Forked lighting, a rug inspired by 19th century Japanese textiles and female friendly cushions – these are the products that caught my eye this week
Daughters of Gaea is a new London based textile studio founded by Felicity Marshall. The studio works with female-led artisan groups from across the globe, championing a global collective of fair trade artisans that use only natural, sustainable materials and low-impact dyes. The collection includes hand blocked silk cushions and quilts.
Felicity says, “Daughters of Gaea was founded in celebration of my love for high-quality interior design. It became my mission to find objects infused with positive energy to share with those who care about the history of the pieces they’re buying.
This is when I started to seek out a way to work ethically with female led artisan groups across the world. It unravelled into a discovery of beautiful cultural traditions juxtaposed with the difficulties these hand workers, who are mostly women, face today. it became clear to me that the only way out of poverty for these women is through empowered employment. So, I chose to build Daughters of Gaea with community and fair employment at its heart, celebrating cultural traditions by preserving generations-old handcraft techniques.”
Forked is the latest lighting collection from Buster & Punch. Modular in format, Forked lighting features a forked base and knurl detailing with a hand-spun solid metal shade or handblown globe in smoked or opal glass.
The range includes both ceiling and pendant lights, in two size options, available in steel, burnt steel, brass or gunmetal. Each variation comes with a dimmable Buster & Punch LED bulb.
Quilt is a new, hand-tufted rug from Kasthall. The design was influenced by 19th century Japanese Boro textiles that were mended or patched together. The rug is hand tufted in wool and linen, the surface is both cut and looped to different heights that meet in patches of colour.
Kasthall’s designer Ellinor Eliasson says, “The beauty of Boro textiles is how they can extend the lifetime and bring new life to things. Using what we already have, the originals can live on for several generations – just as we believe they should.”