Inside The Penn holiday accommodation in Windermer

The dictionary definition of Sheep pen: 1. Sheep pen n. an enclosure, a designated, enclosed area for livestock. With a little poetic licence The Penn is the human equivalent of a place to gather, a safe space that is cosy and protected.

It is what sisters Madeleine and Juliette Sidi and Madeleine’s fiancé Harry Gordon were aiming for when they created Windermere’s newest accommodation for visitors. The Penn, which used to be known as Rockside, now offers a range of stylish bedrooms for independent stays.

Madeleine says: “We wanted a name that had a feel of the Lake District but wasn’t too obvious. The aim is to grow it as a brand and we’d like to open other Penns, to have them all over the Lakes.”

The Penn in Windermere (Image: the-penn.com) The ensuite rooms come in all shapes and sizes spread across three floors of the historic Victorian house. There are Tiny Penns, Comfy Penns, Classic Penns and so on including the Penn Suite for families.

As Rockside it had a kitchen, dining room and owners’ accommodation. All have been converted into guest bedrooms since the property offers room-only stays with visitors given access via a key code so they can come and go as they please. Madeleine and Juliette are doing the cleaning themselves but may draft in help at peak times.

Original features such as slate floors, beams and exposed stone have been retained and the interiors come in the muted colours of the landscape.

The Penn in Windermere (Image: the-penn.com) However, bathrooms are modern or, in the case of the Penn Suite and Deluxe Penns, luxurious, and all bedrooms come with a Krups coffee maker and a mini Smeg fridge.

Madeleine, 28, trained as an actress at Manchester School of Theatre and between acting jobs also teaches yoga. Juliette, 29, has a degree in commercial real estate and worked for a local authority for six years. Alongside running The Penn, she has a mobile nail art business.

Madeleine says: “I saw the property on the market in 2022. The owners weren’t quite ready to leave so we had a whole year to work on the design, which was a luxury. I’m not an interior designer, but I took pictures of all the rooms and played around with different colours.

The Penn in Windermere (Image: the-penn.com) “The renovation side was a whole different ball game. We started really fast and strong; ‘We’ll be in by September’, then it was Christmas, then Valentine’s Day, in the end it took just under a year. We started on April 1 2023 and opened this Easter.”

Although both sisters are creative, Madeleine had great fun creating each of the bedrooms. Although walls and woodwork are from the same restrained colour palette, each room is unique in its look, feel, furniture and accessories.

“All the rooms are so different, some are quite big, others much smaller with different layouts and views. We wanted to get to know the building inside out. With some we really had to work on finding the best way to lay them out then others were more obvious.”

The Penn in Windermere (Image: the-penn.com) The bathrooms are where she really went to town. A collaboration with Bert & May has resulted in a range of stylish tiles while guests can enjoy locally made Pure Lakes products.

Room 8 is a Deluxe Penn with a surprisingly large bathroom featuring a roll top bath and separate shower with star tiles. An original stone inglenook in the bedroom where there was once a fireplace has been kept and now provides an ideal space for a desk.

The sisters spent many a happy hour searching for simple antiques that suit the vibe.

The Penn in Windermere (Image: the-penn.com) “I like an eclectic look,” says Madeleine. “We wanted to keep it warm and cosy but with a bit of life.”

A sliding door to the bathroom is a clever space-saving feature in Room 14, a Tiny Penn. Even the most modest rooms have underfloor heating and automatic lighting in the bathroom, a TV and radio, tea, coffee, Toffee Shop treats and a welcome booklet with advice on where to eat out – the sisters’ favourite haunts – and places to visit.

Every day enquiries can be answered via their business WhatsApp, which some guests also use as an in-house concierge service.

The Penn in Windermere (Image: the-penn.com) Juliette is in charge of guest services and front of house; after his day job Harry, 33, spends evenings tracking Booking.com. “We are so well located here, right in the heart of Windermere, and it’s an ideal base to explore the Lakes. You can walk from the train station, Orrest Head is across the road, there are cafes and restaurants outside the door and you can walk down to Bowness and the lake in half an hour if you want to,” explains Madeleine.

Continuing to other rooms, the corridor walls are painted in Dead Salmon and woodwork in Mahogany from Farrow & Ball. The base colour for most of the bedrooms is Portland Stone by Little Greene.

The Penn Suite is on different levels. The large bathroom has twin basins, a walk-in shower and a mustard-coloured freestanding bath from which to look down to the village. Children will love the cute smaller room with its bed tucked beneath the window and walls in Bancha green by Farrow & Ball. Stairs lead up to a dual aspect double bedroom which has views of Windermere Junior School and the village.

The Penn in Windermere (Image: the-penn.com) Lamps are by Pooky, throws from the British Blanket Company and the pictures came from National Park Print Shop, in Windermere. Oldfield Electrical took care of mains lighting.

Room 5, which is in the eaves and looks out over slate rooftops, has a contemporary four post bed and a bright orange Smeg fridge. Madeleine’s indulgence in bathroom tiling combines a pink and white striped floor with a green shower. “They are so bold and funky and I just had to have them for this room,” she says. “I loved choosing the different looks. There were times when I thought, ‘why did I choose so many?’, but that’s our thing and I wanted each room to be unique. People might have their favourite, or they may want to try a different room each time they come.” In the reception area a live counter clicks over each time they gain a new follower on Instagram. Reflecting the mix of old and new, above it is a framed black and white photograph of the building from years past, a gift from their electrician. Madeleine says the complementary skills of the three directors work well together. “It’s a really new dynamic for the three of us. When we’re having family dinners we all end up just talking about The Penn. “It’s taken us a while to figure everything out. None of us have done anything like this before and the tradespeople really held our hands through it. We have learned so much. It’s been a fantastic experience and we’ve had some great feedback.”

the-penn.com

Instagram: @staypenn