Seaside chic

SUN and blue skies make us yearn to be beside the sea, relaxing in a beach retreat.

In fact, a seaside home is now so popular that the price of even the most humble beach hut has rocketed, and one in Dorset was recently offered for sale at £145,000.

 

 

If a private shoreside retreat is beyond your budget but you still want that coastal feel, why not conjure it up at home?

It's currently a very fashionable look, so stores and mail order companies are awash with sunbleached and deckchair-striped fabrics, as well as plenty of accessories from yachts to shell lights.

So with the minimum of effort you can easily invoke memories of that simple holiday home used for carefree childhood holidays or, if your taste's more lavish, then conjure the colonial-style sophistication of homes in sun-drenched foreign climes.

Whatever you pick, it's easy to feel beside the seaside with beach bright colours and nautical accessories, which will banish the blues whatever the summer weather has in store.

 

And if you do travel this summer, instead of bringing back commercial holiday souvenirs, maybe gather a few shells and driftwood to add an authentic touch to your new seaside rooms.

Jo Denbury, author of Huts, Havens and Hideaways (Ryland Peters and Small £18.99) says: "Blue and white is a classic combination. Think of the sky and clouds and the white spray on energetic waves. It is a squeaky clean, resolutely nautical style."

Subtle paint shades with names like Sea Mist, Beach and Seashore could be just the thing for a coastal room. They're from B&Q's Tate seascape range, which is inspired by the Cornish seaside. It costs £16.98 for 2.5 litres.

Alternatively, push the boat out with curtains printed with sailing boats, or a deckchair stripe. Both these feature in the Playtime Range from Jane Churchill.

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