Open Studios - My Favourite Makers
Open Studios 9-10th June
In a week's time the flags will be back out and it will be time for Open Studios. As usual I will open my doors in Unit 0 from 12-6pm each day. The flyer, with directions, can be downloaded from here
The site grows bigger every year and there is so much to see in the 2 days we are open as will as a good few workshops running this year. You can try your hand at saddlestitching leather or willow weaving as a couple of examples. The full timetable can be found here.
I thought I'd introduce you to some of my favourite makers on site who will be open this weekend.
Bertram Whitford - Trinity Wharf, Studio 19
Bertram is a furniture maker with an eye for detail and a passion for making. He creates beautiful desks, cabinets and seating that are a pleasure to behold, touch and use. Bertram’s work as a furniture maker is a testament to the handmade, the sustainable and the enduring. His work ‘wears in’.
In 2010 he completed his tuition under respected maker John Lloyd in Sussex. Here he learnt the traditional methods of cabinetmaking. In 2012 he appeared on the BBC show Handmade Revolution and was named judges’ favourite. Consequently, his Bonheur du Jour (pictured) was on show at the Victoria & Albert museum in London.
https://bertramwhitford.com/
Hetty Rose -
Unit 0, Studio 25b
Hetty graduated from the London College of Fashion with a degree in Footwear Design & Development (Cordwainers) and worked in London and Italy for handmade shoe companies.
After being selected to exhibit at London Fashion Week in her first season Hetty has gone on to feature in many publications including Vogue, Elle & on television.
Hetty hand makes each pair of bespoke shoes in her studio, but also offers 1-2-1 and group shoe making classes.
http://www.hettyrose.co.uk/
Jane Cairns -
Unit 4, Studio 37
Jane is a ceramicist whose work is about finding beauty in the ordinary, the way a material has weathered, the juxtaposition of surfaces, the formal relationship between objects.
She takes an experimental approach to ceramic processes and materials to reflect the forms, colours and textures she finds in these places. Her work captures the unexpected, quiet beauty of neglected environments and found objects.
https://www.janecairns.co.uk/
Agnieszka Stanczyk - Telegraph Building, Studio 105
"Hats by Agnieszka" is the brand name created by milliner Agnieszka Stanczyk, who developed her lifelong passion for hat-making through experimentation and formal training from Rose Cory, the Queen Mother's milliner.
Agnieska creates occasional, bespoke fascinators, cocktail pieces and casual hats made with attention to detail often inspired by retro glamour. Above all, her style has a distinctly fresh and contemporary quality.
https://www.hatsbyagnieszka.com/
Tell Your Friends
We hope you will be able to make it down and see all the amazing work at the studios. Despite being so big, it is still relatively unknown. It would be great to get it out there a bit more.
https://www.thames-sidestudios.co.uk/