← Talk Shop with Ariel Okin: A Fenimore Lane Production
Talk Shop with Ariel Okin: A Fenimore Lane Production
Revisiting a S2 Favorite: Louise Roe From Television to Timeless Design
00:34:48
Loading summary
Transcript162 lines
- [00:00]
A
Before we dive in, I wanted to take a moment to thank this season's presenting sponsor, Shop My. Shop My is a platform that connects designers, tastemakers and creators with shoppers who trust their style and recommendations. With Shopmy, you can discover and shop the pieces experts actually use and love in their own homes, all in one beautifully curated place. And now shopping is even easier with the launch of the new Shop My app. Create circles with your favorite curators like myself or today's guest. Discover new products tailored to your taste and save everything you love with wishlists and snapshot right in the app. Download the new Shop My App at the link in the show Notes. And now on to this week's episode. We're sharing a favorite conversation from the.
- [00:43]
B
Archives while we get new episodes ready for you.
- [00:46]
A
If you missed it the first time, you're in for a treat, and if you didn't, it's a perfect revisit for a cozy week. Enjoy.
- [00:53]
B
What does your home say about you, do you think?
- [00:56]
C
I like to shut the doors and have a really sort of cozy retreat from the outside world and I want to create that for my daughters as well. I think home should feel really safe and really warm in the sense of colors and textures. There's, as you imagine, lots of old antique. I'm looking at an antique chest right now and I have a Hungarian antique jug. My best friend was laughing at me like your equivalent of like my net. A porter is literally finding a sort of Hungarian jug dealer on Etsy and.
- [01:25]
B
I was like, yeah, that's welcome to Talkshop. I'm Ariel Okun, a New York based interior designer, writer and editor looking to bring a little bit of magic into our homes every day. After years as a writer and editor in the interiors world, I founded my own editorial site, Fed and Orlean in 2020 and the talk Shop Interview series was born. Each week I delve into the personal experiences of the top interior designers and tastemakers around the globe. I'm joined by Louise Rowe, an iconic figure in the fashion and lifestyle industry who has worked as an Editor, TV Host and Writer for over 15 years. With a storied career that includes stints as a former Fashion Editor at large for Glamour Magazine as well as Time writing for Vogue, Elle, the Telegraph and House and Garden. Louise's personal style is clearly honed and undeniably chic. After a decade in la, Louise returned to England with her husband MacKenzie and their two beautiful daughters, where she turned her passion for interior design into the next stage of her career. Founding Charlotte England in 2021. We'll learn what drew her to pave a new path. Plus the origin story of the brand. You can follow along with Louise's career and personal life on Louise Row, her home renovations and interior inspirations on Louise Row Home and Charlyn's latest updates at charlyenglund. Please join me as we hop across the pond with Louise. Welcome to the podcast, Louise.
- [02:54]
C
I mean, that was the smoothest intro. You're amazing. You should do voiceovers.
- [03:01]
B
Wait, that's so nice because you of all people are the most professional person to say that. So thank you.
- [03:07]
C
You just made my week.
- [03:08]
B
Well, to kick off the conversation, can you describe your style in three words or less?
- [03:15]
C
Traditional, English, textured?
- [03:19]
B
Yes, I think that's so true. I'm obsessed with all of Louise's home content and especially her two beautiful homes that she shared. Her beautiful renovations of the behind the scenes on Instagram too. So for those who may not know who Louise is, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and where you are at this point in your life right now?
- [03:41]
C
Yeah, I spent 11 years living in LA, and until just before COVID hit, we moved back to England. And during that time and prior to that, I was in, and I still am, you know, in the media, so writing for various magazines, predominantly about fashion rather than interiors, interviewing people, and then also in front of camera, hosting a lot of red carpet. So, you know, Access Hollywood.
- [04:07]
B
I remember watching you for years until.
- [04:10]
C
Yes, it was a lot of fun. And I still actually do a bit of that in the uk, but not as much. And I loved it. It was amazing, like, whirlwind of a. I think LA is a fantastic city, but it's quite exhausting in the end. And so I just missed not just England, but Europe. I missed that sort of, you know, over here, you're so lucky to be able to go to, let's say, another European city within an hour and a half on a plane or even a train, get the euros to Paris. And I think it's. It's. My husband laughs at me a bit, but I miss that kind of contrasting culture and that history. And I think that feeds back into a love for interiors and aesthetic and architecture. I'm not saying, you know, obviously the US has all those things in incredible.
- [04:55]
B
Amounts, but not to the same degree.
- [04:57]
C
Well, there's something about the European aesthetic that I did miss. And I. And actually, though I'm happy to, I feel like America is very into it, which is great.
- [05:06]
B
Yes.
- [05:06]
C
But we came back, we restored a house in the countryside this beautiful Georgian rectory that was just like a postcard. And we restored it and we found like the original wooden floors underneath. Carpet we found. We chipped away at some concrete and found a Victorian mosaic in the entrance hall that was about 20ft long. I mean, insane. I was squealing. The builders were looking at me like. I was like, this is, this is treasure. It is. It was. That was an amazing process. And then like you said, we, we actually sort of looked at each other and went, well, actually, I think we'd rather live in London. Yes. After all that work. And I was of course eight months pregnant at the time. I think it's that it's very cliche, isn't it? You're like renovating, about to go into labor. Nest. Yes.
- [05:50]
B
The nesting instinct.
- [05:52]
C
Yes. So we found a townhouse in London, still quite a villagey part. And then redid that too, because why not? But that really did just give me this absolute bug and adoration for interior design. And it, it sort of kick started. Charlotte, England, which I spent a good couple of years researching and talking to peers in the industry about the, really the craft of making rattan accessories and furniture and hand painted ceramics and linens that are woven, you know, from hand loomed linen and the embroidery process. Most of the artisans I work with are women and that wasn't on point.
- [06:31]
B
That's amazing.
- [06:32]
C
Happy. You know. Yeah. And in different countries from Portugal to Spain and India and Java and it's. It's really amazing to kind of. As you know, it's not an easy process finding these artisans. They're all quite.
- [06:45]
B
Yeah.
- [06:46]
C
Hidden away. Which is what makes it more fun when you do. But then kind of sampling things and getting these things back from the other side of the world and, and tweaking them and. And then when you finally photograph them and put them up and someone buys it or a magazine talks about it, it's kind of surreal. I mean, I remember getting our first order from you guys and I was like, oh my God, this is literally the best day ever.
- [07:06]
B
Which are the prettiest pair of Victorian chairs that have like the cutest ruffle cushion that our client is obsessed with. And you just really have such an amazing eye for not only creating antiques, but also the products that you're creating are just so pretty. And they have such a patina to them, even if they're new, which I think is really hard to do.
- [07:30]
C
That's the biggest compliment. Thanks. I think patina is just such an underrated word and it's that charm and soul and age that an antique has. And it's a story, isn't it? All those little marks. And so I really. That's our shade or our palette of rattan is quite a caramel, warm, rich color that I think lends itself more to an antique aesthetic. And, you know, and rattan's got such a cool history. It's got a sort of much longer history than I think people realize. But it really had its. Its chic heyday in the sort of Belle Epoque 20s and 30s. And you think of Hemingway drinking his absinthe, sitting in the south of France on a rat set. And the Titanic itself had a lounge that was entirely rattan. And you can actually Google image it.
- [08:19]
B
Oh, I'm gonna do that immediately after we.
- [08:23]
C
And it's those sorts of images and ideas. Plus, actually, the brand is named after my great granny, Marjorie Charland, whom I never met, but my mum talks about as this real bon vivant. She threw these parties in Buenos Aires where they lived, and it was that kind of entertaining, where it's exquisite and beautiful, but it's also relaxed and people. They're not scared to touch anything. It's a real party. And that's how she.
- [08:49]
B
I think that's the hardest thing to accomplish, too. I think people. It's like how people say now, like, you know, someone has the rizz with charisma. It's like that kind of special person who has this, like, very authentic way of entertaining and hosting and something that you've captured so beautifully with Charlotte. Thank you.
- [09:09]
C
Did you say that's a saying to say someone has the riz. Yes, I am taking that and bringing it to London.
- [09:17]
B
Well, I definitely took that from, like, Gen Z TikTok. And I'm probably, like, everyone's cringing at me who's under the age of 18. But yes, it is a saying. So you have so much back history on interior design. It's amazing that you started in fashion and broadcasting. Can you walk us through your career at the beginning and kind of how it evolved?
- [09:39]
C
Yes. And I think the reason just going back to interior design is because I didn't do it for a job, but I still truly loved it and spent my weekends antiquing and going to flea markets and brocantes and. And reading a lot of books. I think my coffee table books have always been much more about interior design than they have about fashion, which maybe says something. And I've kind of ended up where I should be.
- [09:59]
B
Yeah.
- [09:59]
C
But I also think the two industries massively cross over. I Think if you're creating a shoot and you're curating styling, it's an aesthetic. And there are, you know, a lot of brands, including people like Matilda Goad, who have a background in fashion. And I think that's quite interesting, actually. But, yes, I started@vogue.com and I was the news editor. And long days, but really fun ones, you know, in your early 20s and kind of go from work to some kind of work party and then another party, and you just don't sleep much. And that's great. I carried on writing for various magazines like you mentioned, Glamour and Elle, and moved to la. Got a show shortly afterwards called Plane Jane, which is a makeover show that ran for about seven years on mtv and it had a real heart to it. So I would spend the week with a young woman, maybe she's 21 or something, and she's got no confidence for various reasons, and we would do all sorts of things like jump out of planes or swim with sharks to kind of give her that address, then set up a blind date for her and do the whole makeover. And, you know, I would grab her passport and say, we're going shopping in Paris. So it was quite. It was almost like romantic comedy each episode.
- [11:07]
B
What an amazing experience to do that.
- [11:10]
C
It was amazing. And the sweet, you know, it was sweet because they'd be set up at the end on this date, but really that didn't matter. By then they. They'd become this more confident person who had decided to pursue a career or move into the city or do something they never felt they could. And that's what really the heart was.
- [11:28]
B
Yeah.
- [11:29]
C
And funny enough, the director was my husband. Well, became my husband. So we met.
- [11:34]
B
Oh, my God, that's so sweet.
- [11:36]
C
Yeah.
- [11:37]
B
I love when it happens that way.
- [11:38]
C
Yeah.
- [11:39]
B
Do you think that that experience in fashion and editorial kind of helped you when you pivoted to build your online brand? Because you've. You've shared, you know, so much of your home and your personality and your aesthetic. And how did that experience in editorial kind of help you shape growing Charlotte into what it is?
- [11:57]
C
It for sure did in many ways. I think I already had quite a. A lovely, loyal social media following who were very supportive when I launched Charlotte England. And that audience is very split between the US and the uk, so it's given us a great platform in the US as well. And I think even, you know, I always find this, the older I get is, oh, wow. That experience has actually taught me something I'm using now in a completely different way you couldn't have predicted.
- [12:24]
B
I feel that way too.
- [12:25]
C
Yeah. I reached out to somebody at online retailer the other day and I had. I had worked with her about eight years ago on something completely separate, and she's still there. So it actually has been quite handy in terms of, like, little black book of contacts. And then I think also my brain is very geared towards marketing, so social media wise, I feel quite confident in how we shoot something and how we would approach the 360 of promoting, let's say, a new product or a Christmas campaign. That's definitely come from a background in fashion. And it's so important because you can have beautiful products, but if no one's seeing them.
- [13:02]
B
Absolutely. You're kind of posting into a black hole.
- [13:05]
C
Yeah.
- [13:06]
B
And you have such a distinct eye. Like, if I see something, if I'm scrolling and I see a photo of yours, I know it's you.
- [13:14]
C
Oh, that's. Well, ditto Ariel. I. Exactly the same about you. And thank you.
- [13:20]
B
I think that's so key in growing a personal brand and a char. You know, in the brand of Charlotte is that people can very quickly identify that it's you. And then over time, that becomes, like an emotional connection with. With the product and the brand and the storytelling. Speaking of storytelling, I love the origin of the name of Charlotte. Can you. So for those who don't know, Charlotte is the maiden name of Louise's great grandmother, and three generations of Louisa's family lived in Buenos Aires, and they were all, as Louis says, very strong British women with a wicked sense of humor and a refined sense of style, which to me sounds like people you want to hang out with all the time. Marjorie Charlin threw some pretty epic parties, it sounds like. So can you tell us a little about the origin story and how this legendary woman's family lore kind of inspires you still?
- [14:17]
C
Yes. I'm looking at a photo of her right now on my dressing table. Oh, that's special. And, yes. So my family, three generations back, moved out to Buenos Aires from London. I've never been, but I must go. I think sometimes it's the idea of her and I growing up. I grew up surrounded by a lot of her antique furniture. A lot of that was rattan and wood and these cane chairs. And my mom was very close to her, and she said she would take her out for lunch and my great granny would be in white gloves and she would sort of wink at the waiter and order pudding first. And you've got to remember this Victorian lady, so that was pretty naughty. Back then. And my mum thought it sounds amazing. I know. I think I should do it too. And I think it was those sorts of stories of being able to not have a brand that's. That's too formal. I think what, what actually you think about, like a Mediterranean lunch in the south of Italy, you know, under the. The branches and dappled sunlight, there are kids carrying big dishes of food. Fresh, pickled, freshly picked tomatoes. There might be a chipped vintage piece on the table. It's that spirit of everyone getting involved, but it still looks stunning. But you're not doing a table that is like 1cm to the left of the plate, needs to be perfectly placed. You know, it's not like that easy.
- [15:36]
B
It's easy and fun and inviting. And I think those are the best kind of table settings and parties. And just in general, when something feels easy, you automatically feel like you're more a part of it. And so you. You step into it more.
- [15:50]
C
Absolutely. And I think the best it goes. This goes for interior design and roomscapes, I think, in my opinion. So the furniture leads into that as well. Rattan in itself is. It's textured, it's. It's relatively soft to touch, you know, when you compare it to like, let's say a metal table. And it gives warmth, you know, the curved edges of those pieces. And Nina Campbell had a great quote the other day, and she said, if you finish. If she finishes a house, she says, go and have a party. Go on, spill. Spill the red wine on the sofa. And I know that's right.
- [16:21]
B
That's exactly right.
- [16:23]
C
Used to finish, like an upholstered ottoman. And then apparently he would fray the edges a bit. So it's that sense of imperfection and realness that. That brings a bit of soul to it, I think.
- [16:34]
B
I was reading the Bunny Melon biography by Meryl Gordon a couple years ago, and it said the same thing. She used to fray her chairs if they were new.
- [16:41]
C
Literally. I love it.
- [16:43]
B
Switching gears a little bit, I know you kind of talked a little bit about working with female artisans and craftspeople. Can you tell me a little bit about how that work is done, how you found the manufacturers, and how you learned so much about this sort of rather esoteric industry of rattan and wicker making.
- [17:01]
C
So the rattan's made in Java and it grows indigenously there. So the. The people there are just, I mean, almost born knowing how to weave it. They're so, so masterful. And also, I think they just enjoy when I'm coming up with a new shape and saying, you know, is that even possible? And they'll kind of. They try everything. So I think I love the fact that it is literally growing nearby and it's very sustainable. It replenishes itself in its natural habitat approximately every seven years, which is very quick, faster than a tree. So, you know, I like that element of it too. And it should last you your whole life if it's looked after. So sustainability is important. And then. And then some of our other artisans, I mean, honestly, there's no route to finding them. It could be some rabbit hole down Instagram. It could be being on holiday and finding someone. I found a glass maker through a trip to Prague years ago and I found his business card in a drawer and it was like five years old. I was like, are you still making glass?
- [18:02]
B
So happy when you found that card?
- [18:04]
C
Yes. And he was like, yeah, sure. So it's though. It's so random, but when you get the right people and there are also some fantastic. They're not. Not. I don't actually work with agents, but just talented women, actually, who will translate and go back and forth between me and the artisan. I did have one guy who's very sadly retired because it was my favorite collection of ceramics, but he was in Spain and he was. I think he was pushing 80 and he had no phone, no laptop. He would take. His son would take a photo of the handwritten bill and that's how it works. So obviously people like that are not going to be able to scale up to hundreds, but I still love have those sorts of smaller suppliers in Charlotte, England's repertoire, because it gives a different feel.
- [18:50]
B
Yeah. And you. I mean, you source every antique, you. Every piece of furniture that you sell and tabletop. Can you walk me through that process too? Because you have an amazing assortment of antique and vintage pieces. I mean, we bought those vintage Victorian chair pair, which was amazing. How did you learn about quality? Do you just go off your eye and what you like? Talk a little bit about sort of like the sourcing process for antique and vintage pieces.
- [19:19]
C
I think it's a gut instinct and growing up, my mum sort of taught me a lot about antiques. So I can definitely look at something, you know, as can you and tell if it's really old or if it's a reproduction or if it's too damaged to really be able to sell. I think it's also about beauty and, you know, chips on paint can actually make something more beautiful. So it's very. It's totally just my Gut instinct.
- [19:48]
B
Yeah.
- [19:49]
C
I just put up a bunch of new antique, well, not new, but, you know, newly sourced antiques on the website last week because I can't wait to. I kind of do it. I do it in droves. I might be in the Cotswolds or, you know, a big sale or a fair and I will get a bunch of stuff, but I don't have like a rule book on that. I think it's just a gut instinct and knowing that something, I mean, obviously you would talk to the dealers and a lot of them are professionally restored and repaired or it's me cleaning it and polishing it. I remember being pregnant and my, my mother in law was like, you're pregnant, you shouldn't be like inhaling that polish. And I was like, and it smells.
- [20:26]
B
It's so strong, that polish.
- [20:28]
C
Yes. She took it off me and she did it for me because she's amazing. But I do. There's a huge joy in it and it's, it's time consuming, but it's, it's wonderful.
- [20:37]
B
I mean, you really excel at it because you have such a great eye. Is there a favorite piece of yours from this new, new collection of everything you've got going on there?
- [20:46]
C
Yeah, actually there, there are two. They haven't gone up yet, but there are candle holders. They're Italian porcelain and they are like, they look like a woven rope. I think they're early mid century and I don't know if I can part with them. I just, I just shot them for our holiday campaign and I'm like, oh, you might have.
- [21:05]
B
That's how I feel sometimes when I find something for a client that I absolutely love. I'm like. And it's so hard because they're one of one, you know, like you can't find them again. And parting with them is certainly very difficult. What does your home say about you, do you think?
- [21:22]
C
I think that it's a. I like to shut the doors and have a really sort of cosy retreat from the outside world. And I want to create that for my daughters as well. I think home should feel really safe and really warm in the sense of colors and, and textures. There's, as you imagine, lots of old antique. I'm looking at an antique chest right now and, and actually an oil painting I found on ebay. I'm. I'm certainly not a snob in terms of where I find things.
- [21:53]
B
I'm the same way.
- [21:55]
C
And I have a Hungarian antique jug. My best friend was laughing at me because she's, she loves Shopping for shoes. And she's like your equivalent of like, my net. A porter is literally finding a sort of Hungarian jug dealer on Pepsi. And I was like, yeah.
- [22:09]
B
My husband says the same thing to me all the time. He's like, you don't want presents for the holidays, you want things for the house. Like, I just. I'm a magpie and I'm always on Etsy or live auctioneers or, you know, or. I love Lawford's. But shipping is such a pain. From Europe.
- [22:27]
C
Yes.
- [22:28]
B
To here. So I like to find a lot at once and then I ship it.
- [22:32]
C
No, you're so right to do that. We actually, as a business, decided to restructure and absorb a lot of the shipping to the US because it's such a big market for us. It's about 60, 70% now of sales. Wow.
- [22:44]
B
Yeah.
- [22:45]
C
So. So we have actually lowered those costs and we kind of took that on ourselves either, even as a young, small brand, just because, I mean, I'm. I'd be the same. I don't want to see a huge shipping cost. It's annoying. So we're trying to sort of work. We've worked that out a bit.
- [22:59]
B
That's really smart. What is the best interiors advice you've ever received and from who, if it's.
- [23:05]
C
Not the Robert Keim Fray it before you leave the room advice? I think it's ironic, me saying this as a maximalist, but Coco Chanel said, and I'm sure she meant it more for fashion, but it's sort of just before you leave the room, like, take something away. So I think there's a different. There's a fine line between maximalist and cluttered. Yes.
- [23:25]
B
I think having a little negative space is important because it lets the other things in the room shine. And when you've got a lot all at once, sometimes it can go. It can skew a little scary.
- [23:37]
C
Yeah, totally. Also, husbands. Husbands can't handle it.
- [23:41]
B
Yeah, exactly. A hundred percent. Speaking of collecting, do you collect anything?
- [23:47]
C
I mean, plates for sure. I've been banned from putting any more on the wall, but I did sneak some the other day. I think it would be. It would be plates. I mean, I love finding vintage rattan access, but I've. I've sort of shrunk what I'm able to collect now. Do you?
- [24:04]
B
I do. I kind of. I'm a magpie in the sense that I kind of buy anything that is speaking to me and that I like, but I do. I love plates and I hang them on the wall as well, and they're kind of everywhere and I love little oil paintings that are tiny.
- [24:19]
C
Me too.
- [24:20]
B
They're so charming. So I layer those into like my bookcases or I'll prop them up like on a vanity or side table. So. But I really, I mean I'm not discriminating. I just buy what I like. It's so bad.
- [24:34]
C
No, it's not the best way to.
- [24:36]
B
Be, but it is because you know, I have two girls. You have two girls. I think when they grow up and they get to, you know, they look back and they think about the type of home that they grew up in and how interiors were kind of a central focus of the home, I think it leaves a big impact. My mom was very similar and our house was just beautifully designed growing up and she, she has a great eye. She's also a designer, my mom. And when I moved into my house she kept all of the paintings and pictures and mirrors in storage for about 10 years after they sold my childhood home and was just waiting for me to move into my house. And when I moved in I put all that stuff up. So I tell myself that one day all of my stuff, my junk that I buy on Etsy will go in my kids houses.
- [25:25]
C
It's my justification. What a lovely story. That's really.
- [25:29]
B
Yeah. And it's special to me. Like I have all these pictures that I grew up with on the walls and so I tell myself that when I'm late night shopping.
- [25:40]
C
But you tell your daughters as well about.
- [25:42]
B
Exactly.
- [25:43]
C
And what they mean to you and.
- [25:44]
B
Yes, like my older 1 is 4 and she knows like certain things are special to mommy and like that's from my house growing up and you know, I don't know how much she comprehends at this age, but she definitely kind of gets the broad strokes of it. One last serious question before we hop into our rapid fire. What have been the three biggest influences on your aesthetic in your life?
- [26:07]
C
I have to say fashion magazines. My dad is a journalist editor and not in fashion magazines but in sort of more like hospitality and travel magazines. But he gave me the bug to write and want to publish I think old, not necessarily movies but shows. I love watching the way a sort of late 80s decor might be styled on. Yeah, on, on the screen. And I think I'll add to that actually out of print books. So I love going again Etsy and ebay. And you see you can find these books, they arrive a bit battered and you can see like the old library stamps wherever they were in the world once and they just. They don't. They're not full of pictures that you've seen a thousand times on Pinterest.
- [26:56]
B
No.
- [26:56]
C
And I love that. And it's just looking, leafing through those when you finally get a moment to sit there with a cup of tea. And I find that very inspiring.
- [27:04]
B
Me too. I take pictures, so I collect vintage interior design books also. And I have a little, like, gallery on my phone, basically of like all of my snaps that I take. And it's like fleeting because it's the 10 minutes when my children aren't screaming. But that I think is where you can really find some amazing imagery from interiors that, that you're right. You know, I think Instagram is so saturated and you see the same thing over and over again and it's so refreshing and inspiring to see something that you've never seen before.
- [27:38]
C
Yeah, totally agree.
- [27:40]
B
Okay, some rapid fire questions before we end this lovely interview. What is your favorite food?
- [27:49]
C
Mexican. And I really, really miss being able to find it properly in London. Yeah.
- [27:55]
B
La. You're gonna find it better for sure.
- [27:58]
C
Yeah.
- [27:58]
B
Favorite drink?
- [27:59]
C
Negroni.
- [28:00]
B
Me too. I love Hispagliato too. I know people, like, make fun of it now, but I love a Negroni. Spagliato.
- [28:05]
C
Yes.
- [28:06]
B
Favorite film?
- [28:07]
C
Well, because it's autumn, I'm going to say When Harry Met Sally because I have to watch that every autumn because it gets me in the zone for like, New York fall.
- [28:16]
B
It's so funny you say that because we have our newsletter that we send every Friday and that is our watch of the week because it's my favorite movie. Oh, yes.
- [28:27]
C
I love your newsletter, by the way. I love it.
- [28:30]
B
Oh. Oh, my newsletter. Thank you. That's so nice.
- [28:34]
C
Brilliant.
- [28:35]
B
Favorite hotel?
- [28:36]
C
Do you know where I actually really want to go is that Fina in Miami with the. The red stripes. That looks.
- [28:45]
B
I haven't been there, but I have a lot of friends who stay there and apparently it's wonderful.
- [28:50]
C
There's also a place in the countryside here called Beaverbrook, and it's Lord Beaverbrook's old house and it is insane. It's beautifully done. That's an amazing one. I think probably the best hotel in England.
- [29:04]
B
Really?
- [29:05]
C
Yeah.
- [29:06]
B
For my, like, next big birthday that I want to do, like an English countryside trip. So I will definitely be asking you for.
- [29:15]
C
Yes, perfect.
- [29:16]
B
Favorite city.
- [29:18]
C
It's hard to beat Paris.
- [29:20]
B
Yeah, I would. I think you can't argue with that one. Yeah, it's special, especially for an English woman like yourself. Tea or coffee? And how do you take it?
- [29:31]
C
Coffee I know, I know. Everyone listening is going to be gasping.
- [29:36]
B
I love that.
- [29:36]
C
Though I occasionally have an Earl Grey tea with milk and sugar, so that's me being like my Miss Marple moment. But I. I love an oat flat white.
- [29:48]
B
I, like, love oat milk. And I honestly feel like I'm drinking a milkshake when I have, like an oat latte. It doesn't. It's, like, too good to be true. I feel like it's yummy. Favorite weekend activity?
- [30:01]
C
Nothing. I think it's a luxury to have.
- [30:05]
B
No plans a hundred percent. Especially as a mom with two young kids, for sure.
- [30:10]
C
The weeks are really full on. And I love working, but with a small business, I'm still. It's my. It's still technically my side hustle. So I'm still doing all the fashion jobs. So by the weekend, I'm just exhausted. So actually, I mean, I know everyone is, but wandering around the local farmers market, making lunch as a family, putting a movie on while the little one still naps. That and maybe local dinner with friends. But, like, the pub is as far as I need to go. But I found rock and roll.
- [30:43]
B
That is exactly what I do, too, on the weekend. So it's. It takes up so much energy during the week. And I think being a working moment, you need to just decompress on the weekends.
- [30:55]
C
Yeah. And hang out with. With the girls, actually, you know.
- [30:58]
B
Yeah. You decompress your family time. You just kind of like, do nothing. Okay, last question. Favorite design book? Oh, that's the hardest question, I think.
- [31:08]
C
I think. Well, Lulu from Soane's Rattan book is beautiful. It is the Tangier book we mentioned. That's amazing. I did just get one on Mondigiano. He's done. I mean, there are lots of books about him, but I just. Just got. I think it's the most recent one. I think Cabana has an amazing selection. I mean, Cabana is incredible as it is Cabana magazine, but they have a book sort of shop within their online store and they have beautiful titles.
- [31:36]
B
She has an amazing eye, too. I mean, all of her tabletop and everything.
- [31:40]
C
Stunning.
- [31:41]
B
Okay, as we wrap it up now, what are you working. I mean, what aren't you working on right now? Because you're working on everything. Are there any new projects you can talk about? Yes.
- [31:52]
C
Hoping to be doing something quite big in Palm beach, and that would be very exciting. I've never been.
- [31:58]
B
We need to have you come out to Greenwich for a trunk show.
- [32:01]
C
You know, that is totally on the cards. I would hope to be there late spring next year.
- [32:06]
B
We absolutely need to do that. I will. We'll talk offline about that.
- [32:10]
C
Okay. Amazing.
- [32:12]
B
And finally, what advice do you have for someone looking to define their own interior style?
- [32:20]
C
I think doing buy some old out of print books. I think I was going to say, you know, start by creating your mood board on Pinterest, but that's easier said than done because you can get flooded with so many images that you get swayed and suddenly you're on a different path and you're not sure if you even like it. But it's the, you know, the algorithm's putting it in front of you. So I think if you start, maybe it's three key pictures really speak to you, and that might be just the colors and the textures and then working off that. But I think brands are amazing now at the kinds of free help you can get. Whether that's going in. I mean, Restoration Hardware just opened here and you can go and have amazing consultations. Soho Home do them too. And you can their designers. I'm pretty sure McGee and co do it in. In the US as well. Like, there are so many brands that offer this. The Expert to. So you can get professional advice when a few years ago that would have been out of the question.
- [33:14]
B
What I love about the Expert, I mean, when I do my sessions on the Expert, it's like I get to meet people that I wouldn't otherwise meet. And it's so nice to kind of like see what people are working on around the country.
- [33:25]
C
I agree. I mean, I think it's brilliant. We just launched on there and I love them.
- [33:30]
B
That's amazing.
- [33:31]
C
Yeah. Really exciting.
- [33:33]
B
Well, last question. Where can listeners find more about you and your brand? They can find you on the Expert now, which is amazing.
- [33:40]
A
Yes.
- [33:41]
C
On the Expert and our website, charland-england.com or if you want to go on Instagram, it's Charlendengland. Come and say hi. I. I'm on there. I'm the one replying to the DMs.
- [33:55]
B
That's amazing. That's how Louise and I first connected. We were just kind of dming and now we're Instagram friends.
- [34:00]
C
Totally. I love it.
- [34:02]
B
Me too. Well, thank you so much, Louise. I appreciate it so much. I'm so thrilled to have you on the podcast. You are just a delight and you have such an amazing eye and I'm so excited for everything that you're building with Charlotte and you're just really such an inspiration. So thank you so much for joining us.
- [34:20]
C
Thank you. It's an absolute pleasure.
- [34:22]
A
Thanks again to my guest today for joining me and to shop my for sponsoring this season of Talkshop, Head to the Show Notes to create your free.
- [34:29]
B
Shopper account and explore the curated storefronts from this season's designers. We'll be back next week with more thoughtful discussions and amazing guests. Follow us on Apple podcasts, Spotify and YouTube so you never miss an episode. And of course, follow me. Arielokun See you next week.