Mary Portas take on dying High St's

baileysbattlebus

vivatifosi wrote: »

On the fashion front I think there's a gap for a good book on clothes remaking. I've had a look and couldn't find anything, but in these times of thrift it could be a good idea. For example, how to take a jumper made of good wool, unravel it into hanks, wash the kinks out and reknit the wool as something more stylish. How to take to bits large panels of fabric (from older clothes or from household textiles) and turn them into fantastic clothes. How to use old washed tights as cushion stuffing etc. How to take an old shrunken jumper and turn it into a felted handbag. And it MUST have a chapter on invisible mending - the greatest skill ever known to needlecraft and sadly almost dead.

There are books out there telling you how to do basic stuff - like sew flower corsages onto a hole in a jumper, but I want to do more than that (and I'm not a big fan of flower corsages).

One of the best dressed women I have ever known - I first met her in the 1980's recession - her husband was out of work, she worked part time in a pub, had 4 children and always looked a million dollars.

I asked her one day how she could afford such really nice clothes - we it turned out she was really good at sewing - her clothes all came from jumble sales/charity shops - and regardless of the size if she liked the fabric she would unpick the garment and remake it for herself.

I only wish I had half her talent -

lostinrates

lemonjelly wrote: »

Great post lir.
I think it has been slightly different for male/female clothing. Females can have a lot more variety & styles (trousers/skirt/dress/blouse/tshirt/top etc etc) Blokes have jeans or trousers, shirt or tshirt.
With the range of different types of clothes, ladies can create a number of different styles/looks for themselves. Blokes tend to be smart or casual (or slob!;))
It has been compounded by what you describe in your post - friends of mine have gone out & bought 16 different items of clothing on 1 day, but only spent £20-30. They'll try em all on, swap em, wear em once, get a little mark & bin it.

We've become too much of a throwaway society. Viva's point highlights this very well too.

Thank you .

Ithink it is happening to mens clothes too, you know. Quietly with 30 pluses (boden man type shoppers) but much more obviously with Topman, H&M etc. I hate that DH has a non suit office. He of course, has little time to shop, and fit on a man is so important, so two/three of our precious saturdays are spent traipsing around buying clothes that are expensive, and that he doesn't really want. remember Max's ''cos he's worth it'' watch? Well, I know men who feel the same about shoes. So, you have the same sort of thing in mens' clothing...just ...less loudly.

StevieJ

treliac wrote: »

Just think, in ten years time, some entrepreneur will come along to our high streets, populated solely by cafes, hairdressers and pawnbrokers, and they will open a shop selling clothes - real life ones that you can touch and try on.

It will be a complete novelty, a hugely successful moneyspinner, and a whole new way of shopping will rise like a phoenix!

Like the Cinema, the wise old marketing sages predicted they would be all dead and buried by now, killed off by video.

dopester

They've got a cute little 1-screen cinema in that Heaton Moor village I suggested Cleaver take a look around if he was minded to buy a house.

I often wonder how it keeps going when they've built another new multiplex cinema in the Mcr area a few years back, just one mile down the road.

lostinrates

dopester wrote: »

They've got a cute little 1-screen cinema in that Heaton Moor village I suggested Cleaver take a look around if he was minded to buy a house.

I often wonder how it keeps going when they've built another new multiplex cinema in the Mcr area a few years back, just one mile down the road.

I lov our nearest one screen, it hasa little bar and red velvet seats....I love it. Rarely ever go though...haven't been this year I don't think. In fact, I only love it by comparison. I'm not fan pf going to sit in a dark room with a load of people I don't know, who might be fairly unclean, who eat with their mouths open and slurp. But people seem more civilised with a scotch in my hand. Go figure.

We're talking about ''cinema nights'' in the village...you know a projector, or a big tv donated by a do-gooder.....

vivatifosi

dopester wrote: »

They've got a cute little 1-screen cinema in that Heaton Moor village I suggested Cleaver take a look around if he was minded to buy a house.

I often wonder how it keeps going when they've built another new multiplex cinema in the Mcr area a few years back, just one mile down the road.

lostinrates wrote: »

I lov our nearest one screen, it hasa little bar and red velvet seats....I love it. Rarely ever go though...haven't been this year I don't think.

There was a cinema nearby me when I was growing up that was a run down hovel. We used the bigger newer cinema and later multiplexes at every available opportunity and the old cinema shut down. However it has now been beautifully restored and turned into one of the finest cinemas in the country. You can see it here:

http://www.therexberkhamsted.com/

Virtually every evening show is a sell out, it has ferociously loyal public support and I hang on to the vain hope that someone can do the same for this one in St Albans:

http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1400468

I hope that the lessons have been learned about closing historic cinema and that older places find their own niche.

dopester

vivatifosi wrote: »

However it has now been beautifully restored and turned into one of the finest cinemas in the country. You can see it here:

http://www.therexberkhamsted.com/

Virtually every evening show is a sell out, it has ferociously loyal public support

I've just taken a look. Your one here in Berkhamsted seems a lot more impressive than the one I had in mind in Heaton Moor.



It seems the one I had in mind is only just about limping through in these times.

The Savoy Cinema opened 1923, built in the Baroque Style in red brick with white terracota dressings.[1] The Savoy Cinema had announced its closure due to low audiences.[3] This caused an uproar amongst locals, especially when it was announced it could be replaced by a Varsity bar - though, much of the uproar was concerned around the owners of Varsity, the Barracuda Group.[4] A campaign entitled 'Save Our Savoy' was launched. Although the plans for the Varsity were thrown out[5], the cinema is still on the market on a "to let" basis but is still open for business.

Savoy cinema faces last picture show
Eileen Payne
August 02, 2006

vivatifosi

Bear in mind the picture you've shown - and it is a drop dead gorgeous place from every internal and external angle - is an 'after' shot. Look at the poor forlorn one in St Albans, tatty fading deco, that's what it looked like before. I think the Heaton Moor one could look rather splendid again if the locals got behind the idea.

Edited to add:
Here's a before shot of the Rex, Berkhamsted. A bit of an ugly duckling back then...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/12494104@N00/365799104/

cool_pinkie

I went to the Heaton Moor one about two weeks ago and was joined by some mice! Eek! I wish they would do it up though as it's really nice, just needs a bit of TLC.

carolt

vivatifosi wrote: »

Bear in mind the picture you've shown - and it is a drop dead gorgeous place from every internal and external angle - is an 'after' shot. Look at the poor forlorn one in St Albans, tatty fading deco, that's what it looked like before. I think the Heaton Moor one could look rather splendid again if the locals got behind the idea.

Edited to add:
Here's a before shot of the Rex, Berkhamsted. A bit of an ugly duckling back then...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/12494104@N00/365799104/

Wow, it looks better now, doesn't it!

I've been past the one in Berkhamsted but didn't realise it was a mere cinema - thought it was a v posh restuarant or club or something from the outside. Beautiful.

Apparently the one in St Albans will not be renwed as a cinema, because of parking issues, sadly.

Great shame - it's a lovely building.