Beside the seaside... Hastings & St Leonards
On a sunny day earlier this summer, I asked my friend and photographer, Kim Lightbody to take a trip with me to snap some of our prize card catch on the Fisherman's Beach at Hastings - home to the largest beach-launched fishing fleet in Europe and a place unlike any other.
After fish & chips from The Mermaid (watch out for the greedy kleptomaniac seagulls when eating on the beach!) and a bag of pick & mix, we hit the funfair - you can't beat an afternoon on the Sussex riviera. Here are a few great spots to look up if you take the trip before the weather turns...
In Hastings & St Leonards, it's very much not the done thing to conflate the two, but truth be told, I'm never entirely sure where one begins and the other ends... in St Leos, most of the browsing action is concentrated around the Norman and Kings Roads with lots of vintage and junk shops (special mention for Sunless Antiques) and some great independents like Introduced, Maker & Baker and Sleeper Store.
If all that pottering makes you peckish head to Goat Ledge for fresh fish baps and the best margaritas, it's a colourful cafe with stripy deckchairs right on the beach. If the weather isn't beach-worthy or you fancy something, well, fancier, The Royal, Farmyard and Bayte are all excellent eateries, and Cactus Hound bar around the corner has a cocktail menu (largely tequila based) as eclectic as its crowd.
Heading towards Hastings, drop in to Dyke & Dean's tile clad showroom in an old printworks for incredibly stylish interior fixtures & lighting (their website is well worth a trawl too), before heading to the Old Town, home to the greatest vintage shop I know, Hawk & Dove (rarely much stock on their website but the shop is a trove).
On and around the historic High Street you're spoilt for unique and special shops - Endlings for C.20th paintings, prints & books, Sea Whistle for exquisite kids paraphernalia, Robert's Rummage for a 50p teapot, one of many antique and vintage spots. Don't miss the Flower Museum for an experience like no other, Hendy's for immersive vintage homewares and Shimuzu for floral finery.
Towards the Stade, we love a trip to the Fishermans Museum and a ride up the funicular to the country park on the cliffs. Visit Rock a Nore Smokery on the way back down for a roll of their legendary smoked butter.
Last but not least, Hastings welcomed a colourful new resident recently with joyously idiosyncratic new premises - Colour Makes People Happy - who have recently jumped ship from Lewes...
Coming soon, Scribble & Daub's guide to Rye..!
All photographs Kim Lightbody