Interiors
Do it yourself? What to do when your property’s interiors begin to look a bit tired? Get out a paint brush and get stuck in, or get someone in? For a growing number of tourism businesses the answer is to call in an interior designer who specialises in working with the trade.
It was a tough brief and a tight deadline and David James and Meinir Bowen admit there were tensions along the way. But for the owners of The Castle Hotel in Aberaeron, when it came to reflecting both their roots and David’s globe-trotting career, there was only ever one person for the job. Ann Hughes brought her expertise as an interior designer and as joint owner of boutique hotel Llety Bodfor in Aberdyfi but she was also, says David “a local girl. She went to school with Meinir, we are friends, she knew how important our backgrounds and the area were to us but also my three decades of travel in the merchant navy.” After almost five years at the hotel the couple decided it was time for a change and allowed only eight weeks to transform the café bar and bedrooms in their Grade II Listed Building in the Georgian harbour town. “But Ann was used to working within builders’
Issue 5, 2012
schedules and had the contacts to quickly find everything we needed and we re-opened on deadline in March 2009,” says Meinir. David was keen to bring Africa into the hotel. “I wanted to give the café bar a Casablanca feel but at the same time keep it Welsh.” Ann sourced plantation shutters for the windows, found space for a ‘play it again Sam’ piano and moved in plants. But she also bought antique Welsh furniture on ebay and renovated the couple’s church pews and original wooden floor. The planned focal point for the bar café proved more problematic. “David really wanted a curved bar to echo his years at sea and also because of the hotel’s location while Ann said we should save space and go for something against the wall. But we stuck to our guns. We felt the shape was inviting and would encourage people to socialise.” The bar is now a big hit with customers, as are the rejuvenated bedrooms with their distinctly Welsh touches. “My mother used to own the Alltcafcan
Woollen Mill in PentreCwrt,” David explains. “So we have a link to that with tapestrycovered headboards and traditionally-woven Welsh nursing shawls on the beds, with many of the patterns originals.” Meinir was impressed with how Ann was able to choose colour and texture, make practical suggestions and add detail. “It might be a wallpaper to make a room more cosy, the right size wardrobe or changing the position of the bed or replacing door handles or adding candle holders. She did all the things we wouldn’t have thought of which made such a difference but at the same time she listened to what we had thought about. We had strong views and she respected them. It was a real partnership.” David agrees and says employing Ann was “definitely money well spent. There has been a 30-40 per cent increase in business for the rooms and the hotel has gone from three to four stars. People are always telling us how much they love it.”
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