Suite reflections

DesignSolutions: Problem: the Merrion Hotel has a number of fine bedroom suites but the newest is an apartment once used only by the hotel's owner Lochlann Quinn. Reached by a private lift and located alongside other, privately owned apartments, it's quite a space.

Extending to 260 sq m (2,800 sq ft) with a further 92 sq m ( 1,000 sq ft) given over to a terrace with outdoor hot tub, it returned to hotel use some time ago. Now be yours for €2,200 per night. Already it seems one of the most popular hotel suites in the city with an 80 per cent occupancy rate.

It was redecorated last autumn, which is when interior designer Aidan Cavey came into the picture (as well as jazzing up the penthouse, he's currently working on the refurbishment of the entire Merrion Hotel as well as projects such as houses at Carton Demesne, Co Kildare).

The suite has two bedrooms at entrance level. Below a glass roof is a staircase rising to the upper floor living, dining and kitchen areas. This staircase is relatively restricted and while the rest of the suite is obviously large, Aidan decided to try and make this area equal to the rest. But how to make it seem larger and throw light from the skylight down to the windowless entrance area below?

Solution: Where before there was a blank wall, Aidan used a trick that may not be new by any stretch of the imagination, but which works extremely well. There are few who don't know that mirroring a wall makes a space seem larger but, somewhat strangely, you don't often see such a trick employed in a small stairwell.

It's worth noting that what was achieved here is something that could probably be done quite easily in an ordinary domestic setting. Mirror has a glamorous appeal and staircases are often nondescript anyway, so in the right balance, the two can go hand in hand. A C Taylor, a company used by many designers, supplied and fitted the mirror for this wall. "It was done to create an illusion of greater space," says Aidan, "and to create reflections of the areas above and below. As you come up the stairs, you now see the skylight above before you reach the top."

Stairs don't need a skylight above it to do something similar, but Aidan says that although it seems a straightforward job, there are some things to note before cladding a wall in mirror: "be careful that the walls don't run off at different angles in the corners. Unless they're 100 per cent even, it's going to be difficult. Also, be sure the reflection is something you're going to want to see. I tend to use less rather than more mirror but in small areas of the home like a hall or landing or some little niche area, it can work brilliantly.

"In a big expanse of mirror, like this, it's a good idea to divide the wall into squares or rectangles of mirror instead of one big piece, which can look a bit bland. If the walls aren't perfectly smooth, using smaller pieces will make dealing with undulations easier. The edges of each piece here are polished rather than bevelled, which would be a very different look. Polished edges are neat and more contemporary."

Another reason for the mirrored wall was to reflect photographs of Government buildings (situated across the road from the hotel) that are pasted into two niches on the staircase. Made by Imagine Wallpaper from photographs taken by Aidan, each is split in two but when viewed in the mirror become whole.

Cavey Design Limited, Clifton House, Lower Fitzwilliam Street, D2, tel 01 6613788
The Merrion Hotel, Upper Merrion Street, D2, tel 01 6030600
A C Taylor, Upper Sandwith Street, D2
01 6765441 www.imaginewallpaper.com