MEGA MANCHESTER MEET-UPS

Was your New Year’s resolution to meet new people? Get out more? Or just to have more fun? A friendly reminder e-mail (which also reminded me I’ve hit 30 – cheers for that!) from Meetup the other day got me thinking about who’ll be hanging out where in 2013. So here’s a little pick of some of those events to look out for…

1) Women’s Over 30 Hangout (WOH) – WOH is a new regular meet-up for 2013 aimed at those ‘girls’ that have hit the big 3 0 (what can I said it happens to the best of us). So if you fancy a tipple, good grub and great conversation head to Gorilla on Friday 25 January.

2) Northern Quarter Baking Club – Calling all you Great British Bake Off wannabes forget Mary Berry and meet some of Manchester’s master bakers *titters* (sorry… couldn’t help it). They’ll be no soggy bottoms here (ooo errr…), maybe a first for the rainy city, as the NQ Baking Club share recipes and sample some tasty treats.

3) Drink n’ Doodle - Like to scribble, scrawl and sketch? Partial to a little drinkie? This might be the meet-up for you. Drink n’ Doodle #1 and #2 took place late last year. 2013′s first run out is yet to be scheduled but keep your eye on their Meetup page for details and whilst you’re waiting get inspired by their collections on Pinterest.

Image c/o alykat licensed under Creative Commons.

Filed under: art & design, events & festivals, food & drink, manchester, alykat, baking, doodling, drink n' doodle, gorilla, meet ups, northern quarter, northern quarter baking club, over 30, woh, women's over 30 hangout

TOWIE – THE ONLY WAY ISN’T ESSEX

With the aim of getting back into blogging ways for the new year I recently interviewed Manchester based fashion blogger Cathy. Her blog TOWIE or The Only Way Is Ethical aims to raise the profile of fairtrade fashion, proving you can be both a cool and conscious consumer.

1) In five words describe The Only Way Is Ethical?

Ramblings about fashion without exploitation.

2) What inspired you to start writing The Only Way Is Ethical?

I’ve personally been interested in trying to shop more ethically for a while, so really it started as an attempt to keep track of all the ethical labels I was discovering – and try to remind myself what I thought of each one.

It is possible to buy clothes that are made ethically without compromising on style and it’s important to me to support labels that know exactly where and how their designs are produced. Massive abuse still goes on in the factories used by big high-street chains – just a few weeks ago over 100 workers died in a fire in a factory supplying clothes to Walmart, amongst others.

Plus the opportunity to pun on an awful ITV2 reality show is a good enough reason to start anything, I reckon.

3) Where are the best places to shop for ethical clothing in Manchester?

Junk Shop in the Northern Quarter is a little different from the other vintage shops around that area in that they have their own label called ‘Made in the Mill’. They source vintage and second hand fabrics and then rework into new designs over at Islington Mill in Salford. I interviewed the owner back in July and she’s got a really interesting take on sustainable fashion.

Stitched Up run regular clothes swap events and workshops around Manchester to teach people how to customise and rework their old clothes. Or, if you’re willing to venture a bit further afield then Remade in Leeds do something similar – and have developed their own sustainable fashion label, Antiform, with all material sourced within 20 miles of their north Leeds shop.

4) Which fabulous fairtrade brands will be making it big in 2013?

I think, and I certainly hope, that People Tree will continue to go from strength to strength as they really are leading the way in producing well-made and style-led pieces in factories that pay workers a fair wage.

It’s heartening to see that more mainstream brands are paying attention to producing their garments ethically – ASOS Green Room now includes some own label items that have been made in the UK.

On a smaller scale, Ruby Rocks and Nancy Dee are two in particular that have caught my eye recently – both stocked by Fashion-conscience.com

5) What’s your greatest ever ethical fashion bargain?

There’s loads actually – if you manage to hit the sales then ethical clothes really aren’t more expensive that those you’ll find on the high street. I think one of my stand-out pieces was probably a black organic cotton blazer from Annie Greenabelle with a polka dot lining, which I got for £25.

To read more from Cathy in 2013 at The Only Way Is Ethical.

Image c/o Castaway in Scotland licensed under Creative Commons.

Filed under: fashion, manchester, shopping, castaway in scotland, ethical, ethical fashion, fairtrade, the only way is ethical, towie

DHOL ‘N BRASS AT THE BRIDGEWATER HALL

“From Brooklyn, New York, comes one of the most entertaining and original Asian fusion sets of the summer” - Robin Denselow, The Guardian

Asian Arts Agency present the hot, New York based funk, dhol ‘n’ brass outfit – Red Baraat – for their debut UK tour, part of the London 2012 Festival.

To be in with a chance of winning a pair of tickets to hear Red Baraat’s bhangra beats live and dance the night away at The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester on Tuesday 4th September 2012 (8.00pm). Simply answer the question below:

Which famous bridge are Red Baraat performing near during the video clip?

Email answers to: competitions@bridgewater-hall.co.uk with ‘Red’ in the subject line by 5pm on Monday 27 August 2012.

Filed under: manchester, music, asian music, bhangra, brass, dhol, festival 2012, indian music, london festival 2012, red baraat, the bridgewater hall, world music

BE PROUD OF MANCHESTER COMMUNITY HEROES

Manchester City Council’s Be Proud Awards 2012 are open for nominations. Here’s your chance to show some love for the people that make Manchester marvellous. Categories include:

• Blossoming Communities – Celebrating people or groups whose gardening achievements have brought about positive change to the surroundings or lives of others.
• Community Project of the Year – Recognising innovative, local projects which engage or motivate people to join in, helping to build happy communities that people are proud of.
• Creativity in the Community – Championing community arts and creative projects, big or small, from individuals or groups. The winner will prove how creative activities can benefit individuals and strengthen communities.
• Young Achiever of the Year (under 18) – Whatever their achievement, and whoever they have helped, this young individual or group will show pride, passion and commitment to their community.

Whilst the overall winner across the categories will be declared the ‘Pride of Manchester’. The deadline for nominations is the 24 of September 2012 so get in there and show your support for a local legend.

Filed under: manchester, be proud awards, community, community heroes, manchester city council

MAKE THE MOST OF THE WEEKEND AT MOSI

This weekend Maker Faire makes its way to Manchester for the first time.

Maker Faire is a celebration of the things people create themselves, from electronic gizmos to homemade textiles and inventions built in the garden shed. It’s the place where technology meets art, science meets fashion, engineering meets crafting – and that’s just the start.

They’ll be activities to suit everyone at this exciting festival of invention and creativity, including; 3D printing, rocket launching, kids DIY, robotics and silent disco sessions*.

For further details visit the Manchester Mini Maker Faire website.

_________________________

Manchester Mini Maker Faire

MOSI (Museum of Science & Industry), Liverpool Road, Castlefield, Manchester, M3 4FP

10am – 5pm | Saturday 28th & Sunday 29th, 2012

*Events maybe subject to change at short notice.

Filed under: art & design, culture, digital, events & festivals, manchester, 3d printing, castlefield, craft, diy, electronics, family friendly, maker faire, mini maker faire, mosi, museum of science and industry, rockets

HERE COME THE K.ROBOTS

Manchester based illustrator, card maker and master craft ‘bot Karen Roberts AKA k.robots designs takes time out to answer a rainycitytales BIG 5.

1) How and when did the robot drawing start?

The ‘bot drawing only started relatively recently. I’ve always been into creative stuff; I did art and school and 6th form and went back to college a couple of years ago to do a BTEC in jewellery. As well as jewellery and other crafty things, I make cards a lot. A couple of years ago made a Christmas card for my boyfriend featuring lots of Christmassy themed robots – from Santa and his sidekick Rudolph to a fat Christmas Pud bot . He’s pretty into robots – our flat is full of them.  I then started thinking up ideas for other robot characters, with a view to making cards for other people – that’s how it all started.

2) What inspires your work?

Lots of things! I get inspired by the most mundane things – everyday objects, machinery, patterns…I actually found myself taking pictures of the wallpaper in a pub toilet the other day! I’ve starting seeing bots in everything everywhere.  The people around me have inspired me a lot. My boyfriend Mark works full time, but still manages to write a blog, make music, DJ and design websites in his spare time. He made me want to do something more productive and creative with my time, than watching crap on TV and tidying my sock drawer. He’s given me loads of support and encouragement.  Seeing friends turn their creative ideas into realities has also spurred me to make a go of it myself. Sheree’s Cutemaps business is doing so well she has been able to quit her day job. And Mardy Mabel‘s name precedes her. Even my massively creative and talented 99 year old Nan made me think ‘well if she can do it…’

3) Do you have a favourite out of your creations? And why?

How could I possibly pick?! Choosing a favourite would be like picking between children! Having said that I do love B-bot – I’m pretty chuffed at how she came together. I’ve also just finished a new bot called Twitcher-Trev, inspired by my bird-watching Dad – he’s pretty cool.

4) What’s the future for k.robots designs?

I’ve been working on a few new characters which will be added to the k.robots family very soon. I hope to continually add new designs – I don’t want people getting bored!

I’m already selling in Bury Art Museum, Salford Museum & Art Gallery and Gallery Oldham, but am looking for new outlets to sell my cards. More gallery/museum shops would be great, but independent card and gift shops, book shops, craft centres etc are also on the hit-list.

5) Who’s the greatest robot from film or fiction?

Easy – Johnny-5 from 80s classic Short Circuit.

I guess Terminator should get a mention, and R2-D2…actually maybe not so easy after all.

Get your claws on your very own k.roberts design over on Etsy or Folksy and follow the latest robo-adventures @krobertsdesigns

Filed under: art & design, manchester, shopping, b-bot, big 5, bury art museum, cards, cutemaps, etsy, folksy, karen roberts, knee jerk reaction designs, krobots designs, mardy mabel, oldham gallery, salford museum and art gallery, twitcher-trev

MEMORIES OF MANCHESTER DAY 2012

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

If you missed the Manchester Day Parade here is a selection of snaps, with more over on that there Flickr.

Filed under: events & festivals, manchester, photography, manchester day, manchester day parade

WHO LET THE DOGS OUT?

Last week I took a walkies to the city’s newest establishment BrewDog. This is the seventh bar for the Scottish firm which has been threatening a Manchester venture for sometime having backed out of the Northern Quarter late last year.

Instead BrewDog have decided to mark their territory on the otherwise soulless St Peter, bringing a much needed quality pint to that part of town. With treats such as Punk IPA and the stonkingly strong Tactical Nuclear Penguin on the menu here’s to hoping BrewDog Manchester will be serving beers that are the dogs bollocks for many years to come.

Filed under: food & drink, manchester, bar, beer, brewdog, craft beer, peter street, scottish beer

GUEST POST: A CHARITY VIDEO… THE MANCUNIAN WAY

We’re Forever Manchester and we do charity the Mancunian Way.

For anyone who’s not familiar with ‘doing things the Mancunian Way’ it means that we like to do things a bit out of the ordinary, we like to lead rather than follow, we do things with a bit of swagger and a sense of humour and as Tony Wilson so eloquently put it “This is Manchester, we do things differently here”.  We’re famous for it and we’re proud of it.

That’s why, when making our new promo video to raise awareness of our charity, we wanted to steer away from any images of sadness, upset and need, and make a charity video the Mancunian Way.

We’ve taken a very tongue in cheek look at the recent trend of ‘chugging’ (charity street fundraising) which has now made Manchester’s Market Street an almost impossible obstacle course to walk along and try to show that, unlike other traditional methods used by charities, we try to combine fundraising with having a laugh, with doing something a bit different and, you guessed it, fundraising the Mancunian Way.

Although we don’t regularly start a flash mob and party with Rowetta to ‘Step On’ by the Happy Mondays in Piccadilly Gardens to raise money, as we did when making the video, we can regularly be seen fundraising with a Manchester twist at festivals, comedy shows, gigs and exhibitions to name a few.

Yet as much as we like having a laugh there is a very serious reason behind our innovative fundraising techniques – and that is to help the wonderful people of our wonderful region who selflessly give up their time to set up or run local grass-roots community projects for the benefit of others.  We give money to these people who use it to improve where they live, to make sure there are always things to do and to make sure Manchester is the best place on Earth to live!

So if you’re passionate about Manchester just as we are, help us to raise awareness of Forever Manchester and the work we do by watching our video and sharing it with as many people as you can!

Twitter: Follow @4EVERManchester

Facebook: Like facebook.com/forevermanchester

Filed under: manchester, charity, chuggers, forever manchester, mancunian, rowetta

MANCHESTER: MY HOME SWEET HOME

Dusting off the oldie blog to bring you news of exciting changes at Home Sweet Home, the Northern Quarter’s sanctuary from the mean streets of Manchester.

As of last weekend the lads and lassies that brought the Cheeseburger Toastie into our lives just got BIGGER with a fancy new extension. The menu has also filled out with new additions including the Pulled Pork Pile Up (which I will be road testing ASAP) and for those inclined to share food (as if!?!?!) the Double Chowder Bowl *nom nom nom* All signalling that my fav lunch spot is going from strength to strength – keep it up guys!

Filed under: food & drink, manchester, cheeseburger toastie, home sweet home, northern quarter