“I like to think my interior style is elevated, with a hint of playfulness – but it’s probably the other way round…” says Mads Montagu-Andrews, interior lover and founder of Studio Bust. “I love picking up treasures wherever we go, so minimalist I am not, but I think layers, textures and the stories that go with those finds make a home,” she says. Based in Hampshire with her husband and three young daughters, Mads cites, “anything and everything!’ – as a source of inspiration.
As the name suggests, her creative studio crafts true to life sculptures which celebrate the human form, and was conceived during her second pregnancy out of a desire to capture her body in an empowering and timeless way. Her creativity comes, she says, from being ‘“surrounded by women with great taste and a can-do attitude”. Both her and her husband Theo, a furniture designer, are unafraid of a project. Here, she joined us on our virtual sofa to talk colour, furniture with a story and the joys of google image search…
WW: Where’s home?
MMA: I live in Hampshire with my family. My husband was a fine furniture maker for many years, so when we were in London we always had a renovation project on the go. Post-lockdown, we’re now renting and are so lucky to have found a proper family home here. It’s very close to my parents, who are always willing to jump in when needed and although I’m desperate for a project, it's forced and enabled us both to focus on our businesses and our babies…
Featured: Ceramic Basket, Children's Enamel Set
WW: Take us through your life in interiors?
MMA: My mother, my mother in law and my sister in law have all created incredible homes – think beautiful upholstery, thrifted finds, canopy beds and handmade headboards – they all love a project and aren’t afraid of a bit of DIY, which we’ve definitely inherited. I think a lot of inspiration comes from our childhood homes and the places we’ve been. My earliest memory of loving a home that wasn’t my home was the holiday home we visited every year as children in Ireland – I loved the banquet seating in the kitchen, the upside down layout (it was on a hill so the front door was on the first floor) and the bunk beds. It had that timeless Terrance Conran in the ’90s feel – think sisal carpets, Nesso table lamps by Artemide, blue painted shelving, and rust coloured panelling, all topped off with a view of the Irish Sea.
WW: What’s your colour philosophy?
MMA: I’d love to layer more colour at home – our rented home was given a lick of Farrow and Ball paint before we moved in, so we have a soft neutral base to work with, but in our own home I’d love more depth of colour and to play around with wallpapers. One of my favourite colour combinations is in my daughter’s room – a faux bamboo Harrods desk I found on Facebook marketplace, painted in Babouche by Farrow and Ball (my lack of paint prep is starting to show!) and a brown humbug chair I found at auction and had
Featured: Clavel Quilt
What are your top three interior tips?
- Don’t be afraid of mixing pieces from different eras.
- Green is a neutral.
- Google image search is a game changer – screengrab of a piece of furniture, fabric, lamp, click the little camera icon on the google homepage and it helps you identify the piece in question.
WW: Favourite room in your house?
MMA: Our sitting room, especially in the autumn and winter when the fire is lit. It’s full of furniture we’ve collected over the years and each has a story – most involve being bought at auction without properly measuring. There’s also an alcove which perfectly fits one of the few pieces of Theo’s furniture we managed to keep for ourselves – an incredible chunky shelving unit. It’s a grown up space, full of treasured art, a coffee table – with slightly too sharp corners – stuffed with books, but we love descending there at the weekend in our PJs for croissants, colouring and lego in front of the fire.
Featured: The cow, pig and duck candleholder, Paper Auricula
WW: Most precious interior possession?
MMA: I’m a sucker for an objet, especially one with a memory associated, so it’s no surprise that I’ve made a business out of creating them for other people… I love my Busts celebrating my pregnancies with the girls, but we’ve also dipped our toe into making some of children. Winnie and Cece’s are currently being finished and I think those will quickly become our most treasured pieces…
