In October 2012 I opened the Hive Mind Collective in Westbourne Studios in West London. For a long time I had wanted to create a shared studio space with other creatives and suddenly I had the chance.

After working a home for some years (too isolating) and then in co-working spaces in central London for several more years (too distracting) I was looking for the right balance between good company, and opportunities for collaboration, and a peaceful space where I could concentrate on my work and not always have to be moving around every day.

There is a certain focus and calm that comes with having your own desk space I find. Also I think there is an optimum number of people to share a space with. I found working in Hub Westminster just too much with dozens of people bustling around. Under ten seems comfortable to me. We have 8 desks in the studio, but due to everyone’s different schedules, we are 4 to 5 people most days.

It has taken longer than I imagined to find the right people to share with, but I’m pretty delighted at the current combination of talented women in the space:

Laura Figueras – fashion – Sur Studio

Candida Wigan – architect and tile designer-  WigWork Tex-Tile

Caroline Beau de Lomenie – fashion dolls clothes – Fashionette

Sophie Camu – art consultant – Camu Art 

Lizzie Ballantyne -book designer – Lizzie B Design

Annabel Stringer – interior designer – Stringer Interiors