My First visit to Clerkenwell Design Week
Clerkenwell Design Week was one of those days that left me feeling inspired in a way I did not fully expect.
I had never attended Clerkenwell Design Week before, so I went with curiosity rather than a strict plan. I wanted to explore the showrooms, discover new furniture and interior brands, and experience one of London’s most talked-about design events for myself.
What I did not expect was how thoughtful and genuinely joyous the day would feel.
From the moment I arrived in Clerkenwell, the area felt alive with creativity. Road markings, signs, maps, showrooms, installations and historic buildings all shaped the experience. The day did not feel like one exhibition or one showroom. It felt like an entire part of London had turned into a celebration of contemporary furniture, interior design, architecture, craftsmanship, sustainable materials and creative thinking.
My visit included VitrA’s sculptural bathroom showroom, Old Sessions House, Commercial Design in the Park, Leta’s colourful contract furniture display, Gessi’s statement bathroom design, The Luxury Edit at Haberdashers’ Hall, the Design Meets sustainability talk, and Church of Design at the Priory Church of St Bartholomew the Great.
Each stop offered something different. I saw sculptural basins, statement taps, historic interiors, iconic furniture pieces, expressive contract furniture and meaningful conversations about sustainable design.
First Impressions: Following the Clerkenwell Design Week Trail
The day started with me heading into Farringdon, before slowly walking through Clerkenwell and looking into showrooms as I passed them.
Clerkenwell Design Week did not feel too rigid. Although there was structure, with maps, signage, the app and scheduled talks, there was still this lovely sense of wandering and discovery.
A treasure hunt through London’s most creative design district
You could follow the map and move between the main locations, or you could simply follow your eye. A window display, a sign, a courtyard, a doorway or a piece of architecture could pull you in.
That is what made the day feel so special. It did not feel like walking around a single trade exhibition. It felt like following a creative trail through the city.
VitrA: Sculptural Bathroom Design at Clerkenwell Design Week
The first showroom I went into was VitrA. It immediately pulled me in from the street.
Through the window, I could see basins displayed almost like wall-mounted artworks. The shapes felt soft and organic, with earthy tones including clay, terracotta, muted green and deep grey. The whole display felt much more expressive than a typical bathroom showroom.
It was bathroom design, but approached through colour and form.
What I loved most was how sculptural the sinks felt. They did not sit quietly in the background as purely functional pieces. The curved silhouettes, tiled backdrops and layered sample boards gave the showroom a playful and considered feel.
As a first stop, VitrA immediately reminded me that even the most practical parts of an interior can still have personality.
Old Sessions House: A Creative Hub Inside a Historic London Building
After VitrA, I continued moving through the showrooms and made my way towards the main square. One of my first bigger stops was Old Sessions House.
A Strong Introduction to the Event
Before I even got inside, the building made an impact. The classical façade, tall columns, arched windows and detailed stonework created a real sense of occasion.
Inside, the space felt like a creative hub. People moved through the staircases, paused on landings, spoke to brands, looked through displays and gathered around presentations. The building had a grandness to it, but the way people used it made it feel alive.
There was so much going on, from brand activations to presentations, all set within a beautiful Grade II listed building. That was one of the first moments where I really understood the atmosphere of Clerkenwell Design Week.
It was not just about showing design inside a venue. It was about bringing these spaces to life with conversation, product, craft and creative energy.
Commercial Design in the Park
After Old Sessions House, I wandered through Commercial Design in the Park, which felt like a nice pause in the day.
It gave me a moment to gather my thoughts and decide where I wanted to go next. I liked that Clerkenwell Design Week encouraged you to move through different types of spaces. Streets, showrooms, parks, courtyards, churches and historic halls all became part of the route.
That variety made the day feel less like a traditional interiors event and more like a design journey through the city.
Discovering Leta: Contract Furniture with Colour and Personality
One of the loveliest discoveries of the day was Leta, a contract furniture brand showing in a beautifully styled indoor-outdoor space.
The location immediately caught my attention. It had an open, greenery-filled feeling, with plants, soft architectural shapes and a really inviting atmosphere. Before I knew much about the brand, the space made me want to go in.
A Display Full of Character
Once I saw the pieces, I was completely drawn in. The setup felt expressive and memorable. It had colour and personality, which made it feel more like a small design world than a standard product display.
The pieces themselves had such a joyful quality. I loved the floral upholstered chair with its slim yellow frame and playful little ball details. Paired with the small marble-topped table, it felt quirky and full of personality without feeling gimmicky.
What stood out was the confidence of it. Leta’s contract furniture did not feel overly safe or purely functional. It felt expressive and designed for spaces that want to feel memorable. It reminded me that commercial and contract furniture can still be full of charm.
Gessi: Statement Bathroom Design as Theatre
Another major highlight was Gessi.
This was where bathroom design became a real “wow” moment for me. I had never seen taps, basins and bathroom details treated with so much drama and imagination.
One display had a deep burgundy basin with brass detailing, set against butterfly and botanical-inspired wall panels. It felt almost cinematic, more like a dressing room or boutique hotel moment than a conventional bathroom setting. The colours were rich and moody, with deep red, brass, black and softly illuminated surfaces creating so much atmosphere.
Bathroom Details with Drama
The taps also felt incredibly considered. One had a bamboo-inspired form, with warm segmented detailing that looked almost like jewellery. Another had a wrapped leather effect, giving something as functional as a tap a tailored, fashion-led quality.
What I loved was how unexpected it felt. These were not quiet background details. They were statement pieces.
Gessi made bathroom design feel sensual and sculptural. It showed how even the most practical parts of an interior can become moments of character and craft.
It made me think differently about bathrooms. A basin or tap does not have to simply complete a space. It can define the entire mood.
The Luxury Edit at Haberdashers’ Hall
Later in the day, I headed to The Luxury Edit, which focused on Italian design and was set inside Haberdashers’ Hall.
This became one of the most meaningful parts of the day for me, not only because of the design, but because of the location itself.
I had not planned the day around Haberdashers’ Hall. I only realised I was heading there once I started making my way to The Luxury Edit, which made the moment feel even more unexpected.
An Unexpected Full-Circle Moment
I went to one of the Haberdashers’ schools, and when I was 18, my A-level painting hung in the hall for a year. So finding myself back in a Haberdashers’ space years later, this time for a design event, felt incredibly full circle.
At that age, I knew I was creative, but I do not think I fully understood where that could take me. Standing there again, surrounded by furniture, interiors, materials, craft and design history, felt quietly emotional.
Italian Design Inside Haberdashers’ Hall
The setting itself was beautiful. Haberdashers’ Hall had warmth and atmosphere, with rich timber tones, traditional detailing, patterned flooring and carefully placed contemporary furniture.
One room had a glossy deep red table, softly upholstered chairs and warm light coming through the windows. It felt luxurious, but not cold. The richness came from the mix of historic surroundings and modern furniture.
I saw brands including Cassina and Thonet, but one of the most meaningful design moments was with Thonet. I found myself looking at a chair and then realised it was a Marcel Breuer design, which felt incredibly special because I had written about Breuer in detail for my interior design course.
Seeing a piece in person that I had studied felt really special, connecting design history with real-life experience. It is one thing to write about a designer and their influence. However, it is another to stand in front of the work and understand its presence.
That whole part of the day stayed with me. Being back in a Haberdashers’ setting, surrounded by design rather than schoolwork, made me reflect on the path from being artistic at school to now building a new chapter within interiors.
It felt like my younger creative self and my current self were somehow meeting in the same place.
Sustainable Design at Clerkenwell design week: A Talk That Opened My Eyes
After exploring The Luxury Edit, I headed to the quad at Haberdashers’ Hall for the Design Meets talk.
I attended “Rethinking Materials from Surface to System,” hosted by Duncan Riches, with speakers Callie Tedder-Hares, co-founder of Spared, Caroline Till, founder at TILT, Ella Doran of Ella Doran Design, Hannah Wilde, designer, and Ros McMillian, creative director and co-founder of Smile Materials.
A Conversation That Felt Meaningful
This was one of the most meaningful parts of the day.
The team had set up the space beautifully, with simple stools, natural flooring, soft neutral tones and tall wooden poles. The courtyard had a calm, almost temporary pavilion-like feeling. It did not feel overproduced. It felt relaxed yet focused, which suited the conversation perfectly.
What struck me most was the sincerity of the discussion. Sustainability can sometimes become a surface-level word in design, but this did not feel like that. The speakers spoke with real care about materials, systems, waste, responsibility and how design can move beyond aesthetics.
Within the speaker space, pieces reflected those ideas. One example was a desk by Smile Materials, made from 100% recycled and recyclable plastics. Seeing those materials in a designed object made the conversation feel tangible. It was not abstract. It showed that sustainable design can still feel beautiful and desirable.
The talk genuinely opened my eyes. It made me think about the responsibility designers have, not just to create beautiful things, but to ask better questions about how those things are made, used and eventually reused.
It made design feel like something to celebrate in a deeper way. Not as a vanity project, but as a discipline that can feel responsible and connected to the future of the planet.
It completely captured me.
Craftsmanship and Material Detail
One thing I kept noticing throughout the day was detail.
Not just obvious detail, but the kind that reveals itself when you slow down and look properly. The woven chair at Church of Design was a perfect example.
Up close, you could see the rhythm of the threads, the contrast of black and white, the knots, the structure and the shadows it cast. It was beautiful because it showed the process and the thought behind it.
I saw that kind of care again and again across Clerkenwell. Materials were not just being used decoratively. Designers were exploring them. Woven cord, recycled plastic, leather-wrapped fittings, bamboo-inspired brassware, sculptural basins and historic stonework all asked you to look closer.
It reminded me that good design often lives in the details. The parts you only notice when you stop rushing.
Historic Architecture and Contemporary Furniture Design
One of the things I found most moving about Clerkenwell Design Week was how many locations had so much character already.
Rather than placing design into blank exhibition spaces, the event made you experience furniture and interiors through the architecture around them. Historic halls, courtyards and churches gave each display a different atmosphere. The setting became part of the experience, not just a backdrop.
A chair, table, lamp or installation can feel completely different depending on where it sits. In Clerkenwell, the architecture added weight, texture and context. It made me look at the pieces more slowly.
I liked that the event did not separate heritage from contemporary design. Instead, different periods, materials and ideas sat together in a way that felt considered. It made the day feel layered, thoughtful and very London.
Church of Design at Priory Church of St Bartholomew the Great
The final part of my day was Church of Design, set inside the Priory Church of St Bartholomew the Great.
A Memorable Final Stop at clerkenwell design week
This was such a special way to end the day. After moving through showrooms, parks, courtyards, talks and historic halls, finishing inside such an atmospheric church felt incredibly memorable.
The church interior was breathtaking. Arched windows, stone columns, carved details, shadowed alcoves and layered architecture created a sense of stillness before I had even looked properly at the furniture. It was one of those spaces that naturally makes you slow down.
Here, I saw displays from brands including Roche Bobois, Kave and other interesting design brands. Soft modern sofas, sculptural lamps, woven chairs, shelving, textiles and layered interior displays all sat within the stone architecture of the church.
Design Inside an Atmospheric Church
One area had glowing lamps positioned in front of arched church windows, which gave the lighting a beautiful, almost devotional quality. Another display had a modern living room setup beneath the height of the church, with a deep green sofa, warm timber shelving, mustard accents and a curved floor lamp.
The pieces felt contemporary, but the setting gave them a different level of drama and presence.
I am not Christian or religious, but standing in that space did feel almost spiritual. Not because of religion itself, but because the architecture was so detailed, so full of craft and so still. It made me feel present in a way I had not expected.
What stayed with me was how carefully the modern design had been placed. The furniture did not take away from the building. Instead, it made me notice the architecture more. The stone, the arches, the scale and the light all became part of how I experienced the displays.
As a final stop, it felt almost cinematic. It brought together so much of what I had loved about Clerkenwell Design Week: craft, atmosphere, materiality, history and contemporary design with a real sense of place.
Why Clerkenwell Design Week Felt Different
I have attended other interiors and trade-led events before, but Clerkenwell Design Week felt different.
Of course, there was a strong industry element. Showrooms, launches, presentations, brand activations, trade spaces and design conversations were happening everywhere. But the day did not feel purely commercial.
It felt like a celebration of creativity.
The whole area had an energy to it. People dressed beautifully, the sun was shining, the streets were filled with signs and installations, and everyone seemed to move through the day with curiosity. It felt professional, but also playful. Organised, but still spontaneous.
That is what made it stand out. The event was not just about what is new or trendy. It was about craft, materials, sustainability, heritage, atmosphere and ideas.
It reminded me that design can be beautiful, but it can also be honest, responsible, emotional and deeply considered.
Final Thoughts on Clerkenwell Design Week
My first Clerkenwell Design Week was more than I expected it to be.
It started with a walk through Clerkenwell, looking into showroom windows and following my curiosity. It took me from VitrA to Old Sessions House, through Commercial Design in the Park, into the world of Leta and Gessi, through The Luxury Edit at Haberdashers’ Hall, into a sustainability talk that genuinely opened my eyes, and finally to Church of Design at the Priory Church of St Bartholomew the Great.
Across the day, I saw beautiful products, clever materials, historic architecture, thoughtful conversations and design that felt full of care.
More than anything, I left feeling inspired.
Clerkenwell Design Week reminded me why design matters. Design can change the way you experience a city, a building, or even a single object. It can make you stop, look closer and feel something.
At MSI London, we work with interior designers, architects, developers and private clients to source luxury furniture, Italian furniture, contract furniture, bathroom design pieces, lighting, rugs, wallcoverings and full interiors packages.
Sometimes, design can also bring you back to a place connected to your younger creative self and remind you how far you have come.
For me, it was not just inspiring.
It was joyous.