Madcap Cottage Interview
I first heard John Loecke and Jason Oliver Nixon speak at the Digital Design Day in Atlanta about a year ago, and they made quite an impression. John and Jason are the dynamic duo behind North Carolina- and New York-based interior design firm Madcap Cottage. Known for their whimsical use of color and pattern, the Madcap gents scour the world for eclectic finds that capture their unique and gimlet-eyed viewpoint. Imagine a British country house that pairs Granny’s antiques and a spirited dash of Chinoiserie chic with a soupçon of Morocco-meets-India élan. In my head, they are my new best friends. You know: the ones that have impeccable taste, throw the most fabulous dinner parties and have you in stitches with their stories and witty anecdotes.
So, imagine my delight when I found out Jason and John designed a fabric collection for Robert Allen, now available at Calico. It's time to get to know these two a little better. I decided to submit them both to the Proust questionnaire, made famous by the renowned French author – and by the back page of Vanity Fair. They emailed me their answers while vacationing in London (of course!). Here we go:
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Jason: A dirty martini in a tub overlooking Venice
John: Tea at Fortnum & Mason in London with heaps of Damson plum jam
What is your greatest fear?
Jason: Being boring
John: A white room
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Jason: Not taking enough time off
John: Peevishness
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Jason: Not being considerate
John: Pushy people
Which living person do you most admire?
Jason: Martha Stewart
John: Iris Apfe
What is your greatest extravagance?
Jason: Smythson of Bond Street diaries
John: Paul Smith jeans
What is your current state of mind?
Jason: Forever thinking it forward
John: Forever thinking it forward
What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Jason: Patience
John: Patience
On what occasion do you lie?
Jason: When it makes a story more engaging
John: I don’t
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
Jason: Lack of a waist and my thighs
John: My frog toes
Which living person do you most despise?
Jason: Anyone involved with ISIS
John: Same
What is the quality you most like in a man?
Jason: Mystery
John: Mystery
What is the quality you most like in a woman?
Jason: Mystery
John: Mystery
Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
Jason: Bespoke.
John: Jiminy Christmas!
What or who is the greatest love of your life?
Jason: John
John: Jason
When and where were you happiest?
Jason: In the desert outside of Jodhpur, India on a terrace
John: Wandering the streets of London
Which talent would you most like to have?
Jason: Being able to play an instrument
John: Learning to drive stick shift
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
Jason: Nothing
John: Nothing
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Jason: Never settling
John: Treating every day like a new adventure
If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?
Jason: One of Valentino’s pugs
John: Cleopatra
Where would you most like to live?
Jason: The English countryside on a gentleman’s farm
John: The English countryside on a gentleman’s farm
What do you most value in your friends?
Jason: Honesty, wackiness
John: Honesty
Who are your favorite writers?
Jason: Patrick Dennis
John: Deborah Devonshire
Who is your hero of fiction?
Jason: Auntie Mame and Violet Newstead from “9 to 5”
John: Auntie Mame
Which historical figure do you most identify with?
Jason: Caligula
John: Elsie de Wolf
Who are your heroes in real life?
Jason: Maggie Smith
John: QEII
What are your favorite names?
Jason: Emerald
John: Rhubarb
What is it that you most dislike?
Jason: Boring people
John: Boring people
What is your greatest regret?
Jason: Nothing
John: Nothing
How would you like to die?
Jason: Quickly
John: In my sleep
What is your motto?
Jason: Je ne regrette rien and Banish the Beige!
John: Is there more Cap’n Crunch?
