IN PARTNERSHIP WITH RANGE ROVER
On her idea of good taste …
Your favourite virtue Every business is an act of imagination that conjures a future that doesn’t yet exist. Hope is the virtue that pushes you to evolve, shaping yourself and your work to meet that vision. Without hope, you wouldn’t begin.
Your favourite qualities in a man Intelligence, humour, and a gentle soul. Intelligence keeps life interesting, humour and a good belly laugh keep it joyful, and a gentle soul determines who a person truly is.
Your favourite qualities in a woman Intelligence, humour, and gentleness. My standards don’t change!
Your chief characteristic My father always said I had moxie, and my husband agrees. To me, it’s the nerve to keep going, a refusal to be defeated, and the belief, like Scarlett O’Hara, that “tomorrow is another day”.
What do you appreciate most in your friends That they are entirely themselves. Every friend is different, and what I love in one I wouldn’t find in another. Friendship isn’t a fixed set of qualities, it is beautiful because it’s particular to the person.
Your main fault I can be a little holier-than-thou. In fact, ‘Pius the Tenth’ is my husband’s nickname for me when I’m at my most insufferable.
Your favourite occupation I’m happiest when I’m completely immersed in the world of research, reading, creating, and honing ideas.
Your idea of happiness Being at home with my family and my two sweet little doggies.
Your idea of misery The appalling suffering of people in conflict zones, and the feeling that those with the power to help have stopped caring.
If not yourself, who would you be? I wouldn’t be anyone else. Life’s a gift for you to shape into the person you would be.
Your current state of mind My mind is always reaching toward the next thing. I should probably learn to be in the moment!
Your favourite colour and flower A beautiful powdery blue. Daffodils, because they are the herald of spring; I’m always so happy to see their arrival.
Which talent would you most like to possess I’d love to be a great orator. I am actually quite a shy person and find public speaking incredibly difficult, so I have immense admiration for people who can stand up and speak effortlessly.
The principal aspect of your personality I have an introverted, taciturn disposition. I am naturally quiet, reserved, and self-reliant.
Your idea of good taste Good taste to me is an instinct for what belongs together: the shades that sit beside each other, the textures that work, the notes that harmonise, the ingredients that complement. It is less about rules than about sensitivity. A kind of attunement. But taste also understands imperfection. When everything harmonises too perfectly it becomes bland. It’s the unexpected element, the thing slightly out of place, that gives it life.
The quality I look for in my surroundings A sense of calm and peace.
The country where I should like to live Right here. Having lived in four countries, I’ve learned that changing your geography is an illusion. Wherever you go, you take yourself with you; your outlook doesn’t change, just the location. My mother and grandmother had a saying: “Contentment with one’s lot is heaven on earth, forget it not”. It’s a beautiful philosophy, though whenever I quote it to my husband, he usually bows and asks for my papal blessing.
I look to the road ahead with Excitement. This year we begin making handmade leather goods in our workshop; something we have worked toward for a long time. I can’t wait to see how it unfolds.
SEE MORE: Get To Know The Tweed Project
