People always say, everything evolves over time and when creating the CINNY showroom this is very much the case. I recently moved back to my childhood home, the Cotswolds, with my husband and three children. After a move out of London and into a rather chaotic living situation whilst house hunting, I knew quickly I need to find a creative hub away from home, somewhere I could spread out, be free to create and immerse myself in my designs. The intention wasn’t necessarily a showroom but after discovering the wonderful barns of Elkstone Studios, it became a very quick decision. As these things turn out, you go in with one idea and another opportunity presents itself; to set up an interior destination outside of London.
Its been transformational, the space enables my creative ambition and gives my customers an insight into my creative world. I believe to practice good business, you need to be transparent and be sustainable wherever possible, the showroom presents the opportunity to demonstrate this. The blog supports the transparent arm of this journey and the ability to share the process, my inspiration, intention with the business and the journey of running your business; along with my contact book of professionals who contributed along the way. Welcome to CINNY’s Notebook.
The CINNY Showroom has opened her doors at Elkstone Studios, in the Cotswolds. We had our first photoshoot last week on a gloriously sunny day, to showcase the showroom, shot by talented Toby Mitchell. The brief behind the space was to create an interactive hub, for interior designers and retail customers, to come and see CINNY Fabrics and Wallpapers in real life, outside of London and to curate a creative and inspiring environment where the customer could meet, share design ideas, browse the collection and enjoy events and collaborations with other interior specialists hosted by CINNY.
CINNY Collection – Fabric and wallpaper will always be at the forefront of everything that goes on here. We have 2 house collections of Fabric and Wallpaper released in 2021 and 2023, with 2 new wallpaper designs released this year; which includes the newly revamped James on Grasscloth; a large scale romantic floral coloured in subtle and muted tones. We’re busy working behind the scenes on our new Outdoor fabric – Jack Stripe which will be coming to the showroom this Autumn. Please look out for regular updates here and email info@cinny.co.uk for samples.
Homeware by CINNY – Our homeware product line includes our handmade bolsters, frilly cushions and beloved eiderdowns. New to the collection our Custom Carimate Chairs with your choice of any recommend CINNY fabric for seat pads, we also sell one-off pieces of antique upholstery, sourced and covered by CINNY. Our walls have provided the perfect gallery space for Mylo Art; Kate Anniss (founder) she represents a host of incredible artists and kindly curated the art at CINNY, all of which is for sale.
CINNY intention – To find fabric and wallpaper brands outside of CINNY to bring to the space, to fill our cabinet with beautiful independent brands and on this note, are excited to announce the arrival of; Memo Press Stationery. To collaborate with an outdoor furniture company at CINNY, we’re in conversation with a European supplier, who Cinny has worked with for many years during her time as an interior designer and could be the perfect companion, for our new Jack outdoor fabric and many gardens in the Cotswolds and further afield. I continue to search for other independent brands, to showcase and bring to the CINNY Showroom.
CINNY Events – The first of these will be our launch party, which we’ll look forward to hosting with guest speaker, Kate Anniss from Mylo Art who has delivered beautiful art for the CINNY showroom. Kate, has an exceptional eye for affordable art and is a great contact for the final stage of any interiors project. I highly recommend joining us then, this event will happen in September, date tbc. Beyond this we hope to have regularly events at the showroom, to showcase new independent brands, collaborations and give helpful insights into the design world and decorating tips. I very much hope you’ll be joining us!
CINNY Appointments – Our doors are open for appointments, Monday – Saturday. Please get in touch with us to book: appointments@cinny.co.uk.
The refurbishment was inspired following a trip to Marrakesh, I had one of those trigger moments, to be true to myself and the design choices I made. When you design a collection its very subjective, as everyone likes a different colour and inevitably your collection becomes driven to please all. I recognised doing this, I quickly lost a sense of self and as my confidence grew, I stopped leaning in on copying interior trends and start listening to your own inner guide and judgement, which has helped make the right choices. On every decision I make, I ask myself, would I use this in my own home? Is this representative of who I am and what my brand represents? This leads to a single response and quickly allowed me to find my way, landing in a place truly representative of CINNY which is very close to where it all began, my home office in our London home.
The brief to make CINNY feel like a home from home, not a commercial office. The work were carried out by RAM Construction, a Cotswolds based D&B company who have developed out Elkstone Studios. The refurb took approximately three months, plus the fit out.
We begun with layout design and working closely with a quantity surveyor to ensure we stayed on budget. Once the layout and price was agreed, we sourced and selected products for the first fix. As works commenced we had to remove all traces of office features, plastic trunking, utilitarian w/c fittings, lighting. These were replaced with Ogee skirting boards, a profile used in residential houses along with fitting mouldings just below ceiling level to suspend the full gloss ceiling (Farrow & Ball Charleston Grey) and to give the feeling of height due to the very low ceilings.
The walls were painted Mid-china Clay (Little Greene) and the most practical wipeable eggshell finish. I sourced the cafe rods suspensions in the windows and beautiful granite poles from JAGO design. For finishing touches, the kitchen cabinetry (supplied by Howden) was spray painted to match showroom walls, and the bone door knobs and antique brass hooks, we’re all from Chloe Alberry, Portobello Road. The butlers sink, WC vanity and sanitary ware, all came from Burlington.
Next month, I look forward to sharing my sourcebook and the finishing touches to make the Showroom come to life!
