Katherine Hudson, founder and director of the Arabian Tent Company, has a suitably theatrical enclave from which to run her projects.

To step inside her office – which Katherine renovated from a derelict hay barn with an aluminium roof – is to enter into an Aladdin’s Cave of curiosities, from the vase filled with ostrich feathers to a battered ship’s trunk that doubles up as a table, and a series of stylised animal masks.

This is a place that emanates mystique and a childhood sense of delight. Every new angle reveals more unique details to marvel at.

“My favourite feature is the secret wardrobe on the left-hand side of the room – sourced from an Afghan furniture importer I’ve been buying from for years,” says Katherine. “It leads into a tented emporium which has the feel of a decadent nightclub… I love the way it brings out the child in everyone that walks through it.”

Even everyday features have an air of the unexpected about them. The sofa comes decorated with stamp motifs, while the retro radio dazzles in a vivid shade of bubble-gum pink.

“The artefacts reflect where I’ve been and what I love,” says Katherine. “Like the white dove I bought on a trip with my boyfriend in Belgium 10 years ago, my sister’s foil pictures inspired by 1940s designs, the parrot from a Glyndebourne production of The Magic Flute – I once made a tent for a Glyndebourne production – the mirrored tennis racket my friend made, the collection of keys I found in an antique shop in Paris with my sister and the Victorian brass fly ashtray I’ve had since I was 14.

“I love working from my office – it’s full of inspiration and there’s beauty wherever I look,” she adds.

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