French Chateau
“When you work with Helen you receive inspirational advice. Her design input is of the highest standard on every level. Helen brings your ideas to life with clarity, honesty and imagination.”
This four hundred year old chateau, set amongst vineyards in the historic Languedoc Roussillon region, had stood empty for a number of years.
Its new owners set about bringing this beautiful house back to life & restoring it as a vibrant family home & HMDesign was asked to help oversee the refurbishment.
A traditional style of painting was used throughout and each room was decorated with two tones, with the accent colour of each wall running below dado rail height.
An earthy palette was chosen to reflect the surrounding countryside and harmonise with the natural of stone and wood within the architecture
Specific focus was given to the bedrooms, adding a theatrical touch to create a distinctive and individual style in each room.
The Rose Room was inspired by the detail in a hand woven Victorian rug discovered at Lots Road Auction Rooms. The rose motif was then echoed throughout the fabrics and soft furnishings
An antique Ciel du Lit was liberated from a “boutique de brocante” restored and draped with a delicate French lace, woven with tiny roses. Generous drapes of lace framed the windows – allowing the sunlight light to flood into the room
The Gold Room featured a wall frieze by a renowned Catalan artist. Using this artwork as a defining element we selected contrasting hues of rich gold and cobalt blue to create a luxurious Emperor style bed canopy.
Drapes of rich velvet and silk cascaded from a vintage Ciel du lit, swaged back at each side of the bed, providing a focal point for the room.
Soft furnishings were sourced to coordinate with the chosen colours
The smaller Theatre Room, was positioned at the back of the house, away from the natural light. We chose to accentuate this aspect, making the room intimate and warm, by using an deep burgundy colour scheme,
Walls and ceiling were dressed in coordinating velvets and a full canopy was installed over the bed, featuring vivid highlights of vermillion, pink shot silk and antique tassles
An vintage armoire and sleigh bed provided the finishing authentic touch – creating a perfect retreat from the bustle of the chateau.
For the Nursery Room a subtle but youthful colour scheme was selected.
A basic bed frame was re structured and transformed into four poster with pleated canopy side drapes, and matching silk tassels.
