A Question of Character: A Designer’s Guide to Holiday Homes
A holiday residence presents one of the most nuanced briefs in interior design. It must be beautiful, but it must also be something more elusive: deeply restorative, effortlessly liveable, and filled with a sense of place that reminds you exactly why you chose to be there. Achieving this requires a considered approach that differs from furnishing a primary residence—a distinction that the best interior designers understand instinctively.
Designing for the Experience
Skilled interior designers often do not begin with a mood board; they begin by asking how the home should feel. The answer—unhurried, expansive, and quietly indulgent—informs every decision that follows. Furniture is selected not only for its beauty but for the quality of experience it creates:
Chasing the Sun:
A daybed specifically positioned to capture the late afternoon light.Gathering Spaces:
A dining table generous enough to accommodate long, unhurried evenings.Considered Rest:
A bedroom that feels like a considered retreat rather than an afterthought.
Every piece is chosen with intention, to make time spent there feel truly special.
The Permission to Be Bold
One of the most liberating aspects of designing a holiday residence is the freedom it affords. Because the home is not lived in every day, it need not make the same concessions to familiarity and practicality that a primary residence demands.
This is a space in which a designer, and their client can be genuinely adventurous. A dramatically lacquered ceiling. An oversized statement piece that would feel overwhelming elsewhere. A colour palette of real depth and conviction that most would hesitate to commit to at home. Far from feeling exhausting, these bold choices tend to heighten the sense of arrival, the feeling that you have stepped into somewhere truly special.
A holiday home should feel like an escape, and interiors of real character and courage deliver precisely that.
Rooting the Design in a Sense of Place
A holiday home furnished without reference to its surroundings will always feel slightly wrong: a collection of beautiful things that somehow fail to cohere. A well-designed interior is rooted in the landscape, climate, and cultural heritage of the location.
By using natural materials sourced locally, textiles that echo regional craft traditions, and colours drawn from the immediate environment, designers create a home that feels as though it has always belonged exactly where it stands. This is not about being literal or folkloric; it is about creating genuine resonance between a space and its setting.
Lasting Quality Over Immediate Impact
Finally, a designer approaches a holiday residence with longevity firmly in mind. Materials are selected for their ability to perform in demanding climates. Pieces are chosen for enduring appeal rather than fleeting trend. The result is a home that only improves with time — much like the memories made within it.
