Five minutes with… « mariankihogo.com

Posts Tagged ‘Five minutes with…’

Five Minutes With // Elizabeth Tan

Thursday, March 17th, 2011

Photo: Elizabeth Tan

I was honored to share an interview with Elizabeth Tan. The beautiful British actress of Chinese descent has a repertoire that spans the scope of film, theater and television.

The talented and well spoken actress shared her thoughts on fashion week, her current role in British TV soap, ‘Coronation Street’ and more.

Read on for the conversation with her.

1. What are you working on at the moment?

I’m currently playing a new character called “Xin” on Coronation Street. It’s so different from any of the characters I’ve played on other TV dramas such as Doctor Who, Hustle, New Tricks, Spooks or Hotel Babylon.

2. You were spied at London fashion week, what were your favourite shows?

I definitely have a soft spot for Christopher Kane and I also really like Jonathan Saunders. I loved the cut and tailoring from Bora Aksu’s collection, but deep down my favourite accessories are shoes! I love Nicholas Kirwood and really like the direction Camilla Skovgaard has gone in this season.

3. What’s your must-have fashion item?

A good bag always does the trick! You can’t go wrong with a Celine or a really worn-in vintage Birkin.

4. What’s your pet fashion peeve?

I don’t really have one! Although I think people should always dress for themselves and not for anyone else..

5. Most likely to wear?

Dresses, I love dresses! Right now I have my eye on a few by David Koma and Lulu & Co’s designers.

6. What does the future hold for Elizabeth Tan?

Who knows? I definitely would like to do a few more US and UK feature films and a lot more West End theatre….

Visit Elizabeth’s site here.

Many kind thanks to Elizabeth Tan.

Tags: elizabeth tan, Five minutes with...
Posted in Interviews | No Comments »

Five Minutes With // Daisy Knight

Friday, October 29th, 2010

Daisy Knights’ jewellery features miniature skull, shell, ball studded and feather designs in 22 karat gold vermeil, oxidised silver and sterling silver.

The skull pieces have a feminine endearing quality. The designer cites nature, punk and rock ’n’ roll as influences for her work.

She founded her line while studying at London’s renowned Central Saint Martins College. The pieces are handmade using ethically mined gold and recycled silver.

I was honoured to interview Daisy (as seen in image above0, on her work and the nuances in between.

1. Hi Daisy, thank you for the interview. What inspired you to start your label while at college?

I always knew I wanted to be a jewellery designer and make pieces that were wearable and affordable, so I just decided to get on with it while I was at college and started my company in my spare time! I also wanted to have more than just my Central Saint Martin’s education when I got out of college; I wanted to have more of a stamp on the industry than just being a graduate. Paul & Joe were one of the first to sell my jewellery while I was still studying, and dealing with retailers in a business situation was a huge education for me too!

Daisy Knights Gold Vermeil studded wrap ring

2. Who is the Daisy Knights girl?

She is intelligent, strong, independent but also feminine, not afraid to mix metals and makes every look her own

3. If my readers were to purchase one piece from your collection which would you suggest?

The feather ring (from the Lornie collection) is my signature piece that sums up the Daisy Knights woman

Daisy Knights Oxidised Silver feather ring

4. If you were not a jewellery designer you would be?

I would probably be a sailor. But I have wanted to be a jewellery designer since I was 11, and in my heart I always knew it would happen so I didn’t really leave any other options open!

5. One great jewellery tip?

Don’t abide by ‘rules’ when wearing jewellery, go ahead and mix metals (gold & silver) and wear as much as you want! I always wear a tonne of jewellery when going through airport security and when I surf, I don’t think there is an inappropriate time to layer it up!

6. Why skulls?

The skull collection is inspired and named after my friend from Central Saint Martin’s, Kim. She was a bit of a punk but is so beautiful and delicate. Her hair is always a different colour, sometimes shaved, but she always maintained a really lady-like attitude which I love! so I designed some really girly but not kitsch skulls.

Daisy Knights Gold Vermeil skull bracelet

7. When you are not designing jewellery you can be found?
With my boyfriend and our dog Ace Ventura Pet Detective (ace for short) at home in the Cotswolds or most likely in the pub, either the Falcon in Poulton or the Village Pub in Barnsley

8. Which celebrities would you like to see in your pieces?
I don’t really design my pieces with celebrities in mind, but I’m lucky enough to have some very stylish ladies as fans. An early fan of mine was Lady Amanda Harlech, who works closely with Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel. Since then Alexa Chung, Daisy Lowe and Poppy Delevigne have all bought pieces. It’s exciting when someone who’s style I admire wears my jewellery.

9. One random thing from your week?

My boyfriend just booked us a holiday to Cuba!

Daisy Knights Gold Vermeil antler necklace

10. The first piece of jewellery you ever designed was?

I made a ring for my friend Katie for her 13th birthday, it was a ring with a little silver flower on. She had to have it removed from her finger in the emergency room as it was so small for her, but she still has it today!

12. If your house was on fire, which jewellery piece would you save and why?

My grandmothers wedding ring that I always wear, my mother (Lornie) gave it to me for my 21st, it is my most precious piece of jewellery to me. I would also grab my dog and my favourite Mattthew Williamson dress!

13. Daisy Knights’s jewellery is synonymous with?

Nothing, there isn’t anything like Daisy Knights jewellery, its unique!

Daisy Knights tie bracelet with sterling silver skull

Click here for the Daisy Knights collection.

Kind thanks to Daisy.

All images courtesy of Daisy Knights.

Tags: dasiy knight, Five minutes with...
Posted in Interviews | 3 Comments »

Five Minutes With // Skye And Charlotte Of Kitch & Honey

Friday, October 15th, 2010

As a fashion stylist/editor and a personal stylist to celebrities, I spend a lot of time liaising with fashion PR companies. The relationship between journalists/stylist and PR is very much symbiotic. I have been known to call many a PR contact at unheard hours when styling emergencies crop up. New boutique PR company, Kitch & Honey was recently founded by Charlotte Strodl and Skye Harrison(pictured above right and left respectively).

I interviewed the two on how Kitch & Honey PR came about, the clients, the story behind that hip name (how cool is Kitch & Honey?), their party tricks and all the nuances in between.

1. Hi Skye & Charlie! What is the story behind Kitch & Honey PR?

Hi! So the story of Kitch & Honey. Well we met each other while we were both working at Mission Media in the fashion team. It is where we became the blonde duo of PR, championing old school PR rules of being constantly on the phone, churning out the coverage and making best friends with journalists. In this time that we both launched Oli.co.uk and Astley Clarke jewellery together and worked on celebrity fashion campaign Visa Swap with Lindsay Lohan. Skye then left to join specialist fashion PR agency Snow PR to look after accounts such as PPQ and Olivia Rubin and Charlotte stayed to take over the fashion division where she looked after Jigsaw and The Shop at Bluebird.

We had talked about owning our own agency for years but were too busy with our jobs to even fathom putting it together. One night over a bottle of wine we decided to do it. We started having conversations and talking to small brands who didn’t have PR. In July, Charlotte left Mission Media to set up the company with three clients under her belt, clothing brand Misticon owned by friend Charlotte Dutton, Body London, a modeling agency owned by a girl she went to school with and Bellinski, a swimwear company owned by a friend of a friend.

She rented a desk from a friend in Jermyn Street and was helped by an intern to set everything up. In September, after fashion week was over, Skye left Snow and joined Kitch & Honey full time. We have now got twelve fantastic fashion clients, our own office in Oxford Street equipped with showroom, three staff members and a team puppy, Barley.

2. Great company name by the way! How did you come up with it?

One of our best friends is a fashion editor so we went to her for advice on the company name. There are a lot of PR companies nowadays so we wanted something really unique and original. After brainstorming we realised that the two PR agency names we really liked were named after condiments so we knew we had to throw a condiment into the mix. We also wanted something fashiony in there and we landed on Kitcsh after much thought and deliberation. We decided to put both names together as it seemed like the spirit of the times, think Marina & The Diamond, Florence & The Machine. So we ended up with Kitsch & Honey. We looked at it and Kitsch seemed a little bit obvious. We googled Kitsch and we found that in the Urban Dictionary Kitch without the ‘s’ meant ‘cooler than cool’. So there we had it, Kitch & Honey.

3. Who are your clients and what makes you stand out from other PR companies?

Our clients are:
Charlotte Taylor
Hemyca
Florence B
Elvira Sazesh
Stephen Einhorn
Misticon
Connected Generation
The Trouser Room
Katherine Thomas
Bellinski Bikinis
Body London

We are different from other PR companies because we are taking it back to basics. We believe in old school PR methods where the PR’s are best friends with the journalists and can call them up and chat with as friends as well as for work. We believe in phones over emails, regular showroom appointments throughout the week, regular coffees and catch ups and we always make sure we are on the pulse of what is going on in the media and where our clients fit in. We feel that too many PR agencies rely on emails and are too behind the scenes to really get under the skin of individual journalists. We also strongly believe in hard coverage results over lengthy reports and admin.

4. One random thing from each of your month’s so far?

Charlotte – Natasha Beddingfield telling me I had really nice hair at the LFW Kristian Aadnevik fashion show before running her hand through it and getting her nail caught in a tiny dread-lock at the back of my head. Cringe!

Skye – Picking up my McQueen handbag on the way out to a meeting, then realising that the puppy had crawled inside and fallen asleep in it, not before eating a new business pitch document, who says dogs don’t eat homework!

5. Which designers are you coveting lately?

Charlotte – The Anya Hindmarch is never far from my arm

Skye – The McQueen is handy right now with puppy bowls and blankets – glam uh!?

6. What is your party trick?

Charlotte – Balancing on one foot in a six inch Louboutin whilst downing a glass of champagne

7. Kitch & Honey in five years?

A big agency with a boutique feel. Lots of fabulous fashion clients, an amazing office with a huge showroom and lots of lovely employees

8. Last thing you tweeted?

Welcome to Account Executives Verity (formerly of Warehouse) and Hannah (Formerly of Iroquois) and Intern Lucy (Formerly of Mission)

9. Are you a heels or bag girl?

Charlotte – Heels all the way!!
Skye – Toughy – buy too many of both but to keep the man in my life happy has to be heels!

10. Kitch & Honey in five words?

Coverage is our currency, yes!

Follow Kitch & Honey on Twitter here.

Photo Credit: Skye Harrison and Charlotte Strodl.

Tags: charlotte strodl, Five minutes with..., kitch & honey, skye harrison
Posted in Interviews | 3 Comments »

Five Minutes With // Wendy Brandes

Friday, April 2nd, 2010

Wendy Brandes in a modified version of her ‘Swear’ ring design. Image edited by Observation Mode

I adore gorgeous Wendy Brandes’s covetable luxury fine jewelry and so do the likes of red carpet royalty like Liv Tyler. Her jewelry has been featured in leading magazines such as W magazine, Marie Claire, GENLUX,O-The Oprah magazine, ESSENCE, Modern Jeweler, Jezebel etc. The great press is a no-brainer as her pieces are eye catching, bold and utterly clever. I am particularly drawn to Brandes’s strong mechanical (think delightful pieces that can be unscrewed, twisted or open and close) designs.

‘Acorn’ necklace by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

A wonderful theme that seems to be the ongoing inspiration for her pieces is strong women with intriguing stories. Think designs inspired by the unfortunate wives of Henry VIII, Nefertiti and other interesting women

‘Marie Antoinette’ ring by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

I also like her fun whimsical pieces like her Squirrel necklace, Swear rings or her fruit necklace series.

‘Grape’ necklace by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

Everyone in blog land adores her witty blog which features everything from humor filled musings to her lust inducing designs. I was honored to interview the very busy Wendy, read on for a fabulous piece.

1. Hi Wendy, hope you are well darling. One funny thing from your week so far?
Last week, when I started working on this interview, two friends in different parts of the world sent me photos of hilarious drink names: Diet Cock and the Ike Turner! What made it even better was that neither of my friends knew I was writing a post about drinks at the time. http://wendybrandes.com/blog/2009/12/outfit-post-almost-starring-jude-and-sienna/

‘Nerfertiti Poision’ ring by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

2. Tell us a bit about your stunning jewelry…
I work in 18K gold, platinum and silver. As you say in your intro, mechanics are my signature. That means lockets http://wendybrandes.com/pro-detail.php?colid=29&collect=true&id=256
, poison rings http://wendybrandes.com/pro-detail.php?colid=28&collect=true&id=414 ,things that twist and turn http://wendybrandes.com/pro-detail.php?colid=30&collect=true&id=204 .

Another characteristic of my jewelry that you can’t see in pictures — so it always shocks people — is how much heft my rings and necklaces have. I don’t skimp on metal. When you pick up my handmade Nuit ring http://wendybrandes.com/pro-detail.php%20colid=28&collect=true&id=475 you find out what an ounce of gold feels like. That says “Luxury” to me. Of course, my earrings aren’t that heavy. I wouldn’t want the customer to wind up with lobes that stretch to the ground.

‘Citrine & Pink Sapphire’ ring by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

3. I read that your first designs were your engagement and wedding rings. How did this come about?
Standard diamond solitaires depress me. I wanted something that represented my style. In fact, I wanted everything related to my wedding to represent my style. A lot of women think, “I’m going to have this ring/these pictures forever, so they have to be classic.” Boring! Bring on the leather outfits and crazy cakes. http://wendybrandes.com/blog/2009/09/your-wedding-wish-is-my-command-now-vote/ . I only regret that I wasn’t wilder. I look at the wedding photos now and think, “Too safe”!

4. You seem to be inspired by strong historical women from English Royalty to Nefertiti. Where do you draw your inspiration from?
I’ve always been intrigued by women who led extraordinary lives in times and places where they had no real rights. Empress Matilda is one of my favorites, kicking ass and taking names in the 12th century. It took me three blog posts to cover her; http://wbjewelry.blogspot.com/2008/04/book-club-empress-matilda-part-i.html,, http://wbjewelry.blogspot.com/2008/05/book-club-empress-matilda-part-ii.html and
http://wendybrandes.com/blog/2008/05/book-club-empress-matilda-part-iii/ .
And check out the necklace I named after her! http://wendybrandes.com/pro-detail.php?cat=true&id=406

.
‘Matilda’ necklace by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

5. Lipstick shade that you are currently addicted to?
I’m all about red and I just can’t quit MAC’s Lasting Lust http://wendybrandes.com/blog/2008/07/red-lipstick-1-macs-lasting-lust/ .I need to get some more. I’m on my last tube right now.

6. If you could only wear one piece of jewelry. It’d be?
Definitely my one-of-a-kind onyx skull ring with hidden diamonds http://wendybrandes.com/pro-detail.php?colid=32&collect=true&id=420 ). My website says the price is available upon request, but I’d rather that no one request it. I only want to sell that ring to Lady Gaga, Madonna or Beyonce. It either goes to a megastar or it stays with me.

‘Onyx Skull’ ring by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

7. You are throwing a fancy dress party, what or who do you go as?
You might think Marie Antoinette (I’ve already done Anne Boleyn– http://wendybrandes.com/blog/2008/10/anne-boleyn-postmortem ) but I’ve always wanted to look like Jim Morrison for a day.

8. Your Party trick?
I wish I could say that I tie cherry stems into knots with my tongue, but that would be a lie. Instead, I entertain people by opening up three or four pieces of jewelry to show them various hidden compartments. A few years ago, when I was the only not-famous person at a dinner, Queen Noor of Jordan saw me open a bunch of rings and left off talking to Michael Douglas to say, “Ooh.” That’s all she said: “Ooh.” And it’s still one of the best compliments I ever received.

‘Pomegranate Peace Sign’ necklace by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

9. Your current collections?
You mean stuff I collect as opposed to my jewelry collection, right? In that case, I’ll say “grievances.”

10. Last movie you watched?
“Precious.” I still have my 1996 original edition of the book (“Push” by Sapphire) on which the movie is based. I also remember sitting on the beach with my mother and reading that book. My mother asked, “Would I like that book?” and I considered a moment and said, “NO!” I can barely remember what I did yesterday, so I’m not sure why I recall that little exchange from 1996.

11. Love your gorgeous jaw dropping ‘Venus’ earrings from your ‘Eden’ collection. Tell us a bit about that collection.

With my queen-related and historical pieces, I usually work from a concept and find the materials to bring that concept to life. The pieces in the Eden collection are more likely to be inspired by the gems I find. For instance, the cabochon-cut rose quartz that I used for the first Venus pieces immediately brought the “Morning Star” concept to mind, complete with diamond “stars.”

‘Venus’ earrings by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

12. Your blog shows a love of vintage, you have some great pieces by designers like Ossie Clark, Patrick Kelly, Moschino Cheap & Chic etc. Most recent vintage fashion purchase?
A black Patrick Kelly dress that’s covered with little bows in rainbow colors. While researching the dress, I found a clip of Bette Davis mentioning Kelly on the David Letterman show in the ’80s. I’d been looking for that footage for a while http://wendybrandes.com/blog/2008/05/meet-80s-designer-patrick-kelly/ . Bette was a damn good salesperson. I wish she were around to wear my designs.

13. You are a proud New Yorker, if a tourist had an hour to see NY for the first time where would you take them to?
I’d do what I did with gorgeous blogger Solo Lisa and take you to St. John the Divine and the Columbia University campus. http://wendybrandes.com/blog/2008/10/bloggers-invade-upper-west-side/

‘Primavera’ ring by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

14. You recently had a two day pop shop, tell us about it.
I don’t have a regular storefront where I can show my full line so it’s great to have the opportunity to personally show the whole collection. (About a dozen of my pieces are available in a great store called Broken English in Santa Monica, Calif.) I love to tell people, “Hold out your hand!” and then drop a one-ounce ring or pendant into their palms. Their stunned expressions are priceless!

15. Five words synonymous with your designs…
Amazing, amusing, feminine and feminist. Yeah, I’m counting “and” as one of the words!

Isabella Wolf Fang earrings by Wendy Brandes, image courtesy of Wendy Brandes

How witty is Wendy? I adore the lady,her answers are brilliant! Drooling over every single design. I’m all for personal,strong pieces.Cookie cutter jewelry is far too boring. Wendy pieces are timeless,organic and unique. Simply love pieces that tell a story and these do that in heaps and bounds. Thank you for the interview Wendy!

Visit her below.
Wendy’s Website

Wendy’s Blog

Stay glam!
Marian.

Interview republished with kind permission from Wendy Brandes. Originally published on mariankihogo.blogspot.com in December 2009.

Tags: Five minutes with..., Jeweller, jewelry, Wendy Brandes
Posted in Interviews | 20 Comments »

Five Minutes With // Juliet Hutton-Squire

Friday, March 12th, 2010

Photo credit: Courtesy of Juliet Hutton-Squire

Adorn London is a gorgeous destination for jewellery lovers. The fabulous site for all things jewellery is an absolute favourite. There is something wonderfully addictive about its design, features and general ethos that will leave you drooling!

(more…)

Tags: Adorn London, Five minutes with..., jewellery, Juliet Hutton-Squire
Posted in Interviews | 13 Comments »