10 Mins With: Tash South, Founder Of South Place Studio

I've been involved in design in one way or another since I was very young. I studied advertising, marketing and graphic design in Cape Town, South Africa, where I was born, and worked at various design agencies in Cape Town and London for over 16 years before making the change over into interiors and renovation consultancy. I’ve been renovating for over 16 years now, whether for myself or for a client. I don’t think I’ve had more than a couple of years in a row where there wasn’t a reno involved!

I remember, even when I was very young, my mum allowed my sister and I to decorate our bedrooms however we wanted. When I think about this now, it was quite brave of her – because we really went for it! At the age of about 9 or 10, I took it upon myself to paint my own bedroom, tasking my dad with custom-mixing the colours - under my watchful eye. The walls were to be a light grey and the skirting and cornicing pink! All finished off with a duvet cover with a human-sized print of Barbie on it. If I recall correctly, she was in a ra-ra skirt and wearing roller skates. 

Then in my goth phase, a few years later, the grey stayed and the pink was replaced by black. The Barbie was binned and replaced by a black duvet cover, with black curtains to match.

Remember rag-rolling? The paint effect achieved by using a rag dipped in paint and rolled along the wall? My sister was allowed to do that to her built-in wardrobes when she was around 10 years old. I was 14 at the time, and remember being shocked by the fact that my parents allowed it (built-ins are expensive!) and at my sister's bold colour selection (royal blue and lime green).

So I think it started there – and when I was fortunate enough to buy my first property here in London in 2004, the interiors bug really bit, and I allowed myself the guilty pleasure of all the property shows and gorgeous magazines you have access to here in the UK. We didn't have these in South Africa when I was growing up - perhaps I would have made better interior design choices for my bedroom if I had!

Self-building our home in north London is what actually led me to the complete career change. I just enjoyed the process so much – from the challenge of finding the plot, to working with the architect to seeing it all come to reality on site. I just learned so much during the process, which I knew would be invaluable to other people considering a renovation project. I regularly posted and blogged about our progress, so much so that people assumed I was an interior designer and started asking me to help them with their projects, which was petrifying at the time! But I did it, and they loved it, and best of all, they paid me to do it. I couldn’t believe it! My new career had begun!

What appealed to us about the self-build was that it would help to make the family home we dreamed of that little bit more affordable. It meant we could stay in an area of north London we'd come to love - Crouch End, which has a lovely villagey feel while still being a stone's throw from all the excitement the city has to offer. Also, it meant I could tick 'self-build' off the bucket list - I'd been obsessed with the Grand Designs TV show for so many years and now I'd done it myself. 

South Place Studio offers interior design consultancy and renovation advice. It's evolved over the years, with many challenges along the way, but I feel in a really good place with it right now, helping people create better homes through renovating well, and with intention. Homes that not only function well but that support their individual lives and reflect who they are – perhaps that’s come with these 16 years of renovating. South Place Studio has now grown to include my new podcast, which is called How To Renovate. The podcasts are short, informative episodes for busy renovators, with some inspiring guest interviews sprinkled in. In addition, I've recently launched my new online home renovation course, RenoVersity. It took me most of 2024 to create, and it's a comprehensive online course that offers renovators a start-to-finish view of taking on a large renovation project. I offer video lessons, in-person support, supplier discounts, masterclasses and templates to help take them from initial idea all the way through to placing that final cushion on the sofa in their dream home. All of my expertise is poured into this (I've spared clients the blood, sweat and tears!) as I know how overwhelming a renovation project can be. So many people don’t know where to start, so I really felt a need for this course to exist in the world.

 Photograph Credits: Juliet Murphy

My own family, heritage and history influence my style at home. And not always in the most obvious way. When I’m recording for my podcast, I find I’m always banging on about being from Cape Town, South Africa, where we just have so much more warmth and light than here in the UK, and when I’m renovating, it’s always my first priority – bringing in the light. So light obviously isn’t really a style or a trend, but it makes a huge difference to our emotional and physical wellbeing. My personal style is also inspired by my South African roots. We have so many well-designed homes, hotels and restaurants in Cape Town that exude a kind of easy, beachy, relaxed luxury I just love.

Other than that, I would describe my taste as clean and uncluttered but leaning towards a palette of unpretentious, interesting and layered tactile materials, like exposed brick, unlacquered brass, marble and wood. Then I like to style this with elements from real life, history and heritage, like all the stuff the kids make at craft club, souvenirs and mementos from our travels visiting family in Africa, and other countries. I also like to include other pieces of art or furniture we find in our everyday lives.

My favourite room in our house is the open-plan kitchen/diner. It truly is the hub of our home, it’s where everything is going down – from the good stuff like family dinners, to the bad stuff the 6-year-old’s melt-downs. It’s also the place we host our gorgeous family and friends when they come over – we have a golden mirror ball, almost permanently suspended and any old get-together will suddenly turn into a disco. I mean, what’s better than that?! 

"I have a few special pieces, all sentimental rather than expensive. Some items I picked up in South Africa on our travels, like a couple of ostrich egg shells which have been meticulously carved or decorated – one was smashed in a house move, but I glued it back together (badly) and still proudly display it anyway. There are so many incredible artists and creatives in South Africa, who I just don’t think get the recognition – the creative and artistic talent there, in so many forms, is immense! 

I also have a pencil sketch from a street artist that my husband, Rich and I bought in Bruges, just before we got engaged. For furniture, I spotted an Ercol Grandfather Chair in a charity shop window for £15 once! I ran in and bought it straight away. I’ve re-covered the seat pads 3 times now but it really is a beautiful, classic piece. A recent one is a stunning vintage rattan desk and chair that my writer friend Emma Forrest gave to me when she was moving house and she no longer had the space for. It’s gorgeous – and best of all it has a story! And when I look at it, I imagine myself sitting there writing my own book soon. And of course, I also have a few Rockett St George pieces. I have the Midas bar stools at my brass kitchen island, and I also have a brass and marble side table that I really love. It’s just timeless and fits so well into our home.

In training as a graphic designer, you’re taught to strip away anything superfluous or unnecessary, you have to get your message across in as few words or shapes as possible. And after nearly 20 years in the industry, that’s really stayed with me through all aspects of design, whether graphic or interior. 
That process, combined with wanting to honour my South African roots, led me to arrive at this particular style. 

I’ve used the shape of the African continent and strong silhouettes of African women, but in a modern, graphic way. I still hold a strong connection to South Africa despite it’s difficult past - there is endless, raw creativity, skill and talent that exists there. The visually stunning landscape, the sea, and most of all, the light and the glorious African sunshine, all inspire me. The African sun is something I wanted to portray in my work. I spent a long time experimenting with different gold finishes and print techniques to finally settle on the hand-finished gold leaf in the ‘African sun’ print.

This year will be all about getting RenoVersity in front of those who need it. Our homes are so important to us - it goes far beyond bricks and mortar, as they have the power to make us feel most safe, secure and the place we can be our true selves. So often I see renovations or property development done badly, with almost zero thought about the humans who will be occupying the space! I really want to change that by democratising good home design and showing people that a fantastic home is not exclusive to those who can afford interior designers and renovation consultants. With some time and planning, they can create an amazing home for themselves with what they have. We also have a range of reno freebies on our website to help people with their renovations.

So, 2025 is going to be a busy one, getting RenoVersity out there, bringing more amazing partners on board to support people with their renovations and growing the How To Renovate Podcast. I’m excited to get going!