House Guest by Country & Town House | Interior Designer Interviews
Published by Country and Town House
Arts
Design
Welcome to the House Guest podcast, where C&TH Interiors Editor Carole Annett chats with experts from the world of interior design and decoration, the people behind the houses and hotels you see in glossy magazines like ours. Some of the names will be familiar, and others may be less so, but we’re sure you’ll recognise the hotels and restaurants they’ve designed. And if you’re in the middle of your own building project or re-style, we hope you’ll pick up some tips. Enjoy!
This week Carole heads to the Chelsea showroom of Farrow & Ball paint to chat to Joa Studholme – the genius behind paint colours such as Elephant’s Breath and Skimming Stone. She joined Farrow & Ball more than 30 years ago, and as well as developing new colours, she consults on design projects all over the world. Joa shares her wealth of knowledge on choosing paint and hints at the colour trends ahead. She also admits how many times she repaints her own home every year. Tune in for more. House Guest now takes a short summer break. Thanks for listening and please join us again in September.
With names such as Jilly Cooper, Daisy Lowe and Mary Berry amongst its fanbase, few brands encompass as much love, friendship, and loyalty as AGA. This week Carole sits down with Dominic Worsley and Laura James of AGA Rangemaster to talk about the brand’s renaissance under new leadership, as well as its new colours, new controls and much-loved heritage. Tune in for anecdotes, snippets of AGA history, plans for the future, and to discover the brilliant sales advice advertising guru David Ogilvy came up with when he worked for the cast-iron cooker brand.
As we are well into the summer season – with Royal Ascot behind us and Wimbledon still ongoing – Carole Annett chats to Hattie Hansard of Joanna Wood about how interior designers are often employed by hospitality companies to transform these temporary spaces into something magical. Using a clever eye and often complicated logistics, here's how they create a memorable space for guests enjoying a day out.
This week, we've gone a little bit off-piste from interiors as I sit down to chat to Kiki McDonough. A favourite jeweller to the royals (with Queen Camilla and the Princess of Wales regularly seen wearing her pieces), she has now worked in the industry for over 40 years. Sitting at the helm of a much-loved, globally-renowned brand, the fifth generation jeweller is renowned for her pioneering use of coloured gemstones. One of the first women to make a name for herself in the British, luxury jewellery world, Kiki has built a well-respected business on her own with the support of a great team, while juggling two sons, multiple patronages and a social life that would tire most 20-somethings. We talk about running a business and the very exciting news that she has just gained a royal warrant.
What does it take to turn a house into a home? For Christophe Carpente – the French-born, Swiss-trained architect behind some of the world's most considered luxury interiors – the answer lies in chemistry, trust, and the willingness to let go. In this episode of House Guest, Carpente joins Carole from his Notting Hill studio to reflect on nearly 30 years of practice: from designing flagship stores for Cartier, Burberry and De Beers, to the deeply personal work of building homes for their owners. Sponsored by Aqualisa Showers .
'There are two sides to designing something: it needs to be useful and it needs to be beautiful,’ says John Sims-Hilditch, co-founder of Neptune, which is celebrating 30 years of making furniture and accessories for the home. ‘I actually slightly fall into beauty being the most important thing in design,’ he continues. ‘Utility falls away but beauty endures’. Tune in for more about how John and his business partner Giles Redman went from selling hammocks to building a hugely successful brand.
Carole Annett talks to Charu Gandhi of Elicyon about what it takes to create luxurious, welcoming spaces for a discerning clientele. 'There’s always something I’m worrying about. For the months the project is with you they are like your children. I’ve recently been fretting about a pair of bar stools in a project - are they the right height and if the cushions are plump enough. There’s a soap dish on another project I don't like… do we need a soap dish, are soap dishes cool? I really care,' she laughs, 'and I should care as clients are entrusting us with a meaningful part of their lives’. Tune in for more including an insight into the Elicyon x Lalique bar at this year’s WOW House at Design Centre Chelsea Harbour.
Carole Annett chats to Philipp Nagel of Neatsmith and Charlotte-Elizabeth Evans, founder of Charlotte Elizabeth Interiors about the beauty, practicality, and lasting value of bespoke wardrobes. Together, they discuss how well-designed wardrobes and dressing rooms combine elegant aesthetics with storage tailored to individual lifestyles. Philipp shares insights into some of the projects he has worked on - including creating a display for a collection of Hermès Birkin bags, while Charlotte-Elizabeth offers design solutions on how to make storage as beautiful as it is functional, whatever your budget.
Carole talks to Claire German, CEO of Design Centre Chelsea Harbour, on the eve of this year's design showcase, WOW!house, an immersive experience where you can see, touch and feel fabulous spaces created by world-leading interior designers. Claire says, 'When people walk in I wanted them to go "wow", so that's why I thought calling it WOW!house was perfect; and to this day, I watch people arrive and walk in and the first thing they say is "wow", so my dreams have come true.' The event is open from 2 June to 2 July at Design Centre Chelsea Harbour . Sponsored by Aqualisa Showers .
This week Carole chats to German industrial designer Stefan Diez. One of the best in the business, Diez's designs touch the everyday, from baths to chairs, bar stools and benches. His design is firmly rooted in the workshop, where he indulges his passion for material experimentation. The son of a cabinetmaker he says he had the perfect childhood, being left alone in his father's workshop. He lectures at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna but beware students trying to impress. His message to young designers: ‘Don't think you’re special and don't start by making meaningful things. Keep it simple and respect the materials. Go and explore. I like to be surprised by ingenious ideas that simplify everything, like a magic trick.'
'I know sometimes clients struggle to make a decision and I just say the same thing: go with your gut,' says interior designer Brian Woulfe. 'That visceral reaction, that emotional reaction, if you love it go for it, go make it work.' Today, Brian Woulfe is best-known for Designed by Woulfe – his multi-awarding winning, luxury interior design studio based in London. But that wasn't always the plan. A polo player, concert pianist and father to two dogs, Brian Woulfe has done it all. Tune in to discover how. Sponsored by Aqualisa Showers .
Multi-award winning, New York based designer Young Huh is this week’s House Guest. Masterful at crafting a sense of place, she is one of the designers at this year’s WOW House event at Design Centre Chelsea Harbour. She says of the room she is showcasing, the design of which was influenced by her love of Korean folk art: 'It has lots of small moments – that’s how I like to design. First you have a big impact and as you explore a room you then see more and more detail.' Young Huh is about to launch a new book and has a very special reason for visiting London – her love of sausage rolls. Sponsored by Aqualisa Showers .
Sarah Wetenhall is the owner and CEO of The Colony Hotel in Palm Beach and the soon-to-open Hedges in East Hampton. With no prior experience of running a hotel, Sarah used her marketing background and love of entertaining to bring Palm Beach’s iconic luxury beach house back to life. ‘We have one foot in the sand and one foot on Worth Avenue,' she says. The hotel is a go-to for celebrities and Sarah has collaborated with luxury brands and clients such as Aerin Lauder and Gwyneth Paltrow. Apple TV also came calling for a takeover when its Palm Royale TV show went live: a wonderful story of a love affair with an iconic hotel. Sponsored by Aqualisa Showers .
'I think there are two things that make a good interior designer,' says Romanos Brihi, one half of Studio Vero alongside his partner in design Venetia Rudebeck: ‘Being nosy and having a good visual memory’. Friends since childhood, the pair crystallised their enduring partnership when they launched their studio in 2014. Their practice is renowned for breathing life into a space with flair, intrigue, antiques and art. Tune in to hear more about how they combine work and friendship, creating beautifully inviting interiors and having a lot of fun along the way. Carole caught up with them in Romanos’ newly-decorated Kensington home. House Guest takes a short break after this episode – back in a few weeks’ time.
Renewable energy expert Ewan Frost-Pennington believes that like vultures – the star attraction at his Lake District home, Muncaster Castle – heat pumps are often painted under a bad light. Keep an open mind says Ewan as he tells Carole Annett how he convinced his parents to radically change their traditional thinking on heat and energy to transform the comfort levels, and coffers, of his ancestral home. Sponsored by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero .
This week Carole sits down with Sandrine Zhang Ferron, the founder and CEO of Vinterior, as the online marketplace celebrates 10 years of selling beautiful pre-loved furniture. ‘I think that it’s important that things are beautiful and to be in beautiful places,’ says Sandrine. Sandrine values beauty so dearly, in fact, that she was inspired to quit her successful finance career when she found herself struggling to source the perfect Poul Volther chair to match the yellow of her cat’s eyes. Frustrated with the inefficiency of the vintage furniture market, she decided to take matters into her own hands. Motivated by her desire for a better pre-loved shopping experience, she taught herself to code – and so Vinterior was born. Tune in for more.
Fiona Barratt Campbell's 'industrial meets superluxe' design philosophy sets her apart and has earned her some impressive projects, including The Powerhouse Chelsea Waterfront – formerly the Lots Road power station which once powered the London Underground network. I met up with her in one of the penthouses to talk design, work-life, her love of rugged texture and natural stone and why everything she does has to have integrity. Tune in for more
'Young Sainsbury is a cheeky little sausage with the most wonderful eye for detail. His furniture is extraordinary', says his client Sir Rod Stewart. Meeting in Guy Goodfellow's Chelsea atelier, this week Carole Annett sits down with the design world's best-kept secret: Jonathan Sainsbury. Founded in 1918, his eponymous family-run business has a reputation for creating some of the finest furniture in the world, often (though, as he stresses, not always) inspired by classical interiors of the 18th- and 19th-centuries. The key to his success? Quality. As he tells Carole: 'I only trade off my quality. I don't trade off price. I don't trade off being the quickest in the world. I don't trade off any of that. I only trade off people saying "If you want the best job then go and see Jonny and he'll sort it out for you".'
This week Carole sat down with celebrated chef Jason Atherton to chat about life, food, Michelin stars and his collaboration with luxury kitchen design company Smallbone. As a young boy growing up in Skegness, working in a restaurant gave Jason discipline, which along with a lifelong passion for fresh seasonal ingredients, has shaped his life. He has been married for 22 years with three daughters and they all know how to cook pasta from scratch. Tune in to hear more about fine dining, the simple way to upscale supermarket tomato purée and how to design a perfect kitchen.
Coco Chanel once said: 'Luxury must be comfortable, otherwise it is not luxury' – words that perfectly encompass the philosophy of this week's House Guest, Alua Kul, of Lumi Interiors. 'Practicality and functionality are the most important aspects of interior design,' she says. Tune in to hear more about how she fell in love with interior design and used her inquisitive mind and business acumen to set up a successful business practice which bridges London and Dubai.
