She attended schools in Purley until leaving at a young age to work as a clerk in banking and insurance in the City of London.
[4] In 1994, Macdonald embarked on postgraduate studies at the Royal College of Art, where she met her life and business partner Tom Emerson.
[7][8] Subsequent projects have included the MK Gallery in Milton Keynes, Juergen Teller's Studio and international commissions such as two mixed-use towers in Hamburg, Germany.
[6] Macdonald has spoken about her experiences as a woman in architecture, stating that ‘the profession is not made in women's image' but notes that a lot is being done to counteract this.
[9] She was also listed as one of the Evening Standard London's most influential people 2018 in the category of architecture[10] and was featured in a 2021 article on women architects in the Daily Telegraph.