Cult Shop

Those of you who like your shops small and interesting should hot foot it to Hoxton tout de suite for there you will find SHOP, a mini boutique offering just three collections. There are stoneware pots whose simple modernist shapes belie their recycled origins (they're made from the clay left over after throwing and turning) and whose bold colours would have delighted Le Corbusier himself. Then there are the witty seat pads with their images of ipods and take out coffee cups (sewn and printed by the same Vicky Thornton who made the pots) and finally Morag Myerscough's eclectic and eccentric collection of vintage chairs.

SHOP@Her House can be found at 26 Drysdale St, London N1 6LS (020-7729 2760). The doors close on 12th December so you'd best hurry.

Marvellous Melamine

If you think November is an odd time to launch a collection of melamine tableware then you clearly haven't come across Thomas Paul. (Shame on you.) The crowned king of this particular nice of the tableware market, Paul's latest collection, somewhat ironically titled the Luddite Collection (cue interesting fact of the day: the Luddites were a group of British textile artists who formed a movement protesting against the changes the Industrial Revolution brought to their industry) features tumblers, dinner plates and trays printed with witty references to the motifs used in traditional fine bone china. So not just for picnics as they say.

www.supernice.co.uk

Storage Glory

It's not everyday I find myself lusting after a modular storage system but when news of this one arrived in my in-box, I was smitten. Launched to celebrate Montana's founder Peter J Lassen's 80th Birthday, it's a Limited Edition version of Model 1120 ( a vintage model if ever there was one) boasting, alongside it's truly glorious colour, doors decorated with gold line drawings and the great man's very own signature. It's a design geek thing...

Pop Up Shop

Pop up shops are, well, popping up all over the place these days and a jolly good addition to on-street shopping they are too but if you only visit one in the run up to Christmas, make sure that it's Settle.

Conceived by textile artists Helen Minns and Eleanor Pritchard, ceramicist Louisa Taylor and mid century furniture specialist Stefanie Legros, Settle is a small but perfectly formed gallery of gorgeous things - we're talking exquisite hand thrown porcelain pots, soft, woven blankets in muted shades of grey, cotton/linen lampshades printed with charming illustrations of leaping hares and pieces of vintage children's furniture.

Those of you drawn to understated craftmanship will find beauty in every piece here but I defy anyone to leave 14 Woburn Place, London WC1 without having lingered over something.

As with all pop-ups, Settle is a blink and you miss it kind of a place so get these dates in your diary: 20th November - 7th December 2010.

Plate Spinning

Robert Dawson has made his name doing subversive things with Willow Pattern - the nation's most favourite tableware motif - but his latest re-working is the wittiest yet. More Spin, Less Spin is a set of six dinner plates on which Dawson has progressively blurred that distinctive blue and white print as if the plate is spinning, faster and faster, on a potter's wheel. It's clever, beguiling and would look fabulously ironic on the wall.

Contact www.aestheticsabotage.com to discuss ordering.

Kitchen Glory

How fabulous is this? Designed by the ever-inventive Nina Tolstrup of Studiomama, it's a mobile outdoor kitchen designed for those of us who love the idea of cooking outside but can't cope with live flames.

Consisting of a proper gas hob, a chopping board, storage for crockery, utensils etc and a jolly bucket sink (water comes through a standard garden hose and is collected in a watering can beneath the sink so it can be re-used), it's part Heath Robinson, part high design and wholly desirable.

In true Studiomama style, the Outdoor Kitchen is available to the public as a set of plans but be warned, construction calls for proper carpentry skills so amateurs would be better off calling in a pro.

http://www.studiomama.com/

Spotted

Calling all industry insiders looking for innovative, well-designed home and fashion accessories.

Top Drawer opens on Sunday 12th September and this year sees the launch of Spotted, a feature area showcasing my hand picked selection of 10 of the country's most dynamic small businesses. It's a diverse collection - think belts made from recycled bicycle tyres (www.velo-re.com), hand printed wallpaper (www.bricolageproject.com), earthenware crockery made at one of Wales' oldest potteries (www.blodwen.com) and witty lights formed from brown paper bags (www.liquidesign.co.uk) - united by each maker's commitment to quality and originality.

The show runs until 14th September and is well worth a look so register now at www.topdrawer.co.uk