Ysh London had been looking forward to this wonderful event last night at the Craft Central for some time…

For once, it’s a relief not to have to panic about Christmas shopping as it’s all there under one roof at the  Craft Central pop up shop this weekend (with, of course, some extra cash in your purse!)

Here are some of my personal favourites at the pop up shop that I spotted last night :

First up, these lovely knitted accessories and jewellery by Rosalind Price-Cousins.

Above: The bracelets are very soft and beautifully crafted.

The linen blended Lyrebird scarf has a slightly raised, three dimensional quality, and the gold coloured lame works just as well as any big piece of statement jewellery would, (except it is far more bank account friendly, light weight and warmer!)

Above, her launch of her new kidswear range, started after knitting a garment for her godchild. Left: Designer Rosalind.
www.rosalindpricecousins.com

Second is a range that is fast becoming one of Ysh London’s favourite home brands - Charlene Mullen (who we featured in our 100% Design report, click here to read it - http://www.yshlondon.com/report/100-design-september-2009) whose work is based on striking hand embroidery and stitching for interior textiles, such as cushions and pillows.

Her modern take on the traditional form of craft in motifs is inspired by London’s landscape and portraits; her geometric patterns and unique take on London are hot favourites over at Ysh London towers!

www.charlenemullen.com

Next, funky pop jewellery by Frillybylily. Almost half of the collection is one-offs that you won’t be able to find anywhere else; the rest of the collection uses recycled and fair trade materials, signaling more evidence that eco fashion can be both fun and stylish.

Above: A bracelet made from recycled puzzle pieces.
www.frillybylily.co.uk

The only down side of this shopping event is that you might end up buying presents for yourself, which I guiltily admit that I did…succumbing to a beautifully hand woven silk scarf by textile designer Piyush Suri.

This scarf was woven in the style of Ikat, which is a traditional Indonesian weaving method that uses resist dyeing (waxed or similar to tye dye and batik) yarn before being woven, which gives it a great pattern. As you can see, it has a dip-dyed quality, but because of the Ikat weaving method, the warp is sharp, as opposed to just a dip dyed woven material.

Above: Black and white silk woven scarf I bought for £30.
I was very pleased by this 'one off' hand woven scarf for such a bargain price!
www.piyushsuri.com

Overall experience: I think this pop up shop beats high street shops and department stores hands down - you can avoid the crowds and screaming kids, and also avoid tripping over the less well-loved goods which inevitably end up scattered on the shop floor.
I can’t think of anywhere else that you’d find such a great selection of hand-made, well designed, pretty and 'one off' special finds. Not only that, its a great experience to take time to have a chat with some of London’s best designer makers and grab some bargains at the same time!

Made in Clerkenwell / The Design Pop Up Shop
Craft Central
33-35 St John’s Square London EC1M 4DS and
21 Clerkenwell Green, London EC1R 0DX
Late Night Shopping on Friday 27 Nov, 12noon - 8pm
Saturday 28 & Sunday 29 Nov, 12noon - 6pm
Admission: £2.50 per person, under 16’s free