Design is more than a look. It’s more than a feel or a taste or a smell. Design is an experience; something that stimulates the senses.
But in a city that’s as full of hustle and bustle as London, how do you make sure that you’re stimulating your senses in the best possible way?
A good place to start is by listening to James Allen and Elliot Hammer, two members of the Airbnb community who are also professional London-based designers.
James and Elliot have been immersed in London culture for 9 years during which they’ve developed a finely-tuned taste for the new and the unique. Whether it’s an inner-city Forest that houses some of the city’s rarest and most striking furniture, or a café that broke the rules, following their lead tends to take you in the right direction. Especially when you’re looking to get an experience that features the best looks, feels, tastes, and smells in a city that can have a lot of noise if you don’t know where to listen.
1. James Dickson, founder of ‘Workshop’, the first café in London to roast their coffee beans in-house, talks about the roasting process and about London’s up-and-coming café scene.
2. Legendary illustrator, Brian Grimwood, has as much experience illustrating as anyone working today. Here, the founder of the ‘CIA’ (Central Illustration Agency) gives James and Elliot some great advice about art, design, and life.
3. Michael Sager, one half of the creative duo behind the urban wine bar, ‘Sager+Wilde’, invites us into his world of wine, and discusses what it was like to follow his passion and open his own place.
4. As well as being a talented DJ, chef, and philanthropist, Martin Morales is the founder of ‘Andina’, one of James and Elliot’s favourite London restaurants. Here, the pair get a first-hand look into one of the only Peruvian restaurants in London.
5. Imogen spends her days helping shoppers pick out some of the hippest mid-century Scandinavian furniture London has to offer, but was kind enough to give us a tour of ‘Forest’, a place where James and Elliot go time and time again when on the look-out for design inspiration.
The post Local Lens: Lifting the lid on London’s design culture appeared first on The Airbnb Blog - Belong Anywhere.