Aller Dorset: Designer Huts for luxury staycation trips
Imagine this: it is the golden hour and you are sitting on an adinorack chair, lazily sipping your artisanal gin and tonic with views over a picturesque lake, in the middle of a farm in Dorset. Behind you, a designer hut that is clad in black on the outside but a riot of colour and texture awaits you inside. Next to it, an outdoors bath, surrounded by playful checkerboard tiling.
The thing is, you could open your eyes to find this exact scenery at Aller Dorset, home to four holiday huts, designed by Cat Earp.
The Story behind Aller Studio
When Cat Earp decided to launch a business letting shepherds huts on her Dorset farm with her husband, she had to start everything from scratch. With a background in fashion PR but no interior design project under her belt, the entrepreneur put everything together starting with just one thing: a main colour for each hut and lots of inspiration from interior designers like Alice Palmer and Matilda Goad.
This was back in 2021. The two huts soon turned into four and the young mom was soon hooked on interior design. With an eye for detail and a distinctive style that was now being formed, Cat launched Aller Studio to help others realize the potential of spaces small or large.
What is the style of Aller Dorset Huts?
With a mix of wonderfully curated products and fabrics that are colour coordinated, the huts have a distinctive English countryside feel about them. Comfortable and cosy yet more chic than shabby, they turn into inspirational spaces with a style you want to bring home with you.
The uplifting interior design focuses on mixing patterns - the checkerboard tiles in the bathroom overlap with florals in lamp shades and the scallop edge headboards soften the symmetrical lines of the vertical panelling.
Bobbing shaped mirrors, scalloped shaped bins and fabulous fabrics covering kitchen cabinets are a welcome alternative to mass produced hotel rooms. Although the huts are naturally small in size, the designer has managed to cleverly maximise the space with built in furniture.
What is there to do close to Aller Dorset
Drive to Athelhampton, a picturesque Tudor Manor with fantastic gardens - a day out for all the family. Or why not try the Jurassic Safari (25 min drive). On this safari you will go back in time to the Bride valley where you will see some of Dorset's best kept secrets and most spectacular views.
To the Southeast, Poole and its many national trust sites await. To the North, just 16 miles away, Sherborne Castle awaits (castle and gardens open July and August).
Of course, you can also do...nothing! Just make sure you have a book, some music and a swimsuit with you. And...relax!
Steal the look: Aller Dorset
Read to take this style back home with you? Here's your inspiration!
Clockwise: Green Scallop Ceramic Dip Bowl, Casa JJ | Cocktail Malfy Gin Rosa | V&A Gin Liqueur / £18 | Clementine Stoneware Plates, from £8.99, Gisela Graham | Bobina Bobble Candle Holders Chinese Red, OKA, £80 | Pooky, Mini Elbow Brass wall light, £75 | Blush pink and white check bath mat, Homescapes Online | Green Adirondack Chair VONHAUS | Cary Silk Rectangular Cushion - Pink, Sweetpea & Willow Bella | Donna poster, Desenio
Jenny Kakoudakis likes to blog about pretty homes. She launched award-winning Seasons in Colour in 2014 and All The Pretty Homes in 2024. When she is not chasing criminals out of the financial system (her day job), she gets creative by redecorating her own home.
Download her free bathroom renovation guide here.
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