The Old Blind School | Liverpool (UK) | By Emma Harrison

Established in 1791, the Liverpool School for the Blind was co-founded by local poet, writer and abolitionist Edward Rushton. First opened in two houses on Commutation Row, the school moved to its Hardman Street location in the late 1890s before closing in 1957. After the school shut its doors, the site housed Liverpool’s City Police Headquarters, the Merseyside Trade Union, Community and Unemployed Resource Centre and in the mid 80s, independent music venue, The Picket. With a colourful history, the building has retained the marks left by each occupant and what stands today is a blend of Neoclassical and Art Deco design flecked with crumbling trade union signage and Socialist Realist murals.

The building, designed by architect Arthur Hill Holm in 1851 and extended by Anthony Minoprio and Hugh Greville Spencely in 1932, presents a Neoclassical and Art Deco exterior. The once white Portland stone extension, charred with a over a century of city soot, sits on the site of John Foster Junior's now demolished Greek Doric chapel and boasts bas-relief panels depicting the work of the school. Opposite John Cunningham’s celebrated Grade II listed Liverpool Philharmonic Hall on Hope Street, if you look hard enough you can find a faded inscription etched into the Old Blind School façade that reads, ‘Christ heals the blind, for who denies that in the mind dwell truer sight and clearer light than in the eyes?’.

Inside, four rear wings sprout from a central rotunda and the original cast iron balustrade and tiled flooring remain intact, however the most arresting interior feature is Michael Jones’s 1986 mural that decorates the concrete dome (pictured). Son of trade unionist Jack Jones, the mural depicts Socialist Realist images relating to the Merseyside Trade Union, including marching Liverpool workers, the Halewood car factory, a dock crane, ship yards and a central image of Edward Rushton, co-founder of the school. 

The peeling paintwork now sits alongside fresh coats as the site plays host to the 2014 Liverpool Biennial, A Needle Walks into a Haystack. Otherwise largely unused, rumours of development have yet to materialise.

The Old Blind School will remain open until 26^th October as part of the Liverpool Biennial .

Danielle Foster | London (UK) | By Emma Harrison

London College of Fashion graduate and full-time model Danielle Foster presents a collection of sturdy and structured accessories for her forthcoming Autumn/Winter 2014 collection. First launched in January 2012, this is Foster's sixth collection that blends together her signature reworked boxy silhouettes with brand new styles and textures.

With a minimal palette inspired by Indonesian sunsets, the pieces in Foster's A/W 14 collection are at once functional and versatile and all bags feature brass and nickel plated fastenings that enable the straps to be removed in order to transform shoulder bags into neat clutches. Foster designs the products in her Hackney studio before they are handmade in North London using the highest quality vegetable tanned leather, dyed and embossed in Northampton. The A/W 14 collection includes totes, clutches and over the shoulder bags in monochrome and buttery hues and upon purchase, each bag is delivered in a fabric dust bag made in Billesdon, Leicestershire, a small village local to Foster's childhood home.

Danielle Foster's Autumn Winter 2014 collection launches in August and will be available on her website in September. 

Haru and Mina Photobook by Hideaki Hamada | Hyogo (JAP)

In order to capture the growth and development of his children Haru and Mina, Hideaki Hamada began to take photographs of the pair from birth through to the present day. In December 2012, the wealth of images were individually selected and collated into a photobook entitled Haru and Mina, published by Riburoarute. Born in Aawaji Island, in Japan's Hyogo Prefecture, Hamada is a relatively new freelance photographer and only began to work with this camera full time in September 2012. Starting his photography career at age 35, Hamada has since enjoyed great success and has published work in leading publications such as Kinfolk magazine (USA) and The Big Issue (Taiwan).

Hamada explains, "children always act more than I expect. The inspiration for my photography comes from this sort of behaviour. Though I direct some of my photographs, in most cases I take pictures of my children just as they are. When I take photos of my children, the important thing is to maintain an objective perspective. Not too close, but also not too far away, as if I am watching them from behind. My photos are the best gift for their future. They will be a time machine for them.”

Haru and Mina is due for release in October 2014 and is available for pre order and purchase on Hamada's website.

Cubitts | London (UK)

By default many consider prescription glasses necessary rather than desirable. However London-based spectacle company Cubitts, with their unique and contemporary frame designs, have set out to change this.

Situated in King's Cross, the company was founded two years ago by Tom Broughton, 32 and Joe Bell, 25 after the pair found themselves frustrated with the complexity and cost of purchasing prescription glasses. This encounter prompted the duo to simplify the process by offering value without compromising on quality and craftsmanship.

Inspired by their surroundings and London's engineering history, the business was named after siblings Thomas and Lewis Cubitt, the architect and civil engineer who helped shape King’s Cross during the mid-1800s. The Cubitt brothers left a distinctive mark on the area and many of their designs, including the Granary Building (part of The Goods Yard complex), the newly refurbished Great Northern Hotel and most famously King’s Cross Station, still stand strong today. The connection between Broughton, Bell and the Cubitt brothers is strong; the firm even started out in Broughton’s flat on Cubitt Street, the former site of the brothers' old building yard.

With a straightforward selection and purchase process, Cubitts offer a range of eight individually designed frames in four colours available with either optical or sunglass lenses. All frames include pin-drilled hinges, round temple tips and the Cubitts logo that was inspired by the butterfly rivets still found outside nearby Granary Square.

Menswear outfitter Albam Clothing stock the full Cubitts eyewear range, just place an order and collect your prescription spectacles within seven to ten days. Before you buy, check out the Cubitts virtual try on and home trial service, both available online.

Le Coiffeur | Marseille (FR) | By Emma Harrison

Situated in the recently opened Les Terrasses du Port, part of Marseille's expansive 480 hectare Euromediterranée urban renewal project, is Le Coiffeur. Unveiled in May 2014 and designed by Margaux Keller in association with Bertrand Guillon Architecture, the salon is owned by stylist and Marseille native Pascal Lancien.

Decorated in muted pastel tones, the space is inspired by the Southern French seaside and features a shampoo cabana redolent of the cabins used by local fishermen alongside individual 'La Coiffeuse’ desks to ensure the privacy of each client. Beneath suspended Italian glass pendants, former Fabrica product designer Keller has created an interior that reflects the vibrancy of Marseille's new development whilst drawing on the city's more traditional industry.

Photography by Laure Mélone.