Fashion Thursday: Tatty Devine at Selfridges

Selfridges currently have a new store-wide initiative - the Words Words Words season, which is in "celebration of the beauty of words and the joy of writing". Being a blogger, my interest in this was already piqued - but when I found out Tatty Devine would be in residence with a pop-up shop (and making customised name necklaces on the spot) I simply had to pay a visit.

Greeted by gigantic Name Necklaces hanging on the walls and jars of their signature Plectrums and fastenings on display, the TD installation Concept Store is fantastic, allowing you wander around the mini workshop and watch how it's all done...

I had chat with Kara and Becca, two of the lovely technicians from Team Tatty about the pop-up shop, where a staggering thirty three necklaces have been made in one day alone! After finally deciding on the colour, font and charm (there are a lot of options), it was now in their hands to create my necklace, right before my eyes...

Watching my necklace being made from start to finish was brilliant. Any long time fans of Tatty Devine will really love this, and if you're new to the cult brand, this really is something to check out.

... and the name necklace I had made?

Well, you know how I like to ride on my Pashley - so this was only appropriate!

(Further pictures can be viewed via flickr, courtesy of Ian James)

The Tatty Devine pop-up shop will feature in the Words Words Words concept store until the end of February. Name necklaces prices start from £27.50, with further customisation options available. 

New Year...

Happy New Year everyone! 2011 was a brilliant year for Vélo-City-Girl. A lot of great stuff that I never expected happened and I met some fabulous people along the way. Thank you all for being such a major part of it and coming along for the ride... and I hope you'll join me this year too!

Suitably holidayed out, I'm getting ready for new adventures on Frankie in 2012. I'm rather pleased that some of the festive treats I got at Christmas will be powering me and the Pashley (and the blogging) along...

... first up, this wonderful book I got from The Boy's Mother

'Britain by Bike' accompanies the BBC Four series of the same name, and includes cycle routes around Britain (which I'm planning on trying if possible), excellent cycling nostalgia and some wonderful photographs and illustrations.

Of course, this section of the book caught my eye, especially learning the origins of the term "loose woman" came from women's cycling fashion!

The next festive-fashion treat which will feature on VCG without doubt is this gorgeous Tatty Devine Owl Necklace, which came from The Boy...

I've got a bit of a thing for Owls on jewellery & clothing AND I've had my eye on this for ages, so top marks to him for remembering. It's been pointed out to me that the Owl's eyes look like bicycle wheels... how on earth did I not pick up on that first?!

My blogging fuel usually consists of Cakes, Coffee or Tea... and this has already been put to use (while I'm writing this actually)

I adore the tea-sets by V&A (another thing The Boy's Mother picked-up on!) and this lovely Bone China Mug now sits long side my mini teapot set I bought early last year

So, expect a lot more cycling, fashion, blogging and everything else that comes in between... 2012 - Lady Vélo is ready for you! 

Return of The Tweed Run...

Image from the NYC Rugby Tweed Run 2011

It's time to dust-off your Plus-Fours and polish your Pashleys... after the successful collaboration last month for the NYC Ride, Tweed Run have teamed-up again with Rugby Ralph Lauren for the return of the Tweed Run to London!

Saturday 26th November is the date to note in your diaries, and I'm pleased to say that The Boy and I will be taking part, along with fellow Tweed-Run friends from earlier this year! This time starting-off from Covent Garden, the ride will end with what's been described as an "exclusive soiree". Of course the familiar elements of the Tweed Run will be present, including the Tea Stop and the coveted 'Most Dapper Chap' / 'Most Dashing Dame' awards. 

With 22 days to go, planning ahead and getting a look together is a good idea, as the last thing I want to be doing is a last minute dash around the shops. Drawing inspiration from the previous Tweed Ride and some of my favourite designers, outfit ideas have been coming together already, and the first hurdle to be tackled - Accessories...

A very recent purchase means that I definitely have my Handbag for the day sorted out:

... it's a vintage Scotchgrain Leather Mulberry Messenger, and it only arrived yesterday! I've wanted one of these old beauties for so long and the timing of this could not have been better. The colour scheme is perfect for the day too.

The next item on my accessory list is a new hat. OK, so I could wear the gorgeous Cloche I wore in April, but as my outfit itself (more on that later) is going to be a bit of a departure from the last one, a different style of hat will be required. I was rather impressed with the Brielle Felt Hat featured on Rubgy, and have found a version that may fit the bill...

This wide-brimmed Felt Hat by Catarzi for ASOS has fantastuc autumnal tones - perfect for the seasonal timing of the Tweed Run... which leads nicely into another autumn-themed piece that has caught my eye...

Of course, a bit of Tatty Devine was bound to feature... you all know how much I love their pieces! From their current A/W Collection comes the Forest Cluster Necklace. Without giving away too much about the whole outfit I have in mind, the colours in this should be a brilliant match... more updates to follow :) 

A Sunday in Surbiton...

Before these dark evenings started drawing in and the temperature started to drop, me and The Boy met up with our friend Simon a few weeks ago for a CycleSunday afternoon ride around Surbiton. We'd been wanting to do this for ages as Surbiton is Simon's cycling-ground, and he sure knows the place! He planned out a wonderful tour of the area, including two of my favourite things - Coffee & Cakes... and an unexpected encounter with a famous resident of Bushy Park...

En route to Kingston we made two stops that were definitely reflective of our interests! 1st one was for The Boy. He needed to make a Rib-Stop on Brick Lane (he will explain this one on his Food Blog...), which allowed us to get a big-spicy breakfast. I muscled in on this pit stop, as the morning light was to lovely to ignore to get a photo of my Autumn-themed Cycle-Wardrobe for the day...

Head Scarf: Tie Rack

Earrings: Dorothy Perkins

Oak Leaves Wooden Necklace: Tatty Devine

Cable Knit Jumper: Forever 21

Drum Brooch: Tatty Devine

Shorts: Gap

Leather Boots: M&S

The second stop was one for me... our ride out of London would take us past the City Cycle Style exhibition in the Royal Exchange. Although I'd attended the celebratory drinks for the exhibition at the Grange Hotel a few weeks ago (all very posh indeed) I'd not actually seen it...

It was great to see the outdoor show in all its glory... and of course I had to get a cheesy photo in amongst those selected to be on display! Quick-stops done, we made our way to meet Simon for the leisurely 'Tour de Surbiton'.

Cycling along the Thames was beyond picturesque - the weather was fantastic, lots of people were sat along the river bank enjoying the day and the light glistening off the water was beautiful!

After a lovely ride along the water, it was time to feed the Coffee and Cake desire I always get from cycling! Our fuel-stop was Mada Deli - and when it came to cakes, it was more than a sweet treat...

Suitably fed & caffeinated, we got back on our bikes and headed to Hampton Court Palace Maze. I've done the Maze before - but there was no way I could possibly remember the lay-out of it.

Don't ask me how, but The Boy managed to work out the route to the middle of the Maze and back out again in one go! I think me and Simon are still a bit perplexed by this...

Anyway, back on our wheels and to Bushy Park we went. This was a new one for me - I'd never been there before and admit to being very excited at the promise of seeing Deer close-up in real life. Thing is, I didn't realise just how close-up my encounter with these creatures would be. We'd spotted what we assumed was a deceased Stag - his Antlers were standing tall above the blades of grass. Curiosity got the better of me, so as we all got off our bikes to investigate, I decided to walk a bit closer to check the poor thing out. The good news - he wasn't departed and just sleeping. The bad news - he was "The Beast of Bushy Park" and we'd just woken him up...

As captured by The Boy - the look on my face should explain the sheer levels of "Holy Sh*t!" thoughts going through my mind at this point!

This was the picture of the Stag-Daddy I got when he woke up, before slowly backing away from him. That saying about letting sleeping dogs lie? The same applies to these fellas too.

Thanks to not getting (deservedly) charged at by Mr Beast, the rest of the afternoon in Bushy Park went without incident, and some more Deer-Spotting happened as we made our way out of the beautiful area...

It truly was an amazing Cycle-Sunday, again reminding me there are so many beautiful things to be seen in the UK by Bike... happy cycling. 

Creativity and Cocktails - the Tatty Devine Book Launch Party...

It has been a rather busy week so far... and I'm pleased to say that it has all been fun social events & not work related now the mad period in the office has finished!

The first thing to keep me happily busy was the official launch party for the new Tatty Devine book, "How To Make Jewellery With Tatty Devine".

(picture courtesy of Tatty Devine)

I received a tweet from Team-Tatty inviting me to the event, so I got together with my lovely Tina and headed over to the event on Wednesday evening. The launch party was held in Drink, Shop & Do (a lovely boutique that I must make a cycle return on the Pashley to at some point), and the atmosphere was fabulous. The order of the night was a Tattytini Cocktail, which carried all the hallmarks of TD: glitter (which I'm still finding on my person days later!), pretty colours and of course a unique fashionable edge... the Cocktail Stirrer doubles-up as a hair pin...! I get the feeling I'm going to turn mine into a brooch :)

Tattytini in hand, we headed though to the workshop which had been set-up in the very well decorated back room. It was lovely to finally meet Sonja (who gave me the honour of being Customer of the Month earlier this year) & chat with the other wonderful ladies of TD. The Workshop Agenda was to make your own Tape Measure Rosette Brooch - something which I was really looking forward to!

Getting to grips with making the Brooch was rather fun - we both got the hang of it (and thanks to a lot of help from Lucy which I admit I needed!) I produced my 1st very own piece of Tatty!

I couldn't just leave it at one - there was custom made Tatty Devine Tape Measures all over the table in different colours, just begging to be turned into accessories... and I had a specific reason for needing more than one of them too. In between sipping on Cocktails with Tina & trying not to prick my finger through the laughter, chatter with other guests and fun we were having, I managed to make a few more Rosettes - result.

Of course, the main event of the evening was The Book and finally having the chance to meet Rosie and Harriet, who are a huge inspiration to me as a young woman trying to make my own way doing what I love. Without doubt, they looked as stylish as ever & have given me yet more inspiration for my cycle wardrobe - and the accessories that will go with them...

With my copy of their book to hand, I headed over to them to say "Hello" and get my book signed. Now, you can call this my geek-out moment if you must, but I was absolutely gob-smacked when Rosie asked "Should this be made out to Lady Vélo then?" Goodness me - they knew who I was!

That was HUGE for me & I think my reaction must have told Rosie and Harriet that too. It's incredibly touching and an honour to know that two women who I admire so much knew who I was and what I do - and for that I will forever have this smile in my mind.

As I said, I had a specific reason for making more than one of the Rosettes... of course they make a fabulous edition to my wardrobe, but why stop at adding them to your clothing?

Even the Pashley can rock a bit of Tatty Devine :)

I love how these look on the Basket and making these, along with reading through the book, has given me more inspiration for a project that I'm working on... more on that later.

Thanks Tatty Devine for a fantastic evening... and if Lucy remembers what I said about The Boy and his Cupcakes, we're working on that for you all... ;)

Sunshine and Shoots...

Last Sunday the Sun was shining and London was glowing....the weather was finally perfect for the Photo Shoot with Horst Friedrichs to go ahead!

It didn't go quite according to plan on the 1st attempt earlier this month, so you can imagine our joy when the City decided to give us the light, at last. Thanks to The Boy being the brilliant photographer he is, he took some pictures of what was going on behind the scenes for the blog - thank you so much Sir for these!

It was lovely to see Horst again & also meet his assistant Filip, who bought me my favourite flowers (Peonies) to put in my Pashley Basket for the photos :) 

The scene was very different to the Rainy Day that we experienced earlier this month - which also allowed us to do the shoot in two different outfits. The 1st one was quite relaxed and went a little something like this:

Sunglasses: Ray-Ban

Necklace: Tatty Devine

Vest Top / High Waisted Shorts / Sandals: Topshop

Yellow Bangle: Camden Market

Ring: Tatty Devine

... and then for the 2nd outfit, there was a slight change in style:

Sunglasses: Tatty Devine for John Lewis

"LadyVélo" name necklace: Tatty Devine

Dress: LAFrock

Ring: Dorothy Perkins

Mary Jane Shoes: Vivienne Westwood

Spot the unexpected visitor who decided he wanted to be in the photos?

His name was Taco, and I could have easily put him in my basket and taken him home!

For a few more behind the scenes shots of the day taken by The Boy, the set can be viewed here - once again, thank you so much for these Sir :)

I can not wait to see Horst's photos from Sunday, and too see his book come together. It's such a fantastic project & I'm honoured that he asked me to be a part of it. 

Photo-shoots and Smiles...

So, I don't get to say very this often: I was recently invited to feature in a Photo-shoot about cycling & fashion in London!

I was contacted by Internationally renowned Photographer Horst A. Freidrichs, to feature in a book he is working on which focuses on the fashion culture of cyclists in the City. To say I was excited would be an understatement! The First thing on my agenda: decide the outfits. With it being June and there was blazing sunshine last Saturday, I'd decided on these for a summer-cyclist feel:

Vest Top: Topshop

Floral Hot Pant Shorts: Topshop
Ballet Pumps: Topshop

"LadyVélo" Name Necklace: Tatty Devine

Earrings: Chanel

Vest Top: Dorothy Perkins
Wide Belt: Oasis
Skirt: Dorothy Perkins
Necklace: Tatty Devine
Sandals: Accessorize

The location Horst chose for us was was Jones' Diary, just off Columbia Rd Flower Market (which is one of my favourite Markets in London). Now remember I said that last Saturday was "blazing" Sunshine? Well, Sunday didn't quite follow that weather pattern. It rained...

... and rained

...and rained

... but we ended up having one of the nicest Sunday afternoons!

Despite the downpour, our spirits were high - there was great energy surrounding the shoot, and we were still hopeful of a break in the rain. We didn't know it at the time, but the shelter we took on Ezra Street was next to Lily Vanilli, who opened their Bakery for the first time that day. Watching from their shop & feeling sorry for us waiting in the Courtyard, they came out and gave us delicious Cupcakes to keep us going!

... how sweet of them was that?!

The rain didn't really ease up, but we decided to get some test shots of the day. Natural light was beginning to fade (mainly behind more black clouds) so dashing out from the dry, we set up and did a few shots...

None of the outfit changes happened - it was way too wet for summer shorts & skirts... but I guess what I had on became my cycle wardrobe for the day, right?

Jacket: Gap

Breton Stripe Top: Topshop

Jeans: Topshop

"Lady Leigh" Necklace & Earrings Set: Tatty Devine

Ring: Dorothy Perkins

Lady & Dog Brooch: Tatty Devine

Another session has been penciled into the diary with Horst - fingers crossed the Sun will be shining for that. Wardrobe planning is in process for this one, and the whole thing will be blogged about when it happens. 

Massive Thank you to Horst for asking me to take part in this & for making it so much fun, and to The Boy, for taking the photos of me and Horst in action for my blog.... it's appreciated :)