coming soon: the harris tweed collection

I'm very happy to announce that we have a wee Harris Tweed collection coming to the shop, in the form of four handsome men's jackets.

One of my favorite things about Harris tweed is the idea that you can see the beautiful range of colors of the Scottish Hebrides islands woven into the fabric itself.  Every aspect of Harris tweed is made on this archipelago, from the spinning to the dying and the weaving of the cloth, making these jackets very special.  (You can read much more about Harris Tweed on the official website.)

They will begin arriving in the shop soon!

xo

K

chanel does scotland

Have you guys seen the Chanel pre-Fall 2013 collection yet?  I have--thanks to Lizzie at The Vintage Traveler who alerted me to it--and it's amazing.  You should go read Lizzie's great post about it, here.  I particularly like what Lizzie has to say about this collection being very adaptable to those who love vintage.  Yes, Lizzie, this does make me want to--even more than usual--gather up every last bit of vintage tweed, cashmere, tartan, etc. that I can find!

It's almost as if Karl Lagerfeld made this collection just for me...well, just for me if I were a super-rich and thin person.  Lagerfeld took Scotland--and in particular, it seems, Mary Queen of Scots and the Elizabethan era--as his inspiration.  The show was held at Linlithgow Palace in Scotland, where Mary was born.  It's definitely worthwhile to watch the video of the show at the Chanel website (thanks to Lizzie for the link).  I included a couple screencaps to give you an idea.  It's very dramatic, dark and magnificent, with trash can fires (well, that's what they looked like to me) blazing, and the models marching around the periphery of the palace's roofless great hall with snowflakes swirling down on them.

The collection, of course, is full of all good things Scottish.  Tartan plaid, fair isle, argyle, tweed, cashmere, kilt-y touches...and giant Elizabethan ruffs and ascot collars.  It's so flipping fabulous!  Below are some of my favorite looks from the show.  The photos below all come from Harper's Bazaar and you can see the whole slideshow of looks there.

Stella Tennant in plaid wool and knitwear with gingham check accents?  Yes!

The argyle tights are a bit much for me, but I love the rest.  Amazing green leather coat!

I like these smaller argyle print tights more...incredible texture on the blouse and skirt, and I love the flat boots worn with everything.  And her hair!

These bubble skirts remind me of Henry VIII's sports costumes in The Tudors...but I love the sparkly bodice, the fair isle tights, and those pointy ankle boots.

Fair isle/argyle/glen plaid explosion.  And I absolutely love it.

It's a bit subtle, but I love the dark plaid of this dress and the beaded neckline.

Just amazing.  Blown-up sparkly plaid bodice, kilt strap details at the hip, the plaid throw over the shoulder...sigh.

xo

K

harris tweed

I spent part of my weekend watching a fascinating documentary about Harris tweed produced by BBC 4 television.  (The documentary is in three hour-long parts that can be viewed on Vimeo.  The first part can be seen here; part two is viewable here and here; and part three is here.)

Harris tweed is "cloth that has been handwoven by the islanders of Lewis, Harris, Uist and Barra in their homes, using pure virgin wool that has been dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides" (source: The Harris Tweed Authority).  Yes--this cloth is still woven by hand on the islands of Scotland's Outer Hebrides.  A single inspector drives around checking that the tweed is being made to standard and places the official seal on the fabric.

Harris tweed comes in over 8000 patterns, with colors that mirror the landscape of Scotland.  The tweed is sturdy and warm and holds its shape.  It's a classic that, sadly, has fallen on hard times.  Though the fashion industry has changed greatly with the rise of cheaply-made, mass produced clothing, the way Harris tweed is made has changed very little.  And--arguably--it shouldn't.  

The BBC 4 documentary I linked to above is about the people who now make the tweed, and those who are making attempts to rescue the industry.  Moments of this documentary made me angry and frustrated, but in the end, tweed aficionados like Savile Row tailor Patrick Grant and fashion designer Deryck Walker gave me hope. 

xo

K

holiday wishlist--the scottish edition

It's that most wonderful time of year again! And I'm still obsessed with all things Scottish. So, in (temporary) lieu of a trip to Scotland, I'll take any or all of the following for Christmas, thank you. (Start shopping now if you want them to arrive in time for the holidays--all items with the exception of the last one come from Etsy sellers based in Scotland.)

Since I do my packing and shipping in our freezing cold basement all winter, I'm pretty sure I need a pair of these gloves, from seller clovaknits. They might be the only thing standing between me and a horrible Numb Hands Tape Gun Incident.

I love everything in 13threads' shop, but particularly this tailored yet romantic herringbone tweed jacket.

Tuwhittuwhoo has the best shop name on Etsy. And the shop is full of cute things, like this adorable appliqued tablecloth.

The quirky and very funny work in paulofnavarone's shop makes me smile. Even though his name reminds me of the Guns of Navarone toy that I never got for Christmas (see last year's wishlist post).

This Harris tweed houndstooth satchel from breagha is just the bee's knees!

I would have to keep it on a high shelf away from Lucy (of course, that's how she's used to seeing most squirrels), but I do love these wild-eyed herringbone baby squirrels from dragonhouseofyuen.

Aaaaand here it is, from thedoghouse, pretty much the perfect thing for a childless couple obsessed with their dog (erm, not that I know anyone remotely fitting that description): the doggy advent calendar! Brilliant.

Have I mentioned lately we're removing all the disgusting carpet in our house? Thus, I am obsessed with rugs of all sorts, but particularly with cute crocheted ones, like this from emmalamb.

And, finally, this is more of a need than a wish--I have got to get some Pastels cds.

xo

K

obsession

I have an obsession.

The last one was Elvis. It resulted in me buying up every Elvis cd available in the BMG music catalog. And in a pilgrimage to Graceland.

And one to Graceland Too.

I still like The King. I still think the '68 Comeback Special is awesome. But...I've moved on. I'm no longer obsessed.

I've had a nice, normal decade of liking, really liking, and even loving, lots of things. Andy, vintage clothing, Lucy, road trips, perfume, cocktails, food, Howard Dean... Everything was going nice and smoothly.

And then Scotland hit me.

I realize now it was meant to be. For example, some of my favorite bands from my formative years--Aztec Camera, The Waterboys, Jesus and Mary Chain--hail from Scotland. (Just FYI, TJ&MC and Pastels photos below link to cool videos by them, so you may want to turn down your volume if you're at work.)

And I know I'm really late to the party, but I've discovered these guys, and can't stop listening to them.

And of course, there was this. I don't think Trainspotting made me want to go to Scotland at the time. Junkies, filthy toilets--already had that in NYC. But the accents! Great movie, great soundtrack.

So anyway, I've become convinced Scotland and me are meant to be. I'm starting to develop a taste for this stuff.

And I have always loved tartan. This photo is from a gorgeous 2008 British Vogue story called Take the High Road. You can see more of the photos here. In my p-rock days I wore plaid tights just like the models in the shoot have on, and I would love another pair.

Probably the most famous Scottish fashion export next to tartan is Pringle knitwear. Here's Pringle back in the day, a twinset on the cover of Vogue.

And Pringle now, as worn by Tilda Swinton.

I love these looks from Pringle A/W 2010, updates to the traditional fisherman's sweater and Scotsman's kilt, for women.

And of course, there's this man, the lovely Mr. Alan Cumming. All men should dress like this. And he makes the only celeb perfume I would wear. Which is, naturally, called Cumming, and which has notes of leather, peat fire, highland mud, burned rubber and white truffle. You can see his cute ad for it here. (Coincidentally, I would also wear Tilda Swinton's perfume, which is called Like This.)

Seriously. You're just not going to get an anti-kilt argument out of me. Nope.

Maybe this obsession will become suddenly displaced by something else. Like the midterm elections? Um, probably not.

I think this one is going to be a bit more expensive than a trip to Graceland. I'd better start saving.

You can be sure you'll be hearing more from me on this.

xo

K