Kilver Court ......wish wish wish report

A Trip to Kilver Court August 17th, 2011

My Favourite Bit of Town.

My small town in the middle of Somerset isn’t exactly well known as a shopping destination. In fact, quite the opposite – it was part of a BBC series about the deteriorating British high-street earlier this year.  But thankfully, there are a handful of people trying to change that – including a man I was lucky enough to meet a few weeks ago – Roger Saul. You may know him as the founder of Mulberry (!!!). He’s no longer involved with the company that began not too far from my home 40 years ago, but has turned his hand to fashion once again by opening up a designer outlet just a few paces away from the Mulberry Factory shop that you’ve heard me rattle on about time and time again!

So, my mum had an afternoon off and we decided to make our way up to have a snoop around, so I could compile some sort of review. Not before stopping at my favourite place to get a bite to eat first though – the cafe at Kilver Court. I’d like to say the leafy green plate above was mine, but I settled for a far less healthy (but no less yummy) sausage sandwich.

I might sound like I work for the Shepton Mallet tourist board, but it really is worth a visit if you’re holidaying in the area or live close by. Attached to the cafe is a farm shop selling the most amazing organic products, above that is an antique interiors shop, and around the corner are the beautiful gardens that I’vetaken pictures in before.

The Designer Emporium

So like I assumed, the brands on sale at Kilver Court were rather more ‘mumsy’ than my usual favourites, which totally makes sense for the demographic. That didn’t stop me finding a peter-pan collared (I know! I know!) dress by Cabbages & Roses – I was close to buying it (down to £30!) but it was a wee bit too short for my liking. Oh, and how nice are those Beatrix Ong shoes?!

I was pleasantly surprised when I realised they also had a section dedicated to design-based products, as well as a rail of very reasonably priced vintage clothing too by No21. I can see that I’ll be making many return trips before I head back to London!

And talking of London – despite living there for the majority of the year where I can visit any designer shop or cafe imaginable, there is something special about being able to do it in my hometown. It’s so typically Somerset as well – you can smell apples from the cider factory just opposite when you’re outside!

If you’re at all interested in visiting, or want to know more then make sure to take a look at the website. Plus, if you come any time soon, they had the most amazing selection of Mulberry Alexas in the factory shop this afternoon ; )

It may sound like I’ve been bribed or was shuttled to the outlet in some sort of luxury vehicle to warrant such a positive review, but I can assure you I walked there myself in the rain – although, mum did pay for my sausage sarnie! x


Written by Carrie Wish wish wish

Pilton Cider .....looks like a keeving success

Martin Berkeley who organised the Shepton Paper Lights and Shepton Secret Cinema has a new venture in something close to the heart of  Shepton Mallets industry....Cider!

 Pilton Cider 

Light, refreshing and full of apple flavours Pilton Cider is not scrumpy; the difference is in the process. it is made by the old English process of keeving that is still used by artisan French cider-makers.

The Pilton Cider bar will be out and about this year, find them at the following events:

Mendip Mashup – June 18th 2011

a wacky running event mixed up with a beer festival, held on the summer solstice

Mid-Somerset Show – August 21st 2011

the best country show in the West

Uphill to Wells Relay – 24th September 2011

an off-road relay race across the Mendip Hills, held on the autumn equinox

Shepton Paper Lights – December 2011

paper lanterns, samba drums, night race and a mulled cider bar; on the winter solstice

Pilton Cider is now available to buy from the following outlets:

Jon Thorners Farm Shop

Pylle

Shepton Mallet

BA4 6TA

www.jonthorners.co.uk

Farringtons Farm Shop

Farrington Gurney

BS39 6UB

http://farringtons.co.uk

Bristol Cider Shop

Christmas Steps

Bristol

BS1 5BS

www.bristolcidershop.co.uk

Grape and Grind

101 Gloucester Road

Bristol

BS7 8AT

www.grapeandgrind.co.uk

Papadeli Delicatessen & Cafe

84 Alma Road

Clifton

Bristol

BS8 2DJ

http://news.papadeli.co.uk

No21x

Kilver Court 'talented staff'

STRODE College held their annual End of Year Show on Monday evening
Two stars of the show were Stewart Giles 'Photographer and Matthew Witcombe 'Fashion Designer' who also work at Kilver Court ........prior to launching their new careers.
 

STEWART GILES

Stewart Giles, 'photographer' in no doubt has an keen eye for 'fashion photography' his creative styling key for glossy editorials! To compliment the theatrical staging inspired by anti-Christ for his end of year project he plays with colour in re-tinting photographs as works of art. Stewart's photography also captures a very natural composure in his fashion shoots and stunning portraiture which could easily appear in magazines today!

 

 

 MATTHEW WITCOMBE

Matthew Witcombe 'Fashion Designer' is embarking on a Fashion Design degree at the University of Westminster, London. It is obvious why he secured a place as his attention to detail is credible. Matthews garments are focused on texture in the use of delicate knitted materials that he creates. Never afraid of a technical challenge, his most recent work has seen him exploring the technique of lace making, creating traditional bobbin, water soluble machine embroidery, knit and macrame lace samples.

www.matthewwitcombe.com

 We wish Stewart and Matthew every success in the future
 ...and thank them for their continued work with our customers at Kilver Court
No21x

Emma Newman's first novel published

Article via; http://www.sheptonmalletpeople.co.uk/home

An author from Shepton Mallet will see her first novel published in May thanks to social media network Twitter.

1.  
   Emma Newman, who secured a publishing deal for her first novel on Twitter
2.  
   The front cover of Emma Newman's new novel 20 Years Later

Emma Newman, aged 35, secured a publishing deal for her novel 20 Years Later, a post-apocalyptic novel for young adults last year. It will be published as an e-book, and available on e-readers such as the Kindle in May and published in hardback on July 5.
The new author has also this year published her first anthology of short stories, entitled From Dark Places, which was published last month and is being launched on at an event on Thursday in Shepton.
Emma was offered a contract for her first novel 20 Years Later, after she began publishing it chapter by chapter in online podcasts, and it was picked up by American publisher Dystopia Press who saw the links she had posted on Twitter.
She said: “Before I had a publishing deal for 20 Years Later I decided to pod-cast the novel a chapter at a time.
“This was partly because I wanted to get it out there to see what people thought and partly because I didn’t want to simply post the text on-line.
“After hearing about another writer’s positive experience with pod-casting, I thought I’d give it a go.
“About three quarters of the way through the book, posting one chapter a week, I got the publishing deal I’d been striving for.
“I negotiated with the publisher who kindly allowed me to keep posting as by then people were following the novel and I didn’t want to let them down.”
Emma, a psychology graduate from Oxford and mum of one, said she is delighted to have secured her first book deal, the first of a three-part trilogy.
20 Years Later follows the fortunes of four survivors struggling to make sense of the new world that is emerging twenty years after the world their parents knew was destroyed.
The author specialises in post-apocalyptic fiction and believes there is an increased interest in this genre at the moment.
She said: “With so much upheaval in terms of the economy and the uncertainty this brings it seems to give people an increased interest in contemplating what the future may hold, especially a fictional future where anything can happen.”
Emma Newman will be holding a book launch for her anthology From Dark Places in Shepton Mallet on May 5 from 7pm-9pm in Chats Cafe on the High Street.

For more details see:  www.enewman.co.uk/20yearslater

From Dark Places

Sophia Bennett

Ray and Marie Pett were at the Art Tree party, it did not surprise me as they always support events and the shops in the town, and have lived in Shepton for about fifteen years. They were also responsible for the lovely window displays at No 4 High Street (near Market Place) to represent the series of Turn Back Time.

Maria informed me of the blog report by their daugther Sophia Bennett having visited at Christmas. Sophia always pops into the town when she visits.
Sophia is the author of a series of award winning books, an inspiration to aspiring writers.  www.sophiabennett.com

This is the blog report Sophia wrote about her visit to the town; 

New year, old clothes

By sophiabennett....,.

I have a confession to make. Although my characters are very good about checking out charity shops and mixing modern with vintage, I am usually pretty rubbish at it myself. It’s not that I don’t try. I do, I really do. I follow the blogs. Digs Frocks and Books is one of my  favourites. I know all my local charity shops and I’m sure they know me: the girl who comes in, can’t find anything that fits or works, goes home again. And proper vintage can be so expensive.
So if I need something nice, I normally take a deep breath and try Topshop. Not cheap, but oh so pretty. Meanwhile, my cupboard is littered with charity ‘finds’ that I never quite got round to fixing so they didn’t look like some 1940s showgirl’s undies. (Or that I did fix, and which now look like some 1940s showgirl’s undies with diamante buttons on.)
Then I was staying with my parents in Shepton Mallet over Christmas. Shepton is near Glastonbury, and seems to lie between some magical Somerset leylines, because strange and unexpected things always happen there. The Mulberry factory shop is there, for a start. (Yes, I have more than one Mulberry handbag. And no, they weren’t vintage. But they were RELATIVELY CHEAP, considering.) The first Micro scooters I ever saw came from the toy shop round the corner. This was ten years ago. Now every toddler in Wandsworth has one. Shepton, of all places, has my favourite antique shop, Number 21. It was there that I met Hilda Haggie, who in her late eighties told me stories about escaping the Nazis with emerald bangles up to her elbows, hidden under her clothes and, later, hiding from robbers on her African farm and becoming the frozen food queen of South Africa.It was there – Shepton, not South Africa – that the BBC chose to film Turn Back Time – The High Street, which was on over the autumn. It was a lovely series to watch (my parents were in it …), but it didn’t quite manage to capture the real difference that the programme makers made to the town: bringing people together, changing their attitude to the local shops and giving them a new sense of local identity.One of my favourite characters in the programme was Gill, the seamstress. In the Victorian and Edwardian eras she handmade stunning corsets and dresses. In the 1960s they made her open a hairdressers and she managed to transform the look of all the local ladies with beehives and Lulu-like flicky curls. They looked fantastic and nostalgic and I wished we could all have ‘dos’ again. Hair makes more difference than almost anything you can do to yourself. Check out Cheryl Cole. She knows.
Anyway, in the 1970s episode Gill opened a shop called Woo Hoo. It’s still there, selling vintage. I popped in after Christmas to do my usual look around, find nothing that fits, or nothing nice under £100 and disappear. Except that … I found several things I loved. I tried them on. They fitted. Something strange was happening. That Shepton effect again.
First off was a soft, supple black leather skirt. I thought Zoe, who was running the shop that day, said it cost £50, which seemed reasonable. But she didn’t. She sad £15. I asked her to put it in a bag for me. Next came a rich, turquoise Chinese silk top – one of my favourite colours ever. Fitted perfectly. £5. In the bag. Finally, I tried on a 1930s gold silk Chinese jacket. It was exactly the sort of thing Eileen Atkins would have worn on Upstairs Downstairs, which we’d just been watching on the BBC. Despite its age, it was in perfect condition. And it turned out to be reversible. The rust silk lining had pockets and could look just as stunning on the outside. I could probably wear it to every book reading and festival I ever do.
Nervously, I asked how much it was. Nervously, Zoe explained that it was a bit special. She took a deep breath. So did I. £30, she said. I asked her to add it to the bag.
So there you go. I now have a wardrobe littered with vintage stuff that I can’t wait to wear, and that was collectively cheaper than a Topshop jumper. I can look my characters in the eye at last. And if you ever see me in a gold silk jacket, you’ll know where it came from.Woo Hoo!

Buy the books and read more here; www.sophiabennett.com

Thank you for the mention Sophia!
No21x

Blogging network .....more press for the town!

Wish Wish Wish

Carrie from Shepton Mallet, now studying fashion in London is receiving some great press about her wonderful BLOG .....featured in 'The Times' 

Woo Hoo Vintage is mentioned severall times on Carries blog which will be seen by many who read the feature. The power of blogging is a great advertising tool!

You can read some of Carrie's report below or the full report on Wish Wish Wish

In Print

When I started this blog in 2007, I had no clue that I might end up in The Times. That’s huge! I know other bloggers are in publications all the time, but I’m really really proud every time that my little creation makes into a publication, there is something about seeing yourself in print, it’s crazy. I’ve been so lucky.
Lots of you have been asking for scans – I’m afraid I haven’t got to the scanner yet but I took a few super-blurry pictures (thanks, 50mm lens!) and wrote up the little bit for you to read, along with the picture used (recognise the setting again?!) .....Woo Hoo Vintage as seen on BBC1 Turn Back Time 'The High Street'

20-year-old fashion student Carrie Harwood is from Somerset. She began the award-winning blog Wish Wish Wish three years ago.
Playful, patterned 60s mini-dresses teamed with big hair have been my uniform over the past few months. A vintage look is always classic, whatever the season and it can be very cheap and is a great way of recycling. I scour my local charity shops each week for the best bits – it’s easy to find long floral skirts, as well as vintage scarves that look great in your hair or even tied around the handle of a bag. Another secret of mine is raiding my parents’ wardrobe. There is usually always an old pair of jeans that have been forgotten about, ready to be cut off and made into the perfect pair of shorts for the summer.”

Now i’m finally back in London after a more-than-hectic weekend, i’ll be back to normal posting! Before I go to sleep, I want to thank you all for the lovely feedback on the dress in the last post, it really put a smile on my face and made me seriously consider purchasing it!
See you here tomorrow x

Thank you Carrie for allowing us feature your reports!

No21x

No21 and The Laundry at Castle Cary

*2012 (The Laundry has now closed in Castle Cary)

The Laundry boutique from Wells have opened a second shop in Castle Cary. Theo came to  No21 to buy the furniture and props for her interior concept

Theo has created a warm welcoming environment of a neutral colours, a perfect backdrop for her gorgeous eclectic blend of inspiring clothing, accessories, jewellery and gifts. The lime washed clothing rails, a lime washed table, display cabinets, rustic beams (for display) and antlers are from No21.

 The Laundry and No21 now share advertising postcards and we hope to welcome customers from Castle Cary and direct our customers to Theo's gorgeous shop.
A useful tip to all traders.....if you manage to find a link with another shop take the opportunity to advertise our town.


No21x