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Design Designers Interviews

Anna Spiro’s new book A Life in Pattern

Celebrated Queensland interior designer Anna Spiro has a beautiful new book out, A Life in Pattern. In the below extract, she talks about how she always wanted to be a fashion designer and the similarities between how she puts together outfits and rooms.

Anna Spiro approaches dressing the same way she approaches decorating

In my younger years, if ever I was asked what I wanted to do for a living, I would always reply, ‘I’d like to be a fashion designer.’ I used to read every Vogue magazine and I would paste tear sheets of cool fashion shoots and fabulous rooms I loved all over my bedroom walls –a wallpaper of my dream life, so to speak!

Fashion is something I am still intensely interested in. There is definitely crossover between designing a divine, interesting room and designing an exceptional dress; many of the same principles apply. Just as I like to create rooms that are always different, I love wearing clothes that nobody else wears, clothes that make people curious. 

What I wear is an expression of me. It can show who I am and what I am about. Therefore, most of the clothes I own are either vintage or are pieces I have had tailor-made. I believe the art of dressing well, as with dressing a room well, is in the combinations. For example, I may pare back a stand-out dress by combining it with an unusual vintage vest or an elegant blazer –it’s about pulling together interesting pieces to create a totally individual look.

Recently, a lovely woman contacted me via Instagram, as she had a set of cool vintage curtains that she wanted to offer me. She’d had them made in the United Kingdom many years ago and had carried them with her all the way to Australia, but no longer needed them.

Knowing my penchant for singular vintage fabrics, she thought I would love them. She was right! I bought the curtains from her and ended up making a fabulous dress out of them. People 0ften ask me, ‘Where did you get that amazing dress?’ I love that it is one of a kind and that it is made out of recycled material that had been loved and cared for since the 1970s as curtains and is now loved as one of my favourite dresses.

Vintage fashion is such a wonderful concept. You don’t have to go full-on vintage from head to toe, but by incorporating one or two pieces into your outfit – whether it’s a coat, vest, earrings or a hat – you can make your outfit your own while at the same time supporting recycling. Whether upcycled or repurposed, fashion or furniture – vintage is great for the environment and creates fun, unrepeatable outfits and rooms.

When it comes to fashion, I am fastidious about fit. I think having something made to match you and your shape is really important and can make a big difference to the overall appearance of your outfit. Knowing what styles and cuts best suit your body shape is paramount. I’m lucky that my dearest friend, Sophie, is a dress designer, and I can always rely on her startling talent to make me something stunning and different that suits my shape perfectly. 

Since I started having most of my clothes made to fit, I now find it difficult to buy items off the rack. They never seem to fit well and always look ‘wrong’ somehow. Not to mention there’s the added risk of turning up to an event wearing the same dress as someone else! 

If having your clothes custom-made is out of reach, consider taking a trusted friend shopping with you, to get a second opinion as to whether the fit of the piece you are considering is right for you.

Photography: Tim Salisbury

A Life in Pattern by Anna Spiro published by Thames & Hudson | $90 | Available in November 2021.

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Architecture Design Designers Interviews

Thomas Hamel celebrates 30 years in Australian interior design

It was 1991 and the American-born interior designer Thomas Hamel was working for the celebrated New York design firm Parish-Hadley. And with a client list that included New York society families such as the Gettys, Vanderbilts and the Whitneys, it might have seemed strange for Thomas to throw it all in and move to the antipodes. “Everyone in New York thought I was insane, but life is short and I’m so glad that I made the move to Sydney. I’ve not had a regret in the world,” says Thomas, who celebrates an impressive 30 years in Australian design this year.

Thomas Hamel portrait
Thomas Hamel. Photography: Alicia Taylor

Sponsored by Sydney antiques dealer Martyn Cook to move to Australia, Thomas was able to quickly permeate the upper echelons of Australian society – no doubt due to his classic style. “My first clients in Sydney were Malcolm and Lucy Turnbull and it carried on from there. I’m not a dictator decorator and I’m very much about a client driven style. I want my clients to feel ownership over the end product and to feel comfortable in their homes,” says Thomas.

Thomas’ approach has clearly worked as he now employs a team of 30 to service a large Australian and international clientele that come to him for his high level of service and design acumen. “I always steer away from gimmicks. I’m a classicist at heart but you need to twist things up to make it contemporary.”

Thomas' former Sydney apartment. Photography: Anson Smart
Thomas’ former Sydney apartment. Photography: Anson Smart

And while Thomas services clients globally, he is hugely complementary of the Australian design scene and the way it has evolved over the last three decades. “I’m amazed by how Australia has transformed itself – I think we’re more confident in our own style. Originally, we were always looking to the UK and then to the US. Now when I talk to people in the US, they look at all the Australian magazines religiously.”

A Melbourne project.
A Melbourne project. Photography: Mark Roper

Thomas also puts the elevation of Australian design down to education courtesy of platforms like Pinterest and Instagram. “Everyone has raised their demands in terms of style and quality. It’s made it much easier to sell things to clients but now there’s almost too much information and our heads are swimming!” says Thomas.

The designer has several Australian projects currently in the works in Melbourne, Perth and Sydney, and is working on an 1850s heritage house located three hours west of Toowoomba – he’s turning it into a wedding venue and luxury hotel. Current overseas projects include one in Chicago, one in Aspen and several projects in Los Angeles. The pandemic has proven difficult though with online catchups no substitute for face-to-face meetings. 

“Interior design is such a visual and tactile world that it’s hard to romance clients on Zoom. And what was great about working on overseas projects was that I was able to see what was going on over there and bring back those ideas to my clients,” says Thomas who explains that he does a lot of research online now, and misses the travel but not the jet lag!

A recent US project located in Telluride, Colarado.
A recent US project located in Telluride, Colarado. Photography: Trevor Tondro
Photography: Anson Smart
Photography: Anson Smart
Photography: Mark Roper
Photography: Mark Roper

And after 30 years in the industry, Thomas has decided to give something back courtesy of an annual mentorship program that is due to commence this year. “I had such amazing training during my time in New York. I thought it would be nice to give a recent Australian graduate a leg-up in the international world.”

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Design Designers

Thomas Hamel offers amazing opportunity to interior design graduates

To mark his 30 years in business in Australia, renowned interior designer Thomas Hamel has announced a Graduate Mentorship Program; an intensive one-year opportunity for an up and coming interior designer to work and learn under his guidance in Sydney.

Thomas Hamel wants to give a promising designer a leg up in the industry

The inaugural mentorship program is driven by Thomas’ passion for the Australian design industry and his desire to invest in the next generation, helping the community continue to thrive. Through the program, Thomas is eager to offer budding designers the same opportunities he was afforded in his formative years in New York and Australia.  

“I have been incredibly fortunate to have been given many great opportunities by Australian clients who trusted and believed in me from the start, and allowed me to take them on a journey where together we created their beautiful residences,” Thomas says. “I now want to truly give something back, and hopefully provide a leg up for other designers to thrive in our ever-growing design community in Australia.”

Inside the Thomas Hamel Studio in sydney’s Surry Hills

Offered annually to an interior design graduate with at least 12 months experience working in the design industry within Australia, the mentorship is designed to identify a candidate who demonstrates outstanding passion, achievement and the highest promise as a creative and innovative future force in the Australian design industry.

The immersive year in the Thomas Hamel & Associates studio in Surry Hills offers engagement in a variety of professional development and enrichment learning opportunities and working across the various teams within the multi-dimensional design firm. It is envisaged that the graduate will finish the program equipped and inspired to further the quality and professionalism of the Australian interior design industry. 

Thomas began his own design journey in New York City where he worked at the world-renowned Parish-Hadley. It was here, under the guidance of Albert Hadley and his creative team, that Thomas honed his eye for great design and developed the underlying current of timelessness that is a common thread throughout his impressive career.

In 1991, when Thomas relocated to Sydney and founded his own business, he soon became a fixture in the local design community. Equipped with his US design experience and an eagerness to share, he offered something fresh and new in Australia and his style was soon championed by the interior design publications.

Inspired by travels around the world where he gathers inspiration and sources unique objects of interest, Thomas regularly combines various cultural influences in a fluid manner. He has coined “cross-pollination” and “intelligent editing” as driving forces behind his design aesthetic.

The successful applicant will receive a full-time contract for a maximum term of 12 months in the Sydney studio of Thomas Hamel & Associates, with mentoring and support from Thomas and his team. Only one graduate mentorship will be awarded per year, with the inaugural program running from March 2022 to February 2023. Applications close on 31 October, 2021 with the successful candidate notified by mid December.

To review the terms and conditions and apply.