Early Morning Jewels

Roman road jewels

Stacked

An early morning call time and so a very rushed squish of rings on my hands last week - so random but very enjoyable all the same 

Pope's Rings II

I often refer back to a blog post I wrote about Raphaels's painting of Pope Julius II, and his amazing rings. This weekend while at the Musee de Cluny in Paris, I saw some real Pope's rings up close and I really wasn't disappointed - they were enormous!!

 

These rings are even older than Raphael's painting and date back to c.1464, taking the trend for statement jewellery back to the 15th Century...

Jewels

Accessories are such a great way of showcasing personal style, especially pieces that look like they never come off. More to come on this topic but for now here is a snapshot of some great jewels I've long admired.

Beautiful Pawn Shop Jewels

I was reminded of a phrase from 'The Cheap Date Guide to Style' by this charm bracelet in the window of a pawn shop in Shepherd's Bush this morning, which always has quite unusual if expensive things

'Apart from the risk of getting mugged, we like the idea of having beautiful jewels rather than a savings account.'

Ring a Ding

 I have had a very long standing obsession with rings, my own and everybody else's. 

So happy that One Off is now offering some of our own.

Gold: Power and Allure

Last week I went to the private view of an exhibition I have been eagerly awaiting for many months 

This astonishing exhibition at The Goldsmiths' Company showcases the story of gold in Britain, with treasures dating back as far as 2,500 BC. There is so much to see and in my case, gawp at, but with free admission there's no pressure to take it all in at once.

The entrance at exhibition were quite literally paved in gold for the private view.

They really knew what they were doing back in the day, and I was amazed at how contemporary some of the oldest pieces on display looked. Topshop, eat your heart out:

 

Loved the beautiful Torcs, or, 'neck-rings' as Wikipedia so elegantly describes them. 

 

Happily for me, there were so many amazing rings... This one was a definite favourite. I wish I could remember more facts and interesting things to relay here, but I was entirely bowled over by the exhibition. And of course, that had nothing to do with sisterly pride...

Well done, George. 

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? 

Pope's Rings

After work today I walked over speedily to the National Gallery before it closed for the evening. As it is a Sunday I thought I might as well look at something religion related.

 

Portrait of Pope Julius II, 1511 Raphael

I remember this from school and the same Art History teacher I've mentioned before, gesticulating excitedly in front of it. The bit that sticks in my mind is her enthusiasm and wonder over the softness of Julius' beard. It does look pretty soft to the touch when you're up close. Apparently from 1511 Pope Julius wore a beard as a sign of mourning at having lost the city of Bologna.

What I really loved this evening were his rings:

 

I love cramming lots of ring onto my fingers and am very sentimental about the 3 I always wear, all heirlooms and gifts. Julius is doing pretty well here, wearing several big cut jewels set in gold next to each other.

Fleas

After hearing so many great things about Preston, Charlie and I decided to go for ourselves. The market was a mix of absolute crap and hidden gems, the best kind. Amongst my favourite buys was my Dave and Shirley nameplate bracelet (we are now a happy trio on my wrist), loads of gold tat earrings that are keeping my ears almost permanently sceptic and some Clockwork Orange gone-wrong glasses. The glasses sit in my tear ducts so I can't really wear them. You win some, you lose some I guess.

bebe

Costume Jewellry, so much fun