Lockdown was tough for everyone; for architects and designers, with thousands of pounds worth of projects suddenly in jeopardy as construction sites shut down and building supplies ran out, it was terrifying. Interior designer Lolita Colenso, who had just begun refurbishing a large house near Brighton, certainly felt that anxiety. But, rather than panicking about work grinding to a halt, she turned the enforced break into a positive. “It gave me time to research properly,” she says. “I was able to go online and take my time and find the right specialists across Europe to develop my ideas.” By the time things picked up again, she had commissioned tiles from Berlin, tracked down vintage armchairs and tables, and expanded her knowledge of the Arts & Crafts movement, the period to which this house belongs.
“It was a funny project – everything
