Sisters Alexandra and Ashlinn de Schonen are very different – Alexandra is a pragmatic policymaker while Ashlinn is an artist to her core. Making the most of their individual qualities, together they created a wonderful home for Alexandra and her family
Ashlinn, left, and Alexandra de Schonen in Alexandra’s front reception room, one of three in the four-storey house which dates from the late 1800s. The stars of the decor here are the two panels flanking the fireplace which Ashlinn painted. Alexandra herself made the lamps with the Bollinger bottles. Photo: Tony Gavin
Sister vibes have been in the ether this past year; we had Anton Chekhov’s Three Sisters at the Gaiety Theatre, we’ve had Marian Keyes’s The Walsh Sisters on RTÉ and, of course, there was Sharon Horgan’s infamous Bad Sisters. Now for the supportive sisters: EU policymaker Alexandra de Schonen and her younger sibling, artist and decorative painter Ashlinn.
Two years ago, Alexandra and her husband Jules Morel bought a beautiful old house right in the heart of Brussels. It needed decorating and Ashlinn had just done a course in Brussels in all the classic decorative painting techniques – marbling, faux wood effects, friezes. So, it was a no-brainer to get Ashlinn on board to decorate the house and she has done stunning work in many of the rooms, including Alexandra’s little boys’ bedroom, the master bedroom, the guest bedroom and she also created two stunning painted panels in the drawing room.