CharaCter Builder Designer Hilary Lancaster does her history homework and shops locally to give a former office building near Amsterdam a homey new soul. BY CHRISTINA GREEN FREDERIC DUCOUT THE SITE of THE Urban Lodge Hotel is far from glamorous. When designer Hilary Lancaster first saw the exterior of the drab office building she'd been commissioned to transform into a trendsetting retreat, her heart sank. "We joked about how the interiors would be a great surprise for guests because they would be so different from the exterior," recalls Lancaster, founder and managing director of Fusion Interiors Group. She'd been tasked with creating an inspiring environment within an uninspiring angular shell on a tight budget. But starting with a blank canvas meant her team could come up with a completely fresh idea. The result is a cohesive visual experience that pays tribute to the locale's agrarian-meets-industrial roots in a way that's authentic and anything but gauche. The 120-key Dutch lodge is tucked just outside Amsterdam's Sloterdijk village. Formerly occupied by farmland, the town became an industrial hub following the construction of a canal in the 1630s. About 200 years later, railroads began making their way through the area, which is now home to a major railway station connecting the village to the city's center. march 2017 boutiquedesign.com 45http://www.boutiquedesign.com