PaddyDraws Scenes of Nostalgic Northern Ireland - Treat Yourself This January 2020 With a Print of Auntie Annies, Bangor High Street, Or The Cabin in Donaghadee

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When @ngorlly posted her snazzy new print she had bought off Etsy at Christmas, I got very excited and just as nostalgic as she was with it being our old stomping ground Auntie Annies. The now closed down pub and club was home to my favourite Saturday night indie dance club, Skibunny, DJed by Mark Gordon and Tanya Melotte, with the occasional appearance by Rigsy. Quite frankly I would have gone to Skibunny seven nights a week if they would have indulged me during 2004-2006.

The print in question was the work of PaddyDraws, who has a splendidly quaint Etsy store described aptly as ‘nostalgic Northern Ireland’. One of his other standout pieces is an ABC of Northern Ireland, with the ‘J’ of course being for ‘our Julian’, and 'T’ for ‘Tayto’.

Check out Paddy’s store for prints in various sizes, including locations like The Cabin in Donaghadee, and Bangor’s kebab sauce legend Piccola Pizza.

My Favourite Art Deco House in Bangor Northern Ireland- Plus Tonic Cinema Illustration From Hand Drawn Creative

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I shared with you my favourite house in Portstewart last week, so how about my favourite house in Bangor, where I actually live.

Its this pink beauty which resides in the wonderfully named 'Beverley Hills', in the Ballyholme area. Built in the 1930s it nestles amongst a neighbourhood of otherwise regular family homes, and backs onto a golf course.

I know what you're thinking- ​the cladding. I know. Cladding the exterior of a house in fancy stonework was a trend in the 1970s and you would wonder who in their right mind would have altered such an already high concept design building like this, let alone all over cladding, then painting it pink.

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The photo below showing the house in its original form is so much better, the corner windows to the left side are totally lost under the heavy brickwork. 

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The current owner was not responsible for the cladding, or the pink, ​and they also say the original interiors have been stripped and changed too. So no retro futuristic interiors to observe, sadly.

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David Wilson architects did some remodelling work recently extending the kitchen and living area on the ground floor. They appear to have done a good job, in keeping with the traditional design of the building.

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Bangor has some beautiful Art Deco public buildings, one of which Neal McCullough from Hand Drawn Creative has featured in a clean crisp illustration, which you can buy on his Etsy Store.

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The Bank of Ireland building is another example, right at the midpoint of Main Street. The building to the right which you can't see in the photograph has quite a few modernist qualities. I have an old Ulster Architrcture book somewhere that features it, I must dig it out to share with you on another blog post.

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There's another section of Bangor, what I call the new-build sprawl of the East which is like a maze to me, but which has a pocket of home designs I've always loved.

Along the ring road and into never ending suburbia there are a couple of streets of these happy little chalets. They look like designs of the 60s or 70s, family homes with asymmetrical rooves, cute archways and novelty balconies. 

There are several designs dotted along the Pinehill / Silverbirch area.

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Incidentally Neal has a print that looks a little bit like these homes- Hand Drawn Creative Hollywood Bungalow A3 for £20. Apart from his Fisher Price retro toy illustrations, I think this is my favourite of Neal's work.

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The last home of my favourites in Bangor list, is one I've been telling my parents I wanted to live in since I was a little girl, when we moved to the same road when I was aged two.

"The Sugar Cube", as its lovingly named by the family who live there, is a flat roofed design house on the same road as my parents' home. I always told my parents I would love there so I wasn't too far away from them when I moved out as an adult. Ironically I actually live almost this close now, although it's round the back of the Springhill Road, rather than down and opposite from my parents' house.

So have I got all th unusual homes in Bangor? Or do you know of any that I might like to nosy at too?  Hit me up on Twitter- @rudedoodle

I may feature Holywood next- it would require a lot of time on Google Streeview going up and down the split-level, modernist heaven that is Marino!

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One last bonus architectural oddity- the Ballyholme windmill, which peeks out from in between the streets of homes. 

I would LOVE to live somewhere like that. 

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Retro Stylised Wonder Woman Print from Hand Drawn Creative

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There's been quite the buzz about the new Wonder Woman film, with the heroine updated for the 2000s. Of course like most superheroes, Wonder Woman started out as a comic book heroine, and Neal from Hand Drawn Creative has paid tribute to these beginnings with his fab A3 print.

Also new is this swish little promo, Let's Learn To Draw The Hand Drawn Creative way. We get to meet Neal and tour his drawing office, as well as watching him at work. 

Don't forget to visit the Hand Drawn Creative Etsy Store, where A3 prints are a very reasonable £20

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Belfast Drag Queen Blu Hydrangea Brings a Tattooed Pin Up Vixen by NI Art Scene King Terry Bradley to Life. You HAVE to See This.

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I've been a massive RuPaul Drag Race fan for a good number of years now. I watch it & indulge in my hobby on my lonesome.

Alaska 5000 & our very own Blu

Alaska 5000 & our very own Blu

My ex-husband hated it, I can't yet watch with my son because he's nine, and it's still a bit crude for his ears. He does however watch top ten catwalk look type videos on YouTube with me, and his favourite is Alaska, even with only seeing her outfits. He can spot her in any line up.​

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So it's quite sad I've yet to make it to any drag show, when there is a healthy scene in Belfast centring around Boom Box and their cast of spunky, young queens. All the RPDR alumni tour here, all my favourites like Alyssa, her Haus of Edwards, but I've never made it to a show. I might take the plunge and go see Bianca Del Rio in February, in the Waterfront, but I'll be on my own for that too.​

Blu at work

Blu at work

Anyway, I try to support local queens by liking their pics on Instagram where I can. This week I was blown away when I spotted Blu Hydrangea's Terry Bradley tattoo girl look. 

Terry Bradley is a NI artist and you may have spotted his work in local bars, restaurants and around the Sailor Town quarter where the Rotterdam bar was. 

There is even a turiorial on Blu Hydrangea's YouTube. I think she's one to watch in the coming future- especially with the fact Johnathan Ross has bought rights to make RPDG UK. 

Follow Blu on Instagram for weekly unreal looks.

All images belong to Blu Hydrangea

All images belong to Blu Hydrangea