It was a grey, boxy house with nothing much to distinguish it. Now, though, following a thoughtful, creative makeover, this Glasgow home is bursting with colour, verve and joy
New builds all look the same, inside and out – don’t they? Some do, sure, but certainly not if they’ve had the Chelsea Mclaine treatment, like this five bedroom property in Glasgow. Under the direction of lead designer Abigail Kinnaird, and propelled by clients who are equal parts courageous and creative, this project destroys the notion that new homes in modern estates are forever destined to be bland and unremarkable.
The owners, a couple with two young children, bought the ten-year-old house for its proximity to the family’s support network rather than for its decor. They had worked with Chelsea Mclaine before and knew they could trust the studio to give their home a bespoke feel. “It was a grey house when they bought it, but it’s now as far from being a grey house as it could possibly get,” says design director Margot Paton, who oversaw the project. “The clients were so open to designs that were unusual and very much reflected their personalities. You can see Abigail’s love of colour and pattern throughout, because the clients were happy to embrace her vision. It’s always lovely when people are brave.”
Abigail’s creativity is particularly obvious in two bright and bold bedrooms for the kids, as well as a playroom that even the adults can’t help but want to hang out in. “We spend so much time there as a family, making memories that I know the kids will carry with them,” says the children’s father. “It’s vibrant, colourful and just bursting with energy. Visually, it’s pure joy.”
The couple’s daughter wakes up every morning in a bed crowned with an abstract headboard pieced together from a wide selection of fabrics. “When Abigail first told me about her concept for the bed, I thought, ‘Wow that’s a bit of a head melt!’,” laughs Margot. “She took a shape she liked and translated it into this incredible array of textures, prints and colours. The end result is just gorgeous.” Custom wall lights in the shape of llamas from Porta Romana were painted to the designer’s specification and finished with velvet sourced especially for the project. “The velvet isn’t part of Porta Romana’s fabric range. It needed to be very specific to work with all of the other patterns.”
A subtle leopard-print wallpaper by Alice Temperley for Romo acts as a neutral backdrop; a Julian Chichester chest of drawers squats opposite the bed, beside a suspended canopy with a padded base that serves as a reading nook for the wee one. Even the wardrobe handles have been considered: Abigail had special flower-shaped handles cast in Portugal and painted in a lustrous, pearlescent finish.
It’s not just the children who are surrounded by joyful design. The downstairs powder room bursts with colour thanks to a floral-and-pomegranate Casamance wallpaper. The orange hue appears again on the Villeroy & Boch washbasin, while buttery herringbone marble tiles add a note of more restrained luxury.
Things are slightly calmer in the kitchen, but there’s still something to catch the eye in every corner. “The layout is pretty much the same as when they moved in,” says Margot. “We reused some of the cabinet carcasses but everything else has been replaced. The island was reconfigured to add extra storage and a seating area, then we topped it with a slab of a Dekton porcelain that cascades down both ends. The kitchen looked very gloomy originally – a dark floor and black worktops – and we wanted to give it a much lighter, brighter feel.” Now, the full-height cabinets are dressed in oak and a beautiful metallic finish coats the others. “It looks like copper, but it’s a low-maintenance, highly functional material.”
