Wish You Were Here With... Raven Smith
Sailing in the Hamptons? Partying in Ibiza? Lounging in Morocco?
Writer and Creative Director, Raven Smith is leading this week’s vacation selfie series and stirring some serious FOMO in Niagara Falls and on a boat in Bodrum...
How would you sum up what you do in a sentence?
Essentially, I work with brands to help define and tell their stories. I’m also a Vogue columnist. That’s two sentences.
What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Lenny Henry on Comic Relief.
How do you waste time, when your schedule is clear?
Trying to source the perfect polka dot shirt.
What did you do on your last day off?
If I smash through enough emails, an afternoon at the lido is heaven.
What's your greatest ambition?
I want to be able to work from a boat that I own in the Med.
Do you have any phobias?
Inertia.
Who do you most admire?
People who keep moving.
What do you talk about when you get your hair cut?
I cut my own hair, and I’m terrible at small talk. I’m mystified by people who can strike up a conversation with a stranger. It’s a lost art.
What's the last dream that you can remember having?
I’ve been having vivid dreams in this heatwave. The last one was someone getting crushed to death by a cinema seat. Tell me what this means, please…
What would you most like to change about the world?
That floating island of trash is not ideal.
What would you most like to change about yourself?
I don’t have that polka dot shirt yet.
Have you ever pretended to be someone else in the mirror?
Yes, all the time.
If you could do anything without fear of repercussion, what would you do?
Uber Exec.
If you could ask anyone a question, who would you ask, and what?
I want to ask the Olsen twins about, erm, everything.
Describe yourself in three words...
Taller than you. (Probably).
What’s the most surprising thing we’d find out if we looked at your phone?
There aren’t that many selfies.
Favourite colour?
Shrimp pink, like the sweets, but I’m fickle.
The perfect night out?
Every great evening starts with two martinis. And I love the pasta, spinach and parmesan off the bar menu at Quo Vadis. Then I’d probably go dancing into the wee hours somewhere a touch too dark. And whoever I’m with saying “don’t worry about it” when I offer to split the Uber.
The funniest thing you’ve ever read about yourself?
I pretend not to read my own press.
One thing you can’t live without?
Byredo Vetyver hand cream.
Favourite thing to eat?
Jelly snakes.
Least favourite thing to eat?
I’m not too bothered about meat.
What was your first job?
I was a kitchen porter. I stank of garlic the summer I left school. Not great.
The best advice you've ever been given?
You can only do what you can do.
Who or what inspires you?
Most things. I think of creativity as connecting new dots and everything is a new dot, whether that’s relevant now or you recall it later.
What drives your creativity?
Pushing the familiar into the unexpected.
Why did you become a writer/creative director?
It wasn’t a plan per se but being a creative and gobby eventually led me here.
Who do you consider to be the true creatives in the world?
Anyone actually actioning their ideas. What use is it in your head?
Who’s the coolest person you know?
Me, obviously.
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