Broadway Market

My first encounter with Broadway Market, E8, was back in the days of its half-deserted obscurity, one of the venues for Hidden Art of Hackney. In an empty shop taken over by artists for the week of the event, I bought one of my favourite objects, now used as a sugar bowl - but that's another story.

Nowadays, after rent-rises and trendyness, the old shops and restaurants have largely closed down. Even so, and even on a weekday (the market, with dozens of stalls, is on Saturdays), there is a feast for the eyes -An old-fashioned note -- balls of unpretentious knitting yarn in the window of a chemist (drugstore) - what a combination -
The street boasts two bookstores, a rather minimalist art bookstore, and this one, with a cosy "vintage section" downstairs -
Elsewhere along the street, also in a shop that has stairs going down rather than up, some astonishing shoes
The red trim is slightly, intriguingly sparkly ... but the price, ye gods, £209! -
The fabric shop at least had affordable things -
and displayed a menu of patterns, along with some "serving suggestions" of fabric
Rolls of narrow kimono fabric, £13.95 a metre -
And to my delight, tomato pincushions AND darning mushrooms -