William Gibson’s new book Zero History came out a few days ago. It’s a taut thriller about information and the power of design, and fetishises a designer who uses deadstock fabric, of a quality impossible to find new, to make clothing with shapes inspired by the golden age of workwear. The designer doesn’t release in [...]
Entries Tagged as 'shopping'
Village typography
July 9th, 2010 1 Comment
Gareth Wild and Michelle Thompson are an East Anglian graphic designer and illustrator, who live on the web at 59highstreet.com. They’ve come up with a way to commemorate the beautiful old village signs that are slowly disappearing from our lanes and hedgerows.
There’s such music in those village names. Ickleton. Elsenham. Sewards End.
Now you can own [...]
Local food in Cambridge
June 18th, 2009 No Comments
Origin8 in Cambridge is a deli and cafe with a mission to to stock only food and drink produced in East Anglia, covering about the same area as this blog. They’ve been very energetic in their sourcing and despite the eyewateringly trendy name it’s a joy to visit. I stopped in and was struck by [...]
Tags: cafe · food miles · local food · norfolk and suffolk cheese · origin8 · place to eat in cambridge
A local show for local people
May 20th, 2009 No Comments
The Cambridgeshire County Show is coming up on 31st May at Wimpole – it’s an agricultural show of the old school. I grew up in the Yorkshire Dales (James Herriot country), where agricultural shows were a major form of summer entertainment. Two of my favourite events from the Dales – sheepdog trials and fell racing [...]
Tags: agricultural show · cambridgeshire county show · east anglia · livestock · morris dancing · wimpole · young farmers
Norfolk Open Studios
May 11th, 2009 No Comments
All over Norfolk artists are cleaning up their studios and finishing work in preparation for Norfolk Open Studios which runs 16 – 31st May. More than 250 artists all across the county are taking part, from Downham Market in the West to Great Yarmouth in the East and Wells to Diss on the north south [...]
Tags: art · art shopping · artists · ceramics · craft · downham market · norfolk open studios · norwich · painting · photography · sculpture · studio visits
Beth Morrison
May 6th, 2009 3 Comments
Beth Morrison is an artist living on the North Norfolk Coast who paints cheerful, evocative scenes of seaside life and the characters around her. Her dogs have an agenda, her little old ladies and small children have a life and character of their own – the way the paintings are made, in stages, they are [...]
Tags: beach · beth morrisson · circus · drawing · east anglia · jewellery · little old ladies · norfolk · painting
Old Town
March 23rd, 2009 2 Comments
If you stand and listen in the Old Town showroom in Holt, Norfolk, you hear the ticking of the clock and the sound of the sewing machine upstairs, making garments from traditional, hardwearing materials. There is no sleepy electronic beeping or the soft hum of computer fans that we tend to take for granted.
The list [...]
Tags: clothing · corduroy · fabric · harris tweed · holt · norfolk · north norfolk · nostalgia · old town · play · seamstresses · seaside · tradition · workwear
All the toys you can shake a stick at
March 16th, 2009 2 Comments
This Thursday there is a very special auction happening at Keys auction house in Aylesham, Norfolk. A stonking collection of automata, robots, toys. Browsing the catalogue it seems that everything that moves by itself is worthy of inclusion.
I’m a sucker for both auctions and toys with interesting or quizzical expressions on their faces – bringing [...]
Tags: auction · automata · aylesham · east anglia · east of england · flatlanders · games · norfolk · robots · sale · toy collection · toys
A motherlode of beautiful furniture
January 28th, 2009 1 Comment
This weekend is the monthly auction at Willingham, a small village northwest of Cambridge.
The auction house is a series of beautiful old brick barns, set around a gravelled courtyard, and to me it beats shopping on Ebay hands down, especially for furniture.
Auctions are held on Saturdays and the drill is that if you arrive at [...]
Tags: auction · edwardian · furniture · georgian · retro · victorian · vintage · willingham · willingham auctions