Summer Notes - Life & the Studio

Family trip to the South of France

It’s been rather quiet here and on social media for the last six weeks. The summer holidays bring their own particular demands when you’re both an interior designer and a parent to two young children. Days become a careful balance of site visits and sourcing trips, with the calls of builders and suppliers set against the parallel soundtrack of ice creams, outings and arts and crafts activities.

We began the holidays with a family trip to the South of France, staying in a rustic villa with the most perfectly placed outdoor kitchen beside a weathered stone pool. The countryside was breathtaking, full of texture, colour and scent. We picked figs from the villa garden, visited wineries, and I enjoyed long lunches with my husband and children while life slowed to an altogether gentler pace.

Back home in Surrey, my son spent happy hours at the village drama camp, performing Peter Pan and Mary Poppins with the kind of enthusiasm only children can bring. My three year old daughter has been my unlikely ‘assistant.’ She came along to sourcing trips, copying me by holding fabric samples up against pieces, which caused much amusement for my upholsterer. She even joined me at a networking breakfast, standing proudly next to me during my presentation. It was a good reminder that none of us are one-dimensional, and that family and work often fold together in ways that are messy, fun, complex and surprisingly grounding.

Work doesn’t pause just because the school gates close. Projects continue to move forward, decisions are still needed, and contractors need answers. Yet the holidays bring a different rhythm, sometimes hectic, often untidy, but rewarding in their own way.

This summer has reminded me that design, like family life, rarely unfolds in straight lines. It works best in layers, with the unexpected, the in-between. Children see colour and shape instinctively, without the filters we learn as adults, and it’s often in these moments, sketchbook open beside Lego bricks, that new ideas quietly emerge.

So, while I’ve been quieter here, the work has been moving along behind the scenes. Projects are edging closer to installation, several new exciting commissions have come in, and September feels like the natural moment to return with renewed energy.

I’m back, and looking forward to sharing more over the coming weeks.