WAH Nails | cheriecity.co.uk

Fairground Launches in Haggerston

April 11, 2014 by cheriecity

East London’s thriving street food scene shows no signs of slowing down with the arrival of new venture Fairground, kicking off tomorrow for ten weeks.

The pop-up project is headed up by Dominic Cools-Lartigue, founder of the enormously popular Street Feast, and is set to have a unique festival vibe with arts, culture, food and music.

Fairground occupies a disused office block in Haggerston and is set over three floors. Level One is Fairground Live – an event space with live music and installations with music takeovers from London brands such as WAH Nails, Run Dem Crew and Field Day. The launch weekend starts with a pre-Glastonbury party from jewellery and lifestyle brand Love Bullets, best known for their parties at the Shangri-La field.

Level Two is the Grandaad Lounge – a relaxed space for hang outs and creative thinking with weekend events such as inspirational guest speakers, workshops, masterclasses, talks and interviews. The first weekend features events and classes by guests such as English Disco Lovers, Kwame Kwaten, design studio Form and the team behind the Move Your Money campaign.

Level Three is of course the Fairground Diner – a top floor restaurant space with a constantly changing line-up of London’s favourite restaurants and chefs, including the likes of Yum Bun and Baba G. from Street Feast. The bar is curated by Strange Hill, the team behind the bar at the London Edition, the Booking Office Bar at Renaissance St Pancras and Mark Hix’s venues, so expect some thrilling libations.

Busaba Eathai hosts the first takeover, showcasing new recipes for the first time in line with SongKran (Thai New Year). Additionally, Andy Oliver of The Begging Bowl presents his new venture Som Saa, offering authentic Thai dishes using quality British ingredients, and Yum Jungle makes an appearance too.

Other Thai-themed activities include 25-minute Thai cookery classes, Pandan cupcake decorating, an exotic Thai fruit tasting stand, and a Thai massage hut.

Fairground is set to be the place to hang out in east London for weekends to come, offering an experience that goes beyond simply tempting food and cocktails – make it a part of your schedule now.

Fairground runs from 12th April for 10 weeks. For more information, visit: www.fairgroundlondon.com

Open: Saturday from 10am to 3am and Sunday from 10am to midnight.
Price: Free before 7pm, £5 from 7pm to 9pm, £7 after 9pm.
Address: 260-264 Kingsland Road, London, E8 4DG

Beauty, London, Shopping, Stores

BeautyMART Opens At Harvey Nichols London

September 14, 2012 by cheriecity

Last week, BeautyMART arrived on the 3rd floor of Harvey Nichols. Behind this new retail concept is beauty journalist Anna-Marie Solowij and brand creative Millie Kendall (founder and creator of Ruby & Millie and Scarlett & Crimson), who have over 20 years experience in the beauty industry each.

BeautyMART features a carefully edited selection of niche, luxury and affordable beauty products from over 100 brands. There aren’t many beauty stores where you can see hard to find French pharmacy products next to WAH Nails silver nail foils and lemon-scented Denman hairbrushes.

The open-plan store is designed in cool black and neon and products are displayed closely together on shelved walls and free-standing stations. It’s the antithesis of the minimal, stark white look favoured by many luxury beauty brands, making it more accessible to a younger customer.

One of the star products is Bioderma, micelle solution that has built up a cult following among make-up artists, models and ‘in the know’ beauty fans. There are also luxurious hair products by Davines, Leonor Greyl and Byron and natural skincare hero products by Melvita, Weleda, Jurlique and Yes To Carrots.

Vibrant make-up comes courtesy of Face Stockholm, Paul & Joe and Model’s Own and the high street is well represented with essentials by Batiste, Bourjois, Carmex and Revlon.

There is a special ‘Anna & Millie Love’ wall, featuring their favourite products which include deliciously-scented Monoi de Taihiti and adorable illustrated make-up carry cases. I even discovered a new ‘ecorganic’ Stockholm-based beauty brand called Estelle & Thild.

I loved the nail wall, which has everything you need for DIY nail art alongside luxurious nail care treats. Another highlight is the selection of mini sizes of products, which are perfect for travelling or testing a product before splurging on a full-size.

BeautyMART is now open in Harvey Nichols London and will be launching at Harvey Nichols Liverpool in October. Soon to follow will be its first stand-alone store and there are plans to roll out the BeautyMART vending machine to train stations, night clubs and other public places for an emergency beauty fix.

BeautyMART is such an exciting concept, as it offers something exciting for everyone on all budgets and the vending machines are an ingenious idea. After launching with so many great brands, I’m looking forward to seeing which products will appear in BeautyMART next.

For more information, visit: beautymart.co/blog

All images by BeautyMART

London, Salon

BLEACH Arrives At TOPSHOP

February 17, 2011 by cheriecity

Come to Dalston, east London, and it’s more than likely that the sea of kaleidoscope hair colours and fierce patterned nails have come fresh from WAH Nails and BLEACH.

Now you won’t need to trek all the way to Dalston on the 149, just pop into TOPSHOP to get a brand new pastel-coloured, irreverent look during London Fashion Week.

BLEACH is a temple of grunge, with directional techniques including dip-dye, super bleaching and gradient colours.

BLEACH was founded by session stylist Alex Brownsell and Super Agent Sam Teasdale, who recreate editorial looks from their two-chair salon in Dalston.

Now, if you really wanted to do a proper Kurt Cobain, you’d dip your locks in strawberry Kool Aid, but unless you want to smell like a milkshake everyday, put yourself in the hands of the experts!

BLEACH opens in the basement of TOPSHOP Oxford Street from 18 February. For more info, visit: bleachlondon.tumblr.com

Beauty, London, Stores

Sophy Robson pop up salon at Selfridges

September 23, 2010 by cheriecity

Following the immensely popular WAH Nails pop up nail bar, Selfridges have teamed up with A-list fashion manicurist Sophy Robson to launch a limited edition nail bar in the Beauty Hall.

Inspired by the exciting new Selfridges Shoe Galleries, Sophy will be offering her signature Medi Pedi and nail designs for hands and feet that pay tribute to the shoes available in the new shoe emporium, by designers such as Christian Louboutin, Gina, Maison Martin Margiela, Stuart Weitzman and YSL.

Sophy says: “For a long time I have wanted to create an outlet where stylish women can enjoy the treatments I have been known for. Selfridges brings only the best brands and services to their customers so this is the perfect opportunity for me!

She adds: “Once you have experienced a medi pedi you will never be satisfied with a normal pedicure again and for the first time there is the opportunity to receive an exclusive Sophy Robson design on your nails. Designer nails are the current ultimate ‘it’ accessory. I hope to revolutionise the nail industry as we know it.”

Sophy Robson’s blog and online tutorial videos are my ‘go to’ source for nail inspiration and trend advice. Her tips for applying nail varnish are just brilliant, especially if like me, you end up painting your entire finger tips!

The Sophy Robson pop up salon will be in the Beauty Hall at from 23-30 September and treatments will be carried out by members of her talented, individually trained team.

Events, London, London Fashion Week, Shopping, Stores

LFW Day 3: TOPSHOP fashion week wonderland…

February 22, 2010 by cheriecity

Following my post about TOPSHOP Oxford Street’s London Fashion Week festivities, I just had to pop by and see if it was as good as they promised, and guess what…it was!

Fashion week is the best time to come shopping, as in my case, from spotting some pretty outlandish trends and creative individuals, I was inspired to become more open-minded about new trends and ideas, rather than worrying about what is most flattering. That’s the essence of London style, no?

Ella’s Bakehouse was my first stop, as I needed a sugar rush, in the shape of a Malteser cupcake. The adorable Bakehouse girls were on hand to serve up dozens of glittery cakes and they looked as cute as cupcakes in their red polka dot dresses.

Having never tried Ella’s cupcakes before, the Malteser cupcakes has made me a convert. They have a similar dense and springy texture to Lola’s cupcakes and the icing is also thick but not too sugary. The glitter on the top appealed to the five-year old in me, but eat it carefully, or you’ll end up with a sparkly ‘tache!

Completely avoiding the helpful information sign, I charged up and down the escalators on the hunt for the WAH Nails pop-up salon. The WAH girls were busy applying metallic Minx nails when I arrived and there’s a display board and catalogue to help you decide which designs to go for. Sharmadean Reid and her team are known for their amazing leopard print designs, but they can also interpret any trend from the catwalk just for your nails.

Vintage Academe’s designer dress exhibition was quite spectacular. They showed some amazing finds, from a Paco Rabanne silver sequin dress and Ossie Clark colour block dress to early twentieth century pieces by Paquin and Mainbocher.

On tuneage duty was Ali Cat (left) from electro-disco band GHOSTCAT with her DJ pal. They were camped next to the Boutique section and played a set of Lady Gaga, 80s rock and soul. See more of Ali Cat’s cool personal style on Show Me Your Wardrobe – something tells me she was an ice skater as a kid!

TOPSHOP Oxford Circus’ London Fashion Week in-store events are running all day until 23 February.

Beauty, Cafes, Events, Fashion, London Fashion Week

London Fashion Week comes to TOPSHOP!

February 17, 2010 by cheriecity

Why should only the fashion editors and celebs have all the fun at Fashion Week? It’s a question that’s being asked by many designers this season, with a number of them like Alexander Wang, Burberry, Rodarte and Proenza Schouler all streaming their shows live on the net (and in Wang’s case, projected on Times Square).

TOPSHOP are continuing the democratic trend with a flurry of amazing events at their Oxford Circus flagship store from 19-23 February. Whether you’re doing the rounds at Somerset House or glued to SHOWstudio, you can stop by TOPSHOP to get nail art done by the coolest nail techs in town, demolish some cupcakes and get insider tips on how to create a hit fashion blog. They also will be streaming the shows that they support as part of New Gen, straight from the catwalk.

Dalston-based WAH Nails are setting up a pop-up concept salon, where the technicians will be recreating looks from the catwalk or anything you could possibly dream of, they really are THAT good.

With a huge presence of bloggers gracing the London Fashion Week shows (your truly included), TOPSHOP have invited some of the luminaries of the blogosphere to share advice on how to create and maintain a must-read blog. Leading the workshops will be Oh Elle, Coco’s Tea Party and one of my fave bloggers, Disneyrollergirl.

But even with all the fashion madness going on, we still need sugary treats to keep us going. I reckon even weary and famished fashion editors won’t be able to resist a ‘couture cupcake’ from pop-up store, Ella’s Bakehouse (founded by supermodel-turned-baking goddess Lorraine Pascale).

During London Fashion Week, it’s all about new creations, so it’s easy to forget about the joys of vintage garments. Vintage experts Claire Nicholls and V&A curator, author and fashion historial Judith Watt will be showcasing a hand picked collection of vintage pieces by icon designers such as Jeanne Lanvin, Chanel, Ossie Clark, Azzedine Alaïa and Balenciaga.

Together they form The Vintage Acadème, specialising in sourcing the very best twentieth-century women’s fashion and haute couture. Clare and Judith will be on hand to give advice on the history of the garments and their designers. You’ll be able to try on some of the pieces – with tips from a TOPSHOP Style Advisor – and some items will even be for sale.

The Fashion Wall will be playing shows by TOPSHOP Unique and long-term designer collaborators Meadham Kirchoff, Christopher Kane, Mary Katranzou, Richard Nicholl, Marios Schwab, Louise Goldin and more.

The impossibly gorgeous Erin Wasson will also be teaming up with Blake Mycoskie, founder of ethical footwear brand TOMS, to host the first ‘Style Your Sole’ workshop, providing ideas to help you customised your shoes. TOMS’ mission is to match each pair of shoes sold by donating a pair to a child in a developing country and fans of the brand include Karl Lagerfeld and Sienna Miller.

Providing the soundtrack throughout the week will be live DJ sets from Stricken City, Peggy Sue, Esben and the Witch, Wet Dog, Bleech, Chew Lips and Samual and the Dragon.

As if that wasn’t enough, every time you spend £80 in store (lets face it, that’s not too difficult), you receive a free gift – just visit the Fashion Wall to see what prize is on offer. Gifts include free WAH Nails manicures, new season accessories and loaded gift cards to spend in store.

Visit the TOPSHOP website for details and event schedule.

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