What services do you provide?

Architecture, Interior Design, Extensions, Conservatories & Garden Rooms, Bespoke Furniture & Storage Solutions, Garden and Landscape Design, Kitchen Design, Lighting Design, Adaptive Reuse and Planning

How would you describe your style?

"Contemporary design with a deep respect for history and the continuity of the past into the present. We are curious and inspired by the world around us, always seeking something new - yet familiar - out of the unique qualities of the sites, buildings, spaces and materials we work with. Our surroundings are the foundations for our inspiration, where we often turn difficulties into advantages."

Please describe a recently completed project or tell us about the bespoke service that you offer

"Our design process is deeply collaborative, resourceful, and responsive, ensuring each project becomes a reflection of our clients' unique stories and aspirations. To illustrate how we work and what lies at the heart of our service, below are five memorable stories gathered over the years. We invite you to visit our website (www.studiotashima.com) where you can gain further insight into our creative method as we shape materials, details and architecture. 

Story 1 – Collaborative design: How a box of curtains inspired the design

A client arrived at our studio with boxes of curtains from their previous home, hoping to reuse them in their new spaces. Initially surprised, we were intrigued and embraced the challenge. Together, we explored clever ways to adapt these curtains to fit the new rooms despite their differing window sizes. As the design evolved, the curtains became more than just a practical element—they inspired the selection of paint colours, tiles, and finishes throughout the house. This integration of personal items ensured the home felt both refreshingly new and intimately familiar, seamlessly bridging the past and future.

Story 2 – Responsive design: How we came to be inspired by an Edwardian pub 

One client envisioned their home imbued with the charm and character of an Edwardian pub. Initially uncertain of what this was and how we could achieve this, we started with a quick search on the internet. Here we came across an authentic fragment of a reclaimed Edwardian pub and encouraged our client to acquire it and have it delivered to the property. This piece not only became a tactile design reference, but we also ended up integrating it as a key design feature in their kitchen, anchoring the project in a sense of history while fulfilling their aspirations for the character of their spaces.

Story 3 – Framing the green: How we arrived at the idea of a large picture window

In the early stages of a design, we were contemplating ways to connect the house’s kitchen to the surrounding garden – which had the fortune of abutting an ancient woodland. During one of our discussions, our client’s father spoke out with a spark of inspiration, ‘It’d be amazing to have a big window to look out onto all that green.’ The idea took root instantly. From that seed of thought, we designed an oversized, arched window that filled the wall, framing the woods into the heart of the home. To draw a closer connection, we chose to make the frame green. This has the effect of connecting with the colours beyond. The result is a space dominated by a grand window with a special connection to nature. 

Story 4 – Layers in time: How to give a new-build home the sense of history

In our work, we feel strongly that houses should be natural. A part of this is to communicate the sense that they’ve always been there. Stemming from our experience working with historic homes, it reflects our belief in the continuity of our built environment – where a designer’s contribution is just one chapter in a building’s story. In a recent new-build project, we employed several strategies to achieve this. Here we salvaged and repurposed materials, including some from the site’s previous building. We also incorporated softened wall edges, gentle curves, an eclectic array of arches, characterful materials and deliberate misalignments. Without leaning into kitch or pastiche, these design choices created a sense of layered history, giving the new home the warmth and character of a place that has evolved over time. 

Story 5 – Resourceful design: How we imaginatively adapted an existing stair 

We were once tasked with improving the angle of a stair. It was simply too steep. Rather than demolish the existing concrete structure, we introduced two additional steps by adding a layer of slate treads over the original, each a different thickness from the other. Our approach resolved the functional issue and became a new whole and something unique, celebrating new and old. We see this as a testament to the beauty of using constraints to arrive at something new and unexpected. To complete the story, we introduced bespoke joinery to fill in the space below. We took the door fronts to a traditional bookbinder to cover the doors and added leather handles. For us the project became a reminder of how constraints can spark creativity, leading to designs that are thoughtful and unexpected."