We Want to Steal So Many Design Ideas From This Colorful Beach Resort
When Young Huh first told me about her work on the Point Grace hotel in Turks & Caicos, it was April 2019, and the idea of a tropical beach vacation seemed like an enticing getaway. Little did she or I know just how much the world would change in the next two years–or how much more valuable a tropical escape would seem after 2020.
"The Point Grace is set on this incredibly pristine beach; it is just dreamy," gushes Huh. That said, though, "It was built in the 90s, and it was definitely showing its age." So, over the past two years—all while COVID made travel, shipping, and virtually every part of design more complicated—Young and her team forged ahead in their efforts to reinvigorate the resort, turning it into a tropical paradise just in time for travel to resume.
After this year, Huh says, "My heart is pining to go on vacation. Just the idea of being by the ocean and feeling the sun on my face feels so freeing." We couldn't agree more.
So, once you're vaccinated and cleared for travel, might we suggest the Point Grace? And, even if a tropical getaway isn't in the cards, read on for plenty of cheerful design inspiration you can translate to your own home.
Cottages
Much of Huh's work was on the resort's 14 private cottages, designed in a Victorian style. "We wanted to keep a nod to the historic, to preserve those great gingerbread Victorian details and reference them in our design," says Huh.
Entry
"When you go to tropical places, a touch of pink is just a necessity," says Huh. "And we didn't want the entry to feel too traditional." In the cottages' entryways, pink grasscloth makes a rosy first impression, while a Made Goods mirror nods to the aquatic life outdoors—"It reminded me of coral and it just catches the light so nicely," says Huh. But, like any good designer, Huh is practical too: "We also added some baskets under the console, so you can just throw in your towels or flip flops."
Bedroom
In the bedroom, a custom wall mural makes a tropical splash across the wall. "The resort owner's wife and I worked on the content together, and one thing she said was, 'people really like visiting somewhere and having colors they might be too afraid to try at home.'" That became the basis for much of the resort's design, which pulls hues from the pristine ocean, lush landscape, and blue sky around it.
"It was so dark and dreary in the cottages so we thought, let's really brighten it up with a fun wallpaper,'" says Huh. She and her team created a design, then had Kravet print it to fit on the walls.
Living Room
The living room curtains are a nod to the aqua hues of the Turks & Caicos waters, and give a splash of pattern and texture even though the rest of the space is fairly neutral.
Breakfast Bar
What better way to start your day than in a room striped in pink? "We had to do a really fun cabana stripe," says the designer. Bringing the pattern all the way up the ceiling makes it feel more contemporary and accentuates the high ceilings and airiness of the space.
Balcony
Huh carried the pink theme outside, too; "You're so close to the ocean here, which is really rare at some resorts," she says. "You can really feel the ocean air." (That meant custom anodized aluminum furniture, too, to stand up to salty winds).
Bathroom
Though the rest of the resort is bursting with color, the bathrooms are conspicuously quiet, color-wise. "When I go to a hotel I love just a clean bathroom," Huh confesses. Instead, she went for visual interest in the form of shapes, like the Dunes & Duchess sconces and scalloped-edge mirror.
Patio
For another outdoor space, the designer turned to an unconventional treatment to cover a large wall: tassels. "There was a big blank wall and I just wanted to do something really textural and fun," she explains. She enlisted a custom tassel maker she has used for previous projects to create an assortment of oversized tassels for a unique, three-dimensional wall.
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