When shoots are going well then film, TV and editorial sets are great fun, you invariably have a good rapport with the photographer or director as you would have been chatting and planning the production with them on the lead up to the shoot. Then there are the set-builders, I am lucky to say that mine have always been extremely quick and hard-working and always up for a bit of banter (unfortunately, I have a bit of a reputation for having a potty mouth on set..I blame my father!) And then my faithful assistants, currently Eleanor Andrews, who has done sterling job over the last year! From smashing cups on the floor for the George Home commercial to driving around Liverpool desperately looking for props for The Hotel Inspector, no day is ever the same, but that’s what makes this job great.
The launch of George Home, Asda
George Home: Art Directing the TV commercial
Image 1: Finished cover of the George Home catalogue which we shot on location in London. 2: my first Style Guide for the Riviera collection. 3: The set build for Riviera which was constructed at the Hanger Seven studios. 4: The photographers workstation where all the images are shot and captured
George Home TV commercial, directed by the very talented Chris Balmond and Art Directed by me. Image 1: Most of the crew outside setting up the dolly for the garden shot of bursting feathers. 2: The camera. 3: The multiple transport vehicles parked outside the location house including; prop vans, catering, lighting, set-builders and an Ambulance/first aid (which I did in fact need, I cut my finger when trying to smash the two cups together, you’ll have to watch the commercial to see this bit!)
Next Home: Ideal Home magazine
This was a shoot for Next Home and was featured in the May 14 issue of Ideal Home magazine. Image 1: the finished shot. 2: working out my colour scheme, I wanted the shot to feel almost saturated. Image 3: Flowers are key to every shoot I do and The Convent Garden Flower market is where to go, I chose Thistle, Poppies and Anemones
May Design Series, 2014: Guest Speaker
The images below are from this years May Design Series where Heart Home hosted a panel discussion with myself, Kate Watson-Smyth and the Co Founders and Editors Carole King and Arianna Trapani. The discussion was called: Interiors Trends, Fads or Enduring? I will be posting the video of the talk in the next few days.
The Summer of 2013 was largely taken up with filming of The Hotel Inspector. I completed the first two makeovers/episodes of the series and then sadly had to pull out. I handed the role over to my predecessor, Clare Steel who did a fab job! Alex and the production team were such a joy to work with, a genuine crew who really looked after us. Alex is a true professional and had so much expertise and skill to offer to the hoteliers. A great show and something that I was very fortunate to be a part of.
The Hotel Inspector: Channel 5
The images below are from my first makeover, The Epstein Hotel, owned by Patrick. Duggan. Patrick had high hopes for his Liverpool guest house, the former home of the band’s manager, the late Brian Epstein. When he bought it, Duggan was sure that the guest house would be highly profitable, but five years later nothing could be further from the truth. My job was to completely transform the whole of the downstairs into something more commercial with a ‘Beatles’ theme…
The images above are of the existing reception lounge/bar and the conservatory. You can see that the space was very dated and in desperate need of modernisation!
The image is a ‘before’ and ‘after’ of the bar area. My colour palette was black white and red which instantly gave the space a 60’s feel. The walls were painted white and the the floors stained in ebony. Feature wall strips helped to define the space and to added a fun and modern touch to the rooms.
The reception room above was transformed from a heavy and dowdy room into a contemporary space that was ready to welcome guests. I removed the old fireplace and replaced it with a wall mounted gas fire (that looked like a massive ipad!). We then added a white stag with fluro red antlers to sit above. A new desk was added so the receptionist had somewhere to sit and Beatles transfers were stuck above the double doors leading into the renovated bar area. Below is a copy of my moodboard for the conservatory, quite a grand plan considering what it looked like before, followed by an image of the finished room, I was thrilled with the result!
Click here if you missed the show and want to watch it again…
Children’s Party Cookbook: Kyle Books
The first image is from the cook book we shot in Feb & March called Children’s Party Cook Book by Kyle Books. It’s due to be published in September 2013 and so I can talk about it a lot more then.
The great team behind Children’s Party Cook Book.Vicky, Hatty, Bella, Jemma, and Dee! Thank you also to my two assistants Abi & Eleanor. We had a very tight schedule but it was made so much easier with such a creative team. I can’t wait to see this one on the shelves, only a few more months to wait!
I went straight from the book shoot onto Asda A/W – 13 moodboards in total. I am now an Asda specialist! Some fab products on offer this season and at some amazing prices, you won’t believe it’s Asda….
Above is an image of my shoot for Next for the May 2013 issue of Ideal Home. It was a great day with lots of laughs. What a lovely group of girls to work with ;0)
Some gorgeous pieces from Anthropologie for my 3M shoot – thank so much for the loan!
The images above are a few pics that I took from my shoot with the fab 3M Command. They have some fantastic new products available and all will be revealed in the next few months. Thank you to Christina, Leanne and Nicole for an enjoyable shoot and Jemma for the pretty pictures – can’t wait to see them.
The Dream team! Jon Day and the lovely Russell on my Asda Christmas Look Book shoot, what fun that was! Many many shots to get through but lots of laughs along the way…
