Rooms with a View

Bedroom overlooking George Town harbour. Photos: Stephen Clarke | Styling: Sally Brooker, Absolutely Fabulous Furniture

Floor-to-ceiling windows frame the vista of the sea and ships.

Overlooking the cruise ships in harbour, the apartments owned by Lars Skroder enjoy one of the most commanding residential views in the whole of George Town.

Wall mounted lamp casting patterned light on the wall from the lampshadeSituated on North Church Street on a spot formerly occupied by a 100 year-old Caymanian cottage, the four-floor building is often mistaken for offices but is, in fact, a multi-storey dwelling.

The original house was given to a family friend from Cayman, who relocated the wooden structure to the Pedro St. James area, where it has been resurrected as a heritage home.

In its place, Lars constructed the contemporary modern building, which as he puts it, has brought a touch of the Caribbean Sea into its space.

Designed by architect Robert Towell, it has 12-foot floor-to-ceiling sliding glass windows that outline the mesmerising blue hues of the water and give a bird’s eye view of the ships which come in on an almost daily basis.

The open-plan concept allows a great view

Mother & son

“I feel that (the style) is timeless and beautiful; it’s appealing to the senses,” says Lars, who undertook the interior design and decor with his mother Virginia Skroder. “My mother has great taste and has been decorating and doing interior design work on our properties over the years. We both give our input, bouncing ideas back-and-forth to get the best out of every space.

Chair and small table with flowers in a vase, overlooking the seaThe pair worked together to select all the interior finishes from the cabinetry and lighting, right down to the tiles and furniture.

“She also gave input on the interior layout; for example, the ‘infinity view’, as I like to call it, where the living room sliding-doors open up completely to the Caribbean Sea,” adds Lars.

As well as selecting furniture to suit the open-concept rooms, they chose pieces with natural elements, including wood, stone, leather, bone, metal, shells and glass. A number of items were selected from Absolutely Fabulous Furniture, which has an eclectic range from around the world.

Lars was inspired by a combination of living in South Florida and the Cayman Islands, plus his travels to Brazil over the past two decades, opting for design that never goes out of style.

Kitchen

Aesthetics

Although he has no formal training in interior design, Lars definitely has an eye for aesthetics. He is schooled in photography, jewellery making and design, and is a trained gemologist.

“I am passionate about fine jewellery, coloured gemstones, photography, art and travel,” he says. “All of these interests have shaped my eye for detail and taste.”

Indeed. a couple of the photographs hanging on the walls were taken by Lars, which he enlarged and framed.

The original oil paintings on the top floor were purchased in Cartagena, Colombia, found while he was strolling through a plaza during an evening walk.

“I saw a local artist selling his paintings and loved the abstract look, as well as his use of colour and wildlife; a toucan and a koi fish,” he says.

Chairs set in front of the twelve-foot floor-to-ceiling sliding glass windows giving views out to sea

The top-floor studio apartment

Convenient location

The top floor of the building is a studio-style apartment where Lars will live, while he intends to rent the two apartments below him.

He is delighted by the convenient location between downtown George Town and Seven Mile Beach but, above all, the rooms with a view.

“(I like) the amazing colourful views of the Caribbean Sea and cruise ships, and the dynamic sunsets that occur every night,” he says. “I love it when people walk or drive by and look at the building.

“It was a lot of work by everyone involved but I get great satisfaction in our achievement when the elevator door opens and I hear and see people’s reactions.”

Looking into the bedroom from the lounge

Local suppliers
A. L. Thompson’s, Andro Elevator, Arch Glass, Edie’s Décor, Dean’s Brick & Pavers, Flowers,
Greener Homes Plumbing, Hydes & Sons, Knight’s Security, LED, Marlon Salmon, Neco Electric, Power Flower, Robert Towell Architect, Security Centre, Total Window Fashions,Tropic Tiling,Tropical AC, and Watler Metal Products.