Mel Smith Designs: handmade

Showing posts with label handmade. Show all posts

festive fair finds!

ahhhhh...today is the first saturday in about a month where i'm not either at a Christmas fair or planning for my next one! i'm still in bed and it's delightful (except for the fact i have a nasty cough and cold). i enjoyed all of my markets (for different reasons!) and wanted to share some of the work of the amazing designers i met whilst exhibiting across the last 3 weeks.

Made In Clerkenwell

i was located in the basement but i was surrounded by 10 other fantastic designer-makers with a great selection of goods.

i have a soft spot for ceramics and instantly fell in love with Sally McGill's new collection - bold blue and coral on white...right up my street!

another great selection of ceramics were on offer from my show neighbour Jane Sarre - i'm always a sucker for that olive colour, and putting it on beautiful vases...well, i'm not sure how i resisted!

and of course Katie Victoria was my very lovely and very Welsh neighbour for the show. gorgeously bright and bold knitted scarves, cushions and a rather lovely bobble hat i had my eye on all show!

East London Design Show

hosted for the second year at the Truman Brewery there were over 100 stands selling homewares, jewellery, prints, furniture and...ping pong games!

the stand to catch my eye the most was from the lovely Winter's Moon, a combination of mid-century finds and new retro inspired prints on an array of homewares - my ultimate weakness!

i caught up with Sophie Home who i first met at the Wimbledon Art & Design Fair earlier this year, once gain selling her yummy geo knits

winner of the Best Stand was Reclectic, a company that sources vintage furniture to hand paint with imagery inspired by that era. we happened to be opposite so could gaze at it all day!

The StockMKT

i'll be honest - this was by far my favourite market - the atmosphere was just amazing and the dj's and live Voodoo Love Orchestra were bloody fantastic! the first time it has been held at Spitalfields but it went down a treat.

now unfortunately i was so caught up in the dancing that i didn't actually take any photos! but probably a good thing otherwise i'll end up giving away some of the Christmas presents i have bought people!

Peru - part 1 . . . the textiles!

i'm ba-aaack!!! i've been off travelling about Peru for 3 weeks but i'm back on London soil now...and fully inspired!! it was an amazing 3 weeks and i will be sharing lots of photos with you in the next couple of weeks.

Peru is an amazing place and the trip i took was probably one of the most cultural holidays i have ever had. i went with my flatmate, Rebekka, and we ventured from capital city Lima through sand dunes, the 'poor mans Galapagos', the Nazca Lines, a canyon twice as deep as the Grand Canyon, stayed with two families to experience traditional Peruvian life, and of course completed a 3 day hike to get to the jaw dropping Machu Picchu.

but even through all that i can't forgot my true passion - the textiles. hand woven and hand stitched textiles were everywhere, in the form of scarfs, shawls, blankets, rugs...even trainers!! So much to choose from and some absolutely beautiful designs.

the main wool was alpaca or llama (and OMGoodness they are the cutest things!) and it was oh-so soft. baby alpaca is the softest but by far the most expensive.

we were lucky enough to visit the Woman's Weaving Project in a small village called Ccaccaccollo. we were shown how they naturally dye the wool using plants, and how they hand weave their garments.

needless to say i bought a lot! but i resisted far more!! i am now the proud owner of my Mamas scarf, a rug, a set of llama hat and gloves, a small purse. and of course a llama magnet to add to my selection.

we make london and co.

monday was the start of my 6 weeks residence in We Make London based in Camden Lock. i went in to set up the products they will be promoting (and hopefully selling!) for me and also help man the shop alongside Mary. whilst there i also had a good nose at some of the other designers work and here are my fave pics of other surface pattern and prints:

funky purses and bags - miesje chafer

awesome plates - para sites cermaics

2 of my favourite prints - alfamarama

great gift sets - victoria eggs

just made me laugh - benjamin rothery

fun! - lightboat jewellery

love the breaking bad RV! - kate rowland

me...well i had to share one pic didn't i?!

work in progress from illustrator linda skoglund. she has been commissioned to complete 7 maps around Camden and was just starting today...next time i go back they should be complete so i can post the final pieces!

Top Drawer Spring 2014...the review!

what can i say? Top Drawer and Home London were AMAZING! they did not fail to impress - so many talented people on display launching their new ranges, some previous exhibitors and some newbies...like myself! it was my first trade show and i LOVED it! can't wait to do the next one!

lots of interest across the three days, every day was a bit different - Sunday was the smaller boutique-y shops looking for exciting new stock, Monday i had chats about commission work and some press came and took some pics, and Tuesday was a bit of a mix too - a few shops, as well as other trade shows and pop up shops offering chances to showcase my products.

one of the nicest things to hear was when someone said they had spotted my products in the pre-show mag or on the website and they had tracked me down. it took a few goes to get used to talking to people but then you realise they just want a bit of a chat and it's easy peasey, haha.

i got to meet lots of people from the ABSPD course - Suzy Washington, Wendy Flynn (finally!), Trina Esquivelzeta, Jess Wilde, Kathryn Pledger, Kathy Schicker, Poppy Westwell, Jess Williams, Esther Cox...i hope i haven't forgotten anyone...sorry if i have!

take down was fun. i say that sarcastically. all hell broke loose. 5 o'clock and everyone has 5 hours to take everything down and get the hell out of the building! our slot for packing up wasn't until 7 and we couldn't be bothered to wait so we decided (foolish or not) to walk everything to the car parked 10 minutes away. 3 trips between 3 of us (thank you to Alice who only came to visit but ended up helping with take down!). i think i speak for all of us when i say Wednesday morning lie in could not come soon enough!

but that wasn't all the work done, oh no. straight on to following up all the contacts made at the show and now we wait replies. some goods news to share very soon but i'll keep you waiting for that ;)

i did manage to have a quick look round Top Drawer and Home and met fellow ABSPD-ers Zoe Atwell and Hannah Nunn, but unfortunately missed Cara Holland (Patternbooth) and Anna Dent. here are a few of my favourite stands and the lovely designers themselves. feast your eyes on this little lot...

Sian Elin - pretty eye catching wouldn't you say? nothing needs to be said...

I Drew This - cutey character cards were my favourites

Blooming Briony - i went to school with her! small world :)

Jessica Hogarth Designs - new summery card ranges

Stitch and Story - was opposite this stand so could stare at the loveliness all day long...

Rocket 68 - retro style caught my eye walking passed. unfortunately Jill was a little camera shy :p

i would also just like to say a few thank you's -
Liz Smith (Elle Jane Designs) for helping me throughout this project;
Jess Hogarth for giving me so much advice it's ridiculous;
Jen Whitham for her advice too and also for introducing me to Jess in the first place when i was doing my first Spitalfields market;
Deb Velasquez for all her printing tips;
Sam Nesbitt for the photo shoot;
Quincy Lampshades for making the designs into the fabulous shades they now are;
all the ABSPDers for their support and encouragement;
and of course, friends and family.
i'm sure there are others but my brain still isn't back up to full speed so i apologise.

gosh, that turned into a bit of an awards ceremony speech didn't it?! sorry about that!! i just wanted to say thanks dudes, it means a lot :)

pulse london 2013 review!

had a fantastic day at Pulse London today with Elle Jane Designs - we also bumped into Esther Cox and got to have a catch up with Jess Hogarth on her fab stand. lots to share so i'm just going to jump in with lots of pics...

JESS HOGARTH - always good to see jess and her cheery smile! fabulous stand with lots of new products to show off, but 'coastal cottages' is still my favourite

HOME SLICE DESIGN - met the lovely steph and eleanor of home slice - absolutely loved their stand!

THE BLACK RABBIT - how cute is this little owl tea cosy?! they also do mice, hedgehogs, bears and (of course) rabbits

FREYA ART AND DESIGNS - beautiful typography and cute prints handmade in the UK

BIBU - fun children's cushions, plus a new range of square cushions with bold geometric prints

EMILY BUCKNELL - lovely lampshades and a lovely stand...and all screen printed - just makes me love it more!

JO CLARK DESIGN - we had a lovely chat with Jo who Liz met at spitalfields a few weeks - lots of lovely illustrations (my particular favourite was the sausage dog!)