What is Flawk?

If you’ve been reading Scura for a while, you may have read a mention of Flawk here and there. But what is Flawk? And what does it do? A very good question, and one we’re here to answer…

Founded in 2022 by Bartlett graduate Ashley Law, Flawk is a creative studio that, first and foremost, makes homes (one of which is currently for sale). Our approach to development begins with a simple belief: that the act of making spaces for people to live doesn’t have to result in soulless white boxes, but can instead be a platform for creativity, community, and culture. 

From this starting point emerges a creative process that results not just in homes but also design objects, stories and moments of connection for an ever-growing community. Some of what we make is permanent – a carefully reimagined terrace house, a handle you touch every day – and some is fleeting, like a supper club where the menu, the tableware, and the setting are all part of the same design.

With so much going in the Flawk universe, we thought it would be helpful to take you on a tour of it all…

Developing

Our buildings are more than just addresses; they’re tactile narratives, shaped by materials, architectural rigor, and the influence of the makers we collaborate with. But they’re also the product of a particular way of working: one that’s grassroots, collaborative, and prone to experimentation. 

When Ashley was creating her own home – what became our debut project, Trove – she found herself surrounded by and working with friends from her Bartlett days, small businesses, and emerging makers. Some contributed pieces as gifts, others collaborated because they believed in the vision. It was never intended as a showcase, but it became one: a living gallery of work by people at the start of their careers. That impulse to champion and share their creativity became a through-line in everything we’ve done since.

Our approach is about investing time and thought to make things better, not necessarily more expensive. It might mean using a standard off-the-shelf product but elevating it through design, repurposing marble off-cuts already in the country, or finding a way to make a handle in a way that’s both more beautiful and more affordable. There’s trial and error (and the occasional delivery mix-up) but each project is a chance to refine the frameworks that make better decisions possible.

Trove, in Whitechapel, is a three-bedroom terrace reimagined into a quiet retreat of pine beams, cherry wood cabinetry, chainmail shower curtains, and a tropical garden that catches the first light.

Our second completed home, Lode, in Stoke Newington, combines soaring ceilings, Douglas fir-framed windows, and playful bespoke details like undulating bath screens and sculptural curtain rings.

This year, we’ll unveil two new homes in Holland Park and Gospel Oak, each carrying forward our commitment to craft, community, and an element of play.

Design Studio

Our architectural projects have always spilled over into the objects that fill them. A door handle here, a cabinet pull there – each one an experiment in material and form.

This process led to the launch of the Flawk Shop: a small but growing collection of objects created by our own studio. The first three – Bob, Bobbie and Eddy – are playful and functional in equal measure. Bob’s wobbly, hand-poured aluminium numbers are intended to prompt a grin to the front door. Bobbie, a butter knife with a beaded handle and teardrop blade, is designed for breakfast tables. Eddy, a hand-blown glass pull shaped into a delicate spiral, turns a fear of snails into something beautiful.

These pieces aren’t afterthoughts but by-products of our design process, distilled into standalone objects. In the future, the shop will become a platform for other emerging makers, giving them a route to market and a place to share their work alongside ours.

Cultural Curator

A Flawk project doesn’t end with the last lick of paint: it opens up to become a setting for ideas, conversation and collaboration.

We stage exhibitions like Objects Pantry, our London Design Festival showcase of playful, refined work by local makers. These events often blur boundaries: an exhibition in a building site or conversations that begin over food and spill into the rest of the room.
Our founder, Ashley, often shares our story at events, from Making by Alternative Means – held recently at Alexander Hills Architects – to another recent appearance at Developer Collective, where she spoke about building a brand that people want to belong to, not just buy from.

Community Connector

We believe that good design brings people together. Our supper clubs are one way we make that happen: immersive meals where every detail, from the cutlery to the conversation, is designed to foster connection.

Held in our completed homes, these gatherings invite neighbours, chefs, designers and curious guests to share a table. The menu might be inspired by the objects in the room, the tableware might be made by a friend, and the seating plan might just lead to your (our our) next great collaboration.

Publisher

Flawk is also the publisher of Scura, the platform you’re reading now.

Scura is where we share the worlds we move through: design, homes, neighbourhoods, travel destinations and more. We intended it as a place for looking closer, seeing differently, and celebrating the unexpected, so we push ourselves to discover and share stories that haven’t been seen elsewhere, and that is especially true when it comes to our interior stories. In case you missed them, here are some recent highlights from the world of Scura:

Isabel Farchy’s invited us in to discover the homespun beauty of her patchwork panels

Designer Freddy Tuppen shared why his flat in Brixton just keeps getting better 

Apohli shared how their apartment in Copenhagen was shaped by instinct, collaboration and kerbside finds