Cardiff Arcades Project: Vintage heaven, free music and free art
It's a great time to be in Cardiff at the moment, with a myriad of cultural highlights to enjoy. Two of those are on offer right now, courtesy of our very own arcades. It's fantastic to see empty shops being used for something productive, so when I heard about an art show taking place at the former site of 'The Wardrobe' I was very excited.
A few weeks ago I paid a visited to A Vintage Affair in the Morgan Arcade, but haven taken so many pictures, it's taken me a while to get the post up – I hope you think it was worth the wait.
This is my final guest post for Guardian Cardiff, so a big thank you to Hannah Waldram for giving me the opportunity to write it. I'll continue to blog on the project over on the Cardiff Arcades Project website so make sure you follow the blog for the latest updates.
As the project progresses its harder to find new shops to feature, so this is a bit of a call to action – if you run a shop, know someone who does, or are just a customer perhaps, please do spread the word about the project so I can feature as many of these wonderful gems as possible. Use the contact me page to get in touch.
A Vintage Affair
A Vintage Affair Photograph: Amy Davies
A relatively new shop in Arcade terms, A Vintage Affair has been in the Morgan Arcade for around a year, popping up at exactly the right time to latch on to the big vintage boom that's going on at the moment.
Vintage Affair Photograph: Amy Davies
Full of little nooks and crannies that you can get lost exploring, the shop is the perfect place to look for something pretty, unique or special, packed to the rafters as it is with clothes, jewellery, accessories, homewares and much more besides. Run by Melanie King, the men's clothing is supplied by Edwin Dyson of Blind Lemon Vintage Fair fame, so it's a real treat for anyone looking to update an outfit. Naturally, in a cave of wonders such as this, my shutter button was on rapid fire, so there are lots of great photos to look at in this post, the biggest problem was choosing my favourites.
Click here to see more photos from A Vintage Affair.
Free music continues...
Soft Hearted Scientists at Saturday Spillers Sessions Photograph: Amy Davies
The marvellous Saturday Sessions courtesy of Spillers Records are continuing in the Big Little City exhibition, part of the Cardiff Story on the Hayes. Last week, I popped along to see Soft Hearted Scientists play a mellow gig, and this weekend The Sunsets take to the stage and over the next few weeks Meilir, Sweet Baboo, Gentle Good and more will be something to look forward to. Don't forget these sessions continue until July and highlight some of the best in local talent, so it's worth popping along – especially as its completely free.
'Being' at The Wardrobe
'Being' at The Wardrobe Photograph: Amy Davies
Since I started the project there have been a few exhibitions and temporary shows, all of which have taken place in an empty shop in the Morgan Arcade. It was great to hear about a new exhibition, Being, taking place in the High Street Arcade, in the old location of popular clothes shop The Wardrobe which closed down last year. Not only is this a great opportunity to see some free art and have a chat with some interesting people from the local cultural scene, but it's a rare chance to check out the interior of this beautiful shop. There's only a couple of days left to pop in to 'Being', it closes tomorrow (Saturday 28) so make sure you don't miss it.
'Being' at The Wardrobe Photograph: Amy Davies
That's it for this week, and this series of guest posts for Guardian Cardiff. Thank you to everyone who has contacted me to so far to talk about the project, I really couldn't do it without the support and help of the readers who tell me about events, shops and people I might not have met before.
I'm pleased to say the project will continue for as long as I can find new people and places to photograph, so once again, if you do know anyone who might be interested, please do get in touch to let me know.
Amy Davies is the photographer behind the Cardiff Arcades Project and we've been running a series on her escapades which you can see here.