Q&A with Melanie Williams | Bespoke Interiors

Melanie Williams Bespoke Interiors is a design studio specialising in architecture, interior design and bespoke furniture design. Melanie works personally with each and every client to ensure that all projects are a real collaboration and works on projects in London but also as far afield as New York.

Melanie set up her business after years of working for award winning architecture practices. She wanted to be able to offer clients a service that would see a project through from the very beginning right down to the last detail.

We’ve been working with Melanie on a project in England and caught up with her recently to see how she got into interior design and what’s coming up next for her this year…

What is your background and why did you set up your own interior design practice?

My background is in architecture. From a very young age I would be drawing and building houses so I suppose I was destined to go on to study architecture. After studying at the Royal College of Art, London I worked in architectural practice and realised that I really enjoyed working with private clients to create the best possible new spaces and homes tailored for their and their families needs. I also realised that clients often wanted help with furnishing and fitting out of their newly built spaces and the idea of continuing to work on the interior design and furnishing was really important to me. Being able to offer both architectural and interior design services as a fluid and continuous process is not only something that I love to do but also something that I think is of real benefit to my clients.

Can you describe a typical day in the life of what you do?

My days are so varied. After getting my kids up and out to school I’ll set about my day. Some days I’ll be visiting clients or prospective clients, and carrying out site visits to check that works are progressing as they should and being carried out to the right standard. I might mix this with visits to showrooms to source furniture or finishes. Depending on the stage of a project I might need to visit our joiners workshops to check on our bespoke furniture being fabricated. I always carry my laptop with me so that I’m able to work on the move but there are days where I am studio based so I can focus on producing drawings and design schemes. Everyday is so different. Its one of the parts of my job that I love the most.

What’s your dream project / client?

Ive been lucky to work with some great clients and on some great projects. Those that are the most rewarding both in terms of the outcomes and from a personal perspective are those when the client is confident and trusts in our designs and our recommendations. It’s super satisfying delivering a project for a happy client and the best thing is when they recommend your services to their friends/family or invite you back to carry out new projects for them.

What is your starting point for a new project? 

Getting to understand and know my clients well and having an open dialogue is really important way to start. It really is a collaboration especially when your designing the layout and details of someone’s home.

How do you like to relax and unwind?  

If we are not hanging out with friends in London then we’ll be spending time at our new home in the Cotswolds.. There’s something so relaxing about escaping the city and enjoying the countryside. The contrast of both city and country life is great.

We loved your Duane Street project in New York, do you have any future projects stateside?

We are working on a really exciting project for a new build house and its interiors and landscaping in the Hamptons for our past clients and good friends. This one is definitely one to watch out for on our Instagram feed as it progresses.

And in London?

We are designing the interiors for a house in Knightsbridge which is going to be absolutely stunning and about to kick off the build of a large house remodel and extension just on the outskirts of London. I am also designing my own home renovation in the Cotswolds which we hope will be finished early 2018. As well as this we plan to develop a small collection of beautiful furniture – this is something that I’m very excited about!

For more information and to see more of Melanie’s work click here.