Archive for Topshop
Kate Sheridan owl tote
I’ve just returned home from a bit of a road trip with the little ‘un: this time to Newcastle upon Tyne. Apart from visiting some sorely missed friends who have relocated north of the M25, we basked in the Baltic, scurried through Seven Stories, and did a bit of window shopping too (would have been rude not to…). And all the while, I was being called ‘pet’ by complete strangers, which was very nice.
Quite simply, Newcastle is absolutely wonderful. Go there right now. Especially if you like owls. I saw several extremely stylish owlish items, the most notable of which is illustrated above.
That, ladies and gents, is the Kate Sheridan Owl brogued leather tote in black, available here from Skirt boutique (@skirtboutique) – a fabulous Newcastle institution, but also an online shop where amazing clothes are ‘curated’, and limited quantities of truly special items are sourced and stocked.
Made from silky soft oiled cow leather, with a delicate owl design indented (or brogued) into the front, this bag is a stunner. And if like me, you need to lug great wads of paper, a laptop, and other sundry items around with you wherever you go, I’m pretty sure this bag could fit it all in. See below for a side shot…
Kate Sheridan’s bags have sold in Topshop and Urban Outfitters, but her current range chez Skirt is the perfect mix of sleek city sophistication (ideal for Newcastle, where everyone I spotted was achingly well-dressed) and hip urban princess. Not a snip at £135 a pop, but you’d be bagging a classic: a timeless beauty of a tote, and an original owl to boot.
Incidentally, the front of the Baltic is currently adorned with a large reproduction of Anselm Kiefer’s painting Palette (below), which you can see online at the Tate here, or in an exhibition at the Baltic, which runs until January 2011.
I know this work depicts Kiefer’s palette dangling precariously from a burning thread, and references the “destructive legacy of Nazism, and the sense of shame and loss experienced by his nation after the Second World War” (quote from the Tate website referenced above). But it does look very like an owl to me. Anyone back me up on this?
Owl T-shirt
I’ve had this T-shirt for a few years now, and every time I wear it, I feel especially owlish. My sister has pointed out the perhaps non-coincidental placement of the owl’s eyes, but I am going to pretend that that doesn’t bother me. I even managed to stretch this owl over my humungous nine-month bump last year. Which might explain why it looks a bit odd now. However, it has definitely been one of my favourite owl buys. Ever.
