Judi grew up in a large house in 18th century Bath surrounded by interesting old furniture and paintings, most which were collected by her father who owned a book shop in the city. She says, “I remember he was always at the auction rooms and he used to buy old pieces and use them as a source of extra money by reimagining, restoring, and reselling

them, often in an unrecognisable form from the original.
The day he came home with a wrecked 18th-century harpsichord which had no working parts, my mother thought he was crazy! But I knew that it was a beautifully hand painted item that we could repurpose as a sideboard, and we did.”
So her father was an original ‘upcycler’ who made decorative objects out of junk. From then on, she combed markets and learned how a piece could speak to you, be it a piece of carving, or a scrap of drawer lining textile.
Given this upbringing, it was inevitable that Judi should be drawn to the world of decorative arts.
Whilst training at Bath Academy of Art, Corsham, she woke up to the world of printmaking, painting, photography, and typography. Yet she was more fascinated by the methodology and history.
The turning point came in the early 1980s, when having taught art and design in several schools, she was invited to join Coexistence in Bath, a company specialising in cutting edge contemporary furniture together with rare antiques which were ‘coexisting’.
There, Judi trained in interior design and together with a colleague, she set up an interior design department within the

company. During this time, she undertook the soft furnishings refurbishment of The Bath Pump Rooms. The project was led by renowned architect and historic colour specialist, Dr Ian Bristow.
The many years that Judi spent working in Coexistence and Calluna Designs, Taunton further ignited her passion for the role that design plays in our lives. Both a Masters degree in the history of textiles and dress and a study course at the Attingham School for the Study of the Country House, fuelled that fascination. When working in the 1990’s for one of the finest authorities on historic textiles, the late Guy Evans, she supplied clients such as The National Trust.
Later, Judi was invited to represent the new Mulberry Home collection, the brainchild of British fashion brand entrepreneur Roger Saul and, during a long and enjoyable spell as an agent for the famous furnishing fabric company, G P & J Baker Ltd (founded in 1884), her contact with top creatives and design professionals proved invaluable in adding to her knowledge.
She is currently writing a book about her late mother in law’s prolific dressmaking life in Burma from World War Two up until the Military Coup in the 1960s.