I spied these gorgeous (and reasonably priced) Victorian silver name brooches on a recent excursion to Grays Antiques in Mayfair. You can find them at Spectrum (stand 371-372), but unless you fancy being called Gertrude, Gertie or Gladys, you may be hard-pushed to find your actual name. But you never know – and with old-fashioned names like Eliza and Violet making a big come-back, they are perfect gifts for babies. In fact, many of the highly decorative brooches were originally for babies and sweethearts, whilst the plainer styles belonged to maids and servants. Prices range from £20 to £45.
Spectrum Stand 371-372 Tel: 020 7629 3501 Grays Antiques 58 Davies Street London W1 Tel. 020 7629 7034
Another outstanding gem on Marylebone Lane, KJ’s Laundry boasts a covetable mix of up-and-coming as well as established designers sourced from around the globe.
This year they added two more jewels to their shiny crown, in the form of Time Out London’s Shopping Award for Best Local Boutique, and ‘Best Boutique’ in the inaugural London Fashion Awards, which is supported by the British Fashion Council.
For me, it’s the place to head if I’m after a good frock that no-one else will be wearing – keep an eye out for designs by New York’s Richard Ruiz and Alice Ritter, as well as London’s Suzannah and Pink Soda. Then there’s Vivienne Westwood’s Anglomania label, feminine and chic pieces by Cacharel, and some sleek Scandi design by Sweden’s Filippa K.
Top row: Susannah; Bottom row: Pink Soda
It’s also nice to see a good representation of Australian designers, including accessories by Ginger & Smart, basic essentials for layering by Metalicus, sharp tailoring by Carl Kapp, pretty-meets-quirky pieces by Alice McCall and hand-finished fabrics by Lee Matthews.
I really like the girlish retro-inspired and ultra-wearable pieces by French label Eurythmic, an off-shoot of Paul & Joe, and the new trench coats by Canadian label Mackage. Think classic with an edge.
Left: Alex Monroe's feather necklace; right: Tracey Matthews' coral necklace
There’s also a small assortment of homewares and bits and bobs, including Becky Oldfield’s reworked vintage Union Jack cushions (£55) – swoon! The online shop is also well worth a click.
KJ’s Laundry 74 Marylebone Lane London W1 Tel. 020 7486 78551
Check out this amazing project by Brussels graphic designer Maxime Delporte. It’s a bird house complex! Such a cool place for a wee birdy to live. Thanks to Gemma for the tip!
After a lot of
consideration I decided to move to Typepad, which has some snazzy
bloggy features and allows me to have more fun with images. Hurrah!
You’ll
also notice some new features including “My Secret London” and “London
Must-Eats”, which will start rolling out later this week.
There
are also new ways to explore Wee Birdy, including new maps, which are
by no means a complete picture of shopping in London (afterall, a blog
is a constant work in process). But as I review new shops (and um,
things to eat) I’ll add them to the maps. Hope you find them handy.
I’ve
also been thinking long and hard about advertising, which I may be
considering in the future. I promise that it won’t affect my content in
any way – and if I decide to run a sponsored post, it will be clearly
labelled and completely transparent. I’m kinda into full disclosure
here.
Anyway, have a look around and make yourself at home. Can’t wait to hear what you think!
I can count on one hand the amount of times I've set foot inside a TK Maxx store.
When I first arrived in the UK, I made a beeline for this shop. It was, apparently, where "savvy shoppers" head to unearth a designer gem. Heck, I thought, I'm a savvy shopper. So off I toddled, dedicating a decent amount of time to digging around in a bid to bag a designer bargain [note to self: go easy on the alliteration]. But after a few visits yielded zero startling finds, I gave it up as the stuff of legend.
But there I was this afternoon, back at my local Lewisham branch, trawling the racks in desperation for a bikini. I know. It's the end of the season. I've missed the boat. BUT, I'm flying off to Sardinia next month and I have a bad habit of leaving bikini buying 'til the last minute. That's because it's a demon task from hell. Still, I thought I had nothing to lose and dutifully made my way around the shop floor.
Not surprisingly, there was zilch in the way of swimsuits BUT, I did end up in the scarf section (yep, miles away from bikinis) and found a rather choice selection including a See by Chloe cotton print scarf (£19), a striking orange and black silk McQ by Alexander McQueen scarf (£99 - down from £500), a dancing Olivia red silk Moschino scarf (£15) and a woolen tan and cream scarf by Michael Kors (£19). I also discovered a bunch of pretty Calvin Klein and Elle McPherson bras for around £6 over in lingerie. Cheep cheep!
Pop-up galleries and shops is where it’s all happening in London right now. I do like a bit of a pop-up myself – something about its temporary nature and implied sense of urgency spurs me to actually get off my arse – lest I ‘snooze and lose’.
And popping up in East London on Friday is Sunday & Rex, a gallery showcasing art, furniture, contemporary jewellery and designed objects from up-and-coming designers from Australia and Europe.
Stewart Brooks and Georgie Morgan are the Aussie expats behind Sunday & Rex, and together they’ve curated a cracker line-up of design talent. Here’s a sneak peek of some of the tasty gems on offer …
Lucy Folk's sterling silver popcorn ring.
Lucy Folk's sterling silver cornchip necklace.
Lucy Folk's gold popcorn necklace.
Gregory Bonasera's ceramic bowls.
Vaugh Shannon's branch table.
Vaugh Shannon's happy lamp.
Krista McRae's odd-shaped earrings.
Krista McRae's gem studs in silver, oxidized silver and 24ct gold.
Nina Ellis's bowls.
Sunday & Rex Pop-up gallery 30 August-14 September 90 Redchurch Street E1 6LA
18-21 September Tent London Truman Brewery Brick Lane E1
It’s all about tulle, tutus and tortured toes at Dover Street Market right now, and I couldn’t stay away for a second (OK, I made it over there yesterday).
Repetto design by Rei Kawakubo, Comme des Garcons.
I was there to check out Repetto’s 60 Ans exhibition, which opened in London on Monday. The iconic French ballet shoe company has just turned 60, and to celebrate they invited 60 sparkling luminaries from the worlds of dance, film, art, fashion and design to customise a pair of ballet shoes.
Bardot ‘Strass Rouge’ – limited and individually numbered by Repetto.
I’m not sure that I saw the entire line-up – perhaps they’re showing different designs over the exhibition period – but highlights included Vanessa Beecroft’s blood-spattered white leather flats (she got murderous with some thick red paint), and a French ballerina’s satin pointe shoes that had been hand-embroidered with a charming pas-de-deux design. By contrast, Carla Bruni’s silver star and moon design looked positively bland.
There’s also a line-up of customised tutus and leotards, including Rei Kawakubo’s flirty and fun French-maid version with a shorter white ‘apron’ frill over a longer black skirt. It also plays with the difference between the classic shorter tutu and the romantic mid-calf version.
Repetto design by Rei Kawakubo, Comme des Garcons.
My only (tiny) complaint was that at times it was difficult to discern who actually designed what, as the labels were attached to each shoe and often tucked underneath. And a good sprinkling of “Do not touch” signs made me reluctant to turn them over. I would have loved to have seen the shoes designed by Chloë Sevigny and Kim Gordon.
All designs in 60 Ans will be auctioned in October, with proceeds going to Unesco to fund select educational establishments.
Repetto 60 Ans Monday 18th August to Saturday 13th September Dover Street Market 17-18 Dover St, London W1 Tel: 020 7518 0680
Opening hours: Monday to Saturday 11am-6pm Thursday 11am-7pm
Looks like it will be pop-up shop au-go-go in the Carnaby area over the next couple of weeks. While you're checking out Urban Craft Stars' pop-up shop, don't miss Beyond the Valley's countdown sale on nearby Ganton Street, starting Friday 22 August (just around the corner from the main BTV store). Prices start at £30 and will reduce further by £5 every two days until they're cleared. Most items are one-off or in limited supply. Well worth checking out. From Friday 22 August to Monday 1 September only 2 Ganton Street London W1F 7QL
As regular Wee Birdy readers will know, I’m a big supporter of local independent designers and the urban craft movement, so I was excited to hear about Urban Craft Stars and their pop-up shop which opens tomorrow for a limited time in Kingly Court, just off Carnaby Street.
This London-based design/craft collective, who all met via Etsy, will be selling a range of hand-crafted and vintage items including recycled furniture, organic printed kids’ t-shirts, stationery, leather purses and hand-knitted scarves.
I don’t know why I’m surprised. But here I am, completely astounded and gobsmacked by one particular revelation that arose from tonight’s rather brilliant first episode of Britain From Above, a new TV series on BBC1. (Missed it? Imagine a narrated UK-version of Koyaanisqatsi, minus the Philip Glass score.)
So what’s got my feathers in a flap? Well, there’s a precise moment, every day in Britain, when the nation’s energy supplies are so strained and pushed beyond capacity that, when necessary, the dude who keeps an eye on the national grid has to borrow extra energy from France.
Hmmm ... what could possibly be causing this weird phenomenon, which apparently is entirely unique to Britain?
Cue the rolling end credits and the theme-tune of EastEnders, when millions upon millions of Brits get up and switch on the kettle for a cup of tea.
It’s true! The national grid dude even has a telly in his office – which is thrown into one helluva commotion as soon as EastEnders is over. Just goes to show that the British are creatures of habit … and they love a good cuppa.
So Gloustershire-based Etsy seller, Lupin, is on to a good thing with her range of handstitched brooches for the tea-obsessed masses.
