Kingdom Of Style

It's real, it really is...

 It's something we all do!

Take our surroundings for granted...

I'm still giddy from Berlin. The sights, the sounds and especially the buildings. 

And yet here I am ,surrounded by some of the most astonishing scenery and buildings in the world, that I almost forget is there!

Here in Central Scotland, we are surrounded by staggering heritage and history. We, many of us, literally drive past ancient castles every day, without even really seeing them anymore.

Castles like Stirling or Edinburgh have become just buildings glimpsed through a car or train window...

Edinburgh Castle

 Stirling Castle

But every now and then, something happens to make you literally stop dead in your tracks.

I was searching for an image of Striling Castle for a job this week when I came across this image... 

Holy Crap!!!!!

Was it real?

It looked real, but eeeeeeeek. How wonderful and other wordly was it.

Turns out, it is indeed very real. It is Dunnottar Castle

(I'm sure that by this point Prince B is laughing and shaking his head at my woeful ignorance)

Dunnottar Castle is situated in a dramatic setting on a cliff top near Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire. The castle remains includes the keep, the barracks, lodgings, stables and storehouses, chapel and drawing room. The Castle was the home of the Earls Marischal once one of the most powerful families in the land. The last Earl was convicted of treason for his part in the Jacobite rising of 1715, and Dunnottar was seized by the government. The buildings were much neglected until 1925 when the 1st Viscountess Cowdray started restoration work. The Castle is open to visitors.

 During the 9th Century King Donald II was killed defending Dunnottar Castle from a Viking invasion. The Vikings seized and destroyed the Castle. In the 12th Century Dunnottar Castle became a Catholic settlement. At various times, William Wallace, Mary Queen of Scots, the Marquis of Montrose and the future King Charles II, all stayed at the Castle. 

 When Oliver Cromwell invaded Scotland in 1650, Scottish Crown Jewels, the ‘Honours of Scotland’ were stored at Dunnottar Castle. Cromwell's army attacked the castle, and a small garrison held out for eight months and saved the jewels from destruction. The crown, sceptre and sword are now in Edinburgh Castle.

In 1685,167 Covenanters were imprisoned in the Whig's Vault below one of the buildings in the Quadrangle. Some took the oath of allegiance and were released, others died of starvation or died trying to escape. The rest were transported to the colonies.

Of course no ruined castle would be complete without a ghost.
 The spirit of a Pictish "green lady" has been seen in the brewery at the Castle. She is said to be looking for her "lost children" who are the Picts who converted from her religion to Christianity around the 5th Century AD.

This has just been added to my "to see" list for  later this year...

 

Queen Marie

pass the pie...

 I think I am going to pass a new law.

A new law that forbids healthy eating on Fridays.

Only delicious treats will be allowable.

There will be Pie for breakfast. Biscuits for lunch and Cake for afternoon tea.

Of course it goes without saying that there will need to be appropriate china ( or should that be porcelain) to accompany this revolution.

I shall therefore pass a further law that states, Friday shall henceforth be called Moominday and we shall use wonderful dishses like these items from the new Ariba Moomin collection. Founded in 1873, Arabia is Finland’s oldest and largest ceramics manufacturer. Today it is a trailblazer in modern Finnish design and part of the Iittala Group

Pie Dish

 

 

 

 

Biscuit Dish

 Cake Plate

You can find them all of course at Kingdom favourite Cloudberry Living

 They also make these darling little Moomin figurines. But I dare not even think about them, because there is scarcly a spare inch of surface to be found in The Palace as it is...

 

Arabia Finland’s Moomin Figurines date back to the 1950’s. The first miniatures were sculpted by Tove Jansson’s mother, Signe Hammarsten-Jansson. Decades later, in the early 1990s, Tuulikki Pietilä continued the tradition and designed new Moomin sculptures for Arabia on basis of original drawings by Tove Jansson. The figurines are made from porcelain

Little My Figurine £26.00Snorkmaiden Figurine £26.00 

.
So people, put away your healthy snacks and prepare to crash the goodies...

 Queen Marie

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Time For Lucette

As much  as I love to feature new labels, I also like to continually visit regulars. One such regular is Aussie label Lucette, which I've been writing about each and every season for a long time now.

I initially fell in love with the lookbook they sent me and then they actually sent me some clothes, meaning I got to experience the label properly, and from there I was really hooked. Writing about beautiful clothes is one thing, but actually getting to experience the clothes in real life makes understanding the label so much better.

You can never truly tell if the workmanship is all that good unless you get to poke and prod a garment, and since I feature lots of labels from countries I'll most likely never get to see, I have to take a leap of faith and assume the finishing and fabrics are up to scratch.

Having actually experienced Lucette for myself, it's become a constant in my wardrobe now. The biker jacket they sent me last season has been unsurpassed in terms of quality and design, and I wear it every chance I get. Admittedly, some of the best pieces I simply don't fit into any more, but that doesn't detract from the fact it's a firm favourite for me.

This season they have produced another body of killer wardrobe staples with very edgy and understated details, which keep it all looking very unique and not quite like anything else which is out there.

This is a winter collection from the label, which is actually ideal for Scottish, and British, summers.

Queen Michelle

All In Knots

Eleanor Amoroso is a designer whom I've featured before for her exceptionally creative use of macrame.

I caught up with the designer and asked her a couple of questions about her latest collection.

 What inspired you this time? Is it still Japanese Rope bondage, as the aesthetic feels like a continuation of last season. 

The collection is a continuation of my previous work. I feel I have developed a signature technique, and each season I seek to explore the different possibilies this technique has. For Spring/Summer I was interested in the unusual, twisted shapes that I could form with the knots. It was about creating increasingly sculptural pieces. I feel like each season is a development and each collection inspires the next.

For Autumn/Winter I focussed on using a more uniform knot and repeatiting it over and over to create seperate pieces which were then hand-sewn together. Again, each piece is entirely handmade by myself and primarily held together by knots. Texture was my main focus this time, but the pieces are clearly influenced by the sculptural pieces of last season. I wanted to make the collection more suitable for winter as my previous collection was much more light and floaty - the new pieces are thicker and heavier and have a much greater volume of  the loose fringing. I used feathers to create a fur effect without actually using fur, and contrasting copper hardware details.

 You always manange to straddle the space between fashion and knitwear design with your use of macramé, which always feels edgy and boundary pushing and never twee, do you feel there is still so much left to explore with this craft? 

I draw inspiration from crafts and unusual textures, but what I am most inspired by is the Macrame technique and the endless possibilities it sems to have. As I work I think of new ways of using the craft and new silhouettes and textures that can be created through the different materials used and different ways the knots can be manipulated. I feel like there is more to explore with this craft and things that can be done which I have not yet touched on. I think it is an exciting and modern form of 'knitwear'.

 I was initially drawn to your work because  you seem to have that flare for the dark and the dramatic and seem very uncompromsing. But do you feel pressured into making more toned own creations, more commercial designs? 

In terms of 'toning down' or making more 'commercial' pieces, I do see an importance, athough I dont want to lose what makes the pieces so special. I feel like a lot of their beauty comes from their awe, and the fact they are all hand-knotted. I am however looking at encorporating different fabrics and making pieces that can be worn more readily. I love making the showpieces but I understand that I am also running a business now. I think that some of the AW12 pieces show a move towards this.

I am also continuing with making jewellery pieces which are less time consuming and therefore producable on a larger level. This season I have focussed on statement cuffs, but also make macrame necklaces using the same materials as the garments.

Queen Michelle

Kriss Kross

I am working on an exciting little project and it requires me to think about bras.

You know, that little peep of your bra when there is some side boob action? That glimpse of pretty lace always makes me feel all summery and ready to actually (well, maybe) bare my arms.

It sort of reminds me of when I was perhaps 17 or so, and how I would catch my boyfriend stealing glances at my tanned, bare shoulders, which had just a hint of my bra strap showing, thinking about what was underneath, in that way teenage lovers do. Kind of sweet and almost untainted. Back then, the sun was always shining and everything felt so innocent.

Pretty underwear can do this. It can evoke moods, memories and auras. Come summer time, I ditch the strapped, bondage style of my Nichole de Carle and Bordelle lingerie, and favour Damaris and Mimi Holliday and all things little and lace.

I get really disappointed when I don't get to go to the Lingerie Collective press events each season, as they introduce me to so many amazing labels. One such label is Kriss Soonik, which is described as a "lingerie and loungewear" brand.

This label is, simply put, perfect.

There is lace and mesh triangle bras a-plenty, but the loungewear is actually massively versatile as outerwear. Velvet bloomers and coverups easily translate into an everyday wardrobe. I am especially fond of the vest with attached suspenders - very, very sexy in an understated way. Worn with opaque stockings, this would be a brilliant look.

I shall, as you can imagine, be buying up a large bulk of this shop to add to my already bulging lingerie drawer.

Overall, this is a just beautiful little label.

Queen Michelle

Temple of light and glass...

Yesterday saw the birthday of one of my favourite architects, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, celebrated with a google doodle...

 

Marking the 126th birth anniversary of the German-born architect ,the building in the Google doodle is the Crown Hall at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. The building houses its College of Architecture and is commonly regarded as his finest work.

Mies created an influential twentieth century architectural style, stated with extreme clarity and simplicity. His mature buildings made use of modern materials such as industrial steel and plate glass to define interior spaces. He strived towards an architecture with a minimal framework of structural order balanced against the implied freedom of free-flowing open space. He called his buildings "skin and bones" architecture. He sought a rational approach that would guide the creative process of architectural design.

If I had a pound for every time, I use his aphorisms "less is more" and "God is in the details", I would be a very rich Queen indeed!

But for me, nothing comes close to the New National Gallery in Berlin

The famous "temple of light and glass" was opened in 1968. 

 By the time we got there on the Saturday, both Telford and I were feeling a little tired and emotional. He was even more emotional, or should that be pissed off, when he found out that there would be no gazing at his beloved Kandinsky or Klee. Although the fact that he had only had about 6 hours sleep in the previous 3 days , might also have had something to do with that!!!

The Gallery divides it's collection to show and during our visit, that collection was -Divided Heaven. 1945 - 1968. The Collection. Neue Nationalgalerie
11 November 2011 - 31 March 2013. While upstairs was "Panorama" a retrospective of the work of Gerhard Richter. 

All the work and the artists we were dreaming of seeing were part of -'Modern Times. The Collection 1900-1945'.  Any excuse for another visit to Berlin...

 I wish we could have seen it as 'open' as this...

Although I was super happy to see 'The Big A' 

As cliched as it sounds, it really is an inspirational building and I truly cannot wait for my next visit.

 

Queen Marie

Just Because

The sun makes me daydream. And I'm currently daydreaming about:

Sister Jane dress from ASOS:

Kooples goodies:

Topshop neon bralette:

The mix of pale blue, black and leopard:

Being this balletic:

That's all.

Queen Michelle

a little love and a new lease of life...

Sometimes I yearn for simpler times.

A time when things were crafted with love and made to last.

Today's world  seems mainly driven by convience and consumption.Mass produced items, sold cheaply and then disposed of.  

Driving to work, I always feel vaguely dispirited and depressed by the sight of furniture lying in the street waiting for the dustman and their large lorries. Used, abused and heading for a landfill, even the mankiest old leather couch, someohow always looks forlorn to me.

Even sadder than the heaps of cast aside ikea, is when you see a 'proper' piece of furniture. Like a lovely old wooden chair with a broken leg.

Thank Goodness then for people like the wonderful Furniture Magpies

Furniture Magpies offers an alternative to mass produced furniture, specialising in regenerating old furniture to meet the desires of modern consumers.

They create one off and limited edition pieces breathing new life into otherwise discarded items. Their work strives to retain the character and story of the furniture they use, allowing the user an insight into their items original identity.

They don’t believe in good furniture going to landfill when it can be redesigned into a piece that people can love all over again.

I for one, love all of these pieces and would be delighted to give them a home in The Palace...

 

 

 

Imagination, patience and love has produced these wonderfully quirky and loveable things.

Thank you Furniture Magpies on behalf of broken furniture everywhere...

 

Queen Marie

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Weak Day

I still moan and bitch about the fact we have neither a Weekday store nor a Weekday online store, meaning we don't get to partake of that wonderful, minimal aesthetic that the Scandinavians do well. Sure, we have easy access to  labels like Acne, but for most of us a wardrobe full of Acne just in't really doable on account of the cost. But Weekday is so affordable that you could indeed fill your closet with well cut, basic pieces without breaking the bank.

I do frequently peruse the site and make little shopping lists of what I'd buy if only they'd open a pesky online shop. Monki did it, so perhaps Weekday will too.

Thankfully, I have a lovely blog friend Kamichi, who often takes trips to Weekday, and on her last visit to the shop she picked me up a really simple t-shirt dress I'd had my eye on. I wanted it for the summer months, but on colder spring days it's also works perfectly worn with tights.

I am really into simplicity at the moment. No fuss, no layering, just paired down simplicity.

The dress itself has a lovely structure with a short front and longer back, a silhouette which is plentiful in my wardrobe, and wore it with my linen Jean Pierre Braganze jacket, Nelly collar, Marketa clutch, Burberry Prorsum shoes and black tights. I've stripped it all back to the bare essentials and nothing more.

Queen Michelle

Buttons in Berlin...

I love buttons.

Always have. Always will.

My wee gran used to have a button box that she kept in the wardrobe and as a child I spent countless hours sorting through them all. If that box had been filled with emeralds and rubies, they could not have delighted  my small eyes and hands anymore than those wonderful buttons.

I often buy buttons that I fall in love with and then just keep in a drawer. Which is wrong on so many levels. The poor little things never get a chance to live a life and have lots of button adventures.

But I promise that is all about to change!

I am going to liberate them all...

I'm sure this freedom pledge, will be music to the ears of Paul, the owner of Knopf Paul in Berlin.  A man so passionate about buttons, he describes them saying - "Buttons are feeling transporters, they're the ferrymen from the inside to the outside of yourself," 

For me, Berlin wasn't just about Berghain it was about buttons, and in Berlin, that means a visit to Knopf Paul.

Handmade, handpainted, vintage, modern, each one of them has been collected and is now sold by Paul and his charming staff from their Kreutzberg Store.

You have never seen anything like it. It is a virtual button wonderland. Countless thousands of buttons. Every size and shape you can imagine. Buttons as far as the eye can see...

I could have spent every euro I had. But instead I chose the buttons that spoke to me most. I will show you them all next week.

I did of course, take them out of my case, when I got home and put them somewhere safe. So safe that I can't find them now.  Arghhhhhhhh

 If you get the chance, take the time and visit for yourself .

I'm sure you will love it as much as we did.

 Zossener Str. 10

 Berlin-Kreuzberg

 www.paulknopf.de/

 

Queen Marie

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