British furniture makers come in all shapes and sizes. From heritage brands, such as Linley and Wedgwood to smaller, lesser-known independents that are capable of producing the very same quality of finish and enduring elegance in design. A case in point is the contemporary-meets-classic creations from Loom whose story is unravelled here by our very own Jonathon Warren.
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BEHIND THE BRAND
Behind The Brand: Loom
Clean modern furniture for a contemporary British vibe
By Jonathon Warren, Commercial Director
Loom furniture—the clue isn’t in the name
Hear or see the word ‘loom’ and you’d be forgiven for leaping to the conclusion that this is surely a maker who has textiles at the heart of the brand. A fabric house perhaps. An upholstery-focused collection with sofas, armchairs and footstools as its raison d’être. Maybe even a garden furniture company having fun with the notion of the loom being how wicker is woven to form outdoor seating and pedestal table bases.
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Not so, however with Worcester-based contemporary furniture brand, Loom.
Theirs is a well-disciplined array of product with no woven yarn or rattan palm in sight. It is metal furniture that encapsulates this collection. Correction: extraordinarily made metal furniture.
The collection, at a glance
Visually lightweight silhouettes; the finest of fine lines; abstract metallic panels in brass, copper and nickel; and customisable surfaces—four features that ring true on almost every Loom concept.
Its collection tells the tale of tables more so than any other item of furniture. There are single stem side tables with pebble-shaped discs for tabletops alongside those with a hint of Art Deco influence whose marble surface overhangs the side of the sofa to bring it conveniently closer to you (whoever claims function and form can’t reside in close quarters is mistaken in my eyes). There are clean-cut coffee tables that are so minimal in aesthetic that they always feel like an illusion, floating ever so subtly over a living room’s rug. There are console tables comprised of strong, sleek lines, there to make a compelling understatement be it in a hallway or dining room.
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Tables and surfaces may be its lifeblood, but Loom is a maker ever broadening its horizons, recently welcoming mirrors and plinths as it trials a sidestep into the accessories arena.
Handmade and custom-finished—the art of bespoke
Loom and luxury are two words that certainly go hand in hand. Much of the reasoning for this is down to Loom’s fastidious approach to manufacture—its workforce is made up of highly specialist fabricators and engineers who promise every inch of every Loom design receives the attention to detail it warrants.
Old meets new in the Loom workshop where blacksmithery and forging happen but benches away from water jet and laser cutting. Modern day making methods are employed as and when they’re required, elevating the construction and the finish of its designs whereas the traditional techniques safeguard its furniture’s dependable foundations.
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Quality is just one side of the story. Loom’s approach is one where every item is made to order with custom finishes available on almost every design. This is so the client can always be a part of the design process, creating their own version of an original Loom design. There’s a selection of fourteen paint and tinted finishes to colour the steel frames varying from light bronze to lead grey; timber tabletops in crown-cut oak can be customised with the client’s choice of wood stain; and those cast in stone can be honed or polished whether the stone chosen is Emperor or Verse Rajasthan. Should a customer prefer a glass or mirrored surface, that too is an option ready to be implemented by its team of craftsmen.
The faces behind the furniture
Beautiful as the products may be, no brand is possible without the driving force powering it, forming the vision, shaping the collections and bringing ingenuity to the table, as it were.
The principal person behind the wheel in Loom’s case is Jake Horne who founded Loom with two university friends. Having gone their separate ways after graduation to hone their respective skill sets, they reformed years later to launch their own manufacturing and design company just a few years ago.
But these founding friends much prefer to sit back in the shadows and let their designs speak for themselves—a statement of exceptionally executed British furniture for the 21st century.
