Design from scratch - or pimp your Ikea

MY SPACE:French-born fabric designer Emmanuelle Marion finds the area around her home in Sandymount inspiring, writes EMMA CULLINAN

Emmanuelle Marion designs fabric prints through her company Ecó Creations. She is from Burgundy in France and now lives in Sandymount, Dublin, with academic and author Michael Cronin

When did you move here?

Two years ago. I moved around a lot after coming to Ireland. When you first arrive in a country you go to the cheapest part and then start discovering other places. I began in Dublin 1, then I lived in Merrion Square and Rathmines. I really liked Rathmines.

Then we moved into the house next door to this one and made friends with the owner of this place, Neill Hughes. With architect James Sharkey, he designed and built the extension and planned to live here himself but those plans changed and he asked us if we wanted to be here and take care of the house.

We immediately loved it because of the light. It was very bright and much nicer than our former house. Visually it has made a huge difference because of how it connects with the outside.

So, by living next door, you experienced what this house used to be like and also saw the extension being built

It had much smaller windows to the rear and was a bit dark. Now we are here, we realise just how dark it was. This little estate is in a lovely area. It is very nice and quiet and the people are very friendly.

We are just two minutes from the sea. The whole environment is quite inspiring.

Did you bring your own furniture with you?

Yes, we added in more shelves – from Ikea in Belfast – and bought the couch in Habitat on one of its last days of being open. Habitat did really good quality items.

The couch is very convivial and adaptable: the end piece moves away. This is the perfect party space. I love having parties here and the sofa is great because you can get quite a few people on it.

I don’t really like the rug, it is a bit too ordinary. I am starting to design rugs for Donegal Carpets which has an amazing tradition of carpets with classic Irish patterns. I want to start something more contemporary and timeless, and to design a rug that will look like a piece of beach.

I want to recreate the kind of feeling you get when the sea has gone out and has left waves in the sand, and I am getting inspiration from around here.

The table is from Habitat, the dining chairs are by Ikea and the kitchen chairs are from Vitra.

What is it like living with a glossy white kitchen?

It’s nice. You have to clean it very frequently. Sometimes kitchens are nice looking but not practical at all. This is amazing because it is so functional. There is lots of storage and everything is accessible: the dishwasher and washing machine are under the island.

Where are your pictures from?

One of them is a lithograph by Tony O’Malley. The purple and yellow print is by Annette Foley, and we also have drawings by Sean McSweeney and a small print by Stephen Lawlor and paintings by Caoimhghin Ó Croidheáin and myself.

We have a collage from Northern Ireland artist Seán Hillen, who did the Omagh bombing memorial. I like to move pictures around to change the feel of the place.

You also have pieces here that you designed: where do you source the fabric?

I get my textiles from northern France. I wanted eco-friendly organic cotton and couldn’t get it here. Processed and bleached cotton has so many chemicals in it that it makes it almost a different fibre from organic cotton, which is much warmer: you can see little brown spots in it. I design the fabrics and they make it to the specification. I usually sell to architects and interior designers rather than to fabric shops. I would like them to be in big shops like Hickeys but I don’t think they are very open to different things. The textiles are in a few small shops around the country including the Organic Cotton Shop near Clonakilty (www.organiccottonshop.ie). I also have a small range of finished cushion covers and table cloths which I sell online through Leaf Living (www.leafliving.com), which has a wide range of eco-friendly products.

People buy my fabrics for what they look like, then the ethical aspect comes on top.

Sustainability is very important; sometimes people think it is just a hippy trend but I try to explain that the textile industry is a major source of pollution in the world and, in some parts of it, a bad employer.

What sort of ink do you use?

It is water-based instead of solvent-based. The designs are also done in a way that uses dye sparingly and in a more efficient way.

Do you like living with your own designs?

I do actually. I always bring some with me. I am working on a pilot project called Designing Dublin – creating a sustainable town in an area of Clongriffin north of Dublin – and we have offices on the quays. I brought one of my fabric creations there and put it on the window. It inspires me and makes me feel comfortable. It also makes me feel energetic – a bit like when you have flowers around you; they bring a positive note. Sometimes offices can be very cold and industrial.

Where do you get inspiration?

From the countryside. I take inspiration from plants around Ireland. I like to see the beauty in the very simple plants – sometimes they are the nicest to work with because they are more graphic. Some people have said they have an Asian feeling to them which was not really intended.

What else are you working on?

During Design Week in November a few of us are going to give a Pimp My Ikea workshop and run an exhibition. Pimp My Ikea has been done in a few countries – it is a big trend in the UK.

Everybody loves the simple lines of Ikea but we end up with the same furniture as all our friends: so how do you make something really special? People can bring their Ikea things to our workshops in Dublin and Cork and work with Irish designers.

For information on Pimp My Ikea workshops, see www.ecocreations.ie