Bijou Bazaar 2010 @ Map KL, Solaris Dutamas

What could be better than to spend the weekends shopping? Especially if the items are sold at a budget price and the quality is comparable to that of traditional stores. Fashion, bazaar, art and music came together at the Bijou Bazaar and we were there.

The vendors at this brand new indoor bazaar exerience came from all walks of life; all of them have different stories. One gave up a career for the sake of her child, who is also her biggest inspiration for her artwork, another sells pretty cupcakes and is the co-sponsor of a local metal band. But they all had one thing in common: they believe in both aesthetic value of their pursuits and want to share it with you.

I had a hard time looking for Solaris Dutamas initially – even the presence of road signs didn’t help. When I finally found it I followed these transformed-to-art wooden cable drums to the entrance. Brilliant!

Stepping inside the 1st thing I noticed was the decor by Imsomnia Art (no, I didn’t spell it wrong), which consisted of cute little dolls (“cute” as in ugly but adorable) laid on a white cushioned bench. It wasn’t the only thing to catch my eye. There was the young, artsy crowd it attracted and the amazing work of art displayed around the White Box.

Little Syam‘s Doltopia for adoption immediately caught the attention of handicrafts junkies and sharing the same booth was Head Over Heels which sold magnificent footstools in colourful designs. More fashion vendors like Miccaz sold bags, shoes as well as clothes and in the same booth was Rawkabilly selling vintage goods. Mia & Mika flogged Jimmy Choo’s and other branded item unavailable in Malaysia. But what I really loved was Tender Blush‘s spiked killer heels ‘Goldie Killer’ (left) and ‘The Black Gun’ (right) in the Primadonna SS collection! Rawr!

But an outfit isn’t complete without the right accessories … Soak Republic offered bold and stylish accessories for women. I also liked the unisex LED watches by Watch It located next door.

Later in the afternoon, music could be heard both in White and Black Box. Bands and solo artists such as Liyana Fizi, Azmyl Yunor, Ocean Of Fire, Khottal and Myo OCK rocked the stage in the Black Box. Meanwhile, out in the White Box Mikrobotmen and MN32 were busy operating their Game Boys and circuit bent toy creating awesome chip tune music from old RPG games with new arrangements. Sweet!

Vendors and guests loved the fact that it was an indoor event. The atmosphere was made so comfortable that you hardly noticed the hours passing by.

I’m looking forward to a wider choice of food stalls next time. But I did think that the cupcake stalls made all pretty and it was cool that some of them even allowed you to design your own cupcakes, like those at Ayan & Mama. We dropped by Spread The Frost and the co-sponsor for metal band Dead Eyes Glow made a little cupcake just for JUICE. Aww….

Bijou Bazaar 2010 happened on 12 and 13 June at Map KL, Solaris Dutamas. To view more pictures from this event, click here.