Debut eyewear collection with Larke Optics
1st June 2014 Darkroom is one of London’s finest concept stores, with a chic black exterior that would fit as easily into one of the design hot spots in Milan; located on Lamb’s Conduit Street, the shop represents the heart of this sophisticated destination for independent shops, menswear specialists and good food.
The interior offers a gallery like display of hard-to-find design and fashion products, textiles, jewellery and items from other parts of the world, including Africa and the Balkans, curated by owners Rhonda Drakeford and Lulu Roper-Caldbeck.
The latest addition is an eyewear collaboration with London’s Larke Optics, a series that marries this emerging British eyewear label’s handcrafted approach and detailed finishing with Darkroom’s singularly bold, graphic aesthetic, perfectly reflected through handpicked vintage acetates.
Larke’s founder, Laura Nicholson explains: “A strict monochrome palette has been chosen to emphasise Darkroom’s fascination with materials, surfaces and finishes used in architecture and furniture design.
The Italian acetates have been hand-selected to mimic the look of marble, terrazzo, mosaic and resin. These materials are playfully reappropriated and condensed into two signature shapes: Veda, a bold circular frame, and Gill, a thick-rimmed frame with a distinctive keyhole detail.”
All frames by Larke are handmade in the UK in one of the last remaining family workshops. Prices from £295.00. CN
Darkroom, 52 Lamb’s Conduit Street, Bloomsbury, London, WC1N 3LL
See the full collection online at: www.darkroomlondon.com/shop/designers/larke / Larke Optics www.larkeoptics.com