An alternative textile tour of London
Time out - day trip to the big smoke
8 November 2016
It's been full on in the studio and in the day job and there are family stresses to keep my grey matter churning and provide a lure to the dreaded Insomnia - and on top of that Gaz, my old dog is, I fear, sliding slightly disgracefully ( well it is Gaz, otherwise known as "Asbo Dog" and for good reason) into the twilight of his days.
So, no excuse needed to grab a bit of time and head down to the big smoke to catch up with Son No 1 and partner.
A beautiful Autumn sunny morning - very chillsome but bright. The train was packed! Why are so many people heading into London on a Sunday morning? The Arsenal shirts were a bit of a give away - a home game I am guessing, and like most Premier League teams, I'm also guessing that most of their supporters don't live within walking distance of the ground.
It's amazing, but as I gazed out of the train Windows I realised that most of the fields, far from being brown after harvest and shutting down for winter, were already shimmering with new green shoots - Autumn planting. Anyone know anything about farming? What is planted in Autumn?
By Hemel Hempstead the train was jammed - sardines springs to mind - and the sky was beginning to fill with ominous thundery grey clouds. (In fact, by the end if the day it was raining, but there's lot to tell you in the meantime.)
First up, brunch in Soho.
Princi in Wardour Street. Chaotic service but delicious scrambled eggs and coffee. It was packed and as we left the clientele was beginning to change over to lunchtime pizzas.
It was good - not a destination, bucket list, "somewhere I should go before I die" sort of place, but good if you're in Soho and in need of breakfast. (For a bucket list breakfast you can't beat The Wolsey on Piccadilly, if you're wondering).
Next up Christie's in St James.
Now a high end art auction house is not my usual hang out, it should be said. But the reason for popping in was the BFC/Fashion Arts Foundation and Royal Academy of Arts fashion arts commissions pairing four fashion designers and visual artists to collaborate across art forms.
The resulting works are on display at Christie's galleries in St James until 11th November after which they will be auctioned off.
And one installation is a collaboration between Kit Neale and the sculptor Jonathan Trayte - a fully functioning cafe with free coffee and cake. The installation is called Milk.
It was not busy. Sunday and St James is not really a throbbing London hub. It comes to life during the week and I saw pics from earlier in the week when it was really busy.
I just loved the quirky furniture.
And the stone and marble table tops.
Some of the furniture has light fittings incorporated into it.
This rather industrial installation was by Agi and Sam and Joe Fraser. In truth I could not really relate to this, or indeed the tree.
And then on the way out I spotted this little pair of figures "Maquette VIII The Watchers V" by Lynne Chadwicke.
And then we meandered up to Mayfair.
We cut up through Burlington Arcade - the Lalique shop caught my eye. Look at that vase!
And the Jimmy Choo shop window - a vertical table top. (Difficult to see, but that's supposed to be a pile of little macaroons in the bottom).
And then into Sotheby's to see the collection of art belonging to David Bowie that is being auctioned.
Sotheby's was heaving. I'm not sure they quite realised what a visitor attraction they had unleashed. It was so busy it was difficult to see much of the work.
A few highlights.
This Cornish harbour by Bryan Wynter.
A stoneware vase by Bernard a Leach.
"Fatherland" by Ken Currie - a mixed media painting on a map of Bosnia. The estimate on this was almost affordable. Ken Currie is still alive.
Below, I loved this print by Wyndham Lewis.
And finally there were a couple of huge paintings by John Bellamy. I could not photograph the whole thing so the images below are details from either end of a rather powerful triptych.
There was lots more - it was just too crowded to appreciate properly and certainly too crowded to photograph.
One thing that did occur - My Bowie must have had a lot of wall space to enjoy his art collection. He really did have a lot of art work.
Another alternative tour of London.
14 January 2013
More ideas for an alternative textile trip to London!
You may recall that some while ago I posted several blogs about my textile orientated wanderings around the heady delights of Soho.
Well I was recently running around for Son No 1 again, but this time I was headed for the Goldhawk Road in Shepherds bush.
Now, the Goldhawk Road isn't pretty and it's not very convenient (you can just pop to Soho, but you have to schlep west to Shepherds Bush) but it is worth a visit. All the shops, and there are lots of them and in the very small stretch of road between the Green and Goldhawk Road tube station (with a few also dotted down the Market, but I did not have time to explore those).
The outside of many of the shops suggest sari fabric, but that's just the glitz and glamour to get you in. And they do vary (both in terms of stock and size) but they are definately worth a visit.
You may recall that some while ago I posted several blogs about my textile orientated wanderings around the heady delights of Soho.
Well I was recently running around for Son No 1 again, but this time I was headed for the Goldhawk Road in Shepherds bush.
Now, the Goldhawk Road isn't pretty and it's not very convenient (you can just pop to Soho, but you have to schlep west to Shepherds Bush) but it is worth a visit. All the shops, and there are lots of them and in the very small stretch of road between the Green and Goldhawk Road tube station (with a few also dotted down the Market, but I did not have time to explore those).
The outside of many of the shops suggest sari fabric, but that's just the glitz and glamour to get you in. And they do vary (both in terms of stock and size) but they are definately worth a visit.
An alternative textile tour of London – part 3
8 July 2011
And so back to Soho for the final part of the alternative tour.
This time to a wonderful haberdashers - Kleins - a haberdashery emporium tucked just off Berwick Street at no 5 Noel Street. Unfortunately the lorry rather spoils the view in the picture.
Unlike my previous entries on the Alternative Textile Tour I cannot find any history of Kleins. I suspect, though, like DM Buttons, they have been there a while.
The shop, which only opens during the week (don't go on a Saturday) is so well stocked that it is not really a place to go and browse. I suggest you would need to have a fair idea of what you want before turning up. Apparently they carry a very large stock of zips and they also have bag and purse handles.
Take a look at their website to see what they have and you can order over the web too.
That is the end of my 'alternative tour' - well for now anyway. Soho is great and always worth a visit in my view. If you do go there, remember to stop at Berwick Street.
This time to a wonderful haberdashers - Kleins - a haberdashery emporium tucked just off Berwick Street at no 5 Noel Street. Unfortunately the lorry rather spoils the view in the picture.
Unlike my previous entries on the Alternative Textile Tour I cannot find any history of Kleins. I suspect, though, like DM Buttons, they have been there a while.
The shop, which only opens during the week (don't go on a Saturday) is so well stocked that it is not really a place to go and browse. I suggest you would need to have a fair idea of what you want before turning up. Apparently they carry a very large stock of zips and they also have bag and purse handles.
Take a look at their website to see what they have and you can order over the web too.
That is the end of my 'alternative tour' - well for now anyway. Soho is great and always worth a visit in my view. If you do go there, remember to stop at Berwick Street.
An alternative textile tour of London – part 2
6 July 2011
A bit of web research tells me that it was Mrs. Kathleen Cythia Frith (nee Henderson) better known throughout her life as “Toni” who was the founder and inspiration behind “The Button Queen“, a little jewel of a shop in Marylebone lane, just north of Oxford Street, behind John Lewis.
She started by selling general antiques, first of all from a shop at the bottom of Camberwell Grove in South London, and later Bermondsey Market on Fridays and the Red Lion Market in Portobello Rd. on Saturdays.
She used public transport to get aroung and because her stock had to be carried on buses she quickly geared her trade around smaller items. Apparently she had studied costume at Goldsmith’s College (also in South London), so focussed on buying jewellery, costume and buttons. .
Towards the end of the 1960’s, just as Carnaby Street took off. Toni took a tiny shop at 1 Marlborough Court, just off Carnaby St. The space, 8ft x 5ft, had been a shoe repairer’s. After some years, she outgrew the space and moved to Saint Christopher’s Place, just north of Oxford Street, and nine years after that to 19 Marylebone Lane, just the other side of Wigmore St.
This was where I first came across the Button Queen, some thirty years ago when I used to make regular trips to the Westminster rent records office for my employers. It was a funny shop as it was on the apex of a triangle.
Toni Frith retired some years ago, and became a “dog walking” a volunteer for “The Friends of Animals League” at foal farm, Biggin Hill. Later she became secretary and trustee for the charity. She was obviously my kind of gal!!
Her son Martyn carried forward “The Button Queen” business, moving it to new premises, just across the road from the triangular site at 76 Marylebone Lane, which is now being re-developed.
It is a very friendly shop - not at all intimidating. There is not a lot of floor space so the buttons are ‘displayed’ in turquoise velvet covered folders and when you have selected the button of choice it is fetched from the stock at the back of the shop.
I was on a mission, so did not have time to browse at leisure. I had to buy some beautiful shell buttons for shirts. But if you are ever in the area it is worth popping in and having a browse and I suspect you will not come away empty handed!
An alternative textile tour of London – part 1
1 July 2011
On the hottest day of the year, I was to be found traipsing round the west end of London for son No 1. It was a bit of an ‘alternative’ tour and I thought it worth sharing.
I started off in Berwick Mews just off Berwick Street, Soho – the location of DM Buttons.
Now we only tend to think of Soho as home to sex shops and other dodgy goings on, but believe me, Berwick Street is a textile hub. When I first knew it in the 1980s it was a textile haven. It did decline, but I get the impression that it may be on the up again and does have a small street market.
I understand that as well as the shops, Soho was also once home to many specialist trades, now sadly declined, and it is possible that DM Buttons is one of the few that is hanging on. You have to go to the bottom of Berwick Mews, D'Arblay Street ( not particularly glamorous) through an unprepossessing door and down some rickety steps into what was a very cool basement. Trust me, on Monday, just being in the basement was a huge relief.
I believe from a bit of web research that DM Buttons has been trading out of the same building for nearly 100 years ago. The sole proprietor is David Miller, who took over the business from his father, who took over from his great aunt. Apparently, Mr Miller senior was originally a hat maker, working in the same building with his grandfather. As well as proprietor, Mr Miller is also the ‘worker’ and when I arrived was sat at a machine in the corner making fabric covered cufflinks. (Apparently they supply a west end shop with these). The basement, which is not very large, has a number of different button hole and riveting machines – some of them looking pretty antique as well – and it all felt a bit ‘Harry Potter’
If you have ever sewn a button hole on a domestic sewing machine, you will know how long it can take and how frustrating it can be. It takes me ages just to do a row of button holes on the front of a shirt. And of course a domestic machine will struggle with thick materials.
DM Button’s special machines do this in the flash of an eye. I had two jackets which needed button holes and we had marked up the fabric on the wrong side. So while I was faffing about with some tailors chalk, Mr Miller (who had rolled his eyes as I staggered into the room thinking ‘we have a right one here!’), did the button holes in the two canvas shirts I had with me, tended to two other customers who came down and did the button holes in another shirt. I ear wigged one of the conversations and understand that he can work on any kind of garment fastening: buttons, poppers, rivets, eyelets, etc.
If you do call, it needs to be early morning – their opening hours are 7.30am to 3pm.
Apparently DM Button’s work features on stage in just about every West End show there is, plus operas and feature films. What is also great is to know that the business (whether by luck or design) ensures the continuation of the trade by linking to some of the UK’s best known art and fashion colleges. I was carrying work by students from Ravensbourne, but fashion and textile Students from all the fashion colleges apparently come to DM Buttons for help and advice in completing their graduation projects. Bruce Oldfield and Lee (Alexander) McQueen apparently first visited when they were originally college students and their design houses still use DM Buttons for their special requirements.
So, if you have a lot of button holes to do you might want to consider using DM Buttons. Mr Miller did the button holes while I was there and I did not have to wait. I guess that at certain times it can be very busy (running up to London Fashion Week for instance) so it might be worth phoning first. I don't know if you can send stuff in - you would have to ask. They also do specialist cover buttons - you can have buttons made in your own fabric.
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