"10 Questions with" article on CA Design.ie

I was thrilled to feature in CA Design’s recent ‘10 Questions With’ series, discussing how I work from home and who and what my inspires me.

You can read the full article here and below.

Working From Home: 10 Questions with Cashmere Designer Laura Chambers

We’re continuing our ‘10 Questions With’ series and this week we chat with Cashmere Designer, neighbour and client of CA Design and Interiors lover Laura Chambers about what inspires her, how she works productively from home and who inspires her!

Q.1: Tell us a little bit about yourself and your brand? 

So I am Laura Chambers. I am married to Viv who owns Bricolage – a cultural insights agency. We have 2 kids, Emma 12 and Evan 9 and our much loved rescue Cavachon – Bailey. I have my own knitwear brand – Laura Chambers which I have been working on the past few years. I design cashmere knitwear which is all made here in Dublin by local skilled knitters. It was always my main objective that everything would be made here in Dublin with sustainability a priority. Each piece is hand loomed and limited edition, giving each piece of cashmere a unique feel. I look over every piece once it is hand finished making sure everything that is sent to our customers is of the highest quality.

Q.2: What/Who inspires your work? 

Gosh so much inspires me……it could be the most random thing. But I guess music, film and other creatives inspire me the most. Sometimes I could just see a photo of something, or just have a general feeling or idea and then a whole collection will evolve. This season I was very much inspired by Glam Rock especially David Bowie. I listened to him constantly during lockdown. I needed the escapism he brought to the world. His sense of style and his creativity was just so unique and enchanting.

Q.3: Do you have a particular interiors style that you gravitate towards? 

I really love and appreciate so many interiors styles. It might be surprising given my home but I love minimalist homes and Scandi style. 

However, the style I gravitate more naturally towards is bohemian and eclectic. I love mixing contemporary with aged, modern pieces with vintage and I am always drawn towards colour. Joyful Maximalism was the theme for our home when we were decorating so I think we stayed true to this quite instinctively. I love mixing hot and cold colours together like a cool turquoise wall with fluorescent pink woodwork and a multi coloured textured rug. I do not procrastinate in my choices, I follow my gut instinct and buy what I love. I love collecting pieces on our travels and past and have them dotted throughout our home. An example of this is the pink Moroccan plate which hangs in my kitchen that I adore. My husband bought this for me 18 years ago in a market in Spain for very little and it’s so beautiful and holds so many lovely memories for me. 

Q.4: Does this overlap or relate in any way to your personal style? 

Yes my interiors style definitely overlaps with my personal style. Viv often jokes that I dress like our house. I love to wear colour, the brighter the better. I’m always naturally drawn towards fluorescent pink. I thought I would have grown out of my pink stage by now but no. If I do wear black I will always counteract this with colour in my accessories or a bright red lipstick. Like my interior style, while I appreciate the minimal I am definitely more Joyful Maximalist in my personal style. Colour, pattern, texture I love them all. 

Q.5: What’s your favourite spot in your home and why?  

I love sitting on the mustard couch by the window in the kitchen. I love the Rangwali pink by Farrow and Ball on the walls in this area. It’s an exotic and happy pink that makes me smile. I love sitting here looking out into the garden after doing school drop off and having a cup of tea and a moment to reflect before I start working. 

Q.6: Do you have a favourite piece of furniture in your house and why? 

I am not just saying this but I do absolutely love my Hans Wegner Kennedy style chairs from CA Design. I love the feel of the walnut and the brown leather. As someone who is normally drawn towards very feminine pieces, I love the more subtle, masculine look and feel of these chairs. I think also the idea that JFK sat daily on a similar style chair makes me love them more…..I find the Kennedy Dynasty intriguing. 

Q.7: Do you have a designated space at home where you work?  

I work from my kitchen table sitting on my Kennedy style chair. It is the best place as there is a lot of space and natural light due to the large windows. I need lots of natural light if I want to see colour charts and stitch formations. 

Q.8: Do you have a particular working from home routine? 

After school drop off I come home and relax till around 9:30 then I start getting myself ready to start working. I set up my space - lighting my Clean Slate candle, putting on some background music, arranging flowers in my Arran Street East vase. My environment is very important to me for a successful working day. I am very particular about my workspace. I hate clutter so all clutter must be gone before I start working. I work till I collect the kids from school, taking a lunch break in between and then I focus on them till they go to bed. I do work after they have gone to bed. I am a night owl which is something I have tried to fight for years and now just resign myself to. I am known to work into the wee hours of the morning, it’s when I am most productive and creative. 

Q.9: Can you share any working from home tips? 

I think it’s important the space you work from is somewhere that you actually like going to. You need to make it a space that welcomes you every morning. Personalise your own workspace. I think it’s really important to stick to a routine when working from home. If you don’t stick to a routine and put structure to your day you will get distracted and the day will be gone before you get to finish your work. I try and work the same hours that I did prior to Covid. I take my 11 o clock break for tea and lunch at 1. I also clear all my work items away when I am not working on them as I think it’s important not to have work staring when you are trying to get home things done, like the kids homework or prepare dinner. It can all become a little overwhelming if you don’t separate the two lives. 

Q.10: If you could invite a famous person over for dinner who would you choose and why? 

I think having learned so much more about Ruth Bader Ginsgurg since her passing I would definitely invite her. She was such an amazing woman who was a major advocate for gender equality, women’s rights and civil rights but she also had a wonderfully unique sense of style and while quiet she had a wicked sense of humour.