A photo of Sarah Cracknell as a child, taken by her father.
1 I was a well-documented child. My father was always taking pictures of me, but I would only pose if Bunny was photographed too.
2 These lovely Biba shoes belonged to my auntie Michelle. She and my mum were snappy dressers. I love vintage stuff.
3 This Wurlitzer Butterfly Grand opens up as if it's got wings. I fell in love with it. It sounds beautiful and adds such warmth to music.
4 My father was a first assistant director [to Stanley Kubrick] and was often abroad on location. He came back with jewellery for my mum from exotic places. Sometimes he'd take the family, and trade his first-class seat for three economies.
5 I love gimmicky fancy packaging on music. I was introduced to Public Image Ltd's Metal Box when I lived in a flat on the Kings Road with three friends. I had my 18th birthday there, which was crashed by people from a pub. I was terrified and hid in the broom cupboard.
6 When I got married four years ago, my sister-in-law decorated the room with these. I used to collect snowstorms. My husband, Martin, is the manager of our group and we were friends for a long time. It's nice to go into a relationship with someone you know and really trust.
7 Spencer is six and Sam is four. The elder one is studious and sensitive and the little one's always running around with the wrong types. I'm very lucky being able to juggle work and family. It's healthy as it scratches both itches.
8 In my bedroom I have a pink chair and this poster. They make me feel glamorous.
9 I used to gad about the countryside in this beautiful vintage Porsche when I was single.
10 Every girl should have a feather boa. I've been buying them in John Lewis on Oxford Street since 92. They're useful to fiddle with when nervous, a gift for the crowd, and glamorous.
11 When I first got more disposable income than I ever dreamed of, I bought this handbag. It was £200 and I used it and used it. My music career had started by chance - in a pub, aged 15. I then went to drama school, never expecting to go back into it, then met Bob [Stanley] and Pete [Wiggs], fortuitously.
12 Our chickens, Patty and Selma, are named after Marge Simpson's chain-smoking sisters. I've always had a fondness for chickens.
13 I see guitars as a piece of art. My husband has an obsession with them and bought me this gorgeous 1960s Eko gold-spangled guitar.
14 He was a Flash Harry, my dad. He wore cowboy boots and these Ray-Bans. He'd been really supportive of my musical endeavours so it's a shame he never saw them come to fruition. He died in 1991.
15 This is a memory of my first trip to Japan in 92. We'd never been on tour so far from home. We'd finish by 9pm, then run around town. It was a dream come true.
• Sarah Cracknell was born in 1967 in Essex and grew up in Windsor. She has been Saint Etienne's lead vocalist since singing on their debut album Foxbase Alpha. She also released a solo album, Lipslide, in 1997. She is married to Martin Kelly, joint MD of Heavenly Recordings, and they have two children. London Conversations: The Best of Saint Etienne is out now.
Interview by Anita Sethi. Photos by Sam Frost.
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