Category: High Street
Beans on Toast x
Just the name Toast takes on a whole new meaning when the temperatures start to drop and the smell of fallen leaves mixed with wood smoke permeates the air.
Their clothes capture that louche, appreciation of nature vibe: Loose cuts, soft textures, muddy palette.
If that’s not enough, not only do they do the best classic grey long cashmere cardigan.
(All pics Toast)
But each one of their eleven shops has a shelf filled with books from customers and staff. Inside each books are hand written notes, explaining how the book has enriched the sharer. Visit a shop to share your own book and take one in return. Genius.
Laters, Kate x
Raise it up x
All I want for Autumn-slash-winter is a pair of Docs.
The reasons are multiple…
– Aesthetically pleasing
– A true classic
– One size fits all i.e. No different for either men or women.
Which is a very satisfying comment on life.
(All pics Pinterest)
Because these boots were made for walking.
Laters, Kate x
Trans-seasonal x
So here’s the thing – weather in London, in September – particularly this year – is unpredictable. If the sun does make an appearance there’s the flash of late summer burn, but just as easily the sun can disappear in an instant to be replaced by a cold wind and threatening clouds. What to do? One solution are the 2-in-one coats from Arket. Surprisingly simply yet remarkably flexible they’re an unfussy solution to an autumn – and potentially winter – dilemma.
The clever puffa-slash-underjacket comes in a choice of long sleeves…
(All pictures Arket)
Or vest.
I will be trying both the mens and the womens before making a decision.
Laters, Kate x
Earth. Food. Love.
Earth. Food. Love is the living proof that stereotypes get it wrong.
Set up by former footballer, Richard Eckersley and his wife, Nicola Earth.Food.Love is a revolutionary zero waste supermarket in Totnes, Devon, where all packaging is banned.
Customers are expected to bring their own pots, jars, bags to carry their produce home.
Amongst the razor blades and bamboo toothbrushes with replaceable bristles, there’s even a grind your own nut butter machine.
‘We want to live in a world where consuming doesn’t have to cost the earth. We believe returning to these simple ways will benefit not only our health, but the planet too.’
Fingers crossed this is the start of a new trend, coming soon to a High Street near you..
Laters, Kate x
Arket x
Arket is the new concept child of H&M and translates to ‘a sheet of paper’.
One can only think this relates to blank, ie a change of direction.
It will cater for men, women, children and homewares, but there will be a conscious focus away from High Street principals of pile em high, sell em cheap, to sustainability, durability and quality, but with an eye on affordability.
It says it’s offering ‘Staples in varying weights’ – a concept to embrace.
And opens in the UK on 25 August.
One for the diary.
Laters, Kate x
Labour And Wait x
God the eighties were fun…the smoking, the staying up partying all night then going into work then fishbowls of Chardonnay at 5. No gym, no clean food, just living life to the full and never worrying about the consequences. People behaved badly but oh how we laugh, we laughed every single day. Until recently I thought rather than marking an era this was just a rite of youthful passage. Now I’m not so sure. There’s a modern contagion that’s spreading through all walks of life to constantly do as much as possible..and do it fast. Life is serious, focused and controlled, it’s either join the ranks or be left behind. Walk into an office and there’s no frantically ringing phones or waft of cigarette smoke, it’s all green algae juices and mindfulness. Which is maybe why the pull of any type of nostalgia is still strong for me and why shops such as Labour and Wait will always float my traditional wooden sailing boat.
Labour and Wait sell the sort of things you’ve always needed but didn’t know where to find, unless it was an Enid Blyton book or an Agatha Christie mystery.
I’m slowly replacing all my pound shop plastic for their built-to-last-wholesome-simplicity.
This is sourcing the best in life. But learning not to take it too seriously.
Laters, Kate x
Flashback x
They say the true cycle of fashion is thirty years. It seems a lot quicker than that to me…but maybe that’s because time is slipping through my fingers at an ever increasing rate. I can certainly remember this micro-trends first outing back in the eighties. The key then was vintage, naturally well-worn ripped mens’ 501s with classic black fishnets and either DMs or pointed flats.
(As someone who knows: The larger meshes and little toes never mix. Soz).
Laters, Kate x
Blasted x
AW17 Celine catwalk hit the runway this week, rich with Philo’s finger on the zeitgeist: Oversized tailoring, hints of the eighties and mannish overcoats.
Not so far away in terms of style, but millions of miles when compared in price, high street store Mango has also seized on these ghosts from the past…..and run with them.
And I’m sprinting after them..
Laters, Kate x
New Weave x
The summer has broken here with a bang; I think we’re having the full whack of autumn rains today. We walked into school, avoiding some of the puddles and laughing at everyone gridlocked in their cars, all nicely showered but still afraid of water! It was chaos.
It’s brought fall dressing to a head though, and there’s nowhere better for browsing transitional classics than Toast. This group of clothes is from their OAS range, which stands for Ordinary Attire Studio and are also the three letters at the heart of Toast.
The design aesthetic of simplicity, durability and wearability at it’s core.
It’s workwear reinterpreted for easy workday wear in the modern world.
It’s everything you want in your wardrobe really.
Laters, Kate x
Bags of love x
It was on Wednesday when the realisation struck that I was already down to one pair of school socks between the two of them. I high-tailed it to Oxford street, partly because I wanted speed…partly because I had an ulterior motive: A few weeks ago, after years of drought, I’d spotted that the stalls selling the touristy type of tat usually avoided had started selling designer rip-offs again. I’m not a great fan of faking it make it..except if you want to do something a bit radical.
I’ve been wanting to cover a recognisable designer bag in junk for sometime (sort of inspired by Anya Hindmarch, but also by an earlier random street style photo of someone carrying a battered Louis Vuitton bag covered in sewn on patches). This is just the start – the idea is to cover as much of the bag as possible.
Except maybe the back.
Laters, Kate x
Maison Bentley Style 