We repainted everywhere, although a lot of the colours were here already. Inside it’s a mixture of things we’ve found at the Ardingly, Kempton, Shepton Mallett and Portobello markets and a lot of inherited bits of furniture. And we collect hats…
Alice Begg and Robbie Humphries, the fashion designers behind eponymous label Humphries and Begg, were as charming and sweet as they look when we dropped in recently for a tour of their home. They met and fell in love six years ago, went travelling around India and decided to start a clothing business together after visiting artisan Indian tailors.
The rest, as they say is history, and now they are married and living in a rambling apartment overlooking London’s Portobello Market, surrounded by their collections of hats, shoes, old photographs and musical instruments. Meanwhile Humphries and Begg goes from strength to strength.
“We repainted everywhere, although a lot of the colours were here already,” smiles Alice. “Inside it’s a mixture of things we’ve found at the Ardingly, Kempton, Shepton Mallett and Portobello markets and a lot of inherited bits of furniture. And we collect hats…” They love hats so much, in fact, they’ve made a feature wall of them behind the dining table in the sitting room. “I really love old black and white photos too,” Alice continues. “They’re all a bit weird and a little bit creepy… They’re not people we know, but I really love the characters.”
Robbie, who is also a musician, leaps about the apartment, offering various props for our shoot and lots of cups of tea. “It’s great here for writing and playing music too,” he says. “I love my euphonium and I can sit and play while I watch the world go by below”. Upstairs, Alice’s collection of Ossie Clarke dresses and boxes of vintage ribbons and buttons provide the couple with inspiration. “It all fell into place really easily,” Alice says.
“I studied womenswear, we went to India, started doing bespoke designs and now we’re doing our own collections. You just have to follow your heart.” Which sums these two up nicely.
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