House Style: Sophie Ashby

Interior designer Sophie Ashby grew up between South Africa and the UK, setting up her own practice, Studio Ashby, in 2014. Named interior designer of the year by Elle Decoration and House & Garden in 2021, she is known for her expressive, art-filled schemes. She is the co-founder of United in Design, a charitable initiative with a mission to address the lack of diversity in the industry. She lives in London with her husband, menswear designer Charlie Casely-Hayford, and their children. Her book, Studio Ashby: Home, Art, Soul, is out now.

Where do you live?
My husband and I recently moved to Finsbury Park in north London, where we’ve purchased our first family home. It’s a Victorian terraced house with lots of lovely natural light, a good-sized garden and great bones. It’s definitely a doer-upper. We love the area – there are so many green spaces, great restaurants and shops, and it’s close to family and friends. 

What’s the style of your house?
I’d describe my design style as soulful, layered and eclectic, with a strong focus on art and lots of colour. When designing for a client, you are working to a specific brief, with preferences that fall outside your own. We have built a strong and recognisable house style as a studio and all the spaces we do feel distinctly Studio Ashby. There’s so much more freedom when designing your own home, and I’ve enjoyed taking more risks.

What’s your design philosophy?
I’m always searching for freshness in a room – that indoor-meets-outdoor feeling, a sense of having thrown open a window to let the breeze in. It’s probably my South African roots, an inherent need to feel connected to nature. I like to punctuate this with soul.

A room with softly coloured walls and pale oak floors is, in my view, ready and waiting for a medley of strong shapes, vibrant patterns, textured plains, expressive rugs, characterful old furniture and gnarly plants – plus a life’s worth of possessions and compelling artwork – to make the space come alive. Art is essential to creating soul. It’s why I always talk about it as a starting point – it has so much power. 

Which pieces are on your hit list?
I’ve pulled together a (rather greedy) mental wish list – I would love a Max Ingrand mirror, a Rachel Jones painting, some Jean-Michel Frank chairs and a Charlotte Perriand day bed. 

Any suppliers you can recommend?
In London, I love Blue Mountain School on Redchurch Street for pure inspiration and beauty, the Willer gallery on Holland Street, Mouki Mou on Chiltern Street and Pentreath & Hall on Lamb’s Conduit Street for gorgeous homewares. 

Any furniture and textile designers you love?
A lot of the furniture in our projects is made bespoke, but can be bought through our interiors store, Sister by Studio Ashby, where we also launched our first fabric line, the Jocasta Collection, last year. We’re collaborating with some amazing studios – BC Joshua, Shame Studios, Francis Gallery and Mentsen – for a project at WOW!house at the Design Centre Chelsea Harbour in June.

Do you have any original art in your home?
I do! I’m a passionate collector of contemporary African art. I have a photographic work by Lakin Ogunbanwo that takes pride of place. I also have treasured pieces by Anico Mostert, Heath Wae and Lunga Ntila. 

Is there a property in the world you would love the chance to create?
I dream of designing a safari lodge on the Okavango Delta in Botswana. 

Can you name some key figures who have influenced you?
I am lucky to be surrounded by incredible and inspiring friends in and outside the industry. Alex Dauley is my co-founder in United in Design, the charitable organisation we set up to address the lack of diversity within interior design. She is a true powerhouse of a woman and I’m endlessly inspired by her. 

And the strangest request a client has made?
A round bed, in a round room, with rounded windows and rounded furniture – they didn’t like angles or corners!

Studio Ashby; Studio Ashby: Home, Art, Soul (Rizzoli, £45)

Pictures from top: Sophie Ashby (Lily Bertrand-Webb); Studio Ashby’s redesign of the Peter Pan house (Brotherton-Lock); a Kensington townhouse by Studio Ashby (Kensington Leverne); and Ashby’s north London home (Philip Durrant)