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.
