Fabric Shopping in Amsterdam*

I love London, but every now and then you feel a bit worn out by it. Mr Needles and I were feeling this way recently, so we went on a little break to Amsterdam.

I hadn't been to this city for at least 16 years, when I was a student on a budget, so I was curious to see if it had changed, and if I would enjoy it. And of course, I had to see if there was any fabric to buy!

We stayed not far from and area called De Pijp ('the pipe'?), which is centred around a big street market on Albert Cuypstraat.

Tucked among the pickled herring stalls, a few vintage clothes shops, football paraphernalia, and the obligatory Bob Marley/marijuana leaf flags, there were some great fabric shops, and one of the best haberdashery shops I've ever been to, called Jan:

It had everything! Need feathers? They had every colour and size. Buttons? Too many to choose from! Bag handles, embroidered motifs, tons of zips, beads, yarn - I didn't really know where to start, as I didn't have a specific project I was working on. But I did buy this claw thing, which I'll make into a necklace, for about 2 euros:

 Mr Needles even got swept up in the excitement, and found this coin thing, which he's been wearing as a medallion:

There were also a number of fabric stalls, which I neglected to take any pictures of, but they were all pretty good, with a wide range of specialist and everyday fabrics, as well as some interiors fabrics. It was among a selection of said fabrics I found this for about 6.99 euros/metre:

It's like one of those t-shirts - 'I went all the way to Amsterdam, and all I got was this lousy London fabric'. But it's far from lousy, and I think it will make a great pencil skirt.

Other than that, Amsterdam was a great fun, and a nice respite from the hustle and bustle of London.

Here are some other facts about the city, the result of my not very reliable research -

They like cheese. A LOT:

Bikes are the dominant form of transport. This is rush hour:

If you like cats, you're in luck, as most cafes seem to have them, and they're very friendly, to the point of pushy:

But I think this one had been smoking:

*And speaking of smoking, the title of this blog is not a euphemism for buying funny cigarettes - I can't stand the stuff!

The city is beautiful. You turn a corner and are confronted with storybook scenes on a regular basis:

Heinekin is more popular than water:

The most succesful Dutch artist isn't Rembrandt, but Dick Bruna, the creator of Miffy:

And you have to make the obligatory trip to the Red Light district, which seems to have been cleaned up a great deal since I was last there. It also seemed pretty small, really just a few windows around a small section of canal:

If anything, it's worth a laugh watching goggle-eyed teenage tourists (mostly boys) who don't know where to look!

And that's my far from comprehensive guide to Amsterdam. See you soon!

Fabric Shopping in Dalston

This post may not be of much interest to those who don't live in London, but there are some pretty pictures at the end, so stick with it.

I've lived in Dalston 17 years - I'm quite attached to it! I've seen it go from an undiscovered, slightly neglected little corner of East London, to the so-called 'New Notting Hill', with a new coffee bar/art gallery/cool pub opening every week. Where previously when you told someone you lived in Dalston, the reaction was usually 'Where?' or 'Ooh, it's a bit rough there'. Now it's 'I wish I could live there, but I can't afford it now that it's so cool.'

But I sort of miss the scruffy old Dalston that was here when I moved into the area in 1994. (Don't get me wrong - its got a long way to go before it's considered posh...) It worries me that all of this 'improvement' will drive out all of the things which made Dalston unique. The cheap and cheerful Turkish restaurants, the £1 jewellery stalls and cheap housewares on Ridley Rd market, and all the afro hair stores. And my favourites - the fabric shops and stalls. Normally, I like to keep all of my secret places to myself, but I'm going to share a few with you, in the hope that a few people will check them out and support them.

First, the stalls of Ridley Rd Market:

Fabric stall, Ridley Rd.

On any given day, there are at least 4 fabric stalls on the market, as well as several permanent shops, selling a variety of goods, mostly viscose and rayon, some cottons, sometimes even a bit of wool. And they're all cheap as chips! I love the 50p stall:

50p stall

 This is where I bought the fabric for my leopard dress from last Halloween. 

I also love this stall, just for it's craziness. I always find intersting buttons and trims here:

Haberdashery explosion!

A few more stalls:

But the store I seem to use the most is Dalston Mill Fabrics, which is a permanent shop at the end of the market.

Dalston Mill Fabrics, trading for over 30 years

This relatively small entrance hides an Aladdin's cave of fabrics and haberdashery. There isn't really anything they don't have, from everyday fabrics to fancy evening silks and beautiful woollens. It's not the cheapest, but the selection is brilliant. This is just 1 room:

A sneaky picture I took of the suitings room...

There's also an extensive range of haberdshery, as well as a small selection of knitting wool, beading, and embroidery supplies. They even have huge feather boas and fox furs hanging from the ceiling. Every time I visit, I go in with one idea and come out with something completely different. And they have a great selection of oil cloth's, of which this is one:

How insane is that?!

Next, another long established Dalston business - William Gee:

If you want a truly vintage experience, visit William Gee for linings, interfacing, buttons, zips, and all the paraphenalia you need for dressmaking. Established in 1906, this still has the feel of a shop from Edwardian times - you enter a somewhat bleak room with 2 long wooden counters, where you have to wait in line to be served by the next available member of staff. Everything you would ever need is stacked in neatly labelled boxes behind the counters, and unlike some stores which also sell wholesale, no request is too small. And they have some fab window displays:

A recent bias tape themed display

 That's it for my round up of Dalston's best fabric shops. if you're ever in the area to attend a Japanese Jazz workshop, or check out the latest in artistic, sustainable roof gardens, don't forget about all of these businesses that have been here through thick and thin to make Dalston what it is today.

And here are the pretty pictures I promised - rainbows over Ridley Rd Market, taken last week: