All Mix Blog

Well, a switch actually. Please forgive this purely aesthetic post. A friend of M&I showed us a beautiful light switch today. He sourced it from eBay and it was made in England. The packaging was an item to behold in itself. Here it is. If anyone knows the manufacturer please do leave a comment below.

What with this fine weather M&I's mind is turning towards the great outdoors. We read about the intriguing work of Williams British Handmade last week and are particularly fond of the sturdy looking picnic hamper case.

We visited the Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green today and thoroughly enjoyed the current exhibition, 'Sit Down: Seating for Kids', sponsored by Ercol. Designs by Charles and Ray Eames, Robin Day and Thomas Chippendale are amongst those featured. The main hall also plays host to the Ercol chair arch (pictured), commissioned by Wallpaper* magazine and previously exhibited at the V&A in South Kensington. Curators Catherine Bornet and Noreen Marshall have created a show that brings a potentially dull subject to life, helped greatly by playful illustrations by Emma Houlston and 3D design from Wells Mackereth . The show deserves extra praise for its efforts to engage children (and adults, of course) in the chair manufacturing process: 'The earliest of these seats (1680) look back to a tradition where designer and maker were the same craft worker. Even when individual furniture designers became fashionable and well known, like Thomas Chippendale (1718-1779), they usuall...

' My clients want to know the provenance of a piece and who designed and made it. They’re interested in craftsmanship and the processes behind the making of a piece.' London-based interior designer Suzy Hoodless in the Financial Times.

During the 1980s Dualit benefited from government export grants and attended European trade shows, bringing their product to a wider audience. The factory had to expand to cope with increasing demand, stemming from both the European exposure and the trends at the time. In 1989 Max Gort-Barten was awarded a CBE for services to the British manufacturing industry. A decade of innovation followed in which Dualit launched their first cordless kettle. Products were re-engineered and re-housed in the Dualit style. In 1999 the company used space shuttle technology to develop the Proheat toaster element, winnning a Millenium award. With the death of Gort-Barten in 2003, Dualit moved to new premises, in Crawley, West Sussex. Production continues at the site today.

In the 60s, as the range of toasters grew, Dualits were to be found in commercial kitchens across the UK and even made it on to the QE2. A three slot version was developed specifically for John Lewis in the 70s. Later in the decade, Dualit employed a Royal College of Art design graduate. The styling of the new ranges continued to find favour with retailers.

Founder of Dualit, Max Gort-Barten, the son of an inventor, served five years in WWII before buying a factory in Camberwell, south London, to manufacture his products. The utilitarian design of Dualit's toasters is instantly recognisable and the hallmarks have barely changed since the first patent was issued in 1946. In 1952 Gort-Barten designed a new, commercial six slice toaster with mechanical timer and manual eject. The residents of Picton Street, SE5, and the entire Gort-Barten family were involved with its production. In 1954 the Government compulsory purchased the factory and gave Gort-Barten money to build new premises off of Old Kent Road (see image one in Scrapbook Pt. 2, below.)

Open your beer and learn a little history at the same time. A lovely promotional product from the now defunct east London brewery.