Coming soon: London Craft Week

Opening this Wednesday, London Craft Week is set to turn the Capital into a five-day festival of making. From behind-the-scenes demonstrations and exhibitions from top international craftspeople to talks and workshops, there’s plenty of opportunities to fire up your inspiration and get your hands dirty. And when we say plenty, there’s a staggering 227 events in the programme this year. With such a hive of industry, we thought you might need a helping hand picking out some of the things you really can’t afford to miss. Here are some of our highlights…

Global Market at The Conran Shop will transform into a one-stop-shop to watch live demonstrations, featuring ceramic painting from Morocco-based LRNCE, hand-weaving with Scandi stalwart Carl Hansen & Søn, plastercasting with Feldspar, tile-making with Bert & May, and many more. In Carl Hansen & Søn’s own showroom in Clerkenwell you can find an exhibition and demonstrations by Welsh atelier Hiut, which makes jeans from fine selvedge denim using vintage Japanese looms. If watching the masters at work is high on your to-do list, check out magazine Hole & Corner’s collaboration with dunhill. Together the pair has curated a series of talks and demos at Bourdon House, from weaver Maria Sigma or glass artist Michael Ruh.

If you’ve a penchant for tailoring, Saville Row’s Henry Poole & Co Ltd will reveal the complex pattern cutting behind a bespoke dinner jacket. Just a few doors down Gieves & Hawkes will be hosting a demonstration and masterclass on the practice behind a peacoat. If art’s more your bag, at the Royal Society of Sculptors Katharine Swailes and Caron Penney of Ateliers Weftfaced will discuss the process of creating handwoven tapestries for Turner Prize-winning artist Martin Creed.

A mini-festival in itself, Real to Real: The Craft Film Festival is a three-day showcase of craft on film put together by the Crafts Council and Crafts Magazine. You can watch the most intricate techniques unfold in front of your eyes and discover the stories of the makers behind the products, plus glimpse into the world of puppet making and stop-motion animation with a screening and talk from Mackinnon & Saunders, the puppet makers behind Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride and Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr Fox.

If you’re keen to give a new skill a go, Fine Cell Work is hosting a zippered cushion workshop at its London HQ. The social enterprise and charity works with prisoners, teaching them highly sought-after embroidery, needlepoint and quilting skills, providing income and valuable skills for new lives after their sentences end. On the other end of the spectrum Studio Levien is holding a hands-on Styrofoam modelling workshop, where participants can find out more about ceramic bathroom products and the huge amount of thinking behind them.

And if at the end of the day you’re in need of some refreshment, look no further than a talk from glass artist Jochen Holz, complete with tea in his undulating glassware, or even goat tacos and a talk from luxury kid leather specialist Billy Tannery.