Shoes
“One shoe can change your life.” Cinderella From Manolo Blahnik to Jimmy Choo, Christian Louboutin To Bruno Magli, Salvatore Ferragamo to Roger Vivier, Stuart Weitzman to Edward Rayne…just the mention of their names can prompt hearts to palpitate and eyes to sparkle in anticipation. Just as the fluttering fan, delicate glove, and winsome hat, can draw attention to a lady, so too, one accessory that towers above the rest (pun intended) that when deftly employed, can capture the roving male eye like no other – the fabulous, flirtatious shoe. For centuries, ladies have understood that a rosy...
Read MoreGloves
“Like most little girls, I found the lure of grown-up accessories astonishing – lipstick, perfume, hats, and gloves. When I write female characters in my historical novels, getting these details right is vital.” Sara Sheridan Winter is slipping through the cracks in frosty gusts, as we rush to retrieve scarves, hats and gloves to keep us warm and snuggly. Nothing feels quite as sensuous as slipping into a pair of leather gloves lined in cashmere. Yum! An exquisite pair of gloves peeping from a Christmas stocking will surely be welcomed, and often the first gift put to good use. Over...
Read MorePan Pacific International Exposition
While working on Castles & Heraldry I visited the deYoung Museum to view “Jewel City: Art from San Francisco’s Panama-Pacific International Exposition of 1915.”1 So with my mind still focused on lords and ladies, knights and valor, I was drawn to this image of a crusading knight in armor dragging his heraldic flag behind him in “The Vanquished”, by George Hitchcock (1898). Both horse and rider convey the feeling of exhaustion and surrender. It was one of 200 works of art on exhibition, painstakingly researched and recovered from more than 11,000 works originally at the Exhibition....
Read MoreAntiques
“Collectors are happy people.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe A cursory glance at the September/October issue of Antiques Magazine confirms that fall heralds good hunting for antique lovers. Heirloom treasures abound at the International Show at Park Avenue Armory, Fall Antiques at Rhinebeck, Boston International Fine Art Show, Deerfield Antiques Show, Delaware Antiques Show, Philadelphia Antiques & Art Show, Shenandoah Antique Expo, Natchez Antique Forum, Louisiana Purchase Auction, Houston Antiques & Art & Design, San Francisco Fall Antiques Show, and that’s just the tip of the...
Read MoreAntique Signs and Weathervanes
The short but succulent season of fall is upon us, and as we head to the country to sip sparkling cider pressed at the mill, we invariably pass a barn or village “shoppe” brimming with antiques. With a nip in the air and a skip in our step we’re ready for adventure and a little sly sleuthing. (I know someone who wears a fanny pack equipped with jeweler’s loupe, tiny flashlight, black light, bic lighter & needle for the hot pin test, thin plastic gloves, baby wipes, cotton balls and more.) Collecting seems to bring out that primitive instinct for the hunt in some of its devotees, who...
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