all that’s needed for summer holiday clothes.

Paint colours were kept light and coastal in feel whilst adding chunky knitted bed cushions and throws in the shades of the beach.

This apartment has been a real joy to style. My clients were very open to ideas and loved using bright colours which work so well in this location. I think they will have many happy family holidays here for years to come.