1. What made you want to become a designer in the first place?
Since I was very young, I have always loved drawing and making things. It’s my instinctive way of expression. After leaving college I became an illustrator, then I trained as a tattoo artist and now I am a designer.
2. Where did you study design?
I studied Furniture and Product design at London Metropolitan University. I had some really inspiring lecturers – most notably, Tomoko Azumi, William Warren and Jane Atfield
3. What was the first thing you designed?
Outrageous ‘Haute Couture’ number’s for my Barbie doll when I was about 7 or 8. My sister and I would then stage a fashion show to showcase the designs. Somehow our Barbie’s would always end up in a mock catfight in the ‘best outfit’ finale.
4. How do you define good design?
Good design should be able to help us to evolve our behaviour in accordance with what we need today: to be more hospitable and generous. I hate design when it is presented in an elitist style. Design is about what people do everyday, and it’s about adding quality to what people do every day. The ideal object is one that you use everyday, that continues to surprise and excite you every time you use it.
5. What would you be if not a designer?
Being a designer is a luxury. I feel privileged to wake up in the morning to a day of ideas, colours and shapes. If I had not become a designer, my curiosity in what is universally pleasing to people and why, would probably have led me to the field of Anthropology. I enjoy observing people and their habits: the way they sit, eat, shop, dress, dance, make a mess and then tidy up again. It’s fascinating!
6. Which design of yours are you most proud of and why?
I’ve just created a capsule range of sex toys and accessories for a well-known brand, which was an unusual and interesting experience for me. The products relate to love, attraction, comfort, and softness with a major focus on intimacy. My goal was to achieve a true sensuality of form that naturally attracts and engages the user, evoking desire and curiosity. It’s all about the ‘build up’!
7. Anything in your career you wish you’d done differently?
Not yet. I think it is good to be a little unconventional and to follow your instincts. Life is too short to dwell on the ‘why’s’ and ‘what if’s’.
8. Which designers do you most admire?
Jean Prouve and Constantin Grcic. I admire the understated intelligence and the slightly obsessive attention to detail that is apparent in their work. I can appreciate the hours that were spent in search for the right curves or combination of materials, details that the user will not necessarily notice.
I also like Doshie Levien. Their creations are beautiful and intricate, sometimes functional and fun, and sometimes witty and clever. To me, they bring a sense of enjoyment to everyday life.
9. Which product do you wish you’d designed/do you think is an example of good design?
There are too many to mention but if pressed I would say the ipod/iphone. It’s a lazy answer but I don’t know how I got by before it was invented.
10. Tell me about your design style at home?
My home doesn’t have a ‘design style’ as such. I live with my partner and our 3 children in a Victorian terrace in East London. From the outside it looks pretty normal, but inside each member of the family has been given their own space to ‘free-style’ however they want.
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