Fiona McDonald

After a degree in History of Art specializing in the C20th I worked first as an illustrator, then as a photographer's agent. Three children and an extended crash course in teenage angst followed.

I set up the business in 1997. It's hard to describe what I buy as it changes all the time, but the common thread is something well designed and well made that I can see working in people's homes. At the moment mid century Italian design is captivating me.

It's exciting to discover a neglected item, visualising its potential. I have wonderful restorers who revitalize almost every piece in some way. I like furniture to function - doors, drawers and locks work, legs and arms are wobble free, chairs and sofas are reupholstered, not just recovered, and lighting is rewired and PAT tested.