mydeco chats to… Sir Terence Conran

Image credit: Terence Conran

Design legend that he is, 78-year-old Sir Terence Conran is a workaholic – he’s even joined the prestigious mydeco Design Board. Born in 1931, he founded Habitat and has been celebrated for starting a design revolution that has made good design accessible to the masses. He talks exclusively about interior trends, lighting that makes you jaded and why he praises mydeco.

I live… in an 18th Century country house with very modern interiors. It’s large, comfortable and filled with natural light. I have always liked to mix antique and flea market furnishings with the finest and latest modern designs.

A Conran designed interior. Image Credit: Content by Conran

The best room in my house is… my huge, airy kitchen. It is a family room for cooking, eating and socialising. We have a wonderful 33-year-old AGA which makes the most splendid roasts and is the star of our kitchen.

Table and dining chairs from The Conran shop. Image credit: The Conran Shop

My favourite piece of furniture is… the Karuselli chair.

I would be lost without… my work. I don’t play golf and I am not very good at idling time away. I want to go out with one final project on the go.

People are always surprised… when I say the object that I am most proud of designing is a plain white teacup from the Casper dinnerware range.

Everybody is fascinated by… my giant map of London from the 1740s done by the surveyor, John Roque. It is painstaking in its detail, showing every imaginable nook and cranny of London and the wiggle of the Thames.

A similar map by John Roque. Image credit: Mostlymaps.com

Trends in interior design fluctuate like… hemlines, but notions of comfort and intimacy are timeless.

Heirloom bedlinen. Image credit: The Conran Shop

If my house was burning down… I would return – after saving my wife – to collect my collection of 19 Bugatti pedal cars that I have hung in the entrance hall, and some HB pencils, a note book and my favourite Japanese bowl.

mydeco… has brought the design community together in an innovative and useful way that allows people to interact with each other. The average home in the UK these days looks much better because shops like IKEA, Habitat and The Conran Shop have started offering good design to a wider audience.

Magazines and television programmes demonstrate that… people can enjoy a better style of life when they make choices about their homes. mydeco is the latest incarnation of this, and will hopefully help continue the enthusiasm that people have for their homes.

Shop for designs by Sir Terence Conran

Sir Terence Conran has joined mydeco! See his profile