February 8, 2021 in Design Interiors, Interviews, News

Live Your Own Way with Founder and Designer Tom Raffield

tom raffield lighting furniture steam bending

What an interesting chat with week on Live Your Own Way with Sustainable Lighting and Homeware Founder and Designer Tom Raffield who creates handcrafted pieces using a steam bending technique.

I’ve been following Tom’s career for a long time now and . Talking on the Podcast meant we could delve a bit deeper in to how he chose his profession and has become a word leader in his field. We even discuss Vikings. Why wouldn’t we ?

I first got to know of the brand because I spotted their amazing intricate Lighting and often recommend them to clients. Also it would have bene impossible to miss their incredible Stands at the Chelsea Flower Show over several years, for which awards were most definitely won.

Being a real fan of Tom’s work – there was a lot ground to cover which ranged from products they have launched over the years always with their eyes firmly focused on responsibility regarding the planet and some incredible and unique collaborations. He is so passionate and interesting about steam bending and sustainability, which makes for an easy job on my part with the Podcast.

Of course, one of the first things we talked about why it became such a huge draw to him being such a unique thing to do.

One of the areas I really wanted to cover was the intricacy of some of the designs and what process they use to make the lighting such as the Skipper here above. How it stays in shape and how do they make it stay in shape so perfectly.

The Loer here below is named after the Moon in Cornish. Really beautiful don’t you think ?

tom raffield steam bench shelving wooden

I love that a lot of their designs have the Tom Raffield classic steam bent element to them. So cleverly done.

It was extremely good news to hear that there could well be some new launches this year. Obviously I won’t divulge all right here right now, but there might be a little bit of info on the Podcast. You never know …

You can listen to our chat on all the usual channels here below. Do subscribe for more – another great guest lined up next week. I feel very grateful to be chatting to such creative and fascinating people.

You may remember I did a blog interview a few years back with Tom which you can find here.

All other Podcast episodes can also be find on this page. Hope you enjoy.

Live Your Own Way with Photographer Tamsyn Morgans

photographer Tamsyn Morgans gallery wall

Here we are at week 3 of my Live Your Own Way Podcast and it’s a pleasure to have chatted with Interior Design Photographer, Stylist … and friend Tamsyn Morgans.

Tamsyn’s work has featured in many magazines including Chic and Country and Reclaim with plenty of front page features.

Have you ever wondered what distinguishes between different types of photographers ? For instance why would you book different people for certain photo shoots or how important is lighting and preparation ? What can a camera do that a mobile phone camera not be able to do ? Well, these were just a few of the subjects we discussed.

tamsyn morgans interview magazine cover flowers kitchen

pastel kitchen colours podcast tamsyn morgans

If you love stylish homes on Instagram then I’m pretty sure you will have spotted her home too which she completely made over when she moved in, with an inspiring story behind it. I also love her floral images – she has a natural ability with styling.

Although Tamsyn does make good photographing and styling look easy, it sure isn’t but she answers some questions that often come up and will help anyone starting out or wanting to take the step up to becoming a professional.

Pop on over to to your usual channel for Podcasts and have a listen. Hope you enjoy.

You can also find all my other Episodes here.

Live Your Own Way – with Author and Plant Stylist Hilton Carter

author hilton carter stylist houseplants greenery in the home

These weeks are flying by which means we are now on Episode 2 on the second series of my Podcast. I had a great chat with Plant Stylist and Author Hilton Carter this time who very kindly shared some of his day with me to discuss his life and how he cares for and styles over 600 plants of all sizes in his home, while squeezing in time to write 2 books with another one due out soon.

Hilton’s books are aptly named ‘Wild at Home’ and ‘Wild Interiors’ with the new title called ‘Wild Creations’.

This was a real treat personally to get some quality time to talk about this subject as I am well in to my plant journey and learning more every day, but it is trial and error as we discuss. Adding plants to a home scheme can have such a beneficial effect so this is why I love the world of Biophilic design and factor it in whenever I can.

hilton carter books houseplant care diy tours

I ask what led up to him becoming a plant stylist and author ?

Both books are so helpful for anyone wanting to dip their toes in to the world of greenery right through to full on, filling your entire home with greenery types which is kind of where I’m heading … and no regrets there.

In ‘ Wild at Home ‘ you will learn all about caring for and styling your plants with some stunning home tours and clever DIY’s while ‘ Wild Interiors ‘ takes you on a global tour of some incredible homes which he has photographed perfectly.

During the Podcast we talk about many aspects of keeping houseplants – the health benefits, the upkeep and which ones he thinks will be the ‘ it ‘ plants in the near future. Couldn’t miss out also his propagation wall with his especially designed cradles. A really inspiring idea.

It was really good to have my first international guest with Hilton being in Baltimore, USA. He has a very cool instagram page if you want to take a peek.

You can listen to this episode here with all the usual channels.

On this page, you’ll find all my other Podcast episodes. Next week we are delving in to interior photography so do subscribe to hear more soon.

Image 1: Copyright Hilton Carter 2021.

Live Your Own Way Series 2 with with Emma J Shipley

emma j shipley imagery drawing sketch pink red hair

I’m thrilled to have just started Series 2 of my Live Your Own Way Podcast. For the first episode I chat with Graphic Artist and Founder of her own accessories and homeware brand – Emma J Shipley.

You may well have seen Emma’s designs either online on her own store or in one of the many stores who stock her brand. The artwork is so distinctive, so that was definitely a talking point as I wanted to know how she developed her signature mythical and colourful style.

It was a great chat and we covered her time at the Royal College of Art including how she came to win the John Lewis Award for Emerging Talent while studying amongst a handful of other accolades.

emma j shipley bedding colourful interview podcast colours mythical

Stockists and collaborations over the last few years include Liberty, Anthropologie, Clarke & Clarke, Aesop and a fascinating one with Disney and Star Wars.

Her designs are timeless. An example of this is the Audubon print with an intricate hand-drawn scene of fantastical birds inspired by the works of John James Audubon.

I love how Emma works the colours together so that the different collections work still perfectly together. They work in rooms with rich colours but also white walls or anywhere in between.

emma j shipley cushions bold colour vivid love

As a textile lover and maker of things, the range of fabrics are really appealing and made with cotton and velvet which are both lovely to work with.

There are so many beautiful accessories on her website, she has everything covered – the scented candles in bona china pots, wallpaper, tableware, cards and also the most stunning art prints – we go in to detail about the silk Constellation print and the inspiration behind it.

It was interesting talking about her use of colour within the Scarves too; which are her favourite hues to use – and we discovered a mutual love on one particular colour…

Emma J Shipley colour homeware vivid inspiring

Really, it was so inspiring to discuss see what someone can achieve with a combination of talent, focus and a seriously good eye for colour – and all with self deprecation !

Times are obviously unusual at the moment so Emma offered some helpful advice for anyone studying in the creative field right now – which will be very useful here at home for my daughter too who is set for the world of art.

Here is my Podcast page where you can catch up on Series 1 if you’d like to. I hope you enjoy it as much I enjoyed making it. Do subscribe if you would like to hear more. I have a great interview lined up for next week too – about one of my most favourite ever subjects.

You can also subscribe to my newsletters here. I update every now and then with news.

Images Copyright: Ben Broomfield.

Adding Big Print to a Small Space

biophilic prints textiles for door curtain

There are always certain areas in a home that tend to get neglected. Maybe they’re not utilised as much but just small space and therefore harder to add character to. Our back door has been a bit like that and it has been bugging me for some time, so I decided to add a lovely big print in the form of a door curtain to add some character. It’s amazing what some plants and pretty fabric can do. As this part of the room is often in my eye line when cooking and daydreaming about interior design projects … it really has made a difference not only to that part of the room but the overall feel of the kitchen.

I’m a massive Linwood Fabrics and love using their fabrics. They’re so easy to work with; lovely to cut and sew. I have had my eye on this Kahanu Oasis print from their Belleville range for ages. Not just the colours but the exuberant design. It is inspired by an early 20th century chintz and is a really gorgeous quality. This style has made a huge comeback over the last few years, but I’ve never stopped loving it. It would look great upholstered on a chair. It’s a feature print for stands out on it’s own but if feeling brave, would also look amazing with some other bold colours.

Disclosure: This is a collaborative post with Linwood Fabrics.

wall mounted plant holder biophilic design tropical fabrics

It does take time to make a curtain because of all the hand stitching but all worth it. Let’s face it as well – we all have a bit of extra time at the moment. If you sew then you’ll know about pattern matching with seams when making items – it’s not always easy but I found this one extremely simple when I was joining the two panels together. The feel is lovely and soft with a medium weight linen.

biophilia curtains door small space big print plants

With my love of Biophilia growing by the day, it’s also a great excuse to add more plants even in textile form to the home. The greens and pinks are good for the soul and are an extension of the garden – although I’m still working at owning plants that look this good. If you’ve seen my banana plants on instagram you’ll know I am giving it a good go ! The houseplants here are Spiderworts at the top and Pothos underneath. Both grow quite quickly and will trail so nice to grow in a wall mounted pot.

Speaking of instagram – I recently did a Reel to road test Linwood’s stain resistant fabrics as many of them have this kind of finish. If you saw it you’ll know that I poured tea all over some of their velvet and linen. It felt oh so wrong but I really wanted to know of it really worked. Here are the results.

So, what do you think of our newly spruced up area here ? Is there anywhere in your own home that you want to give a facelift ?

back door curtain inspiration small space fabrics ideas for biophilia home

If you’d like to see more of Linwood’s collections then pop over to their website for some inspiration. Many of their textiles are designed and printed solely in the UK with the rest made in cherry picked mills in Europe. Each collection is drawn and painted by hand. I think for me, that’s what makes it so special making anything they have created.

You can see an older post of mine where I upholstered a bench seat in their Tango fabric and created a Youtube video here.