It plays an enormous part. Even my drawings when designing a space are done by hand rather than using a program like CAD. The process of drawing is like the process of making in that it’s slow and immersive. I work with many master craftsmen—wood, stone, metal—and understanding the method of construction informs the design. It’s a real dialogue which results in something that is highly personal and affects the process of making.

Natural, simple and thoughtfully detailed. The best design looks effortless: it works well, looks beautiful and in my work often exposes the method of construction. For me, it’s about making the bare bones beautiful and everything I’ve used in my home is naturally sourced.

I attended a wood spoon carving course at London Greenwood on Hackney City Farm where you can learn to whittle spoons and bowls. The course leader gave me a spoon he’d made. It’s such a beautiful object but also functional and you can feel the spirit of him in the spoon—you feel the human touch.

In my studio… but I also do great thinking when I’m cold-water swimming in Hampstead Heath.

Our home is currently under construction so the first thing was clay mud bricks and the last was baths.

I love to gift experiences: special, shared time together. But if it was an object, it would be Osanna Visconti’s candle holders. I love that the process of making is conveyed in her pieces. They are really organic and simple as well as being luxurious but more in their design and quality rather than looking bling.

My home. There is so much making and artisanship in this house. It’s a gesamkuntswerk. I hope to pass it to my children one day—that it is their forever home that they can enjoy too.

zoeychanstudio.com