Culture Trip & Weekday

How Personal Style Reflects This London Illustrator’s Work

It’s the recognisable colour palette, dominated by millennial pink and marble, that makes London-based artist and illustrator Daisy Emerson’s sign writing so identifiable. In contrast, she favours a monochromatic wardrobe, and while similarities aren’t obvious at first, there’s a distinct theme running through both aesthetics.

East London’s Most Creative Florist On Work, Community and Personal Style

NIK SOUTHERN

When Nik Southern launched Grace & Thorn six years ago, she gave floristry an edgy East London twist that went on to steer the city's approach to flowers away from time-tested arrangements and towards something more creative. Culture Trip asks what elements of her East London location inspire her and how she dresses to reflect her role.

The theme mirrors Hackney’s creativity. It’s dotted with independent boutiques, cafés and pop-ups. “Our location reflects the message that I’m sending,” she says. “It’s full of people doing things their way. At first I was overwhelmed by the sense of community here. It made me realise that you can make a living out of doing something that you love – it doesn’t have to be about money.” Six years on, Southern has established Grace & Thorn as the brand others look to for inspiration. “My first floristry job was for a fashion label,” she says. “Vogue put it on their blog and things went mad on social media. I was working from a basement studio at the time.” When it comes to personal style, Southern dresses to represent the business. “It’s a physical job, so I have to take that into consideration,” she says. “Just this week I was adding flowers to a retail space overnight and I’m in the shop most days, but as the owner I also need to look the part.”

This blend of effortlessness and precision feels consistent through the Grace & Thorn aesthetic, too. Everything – from the bouquets to the brand name and the workshops held in store – feels slightly experimental but expertly put together.

ADRIENNE HERBERT

DAISY EMERSON

One London Entrepreneur On City Life, Staying Motivated and Personal Style

Adrienne Herbert is best known as a fitness blogger and influencer, but she’s also the co-founder of London-based women's networking business Get To Know, which she launched in 2017. Now, she splits her time, efforts and wardrobe choices between the two career paths.

“I thrive on the chaos in London and I love the hustle,” says Herbert. “Everyone you meet has an unexpected string to their bow and everyone is hungry for something more. I believe in hard work and I’m surrounded by it in this city.” When she’s not fitness blogging at home, Herbert heads to Bermondsey in South London. Its diverse crowd, local hotspots and street-food stalls keep her coming back. “Working for yourself has its positives and negatives,” she says. “I love working exclusively on projects that I feel passionately about, but sometimes maintaining discipline, structure and self-motivation can be a struggle.”

Now successfully splitting her time between Get To Know and fitness-based projects, Herbert leads a varied working life and adapts her style choices accordingly. She’s a strong believer that what we wear adds to our identity. Her six-piece capsule wardrobe includes jeans, a classic white T-shirt, a statement dress, a denim jacket, smart trainers and, her favourite, sunglasses. “I have so many pairs,” she says. “They complete any outfit and add an element of personality. I’m lucky with my Afro hair. Even in two completely different outfits, I’ll always have an identifying factor.”

It follows that Herbert should understand the need for a networking platform such as Get To Know in London. The concept is part career-advice blog, part events, bringing like-minded women together physically as well as on the internet. “It felt like a natural progression from fitness instruction – it’s a different way of motivating people and encouraging confidence,” she says. It was while training for her last marathon that Herbert had the idea for the project. “I was leaning on the friends who ran it with me for support,” she says. “The online community that I have is great, but it’s not the same as having people physically there.”

“The aesthetic of my work has changed over time,” Emerson says, referring to her archive of art and illustration, led predominantly by typography and a pastel, feminine colour palette. “I’ve shifted towards muted colours with touches of pink and gold – I think it feels sophisticated.” Emerson draws most of her inspiration from space and travel; her change in creative direction is down to the signage she spotted on a recent trip to Vegas and Palm Springs and she considers how her work plays with interior design. “An artist has to constantly evolve to suit trends and people’s requirements,” she says. “I’m starting to picture how each piece will sit within a space.”

I love Clerkenwell Grind for coffee, more so for the interior design, which is just perfect – marble surfaces, pinks, neon and velvet. I love everything about it. I am a big fan of Dirty Bones and Chick ‘n’ Sours for a chicken fix, and I love Sticks ‘n’ Sushi. I try and visit Columbia Road flower market most Sunday mornings, and Brick Lane market on a Sunday is also great for street food. You can find so many delicious cakes and freshly baked goodies if you’re feeling naughty. I go to family-run Stuart R Stevenson in Clerkenwell – it’s such a beautiful shop. I buy my gold leaf and enamel paint from here and my paintbrushes from A S Handover in Dalston. There’s a quirky little antique shop on Brick Lane which is good for a random find. I also love Goodhood in Shoreditch for picking up cool lifestyle items and apparel. I last bought a really cool typographic black and white doormat from there. I like to sit in the quiet room in Shoreditch House on one of the big velvet sofas. London is so busy and manic usually but I find tranquillity when I take my pug for a walk. I take her to Wanstead Flats most mornings and it’s a nice escape from the busy and noisy streets. Most Sunday mornings I will go to the gym in Shoreditch followed by a trip to Columbia Road flower market and a dog walk – that’s my perfect Sunday.

Where serves the best morning coffee? What are your top three places to eat? Are there any hidden gems in Shoreditch we should know about? Where do you buy your art supplies? Are there any boutiques that you love in the area? What is the best spot to head to with your laptop? What is the best spot to head to for some tranquillity? What’s YOUR Sunday morning ritual, where would you go in the area?

DAISY'S EAST LONDON

Emerson has been perfecting her style since 2014 when she secured her first job for Carnaby Street, which allowed her to shift towards a career as a full-time freelancer. “London’s such a creative city,” she says. “Whenever I spend time in Shoreditch I see a new mural, a new exhibition launching or a new pop-up shop about to open. I thrive off other people’s creativity, so it’s by far my favourite part of the city.”

Where serves the best morning coffee? What are your top three places to eat? What's the best space for an outdoor workout? Are there any hidden gem bakeries, grocery stores or flower stalls we should know about? What is the best spot to head to with your laptop? What is the best spot to head to for some tranquillity?

I don't drink coffee, but I get juice from Where the Pancakes Are in Flat Iron Square. Pure for a great takeaway lunch, and when I’m in Central [London], I love Ethos Foods and Mortimer House in Fitzrovia. I'm a runner and I love running along the river by the South Bank. Bermondsey is full of hidden gems! Great coffee shops, restaurants and street food stalls – and they host great events. Burnt Lemon Bakery. I come into London for work, so I find being at home with my family far more tranquil.

ADRIENNE'S BERMONDSEY

HACKNEY

What are your top three plaCes to eat? Are there any hidden gems we should know about? Where do you buy your art supplies? Are there any boutiques or markets thaT you love in the area? What is the best spot to head to with your laptop? What is the best spot to head to for some tranquillity? If you were to have a Sunday morning ritual, where would you go in the area?

Italian restaurant Campania, barbecue restaurant Brat and coffee spot La Bouche. Pavilion Bakery. eBay or Etsy. Netil Market. My kitchen table with the dogs staring at me, a coffee and garden view. Knighton Wood, just behind my house. Every day it looks different. I would walk down the canal from Islington to Victoria Park.

NIK'S HACKNEY

Weekday and Culture Trip have teamed up to celebrate city style. Discover how three London-based entrepreneurs use their neighbourhoods and crafts to inspire their looks.

Emerson believes in the importance of her wardrobe choices when it comes to representing the business. Considering the colourful nature of her work, it seems ironic that Emerson opts mostly for monochrome and denim, but there’s a sense of precision that’s present throughout both aesthetics. “I have a staple look,” she says. “My hair is always the same and I always have red lipstick and nails. I usually wear black skinny jeans, a leather jacket and white pumps or silver brogues – the addition of metallics is one thing that’s filtered through to my work, and so is my attention to detail. I want to be well presented and part of that is about projecting my brand’s image in the way that I want it to be perceived.”

“It’s the unsung heroes in a bouquet that make it: thistles, grasses, berries. I love wispy bits. Flowers should breathe and sing,” says Nik Southern, founder of boutique Hackney-based florist Grace & Thorn. It’s Southern the industry has to thank for pioneering a creative approach to floristry. Aesthetically, her work is free-spirited, eclectic and full of colourful foliage. “Every bouquet we make is different,” she says. “When I launched the business there wasn’t anyone else doing what I do. I wanted to prove that flowers didn’t have to be perfectly placed or contrived.”

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

DAISY

ADRIENNE

NIK