A BREATH OF FRESH AIR
Alison Hall found a historic coastguard’s cottage in her local seaside town and indulged her love of period renovation to create a bright and breezy bolthole
A coastguard’s cottage in Scotland has been given a modern, marine makeover
Located at the head of a row of cottages, the old stone house owned by Alison Hall and her husband, Colman Clarke, was originally built for the seaside town’s chief coastguard, or quartermaster. ‘This house enjoys larger proportions than the other staff cottages, while the lifeboat was stored in a building at the other end of the row,’ says Alison. Although still full of character, the property had fallen into disrepair and was in a poor condition when the couple bought it. ‘Its potential seemed to go unnoticed by developers,’ Alison says, ‘despite its amazing position opposite the beach.’
With the help of her sister Lorna, Alison began renovating each of the rooms. Despite having no formal training, Alison has a genuine love of period properties and has acquired a fair amount of expertise while restoring her previous homes. And, to reflect its surroundings, Alison gave the cottage a hint of coastal style. ‘It’s important to honour the period and location of a house, but I like to be selective,’ she says. ‘I only
buy things I really like, instead of inflicting a blanket style. I have woven in delicate hints of seaside memorabilia, but haven’t filled the house with marine antiques and painted everything blue. I also prefer vintage items to anything you can buy new. I honestly feel the quality is better.’
Although utilitarian in design – it was, after all, a working coastguard’s cottage – the house has an air of grandeur and Alison reflected this in the decor, while also making sure the details are in keeping with the property’s history. The most radical thing the couple did was to relocate the sitting room upstairs so as to enjoy the higher ceiling and, of course, the stunning sea view.
Being on the corner, the kitchen has a view of both the front and the back garden and, although compact, it has been designed to be functional. ‘I have time to cook when I’m here at weekends and get quite carried away. We seem to have so much more time when we are here, beside the seaside, than in our Edinburgh home, where we feel much more locked into the nine to five’.
decorating tip ‘Scour charity shops and look for practical, well-made items that can be used either as they are or transformed into something unique and original’