Not only are tastes different, they also change over time. As a glance at the new releases of recent years makes clear, this also applies to the interior design of yachts. There is hardly a shipyard that does not offer a light-coloured interior. Even Scandinavian boat builders such as Hallberg-Rassy, X-Yachts or Faurby have long been offering more than the traditional mahogany and teak.
The situation is quite different on the used boat market, where dark wood dominates. Depending on the shipyard and price range of the yacht, the veneers are excellently crafted and of a quality that is hardly affordable today. However, what radiates an aisle-like cosiness for some is perceived as cave-like and old-fashioned by others. What's more, the dark colour tones make the interior of the older yachts, which is small by today's standards, look even smaller.
Change the interior- Modernisation measures
The design measures that can be used to modernise such wooden caves were developed by the design office Judel/Vrolijk & Co in Bremerhaven. InteriorDesigner Ann Cathrein Jacobsen explained to YACHT in April 2022. She also provided tips on the use of colours and lines.
However, theoretical knowledge of the possibilities is no guarantee of successful implementation on your own boat. If the ravages of time or merciless regatta use have left their mark, it is easy to tackle the worn wood. The situation is different with well-kept interiors. The idea of making the fine veneer disappear behind a coat of paint inhibits many owners.
Is the colour change a good idea?
Especially as it is usually not possible to go back, or only with a great deal of effort. Andreas Woyda found himself in precisely this situation. The master boat builder is head of application technology at Vosschemie and owner of a 36-year-old LM 290 Mermaid. "The interior was in very good condition and superbly finished, so you think twice about whether changing colour is a good idea," says Woyda. However, the extremely wood-heavy interior is also a prime example of the style of the late seventies and eighties. As a result, it is comparatively dark below deck despite the relatively large superstructure windows and a hatch.
In recent years, Woyda had already replaced the upholstery and tried to modernise the atmosphere with a lighter-coloured floor. "The original floorboards had water damage and couldn't be saved, so I replaced them. However, the laminate from the DIY store didn't quite match the high-quality wooden fittings and didn't have the desired modernising effect," continues Woyda. Therefore, a more extensive fresh cell treatment was to follow, which we will be accompanying in the near future. Any owner who is reasonably handy should be able to carry out the work themselves.
In a normal winter storage facility. Materials or working methods that require special tools or a dust-free environment are therefore ruled out from the outset. Instead of painting, for example, a formica coating is to be used. The costs and time required should also remain within reasonable limits. This was no easy task, as the list of desired changes was long: light-coloured bulkheads, a new floor, an additional deck hatch and extended LED lighting were all on the agenda, with no more than 5,000 euros to be invested. Woyda estimated the time required at around 100 hours, which equates to around six weekends with motivated work. However, the work can also be completed bit by bit.
Opting for a new style
The biggest challenge when remodelling is determining the new style for the cupboards and bulkheads. The question of how much white is necessary and whether the altered interior might look too cold is difficult to answer for the inexperienced. It is helpful to look at photos of similar interiors in advance.
It works much better with a simulation on your own boat. The idea came to us spontaneously during the on-site visit: Why not try to temporarily cover the surfaces with white paper? However, this would require a few square metres of material, preferably in one piece and without creases.
We found what we were looking for in the wallpaper department of the nearby DIY store in the form of a simple non-woven wallpaper. The material is finely textured, but has a smooth, silk-matt reverse side that comes very close to the appearance of a matt paint or coating. Depending on the manufacturer, the rolls are 53 to 75 centimetres wide and contain between 7.5 and 20 square metres of material. More than enough to cover the wooden surfaces of the salon several times over. The wallpaper is always good value for money, with less than 20 euros to invest.
Test run
The question remains as to how to get the fleece onto the wood in such a way that it can be removed just as quickly and without leaving any residue. If the lamination is only to last for a few hours, double-sided carpet tape is sufficient. Cut small squares with an edge length of around one centimetre from the tape. These are placed at the corners of the wooden surfaces to be masked and along the edges, whereby a distance of around 20 centimetres is sufficient to fix the fleece in place. As a rule, no additional adhesive dots are required on the surface.
The disadvantage is that the adhesive sometimes bonds permanently to the substrate if it is left on for a longer period of time. If you want to leave the wallpaper installed for longer, for example to continue the next weekend, you should make sure that the adhesive tape used can be removed without leaving any residue. Suitable material is available from specialised paper retailers.
Simple method with effect for new interiors
The provisional provides better impressions than any three-dimensional computer simulation. As simple as the method may seem, the effect is enormous. After just half an hour, we had remodelled one side of the salon, including the pantry, and were able to see the effect. The simple wallpaper solution is far superior to any photomontage.
As you can move freely around the ship, all viewing angles are possible, and even the changing effect of the interior lighting and shadows corresponds to the later effect. Even complex 3D computer simulations cannot convey such impressions more realistically. However, this technology is hardly an option for older yachts anyway. Although a subsequent 3D scan is possible, it is only used in part in practice. For example, to create templates for deck coverings. However, capturing a complete interior and reproducing the surfaces, including lighting, on the computer is much more complex.
Have digital designs created for the interior
It looks better if the interior of the yacht has already been designed on the computer, because then the relevant details are usually already available digitally. In this case, you can ask the design office to create customised designs. However, this is only worthwhile if not only the colours but also the position of the fixtures are to be changed.
The wallpaper method we use is not only unbeatable in terms of cost, it is also versatile. Different design variants, for example completely white bulkheads or a horizontal division, can be tested with little effort.
You can even play with the colour, but you should bear the colour palette of the Formica panels in mind. In principle, the panels can be painted in any colour, but the work required for this should not be neglected. In addition, the paint is nowhere near as robust as the machine-produced Formica surface.
Recognising problem areas
Recognising problem areas and inconsistencies is one of the most important aspects of the simulation. In our case, for example, this was the transition from the bulkhead to the already white deck panelling, which has a slightly different colour. This makes it possible to develop appealing solutions at an early stage or to factor in additional painting work.
The same applies to visual inconsistencies with existing finishing details. In the case of the Mermaid, this concerned the brass-coloured reading lamps and the feet holding the teak handrail. Together with the white bulkheads and cupboards, the ship-like fittings suddenly looked like foreign objects that were in urgent need of modernisation and were added to the work list.
The recently purchased dark blue upholstery, on the other hand, blends in well with the white design. In fact, they stand out much better and give the interior a classy touch.
Achieve insights
At the end of the day, it was clear that the bulkheads would be completely white except for the mouldings, with the door frame and the covers of the angle laminate remaining as teak elements. The transition to the GRP panelling of the superstructure and the side deck will be concealed with a narrow teak strip. The panels of the ceiling panelling are white, with paint being used instead of a coating. Otherwise, the panels can no longer be fitted with the attached wooden mouldings. The mouldings remain as a contrast, they are intended to visually stretch the salon.
The panelling on the cupboards and galley fronts is coated in white, and the bulkhead to the cockpit is also given a white surface. In return, the floorboards are again given a ship-like look in teak with light-coloured veins, albeit in the form of robust plastic laminate.
The LM has already been retrofitted with indirect LED lighting in the foredeck and under the lockers. However, this cannot be dimmed and none of the existing light sources can be switched from the companionway.
Further modernisation measures to follow
In the dark, you have to climb into the ship to switch on the lights, which is inconvenient. We will therefore install adjustable LED floor lighting that can be activated before entering the companionway. The lighting conditions in the pantry are also in need of improvement. The existing lighting dates back to the 1980s and only bathes the cooker and worktop in a dull glow. There is also a need for action there.
Video- Modernise the interior
How to deal with contrast and lines
Dark wood types and colours are usually predominant in older yachts. If these dominate the interior too much, it can help to paint or foil certain surfaces in a light colour to create a lighter overall impression or to emphasise certain areas by means of a light-dark contrast.
This distribution of light and dark also influences the overall effect of the room. It can make a room appear shorter, narrower or lower or achieve the opposite effect. To emphasise the ceiling, for example, it should be lighter in colour than the walls. With dark, wooden ceilings, it is almost impossible to achieve a light overall impression. A white paint finish will therefore be particularly noticeable on the cabin roof. However, line courses can also be used for this purpose, as the following examples show.
How to find the right proportions
Large, uniformly designed surfaces can not only appear boring, but also too dominant. Even a simple mix of materials, such as wooden surfaces and white lacquered surfaces, can have an enormous effect if used correctly. Normally, halving the surface area helps, but this does not mean half of the surface area, but the visual half, which can be somewhere else entirely. In addition, large areas can be divided by joints.
