When you think back to New England, is there a particular place or room that still guides your choices today, and how has it shaped the materials and palette you reach for?
My parents’ home has always been the space that has inspired me the most. Growing up in a home that was so well-loved and so well looked after, filled with all their treasures, has taught me the importance of designing a home in a way that brings joy, both through the ease it brings to life (through careful planning of how spaces should function) and through the beautiful objects that fill the space. Their home means everything to them, and that love for the home is definitely where I got my passion from.
Travelling with your father to source antiques, can you tell me about one piece you chose together and what it taught you about proportion, patina and positioning?
My dad has such a great eye and he taught me to trust mine. Some of my very favourite pieces are ones that my dad chose without me and I fell for once I saw them in his shop.
As the nights draw in, beyond warmth, how does a fireplace change how people come together and how a space feels?
It has completely changed how to spend our evenings. The warmth and glow of the fire forms a natural focal point in the room and also provides a rhythm to the long, dark evenings. As it grows dark, we light the stove and when it starts to die down it signals that it’s nearly time for bed.
You’ve recently fitted a Charnwood Cranmore 7 at home. Has it changed how you use and arrange the room day to day?
At its most basic, it’s allowed us to use the room at all during the colder months. It was previously far too cold in that room – with its single glazed windows and uninsulated basement below. It has completely opened up the ground floor for us during the winter. We have two upholstered chairs in our front room that are easily moved so when there’s a fire lit, we tend to swing them towards the fireplace. The whole space revolves around it!
For someone starting to redesign a home or a single room, what is the first decision you would make before starting, and what common mistake would you help them avoid?
I often tell clients to focus on a North Star. This could be their ultimate goal for the space, be it the way it needs to function, a new or heirloom piece of furniture, an architectural addition such as a bay window or a new fireplace, or even just a feeling. Every other decision should revolve around that North Star. It helps narrow options, cut out the noise, clarify decisions, and put all those issues that crop up during a project into perspective. It should also, ideally, mean that at the end of a project, the result is a space you really love.