Beki vs the Floordrobe...

Some pretty things I found whilst organising my life.

Daffodils in HIghgate Village a couple of weeks ago... Spring is finally coming around... Time for a spring clean!! 
©Beki Cowey (2015)

I decided to start writing a blog to make time for doing something creative and giving things order. The problem is that life seems to soon overtake good intentions... Being busy is great but sometimes it pushes out the things that you want to do. Having a few days off work has meant that I can sit and reflect on that before the madness swings into full force again and I am wondering when I will get more than 4 hours of sleep a night and trying to remember what my name is.

I am, much to my partner's relief finishing arranging the floordrobe into some semblance of organisation. Actually right now I am not... I am online, here procrastinating but I'm looking at the piles of stuff and working out what goes where. Looking through my clothes (some of which have been buried for a considerable time) is like meeting up with old friends. There are memories there... I am a habitual collector of vintage clothes and an insatiable thrifter... sometimes it all gets a bit out of hand a looks like a dressing up box has vomited in the bedroom. 

Actually I stopped writing at this point and got on with tidying the room. It looks good now. Even as someone who likes a bit of chaos, I have to admit it looks good. It also gives me an appreciation of some of the pieces I have collected, and that I ought to take slightly better care of them than I sometimes do. 

Hanging around on the back of our bedroom door... A Missoni scarf I picked up nearly missing my flight in Milan airport, a vintage embroidered fringes scarf and a vintage silk kimono.
©Beki Cowey (2015)

A cover for all sins... I found this Victorian silk piano cover in a flea market, it now hangs over the clothes rail in the bedroom masking some of the chaos. Sometimes I wear it as a shawl to go for drinks on a warm summer evening, or as an oversized scarf with a black furry coat in the middle of winter.
©Beki Cowey (2015)

I love the "Fashion in Detail" books and after looking closely at so many of the things I own I decided to post up on here some close-ups of the embellishment on pieces I have collected, and some of the pretty textiles in my collection. 

I am a sucker for anything that reminds me of a peacock, and I've had this lovely Kameez / kurta for years. I bought a bunch of these secondhand back when I was studying fashion design, the rest got converted into 60's style shift dresses and sold but I loved this one too much to part with. It's a little battered and beaten up now, I had to look hard for a flower with all the pearls intact! This has been worn everywhere from gigs to drinks receptions at the V&A.
©Beki Cowey (2015)

Embroidery on a skirt/scarf set I picked up in a charity shop recently. I got it thinking it might make a good project to convert into something, I was drawn in by the fabric, again in a vibrant peacocky green. I tried it on though and decided to keep it as it is... For now any way!
©Beki Cowey (2015)

Vintage Indian-made hippy dress (part1). I love this Little embroidered elephant!! I found this dress on a little vintage stall at a music festival a couple of years ago and it's the perfect loose lazy summer dress.
©Beki Cowey (2015)

And a little stylised peacock! I love the naivety of the animals on this dress. The other thing I love about this one is the tones the fabric has taken as it has faded over time.
©Beki Cowey (2015)

This beaded patchwork jacket is another favourite. I love the different, contrasting textures and colours. But still broken colours so although bright it isn't too gaudy.
©Beki Cowey (2015)

You would think from the things in this post that I'm a super colourful dresser but I wear mostly black (and animal print, but that's another story for another post!). This is the back of another beaded jacket, this time a vintage 80's one. I love the way the petrol tone is set off with the copper and silver beads.
©Beki Cowey (2015)

I've still not found the courage (or the outfit) to wear out this vintage handmade gypsy shirt. It's much brighter than I would normally wear but it has such a great look for summer, maybe I will have to get it figured out soon!©Beki Cowey (2015)

It is one of my boyfriend's old stage shirts, I have raided a few cool things from his wardrobe. Here is a pic of him I think LA in the 80's wearing the shirt to play a show.

That's enough for now... I'm sat at the desk looking out over London like a puppy with it's face squished in a pet shop window... Time for me to go and enjoy this lovely spring day whilst I have the chance!! 

Up Too Early

I am not a morning person, I never have been and doubtful ever will be. Even getting up to go on holiday requires several alarms and launching myself from the bed, hurtling myself through a maze of post-it notes so I remember to do everything I actually need to. Some people are natural owls, and I am one.

One morning I didn't mind being up so early, watching the sunrise over Lake Päijänne near Padasjoki, Southern Finland, beautiful but so many mosquitoes!! © Beki Cowey (2013)

I used to think mornings were best viewed from behind sunglasses, and last night's red wine glow... Travelling back through the still sleepy city to crawl into my bed and hibernate, those were always my favourite mornings.

Regent's Place, Euston Rd... All the pretty lights to distract me from freezing at the bus stop. ©Beki Cowey (2015)

My body just doesn't work on mornings, I can't eat breakfast because it makes me feel sick, maybe a square of dark chocolate or a handful of nuts but real food? No. Once I have been awake four or five hours, then breakfast seems civilised, I guess most people would call that lunch though.

Street lights, fog and trees. ©Beki Cowey (2014)

About a year ago I took a job which meant prizing myself from my duvet just after 4am. An ungodly hour. It has taken a bit of practice, a bit of becoming more organised. I now have my routine pretty much down. It relies heavily on several black coffees.

The gates of hell... Life going down the tube. ©Beki Cowey (2015)

Station to station... Kings Cross to the North. Bleary eyed travellers on their marks for the dash to the trains. All eyes on the boarding announcements. ©Beki Cowey (2014)

Over this time though I have started to grow an, albeit somewhat bleary eyed, love of the early morning. The deserted streets, the empty tube... It lets you appreciate the city to yourself, lets you see things without having to wrestle your way through throngs of slow-moving tourists.

You try getting an unobstructed shot of Sherlock at any other time of day! Form an orderly queue behind the other 80 people also trying... ©Beki Cowey (2014)

I decided to write this post partly as an explanation of why I started a blog and then didn't post for over a week... My early mornings can throw me into a state of semi-permanent jet lag, 3 nights of sleeping for 4 hours or less because my natural sleep-wake cycle is trying to win out against the one I am trying to force on it, and then a marathon 15 hour sleep because I am by this point struggling to function. This plays havoc with trying to schedule anything, blog posts included.

The violinist is by far my favourite busker in King's Cross station, aside from being an improvement on the bagpipes or tin whistle (who approves this stuff??) he is actually a very good musician and has a great line in shirts which go with his instrument. ©Beki Cowey (2014)

Anyway I started keeping a record of these early morning adventures on my way to work. Looking at them here, all together is interesting, the same streets through the seasons, different viewpoints. The violinist on the underground, probably my all time favourite busker. Weird objects lost and found... A toaster graveyard and maoist playing cards.

Discarded cards ©Beki Cowey (2014)

The toaster graveyard of Marylebone High Street... Why so many toasters, where did they come from and who lines them all up like this? Too many questions for 5.45am!! ©Beki Cowey (2014)

The majority of these pictures are from my phone so apologies for the quality of some, I should pack one of my better cameras in my handbag but at 4.30am, purse-keys-phone is enough to trouble my foggy head with. 

Dead leaves and the dirty ground... maybe you notice more on a morning, you get to see the first fallen leaves before they are trampled under someone else's feet. ©Beki Cowey (2014)

And avoid slipping over on the icy roads... Mornings can be so cold sometimes... After heading out in -4 this day I made a donation to Shelter, I cannot even imagine having to spend the whole night out there like this, 15 mins waiting for the bus was more than enough for me! ©Beki Cowey (2015)

Even now "spring" is upon us and the blossom is out there's still a cold wind blowing some mornings, making me wish I was still tucked up in bed fast asleep. ©Beki Cowey (2015)

If you follow my instagram (where these have been largely culled from) you will probably see relatively frequent posts with #uptooearly. If I can function enough to post coherently, otherwise I might save them until later in the day when I can think of something more interesting to say.

And then one morning I couldn't get up as early as I might have wanted, someone blew up the cash machine at the post office near my flat, I slept through the explosion and woke up to the street cordoned off, unable to leave... ©Beki Cowey (2014)

Even outside of London on a visit to my mum's place in the countryside, no chance of a sleep in because hungry horses need to have their breakfast, I have started to stop, to look at the dawn not just as the enemy, the end of the party...

And Yorkshire, with it's big skies does a mean line in sunrises and sunsets. The view to the nearest neighbours, North York Moors. ©Beki Cowey (2014)

So, mornings, you might not be my best friend, you still need to be gentle with me, but sometimes when you get it right you can put even a confirmed grumpy owl like myself in a good mood all day...

And then sometimes it all feels worth it... this happens... ©Beki Cowey (2014)

Rise and with a little effort, shine!!

Witch on a Motorbike

Possibly the best title for anything, ever...

Witch on a Motorbike // The Sun Annual for Girls 1973

I got hooked on illustration when I was studying fashion design many moons ago. In particular I am a sucker for vintage illustrations especially from the 60's and 70's, I just love the style of that era! 

At the weekend I was shooting some pictures at Yellow Fish recording studio out in the middle of the East Sussex countryside (I will post some up on here once I have finished editing through them). After I'd finished I had a a few hours to kill while Timo was recording guitar so I had a leaf through some of the books there... 

One of them was The Sun's 1973 Annual for Girls... I will admit there were a few jokes in my mind about it being a grooming guide for preteen wannabe page 3 girls but it turned out to be relatively innocent. Albeit with some pretty negative body image projection in the "beauty advice" such as a lament on the increasing size of women's feet that did fortunately stop short of imploring us to bring back foot binding.

However there was a short story called Witch on a Motorbike. Such a great title!! I'm sure the actual story is truly dreadful but it had these 2 lovely illustrations in it that I couldn't help snap to share...

Witch on a Motorbike // The Sun Annual for Girls 1973

Clearly health and safety wasn't such a big thing in the 70's and one's head was protected by the force of hairspray alone!!

Do any of you have a favourite illustration style? Or have you found some amazing illustrations in an unexpected place?

Hello!!

Hi there... 

"Dreams are necessary to life" - Anaïs Nin

    Finland // Lake Päijänne // Late summer
© Beki Cowey (2013)    

I've been meaning to start writing a blog for so long it seems to have turned into forever. I wanted somewhere to share the interesting things that I have discovered. Some way of documenting my life. I kept saying "tomorrow... tomorrow..." but then tomorrow quickly becomes today, and then you leave it again and it was yesterday already...

I am here now, and I am writing something down which is always a good start for this kind of thing I guess...

Anyway a bit about myself:

    Me in a few guises...    © Beki Cowey (2015)

My interests are quite scattered around, but they're part of what makes me. I love a good story, interesting places and people, I love to look, discovering new things, trying new food... Art, culture, a good book, a film... 

I am a magpie of stuff and I guess that is reflected in my personal style too. I collect, or maybe the better word is accumulate vintage clothes, no particular era just interesting pieces that catch my eye and get added to the floordrobe.

I grew up in the middle of nowhere in North Yorkshire on the edge of the moors. My mum breeds horses and my animals are probably the biggest thing I miss about the countryside, but a menagerie of horses, dogs, cats and chickens don't fit very well in a flat.

I now live in North London with my partner a Finnish designer and guitarist. I have worked on and off as a freelance photographer for over 10 years. I started out in photography after I dropped out of a fashion degree and started shooting local bands, I loved the nomadic life on the road... I have been lucky enough to work with some great people and have been published and exhibited my work both in the UK and internationally.

    Me, again... On location for a portrait shoot with a band a few years back
© Beki Cowey (2012)

I recently took a break from taking pictures professionally and the inertia of not having something creative in my life has half driven me mad so be prepared for lots of pictures. 

Please bear with me while I figure out the design, I'm sure there will be some experimentation before I get there.


You can find me on: 

Instagram: @bekitakespictures

Twitter: @bekicoweyphoto

Email: bekicowey@gmail.com