The Cayman Pillow

Stylish After-Dive Soft Landing

By Stephen Weir, March issue of Diver Magazine

Kate, Conch and Cayman Pillow - photo by Weir

For Toronto-based London-trained Interior Designer, Kate Thornly-Hall, Grand Cayman Island evokes a certain Seven Mile Beach chic.  Her new line of pillows, towels, hand-woven carpets, and wallpaper are inspired by Cayman life, below and above the water.

Diver Magazine doesn’t want to typecast her as the Cayman Pillow Lady, but, just saying, that, when viewing her collection your eyes are drawn to her green and white trellis design throw pillows, her indoor outdoor pillows covered in 19^th century four-masted Cayman schooners and Royal Palm fronds. 

 

Late last year, in a private downtown Toronto club she unveiled her Cayman Island Collection to Diver Magazine. 

“The Cayman Islands Tourism Office in Toronto called and ask if I had ever been to the Caymans. I had not.” Said Kate Thornly-Hall, in explaining how her new collection came to be. “They said to me, come to Cayman and be inspired. That is exactly what happened -- it was just the most uplifting experience. Rum Point, the starfish. Turtles and fan coral. The design of the traditional Caribbean homes --that was 9 months ago, and I continue to be inspired!”

Chair with Cayman fabric - photo - weir

“Grand Cayman is very much an indoor / outdoor island experience,” she continued. “ So we have used a lot of out-door fabrics for your Cayman condo, your home, or maybe your condo balcony. We use bright colours that are able to handle both the rain and sun.”

Once you have bought the pillows, the designer fabric rolls, the King Sized duvet ($390) and even a king sized ($2,500) fabric covered headboard, one needs a Cayman inspired room or two to put them in! The collection includes wallpapers and carpets.

Her new wallpapers are a riot of Little Cayman coral, turtles and Cayman Brac parrots.

Everything is made in Canada, save for the hand-woven wool and silk carpets. The carpet design continues the Cayman look – turtles, George Town trellises, parrots, sugarbirds, turtles and corals.

“ We are showing carpets in 9x10s but we are very much into custom sizing and colour matching,” said the Toronto designer. “ Since the carpets are hand made we custom size any order.

It takes two or three months for a custom carpet to be made.  They are made in Nepal and cost $100 a square foot for a wool and silk hand woven Cayman carpet.

All of the products are available for sale in Grand Cayman and Canada in discerning design shops and on-line.  With a very positive response to these high-end products, the designer is now producing a second wave of Cayman inspired products just in time for the coming 2015 Spring Break dive season in the Cayman Islands.

The Cayman Pillow Lady and her designs