In Conversation with India Hicks

Renowned British designer and philanthropist India Hicks has brought a touch of the Bahamas to our stores this season, in celebration of her latest book An Entertaining Story. Luxe gold palm fronds and tropical greenery combine with alfresco lighting to create the perfect back drop for Husk’s resort capsule collections.

Your late father, famed interior designer David Hicks, famously coined the term ’tablescape’. How much of an influence has this had on the way you style for entertaining, and can you explain the concept to us please? My father David Hicks felt very strongly that everything should be a visual joy for the eye, including arrangements of objects on tables - be they tables in sitting rooms, tables in drawing rooms, or tables in studies. So not just a lamp and a TV control but he thought you should have a pretty object there such as a vase of flowers, or an attractive notepad and pen but arrange them so that they look stylish and meaningful together.

 What are your top 3 tips for hosting a fabulous party? My top tips for hosting a fabulous party are to:

1. Have a mix of interesting people. Not just the same obvious people but try and include a few unknowns. 

2. Lighting - think carefully about your lighting - whether it’s  candles, a main light on a dimmer switch, or lots of little lanterns. Lighting is so important because it creates an atmosphere that feels warm and inviting.

3. And finally, don’t worry so much! Let the big things go. If something is going wrong, it’s OK. Just enjoy yourself. If you the hostess is enjoying yourself, then everybody else will be enjoying themselves. Don’t worry about the little stuff. 

What is your favourite drink to serve when entertaining? Well this totally depends on what climate I am in. If it’s Summertime in England or Christmas in Sydney for example, I would love to serve a cool Pimms with delicious fresh mint, cucumber and orange and lemon slices with a LOT of ice. But beware Pimms is deceptive. Have a couple of glasses and you’ll be totally …..!

What’s always on your Christmas menu? Being British living in the Bahamas I like to have a blend of the two. So  we will always have a table outside underneath the swaying palm fronds and palm trees but I like to have a full British lunch. That means turkey with all the trimmings which when we have American guests, can sometimes get a bit confusing! They think Christmas crackers are meant to be biscuits that you would spread cheese on. They are VERY confused when we set fire to a Christmas pudding…and they nearly break a tooth on the penny that has been hidden inside it. They certainly cannot understand what mince meat is doing inside a mince pie with pastry and sugar on top!

What theme are you adopting this Christmas, and how will you achieve it? My theme for Christmas this year always involves trying to have a bit of nature on the table. I don't like it being too glitzy. I prefer a bit of a wild, unpolished feel to the table - so even though I’ll be sure to have a colour scheme - eg dark green with napkins and crackers that might match, I’ll also bring in some palm fronds and lay them flat on the table and then build out from there. I always think this is really the season where 'more is more'.

Your schedule is hectic with your philanthropic endeavours, work, busy family and social lives…how do you a) maintain your seemingly limitless supplies of energy (which we have witnessed this trip first hand!) and b) how do you unwind? I was blessed with energy that’s for sure.  I live life to the fullest and enjoy every minute of it whilst I can, when I can.  Of course there are ups and downs that come with that and below the surface, we are all paddling desperately. But every day I do try to find one hour to myself, one hour - whether it’s doing an hour of yoga, or having a run on the beach. That is my hour of meditation. And that is what keeps me sane and hopefully fairly healthy. 

What does 2023 have in store for India Hicks? 2023….I have hardly had a moment to look forward to what this new year might bring. For the past couple of years, we’ve all been in survival mode between seeing such extreme climate changes, war, covid, pandemics - it’s been one hell of a roller coaster. It would be nice if 2023 just had a little more  balance to it and a lot of kindness. I think as a world we need to be a little bit more kind to one another. I’m heading back to the Ukraine in January with the Global Empowerment Mission, which is a disaster relief organisation I work with, and I know that what is going to confront us there is not going to be easy. I think of those Ukrainians going through a very cold, very hard Christmas this year, and I keep thinking what more can we possibly try and do. So perhaps we can persuade everybody to donate just a little something to Global Empowerment Mission which will go to those people in Ukraine who are going to suffer so much this Christmas.