Ballgowns British Glamour since 1950

Whether you are loving or hating all the Jubilee and Olympic hoo-ha, there is no doubting that is has given us a cultural calender to die for. The latest must see at the Victoria and Albert Museum is Ballgowns: British Glamour Since 1950, charting the traditions of eveningwear from the darlings of the debutantes to red carpet celebrity style.
Staged in the museums newly refurbished fashion galleries, the exhibition showcases more than 60 examples of 'beautiful ballgowns, red carpet evening dresses and catwalk showstoppers'. The roll call promises treats from the likes of Zandra Rhodes, Jonathan Saunders and Hussein Chalayan as well as some hot off the catwalk creations from Alexander McQueen, Erdem and Giles Deacon. And as if that wasn't enough there is also a selection of Royal gowns, (cause who does a good frock better than a royal, right?), including a Norman Hartnell gown that was the Queen Mother's. A perfect way to get the Jubilee party started...


Cindy Beadman, Yuki, Ossie Clark, Roksanda Illincic

 Elizabeth Emanuel, Mary Katrantzou, Victor Edelstein, Erdem


Ballgowns: British Glamour Since 1950, from 19 May 2012 - 6 January 2013. 
Individual images from Vogue.com

The Faberge Big Egg Hunt

I'm having a lot of fun with this. Simple pleasures, hey?! How many have you spotted so far? Not sure i'm going to get round to finding all 200, but i'm certainly having fun trying!

There are designs from the likes of Polly Morgan, Sir Peter Blake, Mary Katrantzou, Tommy Hillfiger... can you guess who did what?




More importantly, do you have a favourite?

Aesop

I fell in love with Aesop products after The Olde Bell came into my life (their gorgeous rooms are stuffed with Aesop products). So stumbling across this gorgeous gesture at their Borough branch last week, really made my day. How seductively savvy!

This then led me to their site, which has the most glorious imagery and the most wonderful voice. The brand has such a great ethos that you will fall in love, even before you sample their products. And wait till you see their stores! Hmmm, i feel another post coming on... 

Check out their A-Z of London, see how many you can tick off...Maybe plan a visit to The Olde Bell...

xmas windows pt2 - roll up, roll up, for the Fortnum & Mason spectacular, spectacular!

so gorgeous. don't you agree? read about the inspiration here...

xmas windows pt1 - Dreaming of a Selfridges White Christmas

Want to see the making of the magic??

Go! Join the Hackney Circus

If the thought of the West-End and generic Christmas gifts make your skin crawl, then you need some Circus in your life! The artistic force behind House of Hackney, Javvy M Royle and Frieda Gormley, have pulled together the cream of the British creative crop with this Christmas festival of design. I popped in for a peruse on Wednesday and sure enough, proceeded to fall in love with pretty much everything on offer. There are some awesome designers and labels on show and all in the amazing setting of a disused power station in Shoreditch. Check out this line up...




CIRCUS
14-18 December 2011, 10am – 8pm daily
The Tramshed, Shoreditch
14 Garden Walk,
London, EC2A 3EQ