Online shopping

More on floopy Birkins and not-so-pristine status bags



Floopy Birkin Mary Kate Olsen

‘Floopy’ Birkins are in the news again.

Last year I noticed the move towards not-so-pristine heritage handbags, the kind that look like they’ve been inherited from a wealthy aunt rather than bought box fresh from Luxury Promise. Vogue Business (pay wall) has dug deeper into the phenomenon with new stats from The RealReal that show people are buying visibly lived-in Hermès Birkins and Chanel Double Flaps at a lower price than the ‘mint’ standard usually expected on vintage sites. In the past, luxury resale sites wouldn’t really entertain shabbily treated luxury bags, so it’s very revealing to note the shift. (more…)

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Shop the post: the useful and beautiful gift guide



Gift guide - Toast hot water bottle cover

Christmas shopping: so many decisions, so little time! If you’re struggling with keuzestress (aka ‘choice stress’), stick to the William Morris mantra of only choosing things that are useful and beautiful. (more…)

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On my radar: Abask, your new design destination



Abask interiors

Heads-up: there’s a fab new e-commerce platform getting a lot of attention right now.

As fashion and beauty online retail have become saturated, as well as an overall fatigue with trends in consuming, it makes sense that some are shifting interests to interiors, a somewhat slower pace of taste signalling – for now.

Abask is the brainchild of Matchesfashion co-founder Tom Chapman and former ecommerce director Nicolas Pickaerts. Its premise is room-themed edits of lovingly-crafted artisanal pieces – whether new, vintage or antique. I’m all about the Study*, where desk-destined Murano glass paperweights* sit alongside Carl Auböck brass knick-knacks* and exquisite vintage fountain pens*. (more…)

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On Joopiter, style storytelling and investment dressing for the hype set



Joopiter by Pharrell Williams

Hot retail news of the month so far comes from Pharrell Williams’ new online auction platform, Joopiter. “Pioneering a modern collecting economy”, it’s a way to sell off his extensive (11-storage units worth) archive of cultural artefacts, while the site simultaneously serves as an online archive of the archive, complete with content to add cultural clout to the pieces.

The first sale goes live next week (but previews from today here) and will consist of one-off items such as an 18k gold Jacob & Co BlackBerry (est sale price $15k-$25k) and blinged-out Swarovski-ed Stan Smiths (est sale price $2,500-$3,500).

Why should we care? (more…)

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