At Vincent and Barn it is well known we are passionate about design and interiors but if we can combine those passions with travel and visits to new destinations then all the better!
Newcastle has come to our attention as one such design destination and here are 4 hotspots definitely worth visiting.

 

Kiln

Kiln

Any millennial worth their weight in dying houseplants knows that you don’t just ‘go for brunch’ anymore. It’s got to be brunch plus gimmick. A cat café. A 90s-themed extravaganza where the Spice Girls and Backstreet Boys blast over the sound system as you try not to spill any eggs Benedict down your shell suit. Well, if you’re heading to the Toon around brunchtime and fancy tucking into something delicious in a dilapidated warehouse-turned ceramic studio, look no further than Kiln. Settle down with a flat white and the notoriously good hummus sharer while resident South Korean ceramicist Jun Rhee takes to the potter’s wheel, creating irresistible crockery and vases which you can purchase on-site.

And I’d be remiss not to mention that if you happen to be in town on a Tuesday, Kiln runs a quiz night with free pizza. You read that right: Free. Pizza.

Open everyday// kiln.cafe // @kilnouseburn

BALTIC

Baltic

The UK’s largest dedicated contemporary art institution, Newcastle’s popular BALTIC gallery is housed in an old industrial flour mill that sits proudly down on the bustling quayside. Since its official opening in 2002, the gallery has welcomed over eight million visitors to enjoy works of art by over 470 artists. There's even a library, free to use and open all week, with hundreds of inspirational books and magazines on art, design and colour theory. And for anyone who is not just a design fanatic but also juggling mini people, most of the second floor is dedicated to sensory play. Make sure that you also soar up in the glass lifts to the fifth-floor viewing box for, as Geordies would put it, a canny spectacular view over the shimmering Tyne.

Open every day // baltic.art // @balticgateshead

Fern Antiques

Fern Antiques

A family-run antiques emporium set in the heart of leafy Jesmond, Fern Antiques received a new lease of life when charismatic owner Seppe took it over in 2012. It’s a veritable treasure trove for interior lovers, with wares from 18 different antique dealers under one roof and new (and by new you understand I mean very, very old) pieces of furniture, jewellery and memorabilia arriving every day, including fantastic and unusual industrial items.

Open every day // fernavenueantiquescentre.co.uk // @fernavenueantiquescentre

RE

RE

If you have a real passion for unusual homeware and trinkets, consider venturing ever so slightly further afield to the quaint Northumbrian market town of Corbridge, 20 miles west of Newcastle city centre. Tucked in behind a petrol station, housed in a converted old workshop, RE was founded in 2003 by two former fashion designers with a penchant for the “raRE, REmarkable, REcycled, REscued and REstored”. I defy you not to come away with a paper bag - or three - chock-full of extraordinary goodies.

Open // re-foundobjects.com // @refoundobjects

November 06, 2019 — Vincent and Barn