It's a clear thing

As I was indulging in a small spot of blog browsing the other day, I stumbled upon a post that, I’m not quite sure why, really got me thinking. May I present the see through Hermès Kelly bag – Plastic Edition 1996.

Obviously no way near as wonderfully manufactured and fetching as the real mccoy, I still thought that this was so funny!

But let me quickly introduce the ‘real’ Kelly bag.. Hermès launched it in 1935 as the Sac à dépêches, but it didn’t become famous until 1956, when Grace Kelly (then Princess of Monaco) used one to hide her pregnancy from the prying eyes of the paparazzi. It was promptly renamed ‘The Kelly’ in honour of Princess Grace. The bag comes in a variety of sizes, with prices starting at $7,000 and easily trumping $50,000! It takes a single craftsman about 18 hours to make a Kelly bag, which can be customized to the buyer’s specifications.

Now a Hermès Kelly (or a Birkin for that matter – one much closer to my heart) is one of those über fashion classics that I’ve always dreamt of having. You invest a sum of money in an amazing bag ONCE, that will accompany you for the rest of your life and will never date. (Any Hermès bag in any condition can be brought into their ateliers, where it will be restored to pristine condition free of charge!) Bliss. It’s one of those pieces where I’m a firm believer that either you invest the money in the real deal, or you buy a completely different bag.

Nevertheless this plastic number really tickled my fancy. I must admit I don’t know the actual price that it was sold for, but I definitely would consider a purchase! I simply think it’s super fun!

But... Let’s think about this more seriously. Who’s more stupid – the consumer (Me!) or the producer (Mr Hermès)? The consumer is 99.9% certainly paying a LOT of money for, yarrr, some plastic in an iconic shape. Namely, the producer is a genius. They’ve managed to convince us that this shape is SO iconic and SO desirable that we’re quite willing to ignore the fact that we’re not really getting the quality, but paying the quantity.

Or is the producer stupid? Surely they’re ripping themselves off? They’re downgrading from the finest quality leather (if the cow has so much as a bee sting, the leather isn’t used) to, yarrr,, some plastic. It’s allowing the likes of Emma from next door to own a Kelly. Then again this is probably amazing publicity for a bag? Emma owning the budget bag, an ideal indication that the bona fide bag is for the beguiling and beautiful bag lady. I’ve lost the plot.

However the bottom line remains - I’d love this bag and I think it’s great!

21

So on 21.12.2012 the world is going to end. (Correct me if I’m wrong, but wouldn’t it be more poetic is it was the 20.12.2012 or the 21.12.2112?)

If I had lots of time left (and was as sceptical about my future as the Mayans are being) I would obviously create a personal list of 21 things to do before the 21^st while aged 21. Sadly there’s not much time left before the 21^st so I’ll condense the list to 10 things I’d like to do…

 1.  Spend a day frolicking in London with all my nearest and dearest – art galleries, restaurants and shopping galore!

2. Host a delightfully lavish dinner party (à remembering that money isn’t an issue, I won’t be needing any anymore anyway, so I’d really splurge!)

3. Invite someone I’ve been meaning to get in contact with for ages but haven’t to said dinner part

4. Invite someone excessively outrageous to said dinner party, purely for entertainment

5. Cook ALL the food for ALL the courses from scratch for said dinner party

6. Skype call the person furthest away from me in the world right now

7. Read a novel in a whole sitting without leaving the sofa (only to go to the loo)

8. Buy a Celine Boston bag

9. Go for a ride / on a hack with my sister dear

10. Spend an evening in front of the fire with magazines and books and a cup of tea. And someone to give me a shoulder massage.

Why I like a good Christmas Jumper

Earlier I read this article on the Sabotage Times (a personal procrastination pleasure) - 'Christmas Jumpers Are For Wankers' and immediately felt I had to fight my ground. Firstly, and somewhat beside the point, 'Wankers' is a wee bit aggressive and derogatory kind sir! Personally my stance with journalism is that one shouldn't spew profanities (I enunciate them clearly, like a fucking lady).

However more to the point, I myself am the proud owner of a fine Christmas jumper, very much akin to this little number on the right, and I really am rather fond of it. Made of 100% wool, it is one of the few seasonal items in my wardrobe that will actually give me some warmth. Considering that in super snowy Switzerland the peak temperature today was -4 degrees celsius, I am very grateful for this. But on a less pragmatic note, I do rather like it. Like anything fashion, it's a little statement - this one seasonal.

Mr. George Springthorpe's grudge with these seasonal sweeties is the apparent 'where's your Christmas Spirit?' attitude towards the non-wearers. Well George, I'd like to take this moment to say that, like most of my fashion choices, I wear this jumper to please myself - whether for warmth, comfort or that innate inner 'tee hee, I'm wearing a Christmas jumper!' feeling to perk up a cold and gloomy December. I'm not inflicting any forced Christmas Spirit on you and I'm certainly no W****r thank you. Remember, I'm a fucking lady.

A right royal baby!

Congratulations Kate & Wills, 'our' royal baby is on the way!! Some may whinge that they took their time, but honestly (not that it's any of our business really...) they really couldn't have timed it better... 2012 was the year of the British, but the birth of Baby Wales / Windsor in will ensure that Britain will stays firmly on the global radar into 2013!

On another note, maternity clothing is going to develop a WHOLE new royal concept! Oh and gutted for K-Mids that she won't be having Champers and Mulled Wine this Christmas though..

With my fingers in lots of pies

I've always been a huge Ab Fab fan. Such fun! Like most women, I can definitely sometimes relate to Eddy. Perhaps more than I'd like to admit..! But there are certain quotes that definitely strike a chord for me, such as:

Eddy: "I've got my hands in loads of pies darling. Darling! Sweetie! EDDY PIE HANDS!"

While neither Eddy nor myself literally have our hands in loads of pies (I've never been a pie person..) Eddy is obviously referring to metaphorical pies - the variety of jobs, projects and businesses she's got on the go. And this is the pickle I'm sort of finding myself in at the moment. 

I finished university in the summer; with a good degree, from a good university. As an English and History graduate my opportunities are endless, which is great! Fab. So far I've interned in journalism, marketing, PR, event managing and am hoping to also do a publishing internship... 

So far I've really enjoyed all of my placements and could easily have stayed on in each job. But when do I specialise? When do I choose? HOW do I choose?  Can I be an event planning, marketing, journalism PR consultant? Gah. The opportunities are just too many! So many men jobs, so little time. 

Wake me up!

I've come to the conclusion that, in the long and short, having a job simply means one thing - getting up at a certain time in the mornings...99.9% of the time earlier than one would like to. To make this as pleasant as possible, it's vital to start the day well. Yes yes, breakfast is mega important blah blah. But even before that, one factor plays a huge role in a morning routing. The alarm clock. Oh yes. This little friend is the one who tears you from your blissful slumber, awakens you from your pleasurable dreams and confronts you with the reality of your working day. What a little shitter.

To make this brutal awakening as bearable as possible, I firmly believe that one should be well acquainted with one's alarm clock and only use the best possible method. Should it really be your phone? I divulge..

The mobile phone - my go to favourite. Always on me, always a safe bet. Word of caution: it would be wise to use an 'alarm tone' rather than a song/MP3 file. If I use a song and then hear it during the day, my body goes into shock. True story.

The mother - a gentle awakening..perhaps a kiss, perhaps a cup of tea. Aaaah. Then again it makes me want to say "Mummy I can't go in today, I feel sooo poorly!"

The wake up light - from the likes of Philips etc. Claims to 'imitate the natural waking up process through sunlight' and often accompanied by technological tweeting of birds. Way too freaky.

The classic - I got given a really cute Snoopy alarm clock when I was about 12. It was one of those really old-school kinds with the bells on top. Sooo retro. When it went off I nearly pooped my pants and had a heart attack. It is now decoration only. (and obviously tells the time...)

Therefore my advice? None of them are pleasant, but it's probably safest to go with your phone alarm. Realistically you'll have it on you anyway. Oh and place it on the opposite side of the room, then you physically have to leave the bed to turn it off.

LBJ

I am currently silently weeping into my laptop at the fact that I'm not in London. If there's one thing I'd love to see, it's the Little Black Jacket exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery. Lagerfeld and Roitfeld, you've worked wonders.

Come Dine With Me

Now that I have a pad of my own, I figured that it was about time that I threw a swell dinner party. Obviously I’d have one for my friends and loved ones and I suppose family, but this, my friends, is my ideal dinner party guest list (of Brits only) along with a nice memo of why I’d invite them. Oh and please do note my consideration regarding numbers – one girl to every boy (seeing as I am a girl and will obviously be taking part, there must be one more boy than girl on the guest list).

The females

·      The Queen: this woman has pure class and is probably one of the most fascinating people to talk to.

·      J.K. Rowling: she developed Harry Potter (i.e. the greatest story / plots / concepts / characters of all time) and therefore I inevitably must meet her personally.

·      Adele: she is single handily taking over the world. (21 got 6 Grammys, 2 Brits and is the 7^th biggest selling album EVER in the UK and she’s singing the theme for the new Bond film Skyfall

·      Alexa Chung: my sister sometimes lovingly refers to me as Alexa. I guess we both have brown hair, a similar face shape and are both lanky. This (sadly) is where the similarities end. She has buckets of style and a Mulberry bag named after her. (One of which she’ll hopefully bring me as a house warming gift...)

The males

·      Prince Harry: he’s great.

·      Boris Johnson: I simply want to know what all the hype is about – is he really as down-with-the-kids as his clever PR wants us to believe? Or is he in fact as ‘commercial’ as various BBC articles have whispered? He definitely seems vociferous and dishevelled but there’s nothing shambolic about his mind or soft about his ambition... He also likes to chat in Latin over lunch. Thankfully not dinner.

·      David Tennant: yes, I used to have an odd little crush on him. When his Doctor Who put on his glasses and went all crazy clever I simply wanted to be there, hold his hand and say: Doctor, it’s going to be fine.

·      Stephen Fry: he is simply fantastic. I don’t even know where to begin singing his praises. Perhaps most usefully to the dinner party scenario is that he’s an incredible raconteur and apparently an exceptional after dinner speaker. (He also voices the Harry Potter recording, which I have spent many MANY an hour listening to…)

·      Ed Westwick: he’s originally from the UK! Shimply shmokin’ nuff said. Oh and Chuck Bass isn’t half bad either.  

Life is a Highway

Monday morning 11.30am. We’d just had our weekly editorial meeting and everyone had rushed back to their various articles / beauty reviews / fashion collaborations. I had met the deadlines that I had been set and was waiting to hear from my editor what format he wanted me to write the next article in, so couldn’t really start anything. My ever so brief moment of pondering on what to do was quickly forgotten, when said editor questions: “Lisa is your afternoon today really busy?” Um no. “Ok, could you pick up the car for me?” Now before you label me the magazine minion / Meryl Streep’s bitch in The Devil Wears Prada, I think it’s important to point out, that in every issue of the magazine someone test drives a car and reviews it, a job I was secretly hoping to get, but that doesn’t go to the interns. So obviously I was being sent to fetch this car.

An hours train journey later I was at the Toyota dealership sat in a sparkling brand new Toyota Yaris Hybrid. Easy. Not so much. The car had so many functions and features I barely knew where to look. But it was only then that the situation became clear in my naïve mind… Picture little Lisa: proud owner of a British driving licence for 3-and-a-bit years. I drive a manual, 52 reg VW Polo (class of 2002) on the deserted country lanes of the Cotswolds. Here I was in a so-new-it-still-smelt-new fully automatic Hybrid and being told to just drive into Zurich; i.e. motorway AND inner city driving all on the right hand side of the road. Un-ideal at the best of times.

I just figured that the more I thought about it, the more I would freak out, so I may as well just drive and drive I did! Whilst I’ll spare you all the technical jargon, it was a surprisingly smooth drive and the male satnav voice was very friendly…I fo sho trust this guy!

Apart from the odd panic here and there, I made it back to the office in one piece. I was SO relieved to arrive at my designated bay in the multi-storey, that I pretty much just left the car and got out… to probably the worst parking ever committed. I definitely couldn’t leave the car like this. Sadly, getting back into the car, I couldn’t turn it back on. I kid you not. I pressed the button, put it from ‘Parking’ into ‘Natural’ into ‘Driving’ and back into ‘Natural’ mode. Nothing. For about 15 minutes this continued. I even read the owner’s manual!! Then I experienced the enlightenment when I lifted my foot off the pedal and the car moved...it had been on the whole time!! Hybrid = silent engine. Simple.

By now I am drained of all energy and emotion. I storm back into the office, banged the keys onto my editor’s desk and snarl “What a load of hybrid @!?$” His reply? “I look forward to reading the article.”

I guess I got the job.

My arm party was about 7 years ago!!

Following on from my earlier fashion related post, I'd like to take this moment to congratulate myself. And my fashion savvy friends. The fashion craze de jour on fashion blogs covering all corners of the world wide web is, without a shadow of a doubtarm party. 

Let me explain: this is simply the fash-term of choice for stacking various bracelets and watches on your wrists, the more the merrier. Brownie points go to fashionistas with 'mixed textures' e.g. preferably a DIY bracelet made from biological twig (i.e. your back garden) and rope, coupled with a classic rose-gold plated Rolex Datejust II.


So here come my congratulations. My friends and I have been doing this / have done so for the best part of the last 7 years! I distinctly remember receiving my first Tiffany & Co. bracelet and my mother's subsequent horror when I promptly whacked  it onto my wrist and proudly displayed it next to the 2 year-old friendship bracelet handcrafted from bits of string!


Fashion bloggers 2k12..you're so Autumn / Winter 2004!

Del Rey ready to play

So today, for the first time, I saw the Lana del Rey for H&M Autumn/Winter '12 campaign photos.
Classic Lana: a bit bored, a bit retro.
I do like the peplum top though!

Munney munney munney

A while ago, I read Sebastian Faulks’ novel A Week in December and surprisingly enjoyed it. When people saw what I was reading the usual comment was ‘oh it’s no way near as good as Birdsong’ and perhaps it’s not as good to some, but it’s kind of in a different league. But that’s not the point of why I’m writing this. The novel deals with various characters and their storylines, all set in London and inevitably all overlapping, all taking place within a December week in 2007. Pretty much 99% of the characters are exceptionally wealthy. While I think it’s fair to say I know a fair share of well-off folk, the lot in this novel are of a whole other league; apparently if you have under £10 million in the bank, you’re not the ‘norm’. Fairs to them I guess, as most of these characters made their millions themselves. No sign of inheritance. 

What’s sad though, is the fact that of these 99% of smug millionaires about 2% are happy. They have all the luxuries of the world at their fingertips and still they’re alcoholics, drug addicts and quite honestly complete freaks. Usually I wouldn’t have thought twice about it and put it down to the whole money can’t buy happiness blah blah cliché. This time however, it was a bit different. As I was reading A Week in December, Eva Rausing’s death was being splattered all over the media. Especially the Daily Mail absolutely LOVED telling us all about how ‘out of control’ and quite simply ‘a state’ she was, and this made me think that here is (was!) a woman, who quite literally had it all and definitely was not a happy bunny. I guess it’s sad isn’t it? Money just doesn’t buy happiness! 

Taking out the trash

I now live in a flat. I have a job. I do the 9-5 (...or 10-6 or 9-6) I commute daily and I read my Kindle on the train. So far so good. I send out emails from my work outlook, attend board meetings, pitch topics to my colleagues and go to post-work drinks. Oh and I have to do the grocery shopping. But realistically, I'm still Little Lise who would rather frolic in the meadow with buttercups.

This whole becoming an adult / joining the Rat Race thing still seems rather dubious... When I was at school, I remember thinking I'd do A-levels, I'd go to uni and then wham! I'd be an adult and go to work. Somehow this has definitely passed me by! Although I have now joined the Real World I guess, I still feel like I child! But then today our Editor-in-Chief (who I definitely consider to be an adult) waltzed in wearing a Sienna Miller t-shirt and announced that she wants a dip-dye. So I guess we all just remain children inside?!

It's been a while!

So I haven't posted on here in a long while, simply due to the fact that a lot has been changing and I guess that my student bubble has well and truly been burst with an almighty bang. The post-uni holiday was amazing, graduation was a blast and lazing in the Hyde Park sun has been dreamy. A small sum of money had been residing in my Nat West Student (recently turned 'Graduate') account left over from the incredibly brilliant student loan and I've been able to enjoy a couple of weeks of being a smug graduate.

Sadly Mr. Realworld was inevitably going to come knocking, and knocking he did! 

So I packed my (many) bags and headed for Switzerland, which for a couple of months, I would be calling home in order to do an internship with a magazine... Fun and games, non? Oh the glamour of journalism, exciting projects, post-work drinks etc etc... While I'm sure that this will still happen (to some degree), primarily there was the small but omnipotent affair of  financial matters. Without mentioning the fact that I owe someone somewhere a BIG amount of money and will probably be in debt for a while (I'd like to think uni was worth it...), the painful and distinct fact that I no longer have this babe of a student loan ultimately hit me square in the face. Living costs and my income, albeit an income, is minimal.

So while I count myself extremely lucky that a) I have managed to bag myself an internship that will actually pay me and b) I have the incredible support of my parents, I have finally woken up and smelt the coffee (it was quite a strong one this morning). 

So let's see how this real life role play goes..

The (almost) Graduate

University is over and the degree in in the bag. (A good solid 2:1 thank you very much) The Gradball has happened as has the post-uni girls holiday to Portugal. All that's left is the physical Graduation. To be honest it definitely still hasn't hit me..!! University is over and now the real world beckons. So as I take my next baby steps into real life, I thought that I'd give you a list of some of the things I think everyone should do while still at uni. Some I did, some I wish I did and some are just for pure lols..!


1. Go to the Off-licence / corner shop / Sainsbury's Local in your pyjamas. This is only acceptable at uni.
2. Wear leggings / big comfy jumper whenever possible, as again, this is only really acceptable at uni.
3. Have a one-night stand. Discuss the awkwardness with your housemates.
4. Do an all-nighter (twice: once partying and once for a deadline)
5. Go and visit ALL your home friends at their unis, you'll never get such a good insight into different cities
6. Join a society you're generally interested in and actually try and do well in it! ie become team captain / president etc
7. Waste some time! If you usually make the most of your time and don't spend EVERY waking hour on Facebook this is definitely ok!
8. Have a drunken political debate with someone a) who shares your opinion b) who opposes your views
9. Eat Sainsbury's own Super Noodles (9p a pack) for a whole week
10. Have an epic dinner party with lots of people. An Asian feast goes down a treat, think  Sushi / Samosas / various curries / spring rolls / prawn toast... Yep, it was great!!

Shakespeare Festival

2012 is the year of the Brits: as the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee take centre stage, the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) follows suit and will stage the World Shakespeare Festival from April until September this year in a bid to put “art at the heart of the Olympics.”

The World Shakespeare Festival forms part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad, the largest cultural celebration in the history of the modern Olympic and Paralympic movements. Since 2008, more than 16 million people participated in or attended performances nationwide, over 160,000 people attended more than 8,300 workshops and an excess of 3.7 million have taken part in almost 3,700 ‘Open Weekend’ events; all inspired by London 2012. The London 2012 Festival, in accordance with the London 2012 Olympics, will reach its peak by providing over 10 million opportunities to see free world-class events throughout the UK at various venues.

Ruth Mackenzie , Director of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival, describes the breadth of The World Shakespeare Festival as “a celebration of Shakespeare as the world’s playwright, produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company in an unprecedented collaboration with leading UK and international arts organisations and with Globe to Globe, a major international programme produced by Shakespeare’s globe, it’s the biggest celebration of Shakespeare ever staged.”

Almost 60 partners will come together to bring the World Shakespeare Festival alive and thousands of artists from around the world will take part in almost 70 productions. There will also be supporting events, exhibitions and educational events right across the UK, including in London, Stratford-upon-Avon, Newcastle, Birmingham, as well as online. The festival will run from April 23rd to November 2012, forming part of the London 2012 Festival, the culmination of the Cultural Olympiad, and the idea is to bring leading artists from all over the world together in a UK-wide festival this summer. Over one million tickets are on sale, so the emphasis is for all to get involved.

Michael Boyd, Artistic Director of the RSC, equally puts emphasis on Shakespeare as a vehicle for multiculturalism: “The World Shakespeare Festival celebrates this most international of artists at a time when the eyes of the world will be on London, that most international of cities, for the Olympic Games.”

Although “William Shakespeare is our greatest cultural export” as Boris Johnson has put it, the festival’s productions are not limited to Shakespeare’s plays. Other so-called themes include: ‘Arab Theatre Season’, ‘Globe to Globe’, ‘Open Stages’, ‘Shakespeare Re-imagined’, ‘Nations at War’ and ‘What Country Friends is this?’ In spite of this, the themes adopted by the RSC are definitely influenced by the Bard. ‘What Country Friends is this?’ encompasses Shakespeare’s shipwreck trilogy:The Tempest, The Comedy of Errors and Twelfth Night, and these are cast from one acting company, looking at migration, exile, and the discovery of brave new worlds. King John, Richard III and A Soldier in Every Son – The Rise of the Aztecs are the three plays under the umbrella title ‘Nations at War’, exploring the struggle for absolute power and the right to lead a nation. Further productions include A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Julius Caesar, but also adaptations like Romeo and Juliet in Baghdad or Two Roses for Richard III.

In addition, the Globe in London has announced its Globe to Globe Festival as part of the Shakespeare celebrations for the London 2012 Festival and will endeavour to present all of Shakespeare’s plays over 6 short weeks. Whilst it will stage one production itself, the remaining 36 plays will each be performed in different languages by different countries from around the globe, the epitome of global arts coming to London in celebration of this momentous year and as part of the events, which will be the finale to the Cultural Olympiad

All content © 2006 - 2012 Impact Magazine

Congrats Ma'am

On a whim, last weekend I ended up in London for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. In true British style, the weather was a shocker, but it was super fun and it was so great to see so many turn out to see the Pageant even in the horrific weather. The atmosphere on London was incredible with bunting and street parties everywhere and alcohol and picnics aplenty!

But most impressive of all was that the Queen and Prince Phillip stood and waved on their barge for about 5 hours. FIVE hours!! Now that is dedication. I was whinging and moaning for a Starbucks about 10 minutes after reaching our spot on the bridge..
I think that the weekend really showed the importance of the British Royals as they're a wonderful figurehead to have and truly sum up the British spirit. The fact that so many, young and old alike, turned out to see them despite the grim weather only reinforced this.
So thanks Ma'am for a wonderful four day weekend well spent and congratulations on your 60 years!

From the wall to the shoe: is art becoming portable?

Traditionally, ‘portable art’ refers to small examples of Prehistoric art that can be carried from place to place, usually in the form of engraved or painted bones and stones. Whilst this has certainly gone out of fashion, it would seem that a different form of portable art has taken its place.  The art form of graphics is far from new as artists including Alan Fletcher (1931-2006) and arguably the Victorian William Morris have shown. What perhaps is new is the idea of transferring our art onto more transportable and conventional objects. 

Felix Green, founder of the shop, InkHeart Custom Kicks & Caboodle, sees himself as an artist. Graphics is his forte and shoes are his medium. The reason is simple: although his drawings and designs were popular, would a picture sell? With more artists choosing different mediums such as bags or clothing to channel their work as part of a ‘bespoke craze’, the question is raised whether the classic ‘painting on the wall’ is falling out of favour among some of us art lovers.

The enlightenment for Felix to transpose his art onto shoes came with a dramatic leg break. Completely unable to walk for a long time, he could not find a pair of shoes that he liked enough to treat himself to upon recovery, prompting him to draw one of his works on a pair of pumps. At the same time, his recently launched online portfolio atdeviantart.com was receiving generally very positive feedback. With the collaboration of a local shop to stock his produce, and a launch on the online store Etsy, his prints were transferred onto pumps. When business really kicked off, Felix bit the bullet, quit his job and turned his full attention to his art works. Next, he plans to incorporate printable bags and t-shirts. Demand for these has clearly risen, as seen in the mass availability ofBanksy print bags and clothing.
Felix has been in London to test the waters with the ultimate aim to launch on Spitalfields market. Although a somewhat daunting prospect, Felix admits that London definitely spurred him on, as the custom-made t-shirt and bag concept is big news down there and he has found London-based graphic artists to be helpful. Whilst members of art communities are often guarded with their plans, London artists were open with tips and ideas.

As an artist, Felix gives the creative process as much significance as the finished product and he only ever produces images that feel natural to him. Even so, a majority of his work is on commission, with clients requesting a specific image and leaving him the sometimes difficult but enjoyable task of adapting it to feature on a shoe. Whilst some of these requests are sometimes odd, Felix stresses that this is what makes his art so exclusive; it allows for that unique stance within the bespoke craze and it is the individual touch that he so loves in his work. Moreover, these suggestions often move Felix in new directions not otherwise considered. As a keen photographer, he does the professional marketing shots of his products himself. Before any graphic elements may be applied to design, they must be created by means of visual art; thus, the artistic flair is maintained throughout the whole process.



So, is this concept of approachable and portable art the new art form? The uniqueness and nostalgic concept of InkHeart’s products obviously make them sentimental and expressive pieces; they are his works of art. This, along with the fact that the Internet plays such a prominent role within his work through the commission, the advertising and the inspiration of his products, suggests that the modern art form is changing. It is becoming more transferable and fluid, with a much wider ability for the individual to develop that personal touch.  And with an actual need for shoes and bags, Felix has the perfect opportunity to transfer his skills.


All content © 2006 - 2012 Impact Magazine

PS This article was also featured on onlinetshirt.com 
http://onlineteeshirt.com/blog/?p=1700

Pre-adult Angst

Having just come back from my last ever Easter holidays of undergrad uni life (scarymary.com!) has potentially made me more confused than ever. I really welcomed the 4-week break with open arms, as essays etc had really drained me and I was quite literally in desperate need of some home comforts…

2 weeks in and I was getting restless. Don’t get me wrong, I love the fam and I really do think that now we’ve all matured a little bit (or like to think that we have…) we really get along well. As much as loved going back to being the child, getting fed and having my washing done, I just feel that it’s getting harder and harder to do so. I think that I’m at a bit of an awkward stage; I’m excited about moving on and doing my own thing and yet I can’t help but cling onto being a child and getting family loving and pampering!!

And here I wonder: at which point do I make the actual break from child to adult? I used to think school à uni à adult. But now that so many of my friends are moving back in at home full time sans graduate job, and the fact that I am still majorly financially dependent on my darling parents makes me not so sure that’s the case anymore!

Then there’s the little things… One minute I find myself in a bit of a train hoo-ha and end up missing a flight and just thinking MUMMYYY (Father dearest I am forever grateful for your moral support on the phone 10 minutes before that BIG meeting!) Then the next minute I’m making serious plans about living in Zurich and London next year all on my todd (all the family are abroad) and being genuinely quite excited about going Ikea furniture shopping.

Is it socially acceptable to get excited about buying a Billy Bookcase but still want your mum to wake you up with a cup of tea, open the shutters (yes, the Swiss have Chalet style shutters…) and tell you to rise and shine?! Aaaargh!!