To all the people we have loved before we are known for spreading our love about a bit, we spread our love like____________* (please feel free to insert any celebrity/footballer to complete this joke).  And another member of our spread love festival has to be Hapitat we happened upon the gorgeous Emma’s designs on Etsy, and we were like ‘We so have to have her for an interview’ – and here she is so it is time to delve and discover what makes this creative tick!

What got you into this?

I first got into ‘recycled flower making’ when I was invited to Ascot. I wanted to wear a huge flower instead of a hat so I searched the internet, after having no joy, I decided to try and make one myself.  I had a lot of vintage silk that I didn’t really know what to do with, so I got to work.  I was really pleased with the end result, and I had such an amazing response at ascot, I decided to make a career of it.

I already had an attic absolutely full of beautiful vintage fabric and lace that had been given to me by a very eccentric old family friend, so materials and inspiration came easy to me.  A friend suggested Etsy as a good way of starting out. And within a week my very first customer was Courtney Love Cobain.

Which has been your favourite design to date?

My favourite design is still probably my first, the huge silk fascinator (Ascot flower); they have been very popular especially with brides. Whenever I get an order for one I get butterflies. They’re such a pleasure to make and it’s so exciting to imagine a bride walking down the aisle in one of my statement designs.

Where do you get your inspiration?

As I mentioned before, I get most of my inspiration by just going up into my (I call it my) magic attic, where I keep all my treasures. The same elderly eccentric family friend used to make all her own ball gowns and costumes in the 1930′s and 1940′s, (she was also a model) kindly gave me all her old fabric, feathers, lace and veiling. So whenever I’m in need of any inspiration, I go up for a rummage, and usually find old scraps of lace and silk or parts of gowns or hats to work with. I love the way some of the fabric is so delicate and faded in places, it’s like they have their own little story to tell, I imagine the glamorous parties and balls she used to attend in the old days, and wonder where these scraps of fabric have been, I get very excited about giving them a new life and a second chance at being made into something new and beautiful.

If you could design a hat for anyone who would it be and why?

If I could design a flower for anyone it would probably be someone like Vivienne Westwood, her work is absolutely stunning, I love the way she draws from the past and creates vintage style with a timeless modern edge, I would love to see one of my flowers incorporated into one of her designs. Also Paloma Faith, I love here eccentric quirkiness and think she would look fab in one of my huge flower creations (But I’d probably make it even bigger and more outrageous for one of her stage shows)

What are your interests outside of design?

My interests outside design are scouring vintage shops, markets, jumble sales and car boot’s, even though my attic is full to the brim, I still can’t resist a good old rummage, in search for those discarded vintage gems.

Do you collect anything?

Do I collect anything? I think I’ve answered that one…..

If you weren’t a designer what would be your Plan B?

If I wasn’t a designer my plan B would probably be going back to the modelling, I modelled in London for various top agencies for about 13 years from the tender age of 16 until me and my husband decided to start a family with our first child, since then I’ve left London and concentrated on family, which is why this business, working from home, is so perfect for me, and with another baby on the way it couldn’t be more perfect. (The modelling might have to wait another few years).

To get some flowered gorgeousness from Hapitat make sure to visit the store on Etsy