treehugger

Well done Shine, you seem to have sorted out what the Council has taken months not to sort out....

I really recommend streetcar. With lots of children doing different activities all in different places with different kit, using streetcar has meant we didn't have to buy a second car which for financial and eco reasons I really didn't want to do. Yes you do have to be a bit organised, but it suits us. Using one tomorrow and another point to take into consideration in the financial case is not having to pay congestion charge if you are going into town. PS the cars are all new (ish) and much nicer than our car!

Just to add: SOund and vision to took over from Darrah arts which was a picture framing business run by an Irish guy and his wife who did a roaring trade - not sure why they sold out. The lady's dress shop don LL, south of SMBS was called PARTY and was fantastic with cheapish clothes (probably all made in China/India) that fitted everyone and looked fantastic and didn't cost very much. Quite a different sort of thing from the (great) women's clothes shops we have now. Glad to hear that someone remembered Hilary (Hey Diddle Diddle's) name. Hope you are well and thriving.

We moved into E Dulwich from kennington in 1991 because of the property crash and couldn't sell our flat which should have netted us a fortune. We arrived with a new 6 month baby and were a bit stunned because Lordship Lane was fairly grotty. You could say, with reason, that we were the forerunners of the bugaboo tribe and we did feel we were conquering a real sunburban outpost. It was six months before DKH Sainsburys opened and a lot of the shops in LL were closing. There were, I think 4 - 6 butchers in LL and Northcross Road at that time and they eventually all shut. Thank goodness, as they were horrible - nasty meat that you would go veggie rather than avoid. It was a shame however that the green grocers down the bottom of LL shut - I think wehere the ED deli is now. Fab, market-style shop with everything on the pavement so people could hardly get past, although no one complained. Re the list of shops above:Hey Diddle Diddle was run by a fantastic woman, who did maternity bras and had an amazing 2nd hand clothes line with very expensive stuff (where did it come from? it seemed like Chelsea and Kensington. She moved to the Soup Dragon and started the altenative health care centre in the rooms above. Not sure what happened to her, but she was a great support to mums in the early 90's. Nicolas was the site of the early Chandelier which then expanded/moved up the road to become LeChandelier. It was rune by a great guy who really knew his french furniture and sold us some lovely pieces at reasonable prices over the years. He then, I think sold out to the cafe - which has retained his style. Mre Robinson was, in an early incarnation "The Family Tree", which was up and running when we moved in with two tinies in 1991/2. I bought some gorgeous handmade dresses etc for my baby daughter, the like of which I have not see since (matching gingham bloomers and mob caps for little beach babies - sweet). This store and Free range was one of the first signs of gentrifcation in the early nineties...and look where it has led... Long live the Bugaboo tribe, they turn in to the 40/50 stalwart generation (and whose children) support and love ED for everything it has provided us with and all the fun it has given. Good thread!

Vince, that was very impressive. Made me laugh hugely...