Meet Vanessa, Founder of PreFound Fabrics
Based at Central Parade in Walthamstow, E17 4RT
Meet Vanessa, the colour and pattern lover behind PreFound Fabrics. She makes soft furnishings and window dressings for people who want to express themselves in their interior décor – and encourages them to “feed your indecision”.
Vanessa works at Central Parade, where her studio gives her the space to make her cushions and curtains and to stash her treasure trove of fabrics, and where she is part of a creative business community. We asked her a few questions about her business and her inspirations.
What makes your product unique or special? The first thing that makes my cushions special is that customers can mix and match the two sides of their cushion to reflect different or conflicting aspects of their interior style identity in a semi-bespoke manner. The second thing is that although many of my fabrics are unused they are excess from a previous transaction and so no additional fabric has been manufactured to supply a purchase.
Describe a typical day for you. A typical day might include making a curtain or cushions, meeting with or corresponding with clients, updating estimates and quotes and ordering stock to fulfill orders.
If you could interview one person in your industry, who would it be and why? Justina Blakeney, Instagram star and head of interiors lifestyle company Jungalow, as I love her design aesthetic. It is complete, idiosyncratic and beautiful. I admire the way she has marketed her company to be incorporated into media devices such as the Design Home app and how she has grown into a whole retail enterprise. Also, it’s good to have heroes.
Check out some of Vanessa’s life-brightening creations on her website, PreFound Fabrics
We currently have a couple of studio spaces like Vanessa’s available at Central Parade. If you are a maker, creative or small business owner and would like to come and have a look round, message us at centralparade@meanwhilespace.com.