Five Minutes with Salt Ashes

If you cast your mind back to the gloomy, dark days of early February, you may recall we brought a much-needed dose of disco to your desk with a bit of blog love for an brand new artist - Veiga Sanchez, AKA Salt Ashes. 

We fell hard for her first single, 'Somebody', back in the spring, and it's been top of our summer playlists ever since. Now that autumn's drawing-in, and we're all in need of a bit of a push to get out of our onesies and onto the dancefloor, what better time to have Salt Ashes back in a blaze of shimmery, synth deliciousness with her second single, 'If You Let Me Go'?

We managed to grab Veiga for a quick chat last week to talk monikers, music and dancing til your feet bleed...

Where did the name Salt Ashes come from (and why not stick with your beyond awesome real name?!)?

The name Salt Ashes kind of attached itself to me and I couldn’t shake it off. I saw it scratched on the side of an old boat on the seafront in Brighton and it wouldn’t leave me… eventually it felt right to use it as a stage name as to me it summarises my writing and mood. I didn’t know my name was that ‘cool’! But, I like changing my name, it keeps life interesting. Maybe I’ll change it again one day…

If you had to elevator pitch your sound to someone who's never heard your music before, how would your spiel go? 

"Electronic, dark, disco dirt, synth-love that will hopefully make you want to dance and scream in the dark."

Career highlight to date?

Playing The Great Escape. I’ve been to that festival for years, with it being in my hometown, always picturing myself on one of the stages so to play it was an awesome highlight. 

What are your top tracks of the year so far? 

 'Time' by Jungle

“All I Need (Roman Flügel Remix) by Daniel Avery

 The ZHU Remix of "West Coast" by Lana Del Rey

 

Any hot tips for us of new artists to watch for?

I love MØ. She’s been around a little while but most people I speak to still haven’t heard of her which is crazy. The production is awesome and edgy and her lyrics are pretty cool. It’s been pointed out that there’s a slight Lana Del Rey resemblance in her vocal, but this girl has got her own vibe going on and her live show is sick and should be seen. 

Describe your perfect day?

A perfect day for me would be waking up and dancing round my kitchen with shades on and not stopping until my feet bleed. I like getting lost in my own world…no distractions but beats.

If you had to choose three Desert Island Discs, what would they be?

I Feel Love by Giorgio Moroder, Hold Tight by Change and Jöga by Bjork. 

What's next?

My video for the single will be released soon and in the mean time I’m writing and still creating more and more which will never stop I hope. 

Salt Ashes' second single, 'If You Let Me Go', is out on 20th October.

And, because we're good to you like that, here's a sneak peek...

5 Minutes with Rose Lloyd Owen of Peardrop

As we're sure you're aware by now, if there's one thing us Mice have a serious weakness for (other than very, very high heels...) it's good food! 

When we aren't happily munching away on something delicious, we're meticulously planning our next meal - researching restaurants, flicking through recipe books or pinning mouthwateringly amazing photos on Pinterest... 

So we were pretty excited when we heard about Peardrop - a company on a mission to brighten up Londoners' lunchtimes. No more dull sandwiches or calorie laden fast food, when the clock strikes noon, Peardrop to the rescue with delicious yet healthy packages of yumness guaranteed to give even the dreariest, al-desko lunchtime some serious sparkle... 

The girl behind this food revolution? Super-chef, Rose Lloyd Owen, who very sweetly, agreed to push aside her pans and chopping board for 5 minutes to pull up a chair and chat all things scrumptious...

Tell us a bit about Peardrop?

At my old job in a Soho talent agency, food was always a hot topic. A real bunch of foodies, we’d always be quick to try the newest restaurants and lunch spots. Apart from Leon, which I find a very inspiring brand, I grew sick of unsatisfying lunch options. It seemed so hard to find healthy, interesting lunches with a changing menu. And that was in Soho, which has a billion options … so I began to think about all the offices out of the centre of London who didn’t even have a Pret nearby.

What’s been the most challenging part of starting Peardrop? Any tips for budding entrepreneurs?

Nothing could have prepared me for the insane pressure a new business brings!

Don’t be afraid to use your contacts. Having no actual experience in the food industry, I met up with, and sought advice from, so many friends and friends of friends. And I was so surprised by how helpful and enthusiastic people were. It’s very important to take advice – Richard Branson has said that listening to others, over your own stubbornness, is key to success.

I also think it’s important to believe in your idea one billion and one percent. When you’re at your lowest ebb, exhausted after a bad week and missing the security of your office job, it’s the belief in your vision that will help you carry on.

It was my Dad who asked me to consider that with any new and innovative business idea, there’s often a reason no one else is doing it. Peardrop has changed dramatically from what it was at the outset. I think that’s really normal, so don’t be afraid if things take a different tack! You might have the loveliest of ideas and imagine how idyllic your life will be – but nothing is idyllic is when you’re up at 5am working until midnight for pittance. It sounds obvious but it needs to make you money!!

We’re also getting more and more conscious about making sure everything we do is as eco as possible, what’s Peardrop doing to help assuage our ‘save the world’ concerns?

People are slowly becoming more concerned with the environment, which is really cool, but the majority of people still don’t actually really care. It costs businesses more money and creates extra work at home.

Our packaging is all compostable – so instead of recycling it, it becomes part of the earth again. We also operate on a completely waste free basis. Every crust becomes a crouton and because our menus are ever-changing, yesterday’s excess broccoli becomes today’s soup.

Any foodie insider tips you can share with us?

My favourite London restaurant is Trullo in Islington, owned by Jordan Frieda who worked at the River Café for years. You’re getting that incredible quality of Italian food at a price you can actually afford. The beef shin ragu pappardelle – OH MY GOD.

I love Street food. If you haven’t been to Kerb ,the street food collective, you’re in for a treat. Beautiful food for a fiver that makes you feel lucky to be a Londoner. My faves are Rainbo’s gyoza, Yum Bun and the Wild Game Co. And they’ve just started a Saturday market in West London!

I’m desperate to go to The Smokehouse in Islington. I reckon smoked food is about to get really big. I’ve just discovered Smoker Bags in which you can smoke meat and veg really easily in your oven. Smoked chicken and mango salad is a classic! (and super healthy).

I also LOVE the blog - What Katie Ate, from Aussie chef and food stylist, Katie Quinn Davies.

Who features on your fantasy Peardrop dinner party invite list?

Jamie Oliver
AA Gill
Caitlin Moran
Chris Hemsworth
Russell Norman
Skye Gyngell
Tom Kerridge
Nicole Scherzinger
Alan Carr

I’m sure as hell not cooking though!

What three things could you not live without?

My vespa and good wine (not together) and cashmere (I’m very allergic to wool and a sneezing cook is not a good look!)

What next for Peardrop?

I’m planning a street food night market with lots of local Notting Hill businesses in 2014 to raise money for bipolar.

Apart from that … cookbooks, cafes, restaurants, a range of dressings, a big team of happy employees, a fleet of Electric delivery vans and bicycles, a huge sparkling kitchen with a massive vegetable and flower garden … and lots of dreaming!!

Peardrop
323b Portobello Road
London
W10 5SY

Tel: +44 788 426 3724
Email: rose@peardroplondon.com

Five Minutes with Anna Bance of Girl Meets Dress

Do you ever have an event coming up - a wedding or a Birthday or some sort of occasion calling for outfit awesomeness - and find yourself flicking through a sea of amazing dresses you've only ever worn once thinking 'I have nothing to wear'?! Boys look away now, this is where the crazy starts, but girls, you'll know where I'm coming from when I say that I just can't bring myself to wear the same dress to wedding X that I just wore to party Y. It's basic wardrobe algebra (call it something mathsy and it sounds sane...).

Quite apart from the fact that there could well be guest crossover, there's the nagging fear of the rewear being captured and your shame being shared via Facebook for everyone to snigger over the following Monday... Kate Middleton may be a fan, Michelle Obama may do it, but seriously, dress recycling?! No way.

That being said, buying new dresses for every occasion adds up fairly quickly... Several weddings, numerous Birthday parties,  and countless christenings, house warmings, leaving parties and envelope openings, you're pretty much hurtling towards bankruptcy before you've even thought about the shoes... 

Luckily help is at hand and it comes in the shape of super stylish, fashion entrepreneur, Anna Bance and her genius lifesaving company, Girl Meets Dress. Not in on the secret of GMD yet? We'll let Anna explain....

Can you tell us the basic concept of GMD? 

The GMD story began in 2009 when I was working as UK PR Manager for French Luxury brand Hermes - and like my previous roles in the fashion industry, it involved lending the collection of dresses and accessories out on a daily basis to fashion magazines, shoots, celebrities and journalists…

I thought to myself "wouldn't it be amazing if we could all borrow dresses for just one event, and wear a different designer for every event in our calendar?”

When we looked into the market we saw that no one was doing it. We were the first company to rent luxury fashion online and it is wonderful that Girl Meets Dress is now pioneering the way for rental as a new and exciting ecommerce category of its own.

The idea of collaborative consumption is now making a big impact around the world, whether it is somewhere to stay (Airbnb) or a car (Whipcar) – and now designer clothing.

Who is the GMD Girl? Are there any celeb GMD clients that you can tell us about?

The GMD girls loves looking her best at every event, and now that she has renting as another shopping method, it enables her to wear all the trend led,  time-sensitive fashions, while continuing to invest and buy only in those classic pieces which will stand the test of time.

We dress many celebrities for red carpet events, TV shows and photoshoots. They love the variety and selection of dresses that we have and the concept makes it so easy to borrow and return! 

What's been the most challenging part of starting GMD? Any tips for budding entrepreneurs?

The beauty of business is that anyone with a passion for making things happen can be an entrepreneur. There are no rules and launching online means you can test the concept while keeping costs very low, and stay in your current job if you need to until you are ready to commit fully.
 Whether it is watching the customer uptake, repeat orders and bottom line growth, there are so many rewarding parts of seeing something you have created from nothing grow into a brand.

What's been your top pinch yourself moment since starting GMD?

There have been so many exciting and rewarding moments so far but overall It is fantastic to hear wonderful feedback from customers every day about how we have improved their shopping lives. Celebrities have always been borrowing dresses for special events, and now that everyone is a mini-celebrity in their own world, all women can have access to this luxury.

How do you choose the dresses that you carry on the site? Do you find yourself assembling your own dream wardrobe?

I spend a lot of time online, on other ecommerce websites – seeing what is happening and keeping up to date with what is on offer to our consumer demographic. 

Of course it is my responsibility to test the designers we stock, so I make sure I try to wear at least 1 GMD dress per week.  It is important to live your brand and know what our customers are experiencing..

If you could GMD-over any celebrity who would it be and which dress would you send to her?

I won’t name names, there are too many. It is always a shame to see so many pretty girls not looking their best. Every UK awards ceremony has the majority of our top actresses / TV stars  unfortunately not choosing a dress which flatters them or their body shape. You can’t just wear a dress because you like it on the hanger, or on someone else. It has to be the right dress for you.

...And I can’t explain why this happens, because their stylists are often very well known in the industry with years of expertise. Yet they can’t get it right. 

OK, so say we had a date with Ryan Gosling this weekend... which dresses would you recommend for us from the site?

Ha! It's a tough choice, there are so many amazing options but I'd probably go for one of these… 

By Malene Birger Isalenda sequinned dress

Hire £59 (RRP £425) 

Alice & Olivia Ophelia Metallic Dress

Hire £69 (RRP £423)

Alice & Olivia Lurex Dotted Dress

Hire £39 (RRP £250)

McQ Alexander McQueen Digitally Printed Dress 

Hire £29 (RRP £235)

Rachel Zoe Tinsley Mini Dress 

Hire £59 (RRP £349)

 

What next for GMD? (HK Mouse is particularly keen to hear about Hong Kong expansion plans...!) 

Without giving anything away, Girl Meets Dress is proving the potential to be huge!
 We have ambitious and exciting plans for the year ahead. We want to continue to grow the collection of stock, the team, and to innovate within the wider Fashion space. 
We will continue our leadership of this emerging space and be in a position to wow our customers in every way possible and to forge a brand and quality of service which women will wonder how they managed without, giving women access to the biggest closet in the world!


Girl Meets Dress

Want to know more about how it all works? Head on over to the GMD FAQs... 

Five Minutes with the Meringue Girls

Brownies, cupcakes, macaroons, cake-pops, whoopie pies - all delicious, all very naughty but they're also all just a little bit passé. 

Cupcakes? So Sex & the City, so twelve years ago. 

Macaroons? Popping up everywhere in their pretty pastel hues but mirage-like in their ability to look like a macaroon but taste like cardboard. We're sticking to Laduree.

Cake-pops? Super cute but now even peddled by the likes of Starbucks...

So what's a forward-thinking girl with her finger firmly on the fashion pulse to do then when she needs a sugar high? Call in the Meringue Girls of course... 

Alex Hoffler and Stacey O'Gorman, AKA the Meringue Girls, are the masterminds behind the new wave of meringue love. The girls burst onto the scene a few months ago pushing aside the stale cupcakes and boring brownies with their bite-sized drops of meringue scrumptiousness which are almost too beautiful to eat. Who are we kidding? They may be beautiful, but these babies are being devoured by anyone and everyone from peckish punters at Street Feast in Hackney to fashion's elite at uber-glam parties. 

We were lucky enough to grab five minutes with the girls to catch up on all things sugary and sweet...

Tell us a little bit about Meringue Girls. How did you get started and what was your inspiration?

Stacey and I are both trained chefs.  Six months ago our head chef, Nico, mentioned a new TV culinary series called Cooks To Market which he had seen on Twitter.  In each programme two sets of food business entrepreneurs go head to head to prove that their product is best.  Once the fight is over, the winners get a chance to pitch their product to a panel; sort of like a Dragons Den meets Apprentice meets Master Chef.  

Stacey and I applied, got through the rounds, and had to battle it out against a team producing Indian street food - Bhel Puri.  The show hasn't been aired so I can't reveal the outcome just yet.. but we are cringing about seeing ourselves on the box! 

The idea came about as we could see that the cupcake fad was fast dying, and people were looking for the next big sweet trend.  Our meringues are unique - they are handmade, bitesize, freerange, and full of natural & delicious flavours such as matcha green tea, pistachio & rosewater, strawberry & black pepper, and coconut & hazelnut.

Since the show we have been trading at street food markets and food shows like Feast & Taste of London.  We are just about to start a regular pitch at Street Feast in Hackney Downs, and have signed up to Kerb (the new Eat.St), we really enjoy the street food trader life - its a big fun community. 

A huge percentage of our meringue orders come from Fashion & PR companies - we’ve done loads of exciting launch parties and events, for Vogue Night Out, Warehouse, River Island, Whistles, L’Oreal and as of yesterday, Alexander McQueen!  We love doing these jobs as we get to create bespoke flavours, and people seem to love our meringues with a glass of champers! 

We are also in talks with three of the biggest high end food hall retailers in the UK.  From the initial idea to seeing the product on the shelf is a long process, but we are almost there... 

What's been your favourite Meringue job so far?

Every day just gets better and better! Three weeks ago it was when Vogue asked us to do meringues for them, last week it was when Gizzi Erskine asked us to so the Asian inspired petit fours for her Korean Pop Up event and this week, well....... obviously the job for McQueen!

Describe a typical day in the life of a Meringue Girl?

There is no typical day for a Meringue Girl.  Every day is so different.  One day we will be making 3000 multi-coloured/flavoured meringues for a street food festival and the next we will only have an order for 200 meringues but it will be for an amazing fashion brand.  This week we are doing a photo shoot for our website, and have miraculously wangled to work with the world's best food photographer, DavidLoftus (Jamie Oliver's only photographer) Excited? Yes!!

Images via: http://www.facebook.com/MeringueGirls

The Meringue Girls
Currently cooking from Hackney, London.
Tel: +44 7815 135216
Email: meringuegirls@hotmail.com