As part of their collaboration with GP & J Baker, Weston Homes recently held a highly successful Interior Design Masterclass at their spectacular development Gun Hill Park in Aldershot with Project Design Manager Robin Daines. Having created the award-winning Nightingale House show home at Gun Hill Park, Robin used his expertise during the masterclass to show attendees how to create beautiful yet affordable spaces.
At this well-attended event, 15 groups toured the Nightingale House show home with Robin Daines, who provided his guests with a masterclass in how to achieve high quality yet affordable and unique home décor. Delighted guests enjoyed refreshments and treats served to them from Weston Homes’ ‘Airstream’ bespoke retro mobile coffee trailer.
Weston Homes’ ‘Nightingale House’ show home recently won the gold award for the UK’s Best Interior Design at the WhatHouse? Awards 2022. Weston Homes’ brief to GP&J Baker for Nightingale House was clear from the outset: to create a show house that would inspire savvy house buyers who appreciate quality, timeless design. The show home needed to demonstrate how beautiful yet affordable interiors can be created by buying furniture resourcefully, mixed with luxurious and accessibly priced fabrics and wallcoverings, all from GP&J Baker, to create a refined palette for the smartly dressed interiors.
The furnishings included a curated mixture of pre-loved items from eBay, new furniture from high street retailers such as Zara Home and John Lewis and individually commissioned pieces, with all upholstery in fabrics from GP&J Baker. The complete schemes are complemented by original artworks, ceramics and other eBay finds. Over 80 per cent of the home’s furnishings were sourced from eBay.
Gun Hill Park is the transformation of the magnificent Grade II listed Cambridge Military Hospital, originally built in 1875 – 79, into a new residential address providing 140 one-to-three-bedroom apartments and two-to-four-bedroom houses, with private gardens and landscaped grounds. Nightingale House is meticulously converted from an elegant Victorian accommodation building.
The Italianate neoclassical Victorian buildings at Gun Hill Park were based on the design principles of bright and airy living spaces championed by Florence Nightingale who believed that light and fresh air were key to good health. The new 1,982 sq ft (184sq m) three-bedroom show house has tall elegant windows, with ceilings an average of 15 ft (4.5m) throughout. A spectacular staircase hall with a Georgian tread cantilevered staircase with a 28 ft (8.5m) high ceiling forms a welcoming, light and airy entrance to the property. The show house opens onto a private patio and landscaped rear garden.
The newly launched Nightingale House is being used to market the houses at Gun Hill Park which are arranged over one, two or three floors and are up to 1,982 sqft in size. All houses have a family kitchen and breakfast room, a spacious living and dining room, some with outside balconies, most with private gardens, and many with a dedicated study / home office area. A wide range of kitchen, bathroom and flooring colour options are available to choose from, to enable buyers to personalise their property, with individual choices subject to the build stage of each property.
The development is just a 9-minute walk from Aldershot town centre and surrounded by rural beauty. Homebuyers at Gun Hill Park can escape into Wellesley Woodlands where there are around 250 acres of canal-side walks, wildlife reserves, lakes and open spaces.
Comments from attendees of the event include the following reviews: “Thanks very much for the design workshop over the weekend, it was very informative”.
“Many thanks for the interior design masterclass. We both enjoyed the interesting insight to how the show house was put together and Robin presented it well”.
“Just a quick note to thank you and everyone who helped me on Saturday, it was a well organised event, I enjoyed it very much and was inspired”.
Suzanne Aplin, Group Sales & Marketing Director of Weston Homes says: “We are delighted at the success of our Interior Design Masterclass that was held recently at Gun Hill Park. The exceptional and award-winning Nightingale House show home is truly a testament to how beautiful interiors can be created affordably, and this event allowed prospective buyers to explore the show home with its creator Robin Daines and hear about his inspiration behind the design.
