With Christmas and New Year behind us, it’s time to think about plans for 2022. In the latest in our, ‘Ten Minutes With,’ we’ve been talking to Interior Designer Samantha Adamson about how she wants to get a relatively new concept on the map this year. Samantha is the founder and owner of Staffordshire Moorlands based Nest and Kin – interior design and home staging experts. Read on to find out how the ceramics industry played a key part in Samantha’s career and why coffee culture is so important to her.
What five words would you use to describe yourself?
- Determined
- Creative
- Trustworthy
- Tenacious
- Open minded
Tell us about you.
I’m an interior design expert with more than 20 years’ experience and own and run Nest and Kin – which I founded last year.
I live in the Staffordshire Moorlands with my now husband (we got married at the end of last year). I’m a bit of a yoga geek and love the great outdoors so you’ll often find me at Barlaston Downs. I love travelling too and visiting different cities – travel is the biggest inspiration, hotel and restaurant interiors and soaking up coffee culture gives me real inspiration when I’m designing new concepts.
Tell us all about your business?
Nest and Kin is an interior design and home staging business. When homeowners are looking to renovate, I help them style their homes to their own individualised taste. I design and create mood boards for them, with colour schemes and palettes as well as style guides with suggestions for home furnishing, accessories, textiles and materials.
It’s about helping people feel that their home is a great place to live and be – to make it their forever home.
Samantha Adamson
I also offer something that is already big in America and parts of Europe – home staging.
It’s the opposite of the interior design service (which is is about creating a homeowners personalised space) home staging is about depersonalising a home to help sell it or rent it out.
Just after Christmas is one of the busiest times of year for people looking on-line for their next home and the contents of those images can be the difference between people wanting to a view a house and not. If people are struggling to sell, often I can help and I’m already working with a number of estate agents and property developers to help them with home staging.
What did you do before setting up the business?
I am very much Stoke-on-Trent born and bred and began my career working in the ceramics industry – something I am very proud of.
I started at Royal Grafton, which unfortunately no longer exists before working in design and becoming Head of Design at Royal Doulton.
I moved onto other Senior Design roles with a Fashion accessories business then into Interiors at Next Home as well as at Morrisons.
In these roles I designed and developed collections, worked on key trends and was lucky to travel all over the world. I’ve had amazing experiences and worked with some incredible people, but I got to the point where I decided I wanted to use the knowledge and experience I had to set up my own company.
What are your plans for 2022?
The last two years have been difficult for all of us so Covid-willing more normality would be great. To be able to travel more freely would be fantastic.
In terms of the business, I very much want to build the brand so that one day it’s recognised nationally. It would be great to see the concept of home staging becoming as popular in the UK as it is in America too.
Who is your inspiration?
My first employers were brilliant – they really opened my mind to look and think about things in a different way. In terms of interior design – it would have to be Kelly Hoppen – I love her neutral style and she has definitely been an influence on me.
What was your dream at school?
I always loved drawing – as a child I’d always be drawing on walls or floors (which didn’t always go down well) or in art books.
I think I probably wanted to work in fashion but after getting a design apprenticeship – ceramics was the path I went down, and I’ve loved every step of the journey since.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
I think: “Don’t give up,” is always something I have tried to live by.
What would you spend your last £100 on?
It would have to be with friends and family – a good old knees up would be good or if £100 could get me to New York I’d be there in a heartbeat – I adore that city and would love to get out there this year.
To find out more about Nest and Kin and the services Samantha offers please go to: www.nestandkinhomestaging.com
