6 HOUSEBUILDER NEWS
Interior designers re-think Stewart Milne show homes’ look and feel
©Douglas Gibb Photography
Spitfire’s Foster describes her career as a woman in the property sector
In recognition of International Women’s Day, Spitfire Bespoke Homes’ planning director Emma Foster has described what it is like to have a career in the house- building industry – in light of recent reports that women are expected to make up 46.8 per cent of the construction industry by 2022.
In an effort to produce show homes that are more closely aligned to buyers’ wants and needs, Scotland-based housebuilder Stewart Milne has appointed two interior designers to create spaces that they would live in themselves.
Natasha Marshall and Rachel Harford- Cross aim to create “well thought-out, design-led, unique tranquil spaces” for residents, and to that end, a spokesperson from Stewart Milne said they are “keeping abreast with the trends, while ensuring that they have created a home that will grow in character as you live there.” When working on Stewart Milne’s
Castelwellan project in particular, Natasha and Rachel were keen that the interiors worked “as an extension of the architecture at Countesswells.” Set on the outskirts of Aberdeen, the
new houses at Countesswells have are located on the edge of the city’s western woodland. As such, there are immediate
connections to surrounding country parks, extensive landscaped grounds, play parks, a community orchard, woodland trails, and cycle paths. Stewart Milne Homes therefore wanted
to promote the lifestyle opportunities that such a location offers, and Natasha and Rachel sought to reinforce this with their interiors. This has been reflected in the choice of
materials (tweeds, linens and sisal rugs), a soft colour palette and the attention to the details (framed linen maps of the local area, picnic rugs and baskets, wellies and dog baskets).
WWW.HBDONLINE.CO.UK In the absence of a specific client,
Natasha and Rachel asked Stewart Milne Homes to think about who a potential end user might be; “perhaps a young couple looking to move from the city to the countryside, expecting their first baby.” This helped to inform the interior aesthetic – “a fresh and light touch design with a Scottish flavour.” The designers reportedly tried to make
the home feel “contextual” using work from local artists such as Hetty Haxworth, and introducing tweed rugs and curtains. There are also “humorous touches” (e.g. a ‘character’ door mat) which seek to appeal to a young audience. The spokesperson said: “The aim was
to make a visitor feel immediately at home with lots of pieces bought from familiar high street shops such as Ikea, Habitat, Dunelm and John Lewis as well as introducing some old pieces of furniture, which the designers felt was a key factor in making the house feel rich and layered.” “At a time when many interiors are
heavily staged and often driven by trends for an Instagram image,” they continued, “this Castelwellan invites a full three- dimensional experience, an interior which can actually be visited. The result is not a typical showhome, but more akin to someone’s real home, where visitors feel comfortable and can immediately relate their lifestyle to the surroundings. The Castelwellan is a home with a timeless quality, a place you could live and be very happy!”
Joining the company in 2014, Emma works from its headquarters in Solihull. Planning has dominated Emma’s career since she left school, and after studying an undergraduate degree at UCE – now the University of Birmingham – in Geography and Environmental Planning, she went on to complete a Masters in Property Development. Then, after some work experience at a
planning consultancy in the private sector, Emma was offered a job at the firm, “start- ing as an assistant planner and working my way up to senior planning level.” “When the opportunity arose to join
Spitfire, I jumped at the chance to head up the planning team” Emma explained. “I started as a planning manager, working closely with the land team. Since then, we have expanded significantly as a company, and I have been able to develop and grow the team.”
In her role, Emma said that she liaises with many different stakeholders, ensur- ing that no day is ever the same as the last: “Engaging with local planning authorities, members of the public, key stakeholders and on-site teams is a huge part of my job. A lot of the time, it involves educating a range of people on our brand, company ethos and ultimately, what we always strive to achieve. “In the planning team, we look at a range of new and upcoming sites as well as assisting on live sites, which we see all the way through from start to finish. I love being able to witness a project come to life and the nature of Spitfire’s product makes me really proud.” Emma added: “Ultimately, communica-
tion is key and everyone at Spitfire works together to strive towards the same end goal.” The firm’s planning director
concluded: “I would definitely recom- mend a career in the housebuilding industry to younger girls.”
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