In a Room is a conversation series where we ask our friends to share their favourite domestic spaces. For this edition, we’re joined by Abigail Crompton, founder of Third Drawer Down.
Abigail founded Third Drawer Down in 2003, beginning with limited-edition, artist-printed tea towels and expanding the project into a retail brand, wholesaler and custom design studio. Since then she’s collaborated with major artists and cultural institutions, producing editions and bespoke products with names such as Louise Bourgeois, David Shrigley, and Yayoi Kusama, and realising projects for museums including the Tate, MoMA and the Whitney. Her practice intentionally brings art into everyday life through playful, well-made objects and artist collaborations that move work out of galleries and into homes.
In this edition, Abigail walks us through the rooms that hold her life: the “nearly everything” space where kitchen, dining and living merge, the living room she’s arranged so every guest has the right chair, the St Kilda East dining room with its wall-to-wall library and ladder, and the bedrooms and small rituals that make a house feel like home. She also shares a dream that reshaped how she thinks about belonging and the tiny tattoo she got to remind herself she is always at home.
Abigail Crompton
Which room are you in today?
I’m sitting in the "nearly everything room." The kitchen, dining, living, and lounge areas seamlessly blend together as one, forming the true heart of our home. It has everything I need. I’ve just moved in, so I'm still finding the time to hang the art. It allows me to play around with space more. There is an excellent long ledge above the kitchen where I can put my favourite objects and smaller paintings — I really like this setup.
Which room is the heart of your home?
It feels like the heart of our home shifts from room to room depending on the day or circumstance. Sometimes, it’s our library because it’s where good ideas start. Other times, it’s the internal courtyard because it’s where we host workshops, feeding sessions, and gatherings for a communal project I run called Magenta House. And today, it’s the kitchen because I’m preparing Filipino mango salad for visitors.The living room is the absolute heart of this place. I've spent ages making sure that the space has a chair for all to gather comfortably. Some are pretty upright, great for when you want to have a proper chat. Then there are the super comfy, slouchy ones that just beg you to melt into them – perfect for chilling with a book or just a relaxed gabfest. No matter the occasion, there's a seat that's just right, whether you're getting philosophical or just laughing.
Is there a room from your past that has stayed with you?
I have such fond memories of a house I used to live in, in St Kilda East, especially from when my daughter was very young. It had this incredible dining room that truly made the space unique. The most striking feature was a massive, custom-built library shelf that spanned from floor to ceiling and wall to wall. It even came with its own ladder on wheels, which added a touch of old-world charm and practicality. As a passionate collector of art books, having such an expansive and beautiful space to display them all, right there in the dining room, was an absolute dream come true. It wasn't just a place to eat; it was a gallery, a quiet reading nook, and the ultimate expression of my personal style and passions.
What makes a room feel like home and not just a space?
A room truly comes alive through the personal objects, cherished photos, and art. Each item tells a story, a silent testament to experiences, relationships, and passions, transforming the basic structure into a personal sanctuary. Beyond the visual, scent as experience is just as crucial in forging that profound sense of "home.". For me, the delicate and sophisticated notes of the Rue Saint Honore room spray by Lola James Harper perfectly encapsulate this sentiment, adding an intangible layer of warmth and familiarity to my living space. The subtle, lingering scent reminds of Paris - of my enjoyment of visiting Colette, as this scent was designed for Sarah and her cult store. Who doesn't love and want a bit of Paris in their living room?
Scenes from the home of Abigail Crompton
What sort of rooms do you try and avoid?
Hospital rooms. For so many reasons. They don’t have much luck to start with, as they are a place usually of illness. So to transform them into a place of warmth and comfort are at a disadvantage. They function for urgency and transparency. So even if you placed some of your favourite objects into the space, the energy is still the longing to be somewhere else - any place but here. Yet they are such vital spaces. The architecture itself, often minimalist and clinical, contributes to this atmosphere of detachment. Walls are typically painted in neutral, unobtrusive colors, devoid of the vibrant hues and personal touches that make a house a home. Windows, if present, often offer views of other hospital wings or the distant, impersonal cityscape, rather than comforting natural landscapes. Every element, from the adjustable beds to the overbed tables, is a testament to their purpose: to facilitate treatment and recovery, not to foster a sense of belonging or ease. It is a space of waiting, of healing, and often, of profound introspection, where the outside world recedes, and the focus narrows to the very essence of life and health.
Is there a kind of room you’re always drawn to?
Always my bedroom. I think of every bedroom I’ve had since I was a child, and they have always been a haven for me. The common thread of every bedroom is the duvet cover, which I find at the basics of each home. My grandma used to make me quilts as a child, then I remember saving up as a teenager and buying my Ken Done duvet with the aquatic theme in blue. My twenties - Laura Ashley to the rescue. Thirties - I made my own. Forties - I commissioned artists like David Shrigley, Ed Templeton and Andrew Nicholls for large-scale artworks printed on beautiful cotton. Fifties - have only just begun and still in my forties phase!
What is your all time favourite room?
OK, so a little personal but I think a pretty cool experience of my favourite room/home story.
About twenty years ago I had this really intense dream - the kind when you wake up it sticks like glue all day to you. My dream was about returning home from a trip overseas. I opened the door and my house was empty. Nothing at all - cleared out. Someone had taken everything. I was really upset in my dream. My life's a collection of objects and images gone forever.
Then it dawned on me: that home wasn’t my objects and things. I was my home and it didn’t matter where I was - I could be anywhere in the world, and I was home.
So I decided to get a tattoo of a home on my heart — a simple kind of home — the ones you draw without lifting your pen. Simple triangles. To remind me I am always at home.
