Lady K Loves

LondonEdge February 2012

2012-02-24T07:09:00.001-08:00

Well now....it's again been so busy we're struggling to keep on top of work let alone on top of blogging! Some of you who are fans of the Lady K Loves facebook page, will have seen all of the images recently pop up from a shoot with Miss Cal O'Rein and Hannah. So we're currently making sure there is fabric at the factory, grading new pattens, finalising trims and colours and making sure everything is on track for Spring Summer.

However I've decided this afternoon is about coffee, blogging and a little bit of kicking back before operation New Pink Studio starts tomorrow.

We've done LondonEdge a few times and it's always such a fantastic opportunity to talk to our customers and stockists. This year was certainly no exception and we as ever met lots of wonderful new people. One of the high lights for me was having not one, but two people who stopped by the stand giving excellent feedback on the jeans....and by excellent I do mean praise! I'm always happy to hear from people about fit and finish, colours and prints, I completely understand that I have a particular way of dressing and while Lady K Loves in undoubtedly influenced and a reflection of that, it's very important to make sure there are options there for everyone. So feed back on needing more bust room in dresses, for instance, is important and received with open ears. That said, nothing fills me with pride and joy more than hearing good things about Lady K Loves styles, so hearing from two completely separate people that they love the fit of the jeans, particularly when they have different body shapes and sizes made my weekend!

Among the other lovely people we saw over the weekend were models, Zara Ann, Frankii Wilde, Solene, Miss Cherry On Fire, Dolly Divine and I'm pretty sure more I've forgotten (I'm really sorry!)

It snowed on the Saturday night, which was hilarious as Verity (The Vanity Box, new web site coming soon) and I had gone out to the Hillybilly Hop, it's not too far from her house in north London, but it still took us about 2 - 3 hours to get home, a snow ball fight, thinking we were going to get hit by a skidding van and a half an hour walk home in the snow! After what way clearly way too late a night and not enough sleep, I made my way from north London to Olympia to get to the show. Sunday was kind of quiet becuase lots of people had gotten snowed in where ever they lived. Betty was supposed to be coming up from the Coast to help Cam (Bow & Crossbones) but it just wasn't possible with the fantastic service South Eastern or Southern trains put on!

That night however was a lot of fun! Verity diligently made her way across London (I have to say I was really impressed, I'm not sure I would have bothered coming if it were me and it wasn't really necessary).

Verity and I taking pictures every time we got a coffee or ate anything......I think we'd gotten delirious!

So we went to the after party with the lovely (like really, really lovely, I'd never met them before and am looking forward to going to more shows which they're at since they're so sweet) girls from Bubblegum Vegas, Cam from Bow & Crossbones, and the guys behind Freddies of Pinewood who I've never met before and were so friendly and funny. Que a free bar.....as in, up to the bar to buy a drink and instead get a whole round with 2 of everything for all of us! By the end it was me Verity, Heather and Dani (Bubblegum Vegas) left doing some very bad dancing on a light up dance floor.

Verity, Me, Dani and the lovely Zara Ann

The fantastic and beautiful Miss Cherry On Fire was modelling from Bow & Crossbones, as many of you already know we often team up together, so dressed in Lady K Loves and dripping in Bow & Crossbones goodies, she walked around and tempted people to come and talk to us (and did a fantastic job too!)

Day 2 of not enough sleep! The show it's self was much busier and again full of lovely wonderful people to talk to as well as Gemma (The Vanity Box) joining us for the day which was so lovely to see her. That night was The Jive Dive at The Boogaloo in north London (directly opposite an old friends house randomly!). Which was a lot of fun! I can't jive very well...so was pretty nervous as it was quite a small room, but everyone was up and dancing and I had a great time even if I did end up with people taking pictures making me more nervous!

At some point (Monday I think) I also stopped by to say hello to Mr Ducktail, rockabilly barber who's not only very talented at his job, is also a super nice guy!

Tuesday involved more wonderful customers new and old, plus a sneaky find of a tiki/poly style bar up stairs with fake palm tree, which me and Laura Fortune (Miss Fortune) saw as a prime opportunity for a bit of posing! I also picked up one of these lovely Lucky necklaces from Bow & Crossbones....I've had my eye on one for a few months and am sooo in love with it.

Me and Laura, not the best picture, but it was the end of the day!

Shoot With Retro Photostudio

2012-02-14T15:13:00.000-08:00

For some time now we're been talking to Retro Photostudio about doing a shoot. It's another colaboration we've really wanted to do, but it just hasn't happened yet.

The shot was starting very very early, 8:30, I'm pretty sure, at this fabulous hotel, Hotel Pelirocco, which has beautiful themed rooms, from music based to boudoirs...

The shoot was based in the Betty Page room, starting so early, we dropped off the outfits the night before, so as to avoid any delays.

The Vanity Box was on hand for all of the make-up and hair needs, with 3 models Acid Doll, Miss Phoenix, Miss Lula May and Sam Huggins.

All the images below are of Miss Lula Mae, Miss Phoenix and Acid Doll, Miss Phoneix in the spotty dress in also in jewels from Bow & Crossbones.

Brighton Tattoo Convention

2012-02-09T04:42:00.000-08:00

What is really our second proper stand at a big show, was this years Brighton Tattoo Convention. We'd done smaller stands and tables at craft fairs and event such the London Kustom Ko-Op. So it's still quite nerve-racking to be out talking to customers. I always want to be doing whatever I can to make sure they're happy, so the feed back this week was really important and useful.

We left on Friday afternoon, me, my brother driving and Sarika, my friend, the car was pretty full!

We went straight to the Race course to get set up, after a few hours the stand was looking pretty good, and it was clear we would need to do a little shopping before we could finish. It was odd setting the stand up with out Betty, as we were sharing a stand, but she'd been there earlier in the day. A mad dash around Brighton in the morning, a healthy handful of stress and we were set up and ready to go......!

We had a great spot over near the Sailor Jerry stand, close to the main sitting area, bar, rum cocktail bar, and stage! being near the Sailor Jerry stand was good for drinks....but mostly becuase, it was manned with awesome people, some of whom were friends. Come mid day on Saturday there was important hair assistance given to be given, (photo from www.gloomylightsphotography.co.uk/)

There was lots of talking to lovely customers, some super cute returning customers who I'd spoken to via e-mail but not met, music, dancing, rum, good friends and good time. Part of Sunday was spent hanging out with Gemma of The Vanity Box, Gemma from ErisApple as well as getting a little tattoo from Ben Davies. Sarika was fantastic, really good talking to all of the customers and full of great suggestions on how we can make the stand better (a fresh pair of eye's are so useful)

Sunday day time I stopped off to see Ban and have a little tattoo. Then that night it was Brighton Rumble, which I'd never been too and was pretty excited for.Also over the weekend Retrophoto Studio, had a shoot which we were involved in, but that's another blog post.

Adam Ant - Reading 2012

2012-01-30T14:54:00.000-08:00

Back around Christmas time I was contacted by Georgie Girl, otherwise known as Georgina Baillie. Currently singing in Georgie Girl and her Poussez Posse, as well bas back up with Adam himself. She was after stage clothes for the last few nights of the tour. I have to say I wasn't wear at the time how many costume changes she made or how much she was on stage.....but the combination of liking to say yes to things, along with the lure of photo's, free guest list and potential press, I said of course.

I then got her measurements through....and bespoke was the only option, she's got a crazy figure! True hour glass, with tiny waist. So I made her some of the new styles.

Reading is a bit of a drive from where I live, so I went with my mum, which was fantastic fun, before we set out we looked like this

In in Lady K Loves Classic Jeans, and the first draft of a new shirt.......which will be coming soon.

That night we didn't see Georgie Girl, we got there late and I seem to remember reading somewhere they didn't play that night.....? (I might be wrong, very sorry if I am).

Whilst queuing at the bar, I spotted the very lovely Kim from Floozie and had a nice chat with her. And then he was on stage! He was fantastic, on really good form, clearly enjoying him self. There was lots of dancing. and two encores, the second of which had a few T Rex covers thrown in! This was pretty much the best picture I got.

So instead I've stolen this one which is much better!

(Which I think is stolen from the What Katie Did site, who I believe provided the lovely bullet bra seen here. Sorry for the steal....hope the link is ok)
Sadly if she did wear any of the Lady K Loves stuff, I didn't see it.....but if anyone does she here in this outfit...it's from us!

And this is also a little sneak peak of the new Verity top, inspired by a conversation had last summer with verity from The Vanity Box and Miss Betty Flowers (who already has a top named after her). More from the new range when photo's are in from Hannah KS Photography, from our shoot with Cal O'Rein

The Collective

2012-01-22T12:16:00.000-08:00

A few months ago I got a phone call from the lovely Verity at The Vanity Box, we'd spoken previously about working together on shoots but so far it hadn't happened.....logistics, both being very busy and just not having the right opportunity. So I was really excited when she had a plan to get us and some friends who all work in the same arena to combine forces on a super shoot....

You'll have heard of some of the brands and companies below in previous blogs....I'm really lucky to be friends with some wonderful and talented people. Through them I have a fantastic amount of support, advise, inspiration and of course fun.

So 2 models, 2 clothing companies, a beauty power-team, a couple of the most lovely girls on the scene, fantastic jewellery and an incredibly talented photographer.... the results of which are below.

Bettina Scarlett in Bernie Jumper, Gold and Red Cigarette Skirt, skirt coming soon.

Bettina & Jessie Orbits in She's Not So Dumb dress.

Jessie in Hello Sailor trousers in denim, Classic Tee in red and below, Shirley Skirt in navy and Cardi in lemon yellow

And finally, below is Jessie in a new top, called Verity after the driving force behind the shoot.......we had a chat in the summer which set me thinking......I love it when an idea and the prefect name comes together! There's a matching skirt, to come and more of this line, photo's coming very soon!

So the talented team.....

The Vanity Box - the lovely Verity and Gemma, hair and make-up masterminds.

Betty Flowers - ever lovely, was originally involved, however a horrible bit of flu put a stop to that.

Tigz Rice - fantastic photographer, seriously, check this lady out, a wonderful eye.

Bettina Scarlett - model, stylist, PR and general awesomeness.

Miss Jessie Orbits - Singer, bombshell, and model

Bow & Crossbones - Fantastic jewellery company, who does fantastic day to day wear, and some beautiful limited availability styles for that really special occasion. Plus the brains behind it is a absolute diamond!

The Outerlimitz - I've not included any of these images, but run by a lovely lady called Di, Outerlimitz is a great rockin' brand.

New Years Eve At The Boston Arms

2012-01-05T13:44:00.000-08:00

After spending a lot of time working in bars and previously not having the best New Years (as in, same pub/club we'd normally go to, just we had to pay more to get in and some how it was supposed to be the best night we'd ever had......?), I've been a little cynical about it. Then I happened to see the lovely Cam from Bow & Crossbones post about going to the Boston Arms with some friends of ours, Betty (She Makes Me Blush) and Verity (The Vanity Box). So I did what any sensible person would do and asked if I could come too! Verity has a massive house and we were all invited to stay there, she's such an excellent host too!

Sadly, Betty had the flu and couldn't come in the end, but despite that set back we had a great time.

I got to London about 3 o'clock, and we spent a very slow afternoon getting ready, drinking cocktails, and having some dance lessons from Verity. Shona from Adventures In Vintage was also there, I hadn't met her before and it was a real pleasure to hang out, plus we had a little solidarity together since nether of us had been before or knew how to dance. Verity was really sweet and gave me a make over before we went out, I felt fantastic!

We got there just in time to see most of The Ladykillers set -

Followed by another band then Bloodshot Bill after the bells. It was a little odd becuase I don't think the DJ even cared it was 12 o'clock.......there was no real announcement made and ever one was just having too good a time to really notice!

Despite getting there at just gone 10, we stayed pretty much till then end, had a hilarious taxi drive home (we went round in circles and I really don't think the driver had any idea where he was going).

I checked my photo's the next day and they are rubbish, taken during a random point in the night when suddenly we all took pictures.....and pictures of one another taking pictures. Rubbish as in they mostly looked like this........(and these where the best ones!)

So thankfully Shona had a couple of nicce one's of me which I can show you.....

I wore a midnight blue velvet pencil skirt with frill at the back and a gold lurex strapless top, with a small bolero to match the skirt. Given that I've not no clothes with me currently and I'd made it all that week I was pretty pleased with my self! You can see some of it in the pictures above.

I had a fantastic time and am looking forward to the next one, though I need someone to help me practice to dance before hand.

Happy New Year!

LKL x

Seasonal Style For Him

2011-12-06T08:22:00.000-08:00

I think guys get a hard rap when it comes to clothing, where girls have trousers, skirts, dresses, shirts, tee's, suits, play-suits and shorts to choose from, guys pretty much get trousers and a top.....obviously it's more varied then that, but you get my meaning. Where we have a mass of colours, cuts and styles to wear, it's not so for the gents.

So with that in mind, we thought we'd suggest a few places to take a look at for him, and hopefully broaden his style ideas and places to shop.

So first off is Tarantula at Ozone, USA based Tarantula offer guys and girls wear and I love their style, authentic cuts and colours which always feel like they have a bad girl/boy twist, there's a sort of B-movie edge which makes me think of 'Them' 'It Came From Beneath The Sea' 'Kiss Me Deadly' without being pushed in to the horror punk/psycho end of things. This guys jacket comes in a range of colour options and patten/finishes and it's supreme! They also did a fantastic guys knit top a while back, yellow and black stripe, but I can't find it at Ozone, or on their own web site, however Ozone have a great selection of their jackets and trousers.

Also good for jackets is Morellos, I'm not as keen on their styles, but that's just becuase we're talking Wish List here, fictional shopping with no budget! Anyway, back to Morellos and they should definitely get a look in for trousers, they have these 50's cut high waist style in pretty much every colour you can think of and are great for a smarter look.

If you're after more casual styles Roundup Records do great men's jeans (as well as jackets, tee's, hats and just about all sorts), as do Rumble 59.

Back to the smarter ensembles, Johnsons Shoes make some beautiful shoes, (the girls range is stunning as well!), the couple behind it are extremely lovely, and not only do they make a fantastic range they also have a selection of bespoke styles.

Perhaps better known for their shoes Rocket Originals do girls and guys clothing too, from shirts to trousers and knits. Their men's shirts come in some fantastic fabrics right now. (If you're looking for stocking filler presents, they also do a range of socks in lovely colours with an Argyll pattern)

In fact I think the four of these would make a great outfit.....the belt on the trousers above is Rocket Originals too (unisex sizing on the belts).

For a great selection of guys rockin' tee's, we've already given a nod to Bow & Crossbones and we recently found Boston Arms ebay store with this little gem.

So a host of places to shop for him! I hope it's added a few new places to look for presents and possibly some new styles for the guys.

Seasonal Style For Her

2011-12-04T07:20:00.000-08:00

So in the last blog we gave you some great options on hair and make-up help for Christmas and New Years. And here as promised are some Christmas style tips.

First off, yes their here and we love them! The lurex styles have arrived in perfect time for you to add some sparkle to your winter wardrobe.

Bernie and She's Not So Dumb, we've told you about them before here. Now they arrived, it's a pleasure to say they're just what we wanted! If you want to add an extra authentic touch, go for a bullet style bra like this one from Stockings & Romance. Because the dresses are made from a knitted fabric, we'd recommend wearing a slip underneath, and if you're going to wear a slip, why not go for something which helps give you that extra wow to your figure? We love this shaper from What Katie Did stocked by The March Hare, it's also available in black so perfect for both dresses.

On our wish list this year is this Stop Staring dress from Deadly Is The Female not for the faint hearted, it'll leave your wallet light (it's a little over £200), but I don't think you'd be short of offers for dinner or drinks being lined up for the rest of the month.

If you fancy feeling dressy without having to bare your legs? We think our Rosie trousers fit the bill, wear with a sheer blouse or tight sweater and a pair of sparkly heels to look festively special whilst beating the cold.

If you have time to browse we recommend keeping a close eye on Bernie Dexters ebay store. Not only does she sell her brand of clothing, she also has a multitude of fantastic vintage items. A selection from her own collection and her picks, so your guaranteed to find something you love even if you can't quite squeeze into her impressive measurements.

Curvier girls out there should head over to Big Girls Blouse, Julie is fantastic lovely and definitely someone who I'm keen to be in the same field as next camping show, she had everything you could possibly need! Plus she makes awesome clothing like this - and hair accessories like this feathered wonder.

Still looking at accessories, Betty Flowers has everything you could need to top off your out fit, from cute and kitsch, to sophisticated roses. Bow & Crossbones have some new bow necklaces which feel perfectly festive.

Shoes to complete the outfit! So we love Miss L Fire like these Goddess shoe, Evening Lady has these fantastic black Preen Bordello heels £49.95. Personally I've found Marks & Spencer's offers over the last few years pretty good and while I normally try to keep this blog small indie UK companies, I love these fake snake dolly shoes for £49.50

Of course you can also check out our sale section for some great party dresses too. Next time, guys style which is really hard to find good stuff, but we think we have a few interesting names to take a look at.

Out By The Light Of The Moon.....

2011-11-30T06:42:00.000-08:00

....the stars twinkle and so should you! It's Christmas very soon, which means presents, parties, probably eating and drinking too much. Hopefully all with people you love, possibly with work folks. Whatever the situation or occasion, no doubt, you'll want to look your best so before your event creeps up on you, here is our pick of some fantastic people to help beautify you....

Bethany Jane Davies - Is fantastic, after sharing a challay with her at the Riot last year, not only can she dance all night, but she knows all of the tricks to make sure that you'll look fantastic the next morning! Based in Manchester, Bethany travels to you, can be booked for appointments for make-up and hair, and also runs courses and offers tutorial sessions. Plus becuase she's so awesome she's offering Lady K Loves readers 15% discount on make up and hair services between now and Christmas. T&Cs....This does not include bridal make up or lessons and seminars. Regular travel costs apply. Book through the website with the code 'LadyKLovesChristmas'. Below are a few examples of her work.

Flamingo Amy - The very talented Amy trained at Nina's in London, and is based up in Norwich, she often works out of Flint hair in the the Bridewell area of the city and is a true jem! I seem to remember seeing something on her facebook recently about spaces for NYE filling up already so act fast as this girl gets very busy!

Lucille's Locks - Over Nottingham way you have the sweet as pie Lucille, I was first introduced to her via a blog she did on Lady K Loves jeans! Her hair tutorials on her blog are a great place for advice and inspiration, particularly good if you're looking for a distraction on Christmas day. But she also offers a full styling service for those who aren't confident to try them selves or what to go for something far more advanced for a special occasion.

The Vanity Box - Some of you may well have already met Verity and Gemma of The Vanity Box, they are regularly attending shows and weekenders, with their beauty pop-up studio, have worked with some of the best brands in the business and can be regularly found on the dance floor! Take a look at their facebook for a true idea of what they can offer.

Betty Flowers - If you haven't heard of her you haven't been reading the blog that often! Based in Hastings, lover of sweet tea and fan of all sorts of critters, Betty can, indeed make you blush! She's worked on most of the LKL photo shoots this year and specialises in peachy perfect skin.

Tattooed Beauty - After something a little more permanent? Madam Butterfly offers make-up and beauty tattooing. Eyebrows that don't smudge, lip liner that doesn't bleed or disappear when you eat or drink, eye liner perfect every day! It's like heaven. Prices start at £ and you do need to leave time for healing so get in touch with Madam B now to book your appointment.

Next time, fantastic frocks, heavenly heels and hair accessories to die for for all shapes and sizes.

Under The Tree.....

2011-11-23T10:30:00.000-08:00

If like me you're starting to feel the cold damp sweat of panic at the idea of Christmas creeping in, fear not. I'm not one to be celebrating having the shopping done and finished by October, I find the fact that the adverts start so early puts me off...and of course I then spend so much time insisting that it's not Christmas yet I forget to plan presents.......hence the cold sweat!

Over the next couple of weeks we'll be running a series of blogs covering ideas for presents, where to find great help for hair and make-up and styles for the party season. So get your self a coffee, sit back and make some notes on what to get for who.

Roundup Records - Specialising in music and with a fantastic range of denim apparel, Roundup Records are regularly at shows and weekenders in the UK and parts of Europe. There's a wide range of hair grooming and pomades, but for the day's where you do just wont do they have the perfect newsboy hats, 3 colours and 3 sizes there a fantastic present.

Bow & Crossbones - Best known for their jewellery and accessories, Bow & Crossbones also stock some great guys wear like this El Paso Speedway tee for £17

Miss Tiki Designs - Run by the lovely Elaine, Miss Tiki, evolved via a love of painting, with an strong influence of Polynesia and tropical, think fruit, tiki and even some charming animals when it comes to hair flowers. We love the Moai, great on hair clips too!

Exotic Tramp - Keeping it with the tiki feel Exotic Tramp is an emporium of luau goodies. Among our favourites are the chocolates, from traditional shapes, to chilli volcano's and even a tiki or two (prices starting at £3.50), the beautifully beaded Lei's (prices from £10) and the fabulous coconut handbags

Dolly Cool - Dolly Cool's Candy Cool range (£7 with free postage) is just out and prefect for Christmas, exclusive designs on a 1" wooden tile base. Dolly prides herself on items being hand made so always unique with fantastic quality and a keen eye for design.

Alternatots - Something for the little ones, Alternatots is amazing! I didn't even know what to pick! Toy's changing bags and mats, outfits from tini tiny to toddling, Christmas is for kids and now they can look as cool as you! We love this Swallow tee for £16

Shanty Tramp - Beautiful hand made jewellery, custom made to your length, everything is made to order so make sure you get order soon. We love this sea-side necklace (£19), and the hibiscus set, and the daisy's and we're had to stop looking so we don't just buy us lots of presents!

Deadly Is The Female - We're not sure if this is for him or you...but there's nothing better than some well fitting lingerie (see our previous post on bra fittings and perhaps head to She Said if you're near Brighton), pert of a range of corsets, pants, pantihose and petticoats.

Lady K Loves - Yes we do lots of beautiful clothes (we're so modest), and some wonderful accessories (have you seen the RockOptika frames we stock?) But we also have a selection of books picked out from Amazon. Cocktails, picture books of cars and girls, how to on hair and make-up and some social history.

We hope that's given you a little inspiration and somewhere to start with your shopping....

LKL x

Long Over Due Some Cocktail Fun

2011-11-14T11:04:00.000-08:00

Another cocktail post is long over due, and this time I’ve gone for a traditional prohibition drink, Long Island Iced Tea. It’s got an mix of pretty much every sprit, and is from a point in time where firstly drink was illegal (in the States), which lead many people to brew their own. (This is highly dangerous! Making your own beer, wine, ect in this country is perfectly legal, mostly because it’s safe. Spirits on the other hand have a dangerous distilling process which unless done properly can result in explosions, blowing up your house, garage, factory ect is not advised! The other side affect of bootlegged booze is that it can send you blind among other things!)

The aim of the drink is to get a perfect balance of all of the sprits, creating a sweet and sour flavour, which you don’t even realise has alcohol in it (going back to the illegality of drinking and the rotten powerful stuff used). You can buy what you need at your local supermarket……..

You will need –

Glasses

Ice

Lemon – cut in half’s

Limes – cut in 8^th’s in slivers

Straws

Stirrers and any other decoration

Vodka

White rum

Gin

Tequila

Triple sec

Coke-a-cola (any brand, skinny or fat are all fine)

Take your glass and fill with ice,

Squeeze all of the juice from one half of lemon in to the glass, follow this with the juice from 2 segments of lime.

If you can free pour (which I’m not likely to write about you can the basics about it here, I use a count of 4 per 25ml), pour a count of 1 of Vodka, Gin, White Rum and Tequila, this is approximately 6.25ml, add to this a count of 2, or 12.5ml of the Triple Sec.

Top with coke, give a quick stir and taste. It will take some practice, particularly as it can be really easy to go over board on the tequila, but once you’ve got the knack this is a great tasty classic cocktail.

Dolly Cool

2011-11-03T03:49:00.000-07:00

Last year the the London Lowbrow Kustum Kristmas, I was lucky enough to have my little stand next to Clare from Dolly Cool, not only was she lovely it was great being able to have a bit of a chat about shop and talk strategies (kind of dull I know, but it becomes much more interesting when your lively hood and ability to buy the shoes you've got your eye on is directly linked to how much money your business has made.)

It's becuase of our conversations that I looked at sorting a new web site system, (along with other people like Retro Chick and my mum who had both given me excellent idea's and suggestions about what to do), looked at setting up a news page which then developed into this blog, and finally she was definitely an energising force when it came to arranging the Jessie Orbits shoot back in march.

So I wanted to give her a little shout out as she's not only super sweet but also a regular Lady K Loves customer and I wanted to give something back....so here are some of my favourite bits from her current range, and her is her blog, and facebook go take a look!

Trash Leopard Earrings

3D heart necklace 'Doll'

New Rosary Collection rose necklace modelled by the lovely La Dama

Large Rose Necklace

London Lowbrow & Kustom Ko-op

2011-11-01T10:17:00.000-07:00

Last year we had a stand at the London Lowbrow & Kustom Ko-op's Kustom Kristmas, it was a hoot, however being out late the night before and not really being from London meant the travelling to get there took it out of my before I even got there.....

That said it's back this year and if you're someone who would consider your self a Kustom Krafter (Lady K isn't so crafty any more as we get everything made in the UK) and want a stall you can get in touch with them via facebook. Or if you're after some interesting Christmas presents, some fantastic home-made cake or just want to have a fun day out and hear some good music in the evening head down to this years event.

A Little Bra Fitting

2011-10-30T06:59:00.000-07:00

I've never had a bra that fit me, never, for over 27 years, until the other week when I visited She Said Boutique on Brighton.

I always thought I was small (by small I mean tiny), and that's ok, I'm not really too interested in having people only talk to me (or at my chest) becuase of my breast size as some of my friends have experienced. But yes of course they would be times when you wished you had a little more to fill out a top. However I never really let it bother me, I'd spent enough time when I was much younger trying on bra's and clothes and them just not fitting right so I gave up, or made my own.

However recently I'd become bored of wearing bikini tops all the time, having strings and extra strap lines showing on everything. I wasn't after a chest Pamela Anderson would be jealous of, but I did think it was time I had some proper grown up underwear. (In a nice way, not an old ladies option!)

Living in a reasonably small town I headed off to Brighton, where there was undoubtedly going to be more choice from larger department stores to indie boutiques.

Years ago I'd been measured at M & S, and told the very clear and professional advice of 'you could be a 36AA or a 34B or somewhere in between, try stuff on until something fits'. Now I knew then this was poor service, but I still went with it, I tried stuff and decided that I was 36AA. The seemingly oddness of this size is part of what lead me to wearing bikini tops all the time, it was easy, they fit even if they didn't do much, and I didn't have to spend 4 hours and a lot of money trying to find a 36AA (which sounds more like a battery size than a bra size).

Back to Brighton, and I spent hours walking around all of the standard shops, Debenhams, M & S, Ann Summers and all the rest, with nothing I really liked in the size I believed I was or to fit my budget. I got depressed, broke down in a changing room and cried, reminded my self that to have your lest favourite part of your body hidden on your chest and not being of any really medical issue, isn't that big a deal, got over my self then gave up and got a coffee.

Back to Mr. K's shop to hand out coffee and show off my one purchase of the day, which I was pleased with. Until he reminded me that I should go and have a fitting at the little shop hidden around the back of where he works. So I did. And I was more than little nervous, I thought I'd just have a look.

As soon as I walked in the assistant was friendly and helpful, and I couldn't help tell her my trials of not only that day but also how I come to think I was the size I was. She took one look at me and said I think you're a 34 (which it must be said was an argument I'd been having with Jodie earlier on in the day who used to work in a lingerie department so I should have listened to her). I still didn't believe the professional advice (not stubborn at all!). So she offered to measure me, she asked if I minded if I was topless to do it, and I think it really did lead to a much better result. Not only did the lovely lady give me a new (and correct more importantly) size, she also pointed out how my breasts were shaped, what I should look for in a bra, the kind of cut, straps and possible fabrics which would be the most flattering on me. Then provided me with an abundance of styles to try so I could see the difference. Even though it was gone 5 on a Sunday.....and all the bra's (that I really liked) she was handing me were £40+. It really was spectacular service and I'm extremely grateful, I left empty handed (as that's a little out of the current budget), but armed with the knowledge that I'm actual a 34B, the most common size going! I've since been able to walk into a couple of high street shops and pick up something for everyday use before I get ready to spend a bit more on something of such luxury.

So the moral of the story is, if you friend is a specialist in something, listen to them! (Sorry Jodie if you ever read this), and do go and see the wonderful people at She Said Boutique in Brighton if you get a chance, Mimi Holiday makes some beautiful bra's and £50 is actually very little to spend on a bra which fits so perfectly and makes you feel fantastic.

LondonEdge

2011-10-03T02:55:00.000-07:00

Last month Betty Flowers and I went to LondonEdge trade show. We had a stand together, it's my second time there but the first time Betty had done a trade show like that. We got there in pretty good time on the Saturday, even though poor Betty had flu! We had our eyes out for the Bow & Crossbones stand since we'd planned to hang out with Cam, we got a little over excited when we looked out of our stand and saw this.....

(I don't know if the picture is big enough to see....but it's the empty Bow & Crossbones stand! Woo Hoo!)

After an adventure to try and get hold of some chairs and some frantic searching in Hammersmith we got back and started to set up the stand.

After a while and some work it looked something like this

We were staying with some friends in Stockwell.....and work up to it raining heavily, determined to look good once we got the Olympia (rather than like a drowned rat!), we dressed the part.....Though I think I look a little more Granny here, than retro chic.

The Sunday was great and really busy, with lots of new faces and the chance to meet some of the people behind the great shops Lady K Loves has already been supplying.

That night was the after party, so Betty Cam and myself, got ready and headed out as soon as the doors shut on the show. There was a free bar on offer, but we were all so hungry we went for food first. By the time we got to the bar the free booze had gone.

But we had a great show, and free booze wasn't really the point in going......!

We meet some fantastic models over the course of the three day's, particular high lights we're SINderella Rockafella, Frankii Wilde, Zara Ann, Rayna Terror and a whole host of other lovely people (please don't be offended if I've forgotten anyone.) Plus meeting the people behind, Little Miss Delicious, Rachels Wonders Jewellery, Buy Unlike, and Miss Fortune, and a whole load more.

Here's a few more images from the stand, Betty will no doubt do a blog soon too and I will add a link to hers when it's up.

Typo's and Malapropisms......

2011-09-30T02:32:00.000-07:00

Some of you may have noticed that from time to time there are a variety of typo's, misspellings and malapropisms with the writing of this blog, and some of the other writing coming out of Lady K Loves.

This isn't out of laziness, or not double checking and proof reading things, it's simply because I have dyslexia. It's really not a big problem in day to day life, in my case it simply means the ability to take sounds and turn them in to a series of letters (and the other way around too) doesn't work very well.

One of the aspects of this is that I may well get the right letters just not in the right order, and some times I even get a right letters to spell a word.....just not the one that I wanted! However, I can still construct an eloquent sentence, I just might not spell all of the words correctly.

Though my brain doesn't hold series of numbers or letters in my head very well, it works much better in a different way. I'm far better at the maths needed to cut pattens, work out shapes and design clothes that fit and flatter, so there's always a sliver lining.

Anyway....I just wanted to provide a little information as to why there will be a lack of good spelling cropping up here.

Powder Compact

2011-09-25T06:46:00.000-07:00

I've wanted to post about this for a long time.....When I was little I really wanted a powder compact, they always looked so pretty, and something about the solidness of them really appealed to me. That they didn't just get thrown out when the make-up ran out, weren't plastic and cheap. They're truly glamours, combined with matching cigarette case, perfume defuser or lips stick holder it's the sort of thing dreams are made of.

But then as I grew up I wasn't really one of wearing foundation everyday and I didn't really know how to use powder. Until I found a blog post which someone else had written telling you how to re-fill them. The idea of just having a compact case to use as a mirror didn't work for me, I have a real love for practical design rather than just pretty.....

So deciding they were the way forward, I changed how I did my make-up a little. I'm very lucky becuase for the most part I have pretty clear skin so now I use a combination of concealer with powder. Mainly concealer is for my under eye's and occasional blemish, plus around and on my mouth to give my lipstick something to hold on to, then powder on top......

Anyway, I doubt you care about my beauty routine, here is how you can refill your own vintage powder compact. The good news is loose powder is normally cheaper than pressed so you can go 'up' a brand or so for the same amount of money, you'd normally spend. The resulting finish is very soft, once you run a brush over it, the top layer loosens very easily and has the finish of loose powder, with less potential for mess.

You will need

1 powder compact
selection of cotton wool and buds,
surgical spirit
spoon/fork/mixing implement
loose powder

1. Use the surgical spirit to clean the whole compact out, if it has a pan in the bottom (which you will need so if the one you buy is missing the original one you can probably get a replacement from here), take it out, clean all parts and leave on a clean surface to dry.

2. Next gently pour in some of the pressed powder, if you can pour in small spoonfuls of the surgical spirit, other wise pour very carefully. Now mix together to form a paste.

3. Repeat step 2 until the whole tin is full. I was busy nattering away and taking pictures so put way to much alcohol in it...hence why the whole dish is swimming on my table. It's probably worth mentioning here to make sure you do this on a surface which is either protected, covered or on which a little alcohol won't hurt. Glass tops are very good for this as long as they don't have an fancy finishes.

4. If you would like a texture on top you can press a piece for fabric into the draying pan.

5. Leave to dry, this is really important, if you use it too soon the surgical spirit will dry out your skin and give you a break out. The best way I've found to be able to let them dry enough before use, is to have more than one, what a shame!

6. Enjoy!

I first read how to do this over a year ago....and I can't find the blog anywhere, but DC Metro Retro and The Vintage Lifestyle File, both have blogs on this, with the same technique but no pictures. I also found Powder Compacts which is run by the lady behind Vanroe compacts, which sells restored compacts and has a page on refilling with loose of modern pans from various brands. She also talks about the alcohol option detailed above as being messy, it is a little, but I really enjoy the ritual of it, like setting your hair, or cleaning and refilling a zippo lighter, polishing your shoes. It makes sure you look after it, keeps in in use and at it's best performance, it's the chance to clean it all out, take care of any little bits which might need a touch up and get it back to full working order. That said I'm after 2 new mirrors for mine and would love it hear from anyone who knows a UK based company that can help.

Blogger Dresses

2011-09-18T07:37:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't follow Retro Chick or Andi B Goode.....this week both girls blogged about the dresses they designed for Lady K Loves....

Gemma in her Retro Chick dress

Andi B dress worn by Miss Kitty Boo as the sample is a little small

Both are limited edition, with only 7 being made in total, one in a bespoke size for both of the bloggers and then one in each size from an XS to a XXL (we're listening to your requests for larger sizes and producing then where we can). We know that releasing these at the middle of the month might make buying them a bit tough for some people so we're offering a holding service with a deposit. Please get in touch if you would like to find out more.

The dresses are £90 each, made out of vintage fabrics and trimmings.

I love both of them becuase they're so different. It was really exciting working on the project, the distance and our busy schedules made it take longer than originally planned. But I hope we're found something which is a bit of the bloggers and a bit of Lady K Loves.

LKL x

Photo Shoots, Cocktails and Tattoos

2011-09-10T10:23:00.000-07:00

It's been busy here and there's not been time to fill you in with all of the exciting adventures we've been up to!

A couple of weeks ago now we did a photo shoot with Betty Flowers, Sarah French and models Hannah, Stef and Debs. It was a really busy day, we started at about 10 in the morning and didn't finish until 7:30. However it was really worth all of the effort, and was so much fun I don't think any of us noticed the time.

Betty working on Hannah as we all set up.

Part of the aim of the shoot was to get some great shots of the swimwear which had recently come out in new colours, which you can see above. We used a lovely cocktail bar, affectionately called Volcano Joe's in Black Market in Hastings Old Town. Joe makes a mean cocktail, and was a really great help all day, particularly since he didn't mind us steeling Debs (in blue) for these shots.

We headed out to the sea front to get a few of the new Annette knit, shorter leg jeans and polka dot Shirley dress, whilst the weather and light was holding out and got some great shots but the miniature railway line and station. You can see some of the sea front attractions in the back ground. It is one of the things which works really well in Hastings, as long as the weather holds out you can always find a great location to shoot at.

Next up was the lurex dress, She's Not So Dumb, it's named after an old war poster I had. From a modern point of view it's hugely insensitive,and stupid. But I think you have to take a different view point and hope that we have come a long way from these ideas! All that said, it's a great image, and I love the idea of this siren wooing men in to revealing all of their secretes.So the She's Not So Dumb dress was born, though doesn't really have much to do with this one.

The other shot I really wanted to get was the one below, as I've written about before, our Dorris Dress in white with black polka dots has a look of the famous Berts Belles image. And this is one of what we got, the wind wasn't going in the right direction, we spent a lot of time trying to pull Hannah's skirt up whilst the wind fought us, and then we looked behind us to find a band of builders watching from half way up a building on the other side of the road! I think we made their afternoon much more interesting.
Finally we went for coffee....it was all too much! And coffee was also on the way to our final location of the day Madam Butterflies Tattoo Parlour

There was also loads of shots to get done of things like the new knitwear, Bernie and different colours of the capri pants, including the limited edition purple leopard print ones. We were looked after by not only the guys in the studio, particularly Ben, Betty's wonderful gentleman who not only put up with all of our giggling, but also set everything up for some shots including his tattoo gun!

Adverts

2011-09-01T01:20:00.000-07:00

Just a very quick one this morning.

You may have noticed we now have sponsors, or adverts or what ever you’d like to call them. I just want to make sure it’s known that, no body has paid to be on this site as a link, these are for the most part friends, who do great work, who I want to help spread the word of the great things they do.

You may also notice over the course of the blogs I write, a lot of these peoples names will appear, which is great, because I get work and socialise with such talented people.

Get clicking and seeing what other people do!

A Month Of Weddings

2011-08-23T06:38:00.000-07:00

August has whizzed by in a blur, but despite all signs at the start has managed to be a very lovely and romantic month.

I was treated to dinner by Los Furias Tiki right at the bringing of the month, and even before that I attended, what turned out to be a very beautiful wedding of some long standing friends. I won't be posting any of the images from the weddings them selves on here, because that feels a bit rude and impersonal given that none of the married parties blog or the such like. However I managed to find some outfit shots to be able to show you what I wore, apart from to the last wedding....but I'll explain why in a while.

First off was Al & Liz's wedding, who have been together for years and are a lovely couple. I wore a Lady K Loves dress to this one, since it was in a church followed by reception in a field.

So this is me in my red Dorris dress, we're all walking to the tree where a skiffle style band played and the couple had their first dance.

Above I'm with one of my best friends Heidi, making cocktails at the impromptu cocktail bar which got set up once the Pimms people had left.

Next up was a a wedding double bill, firstly another set of friends from the same group where getting married, then shortly after we found out another couple we're good friends with also had planned their wedding, on the same day! So, ceremony and a little of the reception at one, followed by a drive through the country side to Wales for the second! I need to say a massive thank you to my brother who drove like the wind, and refused to give up when we had trouble finding the small farm in the Welsh countryside where the wedding was held!

First out fit is a dress I've been trying to finish for ages, and finally I knew how to do the collar on this so my bright pink Hawaiian pink dress was at long last ready, though not for the faint hearted.

Here's me next to Los Furias himself, the bride made her entrance up this lawn to a small red building which she was married in,

I feel a little bad that I've stolen this picture and cropped the bride out! (Plus it's not really up to the close zoom). Her dress was lovely, and being a rock'n'roll girl at heart, she had leopard print shoes poking out.

Finally on to Wales! And we got horribly lost, got there late, changed in car into something a little warmer, my Lady K Loves Rosie trousers and a wrap top from Voodoo Kitten 13, in bright pink Hawaiian print. This was a tiki themed wedding so in fact I was, by some standards a little under dressed with my plain trousers. As we got there so late, there aren't any full pictures of me, but, here you can see the his and hers mugs the couple had made for the day. All guests got one, red for ladies, black granite finish for the gents.

I'll add more images as they surface, there was a lot of recovery time needed after this wedding!

Blogger Dresses

2011-08-17T07:57:00.000-07:00

A long time ago, or at least that is what it feels like!....I had a conversation with the lovely Andi B Goode via twitter about some dresses she wanted to make but didn't feel she had the sewing know how. After a little conversation, we thought we'd do a small run of a dress designed by her. I also spoke to Gemma at Retro Chick as I know she's a savy dresser and shopper and always has an eye for style.

They both designed about 4 - 6 different dresses, which then got narrowed down to 4 for their lovely readers chose from. It was too hard to choose our selves as we all hard different things we liked for different reasons. People voted and below are the two winning designs.

Andi B Goode's winning design for Lady K Loves as voted by her readers.

Retro Chick's winning design for Lady K Loves as voted by her readers

The next stage was the fabric and the pattern, I drafted one up for each dress as shown below,

I made some changes to the original dress, the main on being that rather than having a straight waist line I lengthened the skirt and went for an under bust hem. While I know for some curvier ladies that can be a little daunting, the cut should work to help lengthen the body and the bust has plenty of room to be filled!

Andi's dress at the draft stage,the 2 button holes on either side of the skirt are for placement only, in the actual article they button holes are on the inside with the buttons facing in so it provides extra secure closure with out being visible.

Once the pattern and basics were worked out it was time to go to the fabric shop! Which was the really exciting bit since as much as possible of these dresses is made from vintage fabric. So a trip to St. Leonards, to the wonderful Wayward haberdashery was in order....which meant coffee and cakes at the lovely Little Larder. Wayward is fantastic, full of so much exciting and inspiring fabric, buttons, trims, vintage hand made lace, military braid, gold thread, cards, scarf's, blankets, throws, it's amazing. The point where I've nearly gone back though and deleted that, I don't want to share this shop, it's too good!

So after some coffee and being in awe, and wanting everything, and getting excited abut all of the wonderful clothes I could make I took some pictures of suitable fabrics for the girls and their dresses, and this are the ones they went for.

Andi B Goode buttons,

Retro Chick Fabric.

Gemma's dress fabric is very different to her original design, but I saw it and thought she'd love it, and she

did!

Main fabric for Andi's dress, again it's a different colour than originally intended, but it's part of going for all vintage fabric, not everything you want is there, but what is, is beautiful!

So the dresses are now done and have been sent off to the bloggers. I'm excited to see them wearing the dress they designed, and really hope you like them once they go on sale.

Shakedown Rock'n'roll No 4

2011-07-31T17:15:00.000-07:00

It was fantastic! Being the first proper show Lady K Loves has done, apart from trade shows, it was kind of hard to know what to expect. Turns out it as a great one to start with, loads of lovely people, brilliant music and a pretty cheap bar! To keep my company the lovely Miss Betty Flowers, from You Make Me Blush, came with me. We’ve worked together before on fashion shoots and she is one of the most fun people I know and definitely made the weekend!

The sun shone all weekend and we our stand were extremely well positioned, on our right was the Salon bar, which took a little while for us to work out why it was so raucous. Lovely bar tenders, salon style doors which provided lots of entertainment, and strong cider for only £2.50 a pint. On the other side was The Vintage Tearooms, prefect for early morning coffee, a spot of lunch, or tea with cream scones. They looked after us so well all weekend, from coffee in the morning to pasties at dinner time. They were also accompanied by the owner’s son Danny, who was such as charmer and had a little holiday romance with Betty!

Thankfully, although I don’t really have an camping equipment, Mama K came to the rescue…and this is what our tent looked like with everything she provided!

We had inflatable beds, since I think my day’s of sleeping in just a sleeping bag are long gone, a stove, coffee makers, chairs, all mod cons. Plus we found a lovely little shoe rack on the side of the bedroom ‘door’. The tent is my sisters so I really do have to say massive thanks to both of them because with out all that it would have been hard work. We had plenty of room for a little kitchen too. Plus you can see at the bottom corner of the picture, a lovely stripy mat which Betty brought and we used as a rug.

We spent the weekend talking to lovely people, Maaike from Roundup Records, Verity & Gemma of Vanity Box, Jake Allan of, well Jake Allan, and Julie from Big Girls Blouse (who dose fantastic dresses, jeans and clothes for fuller figures, and I will now be pointing anyone who doesn’t fit Lady K Loves in her direction). We had a visit from a lovely chap who later turned out to be the bassist from The Polecats….which made watching them all the better that evening!

So here are some traditional ‘myspace’ style pictures of me at Betty at the show, our stand and a band which I can't remember the name of (just checked - The Humdingers), who were fantastic slightly swampy, Hillbilly, style....Every time I picked up a new flyer to see who was playing, it was one for next year so keep an eye on the the web site for details.

We’ve already booked for next year and can hardly wait!

Americana Weekend

2011-07-28T08:53:00.000-07:00

A while back we were contacted by Miss Fortune about being involved in a fashion show at Americana Weekend.

Sadly we couldn't go, but some of our clothes did and we're living vicariously through them! Not only did we get some fantastic pictures out of it there is also a film of the whole thing.

I think there is maybe a few more to come too...but the top photo is the new purple and black colour options of the classic swimsuit. I knew I'd like it, but it looks so cute on! I also have to say hat's off to the fantastic modles, particluarly in the case of Emma who I understand hadn't done much modeling before, and was extreamly brave wearing a swimsuit on stadge.

The photo at the bottom is of the Shirley's skirt with a new tee for next season. Named after the indescribably awesome Betty Flowers from You Make Me Blush, I can't wait to get some Betty tee's in....

Finally the video! The music in our section is thanks to Jessie & The Orbits. Jessie modelled for us a while back and the band are constantly touring and playing weekenders around the world

Bettina Scarlett

2011-07-21T05:03:00.000-07:00

A while back Bettine Scarlett did some photo's for Lady K Loves, we were really pleased with them so we asked her if she'd like to do some more. We really needed new pictures of the Old Town Dress in the available colours, and we also wanted some of the black Hello Sailor Shorts and the new red colour shorts too.

These pictures are fantastic, they have a bit of Bernie Dexter to them in the posing I think....but she looks fantastic and did a really good job. What do you think?

Sun Glasses

2011-07-17T10:19:00.000-07:00

Recently I helped out a friend of mine, she runs Jackomettii Spaghettii, baby accessories made in the UK. If you have little ones or know someone who does and likes things a little different definitely check them out.

Not only does this lady have the most amazing collection of vintage and retro sewing and knitting patterns she also had some fantastic glasses....which she gave to me and completely made my day!

I know very little about them and think it will be quite hard to find anything out as they have a product code and 'Made In Italy' but no brand name.

Below is a close up to show you some of the detail on the rims. I think really they could do with a good clean, and since I know little about them, quite possibly replacing the lenses to make sure they do have UV protection so I will take them to The Optical Lounge to be looked after by Tom. However that hasn't stopped me from wearing them for the last week. They're just too awesome.

And finally below is me feeling self concious trying to take a picture that didn't make me look grumpy, arrogant or bored or super cheesy!

New Dorris Dress Colours

2011-07-08T06:11:00.000-07:00

We've been waiting on these to come out of production for a while, but they are so worth it!

Along with the pictured navy and tartan version above (belt not included) we now have these in white with black polka dots and red with white polka dots...I'm planning on making one of them my outfit for a friends wedding in a couple of weeks so will add more pictures after that....

But we realised it looks a little like the famous Bert Hardy photograph of two 'Belle's' on Blackpool parade.

Apparently there has been some controversy in the past over who the Belle's are... The ever trusty (!) Mail has a whole article on it here....

The swim suit she wears a little later in the shoot is fantastic and we're definitely inspired! Might need to leave that one till next year though....

In the mean time you can get hold of the Dorris dress now as it's in stock and practice your sea side posing.

A Little Something Tiki

2011-07-06T10:30:00.000-07:00

A slightly odd outfit post in some ways....

Firstly becuase I don't have red hair any more (back to blonde which feels more 'me')....so it's odd seeing pictures from when I did.

And secondly since the pictures are all from about this time last year, firstly when we visited Scunthorpe, as Mr K, better known as Los Furias Tiki, was involved in a wonderful tiki art show at 2021 Visual Arts Centre, and then from Puttiki at the lovely and much missed Hunny Lu Lu's in Hastings.

Tiki Today in Scunthorpe was supposed to be a fun weekend away for both of us, a little live painting for him, maybe about 8 hours over the whole weekend. Combined with rum, good friends, great art and even some night time entertainment.

Unfortunately he spent the whole weekend painting.... but as you can see it was clearly worth it....his piece is on the left hand side and a beaut!

I however, brought coffee, food and regular supplies....then come the evening more hair flowers than even I thought possible and this Hawaiian print little number.

It's made of 100% cotton fabric, and is 100% Hawaiian, those of you who have seen Lady K Loves web site, might recognise the fabric in fact, it's the same black print used for the Leilani and Natalie tops (which are now pretty much sold out). This pattern is ready to go at some point, but this was a first draft to make sure it worked, and see what didn't work. One of the joys of making samples is that for the most part they need road testing, there's nothing worse than having a lovely piece of clothing which looks great if you stand still, but bunches or moves in an odd way when you move. Or if you just can't walk in it, or sit down....any way you get the picture. So this is a first draft of a one-day-will-be-made-when-I-can-find-some-nice-fabric-which-I-don't-need-to-import variety. I think if it gets made it will have a halter strap added, but still it's one of my favourite summer wardrobe items.

Having had a look through I don't really have anything that shows the skirt.....it's a faux wrap around, creating a sort of tulip shape at the front, and wiggle shape from the back, this second picture gives you a better idea.

This is me behind the bar with Joe Cocktail......an excellent mixologist and bringer of rum.

I'll add some more pictures when I have some better views of the skirt!

Mai Tai

2011-06-23T05:57:00.000-07:00

We thought we'd start off our blog proceedings with a little how to on a classic tiki cocktail. It is mid week so it's clearly cocktail time to make it over the hurdle that is Thursday, plus you need to practice for the weekend so you can impress your friends with your mixology skills!

The Mai Tai has a long and twisted history, arguments and even court cases over ownership, recipes being copied, ripped off and even worse, very poorly appropriated.

However weather you decide Don the Beachcomber or Trader Vic invented the drink, we like Trader Vic's version best. A delicate balance of lime juice, rums and syrups, it's delicious and delightfully strong!

You will need per drink -

Glass or tiki mug full of crushed ice
4 - 5 8th's of fresh lime
Dark Jamaican rum (I use Myers)
Gold Martinique rum or Jamaican (I use Appletons Estate)
Orgeat Syrup
Gomme or sugar syrup
Orange Curacao or Tipple Sec
Mint and swizzle sticks to garnish

Tools - 1 cocktail tin and shaker

To make -
squeeze the juice of 4 or 5 of the lime segments (depending on how big they are and how limy you like your cocktails) into the tin. Drop in the squeezed segments, the skins have oils which will add flavour to the drink.

Pour in around 4 teaspoons each of the dark rum and gold rum. 1 of both syrups, and 1 1/2 of the orange curacao/triple sec. If you can free pour, it's 3 each of the rums, 1/2 - 1 of the syrups and 1 of the orange curacao.

Put the lid on the tin/shaker and shake, pour over the crushed ice into the glass or mug being careful to keep the lime pieces separate.

Garnish with the top of a mint sprig and your preferred swizzle stick, umbrella combination.

Sit back and enjoy!