This week we welcome London-based interior designer Nicola Harding to the show to discuss her latest book "Homing Instinct." Nicola—whose work spans boutique hotels, restaurants, and royalty—shares her unconventional path into design, the influence of garden design on her interiors, and her human-led approach to layouts, color, and pattern.
Listen to discover Nicola's strategy for finding a home’s "spirit" by listening to people and place; she also recounts a church-to-restaurant conversion, a vivid Italian project rich in terracottas and dusty reds, and the practical origins of her furniture and homewares line, all underscored by a commitment to craftsmanship and locally made materials.
Key Takeaways:
Prioritize how people live: start with layout and create human-scaled “places” (cozy corners, pools of light) before decorating.
Use color boldly and early—paint is a low-cost, high-impact tool; layer similar tones for depth and mood.
Treat stripes/checks and scaled repeats as neutral texture; mix scales and tonal variants for harmony.
Favor natural pigments, vintage fabrics, and local craftsmanship; design furniture to solve real project needs.
What You’ll Hear on This Episode:
• 00:00 Introduction
• 00:34 Meet Nicola Harding: London-based designer
• 01:40 An unusual path into interior design
• 05:33 From garden design to interiors: lessons learned
• 07:36 Creating placement and flow: start with layout
• 11:00 Questions that unlock how a home should work
• 15:00 How light influences activity and layout choices
• 17:56 Choosing paint: why color often comes early in Nicola’s process
• 19:30 Using paint to dial mood and atmosphere
• 21:00 Accent color instincts and natural palettes
• 23:48 Pattern play: stripes, checks, and scale as neutrals
• 25:16 The importance of natural pigments and vintage fabrics
• 27:08 Finding a home’s spirit: listening to clients and place
• 29:00 Design challenge: converting a church into a restaurant
• 30:41 The Italian project: layered neutrals and earthy reds
• 35:00 How Nicola selects and tests saturated wall colors
• 37:08 Developing a furniture collection from real project needs
• 40:00 Local makers, ethical production, and functional design details
• 42:33 Writing Homing Instinct: revisiting projects and collaborators
• 44:00 Current projects: varied architecture and shifting palettes
• 46:00 Where to follow Nicola and buy the book
• 47:30 Conclusion
Also Mentioned:
• Order your copy of Homing Instinct - https://bit.ly/4hGV6Ex
• Nicola Harding & Co. Website - https://bit.ly/3Lfa4pn
• Nicola Harding on Instagram - @nicolahardingandco
• Shop Ballard Designs - https://bit.ly/4oGtjXL
Please send in your questions so we can answer them on our next episode! And of course, subscribe to the podcast in Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode. You can always check back here to see new episodes, but if you subscribe, it’ll automatically download to your phone.
Happy Decorating!
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