23 Oct 2010

Things I like at the moment 2

via shimmer like gold
1. Red red hair, the colour of autumn leaves

Autumn seems like the perfect time of year to have copper coloured locks. The leaves on the trees are all rich hues of red and orange, and what could be better than matching your hair to these shade? I have a whole folder on my desktop devoted to images of girls with red hair. I could start up a whole blog about red heads! I am not a natural redhead, but I have been dyeing my hair ginger for three years now, and there's no way back for me.

2. Michelle Gow's blog
I discovered Michelle's blog through the '10 10' Project and have fallen for her vividly coloured film photographs. Snippets of her everyday life in South Africa are beautifully photographed and mixed up with inspiration as diverse as the True Blood opening credits, soft focus photographs of cats and dogs and Aerochrome pictures of soldiers.

katrin braga
3. Collections of cameras

Throughout the past year or so, I have steadily been building up my own camera collection. I now proudly own a Canon EOS 500 35mm, a Kodak Retinette 1B, a Kodak Brownie, a Polaroid Land Camera, a Diana, a Holga and my little compact Canon digital. I often find myself drooling over photographs I find on blogs of my favourite photographers camera collections, always adding to the list of cameras I wish to own. Currently top of the list are a Lomo LC-A, a Zenit and a Minolta.

gene clark
4. Faux fur trimmed coats

I have had a crush on these for a while now. Coats which fall mid-thigh to mid-calf in length, with a deliciously cosy faux fur collar (matching cuffs, optional). Not just because they fit perfectly with the current seventies aesthetic oozing through fashion at the moment, but because they are warm, practical and timelessly stylish. This coat has had me dreaming for a few weeks now. I picture myself walking through a snowy landscape (I am expecting a repeat of last winter's never ending snow falls), with warm woolly tights, lace up boots and a fur trimmed coat keeping me snug and warm against the elements.

5. Carven's autumn/winter collection
Carven seems to be a constant so far, presenting me with collections that would ease willingly into my wardrobe, fitting in like they had always been there but never the less exciting me endlessly with outfit possibilities. Peter pan collars, simple jumpers, leather skirts, 1940s inspired dresses, patterned blouses and neutral colour palettes all feature amongst my current favourite things in the fashion world.

6. Lina Scheynius's Vogue editorial
It's not often these days that I flick the back half of British Vogue and feel the urge to rip out the pages of the editorials and plaster them over my bedroom walls as inspiration. For the past few years, the magazine has been stuck in a rut of Patrick Demarchelier, Tim Walker and Nick Knight fashion stories. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, all three have produced some outstanding editorials. But routine is boring and change is good. And Lina Scheynius's first editorial for Vogue is a breath of fresh air in a place normally occupied by the stale, the expected, the norm. It is refreshing just to have film photography in a glossy magazine, but for the said photography to have been shot by my all-time favourite photographer? And for the model to be the effortlessly stunning Jessica Stam, her unbrushed hair casually tangled. And for the styling to be so spot-on, mismatched yet totally wearable. And the usual Scheynius attention to detail in her settings - quirky furniture, vases of fresh flowers, patterned scatter cushions, wonderful lighting from strategically placed lamps. Perfection.

Lillian Wilkie
7. Chandeliers
If you have been reading my blog for a while you will already know I have a deep love for chandeliers and ornate light fittings. Unfortunately, my home currently features bare bulbs hanging drably and faded unremarkable lampshades. If I was to come into money, the first items that I would purchase for our house would be beautiful lighting for every room. A mix of antique glass chandeliers and wall mounted fittings and traditional lamps with ornate stands sat in corners atop of coffee tables, record players and speakers.

8. Planning my dream kitchen
Next on my agenda after sorting out the lighting would be the kitchen. We have the foundations of a beautiful kitchen in our home. It has a beautiful terracotta tiled floor, an old drying rack above a huge old wooden farmhouse table and two large windows letting in a generous amount of light. But, alas, the cabinets are cheap and falling apart, the tiles have been painted bright blue and my beloved china currently lives on wobbly Ikea shelving. My ideal is white walls, in keeping with the rest of the house; beautiful wooden cabinets and shelves, with panelled glass doors; vases of fresh flowers along both window sills; an old French dresser displaying my tea cups and china; and of, course, wonderful antique lighting.

yvan rodric
9. Perfect winter street style

As mentioned in a previous post, most street style websites bore me nowadays. When I find an inspiring shot, I am increasing drawn to imitating the look in my own way. Yvan Rodric's photo diary is full of the usual hipsters, but there are some wonderful shots mixed through, such as this girl with the softest looking cardigan imaginable, styled simply with a patterned silk scarf flung effortlessly around her neck and a neat plait through her scraped back hair. It's effortless styling such as this which I most admire.

cherry blossom girl
10. Jeffrey Campbell Lita shoes

I am well aware that every blogger/fashionista/hipster under the sun now owns these shoes, but I can't help but love them. They are everything I love in a shoe: chunky heel, lace-up, the perfect bridge of masculinity/femininity and comfortable. They would go with every single item in my wardrobe - they would toughen up pretty dresses, lengthen my legs when worn with skirts and look perfect paired with the skinny jeans which have recently made a reappearance on my legs. They come in all the key colours for Autumn - taupe, red, mustard, khaki, brown - but if I was to purchase, I would have to make the black distressed my choice. They are sure to become a classic shoe and never go out of style.

Listening to on repeat:

6 comments

  1. this is so completely spot on with everything I'm loving this season. this is why I love your blog so :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Fantastic list. And the Vogue editorial you posted - I instantly fell in love with. The retro styling, the interiors, the Stam. And of course, Lina. Our favourite!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Omg the shoes in the last pic are unreal.
    Love Lina's Vogue editorial too...
    *swoon*
    Bit jealous of your camera collection!
    x

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great post - I am in love with all the things you've mentioned!
    I've also adore chandellieres; they're utterly beautiful - especially the way the light refracts through the crystals like little droplets of sunshine, cascading rainbows across the ceiling, oh how it makes me smile ;)
    x

    ReplyDelete
  5. So inspiring... x

    http://aglamorouswayofthinking.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  6. oh my heart, i want that fur coat

    ReplyDelete