Arty, attention-grabbing accessories

Last week’s unusually warm and sunny weather had me skipping out all over the place to arty events, hence the lack of blog posts. One of the more glamorous was a party at Sketch in Mayfair, to celebrate Shingai Shoniwa (of the Noisettes) and hatmaker Katherine Elizabeths’ new millinery collaboration.

One of the biggest hat trends is customization. Hats are being embellished with all sorts of curiosities and turned into works of wearable art. It’s fun to create your own millinery masterpiece too – in fact, Katherine Elizabeth holds hat parties and day-long millinery classes, at Craft Central in Clerkenwell. The next one is this Saturday 22nd.

Now the weather’s taken a wintry turn though, I feel more like hibernating. Forget going out to fashion tribe gatherings, all I want to do is sit in front of the television and cozy up to something soporific, like the X-Factor, with a nice mug of cocoa (Ha! That must account for the curious spelling in my latest post at The Dabbler…)

This morning it was actually cold enough to contemplate wearing gloves - which by the way, also seem to be getting an arty makeover this season. I’ve been waiting for ages to try out the luxuriously embroidered new gloves by eccentric Englishman Mark H at ShopCurious. Mark’s oddly extravagant OR WOT! designs are a small but valiant contribution towards saving niche handicrafts of the British manufacturing industry… Now I’ll raise a cup of cocoa to that.

Will you?

Fantasy in the fog

The weather has been the most curious I can remember for the time of year. Before Christmas there was lots of snow and now there’s tons of rain. And in between was… the fog.

I don’t know if you’ve ever been to Cornwall? I spent part of the recent holiday there, though I might as well have been on the moon, considering the circumstances. I understand that virtually the whole of the UK was swathed in similar low hanging cloud at the time, but this sort of climatic condition regularly affects the Cornish peninsula. I was once there for a week in June when the weather was exactly the same. I went to see a play at the outdoor Minack Theatre and could barely see the stage for fog – though it rather added to the authentic atmosphere of The Scarlet Pimpernel.



































Some people find the Cornish mizzle strangely romantic. It can be eerily beautiful to see the gnarled branches of Lamorran wood rising out of the fog. Or to accidentally stumble upon an apparition of a gothic style mansion with lion-topped gateposts - the quirky turrets vaguely visible through the mist (I wasn’t trespassing, honest!)







Talking of gothic, we’ve some gorgeous feather-trimmed, fingerless gloves at ShopCurious – and they’re on sale now too.

Anyway, I’d like to know what you think of this type of weather? Does it make you go all misty eyed? Or are you wary of the ghosts that may be lurking, hidden inside the curiously creepy fog…

Are you?

Summer gloving

Just back from Cornwall, where the weather was… well, changeable - to put it mildly. Sometimes Summer nights in the UK get so nippy that a pair of gloves wouldn’t go amiss.

In fact, I rather wish I’d taken along some of the curiously cute fingerless feather gloves from ShopCurious. Beautifully handmade in France, there are four styles to choose from – long or short, warmer jersey or lighter net. But the really unique thing about these handy accessories is the fabulous feather trim, which makes them perfect for day or night.







Back in the 1950s, young girls always wore gloves for special occasions – like going to church, or the theatre, or meeting the boyfriend’s parents. Nowadays, we only tend to see gloves at weddings, or when worn of necessity – on bitterly cold days, or by motorcyclists and mountaineers.











I’m curious to know why more people don’t wear gloves… and I’m all for a little more retro style French Summer gloving.

Are you?

Climate change style

As the global warming debate gets heated, it’s official – Winter has finally arrived the UK, with the first big freeze of the season. This week I’ve found myself searching through drawers for a warm scarf and some gloves. Understandably, I’m not going to wear any old scarf and gloves – they’ve got to be reasonably stylish … and, just because something’s quirky and individual, doesn’t necessarily mean it’s got style (see right).








Some people are considered cool enough to carry off any look, though you’ll probably find that a lot of work has gone into arranging David Beckham’s Chelsea knot. He’s possibly not so pleased in this weather, having recently had the sides of his hair shaved off – his ears must be freezing!





Men who are in touch with their feminine side are great with scarves. I reckon that Jude Law is a man of many scarves – he certainly seems to have one for every occasion.






Anyway, whether you’re looking to keep your neck warm during the day, or prevent yourself shivering during seasonal evening events, ShopCurious has a selection of stylish vintage men’s scarves - each with its own unique charm.








These one-off pieces are great as unusual gifts, yet curiously practical too… especially at this time of year. I’m sure any sophisticated man would love something timeless by Tootal or stylish by Sammy as a Christmas gift.


Of course, those who prefer the handmade variety might consider knitting their own – though I rather prefer the timeless classic scarf to the Timelord look. Unless you think we might be on the brink of a new Ice Age...

Do you?

Goldfingers

Early civilizations equated gold with gods and rulers and, as a result, we almost intuitively place a high value on gold - equating it with power, beauty, and the cultural elite. From the ancient Egyptians to James Bond, gold has shone out as something of special significance.

The pre-Incan Moche civilization in Peru, for instance, sculpted extraordinary items from gold – jewellery, ceremonial vessels and memorial pieces like these gold votive burial hands. Gold was later considered by the Incas to be the ‘sweat of the sun’ that reflected the glory of their sun god and was handcrafted into all manner of stunning adornments for tombs and temples.





More recent evidence of our fascination with gold: Ian Fleming used gold as a theme throughout his Bond novels. Shirley Eaton’s gold makeup in the Goldfinger film apparently took two hours to apply for only five minutes of filming. A doctor was on set at all times in case of possible skin suffocation.







A much safer and quicker means of gilding your fingers (and perhaps your arms too) is with a pair of these gorgeously glamorous vintage gold gloves from ShopCurious. We can’t guarantee that our gold opera gloves will give you the Midas touch, but you’ll look like a movie star without being painted – and with no need for Turkish baths to sweat out the gold from all those pesky little nooks and crannies.



If you’re a fan of unique accessories, you might also like to adorn your fingers with some stylish gold rings, like the ones designed by Sarah Bond for Saretta. These days, you don’t have to blow up Fort Knox for gold, it’s fairly affordable - plus it makes the ultimate romantic gift and can be a great investment too. Hope you’re taking notes Miss Moneypenny.

Are you?