Le Shouvre

So for those that don’t know, Le Shouvre’s designer and blog updater extrodinaire – moi – also started a band this August, called Royal Native. My friend Jules and I have been doing our best to overcome the obvious and significant obstacle of basically always being in different countries by building up a bit of an online presence.

Anyway, today marks the release of our debut EP, L’Orangerie. We have recorded a fair amount of music in the fifteen days that we’ve actually seen each other since mid-August, and this particular bundle comes mostly from the time we spent in an old orangery in Normandy. Five songs that span a range of genres and emotions, and will hopefully offer an accurate slice of the sort of music we make, and of what’s to come in the future.

What’s more, we’ve put the EP up for free download – so there’s really no excuse not to give it a listen. All you need to do is send an email to:

orangerie@royalnative.com

… and you’ll receive an immediate automated response with a link to download the EP. And no, we won’t bother you with other crap.

If you hate it… well, at least you didn’t pay for it. And if you love it, then why not take a trip over to our (recently revamped) myspace, website, soundcloud or twitter page… some inquisitive exploring will reveal a host of other songs, and plenty of surrounding information, should you desire it. Go on!

(Shameless plug over.)

This is last minute, I know, but I’ve been asked to present Le Shouvre as an example business at a Market Research workshop being run by iCUE and LAUNCH.ed of Edinburgh University.

The workshop is tonight, Tuesday November 10th, from 19:00 to 21:00 in Appleton Tower LT1. There will be 3 other businesses presenting, all varying in product / service, and the idea will be to brainstorm methods of market assessment and try to identify target markets, and the most effective ways to reach them.

So if you’re in Edinburgh, and you’ve got an interest in marketing or entrepreneurship – especially at an entry level – it could be really interesting, so I’d recommend coming down. The event is free, and I’m told there will be pizza and beer too!

No one likes a static website. They’re boring and you stop looking at them because they never change.

Alas, Le Shouvre is becoming more and more like said website, much to my dismay. The simple fact is that everyone is just so busy at the moment, including myself. I tried blaming the economy, and I tried blaming the government. But I alone must take responsibility for my own schedule.

Do not despair: there is a definite chunk of my life being dedicated to the Avenue du Shouvre, as well as its future expansions. But there is also a sizable portion going to other things, such as (gasp!) my university degree, which is nearing its final chapter, and a dubiously large pile of admin forms – applications, plans, registrations, etc etc etc…. and there are only so many hours in a day.

I am even starting to make semi-regular trips down to that looming expanse known as London… these are unquiet times.

All this means, for now, is that the face of Le Shouvre has become semi-static; it shall change, but realistically, it will not advance significantly before the new year, due to other commitments.

So please stay tuned, as the ball is still rolling – it’s just eased to a gentle spin at the top of the approaching slope.

(Artwork above by Stanley Donwood)

This is partly to show people that I haven’t just been sitting around not painting shoes for the past month. Well, I have indeed not been painting shoes… and I have indeed been sitting a fair amount, in various places… but for good reason!

My friend Jules and I embarked on a musical journey, the product of which I can now reveal: Royal Native. Thus far only the Myspace is presentable, but a website is almost finished, and numerous other seeds have been planted amidst the varied soils of the blogosphere, too. All songs were written, performed, recorded and produced by the two of us, as well as any artwork. As more Royal Native stuff is finished, I will no doubt want to show it off here as well. In the meantime, however, I’ll let the selection of songs speak for themselves…

(And for the audiophiles amongst us, higher quality versions of the songs can be found on last.fm)

I know, I know, shoe designing has slowed down significantly as of late, but I’m in the process of moving into a new flat in Edinburgh, and I won’t have steady access to the internet for a while. Never fear, however; I’m still using any free time to apply paint to shoe, and should have my next pair finished shortly.

In other news, POP have unveiled their new logo reworking(s), as designed by Damien Hirst. So on the one hand, the pair I designed now look dated, but let’s be honest, Damien’s got a slightly bigger international reputation than yours truly…

My reverse migration has taken place, and I’m now back on the less summery shores of Britannia, right in time for the cold weather to set in. France, you will be missed, but the good news is that anyone who has ordered a pair and resides on these isles can rest assured that they will not fall prey to the ridiculous French postage laws!

In non-related news, the recording in Normandy went well, and I’ve spent the past couple of days in Norfolk mastering the tracks. But now it’s time to get back into shoe-customizing mode! (However, if you are interested, watch this space for more information about my musical side projects…)

And though it’s early days, Le Shouvre is in talks with several people about the possibility of branching out into customized clothing. If things go well I’ll elaborate further, but all I can do for now is recommend that you check back in the near future!

It’s August, and here in France the entire month is notoriously used as a relaxing break from the rest of the year. So, I’m going to follow suit and press ‘pause’ on the real world for a week or so, and head off to deepest darkest Normandy to record some music with a friend.

When I get back, I will then be preparing for my reverse migration back to the UK. As such, Le Shouvre will no doubt slow down a little for the next few weeks – I’ve got a lot of commissions to get through once I’m back, but thankfully the most urgent ones are finished.

See you soon…

POP magazine are in the process of relaunching their publication as an online-only platform, centered around a blog hub of international fashionable goodness. Well, we all knew magazines were on the way out, anyway…

To mark this online resurrection of the London-based fashion publication, POP is targeting that most effective of social networking websites, Facebook. So click here to view the new POP Facebook group, and what better incentive to simply click “join” than by having the chance to win yourself a pair of Le Shouvre’s finest?

Last Monday, the POP of the day was yours truly, and (typos and “interesting” jokes aside) they were pretty chuffed to have a unique prize to put up for grabs. So spread the word about the Facebook group – it’s not like it’s very difficult or costly – and keep your fingers crossed. And, as the POP logo itself is due for a reworking soon, there may be more collaborations in the pipeline for the near future…

Full article here

And to see the shoes in question, click here

As the diagram above represents, I am journeying down to the south of France for a week, where the sun shall be plentiful, but the internet limited – so don’t expect much in the way of updates next week.

I’m also not taking any paints or blank shoes with me, as there are many other facets of my life that have been neglected as of late, that I must now devote some time to. Like reading. I never read these days – so it’s time to take a step back and enjoy the finer things in life.

I will, however, be taking sketchbooks and pens/pencils etc., as there’s still lots of designing to be doing. I have several half-finished pairs that will need attention upon my return, as well as a healthy list of commissions to get through!

I’ll be back in Paris on the 18th of July. See you then!

I was talking to someone at the weekend who thought that I should be designing/painting Michael Jackson-themed shoes like crazy, and then selling them off like hotcakes, while his death is still fresh in everyone’s minds. While this may indeed be a profitable bandwagon to jump on right now, it’s not something I particularly want Le Shouvre to be involved in. But since several people have asked, here’s my view on the matter…

Much of the customized clothing world has understandably jumped at the chance to sell unofficial merchandise in light of M.J.’s death, but I don’t want Le Shouvre to follow suit. If someone had commissioned a pair of Michael Jackson-inspired shoes at any point prior to his death, I would gladly have done them, and the same still applies. The important thing (for me, at least), is that I’m not going to design such shoes unless someone orders a pair. This may not seem like it’s very different, but I feel that if I suddenly made ten pairs of limited-edition Michael Jackson shoes solely because he just died, and then sold them as if they were commissions, I’d basically be trying to make a profit out of his death.

So, if you’re interested in a pair of Michael Jackson themed shoes, by all means send me an email via the Commission form, and I’ll gladly design something to suit your preferences. However, the design will remain unique and one-of-a-kind; what I’m not going to do is come up with a design now and sell the shoes off specifically because the world is mourning the loss of the King of Pop.