Guild, currently in Mumbai to promote her 13th book, says, “Previously, India did not have too much of a retail design market.

It has become more sophisticated now and this is the right time to employ world designs.”

The designer-turned author was one of the first to design ranges of fully coordinated fabrics and wall coverings, which have always had a distinctive style. “When I was growing up I always had the desire to create something unique. Since not too many contemporary designs were available, I had a vast market to explore.” She has never been the one to follow trends and was doing print and pattern in her signature mix-and-match style long before it became “fashionable”.

Her new book, Patterns, is an interpretation of her works. “I have designed patterns keeping different spaces and energies in mind,” she explains. Using traditional motifs and giving them a modern twist, while also finding surprising contemporary uses for forgotten techniques are vital elements in her designs.

Her early and continuing inspiration for design has evolved from a love of nature and her passion for travel. Her travels have given her the opportunity of developing contemporary interpretations of great cultural movements — for example from Far Eastern Decorative Art, Italian Renaissance Architecture, and from visits to India, Morocco, and across Europe. Tricia’s products are available in the UK and she has showrooms in Paris and Munich while her works are represented in 50 countries including the United States, Japan, Australia and Asia. But her bond with India remains special and strong. “I have had a long standing association with India, which continues to be both a source of inspiration for my collections and a production centre,” the designer says.