Life | Scaling

I'm off to Berlin for a few days and though originally I thought: Oh yay, lets all go on a trip together! I feel I need a little blog break.* So I'll just say: So long and thank you for the fish! ♥ ♥ ♥

I will tweet though & might even try the odd twitpic. So if you feel like coming along…
*Although, before I go, look-look, this is one of the 2nd hand silk blouses I found. Love it. And btw, do you also feel the call of the bf jeans? So comfy… 

blouse: linea/2nd hand, jeans: diesel, belt: 2nd hand, shoes: costume national

DIY | Experimentation

Any idea what this is? It's the search for the perfect dotted tights. The dots mustn't be too small, but not too big either, and not too many… In the end I was so exasperated I tried DIY. Acrylic paint you can never get out of your clothes and there's always a potato somewhere in the house. Still need to work on the technique though…

DIY | Inflation, Deflation, Holes.

Enough of this flagrant self-promotion. After losing at tennis by the dozens (sets not games… yayaya, it feels hopeless, but what am I expecting after a winter spent hunched behind screens) and fighting it out at the knitting machine my inflated ego has shrivelled to the size of a pea… So much healthier anyway. Still intrigued by producing dresses (ideally with trousers and little sweaters or jackets to match. There's an early 60s twinset girl lurking inside me, waiting to come out) and this is the latest version – lots of holes, and I think it looks best worn under a billowing skirt. Back to blown-up, that's me, yesss. Happy Weekend! Muah, muah! 

knitted dress: diy (cashmere/cotton), skirt: liz claiborne vintage, shoes: russell & bromley, sunglasses cover: reinhold kühn collection

Life | Trust in Meee…

When Dvora* congratulated me last week for being in the Top 10 of the Up-and-Coming UK Fashion Blogs I was like What? Where? Me? How? Wuhuhuu! I checked and Oh wow! I've been given an 'influencer score' of 34.58… Really had no idea of my manipulative powers.
Aaanyway, if you're not sitting in front of the screen circle-eyed yet, there are quite a few blogs in this list I've come to love; so to everyone on, and certainly also to everyone not on this list (because, come on, these lists are so damn fickle and we all do our best, no matter if we're seen or not)... Well done all us hard working bloggers and Thank You to everyone who bothers to stop by.

…and even though J says he's not leaving the house with me wearing any headgear - I think it's high time to own up to my new red hat now.

*who is now officially one of the Top 10 UK street bloggers. You wouldn't have to tell me that… Her amazing photography of interesting people belongs to my daily pleasures.

And big Thank You to vouchercodes.co.uk for compiling this list. Modern marketing methods never cease to fascinate and amaze me.

trousers & dress: ghost, vest: transit jeans, shoes: bally, hat: pachacuti, necklace: diy

Love | Enarmored

Remember the much photographed Fannie Schiavoni metal dress? It looks like this season she's taken it apart and made separate collars, harnesses and shirts from it… Oh, I love them all! And I'm wrecking my brain how to knit a harness. I know it's possible. I mean, Mark Fast can do it… Do tell, which one is your favourite?

All by Fannie Schiavoni*, LFW a/w 2011, Somerset House
*I'm fairly sure the harness is by her, too. If not, please correct me.

Take 10 | Spoiled Brat T-Shirt

'Oh my, this looks just like Fudge!' I thought when I chose the tiger t-shirt on the Spoiled Brat website. 'Come on, sweetie, lets do an outfit shot together!' But somehow my ideas never score very high with our cats, and it was just another example who's really wearing the mental t-shirt trousers in our house…

So while my photo shooting suffered from unwilling model, the t-shirt itself is an absolute pleasure. It's the kind of thing that becomes like a 2nd skin… Soft and comfy and cleverly cut (longer at the back, nice and wide, but with tight sleeves which you can push up and they stay there). So even without Fudge (who is not yet aware how totally he has ruined his modelling career): 'tis the perfect tee!

As you can see, this time we all went for different items, so don't forget to check out Jen, Sarah, MJ, Sherin, Vicki, Adele, Ellie, Paula and Harriet.



t-shirt: courtesy of spoiled brat, blazer: alexander mcqueen, cardigan: greta lorenzo (arms cut off), trousers: costume national, boots: fendi

Style | The Mud Sling

Having just mud-slided my new shoes might be the reason for looking grumpy, but, hey, anything for a picture… especially when trying to find a visual output for the deep philosophical question if you need some basic hues to play the whole colour-blocking games that is so very much it now. Because, I do think so. And if it's not black, or beige, or camel, what could it be? Right now for me it's brown and green (or rather olive) - and then I'll just pile on the colours from there. (Now don't tell me I'm not wearing anything green – that's why I had to sit in the mud field.)

With all our thoughts these days very much in Japan… If you buy the beautiful book 'The Light of Tokyo' at Assouline 50% of the proceeds will go to the American Red Cross to support the tsunami relief efforts.

shoes: jil sander, skirt: antonio berardi, lurex sweater: topshop, bag: anya hindmarch

Love | So Fast

You can't really call yourself a knit freak and ignore Mark Fast who's got the knack of combining lycra and wool to create something that is being described as 'sculpting tension and volume'. So naturally I hung out with his designs at the showroom in Somerset House a lot, salivating over this carpety creation which nearly makes me want to marry again – just so I could wear it as a wedding dress… All my bridesmaids would get to wear dress #2 - and no one would go home alone.

 Pictures taken at LFW, Somerset House of collection a/w 2011/12

DIY | Intertwined Potential

Getting to know my 2nd hand knitting machine is a bit like trying to understand a moody lover… 'Have I rubbed you the wrong way, daaahling, or why are you letting all stitches drop WITHOUT A WARNING??!' But as with all delicate beings moving slowly and trying to understand the peculiar sensitivities helps to improve our relationship bit by bit. Now if I only accepted that I'm not the size of a 10 year old child and stopped producing sweaters I can hardly squeeze into – I'd see endless possibilities at the horizon…

The outfit? Spent the 2nd weekend sorting our storage. T.O.O. M.U.C.H. S.T.U.F.F.

UPDATE: I'm starting to feel like a cheat. I have not knitted the complicated design in the 2nd picture. It's the same sweater as in pic 1, just a bit photoshopped - to visualize the endless possibilities (sadly far from my realities).

boots: decathlon, work-suit: 2nd hand, sweater: diy, clutch: diy

Style | Fashion Weeks – It’s a Wrap

If you followed fashion weeks (if you didn't you probably couldn't care less – though never forget Miranda Priestley's words about how cerulean 'filtered down' into the high street…) do you also feel confused and overwhelmed by shapes and colours and cuts and sparkles and whatsnot? In times of confusion I resort to making lists; since lists give me hope that there might be sense and logic and structure in all this chaos.

So here is my (totally subjective) comprehensive list on autumn/winter 11/12:
- Knee-high boots will be back (especially slouchy, 70s style ones; reminding me of the ones my mum used to have: latte-coffee coloured, softest leather, sturdy heel… All my childhood I was willing my feet to grow big enough to fit into them, but they never managed. So in the end I think my sister snapped them up.)
- Pointy shoes! (Now why did I sent these back again?)
- Clerical purple. What I really liked about the collections was that the whole colour blocking continued, but on a much more subtle level. The master of it all must have been Haider Ackermann, but Marni's colour combinations were quite magical, too.
- Every shade of blue (be it turquoise, midnight, cerulean, lapis…) is totally IT.
- Polka dots (mmmhh…)
- Long, lean coats
- Turtle necks under everything
- and… thanks to Karl Lagerfeld the skinny is not dead. No, it's alive and kicking and I adore Karl for taking all these street style cues and incorporating them into a collection.
- Aahh, and shoulders… round. Widthwise they can be anything – from 3 Arnie Schwarzeneggers to the slimmest 30s cuts. Do as you like – which in my mind is always the best advise when it comes to dressing.

What did I not see: 50s influences and flats (phew!). So, what do you say… Are you ready for pointy knee-high boots, 80s blazers, blue and purple polka dots and channeling your inner existentialist?

Even though this space is devoted to pure escapism and unhinged frivolity I'm finding it impossible not to say that my thoughts and hopes are with the people of Japan and Libya. Wishing you all a wonderful weekend. Muah, muah!

shoes: jil sander, tights: wolford, coat: zara, fedora: pachacuti

Style | No Shoe Dilemmas

I would pat my back if could because naturally I feared I would cling on to all 3 pairs… but I didn't. Pair 1 (the 50s stilettos) I loved, but I'm just not masochistic enough to try but stand (and even this for not more than 10 minutes) on these pointy heels. Back into the box. Pair 2 (the black boots) I immediately lusted after, but Sarah crashed my dreams with: 'You look like a hooker.' Okaaaayyy… plus they were even higher, i.e. less walkable. Back into the box. But number 3... Jil Sanders for 50 quid?!? I don't know if there was a pricing error, but what do I care?!

shoes: pura lópez, trussardi 1911 &amp

London | Wolseleyed

'Having tea' must be one of the best British rituals. Cream tea, high tea, Earl Grey with sandwich, Darjeeling with cake, Oolong with macaroons… Any combination you like. So I spend my days discovering the best tea places in London. Sketch is far-out and fun (don't miss the egg toilets!), Liberty is for collapsing after shopping, and the Wolseley transports you directly into an Agatha Christie novel (plus it's got the best, politest, good-looking waiters). And if you have to wait for a table (because naively you haven't booked) you can kill time getting drunk at the bar.
Do you have a favourite tea place?

P.S. Yeap, that's me in front of the British museum, suffering from low blood sugar levels and tea deprivation.

coat: zara, trousers: next, socks: christmas market, boots: ash, bag: sarah's, scarf: present from india

Style | La Bon, C’est Belle

So you don't want to be one of those pushy people who intrudes on others, and she clearly indicated that she didn't want to pose for anyone (it's the clutching of the mobile, talking animatedly, while turning away from all staring eyes), but I really wanted to show you the wonderful skirt she was wearing (Christopher Kane, I learned from twitter). So I had to photograph Yasmin le Bon in pieces… (Still not a fan of fur though, even if it looks that good. Maybe it's vintage... or fake... ahaahaha)

There might be trillions of pictures still to be edited, but with Fashion Weeks slowly coming to an end in Paris I also feel like laying the whole thing to rest (until September that is). It's time for new beginnings.

Picture taken at London Fashion Week.

Love | The Still Life of Fashion Week

Fashion week is full of still lifes. Some intended, some just happen…

When I took this picture the woman laughed: "Oh, you're photographing my tea service. I really just felt the need for a cup of tea!"

Pic 1: Holly Fulton showroom
Pic 2 & 3: Somewhere in Somerset house, but can't remember exactly where.

Take 10 | Matalan Tapestry Bowling Bag

Ideally Scott would have jumped at me and asked me if he could take my picture when I was standing in front of him clutching the Matalan Tapestry Bowling bag (tapestry bowling?? I really need to look up what this actually means) which I took along to Somerset House to finally get an outfit pic of it. But he didn't. Now, being The Sartorialist he might have smelled that this is only an £8.- high street design, or perhaps my style just wasn't up to scratch… And that's probably the reason why I look forlorn and disappointed (or maybe I was just tired and 'hormonal')...
What can I say? The bag is kinda cute and at this price you can't complain about the fake leather and flimsiness, but being me, I'd probably get myself an old, real leather granny bag at Oxfam for the money.

Our Take 10 group keeps being a happy merry-go-round. We sadly lost Jazmine, but gained Harriet who I think is a wonderful addition to the group. She also showed true team spirit by immediately volunteering to do the collage. The rest of the bunch naturally also has a bag story to tell. So don't forget to check out Jen, Sarah, MJ, Sherin, Vicki, Adele, Ellie and Paula!

P.S. The cute pendant you can see in the background of the 1st picture was sent to me from Vix for winning a giveaway. The 1st time EVER I won something… So double Thank You, Vix!

bag: courtesy of matalan, trousers: new look, lurex sweater: topshop, belt: 2nd hand, blazer: mey & edlich vintage, boots: fendi

Style | Lace & Fur

Ella and I both enthusiastically bought a 2nd hand knitting machine after our Saint Martins knitting course. (She also prints on her knitting, which produces really interesting effects) . But when I met her after the Bora Aksu show I did not tell her that my independent knitting projects since then have been a valley of tears and a mountain of frustration… (well, you can't really jump at someone you meet at fashion week and start complaining about your DIY projects - though I could, I could...). Neither did I mention how much I like her lace skirt and tied fur collar. But I do! (…and next time we meet I hope we find time to talk knitting.)



Picture taken at LFW, BFC show space