I went over to Helms Bakery District today. No, not a real bakery, although I wish they still made donuts. The entire bakery complex has been turned into a furniture mega-store. A huge dealer within the complex is HD Buttercup. I walked around for about an hour, checking out the new designers and their lines. I have to say, I'm not always that into furniture. I know next to nothing about it, but today, became a fan of two designers out of the UK. Andrew Martin, who I've talked about before, and Timothy Oulton.
They both have similar aesthetics, and are both equally entertaining to look at and take iPhone pictures of. They look to the past for inspiration (sometimes to the point of complete and utter copy), and both collect and deal antiques as well. I felt the same about most of the pieces in their collections. Some of them are so far kitch that they are almost cool again.
Andrew Martin:
Chest of drawers are about 4 feet tall and covered in an "Indian blanket".
The plane has a wingspan of about 6 feet.
A 7 foot tall horse made out of recycled gears and metal odds and ends. Why not? Don't worry, they had two.
3 foot long vintage metal WWII jeep.
The 15 foot long battleship is...of all things... a bird house. Handmade.
Side of the jeep.
Hand painted leather couch. Yes, over the top, but I love it.
"London antiques dealer and furniture reproductionist" and Restoration Hardware contributer:
Timothy Oulton
Reproduction vintage speed bags.
Hand painted leather trunks and cases.
And a couple other desigers that caught my eye...