In Conversation With…Steve Hird, Director, Edward Thomas Interiors
Countryside caught up with Steve Hird, the director of Edward Thomas Interiors, the interior designers of the show home at Sulis Down in Bath.
What did you want to achieve at the Sulis Down show home?
Sulis Down’s location nestled on the edge of Bath meant the development would appeal to the full spectrum of homeowners, from first-time buyers to downsizers. With this in mind, we set out to create a design with widespread appeal and focused on quite an eclectic, quirky style. The choices of furniture, artwork and accessories is a complete mix of old and new, illustrating how homeowners might have acquired or inherited different pieces yet styled them holistically.
Where did you take inspiration from?
One of the popular design trends on TikTok right now is maximalism, décor that’s colourful, joyful and avoids any uniformity, so we really embraced this at Sulis Down, bringing together different fabrics, materials, metallics and wall treatments to create a modern and inviting home.
Why did you use certain types of colour schemes?
We actually used the living room feature wallpaper as our starting point. This has a fantastic, bold botanical pattern that blends the traditional colours of nature with brighter shades such as orange, pink and blue. We then used these throughout the home albeit alongside more organic finishes to ensure the interior complements the natural Bath stone from which the house is built.
What do you feel makes Sulis Down different to other developments?
The absolute stand out feature of the show home at Sulis Down is its pink kitchen, we’ve never seen this anywhere else! It’s a real marmite choice, but works so well with the rest of the interior styling that it’s really memorable. We love it.
Are there any quirky features / designs in the show home?
Aside from the pink kitchen, house hunters should look out for some of the wall treatments as these really showcase how to be inventive with your styling. The kitchen has a painted panel to frame a picture gallery, the guest bedroom has a painted ceiling canopy which adds depth to the room, and the main bedroom has a striking half wallpaper/half panelled wall. Other pieces not to miss are the monkey lamp on the lime green desk and the two old packing crates that we upcycled into bedside tables.
What is your favourite room / feature / part of the show home?
There’s a playful dog print wallpaper in the downstairs cloakroom which ensures we don’t forget our four-legged house hunters, especially with so much countryside on the doorstep for bracing walks! My favourite feature though is the picture galleries that we added throughout. They really add character and a sense that it’s already a home full of stories.
