Five takeaways from The Interior Design Business podcast

 'Sustainability: Your Questions Answered' 

It was great to be invited on to The Interior Design Business podcast again. A little different to last time which was mid Lockdown and via Zoom.... this was a live recording complete with an audience at the Chelsea showroom of sofa.com.

Past BIID president Susie Rumbold moderated the discussion with fellow designers Alexandra Jurkiewicz, Creative Lead at Helen Green Design and David Chenery, founder and director of Object Space Place. Here’s the recording. 

1. 'Sustainability' has so many interpretations and approaches - the three of us demonstrate that. It may feel daunting to step into - find what works for you and don't waiting until you can do it perfectly.  Designers and suppliers - please sign the Interior Design Declares pledge and learn with us.
2. The best interior is one that exists - so be creative and reuse and show off your creativity.  There's lots of great storytelling as a result.
3. Susie's had bad experience with recycled PET rugs - but don't let that put you off.  Retrieved sea plastic including PET and 'ghost' fishing nets are a great source of yarn used for carpets and fabrics. I'm very happy to use recycled problem-solving plastics while they are here - but obviously reduction of the source is what's desperately needed.
4. Resale values and ability to repair are really important factors when making decisions.  Buy better. Buy preloved.
5. We need to break the resource using traditional ways of doing things  - there are multiple approaches.  I'm adding David's book recommendation to my book queue... Rory Sutherland's Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense 

Old designer at New Designers!
Staggeringly good AGAIN.

I went with Sadie MillerMaggs 🌱 BDES (hons) - one of my two brilliant mentees - who is in her closing weeks of her Masters in Interior Design (... who will be quickly snapped up I'm sure - she's excellent at designing, 3D models, with the same passion for innovation- especially regenerative vegan materials as me - she's also been guest lecturing and wants to help design practices with their specifications).

The standard was so high again at this show. What talent we have in the UK!

As always I love to visit my own course - Furniture & Product design at Nottingham Trent University - consistently great work on show again.

I also LOVE to see the output of Claire Potter 's cohort at @Sussex University's Product Design BSc. So impressive - you can see and hear Claire's passion to teach them well in both their work and how they speak about it.  Oh to be a student on her course!! By the way this was easily the best looking stand of the show - counter top made from recycled face masks, recycled PET screens, urban mined unwanted exhibition display, and the students from last last year - when the show was cancelled - were thoughtfully represented 🏆💚

Great to see all the shortlists and awards spread around The Business Design Centre - especially yours Creative Conscience Chrissy Levett ðŸ˜

Here's my FIVE TAKEAWAYS:
Much to take in but some stand out designs for me (in no particular order) .....

1.  Desk and desk lamp by Bob Conforth - so carefully designed and specified. Designed for disassembly, no animal products, glues or finishes. A beautiful design!

2.  Jasmine Nicholson's clever regenerative and modular contract mattress using mycelium and linoleum.

3.  Beautiful organic forms from the 3D design & craft degree at the University of Brighton. Including a design & campaign on periods, reclaimed and rescued spalted timber stools

4.  Rescued climbing rope turned into a beautiful chair on the Kingston University stand - climbing rope just has a 10 year life.

5.   And last but not least - Mona Marina's experimentation with waste materials to create decorative finishes and art - Christmas tree needles, cabbage, tangerine and lemon peel.

This show never disappoints. I'm looking forward to next year - which will be 30 years since this Old Designer was a New Designer herself!

Interior Design Declares - one year in!

The end of March '22 marked the end of our first year as a community working together to improve our industry's shocking impact on the climate breakdown and biodiversity loss.

"The UK construction industry contributes 25 million tonnes of waste to landfill every year. Worldwide, the construction industry contributes to 50% of all climate change, 40% of drinking water pollution, 23% of air pollution and 50% of landfill waste." *  

Interior Design Declares is a community of interior design practices - small and large - as well as suppliers of goods and services to our industry.  We recognise we need to share learnings and learn together encourage our supply chains to improve.

The great news is we have just had our 150th signatory.  

It's been a wonderful experience to be a Founder member and see the whole thing set up - and working with fellow interior designers who are also passionate to improve our industry.   We're a voluntary group and meet monthly.  Our group has evolved into a Steering Group now as people have shifted around.  Our objective is to get the maximam impact - by attending panel discussions,  talks,  podcasts - whatever we can to extend our reach and influence others.  

We’ve taken part in successful, well attended events – which generated new members and lots of debate – at WasteBuild, Planted, Surface Design Show,  FutureBuild, BIID Annual Conference ‘22 – Sustainability Showcase,  Alliance for Sustainable Building Products (ASBP)

We’ve given interviews with The Interior Design Business, Quietmark and The Edge podcasts

We’ve continued to contribute to the Built Environment Declares steering group – and have done another funding round to raise money to expand the information on our website - which is live now and where you can read more on the UK Declaration.

We are also running the Global declaration and encouraging other countries to join us.  So far we have been joined by Finland.  Declarations from Egypt, USA and Australia are in the pipeline. 

If you are reading this and want to join or help to set up a declation for the design industry in your country - we'd really welcome you!  Please apply here.

* Source: Hawken, P., Lovins, E and Lovins, H, Natural, Capitalism – Creating the next Industrial Revolution, Little Brown and Co., 1999 369pp.