“For the last twelve years, I worked in London as an upholsterer in a studio space I shared with a florist and a carpenter. The smell of sawdust really complimented the smell of flowers. Or maybe it was the other way around. Regardless, those were the best years. My favorite project was a reading chair. A banker brought in to my shop one afternoon and said, ‘do whatever you please. All I want is something to brighten the dreadful oatmeal apartment I’m renting.’ I was so excited. Clients rarely give me liberties like that. I loved picking out the fabric—thinking about texture, color, draping, pattern. These are important choices! When she picked up the finished product, she cried. Then, the following December, I received her Christmas card in the mail. It was signed, “With love, Katherine and her chair.” Ha! I still have it up on my fridge.”