Emma Burns has created a bedroom scheme for a house that’s perfectly in tune with its setting in the wilds of Wisconsin

AFTER starting her career at the interior-design firm Charles Hammond, Emma Burns joined Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler, where she worked with the late and legendary designer Roger Banks-pye. She then established her own interior-design team in 1995, working on projects all over the world, from Mustique to Moscow.

The decoration was inspired by a pair of 18th-century Spanish chests of drawers flanking the fireplace. The muted palette of colours, almost Scandinavian in their tone, set the mood for the rest of the space.

The next challenge was to source a bed that would sit happily in this context. The final choice was a simple design, with slim rails and posts made of a heavily grained tiger maple that’s set off against the lighter hues of the reclaimed pine used for the walls and ceiling.

Conscious of her clients’ desire to highlight a sense of connection to the cabin’s rugged location, Emma used only natural fabrics, including the generous white rug made from Mongolian lambswool and the bed curtains in pale-blue Merino wool by Lewis & Wood (www.lewisandwood.co.uk; 01453 878517) and trimmed in Colefax’s Harlequin Fan Edging, made to order (020–7493 2231; www. sibylcolefax.com).

Further decorative touches include the dandelion pendant by Tony Duquette (020–3056 6547; www.remains.com) and the cylindrical 1960s table lamp. The result is a room with a pervading sense of ease that is as comfortable on a hot summer’s day as it is in the depths of a North American winter. Arabella Youens Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler (020– 7493 2231; www.sibylcolefax.com)