B and B blog

B&B interview vintage obsessive Emma Davies November 20, 2019 12:00

Emma is a woman after our own heart - a lover of tattoos, vintage, rockabilly and all things stylish. We met through her love of our butterfly skull logo, and bonded instantly. We love all she does and wanted to find out more about her. 

Emma in red wedding dress

Tell us a bit about yourself...
I’m Emma Davies a 42 year old mum, wife and vintage obsessive. I freelance write and blog and for actual proper money I work as a children’s nanny and as a receptionist in a local hairdressers. I love my family, dogs, tattoos and cake!

You always look fantastic! Where do you get your inspiration from?
Thank you very much! Coming from you both that’s one helluva compliment, and I’m very, very flattered. My inspiration is a bit of a 1950’s/1980’s mashup with a teeny sprinkling of goth thrown in for good measure. I love the rockabilly pinups, Debbie Harry, Siouxsie Sioux and Helena Bonham Carter, these ladies are my idols!

Emma with husband 

What would you say your style is?
It really varies from day to day depending on what I’m doing but I always try and get a bit of vintage in there somewhere! Saturday for work was a Collectif tartan swing dress, yesterday a original 80’s dress complete with shoulder pads and today I’m nannying so I’m wearing a oversize customised bleached denim shirt, leggings and Converse. Everything is topped off with a slick of red lipstick though, I don’t feel like me without it.

How did you first come across Brennan and Burch?
About 5 years ago I was staying in the AMAZING Hotel Pelirocco in Brighton and fell in love with the beautiful wallpaper in their bar area ( butterfly skull and madworld print). It was exactly the sort of art that I love. Bright, quirky, but not too creepy. I did a bit of research when I came home and learnt more about Brennan and Burch and wanted everything!

Hotel Pelirocco bar

What made you decide to have a tattoo on your hand of our butterfly skull?
I had wanted a hand tattoo for a while and knew it had to be something a bit special. I fell in love with the butterfly skull so emailed B&B and tentatively asked if they would mind if I used their design. You guys were so lovely and even sent me the .pdf file to give to my tattooist! It’s one of my favourites and I’m so grateful to you both.

Emma butterfly skull tattoo

You have some lovely tattoos, which are your favourites or mean something to you?
Thank you very much! I love my ink and it’s a constant work in progress. They are a big old jumble of everything I love, from my kids names to Tim Burton movies, flowers and butterflies. My favourites change but I love my pug in a teacup (I have two pugs and they are my babies!) and my butterfly skull on my hand. I recently got my first tattoo that I had when I was 18, a ropey looking 90’s dolphin, covered up, and I have to admit I felt a bit sad about it. They are all special in their own way.

Emma chest tattoos

We know you are passionate about your thrift shop finds. Does your home reflect this?
I love thrifting and this has definitely spread into my home. I’ll trawl markets and even skips for unusual pieces that fill my home. I love colour and graffiti art too. None of it is expensive. We have too many kids and dogs to be too precious!

 Emma house with zebra

Emma house with elephant


Trading time for skills with Echo January 5, 2018 12:00

Echo is our favourite way to help others, whilst also helping ourselves. Echo is an Economy of Hours: a marketplace without the money. Echo members buy and sell their skills, services and resources they have for those that they need, using a currency called Echoes. The exchange rate couldn’t be easier: 1 hour = 1 Echo.

Number 90 graffiti

Maj went to visit Echo HQ in their mega trendy Hackney Wick/Olympic Park location to get some marketing training. The 1 Echo she used to buy this training had previously been earned by helping out at an Echo event and assisting other business owners. 

Number 90 entrance

Other skills our business has been able to access through Echo include website marketing review, head shot photography and defining our business story. If you want to know more about buying and selling using Echo, you can sign up here. (Disclaimer: If you register using this link, Brennan & Burch will earn an Echo for referring you!)

Number 90 building from Olympic Park

We love Echo as it shares the hippy ethos of give and take. Maj's dad used to stand by the side of the road in India with a box, from which passers by could take something they needed, or give something they could share. Echo's HQ is located in Main Yard Studios, 90 Wallis Rd, London E9 5LN.

Number 90 building from canal

Echo have positioned themselves a stones throw from the Here East campus, a new and exciting purpose built location which hosts many exciting companies and events. Echo hold their wildly successful Echo ++ business accelerator programs there too.

Here East in Olympic Park

Couldn't resist taking some street art pics around Hackney Wick on the way to the overground station! We are obsessed with street art (as you may have noticed from our Instagram feed).

Hackney Wick street art

Hackney Wick graffiti characters

Hackney Wick graffiti tags

Hackney Wick graffiti doorway


Colour in Romford - street art installed March 30, 2016 12:00 1 Comment

Colour in Romford aims to support Creatives and engage the local community in the arts by bringing a splash of colour to South Street. The open competition gave the public the opportunity to submit their artwork for large scale commissions with a chance to see their creations brought to life throughout our streets. Focusing on four main sites, entries were encouraged to design a piece that drew inspiration from local history and culture, giving the proposed urban sites an audacious, artistic makeover. Colour in Romford is curated by Made Public .

'New Forest', Brennan & Burch, South Street (station)

We made a few site visits as the work was going up and got behind the scenes shots.

Brennan and Burch street art

Brennan and Burch street art

Brennan and Burch street art

Brennan and Burch street art

Brennan & Burch street art

Lis and Maj

'Monkey', Grant Pearce, South Street (Fiction)

'Monkey' by Grant Pierce

'The Reader', Anika Manuel, The Quadrant

'The Reader' by Anika Manuel

'Loughros Point Revisited', Chris Stevens, King's Arm Yard

'Loughros Paint Revisited' by Chris Stevens


Feeling the love for the art around Old Street May 6, 2015 12:00

Saw these lovely examples of street art on my travels. Just as I was taking the pictures, a tour group came up and so I was earwigging all about the art in the area and the interesting history of graff on our streets.
Old Street Charlie Chaplin graffiti
Old Street Rope Lady graffiti
Old Street Hoarding graffiti
Old Street tunnel graffiti

Pure Evil x Royal Doulton mash up February 4, 2015 12:00

Look at these super duper Pure Evil bunnies and plates limited edition collaborations with Royal Doulton.

Oh yes please I'd love a bit of that Brennan & Burch x Royal Doulton, here I am just waiting for my phone to ring...

Now back to reality - absolutely love this collaboration and have pur-chased some of the fantastic graphic art plates for my wall. Thumbs up to Pure Evil for making pottery street. Wall plates are not an old woman's game any more!

Pure Evil gold bunny

Pure evil red bunny

Pure Evil Audrey plate

Pure Evil Marilyn Dali plate

Pure Evil 4 mini plates

 

http://www.royaldoulton.co.uk/design-partners/pure-evil/

 


Out and about in Shoreditch January 28, 2015 12:00

Running some errands and we couldn't help stopping to take pics of a few of these graffiti pieces in Shoreditch, East London. From old school tagging to new school street art, the area has the lot if you just look around you.

Shoreditch Graffiti Tag Wall

Shoreditch Graffiti Tag Bridge

Shoreditch Graffiti Santa Satan

Shoreditch graffiti Hedgehog


Let's face it January 14, 2015 12:00

I have wanted to take a picture of this derelict pub in Finsbury Park for years now, it has stood there all alone for up to 10 years. I, don't remember when I first noticed the graff faces painted all over the front but it is a good few years. I don't know who painted them but I always find them fascinating and wonder what is the story behind them.

I sometimes think the faces are of the crowds that used to come to the gigs open mouthed and in the moment, or are they the people of Finsbury Park all colours and nationalities, or are they all facing left for a reason maybe waiting for something to happen in that direction or pointing that way and it is code for something.

I found out that it was originally a pub called Sir George Robey and then changed hands a few times before it became a a venue called Club Dog in the 1980s for lots of up and coming artists like Blur, The Pogues and T'Pau and Bad Manners. In the 1990s it was taken over and then called the Powerhaus.

Now it is waiting to be pulled down and made into flats (what a surprise).

Faces Finsbury Park