KCWC Artisans Tour

In the Leather Market area of East London, a craftsman extraordinaire from Peter Layton Studios created a large fluted vase. He used soaked yellow pages to shape the glass as he spun it. Because it was Christmas, Peter Layton himself poured us mulled wine while offering mince pies and discounts.

Next we visited Zandra Rhodes CBE RDI in her studio. We were all enthralled with her sketches used to create her fashion designs, her pink hair, and her powerful energy (she is 68 years old).

Our last visit was to the silver/goldsmith designer (winner of two prestigious de Beers awards) Jocelyn Burton in Holborn. I loved everything! Her design sketches are works of art themselves. She uses a variety of craftsman with different skills to complete each piece. My favorite was the (legal because it was antique) ivory-handle place settings. A wealthy Russian commissioned the first set - 36 place settings - at ~4500 GBP per place setting. Jocelyn was allowed to keep the "dies" and has been able to create and sell cutlery with different materials for the handles. We drank prosecco and nibbled chocolate covered ginger cookies while oohing and aahing over the absolute beauty of her creations.