Every Wednesday 'Indie of the week' celebrates the best independent stores around. These places sell interesting and varied collections of design-related things you don't see everywhere else. They may support young or local designers or be great at finding unique things from around the world. By thinking a little more creatively about what they stock they are fighting the bland homogenisation of so much of the high street. And since I'm down with the realities of modern life, online only stores count too, because a beautiful and easy to use website is just as delightful an encounter in cyberspace.
Do you you have a favourite store? I'd love to hear from you.
The Hambledon has been described as Winchester's answer to Liberty and it's easy to see why. This urban outpost is a haven of highly covetable homeware, beauty products and fashion which have been hand-picked to fit a certain aesthetic and customer. It's the kind of place where people don't just like it, they love it.
Who are you? Victoria Suffield, owner of The Hambledon.
Where can we find you? 10 The Square, Winchester, Hampshire, SO23 9ES and online www.thehambledon.com
Describe your store in five words: Friendly, varied, inventive, funny and serious.
What makes you different? We're sort of ploughing our own furrow. We're a bit like a department store but we just sell what we like. We're obsessive about the look of shop. And we're very enthusiastic.
How you decide what makes the cut? We have to really love something. And we like to have an imaginary mood board for the season when we start buying. We then try to shoe horn things to fit our mental image. Spring is all about soft colour with flashes of neon.
What were you doing before you did this? My mum has always had a shop (The Hambledon Gallery, Dorset) so I was brought up with retail. I've worked as an art dealer, for a film company and had a mail order business but there is nothing better than good old fashioned shop keeping.
If you were starting again what advice would you give yourself? Try not to fret, don't procrastinate and buy the bloody building.
What are you most proud of? Most of the time I'm pretty proud of the shop as a whole and I work with the most lovely, lovely group of people. It's not really for me to be proud of them but I am! And we're still here, 13 years later.
Do you have a favourite thing in the store right now? Womenswear for Spring is just being delivered and it's very, very pretty. We're all looking at quite hefty personal orders!
What's hot for 2013? I'm loving new paper cups and plates from France- geometric designs and subtle colours. Roll on the grown-up party.
Every Wednesday 'Indie of the week' celebrates the best independent stores around. These places sell interesting and varied collections of design-related things you don't see everywhere else. They may support young or local designers or be great at finding unique things from around the world. By thinking a little more creatively about what they stock they are fighting the bland homogenisation of so much of the high street. And since I'm down with the realities of modern life, online only stores count too, because a beautiful and easy to use website is just as delightful an encounter in cyberspace.
Do you you have a favourite store? I'd love to hear from you.
I stumbled across Solid ID at Design Junction last September when my eye was caught by the fabulous anchor light shown above. It just seemed a really fun and playful way to show what you can create through the re-use of materials and the re-imagining of what things could be. Perhaps I should have guessed there was a Dutchman behind it (I'm married to one) as they are known for their ebullient approach to design/life. Eelke Jan Bles is from The Netherlands, but now lives in Spitalfields, and Solid ID is his quirky shop on London's Fulham Road.
Who are you? Eelke Jan Bles of Solid ID.
How can we find you? 273 Fulham Road, London, SW10 9PZ, online Solid ID, or on Pinterest.
Describe your store in five words: Off-beat goods for the home.
What makes you different? We source and curate our collection of individually designed items with care and a quirky eye.
How you decide what makes the cut? The main proposition is: we only sell what we like and or would have in our own homes. As long as items sit well together, being old or new does not matter, they just need to talk the same language.
What were you doing before you did this? I started my professional career as an interiors and food photographer. I own bespoke floor company Solid Floor and I also work as an interior designer and am very passionate about contemporary art. Solid ID is a natural progression of what I have done previously.
If you were starting again what advice would you give yourself? To have more patience and to be bolder.
What are you most proud of? The bestselling items in the store have been those we have individually designed or re-worked ourselves: the flower cage lamp, the hand painted storage jars and the resin topped butcher tables. It’s really gratifying to see that these pieces have had such a resonance with our customers.
Do you have a favourite thing in the store right now? Vintage butcher tables with cool resin tops.
What's hot for 2013? Vintage re-invented with a bit of colour. Heritage pieces paint dipped and re-worked to suit a modern interior.
Every Wednesday 'Indie of the week' celebrates the best independent stores around. These places sell interesting and varied collections of design-related things you don't see everywhere else. They may support young or local designers or be great at finding unique things from around the world. By thinking a little more creatively about what they stock they are fighting the bland homogenisation of so much of the high street. And since I'm down with the realities of modern life, online only stores count too, because a beautiful and easy to use website is just as delightful an encounter in cyberspace.
Do you you have a favourite store? I'd love to hear from you.
I was wandering around the leafy streets of Dulwich in South East London recently with friend who directed me to this little gem. Owner Jane Hole sells an interesting, and very tactile, collection of interiors items and accessories on the ground floor and art from the gallery downstairs. It's exactly what a local shop should be - curated with care and a joy to visit.
Who are you? Jane Hole of Jane Newbery
Where can we find you? 33 Dulwich Village, London SE21 7BN. Online at Jane Newbery.
Describe your store in five words: Clear, cohesive, colourful, thought-through design.
What makes you different? The eclectic mix: from Fatboys to Beatrix Potter - something for everybody.
How you decide what makes the cut? I buy what I like and in general the item has to have beauty and function.
What were you doing before you did this? I was an English teacher in my previous life.
If you were starting again what advice would you give yourself? I would have enjoyed my summer holidays and told myself not to panic during the quiet time in August.
What are you most proud of? Writing a convincing business plan and managing my cash-flow.
Do you have a favourite thing in the store right now? The set of Beatrix Potter hanging ornaments.
What's hot for 2013? Orwell & Goode lampshades - especially the hare design (pictured below, right).
Every Wednesday 'Indie of the week' celebrates the best independent stores around. These places sell interesting and varied collections of design-related things you don't see everywhere else. They may support young or local designers or be great at finding unique things from around the world. By thinking a little more creatively about what they stock they are fighting the bland homogenisation of so much of the high street. And since I'm down with the realities of modern life, online only stores count too, because a beautiful and easy to use website is just as delightful an encounter in cyberspace.
Do you you have a favourite store? I'd love to hear from you.
Ever wondered what ice-cream parlours are used for in winter? This enterprising trio have come up with the perfect seasonal solution.
Who are you? Louise, Carol & Meryl of The Original Pop Up Shop
Where can we find you? At our pop up Christmas shop, now until the 21st December, at the Riverside Parlour, Tolney Lane, Newark, Nottinghamshire, NG24 1DA. Online at The Original Pop Up Shop; on Facebook; and on Twitter
Describe your store in five words: Festive, inspiring, timeless, crafty and original of course!
What makes you different? We started out life as a pop up shop three years ago transforming our family ice-cream parlour into a festive wonderland for the five weeks leading up to Christmas. Out go the freezers and in come the decorations, wreaths and locally grown Christmas trees, last year we launched online so we're a kind of online pop up shop too, that's quite different I think.
How you decide what makes the cut? Planning for each Christmas collection seems to start earlier every year and we always try to source unusual and beautiful products, often collaborating with little designer makers to come up with something a bit different. So we are often involved in the design process early on which means you've got to love it, or it's just no fun.
What were you doing before you did this? We are all still working full time in other jobs, so this is a project that we all fit around that. Carol runs the ice-cream parlour for the remainder of the year, Meryl is in finance and Louise is a freelance stylist in Sydney, Australia.
If you were starting again what advice would you give yourself? Trust your instincts a bit more and remember that it's all a massive learning curve so don't be too hard on yourself when things don't always go to plan.
What are you most proud of? The fact that we have managed to achieve what we have with one third of the team half way round the world, a really small budget and lots of determination.
Do you have a favourite thing in the store right now? Probably our hand printed Santa sacks and the super cute 'decos' by Abbie Brown - love them!
What's hot for 2013? We are loving our multi coloured felt ball garlands and can see them being strung up not just for Christmas but all year.
Christmas card season is upon us... so what better time to celebrate an independent store dedicated to stationery. Quill London is an online-only endeavour that has quickly gained a cult following (it only launched this year) among fans of pen and paper, of which it turns out there are many.
Who are you? Lucy Edmonds. I run Quill London.
Where can we find you? www.quilllondon.com; @QuillLondon; Facebook.com/QuillLondon
Describe your store in five words: Super stylish stationery & paper goods. Is that cheating?!
What makes you different? I started Quill because I felt there was a big gap between high street stationers and super high-end brands. Quill offers something in between: style-led pieces mostly from small studios and independent brands, offering good quality without the Bond Street prices.
How you decide what makes the cut? I would be lying if I said I didn't choose things I personally love. That's a pretty important test. I try to source from designers that don't have much representation in the UK so that we offer something British customers may not have discovered before.
What were you doing before you did this? I used to work at a small start-up business that produced swedish-designed homeware, and wholesaled to some great UK retailers. I learnt so much during my four years there, and particularly from the company's owners - two remarkable businesswomen - and it gave me the know-how to start something for myself.
If you were starting again what advice would you give yourself? Do it sooner. I spent a little too long procrastinating and suffering crises of confidence. It wasted so much time!
What are you most proud of? I am proud of our logo. It was created by James Bowskill, a wonderful designer who is based in Tokyo. He created something I would never have come up with myself but that I absolutely love and will never get bored of. It always gets commented on when I give people my card.
Do you have a favourite thing in the store right now? So many! Our calendar print called 'The Sun, It Shines' by Spring Once More is striking and so cleverly designed. I adore everything that Sarah and Juliette at Brown Paper create. I can't help but love the PS'Ikat notebook by Christian Lacroix Papier with a secret crazy skeleton hidden inside the pages. I also love the Maison Martin Margiela quill biros: the perfect gift for someone that has everything.
What's hot for 2013? I think as we come into the spring time, our handmade tissue paper pompoms will really come into their own. They're great for adding a bit of colour and frivolity to interiors, parties, weddings, picnics - anything, really!
I'm starting a new series called 'Indie of the week' celebrating the best independent stores around. These places sell interesting and varied collections of design-related things you don't see everywhere else. They may support young or local designers or be great at finding unique things from around the world. By thinking a little more creatively about what they stock they are fighting the bland homogenisation of so much of the high street. And since I'm down with the realities of modern life, online only stores count too, because a beautiful and easy to use website is just as delightful an encounter in cyberspace.
Do you you have a favourite store? I'd love to hear from you.
I was in Brighton recently and stumbled across Lavender Room, a little gem in the North Laine which sells a feminine, but not too girlie, collection of homes stuff, clothes and jewellery. It had a very personal feel, the kind of place where if you like one thing, chances are you'll like the rest - and it smelled lovely too.
Who are you? We are Jenny Atherton & Nicky Sanderson and we run Lavender Room.
Describe your store in five words: Boutique, fashion, home accessories, gifts.
What makes you different? Our lifestyle concept of fashion and home accessories under one roof
How do you decide what makes the cut? If we love it, then it's in.
What were you doing before you did this? Jenny: I was a fashion buyer for high street retailers, Nicky sourced and sold products to the high street retailers.
If you were starting again, what advice would you give yourself? Always keep a tight reign on financial planning and cash flow.
What are you most proud of? Hearing customers say that we are their favourite shop. And reaching almost ten years in business.
Do you have a favourite thing in the store right now? Our Woop Studios artwork, especially "A Murmuration of Starlings", very Brighton.
What's hot for 2013? Our ten year anniversary in March, we'll be planning a party to celebrate.
