THE JOURNAL
LISABELLEOMAS
Barnes-based Lomas was on maternity leave during the pandemic when she decided to start her own studio: since then, she hasn’t looked back, with residential projects that include a six-bedroom house in Cornwall.
What’s the thread that runs through every scheme, regardless of the aesthetic? I would probably say comfort: it is so important to feel
comfortable and rested in your own home, which usually means having functional furniture, and storage that creates a space for every item, coffee cup, book or buggy!
Is there any business advice you wish you’d known when you started out? I wish I had built more of a team around me before taking the leap, so I had access to people with skill sets I didn’t have.
What do you obsess over in your work? More than often, I obsess over consistency through colours in a project, to ensure one room flows into another. I am not really a fan of creating spaces that don’t have a link or story to tell, so it really does start with finding the right palette and fabrics.
What’s your latest discovery at the Design Centre? I have always loved both David Seyfried Ltd and Circa Lighting: they both bring a fresh approach. I have been using them for years, but I always find something new that I fall for every time I visit the showrooms.
HOLLOWAY LI
Na Li and Alex Holloway met while they were both apprenticing at Michaelis Boyd, working on Soho Farmhouse, before eventually founding their Clerkenwell- based studio in 2018. Specialising in hospitality venues, including The Hoxton and aparthotel group Locke’s Munich outpost, they also take on residential projects.
What’s the thread that runs through every scheme, regardless of the aesthetic? We are a team of interior architects who combine design and creative strategy. We love to explore the conflict of old and new – the dynamism of combining historicism and digital processes to produce new decorative forms. We want our spaces to be theatrical and delight visitors. Our projects are driven by an underlying narrative, we innovate with materials, and we aren’t afraid of colour.
Is there any business advice you wish you’d known when you started out? Be sociable – go out to meet a lot of people – not only with clients, but also peers and collaborators, as ideas come from communicating and bouncing ideas around. Make the most of every opportunity. Do one thing really well – don’t get distracted.
What do you obsess over in your work? Sustainability, innovation and materiality. Spaces that tell stories.
What’s your latest discovery at the Design Centre? Arte and Eggersmann Design.
PANDORA TAYLOR
After training at KLC School of Design, Pandora Taylor landed a job at Kitesgrove, before setting up on her own in 2018; based in Vauxhall, she undertakes every project personally from start to finish.
What have you become known for? A colourful, quite English style with a timeless, sophisticated quality, as well as some quirky headboards that break with the traditional idea of furniture shapes.
What inspires you? I love watching old movies, and getting a sense of past styles and ways of living. There is so much to learn from historic interiors and some great ideas that got forgotten along the way.
What’s the thread that runs through every scheme, regardless of the aesthetic? Definitely colour and the way that this comes together in harmony in the space. While I might use bold materials, shapes or designs, nothing in the room ever stands out – it is about how things complement one another to look natural.
Did you have a big break? Working for Kitesgrove, and the senior designer at the time, Sophie Elborne, was a good break, as there were not many designers at the time doing a relaxed timeless style. It helped me learn about what I did and didn’t like and I had incredible independence to develop my own creative style.
What do you obsess over in your work? The small details – usually the height and width of various furniture pieces and how they all work together, since a very small margin can make something feel really uncomfortable. Good interiors should be seamless and totally functional.
What’s your latest discovery at the Design Centre? ABI Interiors: they do great contemporary brassware at good prices, which I am using in an upcoming project.
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© Angus Williams Photography © Edmund Dabney
© Charlie Forgham-Bailey
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