BagelHot: London Fashion Week AW 2008 Day Four

Marmite rice cakes

One of the great things of travelling is to experience the different foods of the place you're travelling. To an adventurous sort, that would not only include food that's been tested and recommended by the locals, but also include food that's just new and different to the traveller.

It was during my daily walk to the grocery store across the street, the Sainsbury's, that I found a bag of marmite rice cakes. As I'm not a big fan of rice cakes, I think they taste like eating foam, and even a bigger non-fan of marmite, I'm not really sure what possessed me to buy a bag of marmite rice cakes. Two negatives make a positive? I don't know.

Maybe I figured that eating something so revolting would make me appreciate the good stuff when it came time to eat that (the small shoe theory). It could have also been that I was still bleary eyed from just getting up. I was still a bit tired from the night before and my taste buds were probably not up and running at full capacity yet.

Tiramisu.

To balance out the "bad" choice of food, I also picked up a bunch of sweet desserty type foods. One of them being tiramisu. Since the hotel room doesn't have any type of refrigeration unit I had to buy food that would last sitting around during the day on my desk.

A row of houses just near Earl's Court station.

Wandering around the Earl's Court area.

A London phone booth

Heading back toward Earl's Court station.

It's that police booth again

Sandwiched housing

Bora Aksu

Death for a Doll

An actual gypsy wagon

While running to the science museum to see the next catwalk, I ran by this gypsy wagon. I took a photo and continued to the catwalk. I was the first photographer there. I was kind of surprised as I thought some of the others had left before me. It didn't take long to realize I had went to the wrong location so I walked back toward the fashion tent. On the way, since there was no way to make it to the now running catwalk else where, I decided to investigate the gypsy wagon.

The two women manning the wagon were Katey Abbott and Sophia Scanu, the designers that make up the company "Death for a Doll". It was nice to be able to see the clothing up close. You could appreciate the custom prints and the cut of the fabric.

Designers, Katey Abbott and Sophia Scanu

A death for Doll outfit

What the heck? (later on I think this was part of an ad campaign for Avenue Q, a muppet based play showing in London)

Free water

The British Fashion Tent

Breakfast

The front desk in the photographer's lounge at Fashion week

Busy photographers and their assistants edit photos to send their work electronically

The waiting room in the BFC tent

A freshly painted catwalk

I'm the only one that brought purple tape

A photo taken by Farah Ahmed of me in the photo pit

Jens Laugesen

On the road to Richard Nicoll

The entrance to the Fashion Tent

"Pete"

A building we happen to drive by while in the bus

"Greg"

Once the bus dropped us off we found that we (the press) couldn't get into the Richard Nicoll venue. This made a lot of the press angry saying that that wouldn't cover this guy should he have a catwalk the following season. The designer usually tells the BFC in advance that the press may require special passes to get in. It saves the press from going to the venue and wasting time in front when they could be covering another designer. After all fashion photographers generally get paid for the photos they take of outfits and not for standing outside freezing their asses off.

By this point I had realized I had lost my Re-Genesis jacket somewhere. I was in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. People kept asking me if I was cold. I found it cool but comfortable. Once I told them I was from Canada they gave me a "Ohhhh. I see." and walked on. The camera knapsack on my back was keeping me warm. Partially because it was covering my back and partially because I had to expend energy to carry it.

Signs are placed all around the catwalk venue

The crowd of press that are perturbed of not being able to get into the venue.

Once we figured we weren't going to get in, I regrouped with Peter and Greg for a sandwich down the street. We ended up picking up some stuff at the local Marks and Sparks. I love those little stores. Kind of like 7-11 only with better quality food.

Some humour?

Fashion East
(Noki, Louise Gray, David David)

The next stop was a large warehouse with a long line of lights running through it. We were early so we took out time setting up our gear on the stairs of the photo pit. I recognized a girl by the sneakers she was wearing. Her name was Anne-Marie. I had met her a year ago at the catwalk for Duro Olowu.

Her sneakers had jumped out at me even before seeing her face. Not a lot of fashion photographers wear sneakers in London, at least that I've noticed. According to Patrick they're called "Trainers". She was wearing what looked to be old classic converse black and white sneakers, the ones that cover your ankle and have the white dot. I should have took a photo of the shoes now that I think about it.

I started talking to her introducing her to other photographers I had met over the last few days. Suzanne thought I'd be great to have a parties. Maybe so. But I think it was partially the free booze that Anne-Marie had picked up for me that I drank that made me more talkative and friendly. I was introducing everyone to everyone and I was feeling a bit tipsy. All while holding my camera on my monopod.

Susan rests and eats an apple.

A photographer from Japan finds something funny

Roksanda Illincic

Anne-Marie, photographer, holds her laptop while photos back up to it.

Another small venue that was poorly managed was for designer Roksanda Illincic. Photographers were lined up to be stopped by security. Some photographers from the back of the line made their way into the venue by passing a piano. This let others, me and Anne-Marie, in the front of the line being told we couldn't get in. The life of a fashion photographer isn't always fair but it's usually interesting.

Anne-Marie suggested we leave and went for food. She took me to a place on Brick lane that had 24 hour freshly bagels, spelt "Beigels". I swear I have never had such fast service ever anywhere else. I noticed the line was a bit long and Anne-Marie assured me it wouldn't take long to get our order in.

The 24 hour bagel place on Brick Lane

True to her word we were at the front putting in our order. "I would like to get a bagel with salmon and cream che...", and before I could finish my sentence, BAM!!!, a paper bag was presented to me with my bagel with salmon and cream cheese. "That'll be a pound fifty love.", the cashier said.

The bagel was still soft and warm. The salmon tasted great. I tried to keep tabs on where we were so I could try to find the place again on my own. I knew that before leaving London I'd have to come back to this place. The Gareth Pugh catwalk was conveniently located in the same warehouse as Fashion East.

Gareth Pugh