Shopfronts Of London

A collection of Eleanor Crow's beautiful watercolours of classic shopfronts. Published in partnership with Spitalfields Life Books, this timely volume celebrates the small neighbourhood shops of London. As our high streets decline into generic monotony, we cherish these independent shops and family businesses that enrich the city with their characterful frontages and distinctive typography. This collection includes more than 100 of Eleanor Crow's fine illustrations of the capital's bakers, cafes, butchers, fishmongers, greengrocers, chemists, launderettes, hardware stores, eel & pie shops, bookshops and stationers. The pictures are accompanied by the stories of the shops, their history and their shopkeepers – stretching all the way from Chelsea in the west to Bethnal Green, Clerkenwell and Walthamstow in the east. As well as beloved old and lost shopfronts, there are some recent examples of new shops that have been beautifully designed too – from cheesemongers to chippies. At a time of momentous change in the high street, this witty and fascinating personal survey champions the enduring culture of Britain's small shops.

From centuries old to brilliantly new, a stroll down any of the capital's high streets provides a glorious miscellany of history and design. For shops are no longer just somewhere we buy things you can do that virtually, these days - but places we gather inspiration, browse for creativity and happen upon special objects. This compendium of London's 100 most interesting stores, restaurants and cafes pairs original photography with insights into the sites' past lives and the artistic thinking behind their distinct exteriors and unique signage, as well as insider's tips on exactly when and why to visit now.

"I am going to write every single day and tell you about my life here in Spitalfields at the heart of London..." Drawing comparisons with Pepys, Mayhew and Dickens, the gentle author of Spitalfields Life has gained an extraordinary following in recent years, by writing hundreds of lively pen portraits of the infinite variety of people who live and work in the East End of London. Everything you seek in London can be found here - street life, street art, markets, diverse food, immigrant culture, ancient houses and history, pageants and parades, rituals and customs, traditional trades and old family businesses. Spend a night in the bakery at St John, ride the rounds with the Spitalfields milkman, drop in to the Golden Heart for a pint, meet a fourth-generation paper bag seller, a mudlark who discovers treasure in the river Thames, a window cleaner who sees ghosts and a master bell-founder whose business started in 1570. Join the bunny girls for their annual reunion, visit the wax sellers of Wentworth Street and discover the site of Shakespeare's first theatre. All of human life is here in Spitalfields Life.

Nowadays, as economy develops rapidly, the shopfront design is becoming one of the most important ways to express commercial cultures. Unique style designs and abundant collocations of colours of these shopfronts not only reflect the enterprise culture, but add vitality to the city. The book concludes universal principles for shopfront design, which are exemplified with shopfront projects following each guideline. A variety of shopfronts are gathered from different countries throughout the world, including boutiques, luggage shops, jewellery shops, optical and watch shops, cosmetics shops, restaurants, wine bars and caf�s. Comprehensively, this book, with its novel design concepts and abundant exemplary practices, provides designers with a good platform for study and reference.

______________________________ The huge word-of-mouth bestseller – completely updated for 2019 THE LONDON THAT TOURISTS DON’T SEE Look beyond Big Ben and past the skyscrapers of the Square Mile, and you will find another London. This is the land of long-forgotten tube stations, burnt-out mansions and gently decaying factories. Welcome to DERELICT LONDON: a realm whose secrets are all around us, visible to anyone who cares to look . . . Paul Talling – our best-loved investigator of London’s underbelly – has spent over fifteen years uncovering the stories of this hidden world. Now, he brings together 100 of his favourite abandoned places from across the capital: many of them more magnificent, more beautiful and more evocative than you can imagine. Covering everything from the overgrown stands of Leyton Stadium to the windswept alleys of the Aylesbury Estate, DERELICT LONDON reveals a side of the city you never knew existed. It will change the way you see London. ______________________________ PRAISE FOR THE DERELICT LONDON PROJECT ‘Fascinating images showing some of London’s eeriest derelict sites show another side to the busy, built-up capital.’ Daily Mail ‘Talling has managed to show another side to the capital, one of abandoned buildings that somehow retain a sense of beauty.’ Metro ‘Excellent . . . As much as it is an inadvertent vision of how London might look after a catastrophe, DERELICT LONDON is valuable as a document of the one going on right in front of us.’ New Statesman ‘From the iconic empty shell of Battersea Power Station to the buried ‘ghost’ stations of the London Underground, the city is peppered with decaying buildings. Paul Talling knows these places better than anyone in the capital.’ Daily Express ‘[London has an] unusual (and deplorable) number of abandoned buildings. Paul Talling’s surprise bestseller, DERELICT LONDON, is their shabby Pevsner.’ Daily Telegraph ______________________________

A collection of Eleanor Crow's beautiful watercolours of classic shopfronts. Published in partnership with Spitalfields Life Books, this timely volume celebrates the small neighbourhood shops of London. As our high streets decline into generic monotony, we cherish these independent shops and family businesses that enrich the city with their characterful frontages and distinctive typography. This collection includes more than 100 of Eleanor Crow's fine illustrations of the capital's bakers, cafes, butchers, fishmongers, greengrocers, chemists, launderettes, hardware stores, eel & pie shops, bookshops and stationers. The pictures are accompanied by the stories of the shops, their history and their shopkeepers - stretching all the way from Chelsea in the west to Bethnal Green, Clerkenwell and Walthamstow in the east. As well as beloved old and lost shopfronts, there are some recent examples of new shops that have been beautifully designed too - from cheesemongers to chippies. At a time of momentous change in the high street, this witty and fascinating personal survey champions the enduring culture of Britain's small shops.

This love letter to London's most cherished shops celebrates the city's past and present, as well as its diversity and vivaciousness. Illustrator Joel Holland created his first book, NYC Storefronts, because he was missing all the places he couldn't visit in his own hometown during Covid lockdown. Now he's set his sights on London--a city that feels at once ancient and modern, traditional and quirky, homey and hip. Made with the same energy as NYC Storefronts, this book has a distinctly English vibe. It divides the city into five navigable sections (Central, North, East, South, and West), and highlights its diverse mix of cultures. In each chapter is a sprawling selection of shops, brought to life by Holland's charming drawings and London-based journalist Rosie Hewitson's captivating descriptions. This collection of more than two hundred shopfronts runs the gamut of old to modern-day London: stately bookshops, umbrella stores, tailors, hatters, and pubs, but also trendy restaurants, bars, and boutiques. A number of places are deeply profiled, including storied jazz club Ronnie Scott's; Hatchards, the UK's oldest- surviving bookshop; Caribbean record store People's Sound; Rowan's Tenpin Bowling Alley; beloved Turkish restaurant Mangal II; and gender-affirming hairdressers Open Barbers; each one is lovingly detailed in Holland's gentle tones. An informative guide to discovering all the Big Smoke has to offer, this is also a lasting keepsake for London lovers of every age and style.

From secluded mews to undiscovered cafes, flower markets, and tree-lined streets, prettycitylondon champions the quiet, gentle moments that allow you to escape in a huge capital city like London. If you know where to look, you will find that traditional shop fronts, vintage transport, artisan bakeries, florists, and bookstores are but a hop skip and a jump from the center, and some right bang in the middle. Curated by founder and editor of Instagram's @prettycitylondon, this stunning guide also includes tips on how to photograph and plan your own prettycitylondon experience, whether on foot or from afar.