Sass & Bide

Yesterday I went to the Sass & Bide Christmas event with my friends Angela, Mimi and Ray. We were all squished into the Canberra Centre store (which is beautiful but not particularly large) and I have to say, I haven’t seen so many well-dressed Canberrans in the same place since itrip iskip’s ‘Grass Stains’ birthday celebration last year. Of course, it was a totally different style to the indie crowd that frequents itrip, but there was still the same rock n roll, artfully dishevelled nonchalance that indie kids cultivate and Sass & Bide is famous for. There were lots of wonderful shades of lipstick – I recognised MAC’s ‘Snob’ and ‘New York Apple’ doing the rounds – and lots of bright orange everywhere, both in Sass & Bide’s new resort collection and on the labels of the Veuve Clicquot (I probably had a bit too much – you have to seize expensive champagne opportunities as you find them!).

My favourite thing about Sass & Bide at the moment (and there are so many things to love!) is what they call ‘Sass & Bide exclusive clear rocket dome studding’. They’re these studs that look like mini icicles and they adorn the shoulders and waistbands of several pieces, giving them a subtle sense of ferocity. Check them out on ‘The Persuader’ skirt.

We also met one of the founders of the Sass & Bide, the lovely Sarah-Jane Clark. Clark and business partner Heidi Middleton began the label in 1999, selling jeans at a stall at London’s Portobello markets, and since then the label has become one of Australian fashion’s biggest success stories, with Sass & Bide now a multi-million dollar global company. As a result, Clark and Middleton took out the 2010 Veuve Cliquot Business Woman Award, which is awarded annually in celebration of women’s business achievements internationally (and that explains why there was so much Veuve available at the party). It’s not hard to see how Clark achieved such success, because not only is she creative and talented and an excellent businesswoman, she was also extremely nice!

So a very BIG thank you to Angela Menz for inviting me along to the Sass & Bide party as her guest!! You’ve probably heard she won the Fashions on the Field at the Canberra Cup last Sunday – but more on that later!

Until next time (and I promise I won’t leave it months before I write again) –

KQ

2 by Lyn and Tony

This makes me want to get strips of leather and knit them.

I have a style and jewelled panties aren't it.

I'm kiiiinnnd of obsessed with Sex and the City – so much so that occasionally I start to imagine that I AM Carrie Bradshaw. In the episode ‘The Real Me’ Carrie gets invited to participate in a charity fashion show, so you can imagine my surprise – and the ensuing delusions about my future with Mr Big and a closet full of Manolos – when my friend Megan asked me to model in a fashion show for Pink Inc boutique.

Like Carrie, I was pretty anxious about being out there with actual models – but it in the end it was just fabulous to be able to wear Akira, Zambesi, Breathless and Vivienne Westwood! (If I only I were a foot taller and seven kilos lighter!)

There were even jewelled panties involved – just like in SATC! – but thankfully I didn’t have to wear them!

I only got a few snaps myself, but there were a bunch of photographers there, so hopefully I’ll be able to get hold of a few more photos to post.

I’ll Meet You There in the Summertime

Summer means tie-dye, hot chips and sunburn. It means afternoon rain storms and sleepless nights under mosquito nets. Salt-stringy hair and pale denim. And best of all, road trips.

I did a couple down to the coast during this summer, and discovered some amazing little shops on the way. Firstly there was Winch Books in Bungendore – your genuine, old-school, ramshackle book shop. Think Black Books but with charming (rather than terrifying) staff. I found some great old poetry books, and I’m sure there were some fantastic hidden treasures there – hidden being the operative word, because you’d definitely need to look for them!




Up the road was a leather shop, so enticing it managed to draw in even my strictest animal-loving vegetarian friends. There were cute shoulder bags in the shape of elephants and frogs, and then there were keyrings made out of actual frogs – well, cane toads. I kid you not. There were also new and vintage leather bags, fox tails, kangaroo skins, cow skins, tooled leather bags and wallets, and for some reason, a bunch of bowler and top hats – overall the perfect mix of quirky and cute.





Then about 40 minutes away in Braidwood we visited a shop a friend had told me about called Hoola Hoop, which sells vintage and rockabilly-style clothes and accessories. It was looking kinda sparse – possibly because the tourists had bought it all up – but there was still some fun stuff there, with brands like Heartbreaker and Hot Couture. If you don't fancy the drive, you can also do online purchases from their website.

These Are Not My Shoulders

The thrill of playing dress-ups with my dolls has never worn off for me, and nowadays I'm lucky enough to have a life size, moveable doll to dress - more specifically my very obliging friend Diz. This post was originally going to be a celebration of the shoulderpad trend - and it still is - but it took Diz and I so long to find a time to do it that it is somewhat out of context, shot in my backyard on a blazing summer day. Nonetheless, I am a fan of the power shoulder anywhere, any time - even against red brick at midday. I hope you enjoy the pics - and big love and thanks to Diz (I think she bears a striking resemblance to it-girl Georgia Jagger, don't you agree?).

All I Want for Christmas (it's not much, really...)

Dear Santa,

I have been very good this year. I was good last year too, and I have to say that the knitting needles and steering wheel cover I received on Christmas morning really didn’t cut it present-wise. So I have provided a comprehensive list of very affordable (ahem) items to assist you in your duties this year, with accompanying images to avoid any confusion. I figure you use the internet now – chimneys and all that are so last century.

* PRADA LEATHER WADERS – I don’t know why I want them but I do. Fashionation described them as ‘disgusting’ – but what else is a fashionista going to wear when she goes digging for crabs?



* BALMAIN MILITARY-DETAIL SHOULDER-PADDED JACKET – American revolution meets Margaret Thatcher meets fabulous. Gimme.



* RAY BAN CLUBMASTERS – Ray Ban expects to have sold 15 million of these frames by 2010. They’ve been seen on the likes of Robert Pattinson, Beyonce, Allison Mossheart of The Kills and The Dead Weather, and Gossip Girl’s Ed Westwick.



* BURBERRY PRORSUM GOLD MINIDRESS – although the silver short-sleeved jacket pictured would be equally acceptable. The perfect space age outfit for the ultimate sci-fi year – 2010.





* DOLCE AND GABBANA PYJAMAS - As Jessica Alba has showed us, they can go from night to day. Would I? Yes I would.



* MISS LANVIN DOLL - You're never too old to play with dolls (especially when they're this cute!)



* CHLOE PERFUME - my all-time favourite has just been released in two new variations on the original bestseller - Eau de Parfum Intense, with darker, oriental notes, and Eau de Toilette, with fruity notes like mandarin and watermelon.



And, um, yeah, that's it. It's not much, is it? (haha it took me aaaages to write this post, cos there were too many things on the list!)

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!

Danielle Kathleen Jewellery

I first met Danni in my creative writing class. She writes beautiful, fantastical stories and – wait a minute – makes beautiful, fantastical jewellery too! Danni finds her inspiration in “little stories a child makes up as they play in the garden, and dream. There are princesses, creepy crawlies and flowers, tea sets, mythical creatures and even voodoo dolls! All the things that fill up the imagination.” I am absolutely in love with her piece ‘The Anatomical Heart’, and eagerly awaiting the arrival of mine in her next shipment!

How would you describe your work?

Femininely delicate and a very simple, organic aesthetic. My current range, "A Handful of Memories" is a series of acrylic layer jewelery that draw on motifs of childhood and fairy tales.

Tips on how to wear your pieces?

I believe any outfit, no matter what it is, is best paired with confidence. My pieces are large statements- they don't hide! I've worn mine in punk rock influence outfits, goth influence and even pop style colour outfits as well! Its all about the statement you want to make, and how confident you are in pulling it off. For the larger pendants, wear them on a long chain or ribbon, and have them swing freely. See La Roux in her film clip, Bulletproof. The gold portrait is rather similar to one of my designs, and she pulls it off wonderfully with a funky, eighties influence outfit. As the pieces are all black and white, they can be mixed with almost anything!

Favourite designer?

My favourite jewelery designer is Ted Noten. His works are fantastic! The Lady K Bags, which are resin handbags with items like working guns, diamonds and even rats cast into them, are such an inspiration. He also looks at communicating a story or character through the work- sometimes fictional, and sometimes through the wearer.

Where can we buy your jewellery?

I sell my jewelery at Gorman House Markets on Saturdays. After Christmas I hope to be down at the South Coast, so I'll be selling at the Moruya Markets (about half an hour from Batemans Bay) for a few weeks, then back here at Gorman House once more. I also sell continuously on my Etsy store, under Danielle Kathleen.

Danni also has a blog which is definitely worth checking out, or you can become a fan on facebook.