Conversation pits

And how to create your own

Pushing and shoving your way past people in a club is a big no-no, so I don’t really understand why, at Number 90 in Hackney Wick, they put the sitting area right in the middle of the main throughway of people trying to get back to the dance floor!

fabric’s main chill out areas, which I call the bunkers. You’re basically in your own pod, which fits maybe two to three groups of people, with a proper walkthrough so you can people-watch and chat without being in the way of people moving between the rooms. Perfection!

It made me appreciate fabric London, yet again, for their ingenious hang-out bunkers. You have a proper place to rest your dancing feet, away from the main room but close enough to suss out the music AND there’s a proper bar so you don’t have to go to the main bar.

The chains make it look a bit scary but it is in a converted cold storage / meat factory, so, it tracks.

Your own private bunker at fabric

And the bunkers themselves? They’re basically conversation pits! Multi-level benches, with mood-lighting, and (relatively) soft yet sturdy furnishings where you can lounge about with your friends in between boogies. Last time I was there, I couldn’t believe it when I realised it – and made a mental note before heading back into the crowd that I must share this revelation.

I originally thought it was my mother who designed the concrete benches but it was my sister – possibly inspired by fabric’s?

Interestingly enough, my sister designed something like this for my parent’s spot at the beach in California. Concrete benches with a soft cushion on top, and the use is pretty similar – hordes of people have come to this spot to lounge, listen to the waves, chat, hang out, have fun.

Mum’s contribution ;)

And it got me thinking how we, as a people, can create our own versions of conversation pits without digging down a few feet into our living rooms or shelling out thousands and thousands for a Paulin Paulin Paulin Dune sofa.

Off I went to do some image research and got side-tracked by these gorgeous blue sunken living rooms. Not a classic conversation pit, so here’s what we can take away from these rooms: