City Guide | Discovering Independent Manchester, with Topman

 Topman Printed Shirt | Topman Straight Fit Trousers | Converse 70s Sneakers | Fair Ends Cap

Having only just bought our first proper house, in a pretty small town that is tucked neatly away on the North West coast of England, you'd think that I'd be spending all of my given time working from home. But if I look back at the past five months I can only pinpoint two of weeks where I haven't been travelling - I guess it's just the way I like it. For me, that's the freelance lifestyle that I crave.

My latest trip was to the city of Manchester - I place pretty well indeed. Back when I was trying to break into the fashion industry I worked several internships + marketing jobs, clocking up a good five years in around the Northern Quarter. Topman reached out to myself + Jordan to see if we'd be up for helping them produce a guide to the city, to coincide nicely with the reopening of their Topman Trafford Centre store.

We hit a few of our regular favourite spots, as well as taking a couple of new recommendations from Manchester-native + photographer, Jake Millers. It wouldn't be a proper city guide without a decent dose of coffee, art, design + culture, and the added bonus of one of the city's most beautiful hotels:

Foundation Coffee House

Sevendale House, Lever Street,

We can’t create a Manchester city guide without Foundation Coffee House. An expansive unit – something few and far between in the capital – Foundation is perfect for both work and a quick coffee pit stop. With spaces to suit each and every coffee drinker, make sure you swing by to sample their beans.

Grindsmith Coffee Pod 

Victoria Bridge St, Salford, Manchester, M3 5AS

Located in one of the city centre’s busiest streets you’ll find this curious little concept coffee shop. The Grindsmith Coffee Pod is not only a unique use of space which creates an intimate atmosphere, it also comes in with a great selection of speciality coffees, and feels like a nice break from the madness of the high street.

1847

58 Mosley St, Manchester, M2 3LQ

Food is always on the agenda when you’re up for visiting a new city, and the best ones usually come recommended by friends. Our photographer, Jake Miller’s gets the props for urging us to try 1847 for lunch. Just across from the Manchester Art Gallery you’ll find this inviting, modern vegetarian restaurant. The menu is jam-packed with tasty dishes, - we’d definitely recommend trying the Battered Halloumi.

Manchester Art Gallery

Mosley Street, Manchester, M2 3JL

Manchester is blessed with a strong creative community and close links to the design and art industry. There’s no better way to soak a big portion of this in than a visit to the Manchester Art Gallery, located 5 minutes from Piccadilly Gardens. The gallery’s traditional paintings, ceramics and design pieces are mixed with a constant rotation of contemporary art, photography and design innovations.

Piccadilly Records 

53 Oldham St, Manchester, M1 1JR

Somewhat of an institution in Manchester, Piccadilly Records is the best spot for those of you looking to pick up the latest vinyl releases. Head in there when you’ve got some time to kill; chat to the staff, ask for recommendations and uncover those records that will soon become your favourite new albums.

Fred Aldous

37 Lever Street, Manchester, M1 1LW

Now be prepared to step into a two-tier store packed with plenty of stationary, interiors and design gifts to tie you over for a lifetime. For those that just want to capture their Manchester trip in the photo booths or geek out over paper with the Fred Aldous gang, then this is the place for you.

 Jordan wears Topman Skinny Jeans | I'm wearing Topman Original Fit Jeans | Sneakers by Harrys of London

The craziness that was the Topman Trafford Centre store launch. Photography by Jake Millers

Principal Hotel + The Refuge
Oxford St, Manchester M60 7HA

You'd be hard-pushed to find a hotel + restaurant in Manchester more beautiful that the Principal Hotel + The Refuge, just opposite Oxford Road train station. The bedrooms have some of the tallest ceilings going, with each room (all slightly different) fully equipped to give you a solid night's sleep. The Refuge is the hotel's bar + restaurant - we can't recommend this place enough. Come for the incredible interiors, but stay for the food and drink. Order a few small plates and share with your friends.

You can see more from our City Guide to Manchester on Topman's blog here.

This blog post is has been co-created by myelf, Jordan Bunker + Jake Millers for Topman.

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Topman Blogger's Hit-List + Giveaway

Along with a couple of other fellow bloggers I was asked by the folks at Topman to single out a few pieces from their Autumn/Winter range, for the Topman Blogger's Christmas Hit-list feature on their website. My tastes are generally less about trends and more about personal style, and versatile choices. Classic styles that will generally work together with the rest of my wardrobe - which sure makes for an easy ride when getting dressed in the morning.

As a bonus we're also giving you guys the chance to win the coat from my Hit-List! Here's the items I chose for the Topman Blogger's Christmas feature:

Navy Wool Pea Coat

For me, the perfect winter coat usually involves the colour navy. The Double Breasted Pea Coat is an absolute classic bit of winter wear, something which never really goes out of style and will serve you well in nearly every occasion.

LTD Burgundy Long Shirt

The last couple of years have seen a rise in button-down collars, so I've decided to single out this rather tasty work wear inspired Burgundy Shirt from the new LTD collection. Layer with a classic white tee or even over the top of a grey sweatshirt.

Voucher Codes - The Winter Coat Challenge

 Wearing - Topman Wool Bomber Jacket c/o Voucher Codes, Uniqlo Lambswool Jumper, Levi's 511 c/o ASOS, M&S Scarf, ASOS Wooly Hat, Vintage Gloves, Wigwam Socks, Red Wing Chukka.

Finding quality for an affordable price on the highstreet is tricky business, especially when it comes to outerwear. Two weeks ago I was challenged by Voucher Codes - Most Wanted to scour the highstreet and internet alike to find the perfect winter coat for under £80. The criteria to consider for the challenge was - Style, Durability, Comfort, Quality and Value for Money. Let's just say my Jewish (money saving) heritage took over! 

The Market

Over the past few years I've found myself shopping on the highstreet less and less. It's in my nature to search for the best value for money at all times, so I'm prepared to save for a piece if I know it's going to last me years. My new Red Wing boots, pictured above, being a fine example. But as always, I went into this challenge with an open mind.

I visited several well known stores and in the majority I either found slightly over-designed or poorly  constructed pieces. But that's not to say there isn't quality items out there. If you're willing research and consider fabrics then you will find some decent pieces within an £80 budget.

Topman Wool Bomber Jacket

After a week of browsing I finally found this Wool Bomber Jacket by Topman. I've not had any outerwear from Topman since I was a teenager, but I must say for the price this jacket out-trumps everything else I found. For under £80 it's excellent qualify and being made from heavy navy wool it's going to keep you nice and toasty, with a few extra layers of course! I'm actually very impressed with it for £60. For me it doesn't scream highstreet and if you claimed it was by COS no one would bat an eyelid.

The shorter style might not be suitable for everyday, but for crisp, sunny days it's a winner! It doesn't have any diminishing features which I associated with the highstreet either. Varsity numbers, fictional sports teams and coloured stitching are nowhere to be seen. Size wise, it's quite small but I assume that's because Topman's core customer is skinnier than I am, I bought a large and it fits me perfectly.

Here's a few other noteworthy coats/jackets I found -

Navy Peacoat - ASOS

Light Down Jacket - Uniqlo

Padded Parka - H&M

Parka Jacket - Nanny State

Herringbone Puffa Jacket - Gap
Khaki Pea Coat - Next

This is actually one of my favourite outfits I've featured on the blog in a long time and I'm really pleased with my purchase. Did I make a good choice, what do you think? I'm also keen to hear your views on shopping on the highstreet, please do share.

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Instant Round-Up #2

1. Bollards at the ready 2. Red door in Preston 3. Wearing - vintage jacket, Gap t-shirt, Levi's Commuter trousers, Uniqlo socks, Superga trainers 4. Wearing - Levi's shirt, Ralph Lauren t-shirt, Dockers chinos, Converse Shoes, homemade key clip 5. The good stuff 6. Before the big rain. Wearing - Topman shirt & shorts, Puma Suede trainers 7. Looking forward to wearing this shirt now it's a bit cooler 8. All locked up

I thought I'd carry on with my monthly Instagram round up. Sometimes it's just nicer to see your images bigger than the usual  3" x 2", plus not everyone's not got the app so it's a win/win I reckon. I've been posting the odd one here and there but these round-ups tend to be more of a mixed bag.

The first few images are from my birthday o'ther Sunday,we headed down to Avenham Park in Preston for the final day of the Guild festival. I spotted the red door on the way back to the car and it got me thinking about a new project, I'm going to start snapping some doors that take my fancy (along with my ongoing project of taking photos of objects with faces but that's another story). So hopefully in a few weeks I'll have some corkers to share with you. The orange lock-ups sort of counts right? The sun is long gone now so I think we've all had it with shorts for one year, it was good while it lasted but mine are all firmly in the back of the wardrobe. But with the cooler weather comes a whole load of different clothing, including this Koto shirt I picked up in American last year, it was originally a bit too big but I've put on weight so it's ready for an outings.

So there you have it for one month. You can follow me @mat_buckets or on Instajelly. What's your handle guys?

This post includes a sponsored link, all words and thoughts are by me as usual.

Weekly Snapshots

 Wearing - Levi's Commuter 511s, beige Converse, Paul Smith socks

Topman t shirt, Gap chinos, Superga trainers, Penfield tote, Timex Weekender

Dockers khaki chinos, Clarks Desert boots, Uniqlo orange socks

Vintage blue work jacket, Topman cycling shirt & shorts, New Balance 420

Gap check shirt, old Levi's 511s, Superga trainers

Dockers chinos, Converse, Uniqlo yellow socks

I've been busy snapping outfit shots on Instagram recently, it's not replacing my normal detail shots but it's so handy when you're pushed for time. Seeing that my Iphone hasn't got the swanky new camera I don't intend to leave my trusty Canon at home any time soon.

You can follow me @mat_buckets if you fancy.

A Lesson On Looking Awkward

Wearing - Gap polka dot shirt, Topman green shorts, New Balance 420s, Penfield backpack, 

Rayban sunglasses, Muji watch, Paul Smith ring

It's something you can't teach, it just comes natural. I don't knows what my hands are doing, I think they've got a mind of their own. I've got out of the habit of featuring myself on here so lets call this a bit of a refresh, just so you all know who you're speaking to. I've been messing around with the look of this place over the weekend, none of it is permanent as I'm planning on changing the whole thing. If you see anything weird going on just so just roll with it for now.

So it's an "alright" to old friends and a "howdy" to some new ones.

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Don't forget to enter the URBANARA tartan picnic blanket giveaway here

Topman - The Swim Project

The Swim Project by Topman window display

Johnathan Saunders

Todd Selby

Topman Design

Now I might be a bit of the mark here as it's a little known fact about me is that I can't swim, but if I was going to learn I would need some, right? Every year or so Topman get a bunch of designers involved with their ongoing project, each time they pick an item of menswear and the designers go away and create their own take on it. Past projects include, sunglasses, white t-shirt and black trousers. This time around it's Swim shorts. Topman have got a quality pack of designers onboard including Gary Card, Todd Selby (of The Selby), Cassette Playa, Johnathan Saunders, Bernhard Willhelm and their own Topman design team.

The main reason why I got quite excited about this projects is because Gary Card is involved, as well as designing a pair of shorts he has created the window display at the Oxford Street store. Gary Card does everything, his work gets everywhere and he even got to design his own Swatch watch. I've featured him before on the blog, I seriously can't get enough of his bonkers and super create ideas. If you haven't heard of him just pick of a copy of any fashion magazine and you will be sure to props or sets his has created.

On a similar note here's some swim shorts I picked in H&M today, just incase I do decide to take the plunge. Not bad for £7.99:

See the full range at Topman

Trekking Part 2

Topman "Matias" Hiking Boots

I know, it's totally the wrong weather for boots like this but I couldn't miss the opportunity to get them. I've been after a pair of hiking boots (I got this pair a couple of months back) for quite a while but all the ones I liked were clearly way over my budget. I've had my eye on these Topman hiking boots for a few months but didn't really want to take the plunge at full price but when they dropped to £15 in the sale it would have been rude not to buy them. They aren't as well made at the Fracap's or as high quality of material but I can sacrifice that for the budget I'm currently on.

I know, they're a proper marmite item, you love them or hate them. I'm going for the first, they're going to be great for protecting me against the British elements once it's cooled down a bit.

This is how happy they make me - 

So come on, be honest. What do you think?

If anyone fancies a pair they still have plenty of stock in this colour and a dark green at Topman

Week In Detail #2

1) Topman jeans, Uniqlo socks, Ask The Missus Brogues

2) Gap jacket, H&M elbow patch jumper and t-shirt

3) Hollie baked some more cookies

4) Colourful vegetables from trend magazine Bloom

5) Final Campaign photoshoot

This week has been another one of those, I'm up to my eyeballs with work but I'm not stressing out too much as I think I'm on top of it all. So here is my Week In Detail once again. The above outfit is what I wore on Thursday when I had to do a short interview at uni. Me and Clare were chosen from our class to represent the Fashion Promotion course, which was really flattering. To be honest though, I totally ballsed it up and apparently so did Clare. Turns out we may be a bit camera shy when I comes to taking. Oh well, another day another dollar.

I've been design a magazine this week for my project and I'm coming to the end of it today, the photoshoot we did a couple of weeks back features inside. It's a simple idea, shooting products on brightly coloured card, but it's really effective. So when I'm all handed in I can share with you my work but you will just have to wait.

Let me guess, BBQs this weekend if the weather holds out?