Pricing
Free
This London Craft Week, 12 Makers of The Exceptional as curated by Walpole will takeover Circus West Village Pop-Ups Space by Battersea Power Station. Explore the full line-up of events happening here during London Craft week at batterseapowerstation.co.uk/LondonCraftWeek, or read below to Meet The Makers…
About Walpole
A unique alliance of 210 of Britain’s finest luxury brands, Walpole promotes, protects and develops the qualities of UK luxury: the long tradition, rich heritage, superior craftsmanship, innovation, design, style, and impeccable service at the heart of the industry – currently worth over £32 billion to the UK economy and a leading creator of jobs. Dedicated to nurturing the next generation of luxury brands, craftspeople and leaders, Walpole connects Britain’s best up-and-coming talent with a network of senior mentors from within the established membership. Its programme of events, thought leadership activities and political and media engagement furthers the collective interests of Walpole’s members, ensuring the continued and future success of British luxury on an international stage. Walpole is a not-for-profit organisation, funded entirely by a combination of annual member fees and corporate sponsorship.
Crafted/Mentoring Programmes
Walpole’s Crafted: Makers of the Exceptional programme was founded ten years ago to enable small craft companies and artisans to develop their business skills and connecting skilled craftsmen with luxury brands. Walpole continues to support two other mentoring Brands of Tomorrow and the Programme in Luxury Management at London Business School which provide mentoring and business advice to the next generation of luxury brands and leaders through a series of workshops.
Aiveen Daly is a specialist upholstery studio in London, designing and making for the world’s finest interiors projects.
Aiveen was born in Ireland and always had a love of textiles and craft. She originally studied Business & Russian at Trinity College in Dublin but having worked in Marketing for several years yearned for something more creative. She enrolled in an upholstery course and instantly fell in love with it. ‘I felt however that the craft was quite stuck in terms of design and innovation. It had become all about what fabric to choose rather than what to do with the fabric’. She started to experiment with different techniques which are now embedded in the Aiveen Daly stable. Specialities include fabric manipulation, hand bead work, embroidery and leather crafts.
Aiveen Daly is now one of the most sought- after upholstery studios in the luxury design arena. The workshop in North West London regularly hosts some of the top interior designers and architects across the globe. Working largely to commission, the studio uses luxurious embellishment techniques to adorn furniture and surfaces.
There is also an edited collection of made-to-order furniture and accessories to choose from.
London based British designer Alexandra Llewellyn creates backgammon boards and custom-made games tables and games, all made in the UK. We stock a collection of our in-house designs that can be available immediately or personalised with engraved or painted messages, initials, and dates. They can also be commissioned with our exquisite semi-precious stone and brass playing pieces. Alexandra also takes one-off commissions for games tables and games boards. Every detail is created in close conversation with the client, creating a truly original way to commemorate memories and life achievements. Alexandra works with a team of master craftsman in the UK who each specialise in different techniques and materials, making each unique commission an original to be enjoyed by generations to come. Alexandra has played backgammon all her life, and her love of the game was cemented as a child in Cairo. The rattle of dice on large wooden crate-boards signaled the game in play, as she strolled through the streets with her Egyptian step-grandfather. As she travelled more her interest in backgammon evolved, over countless games. She became enthralled by the idea that board games operate as an independent vocabulary requiring neither common language nor culture, and the idea that games bring people together. Launched in December 2010, Alexandra Llewellyn Designs embody an exquisitely unique vision of the oldest recorded board game in the world.
Based in London and Kent, The house of Ana de Costa specialises in hand crafted bespoke pieces of jewellery and objet d’art, working directly with private clients, offering impeccable service. The house is a natural extension of Ana’s curiosity about spirituality, travel and culture. At the core of the house are Ana’s key values. These are to use exceptional gemstones, to offer outstanding design and champion luxury British Craftsmanship. With these values in mind, Ana demonstrates a refreshing and challenging way of designing and creating fine jewellery. Ana’s work is regularly featured in Vogue, W Magazine and Vanity Fair. Her work is also collected and commissioned by private clients, including movie stars and a range of international Royal families.
Ana was recently commissioned by Rolls-Royce, to design and craft a series of bespoke lapel pins. These were inspired by the founder Charles Rolls’ love of aviation and motoring. Each pin was handcrafted in London, from 18ct yellow and blue gold and set with vivid royal blue sapphires.
Bridget Bailey has a wealth of experience and an international reputation for her textile artworks, millinery, and her masterclasses. She studied textiles – always a strong influence in her work – and made her first millinery collection in 1984 for Jean Muir. In 1989, she co-founded the Bailey Tomlin brand and developed an extensive list of clients, from Liberty and Saks Fifth Avenue to the V&A. Bridget now works as an artist in her London studio, making one-off pieces for exhibitions and commissions. She has earned a reputation for combining intriguing ideas and observations with her very particular textile and millinery skills. Exhibitions include ‘Mad for Tea’ at Fortnum and Mason, ‘Crafted, Makers of the Exceptional’ at the Royal Academy, ‘Absolutely Buzzing’, a solo show at Inspired by,,, Gallery, in the North York Moors National Park.
Geoffrey Preston is one of the UK’s leading architectural sculptors, specialising in decorative plasterwork and in particular the art of stucco. After studying sculpture at Hornsey College of Art he trained as a stonemason and a carver. He was a founding director of two of the country’s most respected conservation companies, at the helm of many significant projects including the pioneering restoration of the 18th century hand modelled plasterwork at Uppark House in West Sussex. In 2000 Geoffrey set up his workshop in Devon. The workshop is thriving and employs a small team of sculptors who work alongside Geoffrey on larger projects. They concentrate on designing and making new work, ranging from beautifully modelled relief panels to complete rooms.
Recent projects include a new rococo ceiling for a Grade I hunting lodge in Dorset, two beautiful Arts and Crafts inspired ceilings for a Grade II house in Dorset, and a flying unicorn for the stairwell of Annabel’s nightclub in Mayfair.
Hugh Miller specialises in gallery-standard contemporary furniture in wood. Hugh trained as an architect and sees his furniture as small pieces of architecture, where the concept is embedded within the intricacy of the detail. Hugh’s studio is founded on a set of Japan design principles developed during his Churchill Research Fellowship in Japan. This formative experience has left an indelible mark on the studio and is evident across Hugh’s portfolio of work. Hugh’s furniture collection is made in British elm, Japanese bamboo, brass, and Japanese calligraphy ink. These materials illuminate the duality of cultural influences that underpin the studio.
Hugh also designs for established luxury brands. Recent collaborations include a coffee table and side table for Benchmark Furniture, two ArtSuite bedrooms for the IceHotel in Sweden, and a special edition gift box for Savoir Beds.
Isatu Hyde is a designer and production potter. Her work is all made by hand at the potter’s wheel, and her design language is firmly rooted in her traditional apprenticeship training in studio pottery. The process of refining form and the challenge of improving hand-making skill drives Isatu, and the abstract, sculptural aspects of pottery from around the world fascinate her endlessly. Isatu’s work is most readily connected with food and home production and is deeply influenced by often-ancient forms and processes that still have a huge relevance and resonance to our lives today. Among her range is included sourdough baking bells, water‐lock crocks, fruit-wine making bottles, kombucha jars and kefir pots. Her work is available to buy in batches, as it comes from each kiln firing, from her own online shop.
TALLOWIN is a luxury handbag label dedicated to creating the finest hand-stitched handbags available. The label is based in London and was founded by award-winning designer Mark Tallowin in 2012. Each item is handcrafted from start to finish by the designer. Every single stitch is formed by hand, using an incredible labour-intensive technique known as the ‘Saddle Stitch’. On average just one handbag is completed each month. Every single component is marked by hand, cut by hand, bevelled and burnished by hand, before being stitched – as you may expect – by hand. The only process done outside of the studio is the gold-plating of the hardware. This is entrusted to a respected polisher in London’s jewellery quarter.
Rooted in traditional English craftsmanship and influenced by her background in theatre, brand and design, Mia Sabel is a Qualified Saddler, QEST Scholar, Walpole Crafted Mentee and HCA friend. SABEL offers to discerning customers, bespoke and fitted, hand-stitched leather wrist and fob watch wrist straps and holders. Her unique, London-based, single-hole fitting service ensures that your watch strap, like a bespoke suit, is tailored to fit you, and your watch, perfectly.
Award-Winning artist Miriam Hanid is best known for her distinctive sculptural silver, which includes functional and purely decorative pieces, mostly inspired by water, movement and the natural world. Using her signature techniques of chasing and engraving she creates deceptively simple organic and tactile shapes together with more complex and detailed vessels, centrepieces and tableware.
Many of the objects that Miriam designs are the result of commissions, a process she enjoys, working with clients to bring their visual ideas to life. She has created bespoke silverware for individuals and collectors as well as for organisations including the Victoria & Albert Museum, Eton College, the Goldsmiths Company and the National Museum of Wales. A commission for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, 60 years later than her great grandfather’s two commissions for Her Majesty in 1952, has been a career high point.
Miriam works from her Suffolk studio focusing on bespoke commissions, teaching and the development of a capsule jewellery collection and fine silverware gifts.
Nerida Fraiman is a designer and manufacturer of luxury hats and turbans under her own eponymous label. Her signature style plays with elegant sculptural forms and flattering feminine softness. From magnificent statement headwear at Royal Ascot to versatile urban turbans in on-trend fabrics, her focus is on wearability, quality and enduring style.
With a MA from the Royal College of Art followed by an extensive background of traditional fine millinery and accessory manufacturing techniques mastered at Philip Treacy and the Opera Bastille, Paris, Nerida’s approach is sensitive to the spirit of our times. She is an innovator, continually discovering new materials refining her methods and generating progressive ways to create volume and form – an aesthetic perfectly in tune with her brand’s delicate yet meticulous aesthetic for the contemporary woman. Her following includes royalty and international designers.
Nerida Fraiman hats regularly feature Vogue, Tatler and the FT amongst others. Her collections retail at Harrods, Fenwick New Bond St, The Hat-Gallery M/V,Lovehats and a growing number of high-end boutiques across Europe and Asia.
Pip Howeson is an experienced tailor, dedicated to the rejuvenation of the British textile industries.
Pip Howeson is a tailoring perfectionist. Unlike ill-fitting, unsound High Street coats, Pip’s coats promote assets; disguise insecurities and last a lifetime. Her commitment to protecting and promoting the practices of the British textile industries creates the foundation for her promise of excellence. British mills continue to produce fabrics of incomparable quality and on our very shores. Her meticulous approach leads her to follow each coat on its journey, from shearing sheep in Northern Scotland to perfecting shoulder measurements in her studio in Cannonbury, ensuring that each coat is an immediate classic that has been designed for you, forever. Pips Collection is available on line in her London studio and at various pop up events and trunk shows.
Address:
Battersea Power Station
Circus West Village
Sopwith Way, London SW11 8NN
Nearest train/tube:
Battersea Park Station/Queenstown Road
Start date: 09/05/2018
End date: 13/05/2018
Open from 10:00 to 20:00
