GEMMA ROSE
PROFESSIONAL COPYWRITER
WELCOME TO CINDY'S HOUSE
It was a surprisingly not-so-rainy Tuesday morning in Manchester and armed with questions, a Dictaphone and a KitKat I alighted at Piccadilly station and made my way to Afflecks. Tucked just behind Debenhams, Afflecks plays home to a vast variety of independent shops and boutiques and over the years has built up a reputation as the ‘it’ place to go. Think Camden Market minus the rain and Chinese food.
Making my way through a maze of uneven flooring and discovering delights such as the Harajuku Hair and Cyberdog stores, it was beginning to look a bit dubious. But then, there it was. Right next door to the condom shop.
Opened in 2010, Cindy’s House is a unique fashion store offering an individual customisation service, all run and owned by Jensen Chadwick. On entering the store I was met with an explosion of tie-dye and studs, and the underlying ambience of sophistication creating a pandemonium resembling Barbie’s hangout. Jensen, in contrast to her range, is dressed relatively simply in a black knitted jumper and jeans with the letters ‘L’, ‘O’, ‘V’ and ‘E’ tattooed across her knuckles.
She starts by telling me how she got involved with fashion: “I just kind of had a natural, personal connection with it [fashion] all my life. When I was little I always wanted the pink sparkly wellies, not just any wellies. There’s nothing better than having a career in something you enjoy.”
‘Slut’ and ‘Fukk’ are just some of the slogans unapologetically splashed across t-shirts and they have given life to a regularly spotted fashion statement in Manchester. She elaborated: “I wanted something that pushed the boundaries and didn’t conform to standard fashion. It’s for people who want to be a bit more expressive. We like people to be out there. At the minute I get a lot of hipsters and young, fashion conscience kids who have just discovered their identity.”
As I chat to Jensen, she is perched on a stool attaching gold studs systematically to the rim of a hood. An aspect of Cindy’s House that makes it stand out from other shops stocking similar clothing is the customisation, but she has plans to venture beyond this: “I want to offer a personal design service so people can come in, talk to the seamstress and have a unique piece designed just for them and with all my printing materials I could make completely individual items.”
Not only is Cindy’s House popular with Mancunians, celebrities alike have paid Jensen and her bling a visit. Lady Gaga’s stylist recently popped in and was very complimentary about the range. However, when the shop first opened it wasn’t all spikes, ‘dead skinny’ tees and paint-splatted plimsolls.
“I think we just moved with the trends. When I was a bit younger I liked to create wacky things whereas now I have streamlined it a bit and kept it more on trend, but with the odd elements of tack.
“People seem to like it. Some people are like “oh my god, who would wear that on a t-shirt?” but that’s mainly the mums.”
When I ask Jensen if I could take her picture, she exclaimed: “Oh no! I am so not ready to be photographed” and promptly grabbed a pair of long, feathered earrings off the stand next to her. I suppose being a fashion designer does have its emergency perks.
