26 June 2009

Summer Mayhem @ Serpentine

Its that time of year again. The Sun is out. That's with a capital S, to stress that when the sun is here, London celebrates. Regent Park holds food tasting carnivals, the Glastonbury festival begins, Somerset house screens outdoor movies at night, everywhere you look people are dressed to the minimal sitting outside pubs and stoops and tanning in the park. Even galleries tailor their programs to the sun, including the Serpentine Gallery in the heart of Hyde Park which commissions renowned architects to design their summer pavilion.

The Serpentine's architectural pavillion program is the most ambitious project of its kind. The pavillion usually contains a cafe and audotiruim where performances, talks, films and screenings can take place through out the summer.

In '06 it was designed by Koolhass and Cecil Balmond (jelly fish bubble design) where I went to see Muicha Prada discuss her latest projects with Koolhass. In '08 it was designed by Frank Gehry (will post pics soon as I need to hunt for them in my messy hard drive) and in '07 the pavillion was designed by Olafur Elliason and Kjetil Thorsen. Here are some of my images of the pavillion. It was so hard to photograph because were so many angles, terraces, balconies, and ramps but I tried my best.

A lil bit about the design: This timberclad structure resembles a spinning top and brings a dramatic vertical dimension to the traditional single-level pavilion. A wide spiralling ramp makes two complete turns, allowing visitors to ascend from the Gallery lawn to the highest point for views across Kensington Gardens as well as a bird’s eye view of the chamber below.














25 June 2009

Highlights from the Branding Museum

Going over my twit posts I can't help but notice I've shoved Notting Hill, my new area, in every twit update. And as much as I want to stop Not-Hilling every situation I'm in, this is still a new exciting unexplored town in my London map. There are still so many pizzerias to discover, so many mocha's to taste, so many streets to get lost in. I've moved into N-hill a few months ago but I would never have guessed that a mere 2 minute walk away lay a Branding Museum. A hop and skip away my place lay a place dedicated to the package and the brand and the cream of the crop was finding Temperley's studio/showroom right next door.

I simply had to check this museum out. Which I did. And loved. In the dim museum was an archive of packaged toys, vintage candy bar wrappers, boxy cleaning products, classic bottled drinks and everything else from mickey mouse toys to .. gas masks. The branding museum is a quirky and cozy space definitely worth a visit after some brunch in Tom's Kitchen.

Sweet street where Temperley and Museum of Brands are located




How hard must have it been playing with these rackets?

Longest ad ever for indian curry.


I really think the Maltesers packaging should make a comeback.




What is mock turtle soup ? Scary.


Tony was skinnier.



22 June 2009

Katie Carter Fashion Diary

I met the lovely Katie Carter outside the Armand Basi One show at London Fashion week where she looked stunning ! I simply had to snap her for my LFW street style blog diary. After spotting her around a few more shows I asked her to keep a clothes diary of herself for a week, documenating what she was wearing and where she was wearing it. Katie being the wonderful bubbly person she was, agreed and I recieved a string of emails not too long ago with a full account of her inspirational style. Katie, I love you + I'll be seeing in Brick Lane on the Sunday !



My first pic is me ...
a la fashion week...
got a leopard jacket bought in Leeds at a vintage warehouse... that was back in the day when it was still cheap to buy vintage and the shirt is from Zara..
my cordroys are h&m and the second red zebra jacket was in the hot hot topshop sale, bit of a bargain!!!
my winkle pickers were from a 60s shop in the merrion center in Leeds and the giant dickie bow is a pass me down from the grandma, my eccentric nan!!! hahaha...

and as always ive accessorized with my standard silver jewelery!!!all collected from antique shops and the rest presents!!

2nd pic...
Its a nice weekend visit to sunny Brighton, one of my Bestys lives there...
here i am with a dolphin bin, novel i know!!hahaha

I'm wearing some red skinny cheap Monday jeans and a snood (which i'm told is a scarf n hat hybrid...mmm nice) was 70p from a Brighton charity shop...my jacket was from a charity shop in Harrogate north Yorkshire....good tip is get to the north for charity buys they still know the price of a pound and everything is fabulously original and kitsch....my bag again is a charity shop buy, a brilliant bright weekend bag!!!

the shoes make another appearance here again ...the tiger winkle pickers!!!grrrrrr
3rd pic.....
A night up north in Leeds at 'the faversham'
it was a kinda girls sexy night out, underwear at the ready...
a h&m underwear basque was my ammunition!
a pair of vintage leggings and a studded I'll belt number from the heavenly place that is Tkmaxx!!
7.99!

the boots have a fluffy trim and were vintage too!!
OK so to be continued with more pics....
xxxx
4th pic....
This is a night in London at the club Heaven...it was a fab night organized by Ponystep...'kitsune and maison'

Here i decide to go for my neon name leggings bought from Erpisode on Camden high street....teamed with a very tacky but adorable Moschino bumbag!!yesssss!! always the best for a night out, u can always be safe in knowing once its attached you aint never guna loose it!!!
the marabou feather jacket is from my mums bridal accessory company...which recently Britney's stylist ordered 7 of them for the circus tour so that's my new claim to fame!! hahaha... 'i have Britney's jacket'

the corsage again is from episode in Camden and the lace fingerless gloves were a vintage find from Leeds!!!
5th pic...
Here its 'the grinch' aka me!!!
I'm wearing gold leggings from Topshop... the shirt is from a charity shop in Windsor....jacket was from a vintage shop i worked in back up north...
u can sneakily just about see a scorpion clasped belt that's also vintage....and the scarf is from a remnant bin in a fabric wholesaler...

Meeerrrry Christmas!!!
6th pic....
Times are hard in this pic...its selling day on brick lane!!!
me and the gang decide to make some quick money on a rug....
I'm wearing a pajama top, and a very sparkly jacket from an archway charty shop...bless the lady she sold it for £6.00 as that's all i had and she said 'you have to have it, it suits you sooo much'...
the wet look leggings are a tkmaxx finest again and the Chelsea boots are a £3.00 bargain from up north!!!
equipt with some robocop style sunglasses we spent the day swigging cherry lambrini and made £40.00!! Brilliant!!
7th pic......
This is me at the first 'smash and grab' night in Camdens proud gallery!!!

The leggings were from tkmaxx and the boots are the bargain ones again from up north...i visited topshops most recent sale and bagged the polka dot cropped vest for £7.00 and the lips well they just came with the drink!!!
8th pic.....
This is the aftermath from the Camden crawl....
I decide to steal a pram...kids don't worry there was no baby harmed in this adventure!!!
Here i'm wearing matalan leggings which gained a lot more holes in them during the evening!!!the shirt was bought from a girl on bricklane the Friday night live t-shirt was a vintage bargain, been worn so many times its now Grey rather than black...the hoody is a basic at h&m...always good for the festival season and the hair scarf was in a bargain bin in Camdens best vintage shop 'episode' £1 !!!
and what best footwear to prance around the night in....some chuck taylor converse!! the pram was found somewhere between chalk farm and Camden tube!!
9th pic....
Ok here's the scary one...the day me and my friend Chris went to find the murderer Dennis Nielsons house in musswell hill...Cranley gardens!!!
here i am in an old mens primark t-shirt very worn! my cheap Mondays, a sun bleached denim jacket with a million badges thrown on it...all collected by me!! the moccasins were a sale buy on urban outfitters web page! and the hair band again from a bargain bin...
I scared myself silly that day, never befriend someone who studied criminology they'll have u trapesing round every where!!! SSCCAARRRYYY!!!
10th pic....
The camden crawl again here...or as we renamed it the camden queue!!!! mannn we queued forever!!!!
here i'm rockin a Chicago windy city t-shirt, cant quite remember where this was from i think a charity shop but who knows...the coral leggings, were from Topshop sale £10...they stayed that color even on the evening...getting lost in them was impossible...the hat was from a community store up north which i love...i go there every time im back home this barber style hat was only 75p...WWAaatt!!! the shirt is Armani and found on a charity shop rail....the Sainsburys bag was full of the booze!!! i thought i better get the pic taken before the bottles were cracked open...hahaha
11th pic....
This is me outside the 02 arena about to see girls aloud...woop woop!!!
I'm wearing a neon orange swimsuit £1.50 from a charity shop and a sale buy from h&m..that awesome tuxedo white jacket!!! it was only £15!!!...the Moschino bumbag strikes again here....and so does the wet look leggings, and bargain boots!!
the chain round my neck is a bodge makeshift from bag chains safety pins and found gold objects!! girls aloud were ammmazzzin!!! although there washboard stomachs made me never want to eat fast food again!!! sob!!
12th pic....
Ok so this is when my lovely mum came down from Leeds for a fabby weekend....we skirted around London's west end and then spent the Sunday in Brighton, went game playing and candyfloss eating on Brighton pier!!!
here i am in my moschino leggings darling, hahahaaa totally ab fab stylee!!! a vest top from h&m, a tailed coat from the topshop sale again and a 50p chanel esqe quilted bag from up north charity shop!!!....i went for the brightest barryM lippy i could find that weekend!!!...the hat brooch and the belt are all cheapy vintage finds and things i've had in my collections for years....and no i didn't go on the helter skelter!! i saved that for me mum...hahahaha...

21 June 2009

We Make Magazines

I am ashamed of my blogger self. This post has been in the works for some time now and I haven't actually had time to sit and look over my notes and share with you all the good stuff from the We Make Magazines seminar I attended at the Portfolios last weekend. The seminar was truly a celebration of independent publishing with three editors sharing their experiences of self publishing. Attempting to be a mini editor myself I was thrilled to hear the stories of Danny Miller from Little White Lies, Karen Lubbock from Karen Magazine, and Becky Smith editor of Lula magazine who was s surprise speaker. Chaired by the brilliant Jeremy Leslie the editors all presented a slide show of their magazines and briefly talked us through how/why they started the magazine, how they make layout+ content decisions, and what being independent publishers meant to them. At the end of the seminar I was in awe of these editors who had the courage to follow passions and create something spectacular.

Now for those of you who weren't able to attend the event, I managed to get a hold of both Danny and Karen for mini-interviews and they touched up on topics discussed at the seminar.

Little White Lies is Danny Miller's labor of love project. The magazine is a bi-monthly, movie magazine that features cutting edge writing, illustration and photography to get under the skin of cinema. They also venture beyond the boundaries movies, exploring the worlds of music, art, politics and pop culture through connected themes of cinema and film. They are now on their 23rd issue.

Some interesting info Danny shared with us on the day of the seminar: Took control of school magazine+college magazine/He knew at a very young age that all he wanted to do is design magazines/Worked for a year on Adrenaline magazine/Would show up on their doorstep and try to get involved and help out with Adrenaline whenever he could/ Learned about themes from Adrenaline where each issue was based on a metaphysical theme like speed or California/Process of launching a mag included striking a deal with distributors, making a dummy issue, creating a media pack/Launched the magazine with no money in his kitchen/Collaborate with companies and individuals on design projects to celebrate an issue of LWL has evolved into more than a magazine and acts as a design agency too on many projects to keep alive and innovative

Fashion Ambition: When did you start Little White Lies?

Danny: We started work on it late 2004, and issue one came out March 2005.

FA: Why did you want to start your own magazine?

Danny: To tell our thoughts and opinions to anyone who'd listen, but also because we simply love magazines.
FA: What is the inspiration behind the concept?
Danny: Films - and their richness, beauty and variety. They deserve in depth discussion and dissection.

FA: How did you fund your magazine?

Danny: Out of our own pockets, and by getting into debt.
FA: What is your process of completing an issue, from sketch to finish?
Danny: It's pretty methodical these days, and everything is done very intuitively. We've finely crafted the process, from early meetings through to the late nights that see us through final production and design of the issue.

FA: What is a typical day in the life of Danny consist of ?
Danny: Writing and answering hundreds of emails. Going to a couple of meetings. Staring at various boring looking financial documents.
FA: Where does your magazine take life? At your home, in the office?
Danny: Very much in the office.

FA: Do you look up to any editors or mentors?

Danny: There are a few I worked with, for sure. I've been very lucky to have learnt from solid people.
FA: Do you have a support group, who are they and how have they supported you?
Danny: All of my friends and colleagues here at LWL are my support group, because we all fully understand the feelings and difficulties you come into contact with when doing something of your own.

FA:Where do you see Little White Lies in the future? 10 years from now?
Danny: I see it still around, and very very similar to how it is now. It won't be some big glossy mag or nuffink.
FA: Any advice for upcoming editors and independent publishers?
Danny: Look and learn. Research other mags as much as you can and when you've done that and you understand how things work, put them all to one side and get started doing your own thing.

FA:What should independent publishers avoid doing?

Danny: Being too hasty. Flogging a dead horse.
FA:What should they more of?
Danny: Not sure what this question means, sorry!

FA:Final thought.
Danny: Be patient, and be nice.
Karen magazine is an extraordinary ordinary magazine that celebrates/documents/showcases everyday life. Karen's aim was to make work involving conversations with people in her community, with the invisible, and with herself. Karen covers a lot of what was discussed at the seminar in our interview but I found her to be of great character and individuality. And she gave us a few good laughs with her.
Fashion Ambition: When did you start Karen?
Karen: 2003

FA: Why did you want to start your own magazine?
Karen: In 2003 I started to make it. I am interested and have studied and researched how celebrity and Œthe ordinary are mediated. At this time the saturation of Celebrity was growing, as was that of reality media. I wanted to make work composed entirely from moments from ordinary day to day life as it happens, with no re-touching! To use the form of a magazine which is itself part of the everyday to display and communicate moments of interaction and shared experience. To communicate a quiet pleasure in the shared experience of ordinary human existence. To produce a magazine that through design and selection of content and indeed all visual components embodied these intentions. To create this was not without risk. Why include for example a conversation about bunions or mole catching, or about the local butcher and think that another person would want to read about it? But I absolutely believed in the work. Trust and dignity are strong themes.

FA: What is the inspiration behind the concept?

Karen: They still are, the people that are in my life, and come into my life. Numerous practitioners. My local gazette newsletter (I live in a village) which contains lots of small details about what's going on and who's doing what.

FA: How did you fund your magazine?

Karen: I fund it.
FA: What is your process of completing an issue, from sketch to finish?
Karen: I collect, write, photograph, collect, photograph, write, design, edit, design, edit, publish.

FA: What is a typical day in the life of Karen consist of ?

Karen: There is no typical day. Everyday is a mixed bag. Conversations, sounds, listening, speaking, brushing teeth, having a wash, staring at nothing, smiling, washing and combing hair, feeding the cat, earning some money, walking somewhere, eating, celebrating, treating; I could go on the ordinary days are so full.

FA: Where does your magazine take life? At your home, in the office?

Karen: I make my mag at home. But I collect the work where ever I am physically. On your agenda at the moment.. Sweets, old ladies, dentists, baby food, cats, I could go on!
FA: Do you look up to any editors or mentors?
Karen: There are many artists and designers who work/have worked with the vernacular of the everyday but with their own particular focus of interest and/or medium of communication. I admire any one who makes work.

FA:Do you have a support group, who are they and how have they supported you ?

Karen: Not exactly. I have a partner, family, some friends, some readers. They listen, suggest, support the work, and believe in the work and me.
FA: Where do you see Karen in the future? 10 years from now?
Karen: Brushing it's teeth and getting ready for another day. I will have developed other work in the style of Karen, In fact I am working on a new project now.

FA: Any advice for upcoming editors and independent publishers?
Karen: I guess be clear about what you are doing, why you are doing it, who will read it and how will you get it out in to the world. And who's financing it and for how long? How will you publicize the work and sustain this? If you are a team, establish who owns the work and maybe get something legal down on paper.
FA: What should independent publishers avoid doing?
Karen: Making something that already exists. Immediately really think about who would read your work. I would advise don't over - design. I wouldn't take out a loan to pay the print bill!

FA: What should they more of?
Karen: Specialist independent titles that have a relevance to a reader.