Poor Things co-production designer Shona Heath talks taste

My personal style signifiers are either a slightly loud pair of trousers or printed-denim jumpsuits, often from Lucy & Yak. I don’t buy expensive clothes because my work involves lots of painting and being on the floor. I wear wool jumpers from Uniqlo or & Other Stories a lot; I like the feel of wool. When I’m working, I colour-coordinate with the set I’m making so that my clothes don’t bother me visually.

The works of art that changed everything for me were Cicely Mary Barker’s Flower Fairies illustrations. I won a little book in a game of pass the parcel when I was eight, and I remember driving home in the dark and having to wait to be under a lamppost to see the next picture. It was the first visceral response that I remember having. I think it was the fact that the flowers were so big and the fairies all wore dresses made of petals and flip flops made of stamens. I was struck by the scale and the magic of them.

The last thing I bought and loved was some strange bow-legged blue metallic jeans from Ganni. They’re kind of scruffy disco: glam, but still jeans, which appeals to me. £210, mytheresa.com

The place that means a lot to me is my family house, Dune of Pilat, in south-west France. When I was young we’d stay in our camping car at the end of the street. Then my mum and dad bought a run-down Basque house in a fit of madness. Mum did it up, and it’s still the same. I love it; it doesn’t change. You can walk to the top of the dune and it’s like being in a desert looking at the sea; you have to go to believe it’s in Europe.

And the best souvenir I’ve brought home is a churros and chocolate fridge magnet from a shop in Madrid. My husband, son and I were crying with laughter choosing the best magnet: there were thousands, even a fried calamari sandwich. We lament not getting that one as well.

The best book I’ve read in the past year is Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver, about a young boy growing up in a community affected by OxyContin. It gave me faith in humanity – and the strength not to recoil when I’m afraid.

My style icon at the moment is Jim Carrey in Ace Ventura. I have a 14-year-old son, Dov, and I watched it with him for the first time recently. It’s such a funny film; I like that he wears vests with open shirts and silly trousers. I’ve always related to men’s clothing more than women’s.

The best gift I’ve given recently was a Dalí cookbook reprint, Les Dîners de Gala, to my husband, Tim Gutt. It was originally published in 1973 in French, and has recipes from all the famous Paris restaurants of the time with surrealist illustrations by Dalí. It’s a visual feast, but it also has some really disgusting recipes in it like oysters in cream. Ugh.

And the best gift I’ve received is a Painted Wavy footstool by Isabelle Baldwin. When it comes to gifts, I find something I really want and my family chip in. That way everyone is happy.

The last music I downloaded was by Christine and the Queens, which I have on repeat. I’m quite mono with music.

I have a collection of gold-hoop earrings. I look in markets like Spitalfields for trinkets, charms or stones that I swap around and hang off them. I pair them up to make little stories: a bird and a guitar, or an amber doll and a piece of coral.

In my fridge you’ll always find goat’s cheese, rye bread from Spence Bakery, Kim Kong kimchi, cavolo nero and chicory: I love it, as does our house rabbit.

I’ve recently discovered tofu, which I have with Peanut Rāyu – a chopped peanut, chilli and sesame sauce. It’s so delicious. And I’ve rediscovered fish fingers; they work really well in the air fryer.

The last item of clothing I added to my wardrobe was a red ribbed merino-wool poloneck from Uniqlo. I can’t take it off. In fact, I’ve worn it so much I’m off to buy another one.

An object I would never part with is a painting, Hedgery, by James Metsoja. About 10 years ago I wanted to paint someone’s face green for a Tim Walker shoot, and was looking at Google for inspiration when I found this. I loved the image, so I printed it out and kept it on my wall. Eventually I found the painter and asked if he still had it: he sold it to me for a good price, and now we’ve become visual pen pals. We’re going to be working together on a new project this year.

An artist whose work I would collect if I could is Maxfield Parrish, an American painter who worked in the first half of the 20th century. I love how saturated his colours are, and how the neoclassical images almost look like theatre sets. I’d also love a collage by pop artist Richard Hamilton.

The beauty staples I’m never without are Comme Des Garçons Incense – the smell is just perfect; it’s smoky and peppery – Anaïs Anaïs by Cacharel, which takes me back to my teenage years, and Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Moisturiser. It’s unscented, so I add a bit of geranium oil, which reminds me of knocking over my gran’s geraniums: the smell they give off is so weird, I didn’t understand it, but I’ve grown to love it. I think I’ve tried every mascara: my current favourites are Collection’s Next Level Lash Surge and Extreme Colour Mascara in blue. And I love Suavina lip balm, which smells like the scented pencil erasers I had as a kid. Comme Des Garçons Incense Series 3 EDT Avignon, £70 for 50ml, endclothing.com. Cacharel Anaïs Anaïs EDT, £28.99 for 50ml, theperfumeshop.com. Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Moisturiser, £21.50 for 75ml. Collection Next Level Lash Surge, £6.49. Suavina Original Lip Balm, £5

My favourite room in my house is the kitchen. We don’t have a sitting room as my husband uses it as his studio, so all of the life is in the kitchen. We watch TV in our basement but don’t hang out so much in there because it’s essentially the boiler room – it’s very loud if someone is having a shower.

My beauty guru is my fantastic friend Sam Bryant, a make-up artist who I go to for honest beauty advice; she normally tells me not to bother. And I always listen to my fashion designer friend Emma Cook, who stops me from doing weird stuff like dyeing my hair navy blue or getting an ill-advised tattoo. I cut my own hair – I’d rather hate myself than a hairdresser. I have a massage every three years. My idea of wellbeing is having ideas over a cup of tea.

My favourite website is Smithsonian Open Access: you can wander in and get lost in the paintings, which you can also download, so it’s really helpful for referencing.

In another life, I would have been a backing dancer on Top of the Pops. I always loved the outfits Bucks Fizz wore – they had these skirts that ripped off – and wanted to be up on stage with them.

My favourite building is the V&A. I had the chance to work on Tim Walker’s Wonderful Things exhibition in 2019, and spend a lot of time there. It’s so special to me, and has been since I was studying fashion and print at Brighton University. You can’t go there and not be inspired by something. I also really enjoy the revolving doors there, which are always an opportunity for funny moments.

I couldn’t do without showers and coffee.

The best bit of advice I ever received was “say no” (thank you). It gives you time; it brings you love. (Still working on this.)