The London Design Festival is a must for anyone creative. It’s a nine day celebration of London looking at all design disciplines.

A Gust Of Wind by  Paul CockSedge
Friday 24th September at the V&A

There are simply hundreds of individual design events happening over the nine days including; meeting designer makers in their studios at the V&A , the opportunity to attend a seminar on a favourite topic of design, exhibitions of ceramics, jewellery, textiles, glass, fine art, sculpture, art that’s for sale and much much moreFramed by Stuart Haygarth

I couldn’t possibly mention all of the events but below are is a list from the ‘Interiors’ section from A – N. It’s a very busy event so I would advice you to book on to any of the seminars or events that you are interested in. Click here for more information

Art Works – Oiva Toikka at Vessel
Vessel Gallery presents new & unique art glass works by Finnish master Oiva Toikka for his 50th anniversary at Iittala
Vessel Gallery, W11 2PW

Bernhardt Design unveils Monica Förster’s latest creation Vika
Bernhardt Design unveils Monica Förster’s Vika and introduces Jaime Hayon’s Bardot at Brands Limited, Clerkenwell
99 St John Street, EC1M 4AS

BoConcept 2011 Collection Launch Event
A weekend event with interior design surgery and a showcase of art and design
BoConcept, W1T 7NH

BLAST! 2010
Cohesion Glassmakers’ Network group selling show
Zest Gallery, SW6 1RS

Blurry Boundaries
A world first look at brand new product, industrial and interior design from Studio Torsten Neeland
11 Chance Street, E2 7JB

Blueware by Studio Glithero at Sigmar
Studio Glithero’s beautiful interpretation of traditional blue and white porcelain tiles
Sigmar, SW3 4AS

Ceramics in the City
Ceramics in the City, a 3-day selling fair, returns to the Geffrye with stunning new work by 48 selected ceramicists
Geffrye Museum, E2 8EA

Change of Season at Ligne Roset City Showroom
Ligne Roset City presents an exciting new layout to welcome the UK arrival of its stunning new collection
37-39 Commercial Road, E1 1LF

Czech & Speake
Window display of collection of furniture and accessories
39c Jermyn Street, SW1Y 6DN

Decorex International 2010
Decorex will showcase a unique collection of top end, design led interior products from the industry’s finest suppliers
Royal Hospital Chelsea, SW3 4SR

Design Against The Clock
Design ‘performances’ at Established & Sons LIMITED. Established & Sons LIMITED will also act as a Design Café
2-3 Duke Street, St James’s, SW1Y 6BJ

Designers from London
New accessories concept store Darkroom presents  ’Designers from London’
52 Lamb’s Conduit Street, WC1N 3LL

DRINK, SHOP & DO
Design shop & cafe bar launch; emerging designers – retro & vintage; cups of tea; creative nights with beer & cocktails
9 Caledonian Road, N1 9DX

INTERIORS E-J

Focus/10
At Focus/10 great design takes centre stage
Design Centre Chelsea Harbour, SW10 0XE

Focus (A center emitting and receiving light rays)
Martha Freud’s first collection of lighting, furniture and tableware is displayed at The Hospital Club in Covent Garden
24 Endell Street, WC2H 9HQ

Global Industry at The Dock
Global Industry at The Dock is a creative hub for design in the Portobello Dock Canalside estate in Ladbroke Grove
Portobello Dock, W10 5BU

HEL YES!
14 Days of Food and Design from Helsinki
Londonewcastle Depot, N1 7SL

HIVE Open Studio Pop Up Shop
HIVE opens the studio to view latest interior products and lighting all for sale to the public
6 Shardeloes Road, SE14 6NZ

Homework
Mint is pleased to present ‘Homework’, an exhibition promoting the Best of New Design for LDF 2010
2 North Terrace, SW3 2BA

INEKE HANS MIND-SETS
Mind-Sets is a retrospective of Dutch designer Ineke Hans’s work and her first solo exhibition in the UK
The Aram Gallery, WC2B 5SG

In Every Dream Home
New works by Paul Kelley, Studio Glithero, Freddie Yauner and Tina Roeder in a new collaboration between FUMI and FENDI
Gallery FUMI, EC2A 4BA

In Miniature
Caravan and hand-printed wallpaper artist Deborah Bowness play with scale!
3 Redchurch St, E2 7DJ

Innofa/Frank/Darkroom
Innofa fabrics has joined forces with Frank and new concept store Darkroom to create a collection of one-off accessories
Darkroom, WC1N 3LL

In Residence: London vs Milano
Natuzzi invites two creatives, one from London and one from Milan, to interpret graphically their vision of London
Unit 2 & 3 The Pulse, NW3 6EP

INTERIORS K-R

Kvadrat and Cristian Zuzunaga
Kvadrat launches their textile collection by Cristian Zuzunaga
10 Shepherdess Walk, N1 7LB

Let’s Talk About Colour
Let’s Talk About Colour at Ligne Roset Westend launches the new acid-hued, dynamic and youthful collection
23-25 Mortimer Street, W1T 3JE

loophouse
loophouse open studio
Southwark Bridge Rd, SE1 0EX

Lovely stuff at SCP
SCP East host the UK launch of All Lovely Stüff plus SCP & Donna Wilson launch a new range of rugs
135-139 Curtain Road, EC2A 3BX

Mind The Shadow Gap: Contemporary Architectural Mouldings by Solomon & Wu
Solomon & Wu launch the next generation of interior mouldings in Kings Cross. Design meets architectural detailing
6 Whidborne Street, WC1 H8EU

Made In…
The Made in Design Collective present their debut exhibition of quietly reassuring design at East Gallery, Brick Lane
East Gallery, E1 6SA

Made-Up – A Pop Up Design Exhibition
Made-Up – A Pop Up Design Exhibition Presenting: Furniture, lighting, textiles, glass, mobiles, tabletop products
Made-Up @ Hardy Amies, SW3 6SD

Moooi at The Dock – Global Industry
Dutch design brand Moooi will open the doors of its new permanent showroom & UK headquarters at Portobello Dock
Moooi Showroom, W10 4RH

Moquette for London
Moquette design for London: an evening of discussion at the London Transport Museum
39 Wellington Street, WC2E 7BB

museumaker @ the Geffrye Museum
Extraordinary lighting by contemporary maker Kei Ito illuminates the Geffrye Museum’s collections
Geffrye Museum, E2 8EA

Nendo: Thin Black Lines + Blurry White Surfaces
Phillips de Pury presents the first UK solo show of the Japanese design studio Nendo
The Saatchi Gallery, Phillips de Pury & Company Project Space, SW3 4SQ

Neo Deco Pop-up Shop
Including work by Jose den Hartog & Chris Kabel, Sian Matthews, Nicole Mollett, Gareth Neal and Shan Valla
Space 54, EC2A 3QN

New Barbican Foodhall and Barbican Lounge
Newly re-designed Barbican Foodhall and Barbican Lounge by architects and designers SHH opens September 14th
Silk Street, EC2Y 8DS

Northern Lights
Celebrating everything that Viaduct stands for: originality, quality and the ability to spot talent
1-10 Summers Street, EC1R 5BD

Norwegian Prototypes 2010

55x40x23 x 10kg. We asked 14 Norwegian designers to design a product that could be transported in their hand luggage
Blackall Studios, EC2A 4QS

Mini free festival hits London this Saturday

This is meant to be a great local festival for kids and adults,  I will try and post some pics if I manage to make it along.  Here is what the organisers have to say…

A Summer of fun in Hackney’s parks launches this Saturday 22 May with a free all-day mini festival in London Fields. Simon Atkinson, Mestre of East London Capoeira Group, who will be running free Capoeira for Kids in Hackney Parks every week over the Summer.

The mini-festival will give visitors their first taste of summer events to come in Hackney’s Parks from May-September.

London Fields will be turned into three festival style “villages” where visitors can join the Hackney melting pot of TV chefs, urban gardeners, home-grown bands and natural play.  For more information click this link

BLACK & DECKER DIY WEEKEND
If you like DIY then this is the exhibition for you!

If you are thinking of carrying out some DIY or you simply can’t get enough of home decorating, then get yourself down to the Black & Decker DIY weekend exhibition where there will be a team of specialists on hand offering expert advice to anyone that needs it…brilliant! Venue: Lowry Outlet Mall

Here’s what they have to say about it…A recent report* stated that over a third of Brits are planning to make home improvements themselves this year with many families looking to save a little money when it comes to jobs around the home. For those who are considering this but feel they need a helping hand – head to the Lowry Outlet Mall

On the weekend of April 24 and 25 for some much needed DIY expert advice. Black & Decker® will have a team of experts on hand across the weekend in their famous Black & Decker® 40ft Demonstration Unit situated on the plaza of the Mall.

Black & Decker® DIY demos will run on Saturday from 10am-4pm and Sunday from 11am-4pm. Each day will be split into DIY demonstrations covering Sanding and Fixing, Screwing and Drilling, Making Gardening Easier and Breathing New Life into Old Furniture. The Black & Decker® team will be showing customers how to use the tools correctly and offering top tips and expert advice on how to make the best of their home with the use of different tools. There’s also opportunity to get involved in the demonstrations too!

In the run up to the Black & Decker® experts coming to the Lowry Outlet Mall we’re searching for the King or Queen of DIY; send us details** on your proudest DIY creation and a picture, if you have one, to DIYking&queen@mason-williams.com Mailto: DIYking&queen@mason-williams.com . We will pick the most creative story and offer the winner and their family VIP attendance at one of the Black & Decker® DIY demos. We will also give them a £50 gift card to spend at the Lowry Outlet Mall.

In addition Black & Decker® will be offering an exclusive 10% discount voucher to be used in the Lowry Outlet Mall store until May 3. A prize draw will also run in store across the weekend with the following tools up for grabs; 18v Hammer Drill (RRP £109.99), 12v Dustbuster (RRP £79.99) or a Li-ion Screwdriver (RRP £37.99).

The Lowry Outlet Mall is the perfect place to find some real home bargains, with stores offering up to 60% off RRP all year round! The Mall also offers free undercover parking, an on-site cinema and five plaza restaurants.

For more information visit www.lowryoutletmall.com or follow us on http://twitter.com/lowryoutletmall

Happy Easter everyone!  Over the Easter weekend I walked with my family to the Olympic site, it’s so close to our flat it’s ridiculous!  I’m really excited about the regeneration that will come about.  As much as I love Bethnal Green and the surrounding area, the place is in desperate need for some love and attention.

It was a really interesting walk as behind the Olympic Park, in an area called Fish Island there is a hidden creative community.  The place looks like a ghost town with loads of beautiful old factory buildings but on closer inspection it is in fact a thriving hub of local artists.  There were little signs of activity here and there  including flyer’s for local exhibitions, familiar illustrations adorning the building walls, adverts for local artists to submit works for exhibitions and information about available studio space:  Click here for more information on renting a space.

The area is really close to Victoria Park and has great links to the city, it only took us 10 minutes to walk there.  Below is a map of the area, it’s wlooks like a great place to work but Dace Street seemed the most interesting. I would have loved to have a look around some of the studio spaces.   We are planning to revisit soon as there are a few local exhibitions that looked really interesting.  I’ll keep you posted on this one…

The pictures below show just some of the factory buildings that are now occupied and just look how close they are to the new Olympic stadium!

Anyone with an interest in textiles will love this exhibition, below is a little bit more information about the event:

Handmade Interiors (in association with Handmade in Britain) is very excited to announce the forthcoming exhibition – IPEK (which means silk in Turkish) as part of their initiative to promote and support Contemporary Designer-makers. Handmade Interiors will host the exhibition in their Cheshire Street store, showcasing ‘one off’ or limited edition pieces designed by British and Turkish textiles and fashion artists. The pieces will be available for purchase during the exhibition.  As the name suggests the designers will draw inspiration from eastern influences and the products on show will range from fashion accessories to soft furnishings and interiors products made in silk. The exhibition will run alongside our permanent product ranges of contemporary design art ceramics, exclusive home textiles and interior accessories.  The exhibition opens on 11th March with a private view from 6.00 – 9.00pm. The exhibition runs until 28th March (opening hours 11.00 – 6.00pm).

Handmade Interiors
Established by Indian textile designer, Piyush Suri and Turkish interior designer, Burcu Akin in October 2008, Handmade Interiors is an exciting new collaboration between “Handmade in Britain” and “Orientum” which offers natural, handmade and contemporary ethical home and personal accessories and new and vintage lifestyle products.

Following the successful launch of its gallery on Cheshire Street, Handmade Interiors has recently introduced an eco-friendly, contemporary interior design service ranging from “Room Styling and Consultancy” to “Total Interior Design and Project Management”.  Handmade Interiors brings together indigenous handcrafts and contemporary design in unique and affordable way with a focus on fair trade practices in the field of interior design.

IPEK – THE STORY OF SILK
Dates: 11th – 28th March 2010
Venue: Handmade Interiors, 10 Cheshire Street, London E2 6EH

Craft London
Exhibition of Emerging Talent 8-19 March 2010
Venue: Craft Central, 33-35 St John’s Square, London EC1M 4DS

This is definitely an exhibition worth visiting; amongst many other designers, Laura Felicity will be exhibiting at Craft London’s ‘Emerging New Talent’ Exhibition.  There will be twelve up and coming designer-makers presenting their work, all of whom cover a variety of disciplines.

Laura Felicity will be exhibiting her bespoke modern elegant wallpapers.  All papers are hand screen printed combining the layering of subtle colours and glittering foils.  To compliment the wallpapers, Laura will be showing a range of plaster designs for the wall, which have embedded stitch and imprinted lace onto each of the plaster pieces’ surface.

The exhibition is on for two weeks, from 8th March (Private View) – 19th March.  There will be an informal chat with the designers called ‘Meet The Maker Artist Talk’ on the 18th March, where each designer talks about and answers any questions regarding their work.  Any one is welcome!

There is an online catalogue for the ‘Emerging New Talent’ Exhibition, where a few of the designer-makers have answered a few questions about what inspires them to produce their work, as well as images.  To view Laura Felicity’s article online please visit Craft Central

I hope you all enjoy it!

Designer Crafts at the Mall 2010
Saturday 9 – Sunday 17 January 2010

Rivington Street, EC2A 3DU

This exhibition is held by the Society of Designer Craftsmen and is promoting designer makers from the UK, sharing their creative and innovative ‘makes’.  Click here for more information about the show

Handmade 2009 @ Chelsea Old Town Hall, London (11th – 14th November) All the designer-makers are getting ready to show once again a huge variety of hand-crafted and one-off pieces, spanning fashion, jewellery, textiles, ceramics, sculpture, paper and home ware to name a few. This year brings together the work of around 60 talented British Designer-makers and as always Handmade in Britain’s ethics of Eco-Conscious, Socially responsible design and manufacturing remains a highly prominent theme.

HANDMADE 2009 @ CHELSEA OLD TOWN HALL
11^th – 14^th November 2009
11^th November: 12pm – 5pm
12^th – 14^th November: 11am – 6pm

Private View: 11^th November: 6.30pm – 9pm

CHRISTMAS 2009 @ MILSOM PLACE, BATH
5^th – 6^th December: 10am – 6pm
Private View: 4^th December: 5.30pm – 8.30pm
EXHIBITORS LIST COMING SOON

Click here for more information

CARDIFF’S VERY OWN ‘MINI MILAN’ DESIGN TRAIL, THROUGHOUT OCTOBER 2009

TENTH ANNIVERSARY 22-25 OCTOBER 2009

The Affordable Art Fair (AAF) is the place to discover and buy paintings, drawings, sculpture, photography and original prints – all priced between £50 and £3,000.

John Marshall, Soda Screenprint, £320, Artizan Editions

With 120 carefully selected galleries from across the UK and Europe exhibiting there is contemporary art on show to suit every taste and budget.

The event is returning to Battersea Park this October when it will be celebrating its tenth anniversary! Now a global brand with almost £100 million of art sold during the last decade, the fair is continuing to succeed – with two record-breaking fairs already this year.

For top tips on buying art in the current climate, how to beautify your home on a budget and getting the most out of an art, visiting The Affordable Art Fair is a must!
Nicky Wheeler, Fair Director.  Will Ramsay, Founder

Book your tickets in advance to save £2