Going anywhere nice this year? If not, perhaps you’d like an olfactory vacation? No, not the classic coconut-and-vanilla beachy blends, but something much more niche and personal.
It’s the era of the hyper-specific location perfume. Rather than Mediterranean colognes and fruity-florals, the latest crop of wanderlust fragrances are landing in far-flung places like Dubai, Tokyo and the Sahara Desert or close-to-home hang-outs like The Woody Office of Daddy and The Bomboneria in Barcelona*. (more…)
With the Tokyo Olympics happening this summer, the spotlight is firmly on Japan.
For starters, I’m looking forward to the V&A’sKimono: Kyoto to Catwalk exhibition, which opens on 29th February. With its vast archives, this is the kind of exhibition the V&A does really well, time travelling from rare 17th and 18th century kimono to contemporary streetwear via Kawakubo and Galliano – that’s got be good!
Meanwhile, Sunspel is also feeling the Japan love this spring, collaborating with three contemporary Japanese brands – 45R, N.Hoolywood and Beams – on a capsule collection of men’s and womenswear. I like this 45R interpretation of the Sunspel Sun and Cloud logo, using an indigo dye cloud placement on a white cotton tee (below). All products will be available in Sunspel*shops and online from 7th March. (more…)
Jonathan Margolis at How To Spend It is my tech critic of choice, and it turns out he’s also become its unofficial toothbrush critic. If he says this Quip toothbrush is good, then it must be. I usually use an Oral-B or ION-Sei electric toothbrush but don’t want to carry all that bulk if I’m travelling or doing an overnight stay. So then I usually take a bog standard toothbrush but feel it’s doing a substandard job. Quip solves this problem. It’s slender and fuss-free and works with a simple AAA battery to get the required power-brushing I like, without the chargers and plugs. Buy it here*. (more…)
I don’t think I’ve ever been able to get a gift guide up in time so maybe don’t consider this a gift guide. Maybe it’s more of a self-gifting guide. Or a ‘what to spend your Christmas money on in January’ guide.
Anyhoo, here’s a collection of things that have caught my eye that are useful, beautiful, or somewhere in between. I like supporting new and indie businesses, traditional heritage companies and projects by friends. And obviously I can never resist a book or two… (more…)
