Dorset Square Hotel is a beautiful Regency townhouse situated in the heart of Marylebone, just around the corner from London’s West End.
Many of the 38 individually designed bedrooms overlook the leafy, private garden square, which was originally the site of Thomas Lord’s first cricket ground. The hotel has a historic feel and is our tribute to this part of town.
We are delighted to be re-opening the doors of the hotel next Thursday 26th August and wanted to take the opportunity to show you around room 102. Bathed in natural light with windows befitting of the Regency era, the proportions of the room were already in our favour.
The starting point for this scheme was Bennison’s joyful “Tulip Fever” fabric, which I have used on the fluted headboard. Bennison is an English company specialising in hand-printed fabrics based on 18th and 19th Century English and French textiles, originally discovered and reproduced by the late, renowned antique dealer and decorator, Geoffrey Bennison. This fabric is a work of art in itself.
You have to be in the room to take in the details such as the Sheila Coombes cloth linen leading edge to the curtain and trim on the chairs.
The plain fabric walling by Kvadrat is a calm backdrop to “Tulip Fever” and lets the design sing. From a distance the walling fabric appears to be a rich, even tone, but close-up it reveals something more complex. The colourway brings together two tones of wool, woven into a fine, tweed-like pattern which is then given a glossy sheen due to the linen-viscose yarn.
In keeping with a nature theme, I have used one of my all-time favourite fabrics for the curtains and bed cushions by Vaughan, the “Kos Hand Embroidered Linen”. Based on early Greek island embroidery, this fabric demonstrates exquisite needlework. A beautiful hand-stitching technique using fine silk thread on natural linen gives this fabric its rich textural look.
To create a seating area, I chose two different but complementary chairs. Although attention to detail is important, I don’t want my rooms to feel over designed. These two comfortable, tailored and inviting chairs are like sisters, not twins. One is in “Tulip Fever” and the other is in a Casamance fabric that has similar shapes and tones to the Vaughan fabric. Both are tied together using the same piping.
Cricket ball door handles on the wardrobe are a whimsical reminder of the hotel’s cricketing origins.
The end of bed footstool is in a classic Mulberry stripe, providing that grounding geometric structure for the other more organic designs.
We look forward to welcoming you back to Dorset Square Hotel so you can experience the hotel’s unique character and charm for yourself.