Lara Fells, Creative Director of St. Agni on the importance of support.

A full time nanny, a sister on call and a little help from the neighbours, Lara understands that raising kids requires a village.

An interview series featuring mothers within the DD community. Here, we examine the juggle of paid working mothers – we talk motherhood, career, routine, self-care and daycare. I ask the things you actually want to know, like what they outsource, why they work, how they work, keep it together and get out the door each morning. If you’d like to be featured please fill in your answers here.

Can you start by sharing a bit about your family dynamic?

I live with my husband Matt and my two sons, Jude (4) and Jean (15 months). Matt and I work together in the business we founded in 2014, St. Agni. Matt is across accounts and logistics and I’m across all things creative. 

Running a business together prepared us for parenting together, learning to work as a team. 

The domestic duties are shared evenly. When one of us has a big week with work the other will cover the children and household. We are fortunate to have the flexibility of working for ourselves and with each other. 

Can you give us a basic rundown of what your paid job entails? 
My job is quite broad — I’m the Creative Director of St. Agni with a side of payroll/ landlord/ business owner. I touch base with various areas of the business, such as marketing, however I spend most of my time alongside the production and design team,

We are in the process of hiring a new Head Designer so I am currently working alongside the team to develop the Resort ‘24 collection and planning the next campaign shoot for SS23.

How old were your little ones when you returned to work – is this when you evolved St. Agni ?
We fell pregnant with my eldest just as our business was taking off and I found that transition difficult. The business was at a really exciting place and I wanted to be a part of it, but I was also trying to be a good mum and give Jude 100%. I think it probably took me a year to really settle into motherhood as a business owner. 

This time around I’ve really enjoyed the balance between business and baby life, we have a great team so I feel comfortable everything is under control. If anything, it’s been a good opportunity for me to assess my role and where my time should be spent. 

Did you always envision you would be a working mother? Or pre-kids did you think you would stop work and take on a stay-at-home role?
We actually started St. Agni with the idea of it being something I could do from home on the side when we decided to have kids — it seems funny to think back to that now! 

What does your career mean to you – why do you work? 
I honestly just love my work. We work with the most beautiful people, and I really enjoy the routine of working. I enjoy the creative outlet it allows me to have every day. 

How do you work – Take us through your schedule.
I am back to working Monday to Friday as we have recently hired a nanny for Jean. I’ll arrive at the office at 8:30am and touch base with the team, generally working through till 4:30pm. I then head home to start the dinner/bath time routine and then we put both boys to bed and depending on my workload I will usually try to squeeze in another hour of work before Matt and I get cosy and watch a series together. 

How do you get into work mode?
I’m always in work mode, it’s always there in the background - not in a stressful way but more just a part of daily life. I don’t necessarily separate work and life. It’s just life as a business owner.

What method of childcare have you opted for?
Jean now has a nanny who cares for him through the week whilst Matt and I are at work. Jude's at daycare and Matt usually does the drop off/pick up on his way to and from work. 

What do you outsource? What helps make life a bit easier. 
We have a cleaner who comes once a week and the sweetest neighbour that does our garden and puts out our bins. Matt and I don’t have our parents here, but my sister, Paris, lives nearby. Paris is so much more than an Aunty - she’s like an extension of our little family, the boys love her so much and she’s always helping us out with babysitting –she’s basically their third parent! 

What is your go-to morning routine to get you out the door with two little ones? The boys are at really good ages at the moment, Jude can dress himself, eat breakfast himself and Jean isn’t crawling just yet. So mornings aren’t too stressful. I usually put Jean in the baby bouncer and just move him around the house as I need to do things. 

Work uniform – Do you have any go-to formulas for looking polished in a hurry?

I keep things very simple; I usually have a few favourite pieces that I wear on high rotation. I invest in good quality pieces in neutral colours, it makes getting dressed so much easier when you don’t have a lot to choose from. 

Self-care and motherhood often don’t come hand-in-hand but it is so important. How do you ensure you take time out for yourself and how do you make this happen and how often? 

I do personal training twice a week, I find it's so much easier to make time for myself when I'm accountable to someone else. I try to do a few solo walks a week if I can, just getting outside in the sun with a podcast is so fulfilling. 

Want to know how others do it? Read more here.

If you’ve been eyeing something off (I know I have!), Lara has generously given DD subscribers a 15% discount code – DEARDILATE15
(15% off St. Agni full price products only - valid until June 30 2023)

Shop – www.st-agni.com
Connect – @stagnistudio / @lara_fells