Bottega: The Clothes

 

After having such a fantastic time at 'Take Me to Funky Town' the previous evening, I could have been at risk of a fashion comedown the next day. However, I needn't have worried, as there was plenty of style inspiration to be had within the four walls of 'Bottega'. I was very excited about paying a visit to the store ,as although I regularly chat to Sam (the owner) on Twitter, I had never visited the store before. Indeed, I hadn't actually met Sam in person before she invited me to 'Take Me to Funky Town'! . I have bought a few pieces over the phone from there, and I always get really positive comments about them ('Maison Scotch' blazer; 'One Teaspoon' velvet 'cardigan' and 'One Teaspoon' leopard print jumper). I had had a brief glimpse of the store when I arrived the previous day - before rushing off to Bolesworth Castle - but I couldn't wait to be able to have a proper look at all the style and homeware loveliness inside.

'Bottega' is on the high street in Tarporley, Cheshire (number 67 to be precise!). The store is like an Aladdin's Cave of style inspiration. Everywhere I looked there were fantastic pieces.  One of the great things about the store is that it has a real mix of both familiar and unknown (to me at least) brands. It is an eclectic mix, but it all works together perfectly. Sam and Alicia (the store's buyer) go out of their way to make sure that they offer something new for their customers every season, in order to keep the store's edit fresh., e.g. this season they have introduced 'Elizabeth and James'. In addition to the clothing, 'Bottega' also sells homeware and gifts. And if that was't enough, it also has a fantastic cafe at the back of the store, 'The Birdcage'- the perfect place to have a catchup and discuss your all important purchases. I took a lot of photos of the store, so to avoid this post being too picture-heavy, I will write about the homeware and cafe in my next post.

I love how Sam frames the clothing. I would love to do this with my wardrobe - if only I had the space and such fabulous clothing!

This outfit (Dress - Elizabeth and James; Blazer - Elizabeth and James; Wedges - Terry De Havilland) caused a real stir at the salon presentation the night before.

In addition to meeting Sam for the first time, my trip to Cheshire also meant that I got to meet the lovely Selina, who I had only 'spoken' to on Twitter. We met at 'Take Me to Funky Town' the previous evening, and we both chatted about how we couldn't wait to see the store the next day. After a catchup in the cafe we decide to explore all the temptation that 'Bottega' had to offer.

Love this top from Belgian brand ' Essentiel' - great combination of colours. I hadn't come across the brand before.

'Bottega' also stock a carefully selected edit of vintage pieces. How beautiful is this shawl? I love everything about it - the mix of colours; the pattern; the dip dyed fringing.

 

Unusually for me, I was quite restrained, and I only bought an American Retro shirt and a friendship bracelet. Although 'Bottega' hasn't got an online store, they do accept telephone orders (01829 733355. I am still thinking about a number of the pieces I saw, so I think I might have to put an order in soon. If you are ever in the Cheshire area, then you must visit 'Bottega'. You won't regret it!

Lou Lou Chats to Lynnette Peck Bateman of Lovely's Vintage Emporium

Next up in my Lou Lou Chats series is Lynnette Peck Bateman. Lynnette manages to combine a busy career as a fashion and beauty journalist together with running her own rather fabulous vintage fashion website, Lovely's Vintage Emporium. 

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Describe Lovely’s Vintage Emporium in three words.

Trends-led fashion website.

Please tell us more about yourself.

I have worked as a fashion and beauty journalist/stylist for magazines and newspapers for 19 years (Cosmopolitan; Vogue Australia, Celebrity Homes, The Daily Telegraph, Eve, Now etc), plus I do personal shopping for clients and consult for beauty brands and PR companies.

1960s Jaeger wool plaid cape - £75.00

Why did you set up Lovely’s Vintage Emporium?

Because I am obsessed by both vintage fashion and shopping online, and I really felt there was a gap in the market for a website that offered a more modern, trends-led, magazine-like approach to vintage. It was also an excuse to buy lots more vintage clothes and jewellery without my husband complaining!

 

What do you think differentiates Lovely’s Vintage Emporium from other vintage online stores?

I could not find a website that was selling vintage that correlated with catwalk fashion trends and I am still the only one that does. If polka dots and red dresses  are in fashion then you will find them on Lovely’s Vintage Emporium. I am in a position to know trends ahead of time as I attend London Fashion Week and get invited to fashion PR events. My website is easy to navigate, does not have an old-fashioned look and is relevant and modern to young girls and women today. Plus the vintage sourced is immaculate, dry cleaned and has been individually sourced by me. In effect my customers are buying a vintage piece curated by an experienced fashion stylist so they can trust what they are purchasing.

1970s black dress with lace polka dot bodice -  £85.00

Where do you source your pieces?

If I told you that everyone would be doing it!

 

What has been the highlight for you since starting up the business?

Probably when I opened the December 2011 issue of Cosmopolitan and turned to the fashion pages - they had featured one of my vintage hats on a model over two pages. Plus when the TV show This Morning on ITV1 used a pair of my earrings in a fashion shoot.

Looking back, is there anything that you would have done differently?

I would have given myself longer to set up the website and launch the business. I was so eager that I set myself a deadline that was too tight. I managed it but was still writing different sections of the website right up until the minute we launched at 6.30pm on March 31^st 2011. It was an amazing feeling though.

How do you combine your different careers?

By working all the time! I am answering this sat on a train. I like the variety though. One minute I am on a beauty photo shoot for a magazine and the next I am uploading images and writing captions for my website.

What motivates you?

I have turned a huge hobby/obsession into a career. I would always suggest that you do a job that comes from a place of love.

What advice would you give to people who are looking to start their own fashion business?

Work out exactly who your market is and only buy pieces that you love and know your customers will too. Do not over buy stock (I have far too much!). Keep an eye on your finances very carefully. Be patient. Rome wasn’t built in a day.

1980s Chanel handbag (Never Used) - £799.00

What’s in the pipeline for Lovely’s Vintage Emporium in 2012?

I will be expanding the vintage homewares and vintage beauty section of the website. We may start sourcing vintage menswear as I have had a lot of enquiries from men asking me to help them too.We currently only have cufflinks . We will also be stocking vintage wedding dresses. I have four in my stock at the moment that need photographing but there will be many more to come. The designer vintage will grow too as we have seen very good sales on the more luxury vintage items .

 

Top Tip?

Do unto others as you would wish them to do unto you, i.e. treat others as you would wish to be treated

Elie Saab Le Parfum

This is the first perfume from Elie Saab, the designer responsible for some of the last decade's most beautiful couture gowns. He is the man behind Halle Berry's Oscar dress and Katy Perry's wedding dress. His couture house sells more gowns than any other couture designer. I love the flowing gown featured in the advertising campaign for the scent, which looks gorgeous against the urban landscape.

This perfume has been two years in the conception, and went through 279 trial versions before the 'nose' behind the scent, Francis Kurkdjian settled on the final version. Kurkdjian has created some of the most well-known and iconic scents on the market: Narciso Rodriguez for Her and Le Male by Jean Paul Gaultier.

Kurkdjian wanted to try and capture some of Saab's  design philosophy when creating the scent: "With Elie Saab, it's about the mixture of opulence and light effervescence. His gowns are sophisticated, but almost immaterial. The fragrance needed to radiate that same airy, solar, warm feeling with that same big trail."

The scent contains the following notes: orange blossom; jasmine; patchouli; cedar and rose-honey. I am not a fan of overly floral scents, as I like a fragrance with some depth. Therefore I really liked the fact that this was a woody-floral, thanks to the cedar in the blend. I found that this scent was a great mix of floral and woody notes, with a definite warmth to it. I had planned on wearing this for a couple of days to trial it, but ended up wearing it all week. I found that this also had good longevity and lasted approximately 6 hours.

I am a sucker for gorgeous packaging, and I *loved* the Elie Saab bottle. The scent is in a glass bottle which at first glance has a classic vintage feel, but on closer inspection has a contemporary feel, with it's cube-like shape. This ties in with the scent, which I think has a classic feel to it.  The bottle looks beautiful on my dressing table, especially when the light catches it, and certainly ties in with the "radiant femininity"  and "ode to light" concepts that Kurkdjian has spoken of.

The scent comes in 30ml, 50ml and 90ml sizes. If you would like to try this scent, then you can purchase it from most perfume retailers, including Escentual. At the moment, Escentual are offering a free 30ml body lotion with the purchase of any Elie Saab fragrance over 50ml.

The vintage feel of the bottle inspired me to take a photo of a couple of pieces of vintage jewellery that I recently re-discovered in my closet.

Have you tried this scent? If yes, what did you think?

Fine Print: I was sent this perfume by Escentual for review purposes.