Well that was novel – not only did we escape Ludlow we were in the company of lots..lots and lots of other humans! Bit of a shock to the old system after 20 plus months of relative hibernation and a small social circle!
Yesterday we visited the Spring Fair, held at the NEC in Birmingham – this is a trade show for folk who wholesale home, gift and fashion. These shows are a great opportunity for us to have a good mooch and see what manufacturers are up to, get a feel for the emerging ‘trends’ – basically what colour palettes/shapes are generally being favoured for the season(s) to come and most importantly for us find new gorgeous goodies to tempt! This is our first big show since all the C19 shenanigans – we order our clothes by visiting brands showrooms which is generally a more private and sedate experience!
Tired legs today but boy was it worth it! First off, we found a new clothing line that’ll be making it’s way to the shop for the Autumn/Winter season…lots of faux fur fabulousness from serious snuggly coats and jackets, a wonderful wrap that will look seriously rocking’ over a leather jacket, gorgeous long length gillet and accessories…lots of lovely colour!
Then we headed into the jewellery sector via a quick stop off at Soruka to place an order for some Spring/Summer bags and purses. New from them for this coming season are some beautiful suede pieces. Seriously soft but still featuring the great designs, up cycled leather elements that you all love.
We were like kids in a candy shop once surrounded by the jewellery stands…we’ve been on the hunt for a new gold jewellery designer to add to the mix and Big Metal London with their contemporary mix of resin and gemstone hit the sweet spot! Here’s a sneak peek of some of the pieces that’ll be making there way to Ludlow in the next couple of weeks…
Next up was Jackie Brazil, a true ‘Eclectica’ brand if there is one…handmade over-sized jewellery made in Rio in Brazil. Made from recycled resin – all the pieces are completely unique..channel your inner Iris Apfel when wearing these pieces and become a walking piece of art!
Jode’s had spotted these on a previous visit, but one of the positives of the pandemic is that some of the brands are now prepared to be more flexible with their minimum orders – both in terms of quantities and prices- so we are thrilled to now be in a position to give it a try. Hopefully you’ll love it as much as we do!
We then got chatting to the lovely Lisa Foster who makes leather and pewter jewellery in Oxfordshire under the name Sobo Jewellery. These pieces are wonderfully industrial and delicate in equal measure – due in part to the wonderful hues she chooses for the leather.
We love buying direct from makers, and given we both loved the designs it was a no surprise that we ended up placing an order for a mix of longer length necklaces, earrings and bracelets. These should be with us by the end of the month..so keep ’em peeled!
Last stop was to say hello to our friends from ‘oooop north’ who make our gemstone jewellery – they’ll be sending us a load of beautiful bling shortly – from firm favourites such as the Zuni to some newbies including Ethopian Opal that have not yet graced the shelves of Eclectica. We hope you’ll be excited by them as much as we were choosing them!
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