We have picked 6 of our favourite products spotted at the London Stationery Show. These inspiring exhibitors showcased innovative and thought-provoking designs that caught our eye in terms of trend direction for 2019. Continue reading “Top 6 Stationery Products spotted at the London Stationery Show 2018”
Category: Designer Showcases, Interviews & Inspiration
COLOUR INSPIRATION by guest blogger Katie Turton
We’re delighted to be able to share Katie Turton’s most recent colour and material experiments with you. Katie’s work will be particularly fascinating and inspiring if you work in any capacity with colour for Interiors or Fashion; you are in the paint industry; you are a pastry chef or chocolatier; you have a passion for make-up. So get ready for a visual treat that is sure to motivate you to be more experimental with materials, textures, product styling, photography and colour.
Continue reading “COLOUR INSPIRATION by guest blogger Katie Turton”
Creative Review; The next generation of Graduate Designers…
I recently visited the University of Huddersfield’s 2017 Graduate Show for the Textile Practice Design Course. The standard yet again was extremely high as the very talented new designers display fresh and innovative design ideas. It was interesting to see more Millennials expressing their political views and opinions through design; interpreting important topics that dominate headlines in todays society.
Continue reading “Creative Review; The next generation of Graduate Designers…”
Exhibition Review: Top Drawer 2017
Last week we headed to Olympia, London for Top Drawer 2017, one of the first major UK trade shows of the year, presented are products for the Spring/Summer season. The show focuses on Home, Gift, Fashion and Craft by a range of both emerging designers and established brands from the UK and internationally.
Here are some of the pieces that caught our eye:
Firstly the ceramics by Sue Pryke, she creates stunning home ware ceramic collections. Her background firmly rooted in crafts, is clearly evident to see in her practice as each piece is individual manufactured by hand. The navy and charcoal sit well with the pastel hues of faded pinks, lemon and duck egg blue, creating an elegant and contemporary palette perfect for spring/summer.
Grey and beige remain a prominent combination for display styling as seen in the stand by Sue Pryke and also Blomus. The German retailer focuses on unique, elegant and minimalist design. The collection presented at Top Drawer featured a bathroom collection of a faded low-contrast palette offset with neutrals and anthracite, ideal for creating a muted and calming tone.
In contrast, the vibrant collection by Jansen+co brings a bold and fresh approach to kitchenware. The stand out colours of the cooking and dining products compliment with the functional natural terracotta.
Pantone’s Colour of the Year 2017 ‘Greenery’ was also represented at the show; it was hard to miss. A symbol for new beginnings, health, growth and positivity it will be interesting to see how designers and retailers adopt this colour particularly within products for interiors. We will have to keep an eye out for the Autumn/Winter edition of Top Drawer taking place 10—12 September 2017 as well as other events taking place this year.
Exhibitions are changing, visitors give more time and attention to those companies that have stands that provide experiences, not simply information, products & sales people. Just as they do in today’s retail environment. If you’d like to have a stand/booth that attracts, holds and excites more visitors than ever before; get in touch with Phil ….. Don’t leave it too long, exhibitions are too expensive and improving conversion rates is the key to a better return on your investment.
Surface Texture & Material Design Trends 2017
Designers, graduates and well established brands are continuing to explore innovative ways of manipulating and experimenting with materials to create unique textures and effects for the interiors market.
Here are a few that we’d like to share with you showcased by Material Lab at the Surface & Materials Show in Birmingham. These specific textures and materials relate perfectly to our 2017 Surface Trends…
This surface design company combines traditional quality craftsmanship with new technologies supporting & encouraging customer individuality for the commercial and residential sectors. They challenge whether a wall has to be flat and also, whether a wall has to permanently stay the same? This bespoke structured surface offers limitless possibilities of pattern, colour and texture. It’s designed to compliment any interior style.
Our 2017 Trend – In Motion – explores the power of the virtual world being integrated into our everyday life; consider high shine and glossy fluidity that creates dynamic light effects and surfaces with movement. Spirograph, optical grids and dark iridescence are key aesthetics here.
A luxury, surface brand crafting beautiful textures and contemporary architectural design features for interior spaces. Their unique collection of textured finishes and sculptured surfaces have been installed in retail stores such as Christian Louboutin and Alexander Mcqueen. We’ve also showcased their samples many times on our Trend Hubs around the world! Colors and finishes across the whole collection can be tailored to add stunning, bespoke elements to your design scheme.
2017 will see a favor towards refined luxurious rawness, combining gritty and distressed textures with blush silvered metallics. Desert inspired textures appear chalky and matte; parched linens, dried reptile skins and rustic weaves. Gradual colour shifts and tonal hombre’s in indigo tones and sunset shades compliment refined metallics and naturally raw surfaces.
Grace Gallagher, a British designer, produces surfaces and objects for interiors, that demonstrate a preoccupation with materials and process. There is a mixture of traditional and contemporary techniques, with an honesty to the rawness and irregularity of the chosen material. The monochrome pattern was inspired by the Barbican building in London where each panel is hand crafted using a process of revealing layers.
The appreciation of everyday materials will be a key attribute of design in 2017, consumers will begin to see beauty in ‘the ordinary’ and value ‘time earnt’, slowly acquired skills. People will embrace traditional techniques with a modern twist to create surfaces that are unpretentious but precise with a hand crafted aesthetic. Think about using saw cut, end-grains and chiseled wood effects for retail outlet design, exhibition booths, kitchens, flooring and workplace furniture. Denim, leather and cork create mixed material surfaces that will look stunning and be desirable in all interior spaces including hotel lounges and restaurants.
We are currently carefully selecting the most innovative and revolutionary surface materials for our 2017 International Trend Hubs. Subscribe to our monthly newsletter now to stay informed of our next events, or follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for daily updates from the team. Email Phil for more information about our ‘show reports’
All things Stationery…
5 Stationery Brands to Love Right Now
As a passionate stationery enthusiast I love nothing more than scouting trade shows and events for new, up and coming designers and scoping out the fresh product launches from some of my favourite brands. Although technology sometimes takes over our lives, it is clear the love for all things stationery has not subsided as consumers continue to seek fashion-led paper products that we see constantly being blogged or instagrammed.
Here are 5 stationery brands and designers to watch out for…
This beautiful collection of greeting cards combines the stunning photo art created by Helena Christensen with an environmentally friendly philosophy. The cards are created with 100% recycled paper, printed using only vegetable ink and packaged in 100% bio-degradable plastic wrapping. A great combination of Danish design, sustainability and heartfelt messages. The unusual but intriguing mix of rusticity with pretty florals is perfect for this coming season!
Studio Sweet and Sour is a Dutch design studio who create wonderful stationery and gifts that are out of the ordinary. Their aim is to make things fun and to put a smile on your face (it definitely worked for me). They have a big love for detail and pay as much attention to the inside as they do the outside including interesting metallic foiling and neon edging. With contemporary colour combinations and exciting surface finishes; this is a product collection your don’t want to miss!
I love this award winning brand… Men’s society is your one stop shop for stylish and quality gifts designed specifically for men. They source unusual, quirky and classic items that will never date but rather improve with age and use. Many of their products are handmade using only the finest tools; this connects perfectly with our Analogue Workshop Trend for 2017. I will no longer struggle to buy presents for the men in my family!
Launched in 2011, this brand aims to bring quirky illustrated products to the mass market. This modern collective is made up of many unique illustrators who create anything from homeware to stationery and everything in-between. I particularly loved the dark floral notebooks designed by Susan Castillo, it fits perfect with our Heathland Trend for this coming winter.
Katie Leamon is a luxury card and stationery brand based in London, their family run production studio is based in the English Countryside where they design, create and deliver beautiful, hand finished collections of original paper products. The collection can be found at Selfridges, Anthropologie and Harrods.
Top 5 Tips for Stationery Product Photography for your social media
- Lighting – Get the light right and you’re nearly there, it doesn’t need to be sunny you can set your scene near a window and create softness with a curtain or a sheet.
- Set the Scene – To shoot lifestyle, shoot detail, shoot wide – make sure you shoot a mix of ways to capture the scene adding some lifestyle elements that compliement your asethetic.
- Details – It’s all in the detail, look at the scene you’ve set – does it work? If not tweak.
- Edit – Use free editing software to edit pictures.
- Be Consistent – Get yourself a trademark style.
(Tips curtesy of Paperfest London as seen at Top Drawer)
For further stationery inspiration see our 2017 Stationery Trend Report; includes great ideas and inspiration for stationery designers and manufacturers, whilst also being superb stock purchase & merchandising guidance for retailers. Don’t forget to follow our ‘All Things Stationery‘ Pinterest board for the latest trend direction.