What types of items are you drawn to when shopping at an auction?

I always find myself falling in love with items that feel unusual and one-of-a-kind, either because they in fact are, or because they are the one-of-its-kind-still-existing. Pure oddities are wonderful to discover at auction, but sometimes it's simply a detail, or an unusual moment in an object's silhouette, that strike me as something I've never seen before and might not again.

What are some of your tips for finding antiques and vintage pieces to create unique interiors?

If you aren't sure yet what you are looking for, follow your instincts and delve deeper into the items you are naturally, immediately responding to!

But if you are on the hunt for something specific, I think it's worth putting yourself in a "hunter's mindset" of training your eye on one specific target at a time - maybe two at most. When I'm browsing in person, that means if I'm shopping for several things at once, I might be passing through the aisles multiple times, with my eye out for one or two targets at a time.

How do you incorporate antiques and interesting finds into your projects?

I love the contrast that antiques and specific objects can bring into a space, and that's often how I find myself incorporating them. Especially if the architectural style of a space is quite modern or minimalist with few adornments, bringing in a vintage or antique piece that joins in conversation with more modern furnishings, I think enhances everything about the final room! That piece is made all the better if it has a touch of humour to it – makes a serious volume feel more liveable. Or similarly, in some of our Victorian projects in San Francisco, I'll enjoy finding antique pieces which feel as though they could have always been in that home, and then we add a more modern, sculptural furniture thing – or we'll select whimsical decor objects or figural art, to break it up and make it feel "today."

How important do you think it is to mix antique and vintage pieces when designing a home versus buying everything brand new?

Truthfully I think a room doesn't have a complete soul without something old in it. I grew up in an "everything brand new" home, in part because with my family's history, heirlooms passed down were not an option. So I've found myself as an adult, often studying an antique I'm interested in, wondering if it's something my grandmother might have chosen herself for her first home. I think there's a groundedness we feel in being near nostalgic, sentimental, or just movingly old things – in possessing something that's existed for so much longer than we've been alive.

The Parnham Park auction has many special and unique natural history highlights including a mammoth skeleton, ammonites, corals and a large amethyst cluster. What are some thoughtful ways to integrate historically significant pieces into a space with more contemporary design elements? What are some creative ways to incorporate natural elements into an interior?

So many of my clients are enthusiasts of the natural world – I can't wait to show them these auction highlights! And all of us are moved by nature because of its beauty. In that spirit, I think creating space for a significant piece of natural history is the same as creating space for art in a room. A specimen of significant scale – like the mammoth skeleton - could be the anchor of a room in the way a grand piano would be. Or a flatter fossil could be the principal artwork on a wall. And I certainly wouldn't leave out outdoor sculpture! Imagine, in an indoor:outdoor space in a temperate climate, having these pieces interacting with the very outdoors from which they originated?!

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Auction Details

Auction: Tuesday 13 May, 10.30am BST
Auction venue: Dreweatts Donnington Priory, Newbury, Berkshire RG14 2JE, England
Viewing venue: Parnham Park, Beaminster, Dorset DT8 3LZ, England

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VIEWING: Viewing at Parnham Park, Dorset | Entrance with catalogue only (admits two)

Friday 9 May: 10.30am-5pm
Saturday 10 May: 10.30am-5pm
Sunday 11 May: 10.30am-5pm
Monday 12 May: 10.30am-5pm

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