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The Makers is a hot-list collection by The Aficionados for absolute style lovers and those that share our artisanal passion for handmade and crafted creativity. This is our little designers’ hub of independent excitement listing our friends discovered on our travels. From the hand-made to the luxury of bespoke, from rare creations to the everyday items made with intricacy, browse through this lifestyle community that is brimming with originality, thoughtful design and mama-cool creatives.
A painter, a restorer, a drummer and a silk mill: Como's Draga & Aurel give heritage furniture a second skin of resin, colour and light.
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From a bluebell wood in Perthshire to a smoothly sculpted piece of furniture for a special spot, Angus Ross is a wood crafter and expressive designer of extraordinary proportions.
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De La Espada leads a new era of collectible design and cultural craft. Explore their collaborations with Sam Baron, Anthony Guerrée and more, rooted in Portuguese savoir faire.
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Acting, theatre and fashion shaped the cult British designer Lee Broom, whose luminous creations blend heritage, artistry and storytelling into sculptural objects of light, drama and refined material beauty.
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From a featherlight aluminium chair to a forest retreat carved from calm, Harry Thaler is the South Tyrolean designer crafting quiet revolutions in sustainable design, interiors and Alpine architecture.
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A Barcelona artist. Master weavers in India. A process the rug world has never seen before. Armadillo's Gaia collection exists somewhere between craft and fine art.
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With a timeless design that transcends trends, Horgenglarus chairs, made in Switzerland, have achieved cult status with their unique craftsmanship in bending large pieces of wood.
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Cult furniture brand Wittmann has accumulated a distinctive mark over four generations, working with Austrian and international designers and architects, from Josef Hoffmann and Friedrich Kiesler to Matteo Thun and Edward B.Tuttle.
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Trading in Kyiv, Ukraine since 2014, by husband-and-wife team Dan Vakhrameyev and Kateryna Vakhrameyeva, the co-founders of +kouple bring sleek lighting, innovative solutions and a Scandi-inspired design element to interiors.
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Forget folklore. This is Welsh design unplugged — raw, sharp, hand-cut and fire-warmed. The Carn Collection carves craft into culture and tradition into tomorrow.
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We all love the touch, feel and look of linen which can add drama to any interior. Over in Mühlviertel in upper Austria, is one of Europe's oldest textile producers, an area that has cultivated flax for centuries.
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Producing both slalom, race carvers and all-mountain skis, Timbaer skis come in a range of materials, but each benefit from a bamboo core - giving their skis unique flexibility yet sturdiness.
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Modular, practical and simplistic elegance captures the design essence of Plusminus lighting system by VIBIA that redefines comfort illumination with the flexibility of gallery spots.
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Carved from stillness and clarity, Agape designs are sculptural gestures in stone and form; poetic presences that transform intimate hotel spaces into quiet, architectural rituals of retreat.
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Maverick Creative Director Simone Giottoli was the genius behind the idea to reinvigorate the market for handmade Etruscan tiles. Over twenty years ago, Giottoli began extensive research in ancient kilns, centuries-old productions and the restoration of an old stone kiln, which would be the starting point for the authentic recreation of tile-making.
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Ribboned with artistry and created to last, Made In Situ’s design collections tap into centuries-old craft, designed for the future.
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The oldest ceramic company in the Netherlands, Royal Makkum Tichelaar’s roots go back to 1572 - today they work alongside architects, designers and artists to continue their legacy.
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Founded in 1878 – Blaudruck Wagner is one of the original crafted textile printers in Upper Austria's Mühlviertel, recognised for their iconic blue dyes onto linen and a UNESCO Cultural Heritage.
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Proudly known as the oldest handcrafted hat maker in Italy, Giuseppe Borsalino created the brand in 1888, in the northern Italian town of Alessandria.
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Discarded fishing nets, creative innovations and robotic 3D printing recycle marine waste off the coast of Greece into designer homewares taking plastic marine waste and turning it into statement furniture.
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Åre Skidfabrik, Scandinavia’s only alpine ski factory, crafts award-winning skis and snowboards powered by 100% renewable energy; Swedish engineering, sustainability and slope-born passion shaped since 1981 in Åre’s snowy heart.
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Billed as ‘clean’ skis, Rōnin take pride in their environmentally friendly production with a method honed over time. What we love is that Rōnin use bio-friendly resins, natural flax fibre grown in France and poplar, beech and bamboo wood that is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified.
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Made with precision, intelligence and a thoughtful consciousness, Simon Jacomet is on a mission to refine every detail of the ski-making process, with as little waste as possible.
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Swiss luxury ski brand ZAI make skis of innovative design, craftsmanship and excellent performance with science underpinning ski design in this high-octane sport.
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A small Scottish company, Lonely Mountain Skis (LMS) produce honest, well-crafted hardwood-veneered skis, beautiful enough to hang on the wall.
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Striving for perfection in the field of tobogganing and skiing, Mach ski are wood, aircraft aluminium, fibreglass and a graphite racing base to create a smooth, fast speed.
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A city of effortless cool & pioneering Scandi design Copenhagen has long been at the heart of the world’s ceramics stage, from practical to the performative.
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Made in their Athens atelier, Callista's bags are iconic, timeless, and one of a kind, each skilfully handmade using age-old crafts and techniques to incorporate Greek heritage.
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One of Ireland’s last handloom weavers, Eddie Doherty. At the age of 16, he learned to weave by hand, and he’s been doing so ever since for the next 40 years – with two long stints at large Irish fabric companies in between.
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Seventy years in, Egetemeier still doesn't decorate or furnish. It cultivates. A new Journal conversation with owners Petra and Stefan on Slow Design, enduring interiors.
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Can you capture the flavours of life in a spirit? Empirical is a Copenhagen based experimental distillery by Lars Williams and Mark Emil Hermansen, creating unusual flavours that capture life through taste.
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Some design principles are so uncomplicated and understated that they can be found in different iterations, in different corners of the world. The value placed on craftsmanship is one of these; so is the use of natural materials that not only can last a lifetime, but also get more handsome with each passing year.
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Femme Maison is a Vienna based brand founded in 2009 by Franziska Fürpass (*1983, Austria) and George Bezhanishvili (*1984, Georgia). George eventually dropped out, but Franziska pushed through by expanding and reinventing her label whilst studying at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna.
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Patrizia Fabri is where film, fashion, and artistry collide. From couture to the avant-garde, her handcrafted hats blend old-world charm with modern flair, topping the heads of icons, designers, and rule-breakers.
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One of the best boutiques in Vienna - Glein Clothing is an affordable luxury fashion label made in Vienna founded by Sebastian Leitinger - famed for cool organic T shirts and stylish shoes.
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A brand this quirky yet with such cohesion, it makes sense that it was created by two brothers, Jan and Patrick Olyslager, who hail from Antwerp.
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Inis Meáin Knitting Company is an international beacon of knitted design & simple luxe - perched on the ruggedly beautiful Aran Islands as a warm fashion must.
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While your summer beach vacation is probably still a few months away, there’s no harm in fantasizing about days spent sipping cocktails and dancing the night away…
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Swedish womenswear brand House of Dagmar Stockholm is the brainchild of three sisters founded in 2005. Famed for its pristine tailoring with a healthy dose of trend awareness it is testament to the perfect personality alignment of Kristina Tjäder, Sofia Wallenstam and Karin Söderlind.
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On Ireland's Wild Atlantic coast, The Tweed Project reworks indigenous Irish cloth into bombers, kaftans and cloud collars: slow fashion with craic, colour and rebellion.
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Founded by three self-confessed coffee addicts, Gringo Nordic are serious about its sourcing, production and roasting. What could be better on a visit to Gothenburg to indulge in the nation’s pastime of fika, which involves carving time everyday for ‘coffee and cake’.
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How Zurich's ultra luxe-cool stationers Hieronymus epitomise the very Swiss sense of detail + precision.
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Established in 1875 with four generations of Italian mastery. Handwoven in Tuscany, worn worldwide, these head-turning creations blend heritage, craftsmanship, and fashion-forward style with a Milan-meets-Florence edge.
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Piled high to the rafters, you’re unlikely to leave Giorgio’s without chic new headwear, such is the range and high quality of the offerings from this family-run shop in Athens.
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The story starts in 1921 with a boy from Belfast who saw an advert for a tailoring apprentice position. Cycling over 100 miles to Donegal, with a dream in his pocket.
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In the hat industry since 1919, this Swiss business knocks out handmade, crafted, hats of every sort & kind from their hat making workshop 'Hutwerkstatt'.
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Founder Sam Whitten is on a mission to displace plastic frames with a high design, vegan and 100% natural, sustainable alternative - all hand made in Edinburgh, Scotland.
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Known as the 'Queen of print' - Vogue, Mary Katrantzou continually pushes the boundaries of textiles, visual drama and innovation, a pioneer of digital art crossed into fashion.
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Coats and jackets to last a lifetime, Marfa Stance are bespokely created to every taste including collars, hoods and reversible liners for the ultimate in function meets individuality.
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Fashion designer Magda Butrym, an alumnus of Warsaw’s International School of Costumography and Clothing Design, her label launched in Poland back in 2014 is causing a fashion wave.
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Meet Maria Svensson and Esmeralda Vidfar, two wool-loving ladies from Gothenburg on the Swedish west coast. Based in an art-collective studio space with ten other designers and artists, they create the knitwear that they had always dreamed of wearing.
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Moessmer's luxury wool & cashmere fashion legacy extends far beyond the design boundaries of South Tyrol's Brunico, but it is still a good place to start.
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Hat maker to the stars, family milliner business Mühlbauer’s designs began over a hundred years ago and now fly from Vienna to top some of the most famous heads in the world.
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For the aficionados of easy, slow wear, Muchache is an ethical brand of soul and purpose, designed for those unfussed with gender rules, 'wear what pleases you'.
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Muck’n’Muffins: a sisterly venture of handmade goods in Dunfanaghy Ireland which champion the crafts from ceramics, furniture, toys, vintage finds and serve great coffee.
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Mariamélia implores us to only fill our homes with objects that have heart and soul, a feel-good minimalism that is stylish and sustainable.
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Exceptional pieces of precision engineering – Berlin based Mykita sunglasses fuse the handcrafted with high technology to produce eyewear that redefines the aesthetic of luxury.
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Let your best friend have the good stuff with Maxbone’s chic coats, Scandi-hued dog beds and gold-plated collars, whose designs fit right into your lifestyle.
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Life partners Dax Roll and Joyce Urbanus are at the helm of the interior design studio Nicemakers based in Amsterdam, creators of design hotels and beautifully conceived homes.
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McNutt of Donegal weave tweed and Irish wool on handlooms and has evolved over the years to produce Irish linen, fabric and accessories including wool blankets, throws and scarfs as found at Breac.House.
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Nissos Beer, brewed on the wild beautiful Cyclades Greek island of Tinos, also known as the holy island, is a crafted natural, chemical-free beer, made with passion by Maya Tsoclis and Alexandros Kouris.
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Exceptional, natural goodness sourced in Greece is what Neolea is all about following the mantra: 'love more, live better and get more taste out of life'.
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Unable to find a hat to hide his growing-out hairdo, Nuriel decided to make his own felt creation. He christened the look as ‘vagabond’ and within six months Nomade Moderne was born.
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Burgenland's Gut Oggau winery is Austria's famed and finest biodynamic vineyard, famous also for its association with Austria foodie institution, Taubenkobel.
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'Oh Yeah,' from cult band 'Yello' to producing ethical, fair-trade chocolate, Oro de Cacao is real chocolate using a manufacturing process that carefully extracts the actual flavour of the bean.
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Topping the heads of stylish men and women since 1838, Basque country shop Casa Ponsol in San Sebastian is the oldest hat shop in Spain.
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Homeland culture is at the heart of this South Tyrolean fashion label, who creatively rethink statement pieces of traditional alpine garments - like the iconic 'Blue Apron'.
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First opened 90-years ago by Dominique Rondini as the first sandal cobbler in Saint-Tropez - back when the likes of the fashion world’s Coco Chanel were gracing France’s favoured Pampelonne beach.
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Riedel started as a family trading luxury glassware in northwest Bohemia, then a world center in the trade of crystal glass, Johann Christoph Riedel traveled around until 1723, when he was tragically murdered. His sons and grandsons took continued the business, married into wealthy glass families and ultimately settled in Austria.
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Familiar done differently. Thus the slogan of Sagan Vienna goes, an emerging accessories brand based in the Austrian capital. The two founders; Tanja Bradaric and Taro Ohmae, of Croatian and Japanese heritage, respectively, attended the University of Applied Arts in Vienna, where they studied fashion under the Belgian designer talents Raf Simons and Veronique Branquinho.
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Imagine if you could distil the language of Greek coastline living filled with eternal summer and put it into creative textile design. Well, that's just what the Greek siblings Grigoris and Constantinos Samaras did – the founders of cult brand: SEA YOU SOON.
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A small, homegrown family company with high ethical standards produces a range of candles and diffusers which paint a picture of the largest Hebridean island.
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What do you do if you inherit six acres of fig orchards? If you’re Antonio Longo, you start Santomiele, a luxury confectionery business that uses the sun-dried figs in delicious handmade chocolates, stuffed figs, cakes and syrups.
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For intuitive international fashion designer Sina Thomaseth, founder of Thomaseth Teamfashion, it is always at her roots where she finds the best inspo.
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A true chameleon stylist, Stephanie draws from a broad design heritage with no single reference defining her work. The result feels alive and assured; clever, quietly disruptive and, at times, lifted by confident flashes of sorbet colour.
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Small batch distillery produces this artisanal Gin - infused by wild mountain herbs from Austria's Vorarlberg region, make this the hallmark of taste.
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Swiss gin gets cheeky. Deux Frères craft artisanal spirits with a rebellious streak, turning botanicals into colour-shifting alchemy and farm-born ideas into cult favourites. From Zurich, with serious flavour flair.
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Cue Zeus+Dione, a Greek resortwear brand that celebrates Hellenic culture and lifestyle. The brand, named after the ancient Greek goddess of love’s parents, looks toward the age-old knowledge of artisans all over Greece, who custom-make, weave, dye, embroider and cut the Zeus+Dione textiles.
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Some design principles are so uncomplicated and understated that they can be found in different iterations, in different corners of the world. The value placed on craftsmanship is one of these; so is the use of natural materials that not only can last a lifetime, but also get more handsome with each passing year.
read more
Penhaligon's is a British perfume house founded in London in 1870 by Cornish barber William Henry Penhaligon, now owned by Puig and known for its heritage perfumery, elaborate storytelling and ribbon-tied, collectable bottles.
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The country of Wales is a long-time respected and highly regarded producer of crafted textiles and weaving, and one of the most sought-after British manufacturers, produced in a whitewashed mill that’s been in continuous use since 1841.
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Unashamedly citing themselves as ‘crafters of the world’s finest umbrellas’, founders Moses Manley and Edward Gucewicz merged a centuries-old tradition with a modern, design-focus style.
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Plainly, the Munich hand and body care brand by Artsem Kruk: up to 98% natural, iF Design Award packaging by Winkreative, now in body care and hotel amenities.
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Perfumer H is proud to introduce its new flagship on Clifford Street, Mayfair. In keeping with the street’s 18th-century heritage, the store has been designed to evoke Georgian London.
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Claus Porto’s iconic products run the scented gauntlet from soap to candles, fragrances to hand cream, shampoo bars to shave oil - wrapped in its idiosyncratic printed paper.
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A 300-acre Tuscan wilderness of herbs, fauna and thermal soil. A woman who believed nature, properly understood, could outperform anything a laboratory could invent alone. This is Seed to Skin.
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Transform your wellness routine with mindful luxury crafted from nature. Commune's creations blend sustainability and elegance, elevating everyday rituals into extraordinary moments.
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Natural beauty guru Yael Alkalay founded Red Flower in NYC in 1999, an environmentally and socially responsible beauty product, infused with aromatherapy and botanicals.
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Skincare with soul. Born in Austria’s vineyards, Vinoble merges nature with science – luxury without compromise, sustainability without limits. Beauty that works, backed by innovation and ethical craft.
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Soap gets sexy in Zurich. Soeder’s factory is all sunshine, terracotta and stainless steel, where natural ingredients and serious design go hand in hand. Skin-loving, soul-filling, refill-ready.
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This secret emporium is the place to come to discover Mallorca, bottled. An experience in itself, it’s here that you can find the best kind of memento – one that takes you right back to the island.
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Forged in Switzerland, the Feuerring is a sculptural fire grill defined by precision engineering, regional craft and reduced form, ageing with quiet dignity in outdoor spaces.
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Topping the heads of stylish men and women since 1838, Basque country shop Casa Ponsol in San Sebastian is the oldest hat shop in Spain.
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Working from Malasaña, Javier Sánchez Medina creates contemporary objects from natural fibres, guided by esparto grass, inherited craft knowledge and a deep respect for material, process and time.
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Mariamélia implores us to only fill our homes with objects that have heart and soul, a feel-good minimalism that is stylish and sustainable.
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KUKAS shattered tradition with jewellery that’s sculpture, architecture and rebellion. Her visionary legacy pulses on—raw, bold, timeless. Geometry that wears its attitude loud.
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Artisanal textiles by Fabricaal keep the centuries-old traditions of Alentejo alive by crafting rugs, blankets, bags and homeware made from merino wool - a sustainable, colourful and beautiful company.
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Roberta Licini transforms the humble blanket into a canvas of memory, warmth and graphic rhythm — where colour, texture and time-worn craft converge in quietly radical, deeply tactile design.
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Mediterranean landscaping by Italy's top garden designers Fabiano Crociani, found throughout Tuscany and Umbria, including hotel Vocabolo Moscatelli.
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Patrizia Fabri is where film, fashion, and artistry collide. From couture to the avant-garde, her handcrafted hats blend old-world charm with modern flair, topping the heads of icons, designers, and rule-breakers.
read more
McNutt of Donegal weave tweed and Irish wool on handlooms and has evolved over the years to produce Irish linen, fabric and accessories including wool blankets, throws and scarfs as found at Breac.House.
read more
Born on the Greek island of Crete, Psyllaki worked in architecture and interior design (with a love of graphic design) for a decade before finding her artful vocation and opening Studio Paradissi in 2019.
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Founded in 1990, Zeitraum is a sustainable solid wood manufacturer from Bavaria, Germany, that marries ecology, design and a passion for its Alpine roots and traditions.
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Seashells, old Christmas trees, and bio-textiles – Bonnie Hvillum pioneers biodegradable design, collaborating from Big Beauty Store Hackney to ÅBEN Brewery, Noma, Calvin Klein, Moskal, and Rita Trindade of Through Objects.
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Get the insider news and lowdown on what we've been up to, where we've been, and who we've met along the way. Be the first to discover new places and get the scoop on our favourites.