Rycotewood students push creative boundaries with HIMACS® & Valchromat™

Once again, James Latham, the UK’s leading independent timber, panels and decors distributor, has supported Rycotewood College, a pioneering furniture school (part of Activate Learning, Oxford), through its annual student competition. Now in the fifth year of this partnership, the latest collaboration has produced some of the most ingenious and unusual entries to date.

James Latham, a long-time champion of the UK furniture industry, provided quantities of the innovative solid surface material HIMACS® and the pioneering full-colour MDF Valchromat™, giving entrants free rein to explore their creativity. As in previous years, students were given a specific brief: to design a visually striking yet highly functional storage item – focusing creative thinking while enabling a like-for-like benchmark for judging.

Judging took place ahead of the college’s end-of-year show, following a 10-week entry period, at which the winning and commended entries were announced.

Material evolution

What distinguished the 2025 competition was the remarkable evolution in the students’ understanding and application of both materials. In just a few years, their ability to manipulate, cut, carve and shape HIMACS® and Valchromat™ has increased dramatically.

This progress is even more impressive considering that, in the first year of using these materials, even the college’s tutors were uncertain of their capabilities. Today, students are producing applications that impress and occasionally surprise industry veterans.

As Stuart Devoil, Group Head of Marketing at James Latham and one of the competition’s principal adjudicators, said: “I’ve been bowled over for the fifth year running. Just when I think I’ve seen it all – and there have been some pretty breathtaking and unusual entries to date – the students deliver even more outstanding craftsmanship. More importantly, they demonstrate a different level of thinking. They look at materials with an entirely original approach and fresh perspective, unbound by the restraints of convention or the work of previous entrants.”

The competition’s top honours went to Toby Bradshaw (HIMACS® category) and Merrick Martins (Valchromat™ category), who shared first place for their innovative storage solutions.

Erupting with innovation

Toby Bradshaw pushed HIMACS® to the very limits of its potential, showcasing the material’s strength and versatility by developing a chiselling technique to create a never-before-seen volcanic surface effect.

Stuart added: “Some of the designs this year used techniques and approaches that were truly pioneering. When I spoke to HIMACS’s Jim Mackenzie, who has worked with solid surfaces for 22 years and follows this competition with keen interest, he told me he’d never seen anything like it. That’s what makes it such a special product; whether by intent or accident, it offers furniture makers the potential for welcome surprise.”

Toby Bradshaw commented: “I drew inspiration from the moon, the surface of Mars and mountain landscapes, exploring texture rather than bending the material. Through trial and error, I pushed the material beyond its intended use to create something opposite to its usual glossy finish. This was a true creative journey and I enjoyed blending traditional cabinetry, such as a dovetail drawer and reclaimed figured wood, with HIMACS’s rocky aesthetic. I’m thrilled to have achieved good design’s first rule: functionality while maintaining creativity.”

Raising the bar

Merrick Martins’s piece showcased exceptional craftsmanship with Valchromat™, creating a sculptural storage unit with seamless joinery and a striking colour gradient.

Merrick said: “This Valchromat™ whiskey tantalus demonstrates the material’s incredible versatility. By laminating black and blue layers at varying thicknesses over wavy forms, I created unique interior patterns that would be impossible with traditional materials. The consistent colour throughout and exceptional density allowed for precise shaping while maintaining structural integrity. I was truly impressed by the revolutionary craftsmanship possibilities offered by this material.”

Working it out 

Runner-up Eli Al-Baho impressed the judges with a technically innovative piece, combining thin layers of HIMACS® with traditional woodworking techniques to create a storage solution that appeared to defy material limitations.

Eli remarked: “I wanted to approach the material as if it were stone, deliberately avoiding its bendable properties. Instead, I worked with straight pieces for the trinkets. What really fascinated me was discovering that the material actually had its own grain; working with that characteristic became integral to my design process. I was delighted to achieve such a high-shine finish.”

The future of British furniture design

Summing up the event, Josh Hudson, Furniture Lead at Rycotewood College, said: “I know how much our students enjoy both the challenge this competition brings and the opportunity to demonstrate their creative and making skills. We announce the winners at our end-of-year show, which brings some of the biggest names in the UK furniture-making sector into Rycotewood. 

“Giving students the chance to showcase their furniture is invaluable. We’re immensely proud to be supported by such a fantastic company, giving our students the opportunity to experience new materials and challenge the norm. Looking ahead to next year, we’re excited to work with Stu and the team at James Latham to make 2026 as memorable – if not more so – than any previous year.”

For more information on Rycotewood Furniture Centre, visit www.rycotewoodfurniture.co.uk. To find out more about James Latham’s materials portfolio, see www.lathamtimber.co.uk.