Crafty move

It wasnt that I didnt enjoy living in London, says Gail Turpin. I loved working with the company I was with, I had good friends. It was just the thought of being in London for ever. I didnt want to wake up at 55 and say, What happened And so it was that thirtysomething Turpin gave up her job as a design consultant, along with her architect-designed pad in Camberwell, and moved to Edinburgh for a self-employed life in a one-bedroom flat. That was two years ago. Today, she sits on a sofa with grannys patchwork tossed over it, trying to explain how the change in her living space reflects the larger shift in her life towards self-expression. Her London flat was, she says, just stunning, with three bedrooms, lots of glass, a roof terrace. A place where a work of art, say, could be displayed solo on a white wall. Here, by contrast, the living is compact and delightfully eclectic. The previous flat was so well designed, with everything in its right place, there was no opportunity for change. Here, Ive shoes a chance to make it more personal. I needed some self-expression, rather than only designing at work. So many people say, I never have time to do my own thing, I work too hard. Well, you have to make time. She wanted more time for her yoga, only now that Im here, Im doing other things. All the things you didnt even know you wanted to do. Such as the felt-making course that resulted in the scarf now draped over the back of a chair. Shes taken up crochet, too, and once a week gets together with friends for dinner and a craft night. She also wants to get back to painting, a pleasure sidelined since college days. On the mantelpiece sits a canvas, with leaves stuck to it and the words One day this will become a painting scribbled on it. I dont think it ever will, she laughs. From the outside, the property has a cottagey feel, a characteristic of the two-storey colonies houses in this part of Edinburgh, which feels more like a village than the heart of a city. Despite this, Turpin was keen to create a modern interior. In the bedroom, a partition wall disguises wardrobe space behind the bed, while a simple hole-in-the-wall fireplace in the living room recalls the version she had in London. But its the bits that really catch your eye, from the blue-and-white polka-dot dressing table in her bedroom, picked up from a junk shop and hand-painted, to the TS Eliot poem she painted on the wall in the hall. Then there is the old green teapot from her mum that sits on the dressing table, while Cath Kidston fabrics complete the girlish mood. Turpin has been working with Kidston on packaging designs. There are also many gifts from friends, including a set of old kitchen scales that would look at home in a 1950s grocers. The light fitting over the table is made from shells picked up on a beach. The freelance life is more eclectic than office life, too. Instead of working for huge corporations, Turpin now advises a diverse group of small firms, from architects to a greetings card company. At first, I did think, What have I done, especially when youre not earning as much money. But then, Ive bought all the handbags and shoes, you know Time is more valuable. I like that organic, unplanned quality to things. We tend to plan things too much now, whereas theres a real contentment in finding something and making something from it. You just have to give yourself the space to let it happen.

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