out and about :: farmiloe building, cdw2013 - confessions of a design geek

This article was published 13 years

Well, I can officially report that Clerkenwell Design Week was amazing, despite the weather! I was so proud to be the official blogger, and so happy to spend three glorious days soaking up the festival vibe and talking to talented designers about their beautiful products.

Here is a little round-up of my favourite finds from the main venue, the Farmiloe Building, a staple of the CDW experience (from left to right, top to bottom):

Monotype offers a typeface library and design services, but the range of products they use to showcase their fonts could be a business in itself – delightfully geeky!
Sofa One by Another Country combines comfy casual upholstery with a mid-century inspired wooden frame.
It was great to see Devon-based designers Young and Norgate with their black walnut and almost neon orange Animate bedside tables.
James Harrison told me “We’re rocking coral pink this year” and the Norton armchair in grey with pink piping would certainly support that statement!
The lighting in the ground floor window is a collaboration between Artemide and Issey Miyake. I’ve included a tiny 45s film demonstrating these lights below, which is just gorgeous.
Canteen popped up in the Farmiloe Building courtyard with chairs from Very Good & Proper and Assemble, and bacon sarnies that took all my willpower to resist. Amusingly, they were sticking to their British ethos and serving builders tea, and no coffee!
To the right of that is the new Working Girl chair for deadgood, by my LDF12 favourite David Irwin.
I love Dare Studio and I loved this new light, looking particularly fabulous in yellow against the industrial grey background of the Farmiloe’s shed.
Underneath is Jennifer Newman‘s new M Bamboo table in smoking hot orange and bamboo – which looks like a dark hardwood, having been treated to prevent outside deterioration.
I loved Bethan Gray‘s brogue table when she launched it in white at Clerkenwell Design Week last year, I loved it in green when she developed a one-off for Maggie’s Joy of Living II at designjunction, LDF12 and I love it in the new macaroon colour range.
On the bottom row, Muuto‘s entire stand was a smorgasbord of Scandinavian style, but these three cushions topped off with a very British bowler hat did catch my eye.
&Then hold a special place in my heart, being one of the first design brands I encountered at one of my first trade shows, so it was fantastic to see a whole range of new furniture, including this sofa in grey and green – a winning combination.
And finally, Studio Tilt does some really interesting work, as reported in my recent creative spaces post, including Quiet, developed in collaboration with staff and patients at the Wittington Hospital in London, to create “safe personal space”