Simon’s considering getting new furniture, and is missing the old store that used to be on the corner of Stockwell St and Greenwich Church Street as part of the Village Market. He says it was called SE10 Experience – though I confess I never noticed the name.

I don’t think that’s ever coming back – like so many of the vendors from the old market, they’ve disappeared. And I’ve been racking my brains trying to think of stores that deal solely in furniture or which might sell

“…a chest of drawers/unit with cupboard doors and drawers to go in the sitting room for chucking junk/post in and then maybe something to put a TV on….. “

He’s checked out Lancelot in Blackheath, and agrees with me that though they have very nice stuff, there’s not a huge selection. Ditto Minerva, who have rather more on their website than on display, as far as I can see.

I suggested downstairs at Stewart John, who, alongside all the chandeliers in their Turnpin Lane shop, have a selection of made-to-order furniture styles. They also restore furniture, over at their workshops in Charlton (which have all kinds of antique furniture for sale too), so if you find a nice piece of antique furniture, but it’s in a bit of a state you could get them to fix it up for you (I don’t know how much that costs.)

Failing that, Graham and Green downstairs have a few new items, but then I start to run out. But there are loads of carpenters around here – why not draw exactly what you want on the back of an envelope, and get someone to make it for you? It won’t be cheap, but it’s not necessarily as pricey as you might think – and you’ll get exactly what you want…

So – Royal Mail are on strike as from today. I confess I’m a bit surprised – my mail’s been all over the place for the last couple of weeks, I thought they were already striking. But the union are warning that we should be posting now for Christmas if we actually want any cards to arrive.

Of course – it’s just propaganda – but a good excuse for me to talk about these fabbo Christmas cards Katie’s just told me about. I know – this should really be in the Parish News section (check out the lovely exhibition coming up at Bearspace there, BTW) but I love ‘em and it’s my blog so there.

There are six versions – designed by FT cartoonist Banx – all based on local landmarks and produced by local printers. He’s designed them for the Meridian Primary School (he’s got two daughters there) – and all proceeds go to the school.

I’ve got a feeling that these are going to become collector’s items (a bit like the utterly fabulous cards issued by the 1970s Greenwich District Hospital (friends?) that feature an artist’s impression of the ‘iconic’ building in full, living Grey – if you are the proud possessor of one you’ll know what I mean…)

So – how do you get hold of these Banx cards? Well, there’s the rub. There’s a website where you can buy all six for £3 via Paypal, or you could contact Katie herself – but then of course you will have to wait for them to arrive – by post. Still – we have a couple of months – they might just make it…

Actually, I just noticed that if you’re in the SE10 area, they’ll deliver ‘em by hand – for free…

I’ve come over all “Dig For Victory” after having visited the latest pop-up shop* in Greenwich. I wasn’t going to talk about it until I did a post about Christmas shopping, but then Annette from North West London asked me about it and – well, I might as well rave about it now, I guess. Carpe Diem, eh, Annette…

The shop doesn’t have a name, as such, as far as I can tell, though it might be called “Authentic Parachute.” It’s next door to Johnny Rocket and it’s run by a lovely artist from Cockpit Arts called Debbi Little.

The most instantly-arresting things about the window display are the curious printed-cloth Union Flag items that look like a cross between Punk London c. 1977 and something your Great Gran would have in the Best Sitting Room , but once you’re looking, it’s the parachute stuff that grabs you.

Making dresses out of parachute silk was a bit of a no-brainer in wartime Britain – fabric was rationed, and women soon caught onto a whole bunch of silk going begging, whatever the source. Wedding dresses and ballgowns with big flowy skirts were particularly popular. But I haven’t seen it done by anyone since (come to think of it, despite my feeling 900 years old, I didn’t actually see it done the first time either…)

Debbi Little does just that, though, dying old parachutes funky colours and creating timeless little strappy dresses. Some of them are original ’50s models; others are modern ones – and she designs each one slightly differently according to the ‘chute in question. The blood-red one is particularly fabulous. She describes them as ‘ballgowns in a bag’ – I assume that they fold up into the original parachute cases, but I didn’t see any.

They’re not cheap – but they’re not going to date, either. I can’t think of an era in the last – well, the last 60-odd years – when they would have looked out of place. Spaghetti straps and flouncy skirts just always look good on a girl…

There are some great young artists around just now and many of them sell things on Greenwich Market. Few of them are able to afford actual shops, despite the sheer number of empty premises, which I find frustrating.

Of course, every so often you can visit them on Open Studios days – Blackheath, Greenwich and Deptford all do them from time to time. Cockpit Arts has one this weekend, if you’re at a loose end. You could even win this year’s Christmas Tree, decorated with designer baubles…

* I know, I know – ‘pop-up’ sounds like one of those kiddie books with 3D pages, but it’s actually just a fancy name for short-lease shops, which suit people who can’t afford the astronomical rates charged by a certain Hospital Trust…

Anyone been noticing there’s some movement going on in Greenwich town centre streets in the last couple of weeks? I haven’t checked out Greenwich Boutique yet and I can’t check out that new place called Fresh-Something-Or-Other where the Organic Cafe used to be (it can’t, I gather, be a cafe, as that’s why the Organic Cafe reckon they got the boot, so I’m assuming it’s some kind of food store – either something along the lines of Fresh & Wild or, some dodgy mini-mart thing would be my guess.) The old dolls house and teddy bear shop gets ever-scruffier – it claims to be being turned into a china-painting place, though it’s certainly taking its time. Apostrophe is moving into the old Rococo store.

Warwick Leadlay left a big gap in Nelson Road. I know they’ve only moved next door, but it does tend to be a bit out-of-sight-out-of-mind for me these days. I miss their old shop.

The street-front store has become a sort of homewares-come-giftshop, hastily decorated for the Christmas crowd. Graham & Green is a chain – albeit a small one, with branches in the Kings Road, Notting Hill, Chalk Farm etc. Presumably it’s only chains that can afford the prices along Nelson Road these days. Still – it’s an open shop, and it’s not a multinational, and let’s face it – it looks very pretty – and makes the road look more lively.

It sells fancy mirrors and shiny nick-nacks – think a sort of grown-up Joy (another chain but our branch is really cute…) There are a lot of Christmas decorations in at the moment, and dainty stocking fillers to give girlfriends you don’t know very well. I liked the coloured glass tumblers with the silhouettes of mountainy-scenes, myself, and I may well be going back for some of the funky plastic wine glasses.

Downstairs they promise ‘bargains’ – and I guess that there was 20% off a load of stuff. Some nice homewares – a rather fab glass lamp and sundry soft furnishings, some occasional tables and screens, one or two items of clothing, door handles and soap dishes, candles and cushions; mainly in pink or white, it seems.

It’s good to see an empty shop filled – it goes a good way to making Nelson Road look halfway decent again (I note also that one of the few shops that didn’t actually need it, Pickwick Papers and Fabrics, have had a spruce up, which only leaves about a third of the street looking duff.) I’m not convinced that there is anything in Graham & Green I haven’t seen before – but sparkly stuff and bright lights – and, when I was in there, loads of customers – are the kind of thing I want to see in Greenwich rather than empty stores and ‘To Let’ signs.

That shoe mender may have been the rudest man on earth, but I do now face a small problem. Where in Greenwich can you buy bootlaces these days (the sort you put in your shoes, not the sort Mr Humbug sells, natch…)

One thing’s for certain. Trafalgar Road isn’t sitting still. Shops are opening, even if not all of them are quite what some people would choose. La Salumeria’s opening a cafe in the back; the Trafalgar Cafe is now reopened after making itself smaller (to shoehorn a flat upstairs – probably worth more than the entire business.) Maybe things are looking up?

…but at Matalan? Who’d have believed it.

People who know me find it highly amusing that the only chain I actually miss in Greenwich is the very wonderful Woolworths. I have always loved Woollies – ever since I was a kid – the pick & mix racks, the plastic picnicware, the chart CDs, the toys, the mop-and-bucket sets…

I can’t really explain why Woollies garish strip lighting, bright colours and cheerful tat have always held an almost mesmeric attraction for me – and let’s face it, I’m alone in this. Hell – the store announced £100m losses only yesterday as it slipped further in the public’s affections.

OK – They’ve made mistakes – remember when they tried to go up market a few years ago with ‘designer’ chocs and celebrity cappuccino-whisks? No? Nor does anyone else. But I still have a soft spot for Woollies and my mates always know where to find me if I go missing in a strange town…

But – well, we haven’t got one and that’s that. I have to go to Eltham or Lewisham if I want a Woolworths fix. In a jam, Wilkinson will do – in fact, even for die hard Woolworths fanatics like me Wilkinson is beginning to represent what Woollies used to be, but there ain’t one of them in Greenwich either.

Sorry. I just had to get that off my chest. And I am receiving therapy for this embarrassing affliction. But there is a reason why I’m wittering on about Woollies. Because that’s where I used to go to find bargain party stuff. I remember a couple of years ago trudging to Lewisham and buying a charming string of pumpkin Halloween fairy lights, that looked from a distance like a row of orange lollipops. I may even still have them. There’s therapy for that too.

But I have found a pretender to the party-throne.

Some clever person at Matalan – purveyor of cheapo clothing that falls apart the day after you buy it – has hit on the perfect product. Party stuff that dresses your home, your kids and yourself, which doesn’t matter if it falls apart the day after you use it.

The section started out small, with just a few balloons and paper chains, then it got in banners and a couple of hats. Since then it has been slowly getting bigger and bigger over the past few months.

Now it’s pretty large, selling happy-tat to decorate your home in any style you like. 70s disco? No problem. Western Saloon? It’s yours. Haunted house? We aim to please.

Large paper posters that give the impression of panelled rooms or cacti, a graveyard or a princess’s castle. Lanterns to hang from the ceiling. Balloons a go-go. Costumes (albeit not of the very top quality and mainly of the ’sexy witch/nurse/cheerleader’ variety) for adults and children (less sexy for the kiddies, thank god) accessories that outshine the pathetic selection in Angels (which I was in yesterday but will not bother with again – now there’s a place that doesn’t care about its customers – rude, unhelpful staff, piss-poor selection (no better than Matalan and very much of the Smiffy-sort) and outrageous prices – avoid them, guys…) cards, badges, party poppers, make up, wigs – you name it.

Turnover is fast, so don’t count on any particular thing being there when you go. At the moment, it’s all Halloween stuff – loads of frankly horrid gore and unidentified plastic creatures with red lighting-up eyes – perfect for scaring the kiddies – I assume that as Christmas approaches, different fancy-dress stuff will supplant the horror. But I first noted this section back in May – so I think it’s going to be permanent.

I don’t know whether it’s a general thing with all Matalans or whether the buyer at the Charlton store is some kind of genius, but this to me is a great first-stop if you’re having a party. You MAY end up trekking into town for that extra-special piece of sparkly rubbish – but, if you’re having a bit of a do, do check at Matalan first. What it loses in quality, it makes up for in fun.

For somewhat better quality I’ll be looking at Prangsta another day…

Carem Plumbing & Heating Supplies Ltd
Trafalgar Road SE10

Or maybe it’s Olds for some of you but it’s certainly news for me. For months people have been finding some very erratic opening hours at the Trafalgar Road branch, including me and today, after making a special walk to get some fish (working on the “it’s Friday morning – if a fish shop is going to be open any time it will be then” approach) and finding the shutters down again, I emailed the Fishmonger team to find out once and for all what’s happening.

Emma replies:

“Unfortunately, we have had to close the Trafalgar Road shop. All of our business is now out of the Circus Street/Royal Hill branch. We are in the process of updating the web site with the new information and that should be working within a week or so. We are open in Circus Street from Tuesday to Friday 8.00 till 5.00 and on Saturday from 7.30 until 4.30. We are closed the day after a bank holiday as the inshore fishermen do not go to sea on a public holiday.”

So – I’ve gone from being a grumpy Phantom to a sad Phantom. I guess it’s good that we’ve at least got a fishmonger in Greenwich – but once again yet another good quality shop is over in the west, leaving the east with another closed storefront…

Greenwich Market, Wednesdays to Sundays.

Several of us have been keeping an eye on proceedings at Greenwich Market’s new foodie section (or the expansion of the old section) – and yesterday was the first day.

I confess I hadn’t been that excited about it – the one that operates on the usual busy market weekends perhaps wisely concentrates on tourists – so the food tends towards the scoff-it-on-the-spot variety – interesting enough, but not the kind of ingredients you can get somewhere like Blackheath Farmers Market. I had assumed an expansion of the same.

Still – I had to go and have a look. Obviously.

It’s clearly early days – there can’t have been more than half a dozen stalls, spaced out in the market – very open and airy, but slightly empty-looking. And some of them were the usual suspects – as I say, nice enough, but not somewhere I’d go for my groceries. But I was very pleased to see at least two ‘proper’ fruit and veg stalls – one selling Kentish farm goods – from free range eggs, tomatoes and cucumbers to first-of-the-season strawberries, the other the Greenwich Community fruit and veg stall – extremely good value.

There were sundry bigwigs wandering around while I was there (that’s how I could tell it was the first day – nothing if not observant, me…) and photographers, presumably for the local papers, but my own pics turned out utterly rubbish. Just imagine a fairly empty Greenwich Market Hall with a few very nice-looking stalls (the fairy cakes stall is scrummy – and no, I refuse to call them ‘cupcakes…’) and you’ll have it.

The service on all the stalls was welcoming and friendly – if a little slow, as the stallholders chatted with everyone – a throwback to ye olden days when shopping was a social experience.

As I say, it’s early days. There aren’t that many stalls. But it’s definitely worth a look – patronise it now and there will be more…

1, Greenwich South St, SE10

You know, sometimes a place is so obvious to write about that in my increasingly muddled mind, I think I’ve already done it. I could have sworn I covered Halcyon Books bloomin’ months ago but since I can’t find it anywhere, presumably I didn’t…

A dying breed, secondhand book shops in Greenwich. We seem to be losing them all, one by one (most recently Marcet Books in the little passageway between Nelson Rd and the market) but one that is clinging on – and still seemingly doing pretty well, is Halcyon in that little row of stores in Greenwich South St that includes Stitches & Daughters (or whatever it turns out to be next) and the Junk Shop.

Handily, whilst googling Halcyon for the exact address, I found a fun competition from abebooks where the prize was visiting 10 booksellers around the world, including Halcyon – my kind of competition. Shame it’s finished…

Apparently the owner, Matthew Hubbard, started the business as a stall in the market in 1988, moving to an actual shop in 1995. So it’s 20 years old this year. Nice one. Congratulations, Matthew.

I’m always rather suspicious of neat second-hand book shops, but that’s not something you can level at Halcyon. While the shelves themselves are pretty well-ordered, there seem to be veritable landslides of volumes at the foot of each section, more than ever just now, waiting, tantalisingly, for space on the racks themselves.

It’s bigger than it looks from the outside, going right back into the recesses of the shop, but I’m yet to see a good secondhand bookstore that had enough room for all its stock (at one I know on the south coast you literally climb up piles of books to get to the shelves) and Halcyon, happily, is no exception, bulging at every seam. There’s a small local section, a lot of geographical stuff and an enormous amount of military books – hardly surprising, given the history of the area. The classics shelves probably have a little more room now after my own last visit where I cleared them of Trollope. Sorry chaps – but I guess you probably have more. I still need The Warden, btw…

Much of the bog-standard stuff is ‘priced to sell,’ but very little costs huge amounts (well, not that I’ve seen.) Staff are friendly and helpful – on my last request they double-checked and then cross-referenced my query. No luck – but that’s not the point. They made the effort and believe me, I ask obscure…

From a vibrant selection of secondhand bookshops in Greenwich we have gone to a paltry couple plus a remainder shop and a mega-chain. I did wonder whether Halcyon keep afloat by selling on the internet, but although the domain name is taken, I can’t find any website, save a rather obscure bit on abebooks. So for now it’s still a proper, hands-on vistors’ bookshop. We need to keep visiting to keep it that way…