The New Craftsmen

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Amongst the Mayfair streets lives an incredibly inspiring crafty spot known as The New Craftsmen. The creative hub opened last June and provides a collection of some of Britain’s most talented craft makers works.

We were kindly invited to meet the team for a relaxed lunch and an opportunity to be introduced to some of the inspirational offerings displayed in the quirky showroom. The company was founded back in 2012 and now presents over 75 craftsmen.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

One of the founders Catherine embarked on a road trip touring the UK to find craftsmen to understand the processes and materials used on a greater level. Interestingly the team works with various artists combining their talents to create some seriously unique collaborative pieces.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Eighteen different makers created the Bowls of Britain, which was a challenge set by The New Craftsmen.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The idea was for the talented makers to create gigantic vessels showcasing their different materials and the results were unbelievable.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

In every corner there was something exciting to stare at, I thought this ceramic bowl that has a wicker centre inserted was seriously cool.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Laura Carlin representing her interpretation on ‘London Life’ has illustrated these scrummy tiles. The illustration was hand-painted and then was digitally printed onto the ceramic tiles creating a youthful take on London through her eyes. This set of six is called Park Life and was my favourite; I’m already daydreaming of which project I can squeeze these into.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

One of the first pieces that caught my eye when I arrived was the Brodgar Chair. We learnt that the chair was a collaborative piece combining East London based designer Gareth Neal and Kevin Gauld a traditional chair maker based in Scotland.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The combination of contemporary design and using traditional techniques has worked amazingly to create this oak Orkney chair.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

These unusual finishes are produced by Stephanie Tudor, made from jesmonite a mixture of resin and numerous natural materials that create these cool surfaces.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Stephanie Tudor’s creative colourful pieces have been incorporated into furniture and various surfaces.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Cushions by Katherine May were made inspired by research into Floris archives. Katherine’s idea was to create textile cushions using plant dye a process, which is exceptionally time consuming to perfect, but as you can see would brighten up any space.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Another striking element in the showroom was another design by Laura Carlin a hand-painted table based on the Gladiator Arena.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Introducing the most beautiful drinks trolley I’ve ever laid my eyes upon. Sebastian Cox designed the Glenlivet Nadurra trolley, that was crafted with weaved timber.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The oak has been obtained from old Scotch whisky casks, which were then treated and straightened to form part of the design.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Michael Ruh used hand-blown skills to create the stunning glass vessel that serves as an ice bucket. Each bottle was also held in place with a smart leather strap.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Lorna Singleton and Sebastian Cox worked together to create this oak Swill Stool that is another perfectly crafted piece of furniture.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Lola Lely has combined a patinated marble effect finish with painted wood to create these colourful candlesticks.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Looking at all the creative pieces I couldn’t help but start envisaging my Christmas wish list.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair Gareth Hacker

We pulled ourselves away from exploring the showroom and indulged in lunch served on Laura Carlin’s illustrated Britannia plates.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

We feasted on delicious meats, cheeses and olive bread all placed in the beautiful ceramic dish by Silvia K Ceramics.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The terracotta dish had a bright coloured detail to the centre and brown leather handles. As you can see it made a great statement to the table and perfect serving dish for the yummy treats on offer.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Located in the showroom were large chests full of samples from all the different craftsmen that I couldn’t resist in nosing through.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Aimee Betts produces hand-embroidered details; this was a piece where she reinterpreted Jude Law’s handwriting, which looked exceptionally intricate.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Such fun textiles by Louisa Loakes were designed using the traditional craft of block printing. The beautifully bright colours and geometric shapes create really striking fabrics.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

Sebastian Cox and Benchmark designed this dramatic piece below. The design was formed using shingle that was blackened wood and traditionally frequently used in Japanese architecture. The process is rather time consuming, as the wood has to be scorched to a certain level without going on fire. The layered effect has a rustic feel but the shape of the piece makes it feel far more contemporary.

The New Craftsmen Mayfair

In case you hadn’t noticed I basically fell head over heels in love with everything in the store. I urge you to go check out The New Craftsmen,  I’m sure you’ll leave with some amazing Christmas gifts too!

 

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