Katharine Pooley

Last updated

Katharine Pooley
Katharine Pooley as credit to Kate Martin.jpg
Born
London, England
Occupation(s) Interior designer, Philanthropist, furniture designer, business owner
Website www.katharinepooley.com

Katharine Pooley is a British interior designer, [1] and businesswoman, [2] [3] known for her design projects. [4] [5] She owns a homewares boutique [1] and runs an interior design and architecture studio with 50 staff in Chelsea, London. [6] Pooley has designed private homes, castles, villas, hotels, chalets and yachts. [7]

Contents

She has won numerous awards including British Designer of the Decade, [6] House and Garden's 'Design for Positive Change' award, [3] Asia's Most Influential Designer [8] and Great British Brand's Community Award. [9]

Early life and education

Forter Castle, the Pooley residence in the Scottish Highlands KP Forter Castle.jpg
Forter Castle, the Pooley residence in the Scottish Highlands

Pooley was born and raised in Herefordshire with her five siblings. She was educated first in England at St Mary's School [10] and then studied at the  INSA University in Lyon. [11] Her father, Robert Pooley MBE LVO, founded Pooleys Flight Equipment [12] on leaving the RAF in 1957, and in 2005 founded Pooley Sword [13] the leading Cutlers of swords, dirks and lances to the British Armed Forces. He bought Forter Castle in Perthshire around 1990, which the family still owns. [1] Her mother Yvonne Trueman MBE moved to Bahrain [14] where Katharine spent most of her childhood. [15] Her mother was the Arabian Section Governor of the International Women's Flying Organisation for ten years. [15]

Pooley's parents would often take their children on flights in a small Cessna aircraft. [16] These experiences have had a influence on Pooley's work and her love for travel. [17]

Having lived in Asia for 16 years, working for Morgan Stanley, [2] among others, she relocated back to London in 2004. Not long after she opened her luxury Home Accessories boutique at 160 Walton Street in Chelsea. In 2013 she opened a showroom in Doha Qatar.

Career

Pooley opened a luxury home accessories store in 2004 on Walton Street in Chelsea, London, a design studio the following year, and a showroom in Doha in 2012. [18] [19] She has said she was inspired to start a luxury home accessories boutique featuring art and unusual objects found on her travels in Asia. [2] This soon evolved into a flourishing design studio which employs designers hailing from over 20 nations. [6] KPL has been at the forefront of the design industry as one of Britain's most sought-after studios [2] with elite clients from all over the world including [20] European [21] and Middle Eastern royal families as well as big names from both the business and celebrity worlds. [4]

Her design philosophy is characterised by a blend of traditional elegance and contemporary sophistication. [22] Although motivated by travel, architecture, fashion, literature and art, she has attributed Mother Nature as her greatest inspiration, [23] citing the beauty and diversity of our environment as a constant solace with her appreciation for the natural world is the seed of every design [23] and as a result, sustainability has become a central pillar of the studio's design process. [23]

Pooley is renowned for her meticulous attention to detail, [24] exquisite craftsmanship, and ability to create spaces that seamlessly marry form and function. [25] [20] Large-scale residential projects in her books include a five-star hotel with a private racing track in Shaoxing, China; [16] beach houses in South Africa, Dubai, country estates and castles in the UK; palaces in Kuwait and Qatar; [26] and city dwellings in Singapore, Washington and London, as well as the Château de la Croix des Gardes - the largest remaining estate on the Cote D'Azur in France. [6] Her more recent works completed include an Alpine Ski Chalet [27] and 'The Gainsborough,' a Grade-II heritage-listed apartment in the historic 9 Millbank development. [28] She is also responsible for the redesign of the Royal Suite in Terminal 5 at London Heathrow and the VVIP Private Jet Lounge for XJet at London Stansted. [29]

Notable projects and charity work

Pooley is involved in several charities [3] including Lady Garden, which raises awareness and funding for women's health, and United in Design, [30] which promotes diversity in the design industry. Since 2006 Pooley has sat on the board of trustees for Kings College Hospital, [31] one of London's teaching hospitals.

In 2021, Pooley became a trustee of the British Forces Foundation. [32] The Foundation works to boost and maintain the morale of the men and women of the Armed Forces.

Awards and recognition

Katharine Pooley has been named a leading ‘tastemaker' by The Times, [8] and is one of the UK's most sought-after interior designers. [33] Pooley is one of the Lux Deco Top 100 Interior Designers [34] Homes and Garden's Top British 100 Interior Designers,The Times [35] Top 50 Interior Designers and has been named one of the Top 50 Finest Interior Designers by Country & Town House Magazine. [36]

Personal life

While Pooley is known for her public presence in the design world, [37] she prefers to maintain a private personal life. [38] It is known that her home garden is 'one of her happy places,' [17] as well as the family's 'bolthole' in the Lake District, Little Nut Cottage. [39] [40] Her family motto is 'Try and you will succeed.' [41]

Pooley has travelled to 195 countries and summited some of the world's highest mountains. [42]

Poole met her husband, Daniel a professional tennis player and property developer in 2006. [1] They have two sons [38] [1] and live in the English Countryside in a Georgian-era Coach House [43] with their three dogs, cat, guinea pig, 11 ducks, 5 chickens and bees. [43]

Publications

In 2017, Pooley published her second book, Journey By Design [41] with the publishing house Assouline. [44] It includes a forward from American singer-songwriter and actress Janet Jackson. [5] Her first publication was a cookbook called A Taste of My World, with proceeds from sales dedicated to the work of three different charities. [45]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Stockley, Philippa (18 March 2016). "At home with Katharine Pooley: interior designer to the super-rich". Evening Standard. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Ross (14 April 2023). "In Conversation With Katharine Pooley - The Luxury Editor" . Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 "All the award winners at the House & Garden Awards 2023". House & Garden. 11 May 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  4. 1 2 Wells, Emma (23 August 2023). "Inside Forter Castle, which was razed to the ground and rebuilt from a centuries old ruin". The Telegraph. ISSN   0307-1235 . Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  5. 1 2 Newspaper, The Peninsula (12 November 2017). "Katharine's incredible interior journey". thepeninsulaqatar.com. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Interior designer Katharine Pooley turns her hand to boats". boatinternational.com. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  7. ↑ "Live out your fairy tale fantasies in the enchanting Stowe Castle – up for sale for £4.5 million". Tatler. 15 March 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  8. 1 2 Temkin, Anna (19 December 2023). "Tastemakers: Katharine Pooley". The Times . ISSN   0140-0460 . Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  9. ↑ Wightman-Stone, Danielle (19 January 2021). "Great British Brands 2021 awards announce winners". FashionUnited. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  10. ↑ "» Designer In Profile : Katharine Pooley – CEO and Founder of Katharine Pooley Ltd". thedesignsoc.com. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  11. ↑ weblog (26 October 2019). "Katharine Pooley's Sumptuous and Inspiring Interiors". Interior Design Giants. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  12. ↑ "About". pooleys.com. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  13. ↑ "Military and Presentation Sword Cutlers in Sussex". pooleysword.com. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  14. ↑ "Bahrain's superwoman : Gulf Weekly Online". gulfweekly.com. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  15. 1 2 "On the wings of a dream". gulfweekly.com. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  16. 1 2 "Katharine Pooley: How Travel Shapes, Informs And Inspires Design". Vogue Hong Kong. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  17. 1 2 "Step inside British designer Katharine Pooley's country home — the epitome of cottagecore chic". CNA Luxury. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  18. ↑ "Katharine Pooley". House and Garden. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
  19. ↑ "INSIDEOUT - Inspiring Design". Gulf News.
  20. 1 2 London, Luxury; Solomon, Anna (5 October 2023). "Westminster development 9 Millbank launches The Gainsborough". Luxury London. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  21. ↑ Brzezinski, Victoria (19 December 2023). "Design ideas for a Tuscan outdoor dining terrace from Katharine Pooley". The Times . ISSN   0140-0460 . Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  22. ↑ "» Katharine Pooley". thedesignsoc.com. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  23. 1 2 3 "Katharine Pooley". Country and Town House. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  24. ↑ Hall, Zoe Dare (16 February 2021). "Glass pods and sound-proofed Zoom zones: how super-rich kids are learning from home". The Telegraph. ISSN   0307-1235 . Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  25. ↑ Madden, Helena (19 December 2021). "This London Home's Redesign Was Inspired By Its Owner's Biggest Passion: Cars". Robb Report. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  26. ↑ Stockley, Philippa (31 March 2016). "At home with Katharine Pooley: interior designer to the super-rich". Evening Standard. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  27. ↑ "Designer Q&A: Katharine Pooley". biid.org.uk. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  28. ↑ Lewis, Carol (19 December 2023). "A penthouse in the former ICI building is on sale for £18m". The Times . ISSN   0140-0460 . Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  29. ↑ Nardo, Arianne (25 April 2018). "The Woman Who Has Reshaped Your Layover". Robb Report. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  30. ↑ "How to get Ahead in Design by Katharine Pooley". United in Design. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  31. ↑ "About us". King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  32. ↑ "Katharine Pooley". The British Forces Foundation. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  33. ↑ "Yahoo is part of the Yahoo family of brands". consent.yahoo.com. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  34. ↑ "LuxDeco 100 2023". luxdeco.com. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  35. ↑ "The Times & The Sunday Times". thetimes.co.uk. 19 December 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  36. ↑ Writer, Guest (11 October 2023). "The UK's 50 Best Interior Designers 2023/24". Country and Town House. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  37. ↑ Swengley, Nicole (7 November 2016). "Interior designer Katharine Pooley loves Cape Town, the Chrysler Building and Cecily Brown". Financial Times. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  38. 1 2 "Motherhood by Katharine Pooley". Kensington Mums. 17 May 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  39. ↑ "Little Nut Cottage | a luxurious self-catered home". Little Nut Cottage. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  40. ↑ Doyle, Jessica (12 December 2022). "12 easy tips for beautiful Christmas decor from Britain's best interior designers". The Telegraph. ISSN   0307-1235 . Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  41. 1 2 London, Luxury (19 May 2022). "The Great: In conversation with award-winning interior designer Katharine Pooley". Luxury London. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  42. ↑ Bradshaw, Tamsin. "Global Nomad: Designer and Traveller Katharine Pooley Launches New Book". Tatler Asia. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  43. 1 2 Twigg, Melissa (25 August 2023). "How I made my garden more butterfly-friendly – without letting it go completely wild". The Telegraph. ISSN   0307-1235 . Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  44. ↑ "Designer Coffee Table Books & Luxury Gifts". ASSOULINE. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  45. ↑ "All the Best by Ronda Carman™: Profile: Katharine Pooley". All the Best by Ronda Carman™. 21 September 2007. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
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