The Chalk Room

Design studio JamesPlumb has followed up their refit of East London based store Hostem's shop floor with a new showroom in the basement of the same building.

A dimly lit room, decorated with some unique furniture, The Chalk Room is currently dedicated to Hostem's bespoke service, made-to-measure clothing and accessories, but shoppers can also order furniture from JamesPlumb including a chandelier made from clusters of antique lampshades and a chest of drawers built from stacks of suitcases.

To create the downstairs room the studio opened up the space, painted it dark and dimmed the lighting, creating a calmness by making the corners and edges of the walls disappear.

Some of the unique furniture they have provided for the space includes a Chesterfield sofa that has a table coming out of the centre and a wardrobe that appears to be falling over. 

Find out more about their work with Hostem at dezeen.

Photographs by Thomas Giddings.

Inside World of Interiors Festival Winners

Dezeen Magazine have been following the progress of the Inside 'world of interiors' Festival in Barcelona this week, which runs from 2nd to 4th November, and have been announcing the winners on their blog. Designers and Exhibitions from the United Kingdom were shortlisted in five of the nine categories and managed to scoop two awards in the Display category and Retail category.

The Ceramics Study Galleries at the Victoria & Albert museum in London by OPERA Amsterdam won the Display category at the inaugural awards in Barcelona as judges said the project exhibited “one strong idea and executed it really well – from material, function and lighting.”

The ‘Ceramic Galleries’ at the Victoria & Albert Museum were designed as a visible storage showcase as part of the reinstallation of the ceramic galleries phase II. The visible study collection contains 26,000 objects that are displayed with the idea that they are – on demand – available to curators, specialists and the general public.

Hostem by JamesPlumb was announced as the winner of the Retail category yesterday in Barcelona. The boutique in east London features an antique church pew, hessian panels and linen curtains plus reclaimed lighting and rails. The judges “love the handcrafted nature of the project and “great attention to detail throughout.” The judges also admired the way “they felt out their designs while constructing” so that “brand, space and clothes feel unified.”

To see the full list of winners and to read interviews with the designers visit Dezeen Magazine online.