Conversations with local businesses – Niki Jones, Interior Designer
This edition Anne Marie Hillan welcomes the chance to chat to Niki Jones, the face and creative behind Niki Jones Interiors Store on Great Western Road. Niki opens up about her amazing career and the opportunity to open her store in the West End. And inspired by their conversation Anne Marie speaks to architect, Rachel Harford-Cross, about her architecture firm’s renovation of a former fisherman’s cottage in Mull – subsequently inspired the naming of Niki Jones’ most recent textile collection, the Dun Guaidhre. Images Gordon Burniston.
Niki Jones
Some of our West End readers may think they know the Niki Jones Interiors store at Kelvinbridge. But on speaking to THE Niki Jones,Interior Designer, I recognise at once this is not simply a Homes and Interiors shop. Niki Jones Interiors is home to an exceptional creative business, with Niki a designer of ethically made homeware, and that design happens right here in Glasgow’s West End.
Niki went through her formative education in the West End, but on leaving school studied textiles at Galashiels, and then attended the Royal College of Art in London. On graduation, she joined the design team at Habitat. Now this was Habitat in its absolute heyday! Niki gained fabulous experience and extensive knowledge during her six years as Textile Designer and Style Co-coordinator, mentored by famous names and industry leaders such as Tom Dixon and Georgina Godley. She saw designs through from initial concept to finished product, working alongside the makers and often travelling to the crafting communities to see them at work in Nepal and India. It is clear from speaking to Niki that these were creative and inspiring times. In 2004 Niki moved to Wedgwood as Design Director, taking her to new markets in Japan and China.
Ethical Practices
With this incredible experience to build on, Niki returned to Glasgow in 2008 to launch her own collection a year later. Prior to launch she visited crafters in Nepal and India whom she had worked with throughout her career, designing her collection in direct collaboration with the crafting communities.
Her designs quickly became a recognisable brand and are seen in some of the most prestigious stores around the world.
Ethical practices and sustainability are clearly Niki’s passion. All the rugs in the collection are produced and individually certified under the ‘Goodweave’ scheme. (Goodweave is a nonprofit organisation with the mission to stop the use of child Labour in global supply chains). She explained that Goodweave monitors the weavers to ensure there is no child or bonded labour in the production of the rugs, ensuring good working practices and providing quality education for children in the weaving communities.
Niki is passionate about ensuring these weaving skills survive – with ethical and sustainable practices at the core of production.
Dun Guaidhre Collection
In addition to rugs, Niki’s designs truly fabulous hand-crafted velvet linen throws, bedspreads and cushions. Niki’s most recent collection is the The Dun Guaidhre, named after the location of a photoshoot. Dun Guaidhre is a small, 200-year-old fisherman’s cottage on the Isle of Mull recently brought back to life through a sympathetic renovation by Rachel and Peter of Harford-Cross Architects. The couple live and work in the West End and met Niki when visiting her shop.
As a backdrop to this collection, Dun Guaidhre is perfect. In her words, it is ‘Understated and charming and mirrors our approach to design unequivocally – a commitment to time-honoured craft and sustainable practices’.
The Dun Guaidhre collection is designed using the ancient craft of patchwork and using fabric cut offs and remnants from other productions. The ultimate in comfort, yet ensuring minimum wastage
The store in Kelvinbridge is the most recent part of Niki’s journey – opening in 2021, over 10 years after the launch of the original collection. The shop allows Niki and her team to directly connect with customers. And it allows us that first hand opportunity to see and feel Niki’s work. It is a beautiful blend of Niki’s designs and original pieces from other creatives and designers who share Niki’s values. It is impeccably styled with hand crafted ceramic and glass items and has such a welcoming atmosphere. Having met Niki, heard her history and her passion for what she does, plus the crafters she works with – it is such a treat to feel those bedspreads and see the rugs knowing and understanding the love, craft and skill that went into their design and making. Take time to visit soon.
Rachel & Peter Harford-Cross
I had the pleasure of meeting Rachel Harford-Cross of Harford-Cross Architects in Cottonrake, one of the West Ends most lovely coffee shops.
Rachel was brought up in Aberdeen, studied in Edinburgh, and worked in London. Peter, her husband, is a Yorkshireman. However, Rachel and Peter have lived in the West End of Glasgow for 18 years.
The combination of parks, greenery, and easy access to the countryside; facilities and fantastic social scene, are so attractive that they cannot see themselves living and working anywhere else.
Rachel and Peter set up their own architecture practice during Covid. It was a challenging time to start a new business but with Covid came a resurgence in homeowners wanting to enhance their homes, build that extension, or create that space. Extensions and reconfigurations of Glasgow homes are a large part of Rachel and Peter’s practice. They do however pride themselves on enhancing their clients’ dreams and expectations. They work with the clients’ original ideas but develop them to achieve imaginative solutions for the space.
The couple have achieved phenomenal architectural recognition and success with a sympathetic restoration of the former Fisherman’s Cottage in Mull where Niki Jones so loved the photoshoot location that she named her collection after the property. Quite an accolade!
The Cottage
Dun Guaidhre is only 30 metres square, but the love, skill, and attention to detail that has gone into this project has seen it listed as a finalist in the Scottish Design Awards 2023, and featured in such prestigious architectural journals as Remodelista and The Modern House amongst others.
Rachel and Peter wanted to retain the spirit of the building, but when they took it on as a renovation project it was an exposed and neglected fisherman’s cottage which latterly offered a roof, minimal shelter, and little else. Now, it is beautifully renovated to provide comfortable but authentic living accommodation. It has a sleeping cum living area with a curtain for privacy. Whilst the bathroom is separate but simple.
The fixtures and fittings were all sourced second hand by Peter and Rachel during the project e.g. the lights are reclaimed brass ship fittings, and the taps are reconditioned. Rachel finds it amazing what can be sourced on eBay! The original stonework has been exposed and whitewashed to differentiate the living room space from the ply lined sleeping space on the other side. Every detail has been so thoughtfully considered. Little wonder it is such a wonderful backdrop to Niki Jones’ collection and received industry plaudits.
Restorations Continue
Speaking to Rachel it’s clear that they are rightly proud of the way they’ve captured the spirit of Dun Guaidhre with their renovations. Because of Covid and the logistics of getting skilled workers onsite to Mull – the whole project took three years.
Rachel and Peter continue to work on thoughtful restorations, conversions and extensions of Glasgow properties but are also working on projects in Aberdeen, Chelsea, and in keeping with the island theme, on the Isle of Jura. All from the West End of Glasgow.
If you want to see more of their work on Dun Guaidhre then pick up a copy of TV’s Banjo Beale’s new book A Place in Scotland.
For more information on Niki Jones, Interior Designer and to shop interiors visit –
Return to Interiors Articles
