You couldn’t call James Smith & Sons one of London’s hidden gems – after all, it’s been standing proudly on New Oxford Street with its handsome Victorian signage for 140-odd years. But there’s no way I could omit this veritable jewel from my ongoing project of collating the best shops in London.
James Smith & Sons is not only a London institution and one of its most esteemed heritage brands, it’s also a unique and wondrous shopping experience. But unless you’re on a bus heading down New Oxford Street, it’s easy to forget that it’s there.
Turn the brass handle, step over the well-trodden threshold and in an instant you’re transported to Dickens’ London, who incidentally lived nearby on Doughty Street in the late 1830s.* I like to imagine he glanced at himself in the mirrored panels on the shop’s exterior as he strolled down the street, cane in hand.
All manner of the most exquisitely crafted umbrellas, walking sticks and canes are tucked away in tall wicker baskets or displayed on the original cabinetry, which was custom-designed and made by a fitter to Mr Smith’s exacting specifications. If you dig a bit of London history, you could stand and gawk forever.
But enough about the impressive shopfront, let’s consider the wares on offer. This is the place to buy a quality brolly that will stand the test of time. The dodgy £2.99 plastic job you purchased in a panic would blush in shame compared to the fine examples on sale here, many of which are handcrafted in the basement workshop. The brand’s reputation for fine umbrellas is legendary, and James Smith was amongst the first to use the sturdy English Fox Frame structure, which has hardly changed in design over the years.
The umbrellas are charmingly divided between ladies and gents; pencil length and walking length; city and country. Take your pick from brollies with beautifully turned beechwood handles (a joy to hold), long leather handles with metal-tipped ends, and folding umbrellas with the most rustic of hazel root handles.
You pay for what you get, so prices aren’t exactly cheap, with a classic ladies city umbrella starting at £65. I love the wonderfully eccentric animal-head brollies – a beautiful ladies Fox Frame with a resin parrot handle will set you back £75. They also stock the most glorious ruffled French parasols by Pierre Vaux in myriad rainbow colours for £58.80 (not bad, considering I’ve seen them elsewhere for £100).
There is also an extensive range of walking sticks and canes, stemming back to those times when an English gentleman wouldn’t leave home without being properly accessorised with a hat and cane. The country collection includes some particularly wizened hiking staffs that Gandalf would have been happy to call his own. Don’t miss the collection of walking sticks with secret compartments for a pipe, dice, corkscrews or flasks. For £95 you can take home a maplewood walking stick which conceals two silver-plated cups and a glass flask for your favourite tipple. So very civilised.
My top five picks:
1. Gent’s traditional slim rolled umbrella with a ‘needle’ end and moulded resin Sherlock Holmes head handle, £75.
2. Smaller Sized Ladies Sun Umbrella, £65.
3. English ‘Fox Frame’ ladies umbrella with a resin parrot handle, £75.
4. Frilly Vaux umbrella, £58.80
5. Ladies classic city walking length umbrella with malacca cane crook, £65.
James Smith & Sons
Hazelwood House
53 New Oxford Street
London WC1A 1BL
Tel. 0207 836 4731
Nearest tube: Tottenham Court Road
Click here for a Wee Birdy map.
Click here for more Wee Birdy reviews in this area.
Opening hours:
Mon, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 9.30am-5pm
Tuesday, Saturday 10am-5pm
Closed Sunday.
* Charles Dickens lived at Number 48 Doughty Street between 1837 and 1839. It’s the author’s only-surviving residence in London, and it’s since been restored and turned into The Charles Dickens Museum which holds over 100,000 items including manuscripts, rare editions, paintings and personal items. It’s on my to-do list the next time I’m in town.
Shop interior photo and product photos courtesy of James Smith & Sons. The rest of the photography is by Wee Birdy.
‘Ben Pentreath’ could very well be a byword for all things splendid and in very good taste, because his eponymous shop, in London’s Bloomsbury, is a veritable treasure chest of the most covetable things for your home.
The shop was a wee favourite of mine when I worked at Time Out London, and whenever I was on a present-buying mission I would make a beeline to Rugby Street. In fact, Ben Pentreath could quite possibly be one of my favourite shops – in the world. And as you well know, I’ve been to a few.
Mr Pentreath, an architect and interior designer, along with shop manager, Bridie Hall, have filled the shelves of their store with an immaculate and eclectic collection of glassware, linen, candles, vases, lights and books, as well as a lovely selection of prints, furniture, children’s toys and other ‘curiosities’.
By applying their designers’ eyes to wares from all over the world, they have carefully chosen what they consider to be the very best in terms of quality and design from each category. To that end, glassware is La Rochere, striped linen napkins are from French Catalan company Le Toiles du Soleil, and baskets (made to traditionally winnow grain) are from Zimbabwe. And you can’t miss the striking display of creamy Hunslet tableware from Leeds – the solid pared-down design was inspired by eighteenth century servants’ crockery.
The shop’s fondness for Victorian-style curiosities, such as crocodile skulls, and unusual shells and botany prints, makes it the perfect showcase for Peter Hone’s architectural plaster casts. The overall effect is reminiscent of Sir John Soan’s house (an absolute London must-visit), but unlike the museum, you can buy everything on site.
Many of the items are exceptionally good value, and you’d get quite a bit of change from 20 quid. Take, for instance the brightly coloured felt German coasters, £15 for a set of six, mercury glass candlestick, £9, and glass urchin plate, £8.50.
Children are also beautifully catered for with imaginative and timeless treasures, such as bottles of invisible ink for £4 (great stocking stuffer), paper doll dress-ups, £4.50 and a classic tin trumpet, £5.50.
One you’re done extricating yourself from such splendid-ness, make sure you stop by Suzannah Hunter further down Rugby Street for handmade leather bags, as well as Darkroom (incredible design-led fashion, homewares and accessories) and Persephone Books around the corner on Lamb’s Conduit Street.
Best buys include John Derrian red letter glass plates, £38, Hunslet footed mugs, £13.50, large blue glass vases (rather like vintage Holmegaard, only much cheaper), £45 and the London Night and Day vintage book, £35.
Ben Pentreath
17 Rugby Street
London WC1N 3QT
Tel. 020 7430 2526
Nearest tubes: Russell Square and Holborn
Click here for a Wee Birdy map.
Opening hours: Monday to Saturday 11am-6pm
Ben Pentreath is on Facebook and he also has a rather fine blog.
Refuel at Cigala, pick up some mini fruit tarts at Sfizio (their mini fruit tarts are divine), and if you’re in the mood for fish & chips, head to The Fryer’s Delight (a classic chippy and a Wee Birdy favourite).
{Photography by Wee Birdy}
When I first moved to London three years ago there wasn’t a lot happening on Redchurch Street … but my, how things have changed. With the opening of Terence Conran’s traditional British caff Albion at Boundary Project, as well as a slew of pop-up shops, boutiques and galleries, not to mention its proximity to Shoreditch House and Tea, Redchurch Street has evolved into East London’s latest destination for hipsters and cool kids.
But don’t let that put you off. Especially when there are so many delights to be discovered at Caravan, which moved from its Spitalfields Market location 18 months ago. The brainchild of interiors stylist Emily Chalmers, this cosy and welcoming boutique is filled with the kind of lovely stuff you never knew you really wanted (or so desperately needed), like angel wings for candles, toadstool lamps and white ceramic owl money boxes.
It’s superbly edited and excellent for last-minute gifts, especially for those who love their stuff feminine and quirky with a vintage edge. And you can pick up some exceptionally well-priced things and get change from a tenner, like ceramic animal jugs (£8.50 each), small furry deers (£9.95) and hare snowdomes (£8.50).
Caravan is also the main retail outlet for Deborah Bowness’ distinctive hand-printed wallpaper, as well as the main UK stockist for iconic Jielde lamps. There’s also a variety of glass display domes from £29 – perfect for showcasing your favourite pieces Victorian-style (see what I mean about things you never knew you wanted?).
The online shop is equally lovely, with a good selection of some of the shop’s best-sellers, as well as a new
sy and inspirational blog.
Keep an eye out for super-friendly shop-cat Bagpuss, who may just come and rub his head on your shins as you consider your purchases.
Caravan
3 Redchurch Street
London E2 7DJ
Tel. 020 7033 3532
Nearest tube: Liverpool Street
Click here for a Wee Birdy map
Opening hours:
11am – 6.30pm every day until Christmas Eve.
Special late night opening until 8pm every Thursday
Click here for nearby shops I’ve reviewed in East London.
I do love popping into Lazy Oaf on the ground floor of Kingly Court (just off Carnaby Street) for a kooky dose of sausage dog print tees (my all-time favourite), banana Perspex brooches and hamburger sweaters.
Lazy Oaf are the crew behind the Michael Jackson tee I posted about recently, and they seem to have a never-ending supply of slightly mad graphic concepts for men’s and womens’s tees and sweaters, as well as toys, pins, stationery and plush toys.
New this season is the fabulous Foxy tee, which features a print collar, as well as a super-sweet ‘I Make Things’ tee – perfect for crafty make-and-do chicks.
They've also got an amazing range of Japanese stationery and decorative items. Take a look at these Pinocchio plates, notebooks and decorative tape by designer Shinzi Katoh. How much fun is the 'Happy Friends' tape?
Their website is also well worth a look, with all their products available to purchase, along with a particularly good shop blog.
Lazy Oaf
Kingly Court, Carnaby Street
London W1B 5PW
Nearest tube: Oxford Circus
Click here for a Wee Birdy map.
Opening hours:
Monday to Saturday 11am-7pm
Sunday 12 noon-6pm
Click here for more shops in Soho.
Terribly exciting: I just had a sneak peek inside the new Anthropologie store, which opens its Regent Street doors to London on Friday. For the full story, see this week's Time Out magazine. In the meantime, enjoy some of my snaps…
This hanging teabag installation in the window (above) reminds me of the Rockefeller store Christmas windows I blogged about when I was in New York last year.
Birdy door-knobs, above, and beautifully-bound Penguin classics, below.
The enormous dressing rooms are surely the most spacious in London. The end cubicle (if you could even call it that) resembles a small office. You could seriously throw a party in there.
And finally, the magnificent afternoon tea spread complete with a never-ending supply of cakes, tarts and biscuits. I mastered the fine art of hovering over the strawberry tarts…
Creature candles…
And the hand-stitched grand opening sign…
Anthropologie
158 Regent Street
London, W1B 5SW
Tel. 7529 9800
Nearest tube: Piccadilly
Click here for a Wee Birdy map.
Opening hours:
Monday to Wednesday 10am-7pm
Thursday 10am-8pm
Friday to Saturday 10am-7pm
Sunday 12 noon-6pm
I know that London (and this blog) has gone a little pop-up crazy in recent weeks, but here’s one that’s definitely worth a visit. Swanfield originated in East London as a collective of designers, and has recently gone ‘on tour’, with pop-ups in central London. The swans are currently nesting on the first floor of Kingly Court (just off Carnaby Street) with their fresh mix of independent fashion, vintage wares and accessories.
Three young designers, in particular, caught my eye on a recent visit: Cecilia Hammarborg (for dramatic swing coats in tweeds and worsted wool); Lucie Gonnard’s French and English Confectioners (for custom-made limited edition shoes and bags) and Katherine Pont’s MINE fashion label (keep an eye out for her whimsical Spring/Summer 10 collection – she's one to watch).
More posts to follow on each designer…
Swanfield (until the end of Oct)
1.2 Kingly Court
London, W1
Tel. 07595 64040
Nearest tube: Oxford Circus.
Opening hours:
Monday to Saturday 11am-7pm
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