I Like Some Things, I Like Some Places

A really cool girl called Rachel Ballinger was over from New York. I wanted to show her the good stuff in London, an alternative to Oxford Street, the Tower and Big Ben. So we dressed her up and headed to Kentish Town to uncover some of the mysterious places unknown to those just passing through.

Rachel wears top by MLB by Majestic Athletic, leggings by Religion and trainers by adidas

EDMUND MARTIN LTD., SMITHFIELD MARKET

Valerie Phillips:

One hot summer when I ran away from my old life in the tired suburbs of Muswell Hill, I walked around here late at night and imagined living in this crumbly old wooden building in the middle of Smithfield Market. I suspect that behind this amazing facade is actually a rat-infested pile of garbage, but I liked to think it could have been my new house.

Rachel Ballinger:

Smithfield Market was cool because it hasn’t been touched forever, unlike most of the other buildings that have been turned into Pret A Mangers.

Rachel wears jacket by Religion, bikini top by American Apparel, shorts by Ashish and trainers by Converse

MARIO’S CAFÉ

Valerie:

When we moved to Kentish Town last year, we were excited about one thing: Mario’s. I was led into this fantastic little sanctuary of fried-egg sandwiches and tea and an eccentric, amazing collection of regulars who treat it like a big kids’ club house under the recreational direction of the lovely Mario. There is always some interesting art on the walls and he makes great coffee. Saturdays for me are breakfast at Mario’s and Liverpool playing a match on TV.

Rachel:

Mario’s was a really special spot. It had a really big social environment and everyone knew everyone. There aren’t any places that I know of like that in NYC, so it was nice.

Thanks to Mario for letting us shoot in his café.

Rachel wears bathing suit from I Dream of Wires, leggings by adidas, scarf by adidas for Liverpool Football Club and watch by Nixon

THE ROOF

Valerie:

Our place is an old bakery from the 1800s. I like that it didn’t start out as a house. It looks normal from the outside but inside it’s a bit of an enchanted world of tiny rooms and vertical ladders leading to secret places. We hang out on our roof instead of some tedious garden. I hate gardens. My favourite thing about our house is that we don’t have a garden.

Rachel:

The roof was a good ending to the day. The sun was setting and you could see the London Eye. My outfit was awesome too. I think I really got into the character of whatever kind of character would wear that.

Rachel wears t-shirt from I Dream of Wires, shorts by Levi’s, socks by adidas for Liverpool Football Club and trainers by adidas

KENTISH TOWN CITY FARM

Valerie:

It makes me happy to know there are horses and pigs and goats and chickens living around the corner from our house in the middle of the city. When we went there the horses weren’t in their stalls. We asked where they were and were told by a farm girl, “The horses are on holiday, they go for eight weeks”.

Rachel:

The farm was awesome. The pigs were huge and the goats were funny. This was my favourite spot. You would never know it was there in the middle of London.

Rachel wears cat suit by Verity Pemberton, bikini top by American Apparel and trainers by adidas

ART DECO FACTORY BUILDING

Valerie:

My favourite architecture is functional industrial art deco, especially the more bleak, workmanlike and less pretty. Sometimes when I really hate London I go and look at this building to stop myself from moving to the middle of Kansas.

Rachel:

The art deco buliding was really cool. I liked the curves and windows. It looked like a lot of stuff had gone down around and inside the building.

Rachel wears jacket by Nike, top by Levi’s, leggings and trainers by Nike

CATHY WARD AND ERIC WRIGHT’S STUDIO

Valerie:

My friends have a studio that’s like walking into a sunken treasure chest from a pirate ship wreck––strange, inspiring stuff dripping from the ceiling and everywhere you look. When I first went in it made me feel like a lazy shit, so I rushed back to my own studio to create something amazing. Or, actually, I think I went home to bed, exhilarated from all their hard work and incredible creations.

Rachel:

Cathy and Eric’s studio was awesome. Cathy was really cool too. It made me want to stop looking at Facebook and make things.

Thanks to Cathy and Eric for letting us shoot in their studio. See ward-wright.com for more.

Rachel wears hoodie by Manhattan East and shorts by MLB by Majestic Athletic

MY ROOM

Valerie:

I’ve been in love with outer space since I was a baby. When I can no longer bear the imbecilic constraints of the industry I work in, I go hide amongst my rockets and ray guns and read a book about astronauts to redress the balance.

Rachel:

Valerie’s toy room ruled. I want that space wallpaper in my room. Actually I want all those things in my room.

Rachel wears top by Verity Pemberton and skirt by Vivienne Westwood Red Label

PLANES

Valerie:

I love planes because they usually mean the start of a really strange Midwestern road trip or going to Romania or former Soviet countries, or home to New York. The best places I’ve ended up in started on a plane.

Rachel:

The plane was cool. I kept making it crash and didn’t mean to. Planes are pretty cool. I can see why Valerie likes them so much.