What makes a purchase “worth it”? The answer is different for everybody, so we’re asking some of the coolest, most shopping-savvy people we know—from small-business owners to designers, artists, and actors—to tell us the story behind one of their most prized possessions.

Who?

Ever since Sophie Bille Brahe was a child, she knew she wanted to do something that required working with her hands—a tactile way to express her love of storytelling and ideas through craft. After training as a goldsmith and carrying on to the prestigious Royal College of Arts in London, Sophie returned to her hometown of Copenhagen to open her own studio. “I never dreamt of doing my own thing,” the jewelry designer admits. Today, her namesake brand is in full swing with a Copenhagen-based office, showroom, and workshop. You can also find her pieces at many of the big fashion retailers, including Net-A-Porter, SSENSE, and Saks Fifth Avenue. 

What and when? 

In Scandi-chic fashion, Sophie’s studio is modern and minimal. “I really need things to be simple and not take up too much space,” the designer explains, adding that her floors and walls are often plastered with notes and potential designs. “If there are too many things hanging everywhere, it kind of infringes on my ideas.” Perhaps this is why the vintage fountain by the window of her studio commands immediate attention. It’s small and unobtrusive, yet compelling and intricately designed. At a closer look, the base is actually a lion sculpture with one large foot coming out of a trio of curling acanthus leaves, with the basin seemingly balancing on its head. 

Where?

When Sophie was in Paris, she ventured into a small antiques shop in Saint Germain of the Left Bank. “It was a beautiful store that has all the things that you could dream of,” the designer recalls. Although the fountain was a hidden gem tucked away in a closed off back room, Sophie saw it through the crack of a door and immediately knew she needed it. The fountain—quite inconveniently but without question—ventured all the way back with her back to Copenhagen via plane. 

Why?

The fountain never loses its charm, serving multiple functions in the studio: one day it may be brimming with leaves and flowers to act as a vase for an event, other times it’s full of water to create the perfect calming atmosphere. “I don’t like having music played, and the sound of dripping water creates this Nordic palazzo feel in a very Scandinavian way,” she says, the storyteller in her becoming ever more apparent. Sophie admits that, at the time, she had actually been searching for a fountain for four years, and upon seeing it, something just clicked. “I just knew when I saw it, it needed to be a part of my world.”

Campania International Colonna Concrete Fountain

Ballard Designs Mallorca Fountain

Antique Cast Iron Garden Wall Fountain, 1900s