Elizabeth Metcalfe

Features Editor

Elizabeth Metcalfe is House & Garden’s Features Editor. She joined the magazine in 2015, with a BA in English Literature from King’s College London and a Masters from the Courtauld Institute of Art. Her interest in interiors was sparked through a Saturday job working in Pentreath & Hall when she was a student. She likes writing about lived-in, layered interiors, as well as discovering little-known craftspeople. Her writing has appeared in Toast Magazine and Cereal, and she hosted talks for the likes of Christie’s and Collect Art Fair. Her first book, New English Interiors (Frances Lincoln) comes out in October 2024 and profiles the colourful, pattern-rich homes of 22 creatives. She lives in Sussex and spends her spare time rummaging for treasure at antiques fairs and walking her dog.

At home for Christmas with the founder of childrenswear brand Caramel

Driven by details and a commitment to doing things right, Eva Karayiannis' west London townhouse shares the same ethos as childrenswear brand, Caramel, that she founded in 1999. Just like with her clothes, it's all about getting the bones right and creating something that can be dressed up and down.

An artist's layered and light-filled house, arranged with a painter's eye

The painter Haidee Becker has created a serene, comfortable live-work space in her north London house, including a magical, light-filled studio where she paints her contemplative still lifes and portraits

A former mission hall in London transformed into a textile designer's creative headquarters

The east London headquarters of Nest Design are in a former mission hall where, just as Lucy Bathurst and her team combine old and new textiles to produce uniquely beautiful furnishings, 19th-century elements are blended with contemporary additions

An 1800s cottage in Derbyshire that helped a designer rediscover his identity

For this designer, his 1800s former mill workers cottage in Derbyshire became a way of navigating grief and proves that homes are as much about emotion as they are aesthetics.

At home in Sussex and Cairo with creative director Cruz Wyndham

As creative director of lifestyle brand Anūt Cairo, Cruz Wyndham juggles her work nurturing the traditional crafts of Egypt with family life split between London and a pair of gatehouses on the Petworth House estate

Behind the scenes at an Egyptian creative collective producing extraordinary woven art

Egyptian architect Ramses Wissa Wassef believed passionately that creativity is in everyone. Elizabeth Metcalfe visits the thriving weaving centre he established nearly 75 years ago.

A handsome Victorian house in London softly harmonised by Thea Speake

With building work underway on their 19th-century house in west London, the owners called in Thea Speke to bring a coherent feel and calm atmosphere to the interiors

Is open-plan living a thing of the past?

Our lives are not what they were a few years ago, so perhaps it’s time to rethink our homes too

Design Ideas

What's the right way to make a bed? 10 interior designers offer their (strong) opinions

The process of making a bed tends to bring out strong views in interior designers – we asked some of the best for their advice on everything from fitted sheets to decorative cushions

The comfort of clutter: why stuff brings us joy

The good kind of clutter – shelves laden with books, dressers packed with ceramics and so on – not only say a lot about who we are but also soothe and provide comfort. The key to it not tipping into chaos is placing things with intent and having the odd edit.

The dos and don'ts of decorating responsibly

Experts share some of the ways in which they take a more considered, forward-thinking and eco-conscious approach to design

A colour consultant's unexpectedly understated Georgian cottage, full of budget savvy hacks

When Harriet Slaughter and her husband Ben Benton moved into this Georgian cottage in Kingston in 2020, it not only gave them a chance to create a home together, but also for Harriet to launch her new colour consultancy business.

The art of styling your sofa (yes, it's a thing)

Styling your sofa is certainly one of the more frivolous tasks you might be faced with at home – but it's also one that interior designers have plenty to say about

A magical Dorset cottage brought to life by botanical artist and set designer Tattie Isles

It's hard to believe that this 18th-century cottage was once a bland white box, such is the magic that Tattie Isles (the designer behind this year's Chelsea Flower Show Bull Ring Gate) and her husband Fred have wrought

London Houses

A sophisticated Primrose Hill flat filled with carefully sourced pieces

A well-proportioned London flat was the ideal setting for interior designer Emma Grant’s trove of eclectic finds, with each piece shaping her vision for the space. We revisit this archive story from 2021.

How one hour with interior consultant Patrick O’Donnell transformed the tricky kitchen-dining room in our rental cottage

As Patrick O'Donnell launches his own interiors consultancy service, we put the decorator through his paces to see what he can come up with in an hour virtual consultancy for our Features Editor's challenging kitchen-dining room at her cottage in Sussex. It turns out he's a miracle-worker.