In the Swiss Alps a classic chalet sees a modern update.
What better way to herald the Yuletide season than revelling in the stunning transformation of a mountainside snow-clad chalet in the Swiss Alps? As travel remains more or less halted amid the pandemic, maybe it’s enough to get you into the festive mood and even confer some ideas on how to inject a touch of Christmas flair into your own space.
The home we’re looking at sits on the hillside in Crans-Montana, a Swiss town perched 1,500 metres above sea level. Dubbed the panoramic balcony of the Alps, it's where you can see from the Simplon to the Mont Blanc.
Located in a building constructed in the 1950s, the apartment measuring around 1,076 square feet hadn’t been touched up since, and thus, went slightly out of fashion for the young Brits who inherited the apartment from their great uncle.
The brief was simple enough: “Make this house magical, somewhere I cannot keep the teenage kids away from – like a heavenly boutique hotel, homely, but luxurious.”
And so designers Emma Pocock and Bunny Turner, from London-based interior design firm Turner Pocock, moved away from the orthodox chalet interior characterised by exposed wood and fur elements, and instead, kept to the modernist sensibility of the building and employed their trademark look, which evokes a cosy, yet glamorous appearance. The result is very much a chalet for year-round use.
“The owner’s family was brought up going to visit their grandfather, and skiing in Crans-Montana. The village holds a lifetime of memories and they were keen to update the apartment to make it better suited to their contemporary lifestyle,” Pocock says.
But refurbishing an Alpine mountainside chalet in a remote region into a sleek, elegant and incredibly cosy living space was no easy task.
“We worked on this project with an Italian architect in this beautiful, but remote Swiss ski resort so, very naturally, there were logistical demands. It’s challenging managing the project remotely for both the client and our firm, but we made do with multiple trips to Crans,” Pocock says.
The design pair went through a painstaking process to get the design details they wanted. “We really pushed the envelope and persuaded the locals that they could step out of the box in terms of finishes and materials.”
While Turner and Pocock designed all the joinery for the project, there were things that required a specialist’s help; the two ended up working with British joiner Hyde and Gallagher because “they understood what we wanted”.
“The owner’s UK home is nearby the joiner’s workshop in the Cotswolds. They were able to develop a rapport, which is always important on projects,” Pocock says.
“We all had much tighter control over the design detail by having all the joinery made in the UK and shipped over to the chalet – it’s way more cost-effective that way.”
The sleek interior is a showcase for the carpenter’s art, with walls, floors, ceilings and steps created from meticulous joinery, while the colour tone of squid inky blue features prominently. Brass finishings on the fireplace frame and wall lamps bring a 21st-century sensibility to the overall look.
To Turner Pocock, the beautiful Alpine landscape is also a dominant factor in ensuring the abode will encapsulate what is quintessentially Swiss.
“Before the revamp, the chalet was compact and home to a series of small rooms. Although we set out to open up the space, it needed to be able to house three bedrooms, where the incredible outdoor view would be the star of the show.”
The master bedroom on the south-eastern side of the building, in particular, enjoys, via the full-glass walls, a feast of the sweeping pine- strewn slopes clad with just the right amount of snow – it connects whoever is living in it to the ever-open book of nature.
“It’s like living outside and enjoying the luxury of warmth and comfortability at the same time.”
Blessed with such stunning scenery, the bedroom’s furnishings naturally take a back seat to let the view do the talking.
The draw for me, though, is the eternal chalet element: the slick, but cosy wood-burning stove etched into a dark blue TV wall in the living room. It not only sits well with the overall chic and contemporary interiors, but brings a dancing glow into the heart of the chalet.
As those wintry nights set in, there’s no better time to snuggle up with your kins and buddies next to the dancing glow of a warming fire, the pleasant tune of Christmas carols flowing in from afar. Can it get any more Christmas-y than that?
Photo: Turner Pocock
