Weaving a Spell
“Weaving is an underutilised medium,” says James Gomez, the founder of new Design Centre East showroom Yarn Collective. The four-year-old company chose Design Centre, Chelsea Harbour for its first bricks-and-mortar space, a place to show a stable of exclusive brands where everything has a strong emphasis on Gomez’s passion, weaving.
Visit to see techniques that go beyond the ordinary. Dutch company Fault Lines makes textile wall art, and has collaborated with London furniture brand Sedilia on a bench (pictured above); while San-Francisco-based Jiun Ho’s nature-inspired textiles are intricate and often made from mixed materials such as velvet, chenille and satin.
US brand Lance Wovens’ work with leather is a highlight: used to upholster headboards, furniture and handrails, or made into rugs, the plain and patterned products are all hand-woven, which shows in their slightly uneven finish. “If it’s handmade, then I want it to look handmade,” says Gomez.
Yarn Collective also works with designers on new collections: “I like collaborating, I think it’s important – there are so many UK makers who are amazing,” says Gomez. Furniture designer David Girelli’s debut collection of five pieces, upholstered in fabrics and leathers from Yarn Collective’s portfolio, is its first collaboration.
Gomez has a history of working for Design Centre, Chelsea Harbour brands, including Rubelli and Turnell & Gigon, so there was a natural gravitation here for its first showroom. “It’s the best place to be for what we do,” he says. “It makes sense to be where everyone is.”
