We absolutely love New Designers. It has a wonderful buzz of excitement that so many of the other design shows throughout the year fail to capture. 3,500 new graduates – itching to get into the world and showcase their passions and skills is truly a sight to behold.
Plus, this year we were delighted to assist the fabulous Product Designers from Sussex University with the design of their stand, which included custom tinted 100% recycled paint from the brilliant Newlife Paints, recycled rubber flooring and a lot of balls.
There were so many beautiful things at New Designers 2012 that we are very hard pushed to fit them all into one blog, so we will be spreading them over the next few days over a few themes.

Today, we are looking at a few pieces which are products for interiors:
This beautiful wardrobe was pretty girly, but we really loved the integration of display as well as storage as an concept for small bedrooms.
The glass shelves, mirrors and metallic elements allowed light to be moved around, and the bird covered internal surface provided a nice piece of textural interest.
Lovely piece from Nottingham Trent University.

These fantastic bobble hat lights by Elizabeth Morgan really stood out with their colour and character – we think they would make wonderful additions to commercial interiors, or for eclectic interiors.

This piece of furniture from Gieun Yoon was beautiful – very simple framework body with a functional shape with a large seating pad sized for two.
The soft green upholstery was also a great choice to offset the dark grey (which, seemed to be the colour of the show, as it was everywhere, including on our Sussex Uni stand)

These little tables by Chris Corkey reminded us of the traditional penguin donkey, but in a more modern, angular and pared down design.
We liked them a lot – especially as they were left in pale wood to allow the colours of the books sing out.

This lovely timber stool reminded us of a button, with the four legs showing through the seat section, but we liked the second circle below, which is a perfect perch for a few books or CDs.
A really lovely and simple design from Natalie Hough.

There were quite a few graduates experimenting with new materials created from waste materials – these lamps were created using artichoke fibre reinforced plastic, which created a speckled surface to diffuse the light.
An interesting concept, and we will be interested to see where designer Spyros Kizis takes it next.
Another designer experimenting with unusual or possible waste materials was Harris Chapman, who used construction grade materials to create a lovely shelving unit.
The OSB board, which is commonly used during building projects had been ‘blackened’ in areas to highlight the fibres, which made the piece actually very interesting. The rounded, refined corners also ensured the piece looked like furniture rather than a diy project.
We liked it a great deal.

Lastly, we have to mention the wonderful Family Tree table from Dean Newman at Sussex University, which challenges the idea of our current throw away culture with furniture and begins to re-imagine the heirloom and antique of the future.
Beautifully conceived and beautifully made. With a simple exterior appearance, the top slides open to reveal a series of timber blocks created from offcuts which can be removed and engraved with special dates or messages.The table then becomes the keeper of these messages for future generations to enjoy and add to as a true living family tree.
All in all – a great show. We’ll post a few more images over the next few days with our picks of the rest of the New Designers 2012 show.
(images by claire potter design)