My Asho Pop-Up Boutique: Second Chance

Did you miss out on The My Asho Pop-Up Boutique experience?

Did you get home and wish you had bought that funky jumpsuit or cool tee?

Well here's a fantastic chance to get your hands on pieces exclusive to the Pop-Up shop still at the fantastic prices that were available on the day.

Available for a limited time only.

My Asho Pop-Up Market

Happy Shopping!

Renegade Craft Fair London

Call for artists!

Applications for the first-ever Renegade Craft Fair London close FRIDAY!

The Renegade Craft Fair is headed across the pond to The Old Truman Brewery for our 1st Ever London Fair on October 8+9, 2011, from
11am – 6pm each day! Along with hundreds of today’s best makers of handmade goods, we’ll be hosting hands-on crafting workshops and planning a handful of fun surprises! This exciting indoor showcase of indie-craft is free-to-attend!

Applications for independent craft artists hoping to be a part of this fantastic event close this Friday, July 29!

Check out all the application details and
submit yours here!

At the Renegade Craft Fair you can expect to find only the best indie-craft and DIY artisans! Featuring both local and international talent, shoppers can anticipate a vast array of independently designed jewelry, clothing, paper goods, home + garden goods, posters, artwork, plush objects, bath + body products, and so much more!!

Learn more about the history of The Renegade Craft Fair here!

Anthropologie

Short but very very exciting news. It's official! Urbanknit Super Snap clutches are now available in Anthropologie UK.

Anthropologie
158 Regent Street,
London, UK
W1B 5SW
Tel: 020 7529 9800

Street Art at the Tate

This was taken sometime last year, I think it was in the summer when Tate Modern was taking a look at what Street art is. I am sold on anything that is colourful and bold.

Liberty

This store in London is one of favourites. The Liberty store stands out in London's west end mainly because it is the only Tudor building for miles! It has a fabric, haberdashery and yarn section which I aways go straight to. It also has a great collection of fashion accessories by both established and upcoming designers which are always fresh and interesting. Of course there are many many other departments but these are my favourite.

The history of the store and the building are quite interesting. One of the things I found most fascinating was that the timbers used in the building where salvaged from two ships HMS Impregnable and HMS Hindustan. Imagine that! Talk about recycling.

The store was the creation of Arthur Liberty started in 1875 and stands where it has always stood. Definately worth a visit if you are in London.

Hello!....London

THE URBAN CRAFT STARS

FLOCK & ROCK AT LONDON’S CARNABY STREET

The ‘Nu-Craft’ movement hits London’s West End for the first time. Kingly Court, Carnaby Street will be hosting a showcase of British designer-makers who will be displaying and selling their own, hand-crafted and vintage-inspired designs in the ‘Urban Craft Stars’ pop-up shop.

The craft look is definitely back in fashion and in the current credit crunch many consumers are moving from mass-produced and ikea to a locally created and hand-made aesthetic when it comes to interiors and original gift items.

The Urban Craft Stars will be ‘popping up’ for a limited period only (till 31^st August) but all the designers are also available through online craft hub etsy - where they met and the idea was first seeded by organiser and littlechook founder Karin Duguid - or through their own websites.

Everything from furniture recycled from old tube maps to organic printed kid’s tee shirts, funky hand-knitted scarves, photography and pretty leather purses will be available to buy at competitive prices.

Carnaby Street is best known for swinging sixties fashion but Kingly Court just off the main thoroughfare has been cultivating smaller labels and vintage boutiques for over 10 years and now hosts some of the best original design talent in London.

Urban Craft Stars, 1.4 Kingly Court, Carnaby, London W1

The shop is open daily from 11am – 7pm, Monday to Sunday

See www.carnaby.co.uk for further directions

And the ‘stars’ are:

Littlechook
www.littlechook.co.uk

Urbanknit
www.urbanknit.com

Peppermint Twist
www.pepperminttwist.co.uk

My mum’s a hippie
www.myspace.com/mymumsahippie

Bombus
www.bombus.co.uk

Ryokan Art
tel: 07974 319 488
e-mail: tim@morue.co.uk

We Make London

Join us on the 22nd of June this summer for a chance to lay your hands on some handmade art, accessories, jewellery and a lot more.

Date: Sunday 22nd June 2008
Time: 11.00am – 17.00pm
Where: Dragon Hall, 17 Stukeley Street, London, WC2B 5LT
Entrance: free
Nearest tube: Holborn, Covent Garden

Check out the We Make London blog for more details.

I'll be taking part so see you there!

London

My current abode... There is so much to say about London, so I won't! Not enough space really. Plus there is so much on the internet and better still, you can visit it to get the real flavour.

There is one thing I do find interesting, and that is how a graphic representation can contain so much information and at the same time be so simple yet iconic.

The London tube (equivalent of a subway) map captures this idea. With each colour representing a line and the circles showing where lines meet, and the interesting station names which in themselves have so much history.

Whats your favourite stop? No you can't chose Notting Hill.... just joking. Or is there anything in the city or country that you live in that captures the spirit? Please share!

Carnival

'an occasion or period of public enjoyment and merrymaking with eating, dancing, drinking and often processions and shows held especially in Roman Catholic countries in the weeks before lent'

The Notting Hill Carnival is a street carnival held annually in the Notting Hill area of London and has been going since 1965. It is the second largest in the world. This year it was on the 25th and 26th of August. Sunday for the children and Monday for the main event.

The carnival has steelbands competing against one another, sound systems which are static each playing their own music ranging from drum and bass, to hip hop, r&b, electronica etc, the masqueraded processions and of course the soca and calypso vibe constantly in the air.

Notting Hill Carnival 2007 Facts and Figures
2,000,000 visitors over the weekend.
3.5 miles long route
70 performing units comprised of mas bands and mobile DJs and 16 steelbands
41 static sound systems within the carnival area.
16,000 different records played

300 food stalls
50,000 active participants.
15,000 costumes.
150,000 feather plumes.
30 million sequins.
100 litres of decorative body paint.
1 million hours go into making and decorating the costumes.

5 tons of chicken eaten
30,000 corn on the cobs
15,000 deep-fried plantains
1 tons of rice and peas
1 tons of Jamaican patties
12,000 mangoes
16,000 coconuts
5 million hot and cold drinks
10,000 litres of Jamaican stout
25,000 bottles of rum
70,000 litres of carrot juice

I live within the 'carnival zone' so I have been immersed in the build up and the actual festivities. I was at first sceptical about the invasion, noise and mayhem. (the police helicopter is still flying overhead and its nearly 11pm)

It was great. Very fascinating to see the preparations come together and the floats, food, music were really super.

Naturally, it is impossible to capture the smell of the food and the booming bass from the sound systems in images. It is definitely more experiential...The most enjoyable thing about this years carnival which is probably true for most carnivals is the atmosphere which is constantly palpable. The weather has been just perfect over the long weekend and it was so nice to see the variety of people old, young, tall, short, shy, exuberant, locals, tourists everyone really looked like they were having a great time. Complete strangers chatting to each other and having fun with no holds barred. Great. Even as tired as the performers were after dancing all weekend they were still smiling as posing with people who wanted their pictures taken with the costumes.

We were lucky enough to get some really good viewing points so I didn't want to waste the opportunity by constantly reducing the view by looking through a camera! I am also sure that there are thousands of images in the internet so I won't overdo it.

I have to say I actually enjoyed watching the whole process and the sheer amount of organisation and time and planning that must have gone in are really commendable. Not only that the people take part in the actual bands and floats who would have been preparing since last years carnival but also the police, fire, cleaning and ambulance services that were setup to make sure everyone had a good time. The sheer amount of rubbish on the streets is crazy (and quite revolting) but by the morning every last bit had been cleared up. now that is applaudable.

Lastly, it was interesting to see how the businesses in the area prepared. About 80% of these had their windows and store fronts boarded up since Saturday morning. Most were just regular chipboard sheets nailed up which eventually got covered in posters and graffiti as the weekend progressed. Others added a little more of a touch by using their logos or corporate colours.

hopefully, next time I'll be talking about the mother of all carnivals... the rio carnival! one can dream....see ya!

ps. freya, sarah and stav, hope you had a good time!