Emily Dyson of Couverture

First things first – is that a hat-shop-in-a-box?

The miniature milliners shop was one of those vintage pieces I fell for! It’s a complete one off and so lovingly hand made.

What else is on your desk?

We use big a1 foam boards to show all the items we have ordered for the current and forthcoming season, and from this we plan ideas for our website and look books for press. We have a source of vintage pieces/fabrics/trims/books and other odd things or objects to refer to.

And the woven-covered bottles?

These are French from the 1960’s and are called scoubidou – I pick them up whenever I come across them and the colour combinations always inspire me.

Do you have any specific notebooks you like to keep handy?

At the moment I am using some clutch pencils and notepads which we sell in the shop with great graphic, bright colour blocking on them.

A favourite mug?

I did have one but it disappeared when we relocated our shop to Notting Hill so I often use vintage glasses or china picked up on my travels.

Where is your desk from?

We made the table tops from some of the same materials used for the shop fit; a pale grey laminated wooden surface edged with the same stained oak we used for our staircase railings. Then we sourced some black square corner trestle legs.

Do you have a view from your desk?

I have a lovely view of normally unseen backs of buildings from Portobello, the rear of the electric cinema and the skylights of the back part of our shop which used to be a timber yard. The other day someone put a colourful painted owl on the top of a vent pipe which makes me smile.

What are you working on at the moment?

We are about to start our children’s wear buying for spring summer 2011, and planning some big changes for our website. We will also be planting some portable sacks to display on our benches outside the shop front.