I love these handmade embroidered book clutch bags created by Olympia Le Tan - these images are all from her tumblr blog.

Together with Spike Jonze, she has also created Mourir Auprès de Toi, a quirky stop-animated film about book characters that come to life after dark in the famous Parisian bookshop Shakespeare & Company. 

You can watch the film in full here, and read more about how it came to be made, but an excerpt is below.

I’ve long been a fan of all things 1950s from rock and roll music to swingy skirts to drinks with cocktail cherries, and I’m currently glued to BBC 2’s The Hour, so naturally I was delighted to be given a couple of tickets to a late event at the Museum of London paying tribute to the 'fabulous fifties' last week.

The Museum of London is one of my favourite London museums and not only because it’s literally a stone’s throw from where I currently live. The permanent galleries tell a fascinating story of London’s history from the first people to dwell in settlements along the Thames up until the present day, and there are some great temporary exhibitions too: currently there’s an engrossing exhibition of London Street Photography from 1860 to the present day as well as a fun display of hand-drawn maps of the city in the foyer. Downstairs in the cafe, you'll also find an installation by the Light Surgeons, which is to be the first in a series of media art commissions at the museum.

I’ve been to plenty events at the museum before but this was the first event in their Late series that I’d seen, transforming the entire museum for the evening after the usual closing time. On offer was music from Laura B and the Moonlighters and The Broken Hearts DJs, vintage pin-up makeovers, talks on fifties fashion and popular culture from the museum's curators, dance classes with The London Swing Dance Society, craft workshops from  Tatty Devine, and of course, fifties-style food and drink.

Perhaps unsurprisingly given the current fashion for all things vintage and nostalgic, this was a hugely popular event: the Tatty Devine workshop was so busy that sadly I didn't get chance to join in, but I was lucky enough to get my hair styled by one of the stylists from the Vanity Box, who provided a pop-up vintage salon creating 1950s hair and make-up looks. And as well as tapping my toe to a few fifties tunes, and sampling some chips in a cone, I also snapped a few shots of some of the amazing dancers twisting, strolling and hand-jiving the evening away - for once I managed to remember a camera! It was a great evening for people watching, with some amazing outfits and retro frocks on display, but what's more, it was interesting to see the museum transformed into such a buzzing and lively space for a fun evening event - this was certainly a clever strategy for drawing in new audiences, as well as to approach learning about the history of the 20th century in a different way.

This event was part of a month-long programme across the city to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Festival of Britain: find out about more events at Story of London.  For anyone who like me, enjoys 1950s music, you might also be interested in this fifties inspired blog written for the event by The Broken Hearts DJs featuring some of their favourite tunes from the decade.

Last weekend I visited The Wapping Project for the first time. Built in 1890, this extraordinary and beautiful building was originally the Wapping Hydraulic Power Station, but is now a restaurant and contemporary art space. Some of the machinery from the original power station is still in situ in the very tempting-looking restaurant, which unfortunately I didn't get chance to sample on this occasion, though I'm looking forward to going back to try it another time. As well as the restaurant, the venue houses the Boiler House - an exhibition/installation space - and an art bookshop housed in a greenhouse,as well as outdoor artworks.

The installation currently in the Boiler House is no less extraordinary than the building itself. Yohji Making Waves is a single-piece, site-specific installation created by fashion designer and artist Yohji Yamamoto, in collaboration with scenographer Masao Nihei. In this work, the cavernous, darkened Boiler House space is flooded with water, and a beautiful, oversized silk wedding dress (an iconic piece taken from the designer's autumn/winter 1998 collection) is suspended above it, reappearing as a ghostly reflection in the dark, rippling waters. The space is lit by a string of bulbs sending glimmering light out across the water, a haunting soundtrack plays, and visitors can take a closer look at the dress by clambering aboard a small boat, which a boatman rows around the flooded gallery at regular intervals.

There's something both mesmeric and meditative about this atmospheric installation. But although there's an eerily beautiful quality to the black depths of the water, and spectral floating dress, there's also something hugely fun and anarchic about the very idea of flooding a gallery and rowing around it in a boat. In this way, as well as being contemplative, this is an enchantingly playful installation: it's little wonder that our fellow gallery visitors were beaming with delight as they hopped aboard the little boat and set off across the water.

The installation is the third element of a series of exhibitions devoted to Yamamoto's work in London this summer: the others, which I haven't had chance to visit as yet, are Yohji's Women, an exhibition of photographs at The Wapping Project Bankside, and of course Yohji Yamamoto, a major solo exhibition at the V&A. However, whether or not you're a fan of Yamamoto, I'd highly recommend visiting this installation: one of the most imaginative and appealing pieces of contemporary art I've seen for some time.

It's surprisingly difficult to find details of the installation online, but it is open daily -  Monday - Friday from 12 noon - 10pm and Saturday-Sunday from 10am. Boat rides take place every 15 minutes. The installation is free to enter but a ticket is required for the boat.

Yohji Making Waves is at the Wapping Project until 10 July 2011.

[Image by Madeline Graham via Flickr used under Creative Commons]

  

I was very pleased to be invited to attend the launch party for Amelia's Compendium of Fashion Illustration a couple of weeks back. This new book is the latest spin-off of the fabulous Amelia's Magazine, which has been on my radar ever since it became something of a cult hit on its first publication back in 2004.  

Published biannually, the magazine, which primarily covered fashion, art, design, music, photography and illustration, always seemed unique in comparison to other art and design titles. Perhaps in part that was because the magazines themeslves were such beautiful, covetable, idiosyncratic objects, featuring everything from exclusive Tatty Devine necklaces to scratch 'n' sniff or diamanté-encrusted covers. But mostly I think the appeal of the magazine came from its individual, quirky feel; its focus on new and emerging talent; and its uniquely personal approach.  And indeed, Amelia's couldn't have been much more personal in its scope, for throughout its 5 year life span, its creator, Amelia Gregory, was its one-woman publisher, editor and art director. She subsequently described it as 'a labour of love'.

Sadly, the magazine itself is no longer in print, but Amelia's still thrives as an online magazine covering art, fashion, music and 'earth' - creative grassroots environmental and ethical projects. It remains hugely popular and is one of Creative Tourist's Top 25 UK Arts blogs. But for me, what continues to make Amelia's so special is its continuing emphasis on showcasing new talent, and particularly emerging illustrators. Rather than the usual press photos, reviews of gigs, exhibitions or catwalk shows on the Amelia's website are instead accompanied by lovely and distinctive illustrations, sourced through open submissions.

It's the same impulse that lies behind Amelia's recent ventures into publishing, in two books: Amelia's Anthology of Illustration, and now the new Amelia's Compendium of Fashion Illustration. Illustrators for these beautiful books are chosen via an open brief, meaning that artists at all levels have the chance to be considered. It's great that there are people out there, operating outside the structures of the publicly-funded art world, championing and supporting new talent, and providing these kinds of opportunities to aspiring artists - and this of course is part of what makes Amelia herself such an inspiration.

The launch party itself was a great event at the newly-converted Scout Hut in Bethnal Green, featuring live music from  6 Day Riot, a huge Lili Vanilli cake, DJ sets from The Pipettes and Will from the Mystery Jets, and lovely goody bags containing all kinds of treats. Yet again, I can only apologise for having no pictures of the party or the book to share, but you can see lots of great pictures of the event on the Amelia's website here, plus (what else but) many illustrations of the guests from some of the illustrators involved in the project.

As for the book itself, it features interviews with the 30 selected illustrators, and in keeping with the 'earth' theme, profiles of over 50 ethical fashion designers. It's available to buy from most art bookshops, or directly from the website here, where it comes with a set of 12 limited edition postcards.

[Image: invitation from Amelia's Magazine]

The Barbican's Future Beauty is an appropriately stylish and well put together exhibition, surveying contemporary Japanese fashion from the 1980s to the present day, focusing on the avant-garde work of ground-breaking designers like Yohji Yamamoto, Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garcons and Issey Miyake. These are designers who brought about a revolution in the fashion landscape, mounting a challenge to accepted Western notions of feminity and beauty, and changing irrevocably the way we dress.

Here, their work is carefully presented in a space divided by translucent drapes that hang from floor to ceiling. The gallery makes the perfect backdrop for these garments, with their origami-like folds and unfinished hems, themselves as much sculptural art objects as they are items of clothing, as Naoya's Hatekeyama's extraordinary photographs of Rei Kawakubo's flat garments makes clear. Issey Miyake's A-POC is far more sci-fi art installation than it is conventional ready-to-wear.

It's helpful then, that this exhibition is organised along thematic, rather than chronological lines, allowing us to follow the thread of an idea or style as it evolves through different interpretations. Exploring concepts such as wabi-sabi (the beauty of imperfection) and ma (the notion of spaces between objects) this curatorial approach allows us to understand some of the complex and challenging thinking that lies behind these apparently simple, minimal and often startlingly beautiful constructions, as well as the furore they created when they first appeared on the catwalk.

The exhibition is supported by a wealth of fascinating film and video content, including catwalk shows and documentaries, most notably Wim Wenders' classic documentary on Yamamoto, Notebook of Cities and Clothes, which will leave you forever in thrall to the power of the black polo neck. A perfect introduction to Japanese fashion in advance of Yamamoto's upcoming solo exhibition at the V&A it may well be, but Future Beauty is more than that, standing up in its own right as an ambitious and inspiring exhibition, not merely for those who love fashion, but for anyone with an interest in contemporary visual culture.

Future Beauty is at the Barbican Art Gallery until 6 February 2011.

[Images from Future Beauty: 30 Years of Japanese Fashion, 15 October 2010 – 6 February 2011 at Barbican Art Gallery, London. Photocredit: Lyndon Douglas]

I've been out of action all week with horrible sinusitis. I've missed out on lots of fun stuff I had planned; however, at least being at home, under my trusty blanket, has given me plenty of time for reading (so far, The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters, The Children's Book by A.S. Byatt and Home by Julie Myerson, all excellent) and aimless web browsing.

I'm currently being cheered by the What I Wore Today flickr group started by the illustrator Gemma Correll as an alternative for camera-shy artists and illustrators to all those fashion-themed groups where people take photos of themselves posing around in fancy outfits.Emilie Boudet


Little Doodles
yarnandtea
Gemma Correll

[All images via What I Wore Today]

So this week was London Fashion Week, and since this is a blog that is (occasionally, ostensibly) about shoes, I thought it would be good to make the most of the moment and post about some shoe-related antics for a change. Here's my little LFW shoe round-up:

For anyone who was utterly baffled by peep-toe ankle boots last season, I'm afraid it looks like a look that's set to stay with us for a little while longer. Check out Julien Macdonald's and Matthew Williamson's futuristic beauties, just for starters. Personally I love them, but I have to admit they might be a tad impractial for a cold February morning. But then whoever said fashion was supposed to make sense?

Julien Macdonald: Matthew Williamson

On the subject of nonsensical, it's all getting very crazy and structural at Burberry Prorsum, Jean Pierre Braganza and Atalanta Weller, shoe designer for House of Holland. Is it a shoe? Is it a modernist sculpture? To be honest, it hardly seems to matter anymore.

Atalanta Weller via stylebubble

I have to admit I'm can't get very enthusiastic about the studded black statement boot which is set to be everywhere this autumn and winter, a la Christopher Kane for Topshop. Yes, they may pack a powerful post-punk punch. But they also look a wee bit sweaty and uncomfortable. I quite like this bold graphic style by Charles Anastase though.

Charles Anastase

Meanwhile Twenty8Twelve and Julien Macdonald demonstrated that the ubiquitous, and to be frank, deeply unflattering gladiator sandal is set to stay on the scene. Boo to shoes which are not designed for those with, shall we say, a less than sylph-like ankle!

Twenty8Twelve: Julien Macdonald

Why not opt for something a little more jaunty and colourful for jumping through spring puddles? Louise Goldin advocated sweet ankle socks in sugar and sherbet shades; Peter Jensen and Christopher Kane showed lemon-yellow lace-up boots; whilst Betty Jackson and Luella opted for nifty bows on the toes.

At Erdem, models strutted down the runway in mismatched floral pumps; Kinder Aggugini ornamented shoes with butterflies and bows of polka dot ribbon; whilst Mulberry offered us a veritable rainbow of ankle-strap sandals and lace-up high heels. Hurrah for pretty shoes this spring!

Kinder Aggugini: Luella: Betty Jackson: Erdem: Louise Goldin

(For more on London Fashion Week from some proper fashion bloggers, check out Style Bubble and Wish Wish Wish)

The winners of this year’s Best of Manchester Awards were announced last night at a special award ceremony at Urbis. As has become usual of late, I was watching via twitter, but I was still very pleased to hear that the excellent Owl Project had been announced as winner of the Art category. The collective made up of artists Simon Blackmore, Anthony Hall and Steve Symons cite their influences as woodwork, hobby-style electronics and open source software: their semi-sculptural musical instruments have been exhibited across Europe as well as at events such as the Sonic Arts Network EXPO, Lovebytes and Futuresonic.

However, there’s no doubt that it must been a very difficult decision for the judges (a panel of industry experts that included Peter Saville, Wayne Hemingway, Jeremy Deller, Tim Marlow and Miranda Sawyer) to make since the others on the shortlist – artist Rachel Goodyear and collective Contents May Vary – were also very deserving of this accolade.

Congratulations also go to Holly Russell, winner of the Fashion category, and Max Moran and Jayne Compton who were joint winners of the Music award. You can see work by the winners, as well as the others on the shortlist, in a special Best of Manchester exhibition at Urbis, opening today and running until 20 September.

The BOMAs got me thinking about all the other ‘best of Manchester’ things that I’ve been missing since heading Down South: people, places, and even, yes, things to eat. Just this week my extremely kind and considerate father sent me a text message to tell me he was tucking into a butter pie with peas and gravy, just as I was sitting at my desk toying with a rather uninspiring couscous salad. Now, I’m pretty sure that butter pie is something that just doesn’t exist here in London - there’s also a very disturbing shortage of gravy and peas. Butter pie would definitely appear on my personal ‘best of Manchester’ shortlist! (I know several people have already made the excellent suggestion of adding a writer category to the Best of Manchester Awards next year, but what about a food category too...!)

What would you include on your personal ‘best of Manchester’ list?

[Images via urbis and future of sound]

I think I have a new favourite magazine - the beautiful Lula. Just look at some of these glorious page spreads from the latest issue (no. 8) which I have been happily browsing this afternoon:



Whilst I can see that its style may be a bit girly and whimsical for some tastes, I have to say that for me it is an utter treat to read a fashion-led magazine which isn't entirely focussed on persuading readers they desperately need to buy this week's "must have" item and should slavishly follow the latest celebrity trends. Even better, Lula includes a minimal number of advertisements, which are placed only at the start and end of the magazine, meaning that as a reader, you aren't constantly bombarded - or worse, left wondering what is genuine editorial and what is marketing copy.


As the ever-wise Hadley Freeman points out, "contrary to popular belief, fashion magazines aren't catalogues" and the great thing about Lula is it really doesn't feel like one. Rather than being primarily about shopping, Lula is really all about inspirations, ideas and aesthetics. OK so I'll admit there's a "sleb" or two in there but at least they're not the usual suspects - this is, after all, a magazine that eschews the apparently inevitable choice of Victoria Beckham as fashion icon du jour in favour of such alternative (and far more interesting) choices as Louise Bourgeois, Gertrude Stein, Diana Vreeland and Peggy Guggenheim amongst others. And there are some thoughtful, interesting articles as well as beautiful fashion shoots - because guess what? The two aren't mutually exclusive! This issue, for example, brings together a feature on Edie Beale, a life-size dolls house installation by artist Heather Benning, short fictions by Rupert Friend and Louise Cork, and an interview with the incomporable Luella, as well as a whole treasure trove of lovely images to enjoy.





The only thing I would say is that the typography can get a bit annoying: the distinctive Lula font designed by Becky Smith and Pedro Cid Proenca looks cute for titles but becomes a bit unreadable when used for larger blocks of body text. But that aside - what better way than to spend a lazy Saturday reading Lula, drinking tea and eating ginger biscuits?

I'm now feeling inspired by... boater hats; grossgrain ribbons; birds and butterflies; tea parties; hats with veils; paper cut-outs; 1940s hair; anti-minimalism; giant Alice in Wonderland bows; doodles; latter-day Victoriana; cup cakes and cocktails; plaits; ephemera; Dalmatians; seamed stockings; misty old photographs; layering; eye-popping rainbow brights; and wearing socks with peep-toe shoes. Lovely!

I love Nick Knight's amazing editorials for UK Vogue, especially this quirky 1940s-inspired shoot from the March edition: "Chocks Away." The lighting, colours and compositions are beautiful, and Lily Donaldson makes the perfect contemporary re-imagining of a classic 40s pin-up/wartime heroine.

Knight has also been responsible for some of Vogue's most adventurous and innovative editorials in the past, including the "Unbelievable Fashion" feature in the December 2008 issue. The photographer has developed a reputation for pushing boundaries - whether technical, artistic, or in terms of posing a challenge to the fashion industry by questioning conventional ideals of beauty. As well as working on stories for Vogue, Knight has worked for everyone from Yohji Yamamoto to Louis Vuitton, Vivienne Westwood to Christian Dior, as well as shooting record covers for David Bowie, Paul Weller and Massive Attack.

These beautiful images have certainly brightened up my Monday - maybe tomorrow I'll look out a red lipstick! I have to admit though that it's not been an entirely "bright and shiny" "happy clappy" sort of a Monday. I'm feeling very tired today and a bit grumpy; I have spent more time than seemed strictly necessary on a train; one of my blog 'followers' seems to have absconded (was it something I said?); and yet again my house has failed to self-clean and tidy itself when I haven't been in it. However I have been (semi-)cheered by: most unusually, being able to go back to bed with a cup of tea, albeit briefly, on a Monday morning; the smell of fresh white paint; lovely images on the LOLITA blog; dark chocolate ginger biscuits from M&S; finishing the crossword; and my brand new Converse shoes.

Phew. A few good things anyway. And maybe Tuesday will be better. How have your Mondays been?

Monday is a day to look at pretty things... especially when you're still full of illness and have very cold toes and need something colourful to brighten up your day.

Today I'm loving these fabulous illustrations by Rene Gruau, which capture so perfectly the spirit of late 1940s and early 1950s fashion and design, evoking all the glamour and elegance of the post-war "New Look". Famously self-taught, Gruau took inspiration from diverse sources, looking to art nouveau, traditional Japanese prints, and the work of artists such as Toulouse-Lautrec to develop his distinctive graphic style and colour palette. Today, he is probably best remembered for his fashion illustrations for Dior, which epitomise Parisian chic: Dior first commissioned him back in 1947 for the launch of the Miss Dior fragrance. However, he also worked for a range of other "grands couturiers" including Pierrre Balamin, Marcel Rochas and Givenchy, illustrated for magazines including Harper's, Vogue and Elle and designed posters for Paris institutions such as the Lido and the Moulin Rouge cabarets, as well as iconic French brands including Cinzano, Martini and Air France.

Other things which have cheered up my Monday include: perfect orange tulips; leopard print socks; a new blog find, little brown pen; dairy-free chocolate brownies; and of course, watching the snow fall - the view from my window has been transformed into a white fairytale world. (So much better of course when you don't have to go anywhere and can sit at home under the blanket, listening to reports of snow related chaos on Radio 4)

What has brightened up your Monday?

Yesterday I was mainly reclining and enjoying the December issue of UK Vogue - the ‘Fantastic Fashion Fantasy Issue.’ I have to admit to having mixed feelings about fashion magazines, but for me, this issue of Vogue is absolutely what it should be all about. Ridiculous Christmas gift ideas aside (magnum of Moet with bespoke Swarovski crystal lettering, anyone? £175 leather rubik's cube? nope, thought not) it is a delight - an imaginative wonderland of beautiful and inspirational images, showcasing high fashion at its most fabulously outrageous, playful, romantic and whimsical.

Tim Walker’s brilliant ‘Tales of the Unexpected’ shoot is a hugely enjoyable tribute to Roald Dahl, starring a gleefully grotesque Tim Burton, Helena Bohnam Carter and Karen Elson, accompanied with a text by Sophie Dahl. The ‘Unbelievable Fashion’ spread by Nick Knight takes unapologetic pleasure in fashion that pushes the boundaries, celebrating couture at its most experimental (and utterly bonkers). There’s also some beautiful new fashion illustrations, including Karl Lagerfeld’s ‘Secret Ball’ and even a fantasy shoe designed by who else but Manolo Blahnik.

I enjoyed four new ‘fashion fairytales’ commissioned from writers Rose Tremain, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Poppy Adams and Linda Grant - whose twist on the original ‘Little Mermaid’ featured surprise, surprise a pair of strangely compelling red shoes - and was also intrigued by the ‘In My Dreams’ feature revisiting a project from 1967, when Yves Saint Laurent was invited to illustrate a ‘dream wall’ for Vogue bringing together ‘favourite people, colours, ideas, things not yet or ever done... places, sunsets, faces’ (Yves Saint Laurent, Vogue, 1967). In this issue, fashion creatives including Giles Deacon, Rick Owens and Bruno Frisconi were invited to create their own visual representation of their favourite things: I especially liked the response from the wonderful Luella Bartley (you have to love a fashion designer who calls their shows stuff like 'Dial F for Fluro' or 'Daddy I Want a Pony') which included “my 2 sheep”, “Wednesday Adams’ plaits” and “geeky girls like Thora Birch in Ghostworld.”

I got thinking about what I might include on my own ‘dream wall’ and started making a list of ‘a few of my favourite things’ - Von Trapp chorus optional - though once I got started it was hard to stop. This is highly recommended as entertainment for dismal grey November afternoons...

1. ginger chocolate
2. velvet ribbon
3. teapots
4. libraries
5. hot baths
6. striped socks
7. daisies on the lawn
8. crayons
9. mexican food
10. red shoes (obviously)
11. rum and ginger beer
12. 1950s rock and roll
13. old photographs
14. earl grey tea
15. sleeper trains
16. meadows
17. french accents
18. children’s books
19. sausage dogs
20. ballet shoes
21. red poppies
22. typewriters
23. snowfall
24. old records
25. date and walnut cake
26. blankets
27. attics
28. black ink pens
29. bluebell woods
30. vintage illustrations
31. pecan pie
32. polka dots
33. candlelight
34. piano music
35. seafood
36. all hats, especially berets
37. hammocks
38. moomins
39. bonfires
40. raspberries
41. penny sweets
42. stationery shops
43. wellington boots
44. leopard print
45. the smell of the sea
46. butterflies
47. victorian novels
48. bicycles with baskets
49. line drawings
50. cherries
51. breakfast pancakes
52. knitting
53. sketchbooks
54. sushi
55. fairy lights
56. eyeliner
57. cinema popcorn
58. chinatown
59. scrabble
60. pavement cafes
61. earmuffs
62. 1940s/1950s dresses
63. treasure boxes
64. black cats
65. amaretto
66. cinnamon tea
67. stripy jumpers
68. red lipstick
69. bare feet
70. yellow lined paper
71. roast chicken dinners
72. swimming in the sea
73. coca cola in a glass bottle
74. black polo necks
75. ponytails
76. lemons
77. radio 4
78. blue skies
79. super 8 films
80. junk shops
    
81. country lanes
82. chandeliers
83. hot water bottles
84. peanut butter
85. satchels
86. rock pools
87. woolly tights
88. drinking through a straw
89. brown paper
90. peep toes
91. bread sauce
92. red umbrellas
93. allotments
94. glass milk bottles
95. postcards
96. breton stripes
97. shuttered windows
98. cocktail glasses
99. foreign stamps
100. secret gardens
     

Congratulations to the lovely Naomi Kashiwagi who was announced as the winner of the Art category at the Best of Manchester Awards at Urbis last night.

Naomi was awarded the prize for her piece ‘||: Repetition :||, Fugue No.1 in QWERTY for 8 Typewriters’, a music and text score that saw four pianists and four percussionists playing typewriters. Naomi also performs fabulous gramaphone DJ sets and will in fact be performing at the Barbican as part of the Viktor and Rolf exhibition in September. You can see a video of her in gramaphone action here.

The other award winners were Richard Cheetham (music) for High Voltage and Simon Buckley (fashion) for the rather wonderful Rags to Bitches. Work from all the winners and finalists will be on show at a 'Best of Manchester' exhibition at Urbis until the end of September, which I'm sure I'll be checking out sometime soon.