09/06/2016
So, last time I left you hanging with the image of a t-shirt that had been dunked in tea in preparation for some one on one natural dye action. I can now exclusively reveal that the t-shirt is no longer tea-coloured, it is in fact yellow, and I’m wearing it right now. Not wishing to stroll straight to the punchline…
03/06/2016
I know, I shouldn’t be dangling tasty topics in front of you and then go off and not mention them for ages. Especially now you’ve been sitting there with a pot of tea and a pile of dilapidated t-shirts wondering where this might lead. So, while I appear to have almost infinite invites to yacht-based cocktail soirees, here I am,…
02/06/2016
Firehoses, eh? Not something you really sit down and consider that often, right? I’d never considered that expired firehoses might be an environmental problem, or even that they are a quite superb basis for upcycling. Apparently tonne upon metric tonne of hoses are discarded every year as they can no longer pass the safety demands. Given how well made these hoses are though, it…
03/04/2016
Honest, Guv, I wasn’t looking for trouble. Trouble in the way of another duffle-coat, that is. And certainly not another blue one. It was just that it started ticking all my boxes, saying all the right things. And it was just so very, very blue. And it can not be ignored. The royal blue wool is so vibrant it makes…
27/03/2016
Drawing their usual inspiration from militaria found in the IWM collection, this season Realm & Empire are all about the LRDG, or the Long Range Desert Group to give it it’s full name. This was a small group of allied soldiers that operated behind enemy lines in the desert of North Africa during the WW2. I’ll give you a tip…
13/03/2016
There. Quiz closed. Official results to be announced! Firstly though, I’m super chuffed by the sporting spirit shown and the number of entrants that joined in to be tested on their knowledge of WDD lore. 68 of you persevered and answered all 14 arduous questions. A large number of you even got them all correct! The prices to be drawn…
12/03/2016
Following on from my previous belt review, here are another couple of choice leather belts for your kind consideration. These are also low-volume, artisan crafted pieces, made to order to requested spec, in Britain. What this means is that if you know the various elements that go into them, you’ll have an idea what you might appreciate in a belt.…
20/02/2016
Coming up to the three year anniversary for the blog, I find myself pondering the direction forward. One option would be to call it a day, though I feel that would be a shame, given how many good folks read it, and how much I enjoy writing it. Another option would is to evolve. Reading an article about blog trends…
06/02/2016
This weeks book is a natural follow-up to my recent review of “Ametora“, the book about how the Japanese adopted the Ivy style from the US, improved it and exported it back. Well, in few words at least, the story is twistier and more involved than that. Yet “Take Ivy”, in both film and book, was instrumental in the process,…
24/01/2016
I tend to buy most of the books published within the scope covered on this blog, and they tend to follow a quite similar formula along the lines of “plenty of photos, a bare minimum of text, nice layout and a quality feel”. Most of them would be considered more for browsing than actually reading.This weeks book turns the formula…