Newsround

The festive season has arrived big time at The Secret Arcade with twenty shops participating in the Xmas Treasure Hunt. We are excited that Easy Living Magazine has chosen The Secret Arcade as their favourite website on the 'Gone Surfing' page in the Nov/Dec issue and they love the treasure hunt idea - so a big welcome to any Easy Living readers who are visiting us for the first time. How it works - each shop has been allocated a letter that makes up 'Happy Christmas' which are located in the xmas wreaths above the shop doors - so be sure to browse every passageway to find all of the great offers - good hunting!

Newsround

News of The Secret Arcade reaches residents of West London

The Secret Arcade was featured in October's issue of The Resident Magazine - a substantial guide to all that is of interest to the culture aficionados of West London. As it was for the interior section Turner Pocock was singled out and the Louise Body window selected from The Secret Arcade's Home Decoration passage to illustrate an internal view - we are sure this piece will have found its way into the little black books of many of its discerning readers for future reference.

Honourable treatment for the littlest room in the house

Louise Body gets a second mention this week. She was commissioned by UBM the organisers of Decorex to design some bespoke wallpaper for the rest room foyer area. Designing the toilet wallpaper at first sounded like a dubious honour but it was incredibly well received and they are now planning to add it to the collection!

To view all of Louise Body Wallpaper designs and Interior accessories visit her shop in the Home Decoration passage of The Secret Arcade.

Find winter refuge at The Secret Arcade

Winter nights are drawing in fast and we have been thinking of ways to spend cosy evenings indoors. As new knitters and sewers we don't need much encouragement to spend a happy hour or two (or three!) with a bag full of gorgeous wools and fabrics. One of our new favourite shops is Ray Stitch - an Aladdin's cave of fabrics and wools. They have a lots of new treats in store this month ready for you to dust off the knitting needles and sewing machine to create something stylish for the autumn wardrobe? Maybe you're already thinking about getting ahead of the game for once and having a few beautiful hand made presents ready in good time for Christmas? And what about seasonal parties and social events? It's never too early to start thinking about that. Are your party outfits lined up and looking tickety-boo!

You can view a whole host of haberdashery delights in the Ray Stitch shop which is located in the Fashion and Accessories passageway at The Secret Arcade.

Newsround

'Believe' New film from Beautiful Soul

Nicola Wood, the creative force behind the fashion label, Beautiful Soul has made a stunning short film 'Believe' to promote her SS11 collection. "Growing a fashion label is a challenge, and every season is an experiment. It is really early days for Beautiful Soul and I work hard at finding innovative solutions to promote my brand (on a very limited budget) and build a platform from which I can really work my magic. This season, I wanted to make a short, creative film to celebrate our new offering, which represents the energy of Beautiful Soul’s unique designs.

Beautiful Soul SS:11 Believe.

Visit Beautiful Soul 's shop in The Secret Arcade here to view collections


My name is Tallulah....

Launched in 2005 Alexia Fashion is the brainchild of designer Alexia Parmigiani. Her unique designs combine intricate beading, hand picked jewels, with touches of bohemian fabrics laid the foundations for what is now the highly-recognisable Alexia signature. The latest offering is the Tallulah Bag - an oversize black sequin bag perfect to fit all your life in!

Visit Alexia Fashion's shop in The Secret Arcade here

New apparitions from Ghost Furniture

Ghost Furniture creates beautiful new pieces of furniture from old finds. Each piece is unique, has its own history and comes with a Certificate of Authenticity By using traditional techniques and new eco-friendly materials wherever possible bringing furniture back from the dead and made it into something hauntingly beautiful. To view their new pieces visit Ghost Furniture's shop in The Secret Arcade here


Radiance Lighting - new virtual tour

Here at The Secret Arcade we are all about recreating as close as possible the 'real' shopping experience online. Hannah Nunn, the designer behind Radiance Lighting has made available a new virtual tour of her brilliant (bricks and mortar) shop to her online customers. It’s pretty cool. You can look round the shop from every angle...and even go and sit on the ceiling (should you feel a need) Visit Radiance's shop in The Secret Arcade.

Two New Dark Horse Collections for Autumn/Winter 2010/11.

Designer Jenny Hattersley, the power behind Dark Horse has been very busy creating two great new collections of her wonderful jewellery. The High Voltage collection has been inspired by Seventies glam rock and the drama and sequins of its iconic stage heroes and their costumes...slick black leather cuffs, necklaces and the ubiquitous star motif all feature heavy glitter panels in gorgeously murky, burnished hues for a tough and sophisticated take on glitter.

In contrast the new "Phoebe" collection explores the use of lace featuring broad cuffs, sweet shirt-style collars with ribbon ties and playful hairbands, all of which are in a muted colour palette of palest mink, grey and black. To view collections visit the Dark Horse shop in the jewellery passage of The Secret Arcade.

Up coming events

Visit Molly-Meg's traveling shop at Mid Century Modern 14th November 2010
For the next 2 weeks you can see our window display at the beautiful Verandah store on Chamberlayne Rd, Kensal Rise.

Simply Roses will be at the Hatfiled House Frost Fair from 19-21 November and the Chelsea Physic Garden Christmas Fair from 26-27 November.

Dark Horse at Canterbury Festival we are proud to be participating in the Canterbury Artists' Open House scheme and as part of the Faversham Trail, we will have our work on display at Creek Creative Studios each weekend throughout the festival. Come and visit our mini boutique for gorgeous one-offs and samples at a fraction of their retail prices for this event only!

Newsround

We are cock-a-hoop this week due to some great press - after the hard work of designing the site early this year and finding all of the wonderful shops that constitute The Secret Arcade we are really delighted at the recognition that people are giving it. Firstly we are thrilled to be featured in Vogue Portugal's September Issue - what an honour! They included a great picture of the front of The Secret Arcade which has already tempted quite a few people through the gates. A big thanks to the Vogue Portugal team! (See the piece in 'What's in the Press' on the left side column of this blog.) Secondly we were given a right royal audience with Queen Marie from The Kingdom of Style - one of our absolute favourite blogs. She has said some great things about The Secret Arcade and has chosen one of Leju's statement necklaces as one of her favourite pieces. Another big thanks to her! (You can view the Leju necklace by visiting their shop in The Secret Arcade's jewellery passage.)

Close Up and Personal with Books and Prints

We love the fact that you can buy artist made books and original limited edition art prints from The Secret Arcade. We have also learned this week that two of our shops are taking part in some great events that for anyone interested in getting close up and personal with these brilliant artforms can go along and do just that!

THIS WEEKEND ONLY ! A Little Bit Of Art at The Palace Art Fair

The team at our favourite print shop is showing some of their artists at The Palace Art Fair this weekend (8th - 10th October) and if you can make it you will be in for a treat. There will be masses of wonderful original prints for sale - a great way of owning your own piece of art!
Visit A Little Bit of Art blog to find out more details. If you cant make the art fair you can always visit their shop which is located in The Book, Prints & Art passageway at The Secret Arcade where you can browse dozens of fabulous artist's work- all for sale at very reasonable prices.

Get creative and make your own beautiful artist book

Ciara Healy is a book artist and has a wonderful shop in the Secret Arcade where you can view and buy her handmade books. If you would like to be more hands -on she will be running a book making weekend workshop in November and December - places are limited so it is a good idea to book a place soon if you want to learn to make some beautiful handmade books for Christmas presents! The workshops will be taking place in Guildford at the lovely Ochre Print studio. Learn a range of simple book making skills. Apply these skills to your creative style and develop your own artists books! This course is for anyone who is willing to experiment and explore visual arts materials, images and expression. No direct previous experience is required, this is not a traditional bookbinders course; it is a more creative version suitable for printmakers, writers, photographers, textiles and artists of all kinds. Starts Wednesday evenings 3rd November, 2010 for 6 consecutive weeks.£138 members, £152 non members - Basic materials included. To find out more about Ciara's workshop here

To see more of the books and prints by A Little Bit of Art and Ciara Healy visit the Book, Print & Art passage at The Secret Arcade.

Children's Classics From Olive Loves Alfie

The iconic 'Miffy 'Lamp

We love the 'Miffy' lamps that have newly arrived in the style hive that is Olive Loves Alfie. Based on the iconic rabbit design created in the 1950's by Dick Bruna it sits at 80cms with a little sister arriving in time for Christmas! Miffy can be used as a night light in a child's room or as ambient light in a more grown up environment.

Stylish Nostalgia - a new autumn/winter collection from Little Duckling

Due to arrive hot of the press at Olive Loves Alfie this week is the new collection of brilliantly cut children's clothes by Little Duckling. We love the sense of nostalgia that they create with their fresh colour palette and quite brilliant pattern cutting. Going from strength to strength with another outstanding collection we love the new AW10 collection even more than the last. It is due to arrive in store any day so will be available on line next week.

Miffy lights and the new Little Duckling collection are available from the Olive Loves Alfie Shop in the Children's passage of The Secret Arcade.

Newsround

It never fails to delight us to see all the new treasures that we are constantly discovering in The Secret Arcade. We report this week on the launch of hand drawn wallpapers, limited edition art prints and truly unique lighting, handmade organic soap and fabulous French children's slippers! Not only can you find gorgeous products in the arcade's designer shops but also a wealth of ideas for your home and family are waiting to be discovered by visiting their individual blogs. But be warned you can disappear for sometime once you have entered this secret kingdom - indulge and enjoy!

New Zebra Wallpaper

The wonderful Turner Pocock Cazalet trio have once again delivered up a new wallpaper design. Following the success of the original Zebra Wallpaper they have added a new blue / grey colourway to their collection offering lighter grey tones and indigo blues. The overall effect is one of subtle sophistication with a playful but stylish edge making it a perfect choice for both children and adults decor. All designs are hand drawn and use environmentally sustainable materials.

To view this wallpaper and their full range visit the Turner Pocock shop in the 'Home Decoration Passage' of The Secret Arcade.

Ghost Furniture at The London Design Festival 2010

The London Design Festival is a nine-day celebration of design in the world’s creative capital. The Festival is a platform for the widest spectrum of design disciplines, brought together as a unique and accessible programme. Ghost Furniture was invited to exhibit a collection of their unique lamps at the prestigious event and some were also displayed at the newly opened Tom Dixon shop 'The Dock' in Notting Hill.

To view more of Ghost Furniture products go to the Homeware Passage of The Secret Arcade.


A Treasured French Connection

The lovely Ashlyn of the children's designer shop Olive Loves Alfie has launched a range of indoor shoes from the chicest of French companies, Collegien. Ashlyn has very fond memories associated with the company, saying "Nothing pleases me more than rediscovering something from the past that I once loved. I had a fabulous friend who grew up wearing Collegien shoes that her equally fabulous aunt used to send her from Paris. Every time she grew out of them a new pair would arrive but in a different colour or new design. She kept the smaller ones for me to dress up in when I went to visit"

If you would like to start a family tradition visit Olive Loves Alfie in the 'Children's Passage' of the Secret Arcade.

A Moroccan Beauty Secret

Simply Roses is the fantastically fragrant one stop shop for anything rose related. They have just launched a new soap that combines the classic rose with argan - widely acclaimed as a miracle oil. Argan oil is extracted from kernels of the argan fruit which contains high levels of vitamin E, natural anti-bacterial properties and essential fatty acids that all work wonders on the skin. Long considered a Moroccan beauty secret, the fruit is harvested from the Argan forests in the south west of the country where the local Berber women regard the extracted oil as the elixir of youth. Combined with rose oil, organically grown argania spinosa is the star ingredient of Simply Roses' new Rose Argan Soap which come in two bars in a pretty pink organza pouch.

If you would like to treat yourself to a small beauty miracle visit the Simply Roses shop in the 'Perfume & Beauty Passage' of The Secret Arcade.

A Little Bit of Art - New Artist is Launched

Artist Ros Shiers has joined the already impressive collection of contemporary artists currently showing at the online gallery A Little Bit of Art that sells affordable original prints. Ros Shiers produces unique illustrations under her name 'I Heart RS'. Her work combines a passion for all things decorative and beautiful with a love of strong ,bold graphic illustration with subject matter from burlesque femme fatales to botanical flora and fauna. Her love of vintage ephemera and Victoriana inspires her work alongside her memories of childhood circus visits and reading Alice in Wonderland books. The work is produced using the Giclee printing process which ensures a print with brilliant colour and razor sharp detail. A Giclee is a recognised and collectible category of fine art and are guaranteed not to fade or age and have a colour life of 75 - 100 years.

To view Ros Shiers prints and the full range of other artists visit A Little Bit Of Art's shop in the 'Books, Prints & Art Passage' of The Secret Arcade.

Newsround

This week has seen the first signs of Autumn with chilly nights and the first flutter of falling leaves, children back to school and time to start thinking of putting away our summer wardrobe for another year. Never fear - we have cheered ourselves up with a wander around the jewellery passage of The Secret Arcade and have selected a few autumnal pieces from the amazing array of designers to brighten your day.

Clara Francis has created a stunning necklace of striking red autumn leaves using her distinctive

ultra fine bead work. Clara skillfully works together tiny coloured glass beads to create subtle shading and colour that produces the most exquisite pieces.

Sarah Home's collection 'Bordering on the Bizarre' is a series of intricately laser cut and etched jewellery pieces using black, gold and silver mirror perspex. Our current favourite is an amazing necklace entitled 'An Unkindness of Black Ravens' - laser cut black perspex on gold plated fine trace chains. It has so much animation that you can almost hear the evocative 'caw caw' of the crows!

Jenny Hattersley is the designer behind Dark Horse Jewellery. Her trademark style is defined by her use of leather to create stunning handmade statement pieces. Her new range includes the 'Winter Garland' necklace which has handcut, individual leaves and winter blooms layered, stitched and riveted onto a leather bib with D-ring attachments and a generous grosgrain ribbon tie. Autumnal hues and metallic highlights make this stunning neckpiece redolent of the winter months with subtle texture and tones.

The 2010/11 collection of luxury handmade necklaces by Nicole Akong has been launched for this autumn and is a celebration of jewellery as the ultimate physical embellishment to convey status, individual style and power. Here, Nicole has applied traditional stitching and weaving techniques to the materials and language of jewellery making — chains are weaved together to make fabrics, trims are stitched on to chains — to produce the most exquisite and intricate embellishments fit for fashion royalty.

LeJu is a fusion of two talents: Lenny Trines, a Dutch-born jewellery designer, and Juan Munoz, a London-based businessman from Colombia. It was in South America that Lenny discovered her natural talent and creativity by working with various artisans, learning different techniques. She is truly inspired by the natural world stating, “I work with a product that has a wonderful purpose, which is to help stop the killing of elephants to obtain ivory. Moreover, it is 100% sustainable and its quality is superb. I try to create designs, which reflect its roots. Nature is full of wonderful colours and I use them to reflect it in people’s lives.” The 'Botanias' bracelet is part of their new autumn/winter collection - a combination of Vegetable Ivory seeds skillfully carved and intermixed with Horn presented in their characteristic bold colours.

Visit any of the above designers in the 'Jewellery 'Passage of The Secret Arcade.

Newsround

We are a bit later than normal posting our newsround as it has been a busy old week with lots of new visitors to The Secret Arcade, due largely to the fantastic Daily Candy piece about Helen Musselwhite (her e-shop is situated in the Books, Prints & Art passage in The Secret Arcade). Although it was about Helen, the piece linked to The Secret Arcade website address so the rest of the shops benefited - the power of the collective! Helen was thrilled with the feature as not only did she receive lots of visitors to her site she has also been contacted to produce a children's book and a commission to design a window display for a prestigious London stationery shop!

Pretty as a picture

This feature in the current issue of Homes & Antiques magazine very much reminded us of the Tulip & Nettle window that we designed for The Secret Arcade. The picture frame here is reminiscent of those we chose to frame the wonderfully romantic portrait photography that is so characteristic of the company.

Based in Northumberland Tulip & Nettle produce clothing for children (and some for adults). Its unique, restrained style is both historical and wearable with lots of lovely pieces that have the air of classic quality. We very much like their new 'Heroine' blouse - an exquisite new season look for girls. A ravishingly romantic piece that is made from layers of cotton voile and trimmed with ribbon and lave. You can see it here worn with pale blue velvet hotpants over thick knit tights - what a great look!

The Tulip & Nettle shop is located in the 'Children' passage of The Secret Arcade where you can also visit four other shops from the amazing Apolline who creates delightful and whimsical fabric toy creatures, Molly-Meg's classic children's furniture to the magical illustration of Belle & Boo and the bold fabric prints of Olive Loves Alfie.

Visit the 'Children' Passage at The Secret Arcade

Dress Up And Be Happy

Speaking of Olive Loves Alfie we are delighted to report on the success of their recent inspirational kids project that was launched at Lollibop last weekend. Inspired by Woodstock and taking the festival feeling of free spirits, music and summer, Olive Loves Alfie created a magical space for kids to play with their unique sense of style. The woodland dressing up camp was wrapped up in bunting made from frayed vintage denim, Katvig and Marimekko fabrics. A beautiful selection of vintage clothing, Olive Loves Alfie’s customised festival clothing and specially designed accessories were displayed on clothes rails or piled high in vintage suitcases that were hidden amongst the trees. With irrepressible invention over two anarchic days the kids created a joyous array of improvised outfits and exuberant dressing-up styles themselves.

To view Olive Loves Alfie's wonderful range of children's clothing visit their shop in the 'Children' passage of The Secret Arcade.