[INTRO] In every interview I do, I am always asked 'Where do you get your inspiration' I can honestly say there is no one source, it is continually changing & evolving - and that is the way I like. How dull if you were only inspired by the one thing? .An Unsuspecting Muse is the current collection that is in stores now. I have tried to put into words where my inspiration for this collection came from & have included some photos I have taken in my travels that appear thru out the look book for this collection.....
I am lucky enough to be able to travel the world with my job. This is not something I ever take for granted, I always try to take in as much as possible of the surrounds of my temporary city, and sometimes have to actually ask myself if I am really there experiencing so many cities, because the concept of being able to travel the world, experience cultures I had only read about, see things I had only seen in movies and get paid to do so, just seems so obscenely indulgent.
Inspiration can come to me in so many varied forms... The concept for an entire collection could be conceived from the detailing on a beautiful teacup used in a cafe in Paris; a vintage lamp sitting on the bedside table in a Bungalow Suite at LA’s Chateau Marmont. From a watch that hasn’t worked in years but somehow found its way into a stall at London’s Portobello Road Markets. Other times the inspiration comes from the story behind an item... The artesian who hand cured the design on the teacup, who spent many a night at the Moulin Rouge in the 1940’s. Or the romantic, tragic & mysterious whispers of the happenings that took place behind closed doors at the Chateau in the 1960’s. Or even the memories that the watch holds after having been passed down through multiple generations.
I often find myself looking at things that could be perceived by some as ‘common’ or ‘everyday’. The door handle featured left is a perfect example. The moment I saw this door handle in a boutique hotel I was staying in at Santa Monica, I was mesmerised. Here is a snapshot of what went through my mind when I glimpsed it... The juxtaposition of the metal, so masculine; sharp, defined & an aggressive shape. Reminds me of New York’s Chrysler building. The Chrysler Building. Art Deco. New York. 1930’s... 42nd St... Collection possibilities: we could incorporate blood red jewels, set romantically in vintage metals. Earrings, we’ll do drop earrings, with dark jade & Swarovski crystals which we can match back in a cocktail ring that would stop traffic! ... The exquisite, vintage crystal-esque handle. Beautiful detailing, soft & feminine, glamorous yet not too flashy. The handle reminds me of a chandelier, circa 1940’s. We could take the shapes of old chandelier crystals & modernize the piece by wrapping in metallic chains. The door handle is aged, probably used to open & close the door thousands of times, over many decades. The people that have walked through the door, the things that have happened on the other side of this door. Love; young love, unrequited, lustrous affairs, parting love. The secrets that have been shared & have never left the room. The laughter, the tears, the memories people have of their time there; some would reminisce about it every day, others only once in a blue moon. Guests staying on business, on holiday, staying at the hotel to escape from something, find something or some may have even been staying in this very room with beautiful views of Santa Monica Pier to just... find themselves. All of these people & so many more entered through this door & turned this door handle... And that’s how I saw it. Its beautiful aesthetic inspired me; the colour, the shape, the varied materials, but it goes beyond that. This door handle was ironically the door to so many other things both past & present.
Other than accessory design, photography is one of my other passions in life. I love to look at photographs & I love to take photographs, I am rarely, if ever, without a camera. As much as it saddens me that film has been made redundant with the takeover of digital, it is a blessing in the way of saving space, as I just was running out of room to archive all the photographs I have taken over the years. When travelling, my camera is as important to me as my passport. Where I go, it goes with me. So I photograph objects... Like door handles in my hotel or beautiful windows that bring so much more than light to a room; tiles in underground tube stations or ‘stage door’ entries to an old theatre tucked away in the back alleys of New York City. I am excited to be able to share some of the things that have inspired this collection with you, through a series photographs featured throughout this look book. I have only explained my train of thought on the door handle photograph, the other images I hope will speak to you themselves & you may see a completely different story to what I saw. As with our collections, we design pieces for you to wear how you wish, you cannot define the style of the SW girl & we would never want to. Her style is completely her own, ever evolving & unique, diverse & adventurous. She sees each piece differently to how you or I see it, & that, we believe is the beauty of accessories.
Enjoy the photographs, but more importantly, if you have time, allow yourself to become immersed in what you see in each image & take the journey...
The most beautiful inspiration is often found in the most unusual of places. The Unsuspecting Muse - SW
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