For those craving a design-centric guesthouse in Wales’ undiscovered heartland, I’ve just the thing. Created and run by Clive Sweeting and Rob Perham, The Royston brims with mid-century modern features, vintage treasures, vibrant prints and bric-a-brac galore - and will leave you feeling utterly restored.
This cosy bolthole - named for Clive’s father - only opened in 2019, yet comes with plenty of history. The house was built in the 19th century by a dairy farmer who did rather well for himself, moved to London, then commissioned a Welsh replica of his Clapham abode. Original details remain - such as the stained glass entrance panels (which had me swooning on arrival), high ceilings and tiled fireplaces. These form the perfect canvas for the contemporary decor, all bold colours, statement furnishing and bountiful objets d’art. Although almost every surface flaunts a different adornment - be it a ceramic fox or geometric vase - nothing feels too busy. Perhaps because every detail is Clive and Rob’s own. If they lived here, this is exactly how their house would look.
The home’s previous owner still lives in the largely Welsh-speaking village of Llanbrynmair and loves looking across the fields to see The Royston’s lights ablaze. This had been her husband’s family home and she was desperate for it to remain a ‘happy house’. As Rob explains: “She had lots of nieces and nephews and they all grew up here, coming for holidays, and they’ve kept coming back [since the renovation] and they love it. Four groups of her relations have stayed and they all say it’s a happy home. You can’t put that into a build.”
The Royston is run solely by Clive and Rob, and for them everything - the garden and kitchen especially - had been entirely new. Not that you’d know today. Fresh-cut flowers fill the house, veggie patches thrive and almost every ingredient is grown on the grounds or sourced locally. The results are fantastic - chicken salad flavoured with wild garlic pesto, halloumi burgers made exceptional by carrot chutney, and butter-slathered bara brith baked with care.
Although there’s much to explore nearby - from Rhaeadr Ddu to the Glyndwr’s Way walking trail - returning to The Royston is the real joy. This is a place you want to come home to; where you can sit by a fire, gaze towards the Cambrian Mountains and let the world go. For Clive, this has always been the goal. “I love the bay windows because I love to sit with a book and read. For years I’ve said that the place I want to end up in is somewhere where I can sit and have a view ... There’s so little opportunity to do nothing in life anymore.”
To learn more about the hotel or book a room, click here.
Words by Liz Schaffer, Photographs by Rachael Smith & Illustration by Rob Perham
