As one of the world’s most in-demand event planners, nobody knows how to set the mood like Fiona Leahy. From designing huge weddings and parties to intimate dinners, her events all share a common thread: her sense of drama. We discover how her masterful eye extends to her London home
FIONA LEAHY PUTS THE FINAL TOUCHES TO A TABLESCAPE FOR CHRISTIE’S
Where do you live and why?
I live in Queens Park – I love it for all the parks and green space. It also has a lovely village feel and the best farmers’ market in the UK.
Describe your front door…
It’s painted pale lavender to match a lavender plant and a dried flower wreath. I love floral wreaths, they look so pretty.
What is your favourite place in your home and why?
My favourite space is actually my garden. It has a huge swinging day bed, a fire and a 70s spun metal dining table with swivel chairs. It’s like an outdoor sitting room in the summer with occasional butterflies. My favourite room in my home is my sitting room with its big windows, high ceilings and working fireplace. I have a thing about fires and being cosy – nothing says ‘home’ like a fire.
IT’S ALL IN THE DETAILS: TABLE SETTINGS FROM AN EVENT FIONA CREATED FOR FASHION LABEL LOVESHACKFANCY AT THE COTSWOLD HOME OF AMANDA BROOKS
If the objects in your home could talk, what would have the best story to tell?
Maybe the candlesticks on my dining table? They’ve seen a good time and heard some great conversations!
You must travel a lot with your job – what’s your favourite way to spend your time when you are at home?
I travel a lot but I love being at home, it really is my refuge. In the winter, I like burning incense, lighting a fire and listening to music. In summer, I love being in the garden and watching how much it changes in a matter of weeks. Being in nature is the most grounding thing of all.
Has your work influenced the way you’ve decorated your home?
My home is very much a testing ground – I am forever setting up imaginary tablescapes. I have so many ideas and projects in motion that my home is more neutral than maybe one would expect. I need my home to be calm and constant.
FIONA IS KNOWN FOR HER LOVE OF ‘MATCHIMALISM’, ON GREAT DISPLAY HERE AT AN EVENT FOR THE AQUAZZURA X RACIL COLLABORATION AT LONDON CLUB 5 HERTFORD STREET
How would you describe your decorating style?
I wish I could describe it – I often think I decorate like a Palm Springs housewife in the 70s who maybe spent a summer in Venice.
What’s on your bedside table?
A scented candle from Cire Trudon, a stick of palo santo, magnesium, always a book, rose quartz crystals for calm and self-love, and a silk eye mask.
EXQUISITE FLOWERS AND DECADENT DECORATION AT AN EVENT FIONA DESIGNED AT HOSTED AT THE OPENING OF THE NEW PRIVATE DINING ROOM AT SCOTT’S RESTAURANT
What was your childhood home like?
We grew up in a church lodge in the heart of the countryside in Ireland. It was pretty rustic with diamond paned windows and quarry tiled floors, and a huge rambling garden with a river running through the end of it. I loved growing up in the countryside – we had rescue donkeys, rabbits, cats and a dog. It’s for sure where my appreciation of nature and animals came from.
What does your home mean to you?
It is my sanctuary. It’s a place of refuge from the outside world. It also is a canvas and a place from where ideas form. I love my home, it brings me great joy.
Discover more of Fiona’s extraordinary events on her Instagram @fionaleahydesign and at fionaleahy.com
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