Sally

A slightly mystical picture I took of Sally standing in the doorway of a beautiful old church in Normandy. I'm ashamed to say that I've only got a vague sense of French history so I couldn't tell you about its past. All I know is that the 90 something year old lady it belongs to was an unexpected apparition that day and her richly coloured stories about the war were compelling. An extraordinary woman with scattered nuggets of historical gold!
Sally shares my passion for vintage hand-embroidered Mexican dresses. Between the two of us we have an extensive collection consisting of original pieces (as opposed to the sometimes unforgivably hideous copies I saw in the high street this summer)...

David Szeto

I've recently been invited to write an article about fashion and sentimentality.
As months and even years go by I've realised that I feel quite comfortable tenderly evoking clothes I've owned in the past or still wear today. It might seem like a repugnant idea to certain people but there it is ... Even fashion can inspire love and has stories to tell.
This David Szeto scarf is an essential and precious ingredient in my wardrobe. I could write movingly about it and maybe I will in a different post (right now I need to get my arse out of the house and to a pilates class).

Here's a post I wrote a while back about the amazing David Szeto.

Picture: July Stars (Quincy, my scarf and a few old copies of Self Service)

Cat perfection

Sometimes ignorance is bliss. I saw this silk Undercover jacket for the first time on the Honeyee website which, as it turns out, I only discovered because my lovely friend Tommy blogs there. The sheer magic of the embroidered cat mysteriously surrounded by grapes and a skull head makes me think of an old fairy tale. The minute I set eyes on this piece I knew I was in trouble. It has a cat, it’s Japanese and it’s a little bit odd. I will never own it (the price gives me a terrible headache) but I will continue to celebrate its beauty!

Pictures courtesy of Honeyee, collage by July Stars

1984

People sometimes ask me why I buy so many old books. My reply is always the same: I love the chaotic mishmash of second-hand bookshops, the element of surprise and excitement when you find a novel you like with a beautifully illustrated jacket cover. It's simple. There's nothing actually wrong with books purchased from giant chains (where else would you acquire the latest releases) but publications from the 30s up to the late 70s are like an alternative universe in terms of front covers. Frequently intriguing and interesting masterpieces. A strength lacking and neglected today. My husband has the same infectious habit but he collects records for their sleeves. Double vision!
I found this 1st edition copy of George Orwell's 1984 last week in East Finchley and couldn't help but grin when I saw the cover. The "Anti-Sex League" badge is amazing and the girl wearing it reminds me of a sexier version of Lix Storm in the TV series "The Hour".

Full Frontal Fashion

The exceptional and beautiful writer Indigo Clarke asked me a few questions for her Full Frontal Fashion column. Here's the result!

France

Remember when summers in London were sunny and warm? No? I don't either. I'm fast becoming fanatically anti-UK. A momentary feeling which will disappear at some stage but at the moment the constant rain is enough ground to complain. And I refuse to budge on this. I will continue to lament the lack of sun until everyone is back at work. You won't deny me this pleasure! I've also developed an Instagram phobia: I do not want to see photos of friends looking like beautiful creatures, unsurprisingly healthy and tanned, enjoying glorious countryside sceneries for two months. In an attempt to attenuate my obsession with getting away, I thought I'd show you significant traces of my week in Normandie with Mat, Sally and Fred. Yeah, that doesn't work. I'm finding myself wishing I was back there. Now.

Miu Miu love

Miu Miu wins my vote yet again. I just watched the second instalment of the brand’s Women’s Tales film series and feel slightly disorientated. In a Felliniesque way. The Argentinian director, Lucrecia Martel, has created a powerful fictional meeting between fashion, beauty and slightly dark surrealism with great gusto. Images of wonderful alien like creatures wearing exquisite Miu Miu dresses and shoes move around a boat in a dramatic and bizarre way, occasionally standing motionless like classical pillars. Snatched glimpses of a male hand trying to get on board or a silent woman sitting in a wooden safety boat floating on the ship’s swimming pool constitute unsettling elements waiting to be decoded.
In these days of growing concern at the methods of attracting the masses, it is amazing to find that some fashion designers will still encourage complete creativity.
I found this film absorbing and ambitious. I absolutely love it. What do you think?

Olympia Le-Tan, toujours et encore

I celebrated my birthday on the 14th of July and here’s one the most delightful presents I received. An Olympia Le-Tan bag. My sister had to devote several days to track one down making this surprise even more special. A double thrill!
You’ll forgive me, I hope, for coming back so soon to the subject of Olympia Le-Tan (see my post dated 5th July) but as you may have figured out, I’m obsessed with her timeless and uniquely modern book clutches. As far as I’m concerned, the girl is amazing: literature and fashion. A highly seductive combination.

I took this picture of my bag in Cassis, South of France.

Ellen Nolan

Yes, I know, I’ve probably managed to alienate some of my readers with my passion for David Hamilton but look, I don’t find his photography shocking. Not even the piquant teen nudes. I think he genuinely has managed to achieve a sort of exquisite and poetic timelessness, a style that has become instantly recognisable. His images and techniques continue to have potency today. I confess to not liking many of his copycat groupies but there is one person who successfully and credibly embraced his approach. I’ve kept this Ellen Nolan fashion shoot in a drawer for a couple of years and it’s a miracle I even came across it since I never buy the Telegraph! I was surprised. Her pictures had an immediate effect on me. They seem to be driven by piercing observation and a sure understanding of Hamilton’s pieces. Beautiful.

I wonder if David Hamilton will one day be acknowledged for the remarkable artist that he is… He’s a familiar figure in my life but deserves to be lingered over by everyone.

Photos courtesy of Ellen Nolan

Normandy

Silly times on the beach in Cabourg with Sally.
I've been back in London for two weeks and my holiday in France seems like a distant illusion.
The next few posts will be a celebration of cloudless summer skies and a love poem to the sun!