Colour Stories

This family home is a new build in a classic style, and its rooms were a blank canvas when Sophie Harrold of Simply Bathrooms was brought in. Her brief was the same in every space: bring in character and colour, make each room work harder and let one lead gracefully into the next.

In the cloakroom, coats sit behind warm green doors beneath a striped ceiling. Next door, the powder room is wrapped walls and ceiling in House of Hackney’s Golden Lily in Cirrus, its take on the Morris & Co. classic by John Henry Dearle. Blush panelling and a deep plum vanity add warmth, and Cotehele Porcelain runs through both spaces to tie them together.

The boot room and utility sit in full view of the kitchen, so they had to be practical and beautiful in equal measure. Soft green joinery sets the tone. A new sink area makes light work of fresh flowers and muddy dogs, and behind the butler sink a band of Maroc Ceramic in Tomato picks up the colours of a Morris & Co. paper.

Once a quiet, neutral space, the pool room is now the boldest in the house. Maroc Ceramic in Mint and Bianco runs in stripes up and over the vaulted ceiling. Aventuras Porcelain in Porto Olive adds a soft trellis pattern, and a coral concrete basin finishes the scheme with a touch of wit.

Upstairs, a bathroom shared by twin girls gained a bath beneath the window and a double vanity. In the shower, Avebury Ceramic in Plaster and Parchment is laid in soft pink stripes. House of Hackney’s Zeus wallpaper, also in Plaster, and rose-toned marble complete a room they will grow into.

The guest bathroom was designed with visiting grandparents in mind, without ever saying so. Milton & King’s Courtyard wallpaper in Linen sets a calm, garden-like mood. A walk-in shower with a built-in seat is lined in Oasis Ceramic in White Gloss, laid in herringbone. Underfoot, Palazzo Oro Honed Marble is paired with its brick bond square mosaic, and the honed finish softens the gold veining.

Modern brassware keeps the traditional detailing fresh throughout. Each room has its own personality, yet together they tell one story.