When you were little what did you dream of being?
Aged 6 , I wanted to be a farmer…..

What motivates you?
Many different things, mostly ideas and the people that introduce them.

If you had a spare five minutes what would you do?
Find some water and have quite moment.

How has the recession affected your approach to design?
It has not changed our approach to design. It has changed the way people value design; longevity has become an important factor. We have got new clients we would not have had before the recession.

Is there anyone you’re watching?
There are some good designers around and it is interesting to see what the future will bring. I hope we will see more of Cecilie Manz.

What are you working on?
Bringing Michael Anastassiades to the world.

What are your current favourite materials/looks/moods?
It is important that things are well made and materials has a lot to do with that. I like it when things have an honesty of construction.

What are you tired of in the world of design?
Plastic

How has the internet affected your business?
It has made easier for small companies like us to get noticed.

What is your favourite dish?
Anything fish

Who is your hero?
There are so many …. El Lissitzky being one of them.

Clikc here to go to Sigmar London

When you were little what did you dream of being?
Well, I grew up in Sussex surrounded by woods and farmland. I was really into natural history – bird-watching (and collecting birds eggs, now illegal!), fishing and so on. I had a pet red squirrel that had a nasty biting habit. So I guess I dreamed of spending my life in that sort of  pastoral idyll. In my late teens I became interested in old books – Arthur Rackham-type illustrated Victorian ones, and thought I might become a book-dealer.

What motivates you?
Currently, getting through this economic tsunami and coming out the other side.

If you had a spare five minutes what would you do?
Have a cup of coffee – actually I have lots of spare five minutes, hence drink too much coffee.

How has the recession affected your approach to design?
It has made the selection process far more rigorous. There’s still a healthy market out there for outstanding designs, but not for anything mediocre. The challenge is making the right choices.

Is there anyone you’re watching?
There’s a brilliant  young painter called Jane Ward from whom we’ve bought a couple of pictures; and a glassware designer called Charlotte Sale. Both are graduates of the Royal College and are names to watch, and collect.

What are you working on?
A new showroom in Boston
A new showroom in Paris
Improving my golf handicap and my second serve!

What are your current favourite materials/looks/moods?
We’re bringing out a lot of silks at the moment, both plain and embroidered. I personally like rooms with quietish backgrounds but with strong flashes of jewel colours on curtains and cushions. That complements my taste in pictures – colourful and graphic – particularly 60’s Pop such as Allen Jones and Peter Blake.

What are you tired of in the world of design?
I’m pretty eclectic in my taste so most things interest me in one way or another.

How has the internet affected your business?
Hugely and increasingly so. We’ve made a big investment in our website and its now paying off.

Who is your hero?
Richard Dawkins (I hope my wife won’t see this – he’s a pet hate of hers!)

Favourite dish?
Fegato alla Salvia from La Familgia. I don’t get it at home.

When you were little what did you dream of being?
A zoo keeper

What motivates you?
The need to understand anything that interests me

If you had a spare five minutes what would you do?
Put on my earphones and get a quick track in

How has the recession affected your approach to design?
I try to simplify my cooking

Is there anyone you’re watching?
My one year old nephew

What are you working on?
Right now mialle tonnato or pork with tuna sauce.  Very old school and very delicious

What are your current favourite ingredients?
Red Mullet grouse.  Simplicity

What are you tired of in the world of design?
That white look

How has the internet affected your business?
It’s made me more aware of things going on

Who is your hero?
David Attenborough

When you were little what did you dream of being?

From a very young age I was more interested in building things than things indoors. I pasted the walls of my bedroom from floor to ceiling with pictures cut out of magazines. I was very young when I first became interested in decorating!

What motivates you?

By nature I am very optimistic, and once I get stuck into a project I do my best to make sure that it really looks amazing. The motivation is the end result.

If you had a spare five minutes what would you do?

Daydream.

How has the recession affected your approach to design?

It hasn’t really – it has confirmed my belief that quality and craftsmanship are worth paying and waiting for.

Is there anyone you’re watching?

Michael Winterbottom – he’s a film director.

What are you working on?

A tent installation for London Design Festival.

What are your current favourite materials/looks/moods?

Natural materials, bright colours, relaxed styles. I’d describe my style as sensual and comfortable. I’m interested in how people feel in a space and I like being able to move things around when I have new ideas: the rug is a perfect example of my nomadic approach to decorating.

What are you tired of in the world of design?

Copycats.

What’s your signature dish?

Spaghetti with tuna fish, capers, olives and pepperoncino washed down by a glass of cold Bramito and a rollie.

Who is your hero?

My husband.

When you were little what did you dream of being?
I grew up on a cattle farm in North East NSW so I wanted to be a Rodeo Cowboy. After that wore off I dreamed of moving to New York to live with the teenage fashion model Roxane (daughter of a London playboy bunny who grew up growing vegetables on a hippy farm next door to my parents).

What motivates you?
Humour.

If you had a spare five minutes what would you do?
Surf the internet, specifically Google Earth. I love travelling and adore map reading, seeing where I’ve been want to go next.

How has the recession affected your approach to design?
I only want to manufacture and support products that stand the test of time. Quality and longevity are fundamental to beauty and comfort. With creativity comes responsibility. I’ve focussed on sourcing only the finest quality locally hand made fabrics and wallpaper; products printed to order rather than mass produced ‘by the kilometre’ then stock piled and shipped from afar. All of our finest quality paints, hand printed fabrics and hand blocked wallpapers are all manufactured in the UK and my new paint ranges being launched in US this November will be manufactured and distributed from within America for Americans.

Is there anyone you’re watching?
My two children (aged 10 and 13).

What are you working on?
Writing a new book for Rizzoli and Conran Octopus called the ‘Importance of Colour’, Fall 2010.

What are your current favourite materials/looks/moods?
Pale blue 100% cashmere walling for ski chalets (Courchevel), shagreen lined dressing rooms (Manhattan Upper East Side pre war apartments) and shaved mink beanbags for teenage girls’ bedrooms (Belgravia).

What are you tired of in the world of design?
High contrast feature walls, three lemons in a row and retail customers wanting a discount.

Has the internet affected your business?
Yes, particularly for visibility and convenience. Emails cut costs, notably postage.

Who is your hero?
Billy Baldwin for furniture (interior design)
Tom Stuart Smith for planting (garden design)
Kasimir Malevich for geometry (art)
Polly Borland for colour and light (photography)