Sometimes, for us mere mortals, London Fashion Week can feel a bit meh. While we love reading tweets about Alexa Chung and Elizabeth Olsen’s exciting LFW exploits, the rest of us are still deskbound, feeling distinctly unglamorous and untouched by all the sparkly LWF fairy dust.
Which is why it's nice when a little piece of LFW spills down into our world. From Thursday this week, you can "pop" into a special pop-up shop in Seven Dials, and get a little bit of that LFW flavour. Melanie Porter is a Central Saint Martin’s College graduate with a bit of a thing for wool, and she’s set up a studio / boutique to show off her wares during LFW on Monmouth Street.
After working as a knitwear designer for 10 years, in 2008 Melanie turned her expertise to furniture. She now lovingly repurposes antique furniture with her signature contemporary designs, knitting new life into old chairs, tables, lamps and more. She uses all traditional techniques, stripping pre-loved items back to basics before restoring and reupholstering with her unique, hand-knitted panels.
Everything, crocheted buttons included, is done by Melanie herself, by hand. Forget Top Shop's latest colour palette, here's something from LFW that shows off a bit of London's true creativity, skill and talent. We reckon it’ll last a bit longer than the catwalk looks being celebrated this week too.
Melanie Porter's Pop-Up Shop is at 38 Monmouth Street, Seven Dials, London, WC2H from 23 February until 5 March. The shop's open from 10am til 6pm. Visit melanieporter.co.uk to find out more.
