The design process

Sue started in the smallest bedrooms and worked her way through the whole castle. She would source beautiful fabrics for the curtains and then take the design from there, mixing in new fabrics along the way to make cushions, bed skirts and bed runners.

“The budget I had was extremely small for such a huge project so I started sourcing fabrics from end of lines and factory mill shops, picking up fabrics that would normally be turned over for a hundred pounds for just ten pounds a metre. I found a place local to the castle that sells beautiful printed high-end designer linens, but also travelled the country to find appropriate fabrics for such a special place.

As I found other fabrics I would pick them up and mix them in. It was a very layered process, taking over five years to complete each room. The finishing touches like the lampshades were added only very recently.

In the early days before we had to close the castle, I had a team of super volunteers who helped make some of the curtains with me. We worked on the huge tables in the dining room with music and fun chat and I am so grateful for their enthusiasm. Sadly we could not continue those sewing days when the castle closed as we had no venue to meet in." 

Visitors to Rose Castle will notice how Sue’s clever use of fabrics create an elegant but relaxed feel to each room. All of the bedrooms have their own distinct personality, yet perfectly complement each other.

Sue also sourced antique furniture to be used throughout the castle. 

“I was able to pick up really nice pieces for a reasonable amount, again travelling the country looking at every antique shop I came across. We found a local upholsterer, Ghyll House Upholstery, who upholstered over 80 pieces in total. They were a great asset. Andy Blundell, a local furniture restorer from Penrith, was pivotal too, restoring all the antique furniture back to its original beauty. He also restored the beautiful staircase in the Main Entrance Hall, a huge task, which included over 300 repairs to the carved oak."

For the bathrooms, Sue worked closely alongside Paddy, who cleverly designed each to maximise light and space. All the interior fittings, tiles and paint colours were carefully chosen by Sue from elegant and authentic materials. 

Inspiration

Much of Sue’s inspiration came from the English Country House style made popular by Nancy Lancaster, a pioneer of interior design from the 1950s. It’s a style that combines comfort with elegance, which felt like the perfect fit for the peace and reconciliation programmes that were going to be held at the castle, but also a style that was classical and timeless that would sit well in such a historic setting.

“Nancy Lancaster had a saying that stayed with me the whole time: ‘Elegantly informal, historically sensitive and supremely comfortable.’ That was my guideline in getting started with the style.”