Rosemary Ridgway founder of April Hamilton Interiors and her design partner Charlotte Small have together built a renowned design firm known for its elegant and innovative interiors. Their unique approach blends classic and contemporary styles, creating timeless spaces that inspire and captivate.

Here we delve into exactly what inspires them in this successful interior business:

Can you describe your design philosophy and how it influences the projects you undertake?

Our interior design philosophy centres on providing a personal service, which is why we’ve maintained our boutique approach. We believe truly understanding and connecting with our clients is essential to creating beautiful interiors. Our emotional investment in every project fosters unique and memorable experiences for both our team and our clients. We strive to create designs that are soulful, elegant, and timeless, reflecting the essence of those who inhabit the spaces we transform.

What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced as co-owners in the interior design industry?

The juggle of the many pieces that need to be kept intact at the same, whilst we can’t do everything ourselves, we try to, as April Hamilton is our pride and joy. We’ve also noticed the effect the current economy has on the industry, such as our suppliers’ stock levels and shipments taking a hit and construction costs dramatically increasing.

How do you stay ahead of design trends while maintaining a unique style that sets your firm apart?

We attend design shows, and events and we always have supplier representatives visiting our studio with updates. Our designs come from within, and although we can vary, we have a “house style”.

Can you share a particularly memorable project that showcased the essence of April Hamilton Interiors?

As you can imagine, it’s very difficult to pinpoint one particular project, all of our clients are a joy to work with and we have favourite aspects of a lot of projects. That may be a joinery, a particular cinema room, a coastline family home or a fantastic bar area. We have a few that we haven’t been able to share for privacy reasons and those have been very special however we do showcase some on our website and of course, social media and many are local to us in Surrey and in central London neighbourhoods including Mayfair, Chelsea and Belgravia.

How do you approach sustainability in your designs, and what steps do you take to ensure environmentally friendly practices?

We use eco-friendly materials when we can and a lot of our suppliers take on this helpful responsibility. We also emphasise timeless design to reduce the need for frequent updates, thus minimising waste.

What role does technology play in your design process?

We use a lot of software in our company which massively helps our organisation and productivity, for design, procurement, project management and of course for the photoshoots and videography.

How do you balance client preferences with your design sensibilities to achieve a harmonious outcome?

Our clients hire us for our expertise and respect that. They trust us to deliver and whilst in some cases there may be a clash of likes and dislikes, inevitably the outcome is always more than they could have wished for because they gave us the greatest gift of simply letting us design and create.

What advice would you give to aspiring interior designers looking to establish their own company?

With a lot of hard work and determination you can do it, to be creative is a wonderful gift and should always be celebrated.

How do you foresee the future of interior design evolving, and what innovations are you most excited about?

The integration of smart home technology is continuing to evolve and adapt, it will be interesting to see this incorporated in our future projects. I’m excited about innovations in biophilic design, which blends nature into spaces for improved well-being, a lot of our projects include more flowers, plants and trees.

W: April Hamilton Interiors

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