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" When I left university, I idled around without focus for much too long. "

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" I've had my fair share of colds, which last longer than they should and can cause wheezing, so I avoid people who are sneezing like the plague and am scrupulous about hygiene and hand-washing. "

" It's possible to be satisfied with a day's work or a cake, but a life... what is a life but a history of events badly remembered? "

" Building a house from scratch in the middle of a field is a bit like building a prototype car. As with all prototypes, if you're building a car you usually have the luxury of producing several prototypes before you arrive at the production line version - so the opportunity for changing things is quite rich. "

" A great deal of energy is wasted in hating people, and I can honestly say I've no wish to expend such a precious resource on being outraged about anyone. "

" I'm terribly fastidious. I like symmetry and neatness, but my house is as chaotic as any other family's. "

" There's nothing you can do about busted ribs. You just have to wait for them to pop back into place again. "

" Every decently-made object, from a house to a lamp post to a bridge, spoon or egg cup, is not just a piece of 'stuff' but a physical embodiment of human energy, testimony to the magical ability of our species to take raw materials and turn them into things of use, value and beauty. "

" I'm really quite conscious of clothes and the way they fit and don't regret wearing anything. Not even the five-inch stack heels I wore with three-button high-waisters at comprehensive school. Regret is for wimps. "

" The more of your private life you put into the public domain, the smaller your private life becomes. "

" I hate negativity. I hate people who say the phrase 'I hate'. I really don't like the word 'hate.' Dislike, frightened of, terrified of, or yukky - but not 'hate.' "

" Building your own home is about desire, fantasy. But it's achievable; anyone can do it. "

" I spend a frightening amount of money on books. "

" There's no reason for your imagination to be fettered by money. "

" A friend of mine once wrote a silly article about all these metrosexuals like David Beckham wearing sarongs, and she described me as a 'heteropolitan.' I don't know what that means. I think it was a joke. "

" I'm quite shy. Television presents an amplified version of yourself. When I'm on camera I'm pumping more adrenaline, I'm being a bit more engaging than I am in everyday conversation, but that's normal, isn't it? Otherwise nobody would want to watch. "

" Generally speaking, I think that if you do anything with commitment and passion, it will come good. "

" One mustn't mistake bling for excellence, just as one mustn't mistake quiet for mediocre. "

" Building design isn't trendy. "

" The thing that I champion is sustainability. My terror is that suddenly we see it as a luxury, not an essential. That's a danger. "

" You cannot use the democratic process for the procurement of excellence. "

" I like the absurd and the surreal: the Coen brothers, Bunuel, Kubrick. "

" I don't enjoy living in a white box flooded with light. I like shadows, small spaces, old furniture. "

" I cannot look at modern buildings without thinking of historical ones. "

" We are borrowing money from future generations. We are borrowing the carbon impact, the resource impact from future generations to get stuff cheap now. We have swept the dirt and dust from our society under the carpet - but this carpet is on other side of the planet. "

" If I welcomed people into my lovely home every week in the pages of a magazine, they'd soon see how incredibly dull it is. It's important to maintain a bit of mystique. "

" People have got to get over the fear of not being able to trust others. I come across people who are very successful in their own sphere, and really believe they can do it all themselves, but they can't. "

" Every breath we take as human beings damages the planet. "

" What happened in 2008 stopped people in their tracks. People stopped looking at their homes simply as commodities to exploit and starting thinking about how they might personalise that space and make them less bland and more autobiographical, and that's healthy, I think. "

" Because I live in the countryside, I want a building which encourages me to have a fully formed relationship with the environment. It gives me an opportunity to not just be inside or outside, but in a range of contexts. "

" I've forgiven all my enemies - even those who have stolen money from me. "