Little Brown Bag.....

This bag reminds me of the case my grandfather kept his binoculars in.  Oh, how many happy hours I used to while away, this bag lying at my feet, the binoculars it housed pressed to my eyes, spying on the neighbours and any innocent passers-by!  I loved the smell of the old leather, the feel of its soft, aged leather, the red lining.......

The only trouble I have with this type of bag is that, sadly, it's really only large enough to carry a pair of binoculars!!  Like most women, I need something roughly the size of a rubbish sack to tote my 'essential' worldly goods around, (note that the person carrying this one is a man.....note also that men seem to have no need to take anything with them when they leave the house, unlike us females who invariably need everything, up to (and frequently including) the kitchen sink!  As you can see, you won't find many plumbers carrying their goods in a bag of these dimensions!!  Pity really - it would drastically raise the "style" of plumbers everywhere!

(Must fly - I'm off to Summerset Festival at the Basin Reserve;  a field normally home to cricket and its fans will, for one day only, be taken over by dozens of bands and their loving fans!)

xxo

Blue by you.....

Aaaaah, how wonderful to see someone carrying a real-life book......not a Kindle.....not an iPad or a laptop, but a genuine, 100% old-school type, book!  

Personally, I refuse to believe that there will come a time when people will no longer appreciate - or indeed even know - the joys of holding a book in their hands......smelling it's smell and feeling the weight and texture of the paper.  

Long live the humble book!

xxo

Le Sac....

I happened to pass this bag today, and it caught my eye.....I haven't seen anything like it before.  It's an original idea, anyway, and I quite like it.  Of course, anything with the words ECO written on it will be fairly popular....... I wonder if he 'designed' it himself, or bought it?

I have a feeling that we are going to be seeing a great many more items made from hessian coming out over the next few years.....it would be a great fabric, as long as you fixed the itchiness!

xxo

Blue on a rainy day.....

Because it decided to rain today, I have decided to share this picture of the perfect footwear for such weather.  Over the years Kate Moss has been held responsible for starting many a trend, and sure enough, her sanction of the humble Wellington boot (gumboot to us Kiwis), elevated it to the status of "fashion item with lightning speed!  Recently the 'Hunter' brand became available in Australia, and have now begun to appear on the streets of (appropriately) Wellington.  Until now, you had to have been lucky enough to have travelled to the Northern Hemisphere to sport these beauties!

Anyway, thanks to Kate, Wellington/gumboots are a viable daytime footwear option, and are are being embraced in all the colours of the rainbow.

xxo

.....& again.....

What did I say about Country Road bags?  Everywhere!!!

xxo

Petone Street Fair....

Yellow fever....

I have been noticing a LOT of yellow around me on the streets of late.  Mainly displayed in the area of footwear, it has also been seen as far north as the t-shirt, and it never fails to make the wearer appear bright, sunny and summery!  Not a colour that wall-flowers should attempt, it certainly rewards those brave enough to try it - whether they just put a toe in the sandal water, or go for the full effect!

xxo

Freedom of style....

When I was much younger I used to love dressing up in an old shawl of my grandmothers - I loved the feeling of the tassles swirling around me......

Tassles are able to evoke so many moods - to accommodate so many styles.......  They can take on the spirit of the heady days of 70's disco, al la Studio 54; they can conjure up images of american Indian, riding free across the plains of the wild west; they can bring to mind the bohemian style of the wandering gypsy...... But one thing that all these have in common is a sense of freedom - whether the freedom of 70's excess, untamed lands, or nomadic roaming.  And freedom is always attractive, no? Freedom is always stylish!

I love people who dress up in their everyday life....who put some art and imagination into their presentation!  Who embrace the freedom of style!

xxo

Backup....

I love backpacks - always have, ever since high school, (when I passed my army-style backpack around for all my friends to sign).  I mean, which other bag allows you to to carry so much stuff around (and no matter how much I try to streamline, still I find myself carrying SO MUCH 'stuff'!!!!!!!) and yet still gives you the freedom to use both hands!

xxo

More scarf envy....

I love the way some people can pick up a scarf - merely a scrap of cloth - and make it look effortlessly chic.  I love the way this person has picked up a scarf and made effortlessly chic look Big Day Out cool!
Ahhh.  If only there were somewhere you could go - some sort of accessory class - where they could teach you all those little things......like how to tie a belt in the latest style, or how to assemble your scarf into something that even slightly resembles stylish.......

xxo

BDO People...

While the day ended with the plastic cape as clear winner for "most worn" fashion item, there were many colourful exceptions throughout the day....

The lead singer of the band Wolfmother posed for pics in his bright pink dinner jacket.....

while shorts where everywhere, in every imaginable colour!

xxo

Not a Country Road, Wellington....

I've just been getting drowned at the Big Day Out in Auckland, but more on that later.....  For now, here's a shot I took of some kids.....I don't recall why really.  (I think I was actually trying to shoot the road they were crossing, if I'm honest).  But when I looked at the picture later I was surprised to see a Country Road bag - a real icon from my childhood.  Back then, Country Road was only just available in New Zealand, and these bags were a MAJOR deal!  They were THE bag to be seen with on the beach or at the pool, & they were marvelous at what they did - spacious enough to hold everything, with room left spare!  But as with most things from the 80's/early 90's, they slowly disappeared into the clothing bins and attic spaces of NZ.

To my astonishment, I have recently seen them all over the place....  It's lovely - like spotting a childhood friend across the street.  You may not feel its appropriate to go "coo-eee" and cross over, but it brings back fabulous memories nevertheless;  not to mention, it's comforting to know they're still out there somewhere....

xxo

Blue Nudes...

Personally, shopping for shoes has always been a somewhat depressing prospect.  A trip to Sydney when I was younger (many many years ago) highlighted the sad fact that little Wellington was woefully lacking when it came to any footwear of style.  Lately however, things have started to look up.....with the arrival of Soles by Nude!  This brand, stocked at Ultra in Manners St (R.I.P Manners Mall :-( ), offers a stylish array of shoes, sandals, and wedges, at not-too-depressing prices!

Hurray for Nudes, I say!

xxo

The Legend that's G'n'R...

Guns N Roses are one of those bands that have always, somehow, managed to remain "cool"!  It's funny isn't it....you never really know who has longevity and who doesn't!  I can't tell you how many people I have watched blaze a trail through adulation, acclaim and renown......only to disappear into ignominy and obscurity.

Not G'n'R!  Their star is little tarnished by the years since they last played....

But still.....................
boy do I feel old when I see something like this*!

xxo

* How wonderful to see a whole new generation discovering, and embracing, a band that was such a defining element of mine :-)

Diamonds are forever.....

.....as are memories, and here is a distant memory from a time long past - London Fashion Week ss10/11!  This was a glimpse of Marina (of Marina and the Diamonds), before I had ever heard her fabulous music!  The clashing combo of colours ensures that this is an outfit that people will notice - and being noticed is a definite speciality of the British designer Ashish!

And may I just say that while the whole 'black-lipstick-thing' never really seemed to get off the ground, I think it looks really cool!  But alas, while I completely love this look, I never quite had the balls to actually attempt it myself??

xxo

Natural Style

I guess it was only recently, really, that it truly occurred to me how often the clothes we adorn ourselves with are a direct reflection of designs, colours and shapes that occur naturally in the world around us.   Floral or plant adorned designs bloomed on the catwalks this season, with designers such as Stella McCartney borrowing straight from their much loved gardens.

Whether it's as clear as a floral fabric, as abstract as......say, a waterfall, represented in a fortuny pleat, or as literal as a heart shaped leaf stamped on hosiery, mother nature is still a fabulous style muse and icon.

xxo

Loving Mondays

It was a joyous day indeed when (a few years ago now) Cheap Monday arrived in Wellington.  At LAST it was possible to find a pair of jeans that fit well, constructed from great denim, that you didn't need to take out a second mortgage to purchase!  I had long wondered why, WHY was it that cheap affordable meant ugly "stylishly challenged" when it came to jeans!  This seemed to be the impossible dream......

And along came Cheap Monday.  Great cut, great denim, fantastic range.....in a word, jean heaven (alright, two words....)

So first there was the unisex denim range, and the only real problem with it was that it was constantly selling out!  Jeans were flying out the door as fast as they were coming in, and I am ashamed to admit that, as much as I wanted to share the good news that was Cheap Monday with my friends, I simply couldn't risk the competition....

Slowly, more of the label began filtering through: soft cotton t-shirts, leather shorts etc.  And now we have the sunglasses.  Great styles, great quality, GREAT price.....in a word, shades heaven (alright - two words!!!)

xxo

Canon Couture

I was at London Fashion Week this year, and while you may have read that this or that was the latest 'must-have' accessory - for example the backpack - I can assure you that there was but ONE thing that stood out head and shoulders above all the rest.......the camera.

The silky webbed strap was generally seen in either a black, white & red, or a striking gold and black combination, and could be worn casually over one shoulder or around the neck; slung across the body, or casually wound around the wrist; low on the hip or higher, (like Paul McCartney's guitar).  Logos and brand names have pride of place, and while black is the most frequent colour, there were also plenty of retro silver options, alongside a smaller, more colourful compact range.  As with all accessory trends there were plenty who went for over the top large, with enormous lenses in a fashionable grey stripe, but I have to say that, as with heavy padlocks on a Chloe bag, I see repetitive strain-type-injuries for those that tote these monstrosities around for too long!

Oh - and as with many other accessories, Hermes has come up with a pretty covetable offering!

xxo

Wax works....

If there is one fabric that has made a spectacular comeback over the last two years, it is leather.   It was not too long ago that leather was a symbol of many things......none of them beginning with "fashion" or "style"!

Then in the past couple of years leather went global - nay...universal!  Suddenly it was everywhere!  And those who thought it was a passing fad have really been truly silenced this year!  Leather was as prevalent as ever, 
if not more so!

There is one problem with this of course, and that is that leather is generally as costly as it has been popular, thus making it out of 
reach to many.

So luckily, there are other options.....just one of these being waxed denim, which has made been quietly growing in popularity, allowing many people to capture the same edgy 'rock' style without having to possess a rock bank balance.  
xxo

Scarf envy

You know....I have something to admit -

To this day I have never quite managed to figure out how to tie my scarf with the same casual class, sartorial style or insouciant air that so many women I see manage to achieve.  It is a major frustration for me, but I take comfort from the rare article I come across in magazines that attempt to teach this art to their readers - this must mean I'm not alone, yes??

So, here goes:  My name's Michele, & I'm a scarf-dyslexic. :-(

xxo

(Oh, and if I'm not mistaken, this is the fabulous model Ruby Aldridge....)