The Yum Interview: Number Two
To celebrate the Spring Summer 2018 launch, we meet Balham resident Ayshea McCormack, founder, curator and face behind lifestyle brand: The Small Home
Welcome to The Yum Interview Ayshea. We are so excited to hear about your business and what’s in store for the season ahead. Tell me a little about yourself and how The Small Home was born…
My career kicked off in fashion buying for the High Street which is where I worked for almost 20 years. It was a great industry to work in but my attitude changed slightly when I had children. It was a demanding role and I was spending lots of time at work and not able to spend enough time with my babies. I became slightly disillusioned with the industry too- I didn’t like the generic state of the High Street. Everyone was doing the same thing with no question about where anything was made. It was all about chasing margins and who could get the latest trends into the stores first. There was no integrity.
I had to make a decision whether to stay at work and employ a full-time nanny, or not. The Small Home came about with me searching for something flexible and different. It was a lifestyle choice. The idea was to grow it morganically and slowly as the kids grow up. But things have started so well and we are growing more quickly than I had anticipated! We officially launched in November 2015 and I work full time on it now.
The product range covers fashion and accessories, but also pieces for the home. Why the new product area for you?
I wanted to introduce beautiful pieces for the home because when you are at home with small children and you spend so much more time there, you perhaps care more about wanting to make it look beautiful and surround yourself with lovely things.
Each piece that you select resonates very closely to your own personal style. What is your own unique stamp on the pieces you curate and develop?
The idea behind The Small Home is about developing a lifestyle. I am attracting someone who likes my lifestyle and my own personal style. Both in fashion and homewares, my look is classic. I steer clear of anything faddy or highly fashionable. I like natural materials, simple timeless pieces that you can look at or wear three years on and it still looks beautiful. It is not about a moment in time, it is about things that get better with age. If you buy well, they will become more beautiful.
Tell me a bit about the product range…
Within the home range, we feature lots of kitchen and table pieces including handmade ceramics, wooden boards and utensils as well as handmade baskets. My love of textiles has led me to develop a range of washed table linens and aprons with a Japanese cross back design- perfect for both men and women. We used to do kids aprons, and I may bring them back because they sold really well.
The other half of the collection features clothing, jewellery and accessories. We are most well known for our handmade sheepskin moccasins. They are produced exclusively for The Small Home.
Where do you source your products?
Some internationally, but largely in the UK. All of our ceramics are made on the south coast of England. I visited the studio of the ceramicist to curate my own small range and chose pieces in a colour palette which was very true to me and my own kitchen style- pink, navy, milk and grey. My wooden boards are made in Hackney. The beeswax candle range is produced in Yorkshire.
What are your bestsellers?
The slippers are a huge success for us, even in the summer months. I sell internationally and have just posted several pairs to Australia.
The beeswax candles make a fantastic dinner party gift instead of perhaps, a bottle of wine. Often when people come to one of the house sales, they may buy about six of them to give as gifts. They come in several sizes and are very well priced, starting at £9.
The Small Home HQ is in your own beautiful home, with your kitchen being the setting for you imminent showcase of the new collection. Where do you get your kitchen design inspiration?
My style is eclectic, I like to mix up different things. I have two children which means I will never be able to keep the kitchen immaculate! So I have gone with things that will look good with age, like the concrete floor. Natural oak ages beautifully. Stylistically I referenced Remodelista, an interior blog with a laid-back Californian look to it. I like to mix old and new. And it is important to me to bring nature inside, so I also have lots of plants.
Do you have any local advice tips on kitchen renovating?
- I struggled to find a kitchen that I really liked, so I knew I was going to have to go bespoke, but was aware of the cost implications in doing so. We bought cheaper carcasses and had our own cupboards and worktops built especially for us.
- I am lucky enough to have some garden space, so I thought about the garden as an extension of the kitchen. It makes your kitchen much more usable in the summer months too.
- Oh, and use a local builder! No commuting makes for more time on the job!
What are your business plans for the future?
I want to grow the wholesale side of the business, particularly the slippers. Also I would like to continue to grow my own range, with more pieces made exclusively for The Small Home.
And finally, as a local resident in the borough, where are your top picks for places to eat and drink locally?
With the kids, we love a trip Dulwich Park. There is a great café and playground there and it is pretty close by.
They are also obsessed with the pistachio cake at Milk on Hildreth Street in Balham.
And you may well find us in Brindisa sampling the hams!
A regular date night for my husband and I is to take a walk across Clapham Common and have a glass of red wine and some tapas at Barsito on Venn Street in Clapham, before taking in a movie at the Clapham Picturehouse.
Wandsworth Yum will be Live on Facebook from The Small Home sale event on Wednesday 23 May to showcase the range with Ayshea in person. Click here to watch the action.
For more information, visit The Small Home
Follow The Small Home on Instagram
