Making A Splash

A fresh approach to this cloakroom under the stairs has resulted in a clever scheme awash with decorative flair 

Agradual refurbishment of their entire house, spread over a number of years, left Emma and Charles Merry with just one room left to tackle: the understairs cloakroom on the ground floor. “It was filled with bulky fittings and felt dated and tired,” says Emma, events manager at CP Hart.

“Charles didn’t think it was worth spending much money on a room that is used so briefly. But that was like a red rag to a bull to me and I immediately set about proving I could design a beautiful scheme on a budget. My first step was to create a mood board, which I called The Cloakroom Experience, as I wanted our guests to feel wowed.”

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