We will also be open on Christmas Eve to help you find any last minute gifts!

We were delighted to attend the annual Northern Design Awards ceremony held on the 22nd November hosted by none other than Wayne Hemmingway MBE.  This years venue was The Monastary in Gorton – a stunningly refurbished 19th century building which was previously a Franciscan friary.  It has now been listed as one of the 100 most endangered sites in the world along with the Taj Mahal and the ancient ruins of Pompeii!  It was the first time that we had entered the awards, and this year we were short-listed for 3 categories; Living Etc Best Room of 2013, Best Independent Retailer and Best Interior Design Practice.

There were over 300 attendees on the night, including some of the North’s leading architects, designers and retailers.  It was a nail-biting time waiting for each winner to be announced, so we were overwhelmed when the “Abbott Family Garden Room” was finally revealed as the winner of the LivingEtc Best Room of 2013.  This award was presented to us by Amy Moorea Wong (Editorial Assistant, Living Etc) and has particular significance as the winning submission was voted for by Living Etc readers out of a total of 26 entries.

We were also proud to share our table with our friends from NoChintz, who also walked away with 2 awards for their work for Natural Retreats in John O’Groats and the Yorkshire Dales.  They came to us to supply lighting which was used throughout the luxury lodges.

It was a great achievement to get some recognition for our design work, and hopefully this award will be the first of many!

The new ranges were very well received by our guests – as were the complimentary pizzas; handmade throughout the evening in our Gaggenau pizza stone. Delicious! The most popular items on the evening were the cute Architect Made Birds , Tom Dixons Eclectic Etch Candle Holders and the lovely Perpetual calendars by Jean Pierre Vitrac, a real design classic.

Local designer/maker Joe Hartley was also on hand to demonstrate his great new terracotta coffee maker.  Guests were invited to sample freshly ground coffee prepared by Joe in his newly designed coffee dripper (using traditional filter papers) & served in his hand turned cups, each one uniquely monographed by Joe.

We also have a ”last chance to buy” selection of glassware and accessories from Iittala which are great for bargain hunters with up to 40% off the retail price.  We still have some remaining stock , so please call in and check out these genuine bargains.

Some featured products (above) are also available to order on our website for next day delivery: Tom Dixon Spin Table Candelabra, When Objects Work Bronzed Bowl and Moooi Blow Away Vase.

We hope you like our new look and we will now be open until 8pm on Thursday nights throughout December.  Please do come in and see us if you are passing by on your way to the Christmas markets.  We are conveniently located close to Oxford Road train station, and you can start your shopping off with a glass of mulled wine and a mince pie at Ferrious.

Ferrious Showroom

Arch 61, Whitworth Street West, Manchester, M1 5WQ.

It was great to catch up again with Joe Hartley this morning visiting with his new ceramic designs.  We were checking out his website:  http://josephjameshartley.wordpress.com when found this really great article on the Ted Baker website, lovely photos too!
http://tedbakerblog.com/2013/09/meet-joe-hartley/

If you would like to meet Joe, in fact if you’d like him to make you a cup of coffee served in his new designs then make your way over to Ferrious next Thursday between 6 & 9 pm (14th November) where these will be showcased:https://www.facebook.com/events/1411906305707610/?ref=22

His work makes for really great, original & hand crafted Christmas gifts, each piece being thrown by hand, unique and featuring its own Joseph Hartley stamp of authentication, and they are really well priced too!

We hope you can make it on the evening or will visit our Whitworth Street West showroom to see his work amongst a range of unique gift ideas.

www.ferriousonline.co.uk

We were delighted to win the contract to supply lighting throughout the new RCGP headquarters at 30 Euston Square  – the final building of the Victorian Euston Station development, spanning seven floors and 121,000 square feet, the historic Grade II listed building has always had a healthcare connection. Designed by architect Arthur Beresford Pite and originally built in the 1900′s as the headquarters of the London, Edinburgh and Glasgow Assurance company, a company specialising in welfare insurance for low income families.

Officially launched by the College’s Patron HRH the Duke of Edinburgh in October 2010, the project completed in 2012 and provides a focal point for general practice to promote standards in education, training and clinical standards in general practice throughout the UK.

The building design has combined the preservation of many original features, such as the main entrance mosaic and faience tiles combined with modern interventions such as the removal of a section of the ground floor to create an auditorium and the creation of new new atria from existing lightwells. Open plan office space, and a range of formal and informal meeting areas have been incorporated as well as a gym, cafe and forty-one study bedrooms.

The new building provides facilities for meetings and entertaining, lounges and study bedrooms and the intention is that the new headquarters provide a new home for its 44,000 strong membership, the largest medical royal college in the UK.

Moooi Raimond Chandeliers by Raimond Puts:

“The Raimond lamp: a perfect sphere of mathematical ingredients punctuated by tiny LED lights. Looking at the lamp feels like staring into the soft glow of a starry night. Into the essence.”

Used in the following sizes: 430, 610, 890,1270 & 1990mm diameters.

As part of the tendering process we built a mockup lighting showroom to streamline the selection process for the RCGP and project architects Tilney Shane to select from, this included providing a range of lighting from pendants to table & standard lights and feature chandeliers.

The companies finally shortlisted from were Artemide, Moooi, Foscarini, Zeitraum & Secto, our full terms with a wide range of lighting manufacturers enabled us to provide a diversity of different styles & solutions for the varied environments within the college.

 The Moooi “Raimond Zafu” Pendant

The centrepiece and focal point of the main lounge spaces are an incredible sculptural composition of Moooi Raimond pendant chandeliers, ranging in size from the smaller elliptical shaped “Zafu” chandeliers to the enormous 2000 mm diameter Raimond chandeliers, each one custom  manufactured in The Netherlands and then craned into the building through the opened roof structure, these incredible pendants manufactured from Stainless Steel ribbons are completely electrified which then powers the attached LEDS – the lights are dimmable and provide either a twinkling atmospheric light or a much brighter general lighting.

Differing moods and ambience created with the dimmable Raimond chandeliers.

In dining areas Moooi “Square Boon” lights were selected, providing a striking architectural pendant which contrasted with the detailed original brick & tiled interior, the simple and beautiful Black Cotton shades were fitted with the optional 3 way light source which on the integrated dimmable circuitry provides a range of lighting conditions according to the given usage.

Moooi Square Boon Pendants.

In the college study bedrooms the lovely Seppo Koho designed Secto “4200″  series pendant and floor lights were chosen, these were finished in the White laminated birch and provide a lovely light which is both energy efficient and dimmable – other finishes within this family include Black Birch, Walnut and the original Natural Birch finish.

Also featured within the project were the impressive High Noon and Noon floor lamps by El Schmid for Zeitraum.

We were delighted to contribute towards this landmark project and through the clever & innovative use of lighting the designers have put a creative and contemporary stamp on this imposing building for years to come.

For a full review of our lighting collections please visit our 360 degree showroom tour or online website.

Knoll Womb chair designed by Eero Saarinen with Brian, the Cubovo from Porro, Marset Scantling floor light and John Pawson Glasses by When Objects Work.

We have been shortlisted for Northern Design Awards 2013 in the Living Etc category. Below is a summary of the entry. Vote here for Abbott Family Garden Room.

Ferrious had previously worked with this client to re-model various rooms in their beautiful detached Victorian property, we were invited to tackle the problematic rear conservatory; a space so awful that it nearly put our customers off from originally buying the house!

Combined with this there were a series of technical & aesthetic challenges to be met;
The conservatory suffered from the typical problems of condensation and being too cold in Winter and too hot in Summer; it also had no architectural resonance with the house, but unfortunately had a major significance being the primary access onto the garden & the most obvious landmark when looking back at the property from the fantastic grounds.

The brief was to create a contemporary family room that could be used for a range of purposes; dining, parties, a sun terrace or a place to relax and contemplate the beautiful garden, it also needed to allow easy access to the gardens and provide vistas through onto the garden. The conservation area status also added complexities to the contemporary aesthetic the client required.

The resulting space was set back under a large cantilevered roof so as to not interrupt the views but also so that the direct summer sun at no point enters the room. The cantilever detail was also run through at floor level creating the illusion of a floating building which is further enhanced by the staggered staircase which at no point physically connects with the buildings structure.

The interior space was positioned to create a link between the lounge & kitchen rooms and to provide the house with a more coherent and open plan living space, with the new room being at its centre. With ceiling heights matching the original house, the room offers a feeling of simplicity, purity, calm and peace that reflect the character of the gardens that surround it.

Alongside the classic Danish CH25 armchairs by Hans Wegner is an oak bench commissioned & designed by Ferrious specifically for the space under the sliding glass opening which forms a link between the kitchen to the new garden room.

Client feedback has been great – this space, originally the least popular has now become a favourite, providing a beautiful indoor & outdoor space to relax in and experience the stunning views onto the grounds and forming a positive connection with these beautiful spaces.

The winners are announced on 22nd November 2013, so if you haven’t yet – VOTE NOW for Abbott Family Garden Room.

This summer we were delighted to again collaborate with Manchester International Festival, having previously designed & furnished their roof terrace garden in 2011 we were invited to broaden the scope of our involvement for the 2013 festival.

We focused on two key areas of the festival site in Albert Square  – the main tepee interior and the enlarged glass house terrace.

As the areas were so different we split the project into two design challenges inviting students from 3D & Interior Design at Manchester Metropolitan University to participate – the project was supported by MMU as part of their “unit X second year programme” which seeks to engage the students in live projects and we were delighted that 51 students elected to participate.

Furniture recycling project for the main tepee interior outside Manchester Town Hall, (traditionally the heart of the festival)

Supported by the fantastic Bute Fabrics who kindly donated 100′s of roll ends of their amazing fabrics, the students up- cycled a diverse range of redundant furniture sourced from across the city including  MMU, Manchester University, the BBC and our friends at the Deaf Institute

Students working hard up cycling the furniture in the Mayfield Storage depot.

The finished pieces within the tepee interior.

The main tepee bar.

The bin bench!

Alongside the furniture, local lighting designer and manufacturer Claire Norcross installed a composition of her “Aperture”  lights, MMU design student Rachel Lee also designed and manufactured a range of CNC cut discs featuring MMU & MIF branding.

The completed gantry installation – not yet lit up!

The beautiful illuminated Aperture light installation.

The main tepee DJ booth featuring fin furniture in the foreground, up cycled furniture the custom DJ booth and local designer/maker Jon Males fantastic recycled lighting.

The party!

Roof Terrace Outdoor Furniture Competition

Students worked in groups to design a collection of outdoor furniture which was then judged by a panel including local architect Roger Stephenson of architects Stephenson ISA studio, Christine Cort MD of MIF, Tom Bloxham, Phil Doyle from 5 Plus architects, Ronnie Doctor of Centriforce Plastics and Ferrious.

The material chosen to manufacture the furniture is an innovative plastic sheet recycled entirely from plastic bottles & kindly supplied by Centriforce plastics

Glenn from Jade shopfitters machines the fin profiles! which were produced using a range of hand & CNC techniques.

MMU students Josh, Gian & Felix load profiled fins machined in house using MMU technical facilities and machined by local design company 24.

Assembly takes place at the Mayfield storage depot.

More hard work – will it never end!

The MIF 2013 roof terrace – filled with great furniture and happy customers.

The new art school terrace is the permanent home of the furniture.

The fantastic design will last for years to come at MMU and is a tribute to the hard work of all involved, best of all the students got the opportunity to see their designs turned into reality and gained valuable experience realising a live project.

Tom Bloxham MBE comments:

“Manchester International Festival is a commissioning festival and it was great to work with our partners on some great furniture for Festival Square.  The collaboration between MIF, MMU & Ferrious resulting in a live student led project and the realisation of a furniture design then used in the Art School for years to come, is a great example of educational, industry and cultural cross collaboration which reflects the aspirations of all parties included.

Please pass on my thanks and congratulations to all parties concerned.”

Interior Design Today review

The Design Junction exhibition was a great place to see younger international brands and there was a couple that really shone through. Young Czech based lighting company, Brokis, showed a beautiful collection of smoked blown glass light fittings with copper reflectors that looked incredible as both stand alone pieces and grouped in a family. We also came across a Chilean company making a range of simple but cleverly detailed, turned wood vessels of all shapes and sizes, highlighted with lids made from copper and brass. The lower floor of the Sorting office was dedicated to accessory brands and independent retail stands selling everything from pencils to paintings in a market style environment. One particular brand of note in this area were the growing product design company, Native Union. We started working with Native union about 6 months ago after seeing their incredible Switch bluetooth speaker, taking a small range of the product into our Manchester showroom which very quickly sold out. The show saw the brand launch the Switch in a range of new colours, along with accesories and a range of phone and tablet cases. Native Union will very soon be available through the website.

One of the things that we really wanted to check out was the Muller Van Severen exhibition at Viaduct. Having been a fan of his fathers (Martin Van Severen) work for many years, we were intrigued by the simple, raw structures we had seen so much about in the design press over the past few months. The result is a very understated, graphic collection of furniture produced by hand in a small workshop at the couples home. Beautifully proportioned with honest materials, the range is a must see for any hardened purist.

Around the corner was one of our favorite brands, Moroso. Exhibiting at their Roseberry Avenue showroom which they share with Flos, their combination of off the wall individual pieces and incredible upholstery are one of the main reasons we love them so much. Although launching nothing new at LDF, the way that Moroso put together there products and spaces always make them worth a trip and given that it is always one of the busiest stands at the Salone Del Mobile, its nice to see the products installed in a more domestic environment. The main talking point from the Flos part of the showroom was the incredible Aim pendant light installation. Designed by the Bouroullecs and released in Milan this year, Aim is a product that incorporates the looped flex we see used so much in interior design installations in a more contemporary aesthetic. Available in a 1, 3 and 5 drop pendant, it works great over a dining table as well as commercial interiors.

The last stop on our visit was the Vitra Showroom in Clerkenwell, having just become Vitra dealers and going to the amazing campus, detailed in a previous post we wanted to go and see the showroom again and see how they are displaying their wares. The showroom was well set out in a domestic manner, featuring well put together room sets and reinforcing Vitra’s continued focus on the home market. Their increasing accessories collection and upholstery collections are working well to soften the image of this once contract heavy brand and we are very excited to work closely with the brand as they push the market more with intelligent design coupled with a strong aesthetic.

It’s that time of year again!!!!

Earls Court saw the Annual centre piece of the London Design Festival. Separated into different zones for interiors, materials, kitchens and bathrooms, etc.. making it easier to navigate the areas of interest. The interiors zone was fronted at the entrance by a dominating Magis stand, showcasing some of the new releases from their Milan show. Pieces of note included the new wire framed Traffic collection by Konstantin Grcic and the new Dalmation version of the Iconic Eerio Arnio Puppy. Also featuring in the Interiors section were our friends at Zeitraum, showcasing the E8 table released in Milan designed by Mathias Hahn. The table was designed to fit in a small London flat with smaller proportions than you would expect and featured their new Zinc Yellow stain on all surfaces except the table top itself. Zeitraum also showcased many pieces from its extensive collection in a range of their new pastel shades, released in Milan, showing existing pieces in a completely new light. James UK, a young design brand integral in our recent works on a large contract project, proved that 100% was not too big for young British brands, with an eye catching stand featuring some beautiful products for both the domestic and contract markets. Another stand of note, this time in the kitchens and bathrooms section was Nottingham based LowInfo, who specialize in cast concrete sinks and worktops. After working with them on various custom jobs they showcased their new collection of sinks and baths in a strong and effective manner.

The Brompton road area was a little quieter than usual this year, but the main addition to the high end district was the dedicated Cassina showroom at the top of Brompton Road. The lower ground floor was set up in a range of beautifully composed room sets matched with exceptional styling, offering a mixture of new products from this years fair, blended seamlessly with the Iconic pieces that many associate with Cassina. The upstairs focused on their recent collaboration with fashion superstar Karl Lagerfeld, taking famous classic pieces like the 699 chair by Gio Ponti and reinterpreting them in monochromatic palettes. No trip to LDF would be complete without a visit to the V&A which this year featured the hugely impressive Wind Portal installation by Najla El Zein, an entrance created using 5000 paper windmills.

Although a little separated from the other main areas of LDF, the Potobello dock area of Ladbroke Grove houses 2 of our favorite companies in Tom Dixon and Moooi, and was definitely worth the trek. Tom Dixon featured many of the pieces released earlier in the year at their MOST setup in Milan, with many of the product installations harking back to this on a smaller level. Certain pieces such as the famous Beat lights, receiving new finishes for the Milan show, have now been made available to buy, while the ever expanding Eclectic collection showed more new additions, all of which will be available to purchase soon from our online shop.

On the other side of the canal is the Moooi showroom, housed in a beautiful Georgian building, which this year was truly awe inspiring. Moooi really pulled out the stops for their Milan show, releasing dozens of new products with a definite focus on the domestic market, and what better place to show it in London. The showroom was dressed to resemble a home, with the amazing new Bart sofa and Construction lamps looking as impressive in domestic setup as on a stand.

Shoreditch saw the opening of a new, dedicated Lee Broom showroom, showing how far the young British designer has come in the past few year. Highly regarded by design writers, the showroom featured new walnut finishes to the ever popular Crystal Bulb while also showing new options on the One Light only. A beautiful new addition to the collection was the fulcrum candle holder made from crystal glass and featuring subtle hints of colour through a felt disc at the bottom, all of which will be available soon from Ferrious.

Superbrands is a show that picks up momentum every year and this year featured our friends at Gubi, showing the new brass Bestlites alongside some furniture giants such as Edra, mixing them with lesser known companies like Objekten, a brand that really caught our eye. Upstairs in the same building is Tent, a show that has now established itself in the LDF calender. Focusing on a mix of student work and young, emerging design companies, Tent put on a really nice show that is a welcome break from the more corporate parts of the festival. This year, Ferrious friend and Manchester designer, Jon Male, showed his well received collection of lighting made from reclaimed glass pieces, suitably titled Rebay. We hope to be working with Jon very soon so keep your eyes peeled for these colourful totems in the Ferrious showroom.