Some wee girls ask for Lego and Mr Frosty for Christmas. But when Lisa Guest was little, her letter to Santa looked quite different. “I would ask for furniture and rugs," laughs the interior designer, who grew up in Las Vegas. “My dad was a builder who built every house I grew up in. We'd make furniture together in the garage, or I'd sit in his office and design my own house plans for fun. I loved arranging things within a space!
Unsurprisingly, Guest's childhood passion blossomed into a vocation. She moved to northern California and interned for Erin Martin Design in St Helena – “She's incredible, and I learned so much," says Guest - and it wasn't long before she had her own business with a roster of clients. But then something, or rather someone, unexpectedly altered her life trajectory. She fell in love with a Scottish guy (hey, it happens to the best of us).
“I came here in 2016 to meet up with a friend and ended up at a Hogmanay party at Olly's new flat,” she recalls. "Seven months later, he and I were married and I was moving to Edinburgh."
Together, the couple renovated Olly's home on London Street. It was Guest's first time working on a Georgian property and she quickly became enamoured with a style of architecture completely different to the sprawling ranches and mid-century modern homes that dominate the west coast of America.
"I loved the high ceilings, the mouldings, the set-up. I was completely out of my depth, but I learned a lot," she says. "We then ended up renovating another flat on North Castle Street and I started to really enjoy working on Georgian properties. Maintaining and honouring their history is so important?
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der May - June 2022-Ausgabe von Homes & Interiors Scotland.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der May - June 2022-Ausgabe von Homes & Interiors Scotland.
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Escape BOATH HOUSE
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Escape THE LOOKOUT
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The owners of this house in Edinburgh didn't intend to give it a complete makeover, but once they started they just couldn't stop
A SCOTTISH LOVE STORY
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CLEAN AND POLISH
Ten years in the making, this one-time dental surgery in Portobello has been reshaped as an elegant, practical family home
MEET THE MAKER RACHEL MACLELLAN
You might think the process is purely creative, but designing knitted textiles requires a deep understanding of geometry and pattern calculations. It is intricate and often mathematical. I have learned that knitting demands a constant balance between artistry and engineering. Creating a new textile involves not only selecting colours and yarns but also considering the tensile strength, elasticity and drape of the material. That way, I ensure the final product is both aesthetically pleasing and functional. To me, this blend of creativity and technical precision is a fascinating aspect of knitted textile design.
IN THE KITCHEN AT PARTIES
It's all in the details for this slick and multifunctional entertainment space
JUST A HINT OF PINK
This family-orientated Georgian kitchen gets an upgrade in both footprint and finish
BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
Beauty and the best of Scotland on the shores of Loch Ness
LAURA THOMAS
The environmentalist has become a very successful entrepreneur whose products are stocked by Scotland's best hotels