Tools of the tade... Duffy Jewellery

"As a kid I was obsessed with comics and wanted to be an illustrator but then I spent ten years working with an antiques dealer and it changed my outlook. Whilst working in restoration and being around such precious objects, I was inspired," explains jewellery designer Duffy as he sits in the heart of his workshop in East London. Surrounded by the tools of his trade and with drawings scattered across the bench, his passion for the craftsmanship of fine jewellery is infectious. "I think I've always been drawn to the idea of someone having a skill to produce something, a craft. Today as modern technology plays such a huge part in so many things, I really like the idea that their are still a handful of people who can make something from start to finish with their own hands and it is wholly their's."

In a culture of mass production, Duffy Jewellery stands apart. Working with locally sourced materials, each handmade design evolves from doodle to finished treasure all in his Sunbury Worskshop unit. Unsurprisingly, his work bench is littered with all manner of tools. From the specialist to the customised, Duffy talks us through a few of his most used and much loved pieces of kit...

A close look at Duffy's workbench

----------

Spirit Lamp

"This Spirit lamp has a wick that burns using traditionally meths but I use clear lamp oil as it provides a better flame for melting wax and meeting wax carving tools."

-----------

Three wax carving tools

"Each wax carving tool has been customised to create a more comfortable grip and shape of implement. One is an old dentist tool that has a new life dedicated to wax."

----------

Piercing Saw 

"This is used for cutting metal in various ways. As its name suggests it can pierce shapes. The blades can be changed and various size of blade used for different levels of intricacy."

----------

Rawhide Mallet

"The hammer head itself made from a strip of hide that has then been allowed to dry and harden but remains with enough give so as not to dent the metal when forming it."

----------

Victorian ring sizer 

"This must be the oldest and most sentimental tool in the collection as it was used by my great grandfather. A number of the rings are long lost and I don't tend to use it all that much but it's a beautiful object."

----------

Mandrel and Ring Size

"The mandrel is used for forming metal around (most commonly with the rawhide mallet) and the ring sizer is to check the size of a ring either whilst forming the metal or to check an existing rings measurement."

----------

Bench Peg  

"It might not look like a tool because it is part of the jewellery bench but the peg itself is where most work takes place. It allows the jeweller to hold material or jewellery securely whilst filing and sawing can take place. They take on differing shapes over the years as they are worn and filed and drilled on and usually the way in which a jeweller works will effect how it wares down." Duffy.

----------

Tools of the trade... S.E.H Kelly

Located in an oft overlooked enclave of East London, S.E.H Kelly's workshop is quietly going about its business of making quality garments with the makers of the British Isles. Having long admired the label's hunger to showcase British craftsmanship, we finally paid Paul Vincent and Sara Kelly a visit over the weekend.

Their Boundary Street haven was an intimate hive of activity as the remaining pieces for AW12 took shape and thoughts began to drift towards the months ahead. On its top deck are the rolls of cloth, the patterns and trims and a whole assortment of implements for garment-making. Meanwhile, lower space is home to an ongoing procession of shirts, overshirts, jackets, trousers and knitwear at various stages of completion. It is a delight to explore. Now, given that every aspect of every garment is made with the domestic clothing industry, with steadfast adherence to quality and the sturdiness of British make, we could leave without asking the design duo to reveal their favourite tools. Here, Vincent  reveals three tools of S.E.H Kelly's trade...

----------

Stork Scissors

"What can you say about the stork scissors that hasn't already been said? The stork scissors are the go-to for trimming threads, tidying up button-holes, snipping string when wrapping -- usually just prior to garments being dispatched or handed over to customers at the workshop (at the factory, industrial-grade nippers are the utensil of choice)."

----------

Single-hole hole punch

"What can you say about the single-hole hole-punch that hasn't already been said? A real partner-in-crime to the stork scissors, the punch, and in a given week will punch its way through swing tickets, spare-button bags, fabric-swatch bags, and pattern cards. Looked at from a certain angle it too looks like a bird -- or perhaps a dolphin. Not the most ergonomic hole punch, truth be told, but history shows the most reliable."

----------

Trodat Printy 4917 ink-stamp

"What can you say about the Trodat Printy 4917 ink-stamp that hasn't already been said? Since we've no first-hand experience of precursors to the 4917, the 4917 is in our books the apex of self-inking stamp tech. Once mastered, the 4917 never fails, and this particular 4917 has stamped without complaint our brand name onto envelopes, letters to customers and suppliers, and swing tickets, since day one." Paul Vincent.

----------

Tools of the trade... palmer//harding

On Friday afternoon I ventured in to the heart of London's zone six and entered in to the considered world of Levi Palmer and Matthew Harding. Ever since the debut collection of palmer//harding launched in September 2011, the pair have been focused on bringing directional design to the traditionally neglected garment in a wardrobe, the shirt. It is perhaps one of the great paradoxes of life and one of fashion's basic rules, that while perfection is often given body in simplicity, that simplicity can be remarkable difficult and complicated to achieve. As we talked design, construction and took a close look at SS13 (more on this in an epic feature to be posted tomorrow), I couldn't resist asking the pair about their favourite tools. In an environment where the smallest of margins can make a huge difference, the duo each picked one trusty tool that they rely on...

----------

Levi Palmer and the pattern card shears

"These steel pattern cutting shears are my favourite tool. They were handed down to me from a mentor in Austin when i was a teenager, he had owned them since the 70's. They have been sharpened once and never needed any other attention than that. They are incredible scissors. Due to the long handle and short sharp pointed blade of the scissors they are able to cut even the most difficult inverted corners when cutting patterns on card. Most people find them awkward to use at first, but once they get used to them they quickly become their favourite tool in the studio. which is a shame because then I have to fight for them back." Levi Palmer

----------

Matthew Harding and the snips necklace

"This is my favourite tool and I call it my snip necklace. They are vital to efficient draping, sewing and finishing. Since putting them on a grosgrain tape necklace they have become a part of me during the sampling period of the season." Matthew Harding

----------

Tools of the trade... Raimund Berthold

Berthold is confident, sophisticated and refined. The Austrian born design talent graduated from the MA at Central Saint Martins in 2005 with an all-white menswear collection. This accomplished debut  in the spotlight has since gone on to define his precise aesthetic. His are bold clothes, crafted for men led by inventive design and fit – not by the whims and fancies of fashion. Few designers are so considered yet exciting.

When we last caught up with Berthold at his central London based studio he, in between offering us all manner of plentiful pastries, revealed, "I think it’s important that people can see where the clothes have come from, from where they have evolved." With this in mind, we couldn't resist continuing our latest feature series with a return visit and a good nose around his work space. Driven by form, function and cut, he relies on his favoured tools. Here he talks through his work bench from trusted shears to a handy bin bag...

----------

Pattern cutting tools

"I have been using these tools or tools like them ever since college. I use them every single day."

(Clockwise from left) Two clicker awls, tracing wheel and notcher.

"I use the wooden handled clickers awl in pattern patter, to mark points either to help me draw a line or when transferring a card pattern to a paper one."

"I tend to use this clickers awl to clearly mark drill holes for the factory so they know where to stop sewing."

"This great little notcher is used to mark where the seam allowances or to help with lining up seams before sewing."

"These are great paper cutting scissors because they can be used by lefties or righties. I personally love them because very sharp, easy to use, don't lift the paper too much and everyone in the studio is happy using them." 


"I always have to work in a clean and tidy environment. Everything is precise and to help keep things as they should be, I work with a plastic rubbish bag taped to the desk. People might think that I'm strange but I have to keep things organised."
----------

 Button hole scissors

"I bought these many years ago when I attended a weekly evening class in bespoke tailoring. They are used to make handmade buttonholes but I like them so much that I also use them to cut thread now."
----------

Trusted Fabric Shears

"I've had these trusted fabric shears since college and took them to my internships to save my hands. They are left handed shears and so many work places only offer right handed ones. On one occasion I forgot to bring my own and had to use the one that they provided. I felt like I couldn't speak up so used them for an entire week, cutting with the wrong hand and in the end they cut me and my nerve got infected. I learned my lesson after that! They have a very nice weight to them, I find them extremely comfortable to hold and they still cut as new."
----------

Re appropriated old doctors bag

"I use this old doctors bag to keep all of my sewing and hand needlework aids, from needles to buttons to thimbles. It is a real, well used doctors bag and it must be at least thirty years old. I love it because it has a beautiful leather exterior and a very organised interior. I actually have one at the studio and one at home."
----------

Sewing machine

"This is my Bernina sewing machine. I bought it second hand about five years ago and still love it today. It is very powerful, fast and best of all, it makes buttons holes that we use all of the time."
----------

Tools of the trade... Charlie Casely-Hayford

Three weekends ago I descended the wooden steps deep inside Hostem's emporium of menswear treasures and curiosities and stepped into its world of bespoke and made-to-measure. Dimly lit to add a sense of intimate occasion and encourage daydreams of discovery, the store's Chalk Room shines its spotlight on cherished craftsmanship, housing an array of handpicked artisanal brands that have the store's signature bubbling in their veins. Masterfully mixed in the craft cocktail of Globe-Trotter, Fleet Ilya, Sebastian Tarek and JAMESPLUMB, Casely-Hayford realise sartorial dreams. As I was measured, pinned and dazzled by the choice of fabrics and finishes on offer, I couldn't help but take an interest in Charlie's pin cushion. Here he tells us the story behind it.

----------

Charlie Casely-Hayford and his mum's pin cushion...

"Originally, this belonged to my Mum. I remember it vividly from when I was super young, but it seemed a lot bigger back then. Growing up in my parent's design studio, it always sat in the same place on the cutting table... whether I was 5 or 10 years old and even into my teenage years. Even though it's quite a common pin cushion, it's so distinctive and I like the fact that it's always been there throughout my life. It only felt right to start using it myself when we started offering made-to measure suits earlier this year. Whenever I'm fitting someone and see those little guys staring up at me, it always gives me a weird sense of reassurance." Charlie Casely-Hayford.

----------