Friday 10th Nov: Wrays Yard Shop Pop Up Store

In addition to the portfolio of different social media channels that I run, I have a third Instagram that I set up anonymously as Laptopschtickers.  I love the way people personlize their portable computers with stickers that map out their interests and networks.  The vinyl logos tell a whole story in graphic communication so you can get a vibe on first glance.  It seems that there aren't as many defaced devices as I had imagined so its harder to find golden nuggets in the fields of screens that take up the majority of London's coffee shops!  Thankfully DJ's seems to be a reliable source of material and here is the latest which I found at Wrays Yard Shop Pop Up Store in Protein Studios recently.  They have the same Boiler Room sticker as me but in the tri-colour-way which I've never seen before!  So good!

Head over to Laptopschtickers to see more and follow my digital discoveries...........

Thursday 9th November: Bethan Wood's "Toothpaste" SS18 collection for Valextra

Many congratulations to Bethan Wood on her collaboration with Italian luxury accessories label Valextra.  The product designer has worked with the Milanese brand to develop a collection called "Toothpaste" which uses a signature of swirls on both the hardware fittings of handles and clasps to the patterns in the leather panel seaming.  Sections can be popped off via magnetic fastenings and used as separate smaller clutches and pocket-books.  Here you can see Bethan holding one of these detachable components.  
The expansive range of styles and colour-ways first launched in Milan and is following on from London to Tokyo where Bethan will be travelling for the event.  See more via her Instagram here.

Wednesday 8th November: My Colour Spectrum Accessories Workshop at Ace Hotel

Come and join an accessories workshop inspired by my current installation at Ace Hotel London on Thursday. Visitors can grab a drink, view and find out more about the Goodlife grassroots charities that the project is supporting. Proceeds from donations will go directly to the charities featured in the installation. Accessories like this will be created out of card and all materials are provided and drinks on arrival are free!

Book a place here.

Tuesday 7th November: Birchbox Pop-up, Carnaby Street

I've only started to go out of my comfort zone to dabble in the art of wearing makeup and one of the main contributors to that life-shift is thanks to BirchBox.  I'm signed up to their subscription service which sends out a monthly surprise package of cosmetics picked to match your profile.  This means that I get to try things that I have never encountered before and experiment to see if they work.  Over the course of a year, I now have a whole face worth of components that I can confidently put together.  This means I finally understand foundation, eyeshadow, eyebrow pencil, eyeliner, highlighter, bronzer, lipstick, tints, primers ............ not to mention the very handy moisturisers, cleansers, etc etc.  It's always something really useful and today was no exception.  I now finally have a concealer for the first time and excited to try it out!

That's because today I had the treat of compiling a BirchBox for free!  The online retailer have opened a pop-up shop on Carnaby Street in time for the Christmas Lights being switched on.  The first 100 customers thru the door got a golden ticket to use the pick'n'mix style service of selecting five items from a multiple choice menu.  These product ranges encompassed makeup, skin and hair so that it's a complete care parcel.  I feel thoroughly indulged and spoilt.  I can't wait to add these bonus items to my newly flourishing beauty kit bag!

Tuesday 7th November: EVERYTHING AT ONCE

This year The Lisson Gallery have joined forces with The Vinyl Factory to hold an off-site mega-show at the ginormous location of the Store Studios, 180 The Strand.  It's so massive, I have been twice and still only have these few images to show for it!  But the most important piece for me is Arthur Jafa’s incredible film "Love Is The Message, The Message Is Death".  For this alone I recommend you go!   Here are a few of my other highlights:

Top to bottom:  

1) "At the Edge of the World II" by Anish Kapoor

2) "Highsummer, 2017 Prussian Blue, 2017 May Day, 2017 Bertacca, 2017" by Stanley Whitney - Examples of jazz and African music are often cited by Whitney as sources for his polyrhythmic, near-synaesthetic paintings

3) "A Chamber for Horwitz" multi-coloured, sonic score by Haroon Mirza

4) "Solar Catastrophe" by Allora & Calzadilla, made from discarded polycrystalline solar panel cells to absorb and reflect light, changing colour depending on atmospheric conditions.

Sunday: Daniel Buren: PILE UP: High Reliefs. Situated Works at Lisson Gallery

Daniel Buren's "PILE UP: High Reliefs. Situated Works" at Lisson Gallery coincides with the installation commissioned by  TFL at Tottenham Court Road which is the most cosmic thing to encounter when you're coming up the escalator!  I absolutely LOVE Daniel Buren's aesthetic with his signature vertical stripes and block colours, so this show was a dream.  The sculptures of powder-coated aluminium triangular prisms and mirrors distort the gallery's walls in a new site-specific configuration for the Lisson Gallery, where he has been exhibiting since the 1970's!