Trend Alert: Hell For Leather

Leather-envy; the very notion of it was, until recently, preposterous in my mind.

Sure, like most of you I have flirted with leather; a jacket dalliance here, a waistcoat romance there – these liaisons always appeared to be a little too dangereuses upon looking in the mirror, leading all inclination to be a leather-clad maverick to be swiftly filed away.

Happy in my leather-free bubble, I watched bondage-clad collections at Marc Jacobs roll out; I looked on as Gaga rolled about like a cow-skin princess; I stood back as vintage shops stocked-up on leather coats to be oh-so-seventies –still, I felt nothing. Content in not looking like an extra from the Matrix, I thought i’d soldier on indefinitely.

Little was I to know that leather was to land on my doorstep [figuratively speaking of course] Former bookings gal and serial shopper Samantha and I were perusing the Judy's stalls at the South Bank when we found it - the thing that was to shatter my allusions in a big, biker-y mess. Cropped, one-off and emblazoned - it was bad-ass in a jacket form. Crowning the item was a lone wolf, howling to the graffiti moon.

The above picture is not an image of the jacket [or myself and Samantha - what 'lols' that would be!] but a picture from the 70s epic 'The Warriors.' Know why? Because this jacket made me want to be one of 'The Warriors,' cleaning up the streets with quick quips, running around on subways [wouldn't quite be the same running around on the Northern Line - I think i'd have to emmigrate] and embracing la vie en leather.

Of course, the jacket wasn't for me [and was a girls. and too small] and so all that remains is a solid case of leather envy. Adding insult to injury is the resurgence of the Native American trend which goes so very well with leather [a kind of cowboy-meets-indian car-crash - now that's what i'm going for] Until fair season, I have my eye set on this tassel-tastic number from vintage vendor Burger & Fries...

Luckilly, fair season starts this coming Monday with Spitalfields [hooray!] and so I shouldn't have to wait too long. Until then, I guess my wax jacket will have to cut it. But know this -my Navajo-ly Grail is out there. Somewhere. And one day, it will be mine.

xVVx

www.vintagefair.co.uk

The Black Swan of the family

Greetings loved ones,

As you read this, one imagines that you find yourselves al fresco, shivering in the British wintertime, in a queue that could give Kate Moss at Topshop or the 80's opening of 'The Empire Strikes Back' a run for its money. The queue I speak of is not for The Affordable Vintage Fair in Leeds, Durham and Newcastle [which take place next weekend. Expect a similar level of enthusiasm however - a camping stool and a thermos could be a must!] but a line at your local picture house, waiting to see Black Swan.

Yes, Aronofsky's tale of one tiny dancer's decent into darkness has the nation and the awards boards solidly gripped. In addition to an intoxicating storyline, stellar performances by golden girls Portman and Kunis and, er, enough explicit content to make even the most liberal amongst us turn a shade of red, another aspect has ruffled some feathers; the costumes. With scores popping the Pilates ball and turning to tutus, ballet has never been so right now - whether working out or out on the town, a pirhouette has never been so acceptable. Created by those Mulleavy sister whizzkids at Rodarte, here's an example of their costume sorcery...

And that's just the beginning. With various controversies and gripes coming from ballerinas and critics around the world, it seems that scandal has also seeped into the House of Rodarte. Nominated for an 'Excellence witihn Contemporary Film' award by the Costume Designers Guild [CDG], it has recently come to light that all credit will lie with costume designer Amy Westcott and not the sisters themselves. Whipping up the fever, once again the Black Swan causes some to see red.

In keeping with our vintage theme, we recently stumbled upon two gorgeous images of fifties creations by Jean Patou and Christian Dior. One light, one dark, the old-school oracle has spoken once more, predicting one of this year's most elegant and enjoyable micro trends; prima ballerina.







When shopping the fairs, look out for lace, ruching, feathers and the theatrical - there are some real bargains to be had. With a strong overlap between retro and the stage, many of our traders feature old-world creations like those above which are perfect for introducing a little bit of drama into your day [as well as being bang on-trend] Never knowing where a piece has been, where it has come from, what it has seen or which boards it has treaded - that's the thrill [frill?] of shopping vintage.

That's all for now folks - more musings next week.

xVVx