Cool Hunting

Comfort Station at London Fashion Week
Outstanding talent Amy Anderson has created another gorgeous collection for her jewelry label Comfort Station. Anderson consistently creates beautiful jewelry that's full of character, intricate detailing, interesting materials and engaging imagery. This season we loved the abstract art deco ceramic pieces, especially the Grey Geo Necklace (pictured above right).

Louise Hindsgavl at 100% design
You had to be on the ball to spot Louise Hindsgavl's porcelain sculptures at the expansive 100% Design show but once viewed they are difficult to tear away from. These strangely beautiful and somewhat disturbing figurines were exhibited on the Danish Crafts Stand in 100% Futures. Bizarrely entitled "Everyday Scenarios," these creatures evoke such mysterious and fantastical images in the mind that they cannot be forgotten.

Ikuko Iwamoto at Tent London
Iwamoto's Spiky Beakers are intriguing and off putting at the same time. So beautiful but clearly quite dangerous, like a sea urchin that you know you shouldn't pick up. We enjoyed this Japanese designer's take on texture which ranges from stimulating to potentially injurious. After graduating from the RCA in 2006, Iwamoto has remained in London where she has her own ceramics studio.

Jaime Hayon for Lladró at Vessel
It's not just the girls playing with porcelain, Spanish design superstar Jaime Hayon has also been creating in the kiln. As artistic director for Spanish ceramics company Lladró he has been busy making his mark on the brand. Hayon is exhibiting his latest work for Lladró at the Vessel Gallery in Notting Hill. Amongst all the pieces in "The Fantasy Collection" we were particularly struck by this seated figure modeling a distinctively Hayon-style head piece and (unmistakably" his shoes for Camper. Jaime are you in there?

Tamsin Van Essen at Designers Block
Exhibiting at the KithKin stand in the Designer's Block exhibition was Prague based ceramic artist Tamsin Van Essen. Her "Collection of Curious Objects" certainly aroused our curiosity and the "Quarks" (pictured above) were possibly the most tactile thing we'd seen in the whole festival. They induced such a strong desire to pick them up that Van Essen had to glue them to the table surface. She tells us that they were inspired by theoretical physics, playing "with the notion that today's cutting-edge scientific theories may one day be seen as quaint and curious museum pieces: theoretical antiques or abstract junk."