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Persephone Books in London

by Alison Wellner (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Journeys, Books

Photo of London's Persephone Book Store on Lamb's ConduitIn the age of digital books, the Kindle, and, ahem, blogs, one unassailable argument for the survival of paper are beautiful, lavishly designed books. Books that are actually pleasing design objects, if not works of art.

Persephone Books is a small London book publisher on a wonderful shopping street called Lamb's Conduit, which I discovered on a retail tour led by Clare Dowdy, author of One Off, about unique retailers worldwide. (Arrange Dowdy's tour through the InterContinental Park Lane London.)

Persephone, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, publishes just 83 books, and ones you won't easily find elsewhere -- neglected classics by 20th century writers who are mostly women. Their books are bound in an elegant dove gray, and the endpapers are unique to each book, and are prints of antique fabric designs. (You can get a matching bookmark.) It's fun to visit the store and hard to buy just one -- I walked away with An Interrupted Life: The Diary of Etty Hillesum, and The Journal of Katherine Mansfield -- although you can also order online.


Tags: books, bookstore, bookstores, fabric, london, tours

$50,000 Suits Cut From World's Most Expensive Cloth

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel, Men's Style


Holland & Sherry, the world famous fabric weaver and cloth merchant founded in Scotland in 1836, is offering an extremely limited edition range of bespoke suits cut from the world's most luxurious and expensive cloth. The firm, which has premises on Savile Row, has woven the world's first 100 per cent worsted spun Vicuna fabric, the most expensive in the world at over $4,000 per yard. The material (above) comes from the wool of the elusive wild Vicuna, a relative of the llama that lives high in the Andes mountains of Peru and Bolivia.

The Vicuna can only be shorn every three years and yields an extremely small amount of fine wool. It took Holland & Sherry five years to gather enough of the exclusive yarn, and another year and a half to develop the unique cloth, which is much finer than cashmere. There is only enough of the precious fabric to make 18 suits, each of which will cost about $50,000. Customers will have only three colors to choose from – black, midnight and natural. The King of Morocco is among the first to place an order for one of the gorgeous garments.


Tags: Bespoke, Cashmere, Fabric, Holland Sherry, HollandSherry, Peru, Savile Row, SavileRow, Scotland, Suit, Vicuna

Karen Wilson Sphere Pomegranate, Handbag of the Day

by Sandy Maple (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags


I have a weakness for beautiful fabric. I am drawn to gorgeous prints, patterns and colors and as a result, I have a closet full of textiles that I have no real use for. I could justify buying this, however, because it is beautiful and useful. In addition to the great print, I love the barely-there strap and the way the clasp peeks out above the delicately gathered fabric. $249.

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Tags: designer handbag, DesignerHandbag, fabric, frame bag, FrameBag, Karen Wilson, KarenWilson, luxe handbag, LuxeHandbag, luxury handbag, LuxuryHandbag, print handbag, PrintHandbag, purse, shoulder bag, ShoulderBag, silk handbag, SilkHandbag, sphere Pomegranate, SpherePomegranate, textile

Glenda Geis Aqua Bella, Handbag of the Day

by Sandy Maple (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags


I discovered Glenda Geis while browsing at Alison Nelson's Chocolate Bar, where they offer two of her limited edition bags filled with gourmet chocolates and teas. They are both lovely, as are all the other designs at Layla Grace, but it is this one that I love and must have. Typical of her bags, the Aqua Bella features a beautiful vintage fabric donning a simply styled frame bag. With a removable blue leather flower, very little hardware and a plain strap, the bag is spare and clean, yet still stunning. Even the interior of this bag is gorgeous, with a contrasting fabric in blue and brown and a single zip pocket. Because these bags are made from vintage fabrics, each one is a limited edition. $270.

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Tags: alison nelson, AlisonNelson, chocolate bar, ChocolateBar, clutch, designer handbag, DesignerHandbag, fabric, fabric bag, fabric handbg, FabricBag, FabricHandbg, frame bag, FrameBag, glenda geis, GlendaGeis, layla grace, LaylaGrace, luxe, luxe purse, LuxePurse, luxury, vintage, vintage handbag, VintageHandbag

Africa Gets Luxury Label

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel

It seems that the fabric company Vlisco is planning to launch the first luxury label based in Africa. The traditional fabrics and designs that the company specializes in are facing competition from inexpensive, imported fabrics and they want to do something to set themselves apart. Creative director Dion Chang said, "The world is ready for a luxury African brand -- an Afro-Gucci." The label has been named Aziza, which means "gorgeous" in Swahili, and will launch in during fashion week in Johannesburg. It will first be sold in South Africa, where the demand for luxury goods is perceived to be the highest. Patterns and styles will be African inspired, but not over-the-top or clichéd.


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Tags: africa, afro-gucci, aziza, fabric, fasion, south africa

Human Nest Chair

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor

The Human Nest Chair is a creation of designer Emily Pilloton. It is a compilation of thousands of scraps of fabric and textiles, woven and tied together onto a bamboo frame. The idea came about after the designer observed the way that birds build and maintain their nests and, like those natural nests, this chair can be replenished with new fabrics of your own to keep if fluffy and soft over time. The designer says that this makes it into a modern heirloom.

Since it was featured in the New York Times this past Sunday, the fact that only one chair has currently been sold is bound to change, despite the fact that the chair is a startling $1,800. Perhaps it would be best for someone who likes the shabby chic look. Or the ultra shabby chic look.


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Tags: chair, chic, decor, emily pilloton, EmilyPilloton, fabric, frame, furniture, human nest chair, nest, new york times, scraps, shabby chic

White House Fabrics For Auction

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Auctions

Interior design junkies will be interested in this auction from Scalamandre, the famous textile company. The manufacturer is opening up the archives and offering historical fabrics, art work and other items. There will be three online auctions this year, the first of which started on April 19. The current auction includes several White House fabric lots that were designed by Mrs. Scalamandre for Jackie Kennedy's restoration. The auction also includes furniture from the Scalamandre Museum of Textiles including a European side chair given to Franco Scalamandre by William Randolph Hearst. The piece shown here is silk which was designed for chair seats in the Blue Room of the White House.  It has a starting bid of $4500.

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Tags: auction, decor, design, fabric, scalamandre, white house fabric

Spring Bedding from John Robshaw

by Dakota Smith (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor

The spring collection from John Robshaw, one of my favorite fabric designers is out, and if you're looking for lightweight pillows and bedding, you can't do better than his stuff. With an Indian-Asia-boho feel, his designs are simply lovely. His web site is pretty sparse, but does list retailers. Online sites like Nochalant Mom and ShopatGood also carry his line. 

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Tags: Bedding, decor, fabric, home, home decor, John Robshaw, Linens, sheets, shopping

JKLM Ellen Bags

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags

I nearly snapped up one of these at CA Boom. The Ellen bag from JKLM Studio is a well-crafted creative bag. The body of the bag is made of water-resistant and durable fabric and the contrasting top is done in a stylish silk or cotton textile. The bags are lined with silk and have one ribbon-trimmed pocket. And of course, there are those lovely metal handles which clink delicately like bangles on your wrist. The bags sell for $129-$149.

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Tags: fabric, handbag, jklm studio, JklmStudio, purse



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