The Skwachays hotel and gallery in Vancouver, BC isn’t just a place to crash for the night – it’s an expression of culture and style. A common palette of greys and reds carries from suite to suite, while each individual suite pays homage to its individual expression of Aboriginal art and culture. The hotel employed artists and interior design firms to bring the theme to life. With the trend of “hotel chic” at an all-time high, we love the idea of bringing this style into your own bedroom – the ultimate in boutique chic! If you’re in the area, it’s definitely worth a visit. If not, then here’s a quick tour.
Inside the Water Suite, you’ll find no literal blues or bubbles. Instead, artist Corrine Hunt and the interior designers at BBA Design brought this aquatic element to life through depictions of the orca and salmon – both important figures in Aboriginal mythology and culture. But the real star of the room is the massive slab of wood makes up the headboard — inset with smooth rocks that represent the riverbeds navigated by the salmon each spring.
Steal this look:
Incorporate rustic wood furnishings into your bedroom and invest in a large-scale headboard as your main focal point. Smooth river rocks can be purchased from most landscape companies and many DIY box stores.
BC salmon have splashed their way into the King Salmon Suite, by Porada Design Group and artist Richard Shorty, who pays tribute to his painting, “Salmon Spawning.” Cast in plexiglass above the bed, this illuminated artwork instantly draws your eye as you enter the room. The vibrant red fish are complemented by red painted walls and pops of this hot hue against a neutral backdrop of earthy wood and earthy textiles. From Skwachays Lodge, “People, like salmon, will always return home, even if it means swimming upstream against all odds.”
Steal this look:
Mount a wall-to-wall artwork over the bed, or if you’re decorating on a budget, choose an interesting piece of wallpaper and top it with plexiglass. Finish the look with some feature lighting.
A birch tree forest wraps the bed in the Forest Spirit Suite, which pops against its black-and-white backdrop with a bright orange headboard. To the left, the bed is overlooked by a large painting depicting a family dancing in yellows, oranges and reds, while to the right is an orange wall which further colors the space. At the foot of the bed, a sliding glass wall overlooks a terrace and physically connects the room to nature.
Steal this look:
Wallpaper a couple of walls in your bedroom in a bold black and white pattern. Add a large piece of vibrant artwork and paint a feature wall in a complementary hue.
For more information visit Skwachays Lodge.
