One of the things I'd like to do more of this year is family day trips. I love exploring new towns and cities and visiting places I've been recommended or discovering ones I haven't. We kicked of 2018 with a trip to Margate, which I haven't been to since my uni days (14 years ago!), when I photographed it for a project on seaside towns. Much has changed in this little coastal town - the Turner Contemporary of course, Dreamland has had a facelift and the old town has become a haven for independent shops and cafes. This is where we spent most of the few hours we had, although I'm pretty sure I still missed some gems! Here's a little run down of the lovely places we popped in and out of as we wandered the streets of Margate.
Etcetera Vintage - This was the first shop we stumbled upon as we headed into the old town from the car park. It had a balanced mix of contemporary and vintage homeware and lifestyle products all beautifully displayed, and lucky for us, there was a sale on! I couldn't resist (another) plant pot purchase and hubby even treated himself to a leather keyring. Pop to their website to browse their online shop too.
Little Bit Margate - you can't fail to notice this shop as you come around the corner into Broad Street. It's polka dot exterior leads you into a riot of colour with it's blue and pink counter, multi coloured steps and kitsch objects galore. There's lots of fun things for kids, but plenty for colour loving adults too, like these gorgeous plant pots (I know, I'm obsessed!), statement jewellery and illustrated greeting cards. Their website isn't up and running yet, so head to their Instagram to see more.
The Harbour cafe - We spent quite a bit of time wandering around looking for somewhere to eat, and if only we'd known about GB Pizza Co which someone told us about after we got home - it looks right up my street! We settled on this sweet little cafe near to the beach. I really liked the frontage and inside it was cosy and bustling.
Turner Contemporary gift shop - As we were down by the front, we took the chance to pop into the Turner Contemporary. We had a quick peek at the Tracey Emin bed (mmmm.... anyone else underwhelmed?!) and then had a browse of the gift shop. It had work from lots of indie makers which was nice to see - if I'd had more budget I would have been tempted by a Miss Pom Pom hat and an Artist pot by Alex Sickling!
Kin - Time was running out, so we took a dash back to the old town for tea and cake and I stumbled across a lovely little shop called Kin. I think they'd recently relocated and I can't find anything online about them, but it was a tiny shop filled with lovely lifestyle objects - candles, ceramics, textiles, greeting cards etc. I think it was just off Market Place...
Margate Mercury - Before heading home we walked up to Northdown road, to Margate Mercury's The Hub, which also has a small sandwich bar inside called Cyril's. I wanted to pop in as they are a new 91 Magazine stockist, but it turned out they'd already sold out! They have a small but perfectly formed selection of magazines and books and you can grab a coffee while you browse!
I'm sure there is lots more we missed in the few hours we were there, so no doubt we'll be back, and we definitely need to visit that Pizza joint! Thanks for having us Margate!
