DESIGNER CHRISTMAS MARKET IN PRINCESS MAY PARK

 

 

There is a big Christmas Market on in Fremantle this weekend at Princess May Park in Adelaide Street.

The Made on the Left 2018 Christmas Market will be held at the park at the Old Boys School, opposite St Patrick’s Basilica, this Saturday and Sunday November 17 and 18 between 9am and 5pm..

This free outdoor event will feature over 60 designer and artisan stalls. Bring the kids along to enjoy the free children’s activities.

Celebrate the 10th year of Perth’s longest running designer market.

Roel Loopers

 

IT’S ALL APPLES AT FREMANTLE SOCCER

The people of the small fashion design boutique PURE APPLE in Fremantle High Street are jumping on the Worldcup soccer bandwagon and have put a soccer table game out on the veranda.

Pure Apple is next to the also new Common Ground fashion collective, and includes the dangerously named The Banker cafe. Let’s hope the coffee is good, or the B might be changed for another letter that is much later in the alphabet. ; >)

Support Freo’s local retailers!

Roel Loopers

P.S. Talking about traders, I hear that GRILL’D Burgers are moving into the former Merchant Teahouse premises on the Cappuccino Strip on the corner of Collie Street.

PIGEONHOLE MOVES INTO FREO’S MANY 6160

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That very special retail experience, MANY 6160 at Kings Square in Fremantle, is constantly changing, almost rebirthing. Several new retailers have moved into the space and they are delighted the very popular PIGEONHOLE brand is one of them.

There is also raw food and bread and more and different designer clothes, and wear, and furniture, and art, and, and, … You really have to go and have a look for yourself!

Many 6160 is only doing Friday to Sunday trading during the winter months, and that makes sense, so some of the young designers can support their venture into retail with a job on the side.

It’s very important that people in the Fremantle area support our local traders, as they are an integral part of our community.

Roel Loopers

MANY MORE MONTHS

MANY 6160, the incubator retail project in the former Fremantle  MYER building at Kings Square will be with us many more months, so they have made an entry statement in front of the place.

Go and support these new young creatives!

Roel Loopers

MYRE NAME CHANGE TO MERY

MYRE is no more, the name that is, as apparently they are not allowed to use it any more, for reasons unbeknown to me, so as from today welcome MERY to Fremantle‘s Kings Square and enjoy the relaxed shopping experience for quality local designer goods, from fashion to chocolate to furniture.

Tonight there will be free tasting of wine, food and chocolate from 5-8 at M E R Y, so go and say g’day and sample some fine food and drinks.

Christmas is now officially within eye-sight, and the MYRE Christmas trees are very different, in fact the ‘tree’ of chairs might not be a Christmas tree. Add some light guys!

Nice also to see a quartet playing classical music outside Elizabeth’s Bookshop on the Freo strip. Heartwarming!

Roel Loopers

FREO SNUBS LOCAL DESIGNERS

I find it difficult to understand that there is no policy at the City of Fremantle to purchase goods and services in Fremantle to support local traders. The recent call out to renew the pool of designers has resulted in that pool being shortened from 5 to only 3 design professionals, but one of them is in Rockingham.  I know nothing about the Rockingham designers and this is not against them, but the fact is that Fremantle has got many very good designers and there is no need for CoF to go shopping outside our own city.

There are hundreds of excellent and much cheaper designers in the world, so why limit ourselves to Rockingham and not engage Indian, Chinese, or Japanese designers to work for our international city. The City of Fremantle annual report was photographed by a Joondalup based company this year.

Time to stop complaining that Freo residents go shopping at Garden City when the City itself does not lead by example!

Roel Loopers

FREMANTLE CREATIVES COMMUNICATE AND COLLABORATE

Fremantle creatives came together for a second time at Kidogo Arthouse to see how they can better communicate, collaborate, lobby and market. The idea of getting art-related people together came from Kidogo owner Joanna Robertson and is still very much in its infancy as Monday’s meeting showed. It is a big challenge to try to create a group that wants to be inclusive and embrace artists, galleries, musicians, photographers, writers, designers, etc. as the issues are very different for each section. But creative people do love a challenge and coming up with good solutions, so I believe there is merit in trying to get something off the ground in Fremantle and taking ownership.

One thing I would like to try to organise is a German style ‘Stammtish’ where a table is reserved in a pub one evening each month for creatives to casually connect, discuss issues and problems and try to get to know each other, as artists often work in their own little bubble. Not knowing what is going on in the big bad world is a disadvantage, as often creatives miss out on opportunities to participate in, or benefit from, events, forums, grants, etc.

The Fremantle Arts Alliance, or Fremantle Creatives, or whatever the group will be named one day, is a really good initiative and deserves support from our creative and business community!

Roel Loopers

 

DESIGNING FREMANTLE’S FUTURE

In an interesting event Fremantle architects CODA asked seven teams of architects, landscape architecs, designers, and Year Four Curtin University Masters of Architecture students, to come up with outstanding designs for the sites under proposed Planning Scheme Amendment 49. The seven teams only had one day and were each given an allocated single site to work with.

The brief was “to create credible and inspirational architectural and urban design propositions that show a positive future for Fremantle, it’s built environment and community.”

When I got there at lunchtime it was a hive of activity, people using coloured pens and papers, cutting out cardboard bits, or doing 3D computer modeling. There was a really good atmosphere of positive creativity in the room.

I could not stay for the final presentations, as I had to assist a wedding party at my home, so I hope CODA will publicly release the designs to the community. I am happy to post them on this blog!

CODA should be congratulated for setting up this exercise, but one has to wonder why the City of Fremantle did not hold an event like this before PSA 49 was finalised.

Let’s hope yesterday’s event will help with drawing up the design guidelines for PSA 49. Fremantle Mayor Brad Pettitt is quoted in the Sunday Times today that the design guidelines will be put out to the public for several weeks and that the final draft will be decided by a citisens jury. I admit to be skeptical that the latter will actually be the case, knowing how little input public submissions had on the final PSA 49.

Well done Emma and Kieran of CODA!

Roel Loopers

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FANTASTIC FREO FASHION

THREADS the Fremantle Fashion show hit town this weekend with a show each on Saturday and Sunday in the Town Hall. Labels featured were Ashe, Batchelor, Cocoon Textiles, Days of Yore, Love in Tokyo, Megan Salmon, Pekho, Petals in Dissaray, and Velvet Sushi.

Anyone who sees me walking around Fremantle knows that I am not a follower of fashion, but I liked many of the stunning works on show, and I am not only talking about the gorgeous models here. See for yourselves in this extensive slide show.

Roel Loopers

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FREO THREADS TREAT

TREAT YOURSELVES TO THREADS!

THREADS is the free Freo fashion show that features nine labels, from well established Fremantle favourites Love in Tokyo and Megan Salmon, to new label Days of Yore.
The other labels include: Ashe, Batchelor, Cocoon Textiles, Pekho, Petals in Disarray and Velvet Sushi.

The parades will feature the latest Spring/Summer collections from the designers.
The fashion shows begin at 2pm on both Saturday and Sunday, September 24 and 25 at the Town Hall, and is free to the public.

This is a good and fun way to support our struggling local Fremantle retailers, so go along!

Roel Loopers

Photos by Alberto Caielli