Preserved Moments of Historical, Indisputable Black Style

I haven’t done one of these style compendiums in a while, so this is long overdue. And this is also for all those internet retrospectives on vintage style that don’t include a single Black face. It was a hard task narrowing down my favourites from thousands of found snapshots floating around out there on the world…

Curiosity du Jour: Antique Intaglio Seals

When we stopped writing letters, it wasn’t just our penmanship that went down the toilet, but the entire art of letter-writing, and all the romance and ceremony that came with it. Arguably the loveliest victim to have disappeared from our desks in the wake of its decline? The intaglio seal. Intaglio seals, essentially engraved gems,…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. DL)

1. Found in a French mansion in that was shuttered for a century A late 19th-century French mansion shuttered for more than a century has opened its doors to the public, revealing an array of outdated luxuries and oddities. The house once belonged to the wealthy, philanthropic, and “egocentric” civil servant Louis Mantin… who died…

A Brief Compendium of Historical Maximalism

This is a case for “more is more”, masterfully argued by the brushstrokes of history’s finest interiors artists. Before we had glossy decor magazines to pour over, we had a pictorial genre known as interior portraiture which became all the rage during the Belle Epoque, but first appeared in Europe in the 17th century to…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. DXLIX)

1. Queen Victoria’s Boer War chocolate found in attic A 121-year-old chocolate bar that was given to British troops to boost morale during the Boer Wars in South Africa has been discovered in the attic of a National Trust property. The chocolate, still in its original wrapper and tin, was part of a batch commissioned…

Hidden Under a Chicken Coop: The “Louvre” of Wine

One of the world’s most prestigious wine cellars isn’t where you think it might be. It isn’t nestled beneath a grand chateau or presidential palace, but buried in the backyard of an average Joe, a retiree of humble background who has been collecting the rarest wines, bottle by bottle for the past 50 years. Michel-Jack…

Desirable du Jour: Tissue Books

Every now and then, you can stumble upon something that stops you in your Instagram-scrolling tracks. For us, it just so happened to be a collection of unloved vintage books that have found novel purpose thanks to Parisian artist Inès Mélia … as one-of-a kind hanky holders. But don’t tell me a book has never…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. DXLVIII)

1. The Original Rhinestone Cowboy, Loy Bowlin Bowlin (1909-1995) was an outsider artist from McComb, Mississippi. His artwork largely included bejeweling his clothing, Cadillac, home and even his dentures with thousands of rhinestones. The house, which was in Mississippi, has been moved in an effort to preserve it and now is on display at the Kohler Arts…

Refine your Moodboard with this 1970s French Fairytale

These are a few of my favourite things about a 1970s French musical called “Donkey Skin”: A giant cat throne, a surreal banquet with candy-coloured flora, a snow globe grave, talking roses and parrots, Catherine Deneuve as a Disney-esque princess, the deeply saturated colour palette, fashion tech ahead of its time, oh and pretty much…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. DXLVII)

1. The Flintlock alarm clock that ignited gunpowder to wake you up Start your morning off with a bang. Made in the 1600s. Found on Museum Archive. 2. Eerie, Indiana, a 90s TV show dubbed “Twin Peaks for kids” It featured two young kids finding all sorts of odd happenings and people in their hometown,…