Tallulah Brown

For those that haven't seen it already, last week One Off featured Tallulah Brown, a friend and fan of One Off as well as an all round stylish and inspirational lady. The feature was really made by Lily's photos, which along with all the looks in our Outfit Gallery, are shot on film. See Tallulah's feature here, and stay tuned for the next style profile!

Watch

New watch found in an Age Concern charity shop one day last week. Its enormous, almost wider than my wrist. No excuse for being late now.

 

It really reminds me of one of Dali's melting watches. Not to be pretentious or anything...

The Persistence of Memory, Salvador Dali, 1931

Terry Setch

Last night I braved the rain to go see the Terry Setch private view at Flowers, Cork Street. Mayfair galleries have that knack of making me feel a bit nervous, mostly in a good way. Getting out of the tube at Green Park and weaving through London's smartest streets, you can't but help think that what you're about to see is going to be good, or at least, thought of as good by a lot of important people.

 Time is Running Out, 2010-11

The Tide Swallows the Shore, 2011

 

Tide Shift, 2012

Setch works by mixing traditional materials with found beach objects - rubbish and debris washed up by the tide. By doing so these works become thick with paint and matter, encrusted and textured to the point that they almost press up against their glass frames. Ironically, the canvases are often paper thin which I found interesting, as to me a few of them started to resemble beaten steel or metal.

 Mud Flats, 2011

Setch lives and works in South Wales, which might explain why his seascapes aren't exactly brimming with sunshine. They certainly seemed to bring the outdoors in to the little Cork Street gallery last night. I liked the paintings because they reminded me of Cornwall (for a change). Memories of driving to the sea and eating pasties in the car while the wind rattled it and us inside. Weather like this for example:

Photos taken during a summer holiday in Cornwall.

Apparently Setch is very inspired by Turner, and I think once you learn that, his work seems to fall in to place.

Snowstorm, 1842, J.M.W Turner

Setch is a Royal Academician, to learn more about him see here. Alternatively  the Flowers' press release is a good port of call.

Win

So that my latest purchase isn't thought of as COMPLETELY disgusting, it might be necessary to give a bit of background.
Perspex and PVC seem to be a real favourite of the fashion world at the moment

 

Maison Martin Margiela

Christopher Kane

I could post more pictures of (amazing but) incredibly expensive designer goods, but this has never been that kind of blog. Its much more this kind of blog:

 £1 shop, Shepherd's Bush

 

It's a bag, in a bag. Its PVC and camouflage. It's probably an acquired taste but I think it's great!! I've had to do a bit of cleaning (it wasn't exactly transparent when I bought it), but one Boots facial cleansing wipe later and it's good to go.

Dispatched

We like dispatching orders at One Off, especially because we get to use our stamp.

Beaded Breakfast

Last week Tessa and Rosa took me to see the new Liza Lou exhibition at White Cube, Hoxton Square. Tessa had done a good job getting me interested in Liza Lou's work prior to the visit. It was a bit disappointing as what was exhibited differed such a lot to her earlier work, some of which I think is incredible - a beaded kitchen!!  Instead it was a lot more reserved:

Untitled #8, 2011

Untitled #1, 2011-12

Zulu Love Letter No.2, 2011-12

I do actually quite like these particular pieces and enjoyed seeing them at the show, but wasn't blown away by the exhibition at all. The intensity of her earlier works such as 'Kitchen' (below) had eased and the beads no longer seemed to make the statement that they could rival paint, but instead simply mimicked it.

Breakfast is my favourite meal of the day, and I generally love anything breakfast related... This probably explains why Liza Lou's 'Kitchen' is such a hit with me, it comes complete with fried eggs

 

Kitchen, 1995 

For anyone who wants to know a bit more, here is an enjoyable read in the form of W Magazine's feature on Lou a few years back. And just for good measure, here is another beaded post from Bethnal Green Road last summer.

Book Time

 

Following my Easter Kennedy obsession, my books have arrived. The Kennedy Men was actually a mistake buy - I meant to get Laurence Leamer's sequel to his account of the Kennedy Women but ended up with this sensationalist rip-roaring read. A very different kind of book but pretty sure I'll be equally gripped.... Time to get reading!

Queen of the Jungle

I love my new earrings:

I never really wear any earrings that aren't tiny and gold, especially since being given little gold hoops for my birthday last year. I had forgotten how fun dangly earrings are to wear - I'm probably going to now build up a worrying large and Pat Butcher-like collection.
In my head these earrings channel great vibes like, Sheena, Queen of the Jungle:

And Taylor as Cleopatra....

 

One can dream eh? 

Favourites

Cherry blossom is one of my most favourite things, it just makes me really happy. This blossom sitting so prettily on the bar of my favourite pub then, made me grin from ear to ear.

Flora

One Off's Flora, has been making headlines recently. Quite literally! Here is a little piece written by Flora for the Evening Standard, on Dame Vivienne Westwood's speech at the opening night of 'The Body Adorned: Dressing London' at the Horniman Museum in Forest Hill.

I am green with envy at Flora having already visited the exhibition (and hangin out with Viv), it looks like a really interesting show. Luckily there is lots of time for the rest of us to visit - the exhibition closes January 2013.

One Off

This week my eyes finally turned square, as one morning I spent many hours working on One Off's website. Exciting developments are afoot - one of them being our Outfit Gallery being re-shot by exciting and upcoming photographer, and fellow West Londoner, Lily Bertrand-Webb. Lily helped me see the clothes I was working with differently, and through her lens and my vision, I think we got some great results. Make sure you check it out for yourself!

There are totally new outfits, as well as previous looks under going tweaking and re-shooting for the Spring Summer collection. A particular hit has been the Dungaree Dress outfit, bottom left

Along with new photos and new outfits comes new features, such as the Outfit Booster section. This is for people who want an instant fix for an outfit they already love. The green coat above is currently showcasing its style there at the moment.

This is only the start of lots more to come from One Off... Stay tuned for more in the very near future.

Jackie O

Over my time off in Cornwall, I became completely obsessed with reading a book about Jackie Kennedy that I bought from the charity shop for 49p at New Year. While the book has horrendously biased in Jackie's favour (her husbands were pretty scathingly written up) it was absolutely fascinating, not least because it was basically a picture book documenting the Kennedy's impeccable style and good looks.

Jackie below with her second husband, Aristotle Onassis. A great name if ever there was one.

 

I've got the Kennedy bug and have ordered two more books about the Kennedy men and women. Can't wait for them to arrive! I hope they still have lots of pictures in, like my 49p bargain bin buy.

Easter

My Easter break is almost over and I am packing up to head back to London after a blissful few days in Cornwall with my family.