UNIK muses : Sarah & Taylor
Sarah and Taylor met at university while studying Bachelor Design in Interior and Spatial Design about 5 years ago and have forged a wonderful friendship. Stylish, creative, beautiful inside and out, they were a pleasure to work with, even sharing their holiday snaps with us! There is so much to love about these girls that we wanted to know more…
What attracted you to each other and what do you love about each other?
T: Sarah is the quirkiest person I know, and I feel incredibly lucky to have her! She is unbelievably confident and so driven. She inspires me all the time!
S: Taylor has always been incredibly generous with her friendship from when I first met her, and that is something I will always love her for. She has the most open and courageous heart and has taught me how to be at ease with myself and to enjoy each moment for what it is.
In the five years since you met you have had lots of fun adventures, what’s your favourite adventure you’ve had together?
Sicily! Without a doubt. There are many experiences we hold very close to our hearts from that trip. We have travelled quite extensively together with our dearest friends and have so many wonderful memories from those trips but this spontaneously ended up being just the two of us! We had a tiny apartment in Taormina that overlooked the old city, where we watched people from our balcony before travelling down to Isola Bella from AM through to PM.
We started our days with Granita and Brioche at Bam Bar and ended with afternoons filled with lots of wine, olives, cheese and sautéed mussels. A dream! We also found an absolute gem Airbnb in Catania which ended up being the most beautiful apartment we have ever stayed in. It was filled with Vintage chairs, terrazzo flooring, old type writers and a whole lot of wonderful company!
Why did you decide to work in the architecture and design industry?
I think being creative people it always made sense to work in an industry which combined so many of our passions. A love for travel, design and beautiful objects that we get to apply to our work daily.
What is it like as women working in traditionally male dominated fields, such as the architecture and building industry?
There continues to be a constant shift and change in our industry, and we consider ourselves very fortunate to be a part of it during a time where there is a great deal of focus on improving equality between genders. We are always excited to be a part of an industry that is ever changing and we get to surround ourselves with inspiring and strong people, men and women alike. There are many wonderful organisations that ensure mentorship and help to empower and encourage women but also to help strive for gender equality within all aspects of our field.
What inspires you when designing?
Anything and Everything. Particularly our friends, our partners and the spaces and places we’ve experienced.
Completely lending yourself over to the creative process is often challenging but we find that reflecting on shapes and forms from our travels or nostalgic objects, in combination with references to notable artistic movements or periods, almost always leads to something completely unexpected and exciting.
We can definitely see how our experiences have shaped the places we inhabit and the way we design. Our rituals are very important to us personally and in the way we design, and we tend to take a lot of them from our travels, allowing them to influence us creatively and be a part of our everyday design practice.
What is your favourite building in Sydney and why?
S: Maybe the MCA... not necessarily for the building itself – more for what’s inside. Its constantly changing and such a different experience each time I go.
T: And if we could stretch it to NSW then definitely the Bundanon Trust, Illaroo. The most beautiful landscape with a wonderful cultural link.
How would you describe your style?
Luckily, it’s changed a lot from when we first met each other! There used to be a lot of pattern and A LOT of colour. Over time I think we have learnt to appreciate quality over quantity. We value investing in beautifully made things that are classic and timeless. Especially when they’re made by our dearest friends (and complete idols). We have a pretty simple aesthetic now though, sometimes with a touch of quirkiness. Majority of days it’s a good shirt, a pair of jeans and always RM’s.
What are your favourite UNIK by us pieces?
S: The Jonathan Pants. I wear them all the time! And I’ve had my eye on the Cullen maxi. It’s so dreamy.
T: The Taylor blouse! (Am I biased?) and the Di Morra pants, I feel like I could tackle anything in that set – although I don’t think I’ve taken off my Byron shirt since I got it?
