The Home Issue - Hot Brands Cool Places - November 2012

HOT BRANDS COOL PLACES FASHION CULTURE LIFESTYLE

NOVEMBER 2012

The Home Issue

EDITOR’S LETTER Welcome to our Home issue, this month we have a wonderful collection of interviews; including an interview with David Linley about the new Little Linley Collection.

We speak with Mike Laude - Director of the Bose® Design Centre about his inspiration and the Bose® Video Wave® II. We also talk to Victoria Alexander, author of Colour about the positive impact of colour on all our lives. Finally we catch up with Carole Matthews and find out more about her latest book With Love at Christmas.

We also review Kirstie’s Vintage Home by Kirstie Allsopp, Illuminate by Hannah Nunn and Reclaiming Style by Maria Speake & Adam Hills. The magazine is also packed full of ideas for your home and garden from some of the fabulous companies listed in our Directory. www.hotbrandscoolplaces.com Picture Credits: Front Cover image courtesy of LINLEY www.davidlinley.com Other images throughout the magazine supplied by the various companies, or publishers featured.

Please Note All information about products and services are supplied to us by the individual organizations, or agencies acting on their behalf. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that all information is accurate, it may be subject to change. Please check with individual organizations for the latest information about all events, products, or news items. Inclusion in this magazine does not imply endorsement by Hot Brands Cool Places. Hot Brands Cool Places does not accept responsibility for the content of any external site.

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GEORGE SMITH George Smith is an exclusive furniture and fabric manufacturer with showrooms in London and Harrogate. Their range of sofas, chairs, chaises and stools come in a variety of classic designs to suit both contemporary and traditional tastes.

George Smith furniture will provide its owner with an unparalleled degree of comfort and beauty attainable only through the finest craftsmanship available. http://www.georgesmith.co.uk

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INTERVIEW 4

Hot Brands Cool Places were delighted to speak with David Linley for an exclusive interview What inspired the Little Linley Collection?

The emergence of little LINLEY was very natural. A lot of customers were coming into the shop asking for gifts and accessories for christenings, children’s birthdays and special occasions.

There was a bit of a gap in the market for the sort of gifts that would be treasured throughout life and LINLEY decided to fill that gap, in so doing embracing craftsmanship for children. We realised that children are just as enthralled as adults by secret drawers, the tactility of wood and the way things work. Each piece in the little LINLEY collection tells a story which adults and children alike will enjoy.

How are the pieces created?

The boxes and frames are all hand-made in Great Britain by some of LINLEY’s finest craftsmen.

They are crafted in sycamore, ripple sycamore, faux bone, burr elm, grey sycamore, silky oak and nickel plated brass and feature marquetry inlay, the intricate process whereby veneers are applied to a wooden base to form decorative patterns or pictures. The LINLEY Steiff bear is hand-made in Germany and the extra touches of a LINLEY coloured ribbon and a silver LINLEY tag are added later. The baby cashmere is hand-woven in Italy using precious fibres originating from Italy. They are available in pastel shades and can be personalised with embroidered initialling.

Why is it so important to keep training new skilled craftspeople?

It is very important to keep on training new highly skilled craftsmen so that a balance of traditional and modern techniques are used in the creation of enduringly beautiful pieces. The ethos of LINLEY is to fuse contemporary design with exquisite cabinet-making and this would not be possible without the skilled craftsmen and women whose skills are employed in their making. It is also very important to ensure continuity from one generation to the next, and so ensure that skills are preserved and passed on.

Can you tell us some of the stories behind the pieces in the collection?

The core of the collection, the boxes and frames, are inspired by animals which children adore, whether giraffes, ducks or elephants. What makes them extra special is that they can be personalised by the addition of a sterling silver plaque which can be engraved with initials, dates and messages. We chose to include the Steiff LINLEY bear in the collection because he is handmade by skilled craftsmen using a design that is over 100 years old. Like LINLEY craftsmen, the Steiff craftsmen understand the importance of making things that will last forever. Similarly, the cashmere is lovingly hand-woven by professionals with over 30 years’ experience in the famous textile region of Biella in Italy who use traditional skills to create these sumptuous cashmere pieces.

Did you have a favourite childhood toy?

The wooden toy submarine I made as a boy.

What would you like to find under the Christmas tree this year?

I am a chairman at Christies UK and we’ve just had a sale celebrating 50 years of James Bond, so something from that would be fun! http://www.davidlinley.com/ 5

THE MERCHANT FOX The Merchant Fox sells a collection of some of the finest luxury goods being produced in Great Britain today. Owned by Deborah Meaden, the collection is split into Home & Interiors, Work & Travel, Style & Accessories. Each item has been selected for its exquisite design, beautiful craftsmanship and interesting provenance. www.themerchantfox.co.uk

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DESIGNERS GUILD Established in 1970 by Tricia Guild, Designers Guild designs and wholesales furnishing fabrics, wallcoverings, upholstery and bed and bath collections worldwide. The Designers Guild business philosophy is to combine creativity and innovation with the highest levels of quality: quality of design, product, service and people. Value Statement: “We believe in quality of design, product and service combined with a committed and motivated team.� www.designersguild.com

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VIOLET AND GEORGE Violet and George are interior tailors, specialising in beautifully made bespoke soft furnishings.

Using sumptuous fabrics and with a team of skilled upholsterers and seamstresses they provide the finishing touches to your home. Call 020 8969 0654 or visit www.violetandgeorge.com for more information.

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LOAF Loaf sells snug sofas, beautiful beds, fab bedroomy furniture and one perfect mattress.

Cheaper, faster and less hassle than the high street, they’ll install your bed or sofa and take away the packaging. If you’re not happy with anything, they’ll also refund you in full. www.loaf.com

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INTERVIEW

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Hot Brands Cool Places spoke with Mike Laude - Director of the Bose® Design Centre for an exclusive interview.

What is the main philosophy and ethos behind Bose® design?

It’s important to be simple yet elegant. Technology can be complicated and intimidating so we wanted to find a way to make our products simple, yet accessible for everyone. We also want to make each of our products unique and attractive.

What are the key stages in the development process? How are you keeping your designs future proof?

In home entertainment for example we start with the acoustic performance that we want to achieve, we then work with our very talented engineers, to look at the size, the physical layout of product, which we call the product architecture. We have a very interactive process between the design team and the engineering team. Often the first concept is not the one that we end up with.

In terms of future proofing we are evolving all the time, we want the design to be enduring, and subsequent generations to be an evolution of the product. We wanted the aesthetic design of the VideoWave to last for a long time, we value the trust of our customers in terms of acoustic performance.

Can you tell me more about VideoWave®II? How did you come up with the design concept?

We’ve been working on it for quite some time, we began very early in our R&D, about five years ago, we wanted to make the speakers as small as possible, We started with our acoustic concept, we wanted the hardware to disappear and people to enjoy the sound and focus on the screen. We wanted it to be virtually invisible and minimal, we wanted it to be clean and elegant, we undertook an amazing amount of work including all our teams and a user interface team.

Where do you draw your inspiration from – which designers do you admire?

Although it may seem a cliché, it has to be Dieter Rams for his work at Braun. I love the purity of his designs as an architect and an industrial designer. I am drawn to Dieter’s style – simple yet expressive – which is something I have tried to follow during my own design career. I am also a big fan of Apple products and I am particularly impressed by the marriage between manufacturing and design.

What advice would you give to young designers today hoping to develop a career in product design?

There are three key areas really, one is rapid visualization, the ability to hand sketch quickly, its all too easy these days to want to use computer tools, and while they can provide accuracy later, its more important to be able to show an engineer, or a marketing person a quick sketch. Second to be well versed in manufacturing technology and techniques, it’s not easy to redesign factories therefore it is important to be able to work with the materials and technology that is available.

Third is to be able to build relationships, to be able to work in a team, to have a level of humility, and to recognize that you may not know everything and can learn from others.

What makes a perfect weekend for you?

We have a place at Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and when I cross the bridge over the Cape Cod Canal I feel my blood pressure drop, I love walking on the beach with my wife and dog especially in the winter. I also love going out on the water in a kayak, or looking for clams and oysters. I also 11 enjoy cycling, or having a good meal. www.bose.co.uk

CHH DESIGN Caroline’s homeware and gift collection is conceived for modern living and celebrates life through colour and design. In a return to traditional skills, highest quality porcelain and bone china is intricately hand painted in her dynamic and original designs.

The range constantly evolves with new and sophisticated pieces, all stunningly gift boxed. www.chh-design.com

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BELLE & BOO Welcome to the world of a bob haired little girl called Belle and her adorable bunny friend Boo – a charming world of innocence, warmth and adventure. Belle and Boo is a British lifestyle brand known for original, nostalgic ‘story book’ illustrations of children created by the artist Mandy Sutcliffe. The collection includes gift items, books, framed artworks, stationery, home wares and a beautiful collection of girls’ clothing. www.belleandboo.com

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DOODLE BY STITCH Personalise your home with unique washable sketchbook textiles from doodle by stitch. Cherish friends with a personalised pillowcase or placemat, then wash and design again – endlessly!

The range includes bedding and kitchen linens, all great gifts and available at www.doodlebystitch.com

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ELLA JAMES LIVING Welcome to ‘Ella James Living’ . Our aim in putting this range together was to find simple yet stylish products which are beautiful to look at and useful in a modern home! We love the quality and timeless appeal of traditional toys , home accessories and children’s clothing and we have tried to reflect this in our collections. www.ellajamesliving.co.uk

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Hot Brands Cool Places spoke with Victoria Alexander, author of Colour for an exclusive interview.

INTERVIEW 16

When did you first discover your love of colour?

As early as I can remember. It has always fascinated and intrigued me. I can recall holding thick coloured pencils in my small hands while making drawings on butchers paper in kindergarten, relishing the choices to be made, the possible combinations. I can still feel the magic of making those lines.

Colour is a beautiful book and full of so many inspiring images, what was the process you went through to create it?

Thank you! The idea for Colour emerged very soon after I finished my previous book One. It seemed a natural follow on, an expansion from One if you like - life’s as bright and simple or as dull and difficult as you make it. It feels like I’ve used my experience for a worthwhile purpose – to inspire others to use something that surrounds them all the time as a source of joy.

Colour was two years in the making, researching the hows and exploring cultural differences and similarities, following a thread here or there. With colour as my constant companion it was a very stimulating journey. The book is a culmination of all I have done - they’re all contributing factors but especially the travelling.

Once I know what I want to say, have it straight in my head, I write and photograph instinctually, not always in sequence but adding thoughts or images here and there. Building the book up intuitively. My voice begins to emerge little by little, to become clearer, until I have the sum of the whole. Sometimes a thought will start from an image, other times I will search my image files for the right one to match the thought behind the words.

I have a photo library of thousands of shots. Colour includes images from ten countries – when I travel I click every time I see something that intrigues me knowing it will one day be useful. They all inform.

I made a trip to India, during the Holi festival, just after the first concept layouts for Colour were down on paper in order to capture the pink hands photographs that appear in the book and other shots I felt it needed as a reminder of different cultures and traditions. I shot the photograph that is on the cover during that same trip.

Your background is fascinating, how did your career evolve, and how do you decide if an opportunity is right for you?

My life feels like a natural progression. I’m not afraid of change, enjoy learning and find new and different things exciting. I’ve been fortunate that one thing lead to another – Dress Design to Fashion Editor for Vogue and magazine work, magazines to film, styling to designing a hotel, a hotel to the concept and running of a large restaurant and cafe. To do my Fine Arts degree (Painting/ Drawing Honours) having already had a successful career was wonderful as it meant I was mostly surrounded by younger fresh like minded people, - an energy I love being around. I think you know when something feels right – it’s believing in those instincts and making the most of them, managing your risks that makes the difference. And experience clearly counts. Apart from working for magazines I’ve always been self-employed which makes it easier to evolve from one thing to another as there’s a freedom of choice when it comes to important decisions.

You have a number of quotes/affirmations in your book, do you have a personal favourite?

Your attitude. Your choice.

If you had to create one perfect room for you what colour would it be?

Soft, natural light would be the most important thing. The walls would be matt, pearly white to reflect and bounce the light around at different times of the day. Texture is also important to me. The colour would come in the artwork, flowers or fresh food, and objects that I would move around at whim and seasonally. My palette is muted like those in the book and I love to mingle and mix combinations. This is in fact how I live. I’m lucky to have found my perfect home.

You have travelled to many countries where would you choose to go to celebrate Christmas?

Wherever my family are. I’ve never had an actual white Christmas Day and would love one.

The maddest lead up I’ve had to Christmas was in Kyoto, Japan, where despite not celebrating Christmas, English carols were played over loud speakers everywhere and I saw a statue of Christ dressed as Santa in one shop window!

Colour by Victoria Alexander Synopsis: Colour is intrinsically linked to how individuals make sense of the world. It has the power to completely transform mood, often subliminally. It’s capable of being energetic or restful, passive or aggressive, harmonious or dull, and that’s just the beginning.

Colour: a journey! explores the implications, history and cultural meanings of colour. With chapters on individual colours, their history and their influence, Colour will inspire you to make creative choices in your wardrobe, your home and your life.

Lyrically written and thoughtfully illustrated with photography by Victoria Alexander (stylist, fashion editor and passionate traveller).

Colour is interspersed with poignant reminders on how to use colour to transform your mood and brighten your life http://www.amazon.co.uk/ Hot Brands Cool Places Verdict This is such an inspirational and uplifting book, beautifully illustrated and very creatively produced, it really is a journey across countries, cultures with fascinating information about the influence of colour in all our lives.

It’s a very personal journey, but there are messages for everyone throughout the book. Highly Recommended!

SCARLET & ARGENT Scarlet & Argent is an exquisite collection of woollen blankets, throws and accessories for the home. Created by Yorkshire-based Hainsworth, one of Britain’s most prestigious textile mills, it is instilled with a stunning heritage that spans across seven family generations. Also now available from John Lewis online and John Lewis Oxford Street. www.scarletandargent.co.uk

DUSK LIVING Dusk Living is where comfort and practicality meet style and expression. Dusk Living aims to meet your every requirement with our wide range of homewares, and offer you high quality products from British designer Tom Raffield and Garden Trading Company. www.duskliving.co.uk

IN THE LINEN CUPBOARD In the Linen Cupboard is an online shop offering extremely luxurious bed linens and towels made in England. We also have a unique click and design feature. In just 5 clicks you can design your own bed linen in various designs. www.inthelinencupboard.co.uk / mailto:enquiries@inthelinencupboard.co.uk

THE NATURAL RUG COMPANY The Natural Rug Company is a specialist retailer in bordered natural rugs and runners made from Sisal, Coir, Seagrass, Luxury Wool or Jute. Simply choose your product, choose your border, choose your size and there you have your own unique natural rug. www.thenaturalrugcompany.com Telephone: 01285 711762

DUSK LIGHTS Dusk Lights aim to make the experience of shopping for lighting both exciting and liberating.

Many of our inspirational lights come courtesy of top national and international designers creating pieces that are exciting, highly innovative and often eco-friendly. www.dusklights.co.uk

Hot Brands Cool Places spoke with Carole Matthews, bestselling author of With Love at Christmas for an exclusive interview.

We remember the Joyce family from That Loving Feeling, what prompted you to revisit them?

When I decided to write another Christmassy book about a chaotic family Christmas they jumped out as the perfect people to revisit. They’re such great characters that I was very sad to let them go at the end of That Loving Feeling and it was a joy to hook up with them again.

Juliet is a mad keen Christmas fan and she’s trying to hold all the family together who seem determined to go to pieces on her. Her son is back home from university, is unemployed and brings home a slew of unsuitable partners.

Her daughter, Chloe, has split from her partner and also comes home, pregnant with her toddler in tow. Her father is getting over a heartbreak of his own and her mother, at best eccentric, is acting more erratically every day. Juliet is so busy that she’s neglecting her husband, Rick, and when she finds mysterious texts on his mobile phone she wonders if he’s finding it all a bit too much.

With the big day fast approaching Juliet hopes that she can stop everything from spiraling out of control because all she wants is her family around her and her home to be filled With Love at Christmas!

Do you have any other plans for sequels that you can share with us?

With Love at Christmas isn’t a sequel as such. It just picks up with the same family two years down the line. It’s nice if you’ve read That Loving Feeling, but certainly not essential.

The sequel I’d love to write is another Chocolate Lovers’ book. The Chocolate Lovers’ Club and The Chocolate Lovers’ Diet are my most popular books and I’d love a pound for every time I’m asked by my readers to write a third one.

People are often intrigued about the life of an author, can you give us some insight into what its really like?

People think I’m at film premieres and cocktail parties every night, but my readers who follow me on Twitter and Facebook know that I’m more likely to be found at home in the evenings in front of The Great British Bake Off or Dallas! It’s a very solitary profession and a great deal of it just involves sitting in front of a computer on my own.

Not very glamorous at all! The best bits are going out and about to meet my readers and being able to do weird and wonderful things in the name of research. Last week it was a Zombie pub crawl. Life is never dull.

INTERVIEW

If you hadn’t been an author, what would be your dream job?

I think I should have been an estate agent or a presenter of Escape to the Country - which is my very favourite programme. I just adore surfing property websites too. An hour on Rightmove is my idea of heaven. They both give me great ideas of where to set my novels. If I can’t do either of those, can I please open a café like Chocolate Heaven in The Chocolate Lovers’ Club?

What makes a perfect Christmas for you?

I always have this fantasy of going abroad or spending the holiday in a remote cottage, but I really just like to be at home having a relaxing time and being totally lazy. We go into our neighbour’s house for bucks fizz on Christmas morning, followed by a proper lunch with all the trimmings which I always seem to cook in a vaguely inebriated way. Then it’s a chill out with plenty of champagne and cocktails and all the festive television. Gotta watch a great film on Christmas Day! This year we’ve got friends coming over and I’m sure it will be really mellow.

What can you tell us about your next novel?

My next novel is called A Cottage by the Sea and that comes out in the new year in March, I think. It’s story about a group of friends who go away for a week together in Wales to have a relaxing time and catch up with each other. But, of course, not all goes exactly to plan.

With Love at Christmas - Carole Matthews Synopsis: Can the imperfect family really have the perfect Christmas?

Juliet Joyce adores Christmas. She loves the presents, the tree, the turkey, the tinsel, everything. Already the festive spirit is upon her, which is just as well as this Christmas things are starting to get out of hand.

Her son Tom is out of work and bringing home a slew of unsuitable partners; pregnant daughter Chloe and her little boy have moved back in; Juliet’s father, Frank, is getting over a heartbreak of his own and Rita, her eccentric mother, is behaving more erratically each day. And has the chaos got too much for Juliet’s husband Rick?

With the big day fast approaching, Juliet hopes that she can stop everything spiralling out of control, because the only thing she wants is her family all around her and her home to be filled… http://www.amazon.co.uk/ Hot Brands Cool Places Verdict We love Carole Matthew’s writing here at Hot Brands Cool Places, and this is another delightful example of a perfect story for Christmas. Returning to the Joyce family featured in one of Carole’s earlier books (That Loving Feeling-we loved that one too!) we find the family has moved on, but with another collection of fresh challenges.

Carole is a sublime writer and once started you soon get lost in yet another fabulous book. A perfect Christmas read! Highly Recommended!

DOTTY BROWN Dotty Brown is a delightful collection of vintage inspired fabrics, oilcloth, home furnishings and gifts, all designed to coordinate in a shabby chic style with a twist on English country themes allowing you to create your own unique look. www.dottybrown.com

MOSAIC AND STONE Mosaic & Stone, a family company, has developed and produced over the last 20 years a beautiful and high quality range of tables completed in ceramic mosaic or stone. ‘Our customers are amazed at the choice, tables are tailor-made to specification. Working together on the design process makes each table unique and much treasured.’ Tables are suitable for internal and external use, chairs and accessories to complement. www.mosaicandstone.co.uk

Kirstie’s Vintage Home- Kirstie Allsopp Synopsis: Transform your home from shabby to chic, with the help of Kirstie Allsopp. Looking to the past for inspiration and embracing vintage style to create something unique and beautiful, Kirstie continues her love affair with everything handmade.

Re-using, restoring and upcycling, Kirstie shows how to transform vintage fabrics, furniture and other everyday things into modern day treasures using a range of crafting skills and techniques.

Accompanying a new Channel 4 series, Kirstie’s Vintage Home contains everything you need to create your own vintage look at home. www.amazon.co.uk Hot Brands Cool Places Verdict If you have been watching the new Channel 4 series, Kirstie’s Vintage Home, this is a perfect companion, as you will find more details on how to create the different effects.

These include distressing a mirror and decoupage to making a memory quilt with vintage fabric, as well as smaller projects. The book is packed with practical techniques that can be adapted to suit your own objects and furniture. There is also advice on how to find vintage items through a variety of sources, and a style guide. A perfect gift for a all lovers of vintage crafting.

Illuminate - Hannah Nunn Contemporary Craft Lighting Synopsis: The expressive potential of light captures the imagination of makers and designers from all sorts of disciplines.

Based on interviews with more than forty global makers, this long-overdue review of the state of contemporary craft lighting explores the inspirations and methods of the best artists working in the area today.

The book surveys practitioners who work with diverse materials, from textiles and ceramics to metal and glass, and is lavishly illustrated with photographs of their work.

Written by maker and designer Hannah Nunn, Illuminate is a must-read revelation for artists practicing in the field, interior designers and stylists, and curious craft makers fascinated by the endless possibilities of lighting. www.amazon.co.uk/ Hot Brands Cool Places Verdict We love Hannah Nunn’s introduction, “This is a book of stories. It captures 47 ‘light-bulb moments’, telling the tales of many designers, ceramicists, furniture designers, blacksmiths and illustrators, all of whom were going about their business when one day something happened: they discovered light.”

This delightful book is filled with beautiful examples of stunning lighting for example, Amy Cooper’s delicate porcelain forms that reflect the Cornwall rock pools of her childhood, Hannah’s own dandelion clocks, Sarah Lock’s wood-turned lamp bases, and Umbu Lumiére, whose story begins on a Brazilian beach.

There is also an additional gallery with even more inspiring examples. This inspiring book is filled with fascinating, intriguing stories as well as information that will encourage budding interior designers to start experimenting with craft lighting.

Reclaiming Style - Maria Speake & Adam Hills Synopsis: Reclaiming Style follows Adam Hills and Maria Speake, the partners behind renowned architectural salvage and design business Retrouvius, as they combine their salvage work with one of the most sought-after interior design practices in Britain.

In this, their first book, Maria and Adam give an insight into the world of Retrouvius and the interiors they create.

Charted over a series of varied and vibrant locations, ranging from a 17th-century manor house to a converted Victorian factory to a 1970s tower block, all-new photography reveals how the company’s unique style goes far beyond a mere commitment to salvage and sustainable design and offers an inspiring new vision for sophisticated, thoughtfully constructed living spaces.

Not only ecologically friendly, their interiors sophisticated, elegant and beautifully finished.

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www.amazon.co.uk Hot Brands Cool Places Verdict The first section of Reclaiming Style goes behind the salvage scenes and reveals how the process starts at the warehouse, a fabulous repository for materials reclaimed from soon-tobe demolished schools, law courts, libraries and museums.

In the second part of the book, Maria and Adam show even more intriguingly how, items like fossil limestone salvaged from Terminal 2 at Heathrow is used to clad a wall, or paper destined for a special edition of the complete works of Shakespeare which were double-printed by accident, became wall-paper.

Reclaiming Style is a fascinating book and illustrates how creatively the authors have used salvaged materials.

GAUTIER Refresh your home with Gautier’s collection of stylish and contemporary furniture and accessories. Whether it’s a light and airy feel or splashes of bold colour you are after, Gautier has something for everyone, including the kids. www.gautier.co.uk

ROBERT WELCH Exclusive British-designed cutlery, tableware, kitchenware and gift items. www.robertwelch.com

MELIN TREGWYNT Melin Tregwynt celebrates its centenary this year. Traditional textiles designed for today’s market and woven in Wales, can now be found in smart hotels and design led-stores worldwide.

In the last 5 years, sales and production have more than doubled. www.melintregwynt.co.uk

HOT BRANDS COOL PLACES www.hotbrandscoolplaces.com