Hatta Byng has been editor of House & Garden magazine since 2014, overseeing among other things each year’s highly anticipated Top 100 List of Interior Designers. She studied History of Art and Architecture before working in interior design for three years, and then spent two years at the South African edition of House & Garden before returning to the UK and joining the team here. When not working, Hatta is with her three children running around in the park or ‘dragging them off to antique shops’.
If I were a FLOWER, I would be a snowdrop. They are the first glimmer of hope on a gloomy winter’s day, when very little else is peeping through the soil. A sign that Spring is around the corner.
If I were a FABRIC, it would have to be a block print. I marvel at the concentration and skill of the people printing these fabrics by hand and eye, often with multiple blocks and colours.
If I were a BOOK, I’d like to be Little Lord Fauntleroy by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It captivated me as a child and I re-read it recently and was equally moved by the story of little Cedric. The idea of a long-lost relation has always captivated me.
If I were a TREE, I would like to be one that was easily climbable; the perfect place for a lookout, with plenty of leafy canopy.
If I were a GAME, it would be the card game, Racing Demon. It’s fast-paced and exciting and I’ve played since I was a child, so it’s synonymous with happy times and houses filled with people.
If I were a COLOUR, definitely green – it’s a great wall colour, the colour of nature, and eating greens is good for you.
Instagram @hattabyng
@houseandgardenuk
