Taproom Makeover at Wayfarers' Ale Society

A few months back I was given the opportunity to decorate the newly opened Wayfarers Ale Society in Port Williams, Nova Scotia. The owners of this newly built craft brewery had an amazing vision for the esthetics on the outside of the building, but the taproom was a blank slate. I was more than happy to lend a hand giving this new craft brewery a Taproom makeover.

This was a great space to work in. My guidelines were quite simple as they just wanted to create an atmosphere that was casual, inviting, and comfortable for their patrons to enjoy a refreshing beer.

Let’s have a look at what the taproom looked like before…

See that window on the wall… to an office. Yep a bit weird. It had to go.

The space has a lot of beautiful natural light, but otherwise cold and stale. The 12″ pine (stained in ‘Driftwood’) planking really warmed up the space.

After getting a sense of what the owners were looking for I determined what they wanted to achieve was ‘industrial brewery with a side of gentleman’s study’. Yep, I totally made that up. They wanted something that was classy, but still lent a nod to the hipster generation that would be attracted to their tasty brew.

I chose colors from the PPG Global Color and Design Trends book for 2017-2018. Be sure to have a flip through this amazing resource that breaks color stories down in architectural, automotive, aerospace, and consumer products. As well as thoughts, feelings, and global influences. Some amazing color palettes to work with.

Cider Toddy PPG1207-7 tied everything together so well. Not only did it have a name that screamed ‘put me in a brew house’ but the warm caramel undertones tied the two sitting zones together making the transition between the two plank walls perfect.

The exit doors were painted in Pewter Mug PPG1004-5 and the remaining walls in White Gypsum PPG 1006-1.

CIDER TODDY | PEWTER MUG | GYPSUM

Creating a custom sign for the space was one of my favorite aspects of the project. Ironically the font is also called Wayfarers, funny eh?!

The industrial coffee table and end tables were built by my cousin Justin. They tie the look together well, toning down the preppy tufted sofa set. I added a set of stationary drapes to each side of the wall of patio doors. This was mainly to help with noise control as the space has a high vaulted ceiling.

The end tables continued to further dry after bringing them into the space, but the large cracks really add character that can’t be faked.

I mimicked the bike on the wall from The Union Street. I scored it on a road trip for $11! We had been working closely together, their brew is one of the most popular on tap.