What a whirlwind this summer turned out to be, and that is without any travel further than the beaches of Malibu. How are you doing out there? Nervous system feeling a bit shot? I think we can all relate. To me, it feels that the furious pace of everything since summer began is something to push back against. We have been doing a bit of that over here, being closed here and there for a little much needed time to rest, but mostly here with great enthusiasm and true joy at seeing our lovely clients. As a little treat, we have put together a rack of archival wardrobe pieces priced at a 25-75% discount to help us make room for the new pieces that we are working on. I hope you'll swing by to have a look and find something special to take home with you. The sale applies only to stock on hand, on the sale rack, and not to any custom or special orders.
On the topic of special orders, I hope you can join us on Wednesday, October 16th for a shopping event with Pamela Barish. Pamela is a dear friend and our former neighbor here on Main Street. We miss her every day, so it's always wonderful to spend a day with her and her beautiful collection here in our space. She still designs and creates her glamorous pieces here in Los Angeles, which is more and more rare, and is one reason for her ardently loyal fan base. If you know her, you love her. If you don't, you're in for a treat!
We have beautiful new treasures in the store at the moment. I am especially fond of our new molded bezel set tourmaline rings, and this moonstone cabochon ring, which happened to find its forever home the same day it arrived. That tends to happen over here quite regularly. We have another one in the works, as well as some beautiful and delicate stacking rings with sapphires, tourmalines, and diamonds. These make lovely and truly special gifts, not that we are there yet... but with the beginning of fall my thoughts turn towards the upcoming season, and what I think might make perfect gifts for special occasions or for a personal treat.
I think this very beautiful, handmade chain link necklace would make anyone incredibly happy, which ultimately is the goal of a significant piece of jewelry. The effect of the little flower beads on each loop makes the overall feeling very lacy and substantial, straddling that perfect balance of delicate and strong that I personally love. This piece can be worn as a traditional necklace of course, but also as a lariat with an adjustable length. The handmade, diamond accented clasp can be fastened onto any one of the links.
We also have a new pair of earrings with the most vibrant, robin's egg blue vintage turquoise cabochons and gorgeous, silvery keshi pearls. Keshi pearls are the natural by-product of pearl farming in Japan, and therefore have a completely organic shape and extremely fine lustre. They are comprised of pure nacre, which makes them incredibly luminous and gives them a satisfying weight and feeling in the hand. They are my favorite pearls, always have been, and are becoming increasingly hard to find. This one-of-a-kind pair is especially beautiful. They remind me of little gemstone birds.
On the wardrobe front, it was a wonderful summer for our Liberty of London cotton print blocked skirts, both the
Brigitte, (which sold out several times) and a new, longer wrap skirt modeled on a vintage skirt that I remember my mother having when I was growing up. It has pockets, and a waist defining, wide tie that is long enough to wrap around twice, or tie and let the long sash fall along the side or back. For this season we are making them in silk, perfect for wearing with a turtleneck or cozy sweater, or our silk charmeuse Isobel blouse, creating a softer looking suit. If you found yourself living in the cotton version over the summer, I suspect you'll absolutely love the silk in either crepe de chine or charmeuse.
We also have a new camisole, Cora... with a print blocked bodice in Liberty of London 100% silk charmeuse, that is heaven. We worked on the pattern for ages, and it is finally exactly the way I had envisioned. Not an easy feat, and our pattern maker probably doesn't want to hear from me for awhile, but completely worth the effort on all fronts. Our process is truly the opposite of fast fashion. We take a long time with every step, being thoughtful about what we choose to make, which is often guided by the desires of our lovely clients, and then taking orders rather than producing quantities of size or style.
For one such client, we just perfected a new shell top with a gorgeous neckline: Ariadne, that I am excited to share with everyone. It is perfect for slipping on underneath a cardigan or blazer, when you want a little more coverage than a thin strapped camisole provides. A long dress version is in the works too, perfect for when our ever popular Ava slip dress feels too bare, or when the weather is cooler and calls for more fabric. There is nothing quite as nice as swishing around in a silk slip dress, I've found.
I like to keep it simple after a morning at the farmer's market, which is best when the raw materials are this good. Last week, I found bouncy heads of frisée and a beautiful bunch of chives to serve with runny poached eggs and that insanely delicious Danish Rugbrød from
Jyan Isaac bakery. To this, add a cultured french butter and a nice comté cheese to create a perfect midday meal. You don't really need a recipe for any of this, just the high quality ingredients that make this kind of meal really outstanding. I suggest whisking up a vinaigrette for the frisée with dijon, shallots, lemon juice, champagne vinegar, extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper... super simple. We are so fortunate to have such dedicated growers at our farmer's market, supplying us with delicious and truly nourishing food all year long. I feel grateful every single week, and never more so than in the late summer/early fall when everything just seems ripe to bursting with flavor.
If you're feeling a tad more ambitious, you can make a loaf of Irish Soda Bread, which is not only delicious, but incredibly satisfying to bake. My dear friend Trina McKillen shared her recipe with me, and I've been making it quite a lot lately. It's so satisfying and nourishing, and comes straight from a proper Irish lass, who happens to be an insanely talented
artist as well as masterful baker. I did substitute whole milk kefir for the buttermilk last time, and it worked brilliantly. Miller's bran is simply wheat bran, which I was happy to discover... and I recommend lining the loaf pan with parchment paper, using olive oil spray to grease the pan and paper, then bake away. It's SO easy and truly tastes like heaven toasted with a little bit of butter in the mornings.
I hope you're enjoying the transition from summer to fall, and that you have the chance to swing by soon to see what we have been up to for the past few months. There are new jewelry and wardrobe pieces that have yet to make it onto the website, but are in store for you to see and feel. Honestly, that is the best way to discover what you might need for the upcoming season. I am putting in my personal orders now, and encourage you to do the same before the holidays are upon us. They always have a way of arriving sooner than we think!
Enjoy,
