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Meet our 2023/2024 design interns to learn about their time at Peldon Rose so far, and to hear their fresh perspectives on commercial office design.
Embracing the start of a new chapter at Peldon Rose, our four budding talents have settled into Peldon Rose and the Design team. This year we are joined by a varied cohort of current and former students from Nottingham Trent University, the University of Huddersfield and the University of Liverpool.
In its seventh year, our annual design internship is open to both current design students and graduates. Mentored by our Senior Designers throughout the year, the placement offers an opportunity to gain valuable experience in the working world and hands-on experience within the design and build industry.
This year we’re pleased to welcome Isla Grelak, Ella Dodd, Lota Njelita, and Rukshana Begum into the team. While Isla, Ella and Lota will support our concept design team, Rukshana will hone her skills within technical design.
They’ve immersed themselves into life at Peldon Rose already, attending our Richmond Park charity run, joining our PR sports clubs and visiting our projects currently on site. After a few weeks getting to know the business, we sat down with this year’s cohort of interns to learn about them and what they’re hoping to experience working alongside our designers.
Lota: I was interested in design from a young age. I used to watch a lot of
interior design shows with my mum, and I loved playing games that
featured elements of design (and I still do!). That was my first introduction
to being creative and designing my own spaces.
Ella: My family are artistic, especially my Grandad who was a painter, so
I’ve grown up around a lot of creative influences. A lot of my childhood was
spent getting involved with crafts like sewing or knitting. By the time I was in
school, I knew I wanted to do something linked to art and design.
Rukshana: I remember watching Art Attack on TV when I was young and
ever since then I have been interested in creative hobbies. My uncle got me
an arts and crafts set which fuelled the love which carried through to study
art at school. At first, Architecture was calling me, but 7 years felt like a long
time to study, so I opted for Interior Design and love it.
Isla: I was obsessed with kitchens when I was young, and I would creatively
make my own kitchen sets out of cardboard boxes to play with. I would
also make detailed plans of my dream house as a child. Design and
technology was my favourite subject at school which led me to pursue
artistic subjects in further education, choosing Interior Architecture at
university.
Lota: I’ve learned a lot about the industry already. Before joining Peldon
Rose I thought office design would be very limited and desk heavy. But I’ve
learned that it has more variety and potential than I first thought. Offices
have moved away from being purely functional and involve much more
creativity.
Ella: I hadn’t realised that office design was such a varied industry before
applying for my internship. I was under the impression that, as Lota said, it
would be rooms filled with desks and branded elements. But being here
only a short time, I see that office design is much more than that and is
very people centric and design led.
Rukshana: Honestly, I initially associated office design with a dreary image
of a call centre. I had not realised just how unique each project could be
depending on the client and the level of creativity that goes into a
destination workplace catering for people.
Isla: My first impressions were similar, but I was so surprised at how
residential some office designs are. You can tell that Peldon Rose’s spaces
are made with people in mind and with the aim to create an inspiring,
appealing environment, especially with the shift in working styles in recent
years.
Ella: I’ve really enjoyed visiting showrooms in Clerkenwell to see the
process of designing furniture, alongside Peldon Rose team members with
a wealth of knowledge about furniture or design materials, it’s really
insightful.
Lota: I would agree with Ella, the Clerkenwell showrooms are my highlight. It
was a great experience to see some of the furniture I use on CAD every day,
and to learn about the uniqueness of commercial furniture, such as its
increased durability for futureproofing.
Rukshana: I would say my favourite thing is visiting one of our projects that
is currently on site. I saw it very early on in the process and have been back
since to see the progress. I look forward to seeing the journey from space
plans, visuals and an empty shell, to a finished office space.
Isla: So far, I’ve enjoyed space planning for a project that is in an iconic
London building. It’s so interesting to be working in the same unique spaces that
I’ve visited before I joined Peldon Rose.
Lota: Mine would be a mixture of mid-century modern and eclectic. I find
patterns and colours from the eclectic style add a sense of comfort, while
the mid-century design achieves a homely feel through warm colours.
Ella: My favourite would be between either Scandinavian or Maximalist
eclectic styles as I enjoy how a combination of random and unique objects
can be so interesting together.
Rukshana: ‘Japandi’ would be my favourite interior design style, it’s a
mixture of Scandi and Japanese styles. I find it calming as it’s a blend of
simple and soft features but it’s not too minimalist.
Isla: Although I love minimalism and its clean lines, if I had to choose one, I
would say Art Deco interiors. I love how grand it is and the use of bold
colours and geometric shapes.
Lota: Most forms of art I consume inspire me to be creative: music, films
and books. But also, moments alone where I can let my imagination run
free before collaborating with others to develop my ideas.
Ella: I’m a very visual person, so for me it would be watching films or going
to galleries to be inspired by other people’s work and the things around
me.
Rukshana: I find that I love environments where I can bounce ideas off of
people or get new perspectives, that’s when I feel most creative.
Isla: I definitely take inspiration from my surroundings, when I visit places
and explore areas, I use what I see as inspiration. I love looking at our
previous projects for ideas.
Lota: My recent adventure was visiting Crete with friends and renting a car
abroad for the first time. It was a trip of sleepless nights, relaxing on
beaches, hiking and new experiences like horse riding.
Ella: Recently I took a little break to quaint Lincoln and tried
paddle boarding for the first time on the River Witham, that was a fun new
experience.
Rukshana: My biggest adventure would be moving to London and living
alone for the first time. It has been a very big lifestyle change, alongside
starting a new job but it’s exciting to explore somewhere new!
Isla: I recently went on holiday to Milan and spent a day at Lake Como. It
was a picture-perfect destination and I had so much fun exploring and
swimming in the lake that I missed my train back home to Milan.
Lota: Personable
Ella: Determined
Rukshana: Empathetic
Isla: Loyal
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