Friday Night Party

M invited us to the birthday party of a girl he was a college with. It was at the Hat on the Wall - this is a small bar in a studios in Hatton Wall (geddit?). M trained as a jeweller and those people present who he knew were also jewellers. He had a trying time explaining what he was doing now (college chums always want to know this - its a sort of status thing - those who are still doing it can feel good because they haven't sold out yet).

It was one of those parties where there were insiders and outsiders. Those of us that were not still active in the craft industry, did not have a studio, or did not have a studio in these particular studios were the outsiders. Those that did have a studio in these particular studios and therefore were still active in the craft industry were the insiders. Mutual consent was given by the insiders to include the designer/makers from a studios across the road as insiders which meant that there were a large number of people who knew each other and could spaff about their work, their studio strife, their ability to make any money and gossip about the jewellery craft world.

The insiders were identifiable by their practised whackiness - a plethera of eighties style stripped batwing jumpers, asymmetrical haircuts, military style jackets, dirty trainers, own-make jewellery being worn, tattoos and peircings. The birthday girl had a red shirt on unbuttoned down to below her bust line allowing ample bussom to protrude. In the darkened gloom I was looking at a man who had the weirdest eyes - he looked like he was from outer space or something, it was only on second or third look that I realised that he was blacked up which was why he looked so weird and then I couldn't understand what on earth he was doing or why. Then when I went to the toilet I flung open the door only to realise, after I had exposed him totally, that there was a man inside having a pee who had not locked the door. While waiting for him to come out I met a man who had a patch of white eyelashes in one eye.

I was an outsider. Although I trained in three-dimensional design (metals) it has been a long time since I owned a studio or did any of that kind of work. It was a sad day when I threw in the towel and decided that finally I wasn't going to make any work anymore because I had gotten a full time job (huge sense of failure). But now that I am where I am in my life I am glad I don't live in this semi-never-left-college type of world. So as an outsider I am able to enjoy the music and atmosphere while still being removed from the undercurrent of competativeness that runs within the tight knit designer/maker/craft world.