Willow Cashmere

Jun 162013
 
Cashmere Star Scarf

Cashmere Star Scarf

Willow Cashmere specialise in beautiful cashmere clothing and accessories.

Fine Cashmere Throw

Fine Cashmere Throw

Their range comes in a variety of easy colours (deep indigo, soft stone, grey marl…) designed to create an effortless wardrobe that you will want to wear all year round.

Their collection also includes the travel wraps, ponchos, tunics, glamorous evening shawls and the most covetable gifts and accessories…

If you buy 100% cashmere garments from Willow, you can be assured of the quality; your clothing will wash beautifully, keep its shape and of course keep you beautifully warm.

 

Wherever possible, Willow Cashmere produces its collection in Nepal, using the same family run workshop they have been using for over five years.

By continuing to produce this way, they are not only putting money back into the local economy, but are helping to sustain the traditional skills that have been passed down through generations.

Willow’s embellished cashmere shawls are hand loomed, dyed using eco friendly solutions and every sequin is embroidered by hand.

Nepal is famous for its diamond weave fine cashmere pashminas and you will not find a similar quality anywhere else in the world.

http://www.willowcashmere.com/

 9:12 pm  Fashion, Womens Accessories

Barbour – From Country to Town

May 122013
 

Barbour CoatWhen it comes to iconic fashion labels, Barbour are about as British as they come.

Since the first jacket was made by John Barbour in the 1800’s the brand has evolved to keep up with the changing times and fashions. Known best for the high quality Barbour Wax Jackets; there are now over 2000 products in the collection with the brand selling to an ever increasing audience now in its millions!

Long gone are the stereotypes of the “farmers market” wearers and sheep herders; Barbour’s target market has evolved over time just as its products have.  Just after the turn of the century, Barbour shifted its attention to the mainstream and its popularity has increased ever since.

Barbour Jacket

Latest Barbour Jacket

They have developed a range of products that offers something for everyone without selling out on the quality; and as a result the perception of the Barbour brand has shifted.

Although not “high street fashion” Barbour has managed to increase its reach and claw into the mainstream fashionista’s, whist still maintaining its core market of the affluent country walker.

Barbour’s Product Range for Man about Town

Barbour’s product range is constantly growing and you can now have the whole family dressed from head to foot in Barbour (if you wanted to)!

By cleverly tweaking ranges and adding to their product lines they’ve created a collection of clothing that anyone would be happy to wear – more recently this has included younger people across a wider range of demographics.

Barbour have proved that; even in these times of hardship people know quality and will pay for quality. That’s why Barbour, without compromising its tradition or heritage will stand the test of time and why it’s successfully managed to transition its brand from the English country gent in to the man about town.

Smith and Morris have an online store that sell a wide range of Barbour clothing.

 

 9:27 pm  Fashion, Mens Accessories, Outdoor Living

Aeroboat Yacht with Spitfire Engine

May 022013
 
Lifestyle on the Aeroboat

Lifestyle on the Aeroboat

The Lymington-based studio Claydon Reeves last night unveiled its Aeroboat design at HR Owen Rolls-Royce showroom in Berkeley square, London.

Aeroboat Side Elevation

Aeroboat Side Elevation

This £3 million superyacht is a sleek boat with an original Rolls-Royce V12 Merlin engine at its heart. The same engine as used in Spitfires.

Each of the 14.64m Aeroboat engines will be detuned to offer 1,500hp. With a bespoke gearbox and final drive, the yacht is expected to achieve speeds of more than 50 knots.

The yacht is the creative work of top design company Clayton Reeves.

Rolls Royce Aeroboat Engine

Rolls Royce Aeroboat Engine

The yacht will be constructed from carbon fibre and Kevlar with a lightweight wood veneer sourced in Britain.

A spokesman for Claydon Reeves said: ’The Aeroboat is one of the fastest and most elegant small yachts ever produced.

‘It is perfect for anyone wanting to breakfast in St. Tropez, lunch in Antibes and dine at night in Monaco.’

Only 10 are expected to be built, so place your orders now…

 6:09 pm  Yachts

Lifetime Achievement Award for Alain Ducasse

Apr 212013
 
Alain Ducasse Lifetime Achievement WinnerAlain Ducasse Lifetime Achievement Winner

Alain Ducasse Lifetime Achievement Winner

Alain Ducasse has pushed the boundaries of excellence in cooking and the dining experience throughout his 30-year career in gastronomy.

Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester London

Visit Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester in London

The Lifetime Achievement Award, sponsored by Diners Club International, acknowledges not only Ducasse’s reputation for innovative French cuisine but also his indisputable influence over today’s generation of chefs and restaurateurs around the world.

Since being awarded three Michelin stars at the tender age of 33 for his 33-month old Le Louis XV at the Hôtel de Paris in Monaco, Ducasse has gone on to become one of the world’s most decorated chefs and the first to have been awarded three Michelin stars in three different cities.

Since its inception, he has scored 14 positions on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, more than any other chef.

Alain Ducasse Entreprise, the group founded by Alain Ducasse, comprises more than 20 restaurants around the world, three inns in Europe, an independent hotel association, a culinary publishing house, an international education division with a cooking school for all in Paris as well as a pastry school for professionals and amateurs alike and a culinary training centre for chefs.

http://www.alainducasse-dorchester.com

 

 7:36 pm  Gourmet Food, Lifestyle & Leisure

La Tour, a new lesson in Clockmaking

Apr 212013
 
L'Epee Mechanical Clock

L’Epee Mechanical Clock

A major hit at the Baselworld Watch Fair this week was a new, mechanical clock from L’Epée, the Swiss based clock manufacturer.

La Tour is a clock in a completely new vein, with a power reserve of eight days. The clean, minimalist lines of its vertical structure are a canvas for beautiful “Côtes de Genève” motifs on the skeleton plates. The plates are finished in palladium or satin-finished gold.
Each clock is inscribed with an individual number which is recorded along with full details of the clock.
This mechanical sculpture is driven by the 1853 calibre with 18 jewels.
L’Epée was founded by  Auguste l’Epée in 1839. It became the “Manufacture l’Epée” (manufacture carrying connotations of manual craftsmanship). The company today is owned by Swiza SA Manufacture.
 7:15 pm  Art, Tableware, Watches

Ceramic Art of Kraznai

Apr 132013
 
Roger Kraznai Ceramics

Roger Kraznai Ceramics

Kraznai was winner of ‘New gift product’ at Top Drawer Spring 2012 and is currently exhibiting at the Salone del Mobile in Milan.

His collection – Arms and Crafts is proving ever popular among art collectors and lovers of ceramics and his current collection is inspired by the desire to find beauty in imperfect works.

Roger currently works from his studio in Badalona (Barcelona) where everything is handmade.

While visiting Budapest a few years ago, Roger bought a street sign saying ‘Krasznai Utca’, or Krasznai Street, which literally means ‘from Kraszna’, a town in Hungary. This superb ceramic studio takes its name from such an imaginary Krasznai street.

Here we present a snapshot of the pieces available in his present collection.

 

 3:48 pm  House & Home, Interior Designers, Tableware

Milan Furniture Fair

Apr 072013
 
Ornaments and Decorations at Milan

Ornaments and Decorations at Milan Furniture Fair – Open to public Tuesday 9th to Sunday 14th April 2013

It’s probably reasonable to suggest that if you haven’t heard of the Salone Internazionale del Mobile di Milano or more easily, The Milan Furniture Fair, then you’re probably not in the Furniture or Home Interior business.

Milan Furniture Fair Bedroom

Milan Furniture Fair Bedroom Layout

From 9th to 14th April, Milan will be playing host to the Saloni 2013, the largest Furniture trade fair in the world.

Being unveiled at this years fair will be previously unseen home furnishings, lighting and office solutions, along with the biennial Euroluce, International Lighting Exhibition and SaloneUfficio.

This is a huge affair and most of the City of Milan welcomes it – throughout the city are events linked to the worlds of design, art and culture, conceived with both the huge number of visitors to the Saloni and the Milanese themselves in mind.

The Salone Internazionale del Mobile di Milano was launched in 1961, with the original focus being Italian furniture.

The original sponsors were furniture manufacturers from the Federelegno-Arredo trade association.

The trade show grew in size over the years, allowing many of the 13,000 companies which comprised the global furniture industry to showcase their wares in a single event.

Some Facts:

Place: Milan Fairgrounds, Rho Date: Tuesday 9th to Sunday 14th April 2013

Time: from 9.30am to 6.30pm. Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th April, open to the public. SaloneSatellite: open to the public for the duration of the Saloni, from 9.30am to 6.30pm. Free entry.

Total participants: 1,950 + 700 designers of SaloneSatellite Net exhibition area: 201,000 square metres

Overall Exhibition Area: 530,000 square metres

 7:26 pm  Furniture, House & Home, Interior Designers

Louis Moinet, Inventor of the Chronograph

Mar 242013
 
Louis Moinet Chronograph

Louis Moinet Chronograph

It turns out that the first ever chronograph was created in 1816 by Louis Moinet in Paris.

Portrait of Louis Moinet

Portrait of Louis Moinet

The recent discovery of a previously unknown timepiece by Moinet is rewriting the history of watch development.

According to hallmarks on the dust cover of this timepiece, the chronograph was started by Moinet in 1815 and finished a year later – putting its completion well ahead of Adolphe Nicole’s patent of 1862.

Moinet originally made the timer to track the stars.

According to a letter he wrote in 1823, “I came to Paris in 1815 with the sole purpose of devising and making a ‘compteur de tierces’. The difficult and seldom attempted realisation of this instrument of a new construction, has achieved my purpose most satisfactorily.”

This instrument is of an entirely original design for its day. It measures events to the sixtieth of a second as indicated by a central hand. The elapsed seconds and minutes are recorded on separate subdials, and the hours on a 24-hour dial.

The stop, start and reset functions for the central hand are controlled by two buttons which qualifies it as a chronograph in the modern sense, although the term was coined much later.

 

 

 10:35 pm  Fashion, Watches

Sterling Silver Cufflinks inspired by components of classic cars

Mar 182013
 
sterling silver cufflinks

Sterling Silver Cufflinks inspired by the Gear Gate Shift of the 250 GTO Ferrari

GTO London specialise in a range of elegant men’s accessories inspired by the components of classic cars.

Components such as the five-speed metal gear gate shift of the rare Ferrari 250 GTO; the world’s most valuable car. These cufflinks are aptly named ‘Cambio 60s’ as the Ferrari 250 GTO was produced from 1962 to 1964. Only 39 cars were ever made.

The Cambio 60s are available in sterling silver or Real Ferrari Metal and with matching key fobs and lapel pins.

The 250 GTO London range is also available as a gift set along with the ’250 GTO wallet’ .

wallet-cufflink-gift-set

250 GTO Gift Set

Other car components cufflinks found in the current GTO London range include the Borrani ‘Triple Ear’ wheel spinner cufflinks, ‘Ignition key’ cufflinks, steering wheel cufflinks, Tyre tread cufflinks and  the ‘Carburettor Trumpet’ inspired cufflinks.

ignition key cufflinks

Ignition Key Cufflinks in Real Ferrari Metal

To view the complete GTO London range of cufflinks visit the GTO online store

 6:32 pm  Mens Accessories

Wallpaper with a difference

Mar 172013
 
Walters Jazz Bar

Walters Jazz Bar

Annette Taylor-Anderson designs wallpapers and murals that are a set apart.

For people who want something truly different for a nightclub, restaurant, bar or the home, these designs are truly original and eye catching.
All are limited editions and all are designs that can be tailored to suit the clients particular requirements. Every architect or interior designer should look at Annette’s portfolio for ideas.
Annette set-up ATADesigns in 2006 after graduating from the University in London.  While at University, she had already developed a keen sense of urban chic. Her style is reflected in her signature wallpaper designs that play upon this bold urban look.
 10:01 pm  House & Home, Interior Designers
Page 1 of 91 1 2 3 … 90 91