We caught up with Rob Lessmann, MD and founder of luxury interior design studio, Design’d Living.
The company fuses twenty-first century essentials with timeless original style to create a luxurious comfortable space. Design’d Living specialises in high end residential projects and commercial property, including restaurants and office spaces.
My car of choice
It has to be a Porsche – it has superb functionality with classic design, great attention to detail on the interiors and is a very good everyday all-rounder. My dream car is a Singer Vehicle Design rebuild of a classic Porsche – they have taken the classic design and made it a luxury reliable classic car with amazing attention to the heritage of Porsche, while pushing boundaries on design.
My favourite holiday destination
I have a love for Barbados, but I can’t say I have one specific location as I love to travel to new places. I get a lot of inspiration for my interior work while on my travels and have a passion for Italian designs.
My gadget I can’t live without
My Remarkable notepad. It is life changing for note taking and sketches, and also massively helps with my dyslexia. It looks and feels like writing on paper, and has a super sleek design that is thin and lightweight, so perfect for taking to various meetings and keeping organised.
My go to fashion brand
My go to off duty looks for feeling well put together includes a Sunspell T-shirt, Dsquared or Paige jeans and Dior or Yeezy Boost trainers. I also like Acne Studios for accessories. For suits, jackets shirts and chinos, I get these tailored.
My airline of choice
I love to travel, so any airline with exceptional customer service and comfort. Middle Eastern and Asian Carriers are superb in terms of recognising the customer is important. I’ve very recently made the move to split my time 50/50 in Dubai and the UK, so those airlines are particularly important as I fly between the two countries.
My favourite watch brand
Patek Phillippe offer incredible watches. One day I want to have an Aquanaut in white gold with a rubber strap. My everyday watch that I currently wear is a Bvlgari watch with a black rubber strap.
My favourite restaurant
I don’t have a specific one as I’m a massive foodie and like to try out new places, but I love sharing concept tapas styles with all cuisines. Some favourites in Dubai are Clap, Sucre, Sushi Samba or Ula and Surf Club for something more chilled. In London, Galvin La Chapelle, Chiltern Firehouse, 180 The Strand (Soho House), Gola, and Crazy Pizza are some of my favourites.
My guilty pleasure
I really love to holiday and enjoy dining out while I am abroad, is that a guilty pleasure though?
My favourite way to give back
In the interior design world, it’s so important to help young talent get a foot through the door. It is a notoriously hard industry to find your way in, so giving back to those up-and-coming designers is my favourite thing to offer. For me its not about what degree you have, it’s that you have an eye for detail and you’re passionate about experiencing everything to enhance your skills. There is a lot you can teach a new interior designer, but you cannot teach passion and flare.
