{patterns + prada}

Inspired by the wonderfully cheerful mix of colours and patterns in this workspace, especially when paired with an antique telephone, industrial desk, and {if you look closely}, a pair of Prada blossom-heeled pumps strewn beautifully and carelessly on the floor . . .

{1 - from an e-mail from cameron: 2 - editorial: Pyjama Party; magazine: Vogue Paris, November/December 2007/2008; model: Sasha Pivovarova; photographer: Mark Segal; image via Vanessa's lovely blog}

{playing footsies}

Although a little sad to see the end of little toes peeping through pretty sandals, Fall's socked feet are completely charming . . .

{images: top - Wool Thigh-Highs and Lulu Metallic-Leather Peep Toe Heels by J.Crew, design and layout by Creature Comforts; bottom - via sfgirlbybay}

{a perfect complement}

Blue sashes {and belts in general} appear to be the most stylish way to complete a Spring outfit. Anne at Perfect Bound sent along another variation of the look from Heidi Merrick -- a lovely long blue sash complements a neutral sleeveless dress with perfect elegance . . .

{links to this post:}
blue satin sashes
sex and the city fashion trend

{fresh-faced}

A little short on time today, but completely inspired by Spring's long, romantic locks, kohl-lined eyes and pale lips . . .

{images: style.com}

{spring things}

{3.1 Phillip Lim Citron silk pleated Grecian dress with boned bodice; Mimi Holliday by Damaris lace bra; Jimmy Choo yellow patent leather sandals}

While memories of Valentine's Day still linger, Spring is around the corner and I'm dreaming of canary yellow and the promise of warm breezes . . .

{via desire to inspire}

{grange ad campaign}

{photography by James Merrell for Martha Stewart Living}

{Miu Miu Floral Carved Sandals}

{cherry cordial}

My friend Mark sent me this great image of the creative window display at the Kate Spade store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, {below}, from Unbeige/Media Bistro. The display features life-sized paint chips with shades with dreamy names such as emerald city, pink champagne and cherry cordial, that correspond with the label's Noel Coal Bags, jauntily displayed on metal paint cans.

Naturally, I thought to coordinate the vibrant display with the wonderfully saturated hues in this image from their site {above, and also at {frolic!} and Black Eiffel}.

{And while we're on the subject of colour, if you haven't yet had a chance, click here to read Joanna from A Cup of Jo's recent article for New York Magazine.}

{far and away}

I've mentioned before that I love the eclectic, well-travelled look that develops over time with new journeys and adventures and growing collections of souvenirs and artifacts from far-off places. It's a look that brings out one's personality in the form of things collected, and has been labelled globe-trotting chic. {I always find it somewhat humorous when things that are a given officially become a style.}

By far my favourite incorporation of this design aesthetic are these 1920's Japanese silk panels, found in Paris' Clignancourt markets, in this Parisian apartment (above).











The style has also made its way into public spaces, including Ivanka Trump's Madison Avenue boutique (above, from an earlier post), and David Collins' fantastic "Victoriana meets the Far East" work at The Artesian Bar at the The Langham Hotel in London (below).

















































Global chic was also a recurring theme on the runways, as seen here in Jean Paul Gaultier's spicy Spring styles.

{images style.com}
























































Another favourite is this traditional Indian Mango wood dresser (above), overlaid with hand-carved metal foil, reminiscent of the inlaid chest of drawers from an earlier post.



{las alamandas}














































{images: top - living etc.; all other images from marie claire maison}

{laced with style}

{image: "newcastle" by wildquaver8 on flickr}

While I can appreciate the sheer prettiness and femininity of lace, I never imagined it coming back into fashion . . .

The history of lace dates as far back as the fifteenth century, when Charles the Fifth required lace-making to be taught in the schools and convents of the Belgian provinces. At this time, lace was solely based in fashion, mainly to replace embroidery as a means of transforming dresses to follow differing styles of fashion, since, unlike embroidery, lace could be removed from one material and placed on another.

Many styles and techniques of lacemaking have developed since, and almost all of them in these very Belgian provinces, making it known as the birthplace of lace.

The use of lacy patterns in design is not new (Marcel Wanders' 1996 Knotted Chair immediately comes to mind, or Thomas Paul's Gothic Dinner Plate Set). Below are a few examples of modern interpretations of this very old and very beautiful artform.

{A new use for the lace doily by Paul Lowe, via Emma's beautiful blog}


{A tear-sheet of an old Chloe advert, most likely from British Vogue}

{Lacy lamp at Glamchic}

{Window in the Taj Lake Palace, Udaipur by Shilpi Singh}

{Pretty, lacy accessories from a tear sheet from (most likely) Gotham}

{Marcel Wanders Studio Crochet Chair, hand-crocheted and coated with a fibre resin--via Maison Lunatique}

{The amazing Gothic Excavator sculpture on the Belgian coast by the often controversial, always thought-provoking Belgian conceptual artist Wim Delvoye}


{Renovated terrace house in Melbourne via All Things Bright and Beautiful}


{Lacy architectural features via Desire to Inspire}

Sand-blasted white carrera marble console via Maison Lunatique}

{Windowsill in Lanark, Scotland, taken this summer}

{josephine queen}

Metallics in décor, especially gold, is a trend that is showing no signs of fading away any time soon. Whenever I dream of gold for interiors, (with the exception of this), I usually think of Jaime Hayón's luxe and extremely beautiful Josephine Queen series of hanging lamps (above). Its height and wonderful combination of traditional and modern aesthetics make it all-out style icon.

The series was reconfigured from a porcelain lamp originally designed for metalarte and is available in black, white, platinum and gold, each in a combination that is a multiple of 3 (6, 9. 6/3, 9/6 or 9/6/3).


(happened to find a few other pretty things (below) while there . . .)

{glamping}

After having recently survived my own 'wilderness' adventure, happened upon an article in the LA Times about an emerging trend, "glamping" -- glamorous camping.

The Paws Up, a 37,000-acre resort in Montana, offers services such as a camp butler to build a fire, a maid to turn up your heated down comforter at nightfall and a cook to whip up bison rib-eye for dinner and French toast topped with huckleberries for breakfast. The cost is $595 a night plus an additional $110 per person per day for food. Another popular glamping destination is the Clayoquot Wilderness Resort on Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

{click here to read the full article}

girl on bike

The Startorialist is shooting New York Fashion Week and I was completely taken with his photo of this fiery-haired fashionista.

{history of tartan & plaid}

Couldn't very well return from a beautiful trip to Scotland without writing about tartan and plaid . . .

Tartan is associated the world over with the kilt, the national dress of Scotland, and the history of both goes hand in hand.

Tartan is a material that can be woven from many colours and was originally a sort of uniform for distinguishing the many clans in the Highlands and islands of Scotland and can be traced as far back as the middle of the 5th Century to Ireland, where the Scots originated.

The very first form of tartan is nothing like its modern day counterpart, being a type of shirt that ended just above the knee, known as léine in Irish Gaelic. It is generally accepted that it was made of linen, and although the earliest references to this garment describe it as light-coloured, it may have been of a darker yellow shade which led to the English describing it as a saffron shirt.

In later times, coloured stripes were incorporated into the léine to indicate the rank of the wearer--the first attempts at what is now known as tartan. For instance, a High King wore seven stripes, one of these being purple, the colour of royalty.

With the new abundance of a growing number of sheep herds in the land, the plaid grew from being little better than a rug to a long piece of material between 12 and 15 feet in length, which the Highlanders would pleat round their waists in folds and pull over their heads like a hood and use as a blanket at night.

By 1730 the patterns had evolved from simple stripes and patterns into what today would be called tartan, from the French word tartaine.

After the defeat of the Jacobites at Culloden, the English Army routed the Highlands, destroying the Highlanders' way of life, banning clan tartans and destroying cloth-making equipment, including sett-sticks. Yet even at their lowest ebb, the Highlanders rebelled, wearing trousers of their tartan, subtly woven.

Football (soccer) teams, even countries have commissioned their own tartan, emphasising the importance and emotion that the people of Scotland attach to tartan and the sense of kinship that has been an integral part of Scottish culture.

{images: 1+2: Holt's Women's Fall 2007; rest: Dolche & Gabbana Fall 2008 RTW via Style.com; bottom, Burrberry; copy: special thanks to the BBC}