London Sends Us Boutiques; We Send Them Jill Zarin

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The Lower East Side will soon play host to the best independent designers and boutiques from the Newburgh Quarter neighborhood of London. A month later, LES will take over Newburgh. Sisters in hip, these two neighborhoods are home to some of the best and most unique retail their respective cities have to offer, and the Wish You Were Here swap will celebrate that here in New York from August 22 to September 13—just in time for Fashion Week.

Ground zero for the events is the Wish You Were Here Pop-up Shop where LES entrepreneurs and London merchandisers will create daily window displays and wares from featured designers Concrete, The Face, Fred Perry, Social Suicide, Savage London and others will be available for purchase. Traditional English tea will be served as a pregame for the famous downtown party scene, local restaurants will serve London-influenced nibblies, and a variety of bands and DJs from both sides of the pond will entertain. Plan your visit!

The weeks-long party will culminate on September 13th when Orchard Street is closed to traffic for a day-long block party. Then, in October, LES will descend upon London. The British edition of Wish You Were Here will feature By Robert James, Earnest Sewn, Hairy Mary's Vintage & Design, In God We Trust, Kaight and—glory be!—the Zarin Fabric Warehouse (Jill Zarin Takes London must be in pre-production, right?)! Other aspects of New York culture that will migrate east? Bagels (duh) and hot pretzels (Philly is going to be pissed). Just don't forget to bring the bridge-and-tunnelers with you Jill—it'd be nice to go to the Dark Room on a Friday night and not want to die within 15 minutes. —Frank Gargione
· Wish You Were Here [Official Site]
· London Calling: Brit Designers Invade LES [The Cut]