Kate Brewer, founder of Look Like Love profiles a different new designer every week. With the tagline “support, nurture, promote” echoing confessions of a design geek’s own “discover, champion and inspire” and a similar commitment to advocating for emerging talent, the parallels between Look Like Love and confessions of a design geek are clear. Watch out for her features every Thursday afternoon. This week’s designer? The very British Tom Hutchinson…
‘Made in England’ and ‘produced in the UK’ are concepts that used to be a quiet footnote when it came to contemporary British design. Products manufactured abroad were not only deemed more cost effective to produce, but with the lower retail prices that made possible, more accessible to the masses. With the growing concern over poor working conditions and low wages in overseas factories, many companies have taken the decision to bring manufacture back to our shores, celebrating the wonderfully diverse craftsmen and women that work across the UK, bolstering the industry and economy alike.
One such designer, who has proudly used the phrase ‘designed and crafted in the UK’ as part of his brand (literally), is emerging product and furniture designer Tom Hutchinson. Another New Designers alumnus, his graduate collection sat quietly in the corner of the Islington’s Business Design Centre – three simply crafted and beautifully minimal glass, timber and felt vessels.
Based in the heart of York, Tom and his business partner JJ are passionate about beautiful materials, quality craftsmanship and thoughtful design. After graduating in November 2013 with a degree in Product Design and Business Management, Tom set about creating his first homeware range, Obtineo, combining contemporary design with traditional manufacturing methods, and all entirely crafted in the UK.
Tom was determined that not just one component should be manufactured in the UK, he wanted every single element to be crafted here. This, it turned out, was not a simple straightforward journey, but in fact was much more of a challenge than he anticipated.
With the support from a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2014, putting his homeware collection into production, Tom set about working with several factories to bring his designs to life. The slightly tricky process of blowing the glass was challenged further when trying to maintain a consistent thickness, especially with the larger pieces. With each one being made by hand, imperfections were inevitable, but because Tom worked so closely with the factories at every stage, they were able to tweak the mould sufficiently to create a series of matching vessels.
With glass production well underway, the second and crucial piece was to manufacture a set of oak and ash lids that would fit snuggly into the glass. With a few teething problems, a change of timber manufacturer, and a production deadline set back by several months, the final samples started to arrive. The final touch was to add the soft, grey felt, an Obtineo signature to each vessel, again produced and added by hand in the UK.
The attention to detail really shines through with Tom’s first range, and his determination not to compromise on technique, quality and craftsmanship means he has created a beautifully elegant range that proudly shouts ‘crafted in the UK’ from the roof-tops.
To find out more about Tom Hutchinson, and to purchase pieces from his collection, visit Look Like Love.
