The Herald Magazine
‘Tower Power’, 10.01.98
Extract from article by Sarah Gaventa

‘Hidden behind the main street of Newmilns, tucked in between the pub and the car park lies an ancient tower with a troubled past but a very promising future. Built between 1525 and 1540, the Tower became a prison in the 17th century… For many years it was used as a store for the pub, finally falling into a parlous state only little more than a ruin…

‘Luckily this is when Strathclyde Building Preservation Trust stepped in… After research the Trust decided to design the interior so it was suitable for holiday lets as there was a shortage of such in the area. The Tower is formed around the fine spiral stone staircase which rises over four storeys and each floor consists of one room… After renovation the Trust commissioned Retrouvius to fit-out and furnish the entire Tower.

‘“Traditionally there would be little furniture in such towers, as the people lived a fairly nomadic existence. But they would have had textiles to keep out the drafts and add colour and texture.”… Retrouvius commissioned Glasgow Textile Designers, Timorous Beasties to reinterpret medieval wall hangings to feel contemporary yet contextually appropriate.’