The first lockdown helped me put life into perspective, deep dive into myself and think about what I wanted to do as a designer, as a mum, and as an educator. 

Do you know how little you need in life to be happy? Those of us who have the privilege of having children around have a great escape gate, and creative parents have an incredible source of inspiration simply by tapping into children’s imagination. 

During the lockdown, I was experimenting a lot with my (by then) 3-year-old daughter. The future was uncertain. It was an incredible time to be creative, have fun together, to live in the present! 

During the pandemic, I was co-creating and co-designing with my child on several projects: from typography and set-up creation to stop-motion videos and photography. As kindergarten was not available anymore, I used design methodologies to keep her busy and took it as an opportunity to enjoy time with her, finding escapism from what was going on in the world.

In the last two years, during the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve spent a lot of time indoors and our environments have become increasingly more relevant. All of us like to be in clean, organised, and well-lit places. To create an orderly preschooler workspace and address effective learning it’s important to give them a strategically organised space, preferentially with good sunlight and proportional furniture where they can feel safe on their own, while we keep observing from a distance and give assistance when needed. Natural materials and textures, like wood, are preferred, as they enhance haptic experiences and develop brain connections. 

When I became a mum I stayed home while remote working. I found myself researching, reading, and enrolled in a workshop on Montessori pedagogy for 0-3 years old. I wanted to prepare the best possible home setting for the learning needs and well-being of a toddler. Used to designing workspaces for adults and knowing the advantages of a well-designed space, I improved my knowledge, through Montessori books, on a prepared environment for the little ones adapted to their needs, where they feel safe and comfortable, while at the same time encouraging spatial mobility and autonomy.

More recently in the second lockdown, to create an orderly preschooler workspace and address effective learning I designed the room strategically: it had to emanate comfort and safety, to have the right tools and proportion. I was lucky to have my company’s workspace free so I could take her with me to the office every day. Claan offices are in an industrial warehouse, a 100m2 open space with a very high ceiling and a beautiful outdoor garden, and this new creative lab was designed around her and through her active participation in a designer-child collaboration. I started this space transformation by consulting her educator for the learning needs, and with her great guidance and the right tools, I managed to create a dream space where she was happy, with autonomy, and could do almost everything — and most importantly, imagine all day. This space became her wonderland.