All tooled-up

I’m hoping that Liberty of London doesn’t go and do a ‘Mulberry.’  Meaning, flagging British brand suddenly gets hip with break-out IT bags.  Judging from the new AW07-8 campaign, starring a voluptuous looking Rachel Alexander, Liberty aren’t compromising on their aim to dance between Liberty’s heritage and the 21st century as I observed for the SS07 collection.  Art nouveau stylings and ‘artisanal’ finishes are made covetable rather than period novelties.  i.e. You’re not going to think of the purchase of the tooled leather bag in the ad and think ‘I’m buying a vintage-y bag’ but rather ‘I’m buying a beautiful bag.’

Getting back to the main point of the post though, aside from the gold and black swimsuit that I want to wear a swingy skating skirt, the embossed leather on the bag in the ad is really doing it for me.  In fact, at the moment, I’m attracted to all manners of tooled leather.

My love was further confirmed when I spotted these Nicole Farhi ankle boots in Harpers Bazaar which makes me think they should defintiely do close-up shots of ALL shows rather than the select few as these lovelies completely passed me by when I looked at the show pictures.

I’ve also been keeping my eye on Etsy seller Moxie and Oliver who has a different take on the traditional Mexican craft of tooling leather, creating a matte as opposed to shiny texture.  I also love the addition of colours.

I always do a quick eBay check to scan my current fixations and there is quite an array in terms of period in tooled leathers.  Anything from early 20th century art nouveau to 60’s hippie styles.

Tooled Leather Peep-Toe Shoes // Tooled Leather Purse // Tooled Leather Small Purse

I’m personally after something that utilises the craft of tooling leather in an ultra modern way.  I have no idea what I’m visualising but I’ll know it when I see it…

9 comments

  3. Susie sweety – I found another seller on ETSY that has a different and modern approach to tooled leather- check out Sunny Rising Leather. She is the sweetest girl from California with amazing talent. Worth a look at least-

  5. I couldn’t focus on anything after you said the model was voluptuous looking. um how?! She’s not even old school Sophie Dahl voluptuous. She’s like one pound heavier than any other nameless model that they’ve airbrushed into oblivion.

  6. When i said voluptuous… What i meant was that Rachel Alexander looked burthes than usual where she looks rather gaunt…. I should have said sensual really… please excuse the poor choice of words….

  7. hm, i certainly did not take it that susie meant the model was of a “voluptuous” body type. voluptuous is not restricted to describing body types anyways.. i’ve understood the word to signify something luxurious, something that pleases the eye in its splendor.. indeed, sensual. 🙂

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