My New Blog for FT"s How To Spend It

Earlier this year I met Lady Martha Sitwell, horsewoman and founder of specialist clothes design company Sitwell & Whippet. Martha makes beautiful 'habits' for women to wear when riding sidesaddle, which I write about in my latest column for the FT's How To Spend It - you can read the full article here. 

Lady Martha Sitwell. Image: Rita Nowak

Martha told me that one of her heroines was Elisabeth (or 'Sisi'), Empress of Austria, born into Bavarian royalty in 1837 and assassinated by an Italian anarchist in 1898. Sisi was a dedicated horsewoman and probably the best known female equestrian at the time. She took up fencing in her fifties and only abandoned sports when her gout made it too painful to move. She was just as committed to her beauty regime, washing her waist-length hair in cognac, bathing in olive oil and going to sleep with a face mask of crushed strawberries and raw veal (!!) to improve her skin. 

Sisi, Empress of Austria

Elisabeth's name is often associated with a trilogy of romantic films about her life starring a teenage Romy Schneider:  

Martha is currently riding sidesaddle across Mongolia to raise money for the charity Mind. To make a donation, please visit this link. 

Martha photographed for Tatler Magazine, 2011

Vintage Clothes Shopping in Miami

My latest blog for How To Spend It is about C. Madeleine's, a 10,000 square foot warehouse with thousands of dresses, shoes, accessories and a staggering collection of costume jewellery. You can read the full article by clicking here. 

Madeleine with super-stylist Rachel Zoe

When I met the store's owner Madeleine Kirsch, I asked her who she considered to be Miami style icons - past or present. Her responses painted a fascinating picture of the city's fashion scene: 'There are two women from South Florida who changed the face of sophisticated shopping for thousands of ladies around the world. For me, they personified the golden era of retail. 

'The first is Lillie Rubin. She opened her first store in 1946 on Lincoln Road which is now the heart of South Beach. Her niche was party and evening clothes, and she also designed under her own label. At her peak, she had 70 stores and became a major influence on the styles for the coming season. 

'My second icon is Martha Phillips, a major force in luxury fashion retailing for more than 60 years. She was a front-row figure at major fashion shows around the world and a major booster of young designers such as Valentino, Halston, Oscar de la Renta and Zandra Rhodes. 

'The customers at her salons were some of the world's richest and most socially prominent women. When she passed away Mr de la Renta said it was "the end of an era" and that she was "the last of the great ladies of retail". 

Martha (seated) with her daughter Lynn Manulis

'I remember going into their Palm Beach and Bal Harbour shops with my mother and it was an experience you never forget. Stunning models would show you the latest styles as the customer sat back while her European trained tailors would alter pieces to create a perfect fit. The price was always steep but the boost to your ego these items emitted was priceless'. 

The New York Times published Martha's obituary in 1996. To read online click here. 

I really didn't want to leave Madeleine's incredible store but I had dragged my very patient father up there and I think he had maxed out on dress time. Plus we both had rumbling stomachs.. so I hailed a cab and we went for a late lunch at the Raleigh Hotel on South Beach before heading back to grey, cold London. I loved every minute I spent in Miami and can't wait to go back - taking two empty suitcases with me next time. 

Yasmin Yusuf's collection of vintage clothing

A while ago I met Yasmin Yusuf, creative director of Miss Selfridge. She has one of the biggest archives of vintage fashion in the UK and uses it as inspiration for her designs. I wrote about our encounter for How To Spend It - you can read the full article here - but as usual I have many more pictures I want to use. So here's a kind of illustrated appendix. Enjoy!

Yasmin is amazing. I could have listened to her stories for hours. 

Her collection includes vintage accessories, magazines and books as well as rails of clothing. In this stack of books you can see one by fashion illustrator Antonio Lopez. His drawings captured the spirit of the late 1970s and early 1980s - we have this book in our library at our studio in Ladbroke Grove. To see our full catalogue, please click here - customers can borrow whenever they like.

Illustration by Antonio Lopez

Being surrounded by so many beautiful vintage dresses gave me palpitations.. I think that's why I'm gripping the back of a chair here: 

The sequins on this original 1920s dress (below) are made from actual silver, carefully sewn on to mesh.

In the same room, I spotted a rail of beautiful plissé dresses from the Dorothy Perkins summer collection, including this one (below). It's available online in coral or black. 

The shape, pleated fabric and belt really reminded me of the dress Lauren Hutton wore to the Oscars in 1975. Her style looks so contemporary here:

Each item in Yasmin's collection is archived according to fabric and era, and she knows the story behind almost every piece.

Miss Selfridge began as the young fashion section of Selfridges department store in London in 1966, and their first mannequins were based on sixties style icon and model Twiggy. Visionary couturier Pierre Cardin also put his name to four collections a year. 

One of Yasmin's many vintage scrapbooks filled with samples from French lace mills. Her attention to detail is staggering.

On my way out the door I was given this amazing Miss Selfridge box clutch made from metallic jacquard fabric with gold peacock clasp. I took it on holiday with me to Miami the following week - seemed a bit too glam for dreary old England!

Talking of Miami... my next column for How To Spend It is about the time I met the owner of C. Madeleine's, one of the best vintage fashion boutiques in the US. Expect lots of blingy dresses. In the meantime, remember that Juno Says Hello is offering 20% off all in-studio purchases throughout the month of May. To make an appointment please get in touch. 

Photography by Stuart Beesley represented by Fox & Squirrel

Girls in Fast Cars

My latest blog for the FT's How To Spend It is on vintage cars. I spent an afternoon at Hexagon Classics in South Kensington and wanted to include a few more shots of the beautiful motors I saw there. In the blog I mention several famous women who loved their cars - and I couldn't resist adding a couple more photos and video clips to this post! An illustrated appendix, if you like. 

The 1963 Ferrari 250 GTE

In the blog I mention Twiggy's cameo in The Blues Brothers movie. She pulls up to a service station in a metallic E-Type and before too long Elwood is asking her out on a date. 

British actress Dame Diana Rigg was one of the first women on screen to be associated with cars. As Emma Peel in The Avengers, she drove a beautiful Lotus Elan...

On the big screen she became a Bond girl in On Her Majesty's Secret Service, playing Contessa Teresa di Vicenzo. Teresa goes by 'Tracy' because she feels 'Teresa' does not suit her (as she introduced herself to Bond, 'Teresa is a saint; I'm known as Tracy'). In addition to being the only Bond girl to actually marry 007, she got to whizz around in a Mercury Cougar XR7:

One of the most beautiful classic cars on screen is the 1958 Porsche 356 Speedster driven by Kelly McGillis in Top Gun:

I saw a similar model at the Vintage at Goodwood Festival a couple of years ago, having travelled down there with Juno Says Hello alumna Nash Jones (pictured). Sadly ours is the car on the right!

Elsewhere in my blog for the FT I mention Diana Dors' stunning 1949 Delahaye Roadster, which sold for $3m to a private collector in 2010. 

Marilyn Monroe was another Hollywood star with a beautiful motor. She used to roar around in a 1954 Cadillac... 

Sophia Loren had her 1955 Mercedes SL Gullwing... 

Rita Hayworth had a 1941 Lincoln Continental... 

Paulette Goddard (Mrs Charlie Chaplin) stepping into her Rolls Royce Phantom II...

One photographer who really loved shooting fashion alongside cars was John Rawlings. Here is a selection of his remarkable images, most of them from Vogue magazine archives: 

I'm not sure who took this photograph but I love how it captures swinging 1960s London: 

Kate Moss runs around town in a beautiful Mercedes SL Pagoda:

Hexagon Classics have a slightly different model - the Mercedes 190 SL - available at their South Kensington showroom at the moment. It's absolutely stunning: 

I think the first time I paid attention to cars was when my great aunt - Auntie Mel - showed me photographs from her time living in the United States. 

Check out the leopard print seats...!

She left behind this beautiful 1969 Mercedes SL when she passed away:

I'm trying to look cool and relaxed here but I was on my way to the dentist to have a root canal (glam) and in such a foul mood! My father has lovingly restored the car to its former glory and it is now in incredible condition. As a tall person it feels strange to be so low to the ground - I can barely see over the steering wheel - but it is a joy to drive. 

Read my full blog on cars for the FT here. 

New post for the FT: Art Deco

My latest blog for the FT's How To Spend It is on Art Deco jewellery. Researching this particular topic was an absolute delight and as I was writing, thousands of images sprang to mind. The following pictures act as a kind of illustrated appendix to my original blog for the FT. 

Oil paintings by Polish artist Tamara de Lempicka, whose 'soft cubism' style of painting became strongly associated with Art Deco:

The Sleeper, 1932

Portrait of Madame M, 1930

The dramatic shadows and contours of her paintings continue to inspire fashion today: 

Cutler & Gross look book

The artist at work. Note the outfit!

The silk gowns of Madeleine Vionnet and Madame Grès were very popular at the time. Their bias-cut designs created a new, liquid silhouette. Their dresses were worn by Greta Garbo, Katherine Hepburn and Marlene Dietrich. 

Two Vionnet gowns, 1930

Madame Grès gown, Vogue 1933

Maggy Rouff gown with smoked crystal cuff, 1934

Lelong gowns, c.1930s

Accordion-pleated gown, c.1930s

Marlene Dietrich

Joan Crawford

Tallulah Bankhead

Jean Harlow

Claire Trevor

Carole Lombard

Clark Gable & Constance Bennett 

Rita Johnson

Betty Grable

Everett Marshall & Dolores del Rio 

Dolores in a sequin gown

I visited the Bentley & Skinner shop on Piccadilly to look at their selection of Art Deco jewellery. My wire-haired dachshund came along for the ride, although she went to sleep as soon as the sparklers came out for a closer inspection. Obviously not as much as a magpie as her owner! 

In-house jewellery experts Rachel Warner and Amanda Frost had kindly pulled out a beautiful edit of their most striking pieces, including this brooch by Cartier: 

Art Deco brooch by Cartier 

You can view this brooch in their online boutique by clicking on this link. I also spotted some beautiful Art Deco engagement rings at Bentley & Skinner, including this very unusual diamond plaque and black enamel ring. 

The Great Gatsby has inspired an entire collection at Tiffany & Co, with models draped in sublime 1930s-inspired gowns:

Liu Wen for Tiffany & Co

An exhibition of Art Deco make-up boxes and miniature clutch purses - mini-audières or nécessaires - opens at Goldsmiths Hall at the end of this month. A book accompanies the display, 'Ultra-vanities: Bejewelled make-up boxes from the age of glamour' by Meredith Etherington-Smith. 

We have an exquisite Art Deco-inspired dress currently in stock at Juno Says Hello. Floor-length black tulle embellished with thousands of crystals. To view this gown in our online boutique, please click here. To browse our range of Art Deco dresses, follow this link. 

Dress from Juno Says Hello 

Dietrich was famous for her beautiful hands


Loretta Young


Miriam Hopkins


Crawford as Letty Lynton, 1932


Kitty Carlisle


Dorothy Lamour


Lilyan Tashman with her pals

The heroine of the age: Greta Garbo


Garbo nursing a Chambord martini


Jean Harlow in fur, satin and diamonds


Irene Dunne


A young Lucille Ball, c.1930s

To read my FT blog on Art Deco gems, please click on this link. 

The adventuresses of the 1930s were every bit as glamorous as the movie stars. I've just finished reading Beryl Markham's autobiography, West With The Night. One of the most fascinating women of the era, Beryl was the first woman to fly solo from across the Atlantic from east to west. 

As well as a pioneering aviatrix, Beryl was the first female racehorse trainer in Africa.  She married three times and had an affair with the son of George V.  Hemingway was so envious of her writing in West With The Night that he said 'I am completely ashamed of myself as a writer'. Her description of flying through the African skies at night made me wish I was a pilot. If you're looking for a holiday read - or simply escapism - this is the book. 

My next post will be on something much noisier than jewellery - vintage motors. Mercury Cougars, Mercedes SL 280s, Thunderbird Convertibles and the incredible women who drove them. Buckle up...