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| Vintage window shopping. San Francisco. Image by ReDesign for Life |
Showing posts with label vintage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vintage. Show all posts
Friday, 6 September 2013
Vintage window shopping - San Francisco
Friday, 6 July 2012
Sofia Retro Bazaar
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Sofia Renewall
Spring Summer 2012
Image courtesy of Sofia Retro Bazaar |
United by their passion for fashion and a relentless curiosity for everything that is arts and crafts, designers - and best friends - Llaria Tranfa and Rita Molina have created, Sofia Retro Bazaar. A brand to represent responsible fashion.
The designers have created two collections incorporating re-used materials and hand-crafted techniques. All pieces are made in Italy with controlled production.
Their jewellery collection - Plexy Couture - is a collection of limited edition modern pieces created from re-cycled plexiglass.
Sofia Renewall is a distinctive collection of clothes, bags, lingerie and beachwear combining romance with a strong edge. Each unique piece is hand-made using carefully selected vintage scarves and precious fabrics including silk and organza.
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Clothing - Sofia Renewall
Jewellery - Plexy Couture
Image courtesy of Sofia Retro Bazaar |
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Clothing - Sofia Renewall
Jewellery - Plexy Couture
Image courtesy of Sofia Retro Bazaar |
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| Sofia Renewall Image courtesy of Sofia Retro Bazaar |
Sunday, 1 July 2012
Something to treasure from Lilygrace Originals
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| Frida Blanco Frida Kahlo black and white cameo earrings by Lilygrace Originals Images used are courtesy of Lilygrace Originals |
Each piece of jewellery is lovingly hand-made in the UK by Hazel Mathiot, a fine artist based in Wiltshire. Vintage rhinestones and English cut glass beads are used together with hand modelled polymer clay shapes, antiqued brass chains and up cycled vintage photographs to create one-of-a-kind and limited edition pieces.
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| Blue Rose Geisha Vintage photo violet, sky and teal cameo earrings by Lilygrace Originals Images used are courtesy of Lilygrace Originals |
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| Mirror Mirror Red and yellow naughty pin-up girl cameo earrings by Lilygrace Originals Images used are courtesy of Lilygrace Origianls |
Influenced by the current trend for earrings and cameos, I have chosen to show these stunning cameo earrings. The complete collection of jewellery is available online www.lilygraceoriginals.com.
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| Pretty as a Peacock Blue green iridescent Show Girl cameo earrings by Lilygrace Originals Images used are courtesy of Lilygrace Originals |
Tuesday, 7 December 2010
Glamourous and ramshackle jewelry by La Tonkinoise a Paris.
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I am delighted to have found La Tonkinoise a Paris: a brand of delicate up-cycled jewelry. Created with an arts and crafts approach, it's designer makes use of vintage rings, bracelets, necklaces and watches that she finds in Paris flea markets. Each piece is hand-made to create unique items that mix together "glamourous and ramshackle, rough and luxurious, rock 'n roll and poetic".
By recycling discarded jewelry, La Tonkinoise's designer has brought to life rejected items to create modern individual pieces with a story to tell.
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The name La Tonkinoise is taken from a Josephine Baker song of the same name. Follow the link to hear this beautiful song ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlcW28ZUxFg
Monday, 29 November 2010
Fisk - Copenhagen
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| Fisk - Copenhagen Image by Re-Design for Life |
I came across this wonderful shop whilst wandering around the narrow streets of Copenhagen. It's a combination of a cafe, fair trade shop and vintage boutique all brought together in a relaxed, stylish environment that is synonymous with Copenhagan.
Upstairs, classic Danish chairs and coffee tables sit amongst sustainable and fair trade products including toys, home-wares, food and eco balloons! Downstairs there is a collection of re-designed vintage clothing - SKIFt - for men and women, together with vintage shoes, bags and jewellery.
All proceeds from the shop help fund the work of DanChurchAid in an effort to overcome poverty and suffering in developing countries.
Fisk can be found at Sankt Peders Straede 1, Kobenhavn.
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| Fisk - Copenhagen Image by Re-Design for Life |
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| Fisk - Copenhagen Image by Re-Design for Life |
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| Fisk - Copenhagen Image by Re-Design for Life |
Monday, 23 August 2010
Maison Martin Margiela at Somerset House
Image by Re-Design for Life.
In the following space a huge screen presented the Maison's 20th anniversary show. Two decades of influential fashion concepts and key pieces were re-visited before me on film. I was captivated. Tearing myself away, I walked up to a canvas trompe l"oeil printed curtain, which gave the illusion of a large empty room. Once through the curtain, I entered a white-washed room showing concepts and garments from 20 year's of Margiela collections.
One of which was the 1996 Spring-Summer Trompe L'Oeil collection in which simple garment shapes were cut in soft, fluid fabrics. Each piece is then printed with a photograph of another completely different garment. A cardigan, for example, is printed with a safari jacket. A dress with a photographic print of the inside of a 1960's cocktail dress. A 'chesterfield' sofa effect is printed onto a leather jacket. The colour palette - reminiscent of old photographs - is kept to black, white, sepia and brown tints.
Other concepts included a dress with it's hemline lifted and stitched to one shoulder revealing a slip dress made from vintage lace slips. A satin halter dress with it's skirt made from two different skirts, one stitched onto the other. A second-hand man's suit jacket, painted over with silver paint. Blouses and jackets with their sleeves repositioned to the front. A sleeveless woollen top with visible, frayed lining at the neck, armholes and seams. A dress made from lining fabric with visible darts on the outside. A jacket made from a man's jacket sleeves. Another jacket made with the sleeves switched and sewn back to front, so that the jacket can be worn with the fastening at the back. A patchwork vest made from stitched interfacings. A halter neck top made from second hand gloves...
Oh! How I have been inspired by Maison Martin Margiela over the years. The master of de-construction - reinterpreting how a garment should be worn by taking it apart and recreating every piece with skillfully crafted precision.
Sunday, 15 August 2010
Dark, sensual and sustainable - Minna AW10
Minna AW10 Collection
Image by permission of Minna Hepburn
Inspired by the classic 1950's film noir period, designer Minna Hepburn has moved away from her usual soft colours and vintage cream lace to create a sophisticated collection in a palette of black and hand-dyed shades of grey. The collection still maintains Minna's signature quirky details and plenty of lace, only much darker.
Minna has used luxurious fabrics such as Scottish lace, Hemp/silk, organic wool, vintage textiles and leather off-cuts to create sensual dresses with an urban edge. Hand embellishment adds exquisite and unexpected detailing to the collection.
With this new design direction, Minna is one of my favourite 'Eco' fashion collections for AW10.
Minna AW10 Collection
Image by permission of Minna Hepburn
Minna AW10 Collection
Image by permission of Minna Hepburn
Minna AW10 Collection
Image by permission of Minna Hepburn
Friday, 23 April 2010
Le Marais and Marni - SS2010 inspiration
Natural raffia bag with citrus and floral embroidery
Image by Redesign for Life
Spot raffia bag and 1930's bakerlite earrings and bangles
Image by Redesign for LIfe
Embroidered raffia bag and 1950's painted flower brooches
Image by Redesign for Life
The whole display has a 1950's Latino Carmen Miranda feel to it, don't you think? I love the vintage raffia bag embroidered in vibrant citrus colours. Such a statement! Those chunky bangles are original 1930's bakerlite. Pile 'em on and clash those colours. Ah! but it's the huge bauble earrings that are to die for! Wear these and you'll be so on trend this summer.
Not sure? Then check out Marni's SS2010 collection...
Vibrant citrus colours at Marni SS2010
Image via Style.com
Large drop earrings at Marni SS2010
Image via Style.com
Monday, 19 April 2010
Vintage indulgence - Secret Siren
I gasped with shock when my friends R&A told me that they planned to sell some of their vintage clothes collection. You see their collection isn’t just the contents of a few tatty cardboard boxes gathering dust in their loft. Oh No! This is an enviable collection of vintage finds accumulated over years of – as they put it – arduous haggling, smooth talking and bare faced cheek. It’s a stunning collection of high-end vintage clothing and accessories from the 1920’s to the 1980’s – from ‘Pure Vintage’ to ‘Future Vintage’, from ‘Sunday Best’ to ‘Red Carpet’ dressing. It’s a collection filled with memories of their glamorous parties and flamboyant club nights. It’s a collection of exquisite vintage pieces to get you looked over rather than overlooked.
You can find the full collection on Secret Siren's website. It’s time to indulge…
Secret Siren
Secret Siren
Secret Siren
Secret Siren
Secret Siren - Vintage clothes and accessories
Friday, 12 February 2010
Vintage grunge from Richard Chai Love
Richard Chai Love - AW10 Collection
The nineties are now vintage according to a pink neon sign in Selfridges window. I smiled at the tongue-in-cheek humour of the statement until it dawned on me that perhaps the Nineties really is being classed as vintage. How? How can a decade - that I remember so clearly - now be vintage?
I had a stall on Portobello Market in the Nineties. The era of grunge. I'd swan around the market wearing scuffed 1970's retro trainers, full length slinky skirts with a 1930's bias cut and loose knit, moth eaten sweaters. All worn with a thrown together - yet carefully styled - nonchalance.
Now it's back on the catwalk. Richard Chai's Love collection shown in New York this week has all the hallmarks of Nineties grunge. Fortunately, Richard Chai's collection is not a retrospective of the era - he has revived grunge with a modern edge.
His collection reminds me why I enjoyed Nineties fashion so much: The layers. Layering different textures, layering garments that are not usually worn together, mixing proportions.
It's time to mix up those layers. To be individual.
Tuesday, 5 January 2010
Slowing down in 2010
Image from i-D issue 303
T.Shirt by Stella McCartney
After a spate of inactivity on this blog I’d like to wish everyone a Happy New Year. I have to admit I am off to a bit of a slow start as we enter the new decade. In fact, slowing down is my fashion motivation for 2010. Slow fashion is the way forward. The zeitgeist. On trend. If you haven’t already started taking things at a slower pace, can I suggest you choose fashionably slowing down as your resolution for the new decade.
Don’t get me wrong. I love clothes. I love fashion. However, consumers have been living in a fast fashion frenzy for far too long. Lured by brands selling cheaply made, low quality cat-walk replicas to be cast aside after a couple of months to make way for the latest as-worn-by styles. Quantity has become more important than quality. Individuality is losing out all together.
I agree with Gill Linton’s ‘Stop Buying New Crap’ manifesto in her Fashion for Losers article. The manifesto states: “Buy timeless: one of a kind quality vintage…the well made, timeless or on-trend pieces that are easy to mix with contemporary looks and don’t cost vintage couture or contemporary Balmain prices…” What’s more, you'll be creating your own personal style.
Vivienne Westwood wants to see the end of "indiscriminate consumption" saying "If you have to choose something, save up and choose well."
OK rant over. Here’s to a slower paced fashion decade filled with individuality.
Thursday, 19 November 2009
Hidden vintage gems
Vien
(Image by Re-Design for Life)
Is it only me? Or has anyone else set out with the sole purpose of buying a specific item only to return with something completely different? I was back in Crystal Palace - an area of London that really is a hidden gem for retro and vintage lovers – with the intention of buying a retro coffee table. I returned home with a vintage dress.
I'd found myself in Vien, a treasure trove of a boutique owned by the vivacious Vivienne Bartholomew. Vien sells an eclectic selection of unique vintage clothing including a wonderful choice of Fifties dresses, elegant eveningwear, tailoring and accessories. A Lurex batwing top from the 80’s caught my eye. As did a metallic jacquard top – very Marni. Ahhh! But it was a Little Black Dress with sheer voluminous sleeves that won me over. A perfect fit. How could I resist.
All of Vien’s vintage is in excellent condition without eye-popping price tags – easily less than half the price of similar vintage clothes you would see in boutiques around Portobello Road and Cheshire Street. Vien also holds a small range made from surplus and vintage fabrics under it’s eponymous label. I thought the vintage range was much stronger. This is where Vivienne’s eye for detail, love of fabrics and passion shines through.
Crystal Palace may not have the style of Notting Hill or the cool factor of the East End but it’s definitely worth taking a detour for. You never know what vintage treasures you might come home with.
Wednesday, 7 October 2009
The LBD Lives On For Another Day
The "Little Black Dress". Stylish. Versatile. Timeless. Coco Chanel said that every woman should have one in her wardrobe. It can be dressed up for evening. Dressed down for day. Dressed to minimal perfection. Dressed to maximum dramatic effect. Sustainable, stylish dressing.
Sheena Matheiken and Eliza Starbuck designed their own LBD to begin the Uniform Project earlier this year. Inspired by her school days in India, where kids would personalise their uniforms with individual flair, Sheena decided to use the LBD as her uniform for a year. Each day, Sheena reinvents the dress by layering and accessorizing with vintage finds, hand-me-downs and hand-made items.
As well as being an amazing exercise in sustainable fashion and creativity, the Uniform Project also raises funds for the Akanksha Foundation. Akanksha is a non-profit organisation founded in Mumbai in 1990 to bring education to children living in slums.
The Uniform Project is perfect proof that fashion can be stylish, sustainable and socially conscious.
Tuesday, 6 October 2009
It's Brolly Time
There are two things that we Brits are associated with: Pubs and complaining about the weather. Yesterday it rained continuously all over the country. Yes, Autumn is finally here.What better timing then for Vintagehart's monthly late night opening at The White Hart pub tonight. It's the perfect opportunity to take refuge from the rain, check out their selection of vintage macs, stylish winter dresses and retro umbrellas. Once you've finished you can sit back in the cosy bar with your favourite tipple and complain about the weather with the locals.
Monday, 28 September 2009
Confused by the Seasons.
Yesterday I spent a blissful afternoon having a lazy lunch at a London lido. It was a delight to feel the warm sun against my bare arms, to hear excited children bounce in and out of the glistening blue water, to see smiling sun-worshippers relax by the pool.
Yes, I did say yesterday. And yes, I did say London. It's the end of September - early Autumn -which usually signifies packing away our summer clothes for the next six months. Feeling a tinge of sadness as we say good-bye to light-weight dresses and summer sandals. No Way! Bikinis, sarongs and sunglasses were de rigeur yesterday. The sun continues to shine so we will continue to embrace it with sun-kissed legs and arms.
The intoxication of a late summer seems perfect timing (apologies to those who are sitting under grey skies) to rejoice some of the SS10 collections shown at the Estethica exhibition during London Fashion Week.
"timeless pieces; offering a true meaning, direction and soul"
The collection is created using recycled materials including vintage kimonos and sustainable bamboo fabrics. Garments are produced by a registered women's project in London.
Designed, printed and produced in Australia.
The Bird collection is made from organic fabrics, hand-printed using water based dyes.
The collection is produced using 100% renewable solar power.
"effortlessly sensual garments"
The collection is created using only organic and sustainable fabrics to create a modern sculptural silhouette.
This outfit is one of my favourites!
Monday, 14 September 2009
Where The Heart Is
Vintagehart
Rewind to Friday 11th. I found myself in Crystal Palace, south east London with a thumping cocktail induced head-ache, buried within four floors of antiques, treasure and, some might say, junk. Quite a contrast to the previous evening. Oh! But so much more interesting.
It was Crystal Palace Antiques - a ramshackle emporium selling furniture, mirrors, lighting, art, anything really - that lured me to this corner of London. I was here to find a mirror. I am in desperate need of a full length mirror. I know! Can you believe I don't have one? How on earth do I cope? Well I don't. It's a nightmare having to style my outfits each day without being able to see the complete head-to-toe effect. Like I said, I'm in desperate need of a full length mirror. After a good old rummage I left mirror-less but not disheartened. New stock arrives daily so I can always go back.
As I was in Crystal Palace, I decided to check out the 'Vintage Triangle'. A triangle of streets dotted with vintage clothes and interiors shops. It was The White Hart pub that caught my eye. Alcohol was the last thing I wanted to be near so why was I venturing into a pub you might well ask. Vintagehart is the reason.
Vintagehart is a tiny boutique located in the windows along one side of The White Hart pub. Owners Annette and Dawn have styled the shop to create a quirky space with a relaxed feel. The clothes and accessories range from 1950's to the current trend for 1980's. Everything is in excellent condition and the prices are very reasonable. I couldn't resist a 1980's dolman sleeved crepe-de-chine dress for £30 - the silhouette reminds me of Dries van Noten's AW09 collection - it needs a few minor styling adjustments but will look fabulous once finished. If only I had a full length mirror to see the results.
Dries Van Noten AW09
Monday, 10 August 2009
Standing Out In The Crowd - Brick Lane
The crowds, the sunshine, my camera and I descended upon Brick Lane on Sunday morning. Always a fascinating place for people watching, rummaging and eating.
Here are just a few of the things that caught my eye as I stuffed my face with a Japanese steamed sesame snack, a Greek spinach and cheese pie, a Swedish Planka, a glass of French rose, a fresh fruit smoothie and half a bottle of New Zealand red. I also managed to purchase a fabulous vintage print skirt - the fabric is possibly highly flammable but I can get over that for the sake of the print - and a pair of 1950's bark cloth curtains. What better way to spend a Sunday?
(All images by Re-Design for Life)
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