Musical sustainability

In memory of John Barry I’d like to share Back to Nature, from the soundtrack to Nicholas Roeg’s mesmerizing 1971 film, Walkabout, starring Jenny Agutter.

The musical accompaniment to this poignant tale of urban materialism and modern social values versus time honoured tribal rituals and sustainability is as beautifully haunting as its breathtaking cinematography.

ShopCurious very much appreciates naturally beautiful style. And Barry’s score for the film perfectly captures the sights and sounds of nature in the the Australian outback.

Walkabout - Swimming Scene

Barry was an extraordinarily prolific musical genius - and for all the pleasure he’s given us over the years, and left with us for future generations to appreciate and enjoy, I just want to say thank you...

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Matriarchal style icon

Having been submerged in a sea of black at Paris Fashion Week, it's refreshing to see Bryan Adams’ stunning photos of a vibrantly colourful Camila Batmanghelidjh in April’s edition of British Vogue. You probably need no excuse to buy a copy, but this fascinating feature makes a very worthwhile reason.

The Iranian born psychotherapist and social entrepreneur is interviewed by Gwyneth Paltrow about her amazing work for inner city children, through her charity, Kids Company. The article also features work from the forthcoming ‘Shoebox Living’ exhibition at Haunch of Venison, W1, for which children were asked to recreate a room from their house in a shoebox.



Camila is an unlikely style icon, whose powerfully positive personality is reflected through her bold, bright and highly individual choice of clothing. She says she finds the fabric for her clothes at Peckham Market and pieces bits together to create her own garments. Her original, handmade outfits give added impact to an already larger than life character, putting shrinking violets to shame. Camila’s voluptuous, matriarchal style also makes her the perfect subject for photographers and artists: her portrait (by Dean Marsh) even hangs in London’s National Gallery. I love the images (see below) in an article by writer and photographer Fran Monks.



If you’re also a fan of Camila’s look, you’ll probably like some of the handcrafted, ethnic inspired clothing at ShopCurious - tribal dresses by Bezemymailan and dramatic printed silk shifts by Lola Faturoti, for instance.

Camila’s much more than a style icon: she's a role model and mother figure to many impoverished children, though I expect they admire her exotic clothing too.

Camila offers kids the chance to use their energy and imagination in constructive ways, through art projects and creative endeavours. Everyone seems to love her - and I bet she receives tons of Mothers’ Day cards. With all her amazing work, I’m curious to know how she still manages to find the time to make her own clothes…

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Global village

So are we all now part of a global village? At the moment, it’s a bit curious that we’ve got Westernized nations wanting to introduce more regulation and newly emerging economies wanting to exert their newfound freedom of expression in more creative ways - it’s almost like the world’s turned upside down rather than meeting in the middle. However, we’re all part of the human tribe, so hopefully we’ll muddle through these confusing times and agree on how to make the world a better place for all of us.








We’re almost at the end of our month long tour of global tribal style, apart from one very important addition: ShopCurious has just become the exclusive UK and online stockist of clothing from the exotic cosmopolitan design duo, Bezemymailan.








This talented double act, that simply oozes style with brains, consists of Bezem - who’s of Togolese and Russian descent (right) - and French Vietnamese Mai Lan (left). The girls have known each other since childhood and, inspired by their multi-cultural backgrounds, have mastered traditional handicraft skills from Asia and Africa and combined their talents to create unique clothing with a strong ethnic influence.




Whilst studying historical costumes at university, Bezem and Mai Lan started creating unusual outfits for feature films, plays, musicals and carnivals. Their own fashion shows now feature dance, music and song – much like StyleCurious featured designer Mike Sylla of Baifall Dream and the Human Tribe.



Bezemymailan’s stylish handmade garments draw upon their cultural heritage, as well as influences from modern society. They try to use natural materials and authentic techniques as much as possible and are proud of the fact that their designs hark back to an era when clothing was an art form instead of an industrial scale manufacturing-based activity. Ultimately, they think it’s possible for the global fashion industry and local artisan-led tribal crafts to become compatible with each other.



Bezemymailan also believe their approach will enhance the international appreciation of handcrafted textiles, which it seems are underestimated, even in the developing world. They’re trying to stimulate new interest, which won't just be eco-friendly – it will also create a positive social impact.

All very sound and ethical stuff…however, the best bit of all is that Bezemymailan’s dresses and jackets not only look amazing, they’re also incredibly comfortable and easy to wear too. If you like to look different, you’ll absolutely love these beautiful creations – and you’ll appreciate that everyone in the global village is unique and can express their personal style and taste through their individual choice of clothing.

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Tribal village

When I go travelling, I like to meet the locals. Tourists often find themselves subject to traditional dances by ‘locals’ who dress up especially for the occasion, or displays of handicrafts that are shipped in from far flung places. If you’re lucky, you get to see the real thing, as I did in Zambia a couple of years ago.









You’ll note there are no electricity cables in the main part of this village (above), they’re just along the roadside where they lead to the main part of the town. Villagers line the road with stalls selling their wares.







The reason I mention this is that the beautiful earthy colours and unusual design of one of the unique hand painted pendants available at ShopCurious remind me of the Zambian tribal village I visited.

I think this stylish necklace is so original. The painting style has more than a hint of Picasso about it and there’s only one of these – it’s a mini work of art in its own right. What’s more it’s eco-friendly too, as the pendant’s made from recycled wood. This would make an unusual gift for someone with a love of unique accessories, or who’s into timeless and collectable curiosities.




If you’re still curious to see an authentic tribal village at first hand, I just found Kawaza Village on the internet. Looks perfect for adventurous types with desire to experience an alternative natural lifestyle.

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Mother Earth

It’s not just because it’s Mothers' Day in the UK, but ever since the human tribe has existed on this planet, we’ve revered mother figures – and most tribes, cultures and religions have worshipped their own mother ‘goddesses’. There are many symbols and artistic representations of Mother Earth, as well as personifications throughout history.





Isis was considered by the Egyptians to be the mother of the world and Gaia was a Greek goddess personifying the earth. To Christians, Eve is considered to be the ‘mother of all the living’ and for Hindus, Parvati is considered the supreme Divine Mother and the embodiment of the total energy in the universe. Above is an African symbol for Mother Earth and the Navajo, a Native American version, traditionally painted in turquoise is shown left. The marks on her body symbolize corn, pumpkin, tobacco and beans – all thought to be life-giving elements to the Navajo.




At ShopCurious, we’ve our own tribute to earth mothers in the form of hand painted ethnic-inspired clothing, unique tribal accessories, traditional artefacts and kitsch retro memorabilia depicting fertility icons and mother and child images. However, these are nothing compared to the extraordinary display in celebration of Mother Nature by the Surma nd Mursi tribes of East Africa’s Omo Valley.





Pictures by Hans Silvester, (from the book Natural Fashion: Tribal Decoration from Africa), show authentic and exotic tribal fashion at its best.




Unusual and distinctive headdresses and eco-friendly jewellery are made from natural materials like flowers, fruits, skins, shells and local vegetation from the borderlands of Ethiopia, Kenya and Sudan.




The handmade, raw and recycled outfits are breathtakingly beautiful in their design, colour and stylish simplicity.





We’re not suggesting that you go out and paint your face with clay, or wear snail shells around your neck, but this could give you all the inspiration you need to create a truly original tribal look for yourself.






Or perhaps you already have your own special way of showing your appreciation of Mother Earth?

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The art of tribal jewellery

Tribal peoples the world over have made and worn jewellery for centuries. Materials used have tended to be those locally available at the time – in some cases including basic metals, coins and glass beads, but mostly using wood, paint, stones, animal skin, bone, shells, clay, seeds, bird feathers and even flowers.







Ethnic tribal jewellery is often handmade or crafted using primitive tools – resulting in chunky, unrefined necklaces, bracelets and earrings. At ShopCurious, we’ve created our own range of hand painted tribal jewellery inspired by authentic tribal arts and incorporating traditional natural materials.






Some of the pieces are made with original vintage tribal artefacts, or recycled scraps of wood and fabric, with exotic feather embellishment. The hand painting features tribal mask images and ancient ethnic symbols. One very unusual and stylish pendant is made using a real varnished leaf.







There’s a focus on tribal arts in fashion at the moment, but these individually made and unique accessories are completely timeless – in fact they’re mini works of collectable art in their own right. We think they’re curiously quirky and cool too.

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Matriarchs of tribal style

Now here’s a novel idea for Mothers' Day – especially if your Mum’s a fan of President Obama, or just likes to dress in a unique and individual way: ShopCurious is offering a range of stylish silk tops and dresses in Obama commemorative fabric, created by talented US-based designer, Lola Faturoti. (Click on pics to enlarge).








In case you didn’t know, Lola’s the one with the yellow hat (left) in these pictures. You can also see her face famously depicted in profile as the logo (right) of her original hand printed t-shirts.







Whether or not your 'Mom' is a matriarch of tribal style, or perhaps just one of the many followers of Barack Obama, she'd definitely make a real fashion statement by wearing one of these authentic designs. These unusual tops not only combine comfort and style, but are timeless and collectable pieces – and they’re simply perfect for passing on to future generations too:

Something of historical significance to keep in the family (or at least the human tribe).

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Natural ethnic style

I suppose the ideal of living happily together in one great big global ‘human tribe’ is a tad unrealistic – though what a fantastic idea… if only we all thought the same way. And how about ‘one world’ that lives in harmony with nature too?

We can learn quite a lot from the nomadic tribes of Africa, Native American Indians, or the Aborigines of Australia. There’s a curiously fascinating book called Mutant Message Down Under by Marlo Morgan – the fictional story of an American woman’s four month journey through the Australian outback with an Aboriginal tribe called the ‘Real People’. During the course of her travels, she learns how to live in harmony with the plants and animals of an inhospitable terrain and to show respect for the natural environment. She goes through a kind of spiritual awakening as she finds out how to trust her instinct and survive without the destructive practices of the modern world.





If you’re looking for some natural ethnic style, I’d like to recommend some of the raw and uncut statement jewellery that’s now available at ShopCurious. Using eco-friendly materials like natural rock crystal, wood, coconut, organic leather and silver, these authentic handmade items have a simple sophistication that transcends the manufactured beauty of mainstream designer accessories.







Stylish, original and timeless, these unusual pieces will never go out of fashion. What’s more, the stones that are used, including chrysoprase, amethyst and labradorite, each have their own unique healing properties.







We might not be able to heal the damage we’ve already done to our planet, but we can still try to help save the earth for future generations – as well as adopting a new and enlightened approach to retail therapy...

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The human tribe

Blogs for March are going to focus on all things tribal, as this month we’re featuring tribal arts inspired clothing, accessories, unusual gifts and curiosities for the home on our website (some of which are curiously modelled by me here).







According to the freedictionary.com, tribal means ‘relating to or characteristic of a tribe’. The word ‘tribe’ itself seems to have many denotations, the first being defined as ‘A unit of sociopolitical organization consisting of a number of families, clans, or other groups who share a common ancestry and culture and among whom leadership is typically neither formalized nor permanent’. The word has many other connotations too – some of them resulting from tribal customs (more on this subject later).





Perhaps you belong to a tribe of ethnic or ancient origin? Or maybe you consider that we’re all part of one great big global tribe? This is certainly the view of Mike Sylla, the driving force behind a creative collective called Baifall Dream and the Human Tribe, whose hand painted recycled vintage leather clothing and handbags are currently available at ShopCurious. His community of artists from all over the world stage shows called ‘slam operas’ that include fashion, music, art, dance, drama and performance poetry.





What I love about Baifall Dream’s designs is that they’re authentic, raw, edgy and handmade. Images on their stylish pieces range from traditional tribal portraits and ethnic symbols to street art and graffiti style paintings. Every item looks strikingly individual and has its own story to tell, as well as being an original work of art in its own right. Of course, each unique masterpiece is also a part of the whole collection – rather like us members of the human tribe…

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