MAGAZINE · INTERVIEW

OWL Design

Owl was established in 2014 by Sophie van Winden and Simone Gordon, who came together through their shared love of joyful, daring design after meeting at Ravensbourne University. Based in East London, the studio offers interior design, styling and consultancy across residential and commercial projects.

Owl was founded on the belief that design has the power to enhance your whole life. Our aim is to create uplifting interiors that have a lasting positive impact on the people who inhabit them every day.

Balancing form with function, we give spaces room to breathe so they work better and allow design details to shine. Drawing on a love of nature and craftsmanship, we enjoy working with fresh colour combinations, organic shapes, graphic patterns and natural materials to create interiors that instinctively feel good.

“We like to create ‘joyful sustainable’ interiors and aim to bring positivity and joy to the space through design.”

INTERVIEW

What do you think is the key to a successful interior design? And in your business in general?

Be confident in your designs; if you start to waiver, so will the clients! Try to align yourself with clients who share your vision – there are so many brilliant designers out there, so don’t try to design for a client who might be better suited to someone else. And really listen to your client’s needs, it is their home after all, and it is so important they feel comfortable and joyful when they are using the space, and that it really belongs to them. I would also say to listen to your gut feelings. In the early days, we ignored them sometimes as we were just so happy to land a job, but if something doesn’t feel right, it will probably end up causing you a massive headache and financial strain down the line.

Could you tell us how your journey into interior design started?

Sophie: I loved design technology and textiles and school, but didn’t really know where to take it. My family had a flooring business, so when I left school, I worked in that industry for a few years while I worked it out. I soon realised flooring wasn’t enough, I wanted to design the whole space, not just the floors, so I decided to go back and study and did an art foundation followed by a degree in interior architecture, which is where I met Simone.

Simone: From a young age, I aspired to be an artist and loved drawing. As I grew older, my passion for interior design grew as well. Inspired by weekend trips with my parents to stately homes and furniture shops, I would come home and re-arrange my bedroom on an almost monthly basis and try my hand at making cushions alongside my mum, who sold them at craft fairs. During school, I completed work placements with Nina Campbell and Hopkins Architects, which truly inspired me. It was amazing to see how interior spaces could influence emotions, and the idea of creating spaces that enhance people’s lives motivated me to pursue this career. Having my own business was always a dream of mine. Sophie and I used to joke in university about starting our own company one day. Realizing we both had something unique to offer the interior design world, we took the plunge and founded Owl.

Do you think there has been a defining moment in your career?

Sophie: Building a business slowly and organically there have been many special moments along the way rather than one big one, but some that stand out are landing our first dream- one we had literally written down as our dream drop with all the criteria and then we landed it – it was one where we had pretty much a free reign on the design, and a healthy budget so we could really show what we could do. That led to our first feature in Elle Decoration, which was my favorite magazine growing up, so it felt amazing. We also reached 10 years in business last year, which was something we never dreamed of and feels like an incredible achievement.

Simone: Sophie and I would both agree that working on our dream project a few years ago really enabled us to ‘flex our interior design muscles’. The brief and budget allowed us to experiment with our bespoke furniture designs and bold colour and texture combinations. This boosted our confidence for future projects, and now we try to always include unique pieces for your clients. As Sophie mentioned, having our first big press article was also really exciting!

How do you start your interior design projects? Do you usually start with a certain element of design or a keyword? And how do they develop?

First of all, we have an in-depth conversation with the clients and really work out their needs, wants, hopes, and dreams – and just as importantly dislikes! People often have unique dislikes due to a memory of a certain colour, or the feel of a texture – knowing these can save a lot of time later. Simone and I will then go away separately and do our own research – this could be from anywhere; books we’ve read, things we are watching, the history of the place or area we are working in, the era of the property, a favourite hobby, or even the direction of the client. And then we come together to have a brainstorming meeting where we go through our individual ideas and hone down a direction for each space. We are quite in tune after so many years working together, so we often find we are aligned before we even get started.

How would you define your signature style? Do you have “a mantra” that encapsulates your taste in design?

Owl does not follow trends or a strict design ‘look’ as we believe every client and project needs to be treated individually. We do, however, tend to have elements we like to include throughout our projects, such as bespoke headboards and patterns throughout the form. ‘Maximalist minimalist’ is a good way to describe the Owl style – lots of bold silhouettes and accent colours, but not too much clutter. We like to create ‘joyful sustainable’ interiors and aim to bring positivity and joy to the space through design. We also like to create interiors that can be as sustainable as they can be through the use of materials and their longevity and usability.

Could you tell us about one of the favorite projects that you worked on?

Sophie: There are so many, it is hard to choose a favourite! We are just finishing up a project for a large family home that has been a joy to work on from beginning to end – everything worked so well from the relationship with the clients, the architects, and the contractors, and we are all so happy with the end result. We are really excited to share this one in the coming months; it’s so special.

Simone: We’ve been lucky to work with so many lovely clients over the years, and having that close working relationship always makes a project enjoyable. Last year, we had the pleasure of completing a fantastic renovation, including a large extension, for a client we have had the joy of working with a few times now. It’s always such a joy to see the end results and a happy client!

What would be your advice to beginner interior designers?

Know your niche and be confident in it. Trying to be too accessible to too many people with low prices means you will overwork and burn out. Keep looking at your business model, get obsessed with it, so you can work out what’s not working quickly and adapt.

What was the best advice you have received in your path?

Sophie: Know your worth. Designers can add so much to someone’s wellbeing and overall life through good design, but often don’t trust in their own worth, so undervalue and undercharge for their time.

Simone: The saying ‘Buy cheap, buy twice’ is one piece of advice that resonates when doing an interior design project. Interiors shouldn’t be seen as fast fashion; investing a little time and money goes a long way.

What was one of the hardest learned lessons in your journey?

Not charging enough by having set fees and not enough clauses, it was a tough lesson to learn in the early days! Also trying to help clients who don’t have enough money by going for the cheapest contractors and trades – it always ends up costing more if you try to cut corners in the end. It is best to go for a better quality, or rather, stagger the process rather than try to do it all in a budget that doesn’t quite fit.

Are there any books/podcasts you would like to recommend to our readers?

Sophie: The Interior Design Business podcast is great for tips, especially if you are just starting out. For books, I am a bit obsessed with vintage decorating books from the 80s and 90s at the moment, such as the Terence Conran House Book and Paint Magic by Jocasta Innes.

If you could pick one interior design tip that is important to you, what would it be?

Sophie: Don’t be scared to use colour and experiment. You only live once, and you will need to repaint at some stage anyway!

Simone: Don’t let trends sway your decisions too much; your home should be a reflection of you!

Finally, what are your upcoming projects? Anything you’d like to share or add to the interview?

We are going to be launching our first line of products. It is something myself and Simone are really passionate about. We are always designing bespoke pecs for our clients, and the timing feels right to launch our own range.