Fancy That: Gold & Citrus Jewelry
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Sara fancies luxurious and inventive jewelry by Gold & Citrus. Just as the name suggests, their pieces are a little sweet and a little tart with designs that combine traditional elements—gold chains, gemstones, and beads—with more daring and unusual ones—feathers, studs, and antique wooden sequins. The collection offers something for every taste from simple and elegant, to sleek and sexy, to richly textured and exotic.
Gold & Citrus is a collaboration of local artists Sara Rossbach and Richard Combs. They work together on the jewelry designs, then Sara meticulously created each piece by hand with beads, sewing machine, and metalwork, while Rich makes sure the whole experience of their jewelry is equally beautiful with his packaging and website design.
Everything in their three unique jewelry lines—We’re Golden, Body & Soul, and Everyday, Everyway—represents the brand’s philosophy that luxury does not have to be so serious. Many pieces are asymmetrical, and some, such as the scarf-like Clementine necklace shown above, are designed to be worn several ways, giving the owner a chance to have fun and be comfortable wearing an eye-catching and made-to-order piece of jewelry.
The Gold & Citrus online shop is having a holiday sale! Use coupon code GOLDEN20 at checkout to SAVE 20% on the entire site, today through Monday, Nov. 30th.
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Fancy That: The Brixton Pound
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Michael fancies the movement towards local currencies. The streets of London may be regulated by the pound sterling, but one neighborhood is fueling its success with a different type of capital— the Brixton Pound.
Think of it as a bold, new experiment to boost the economy by investing your money where it counts— in local commerce. Global trade may be becoming more and more the norm, but independent business owners and fiscally-conscious locavores are finding that grassroots efforts like the Brixton Pound (B£) are key to building a resilient economy. Acting as a catalyst for civic pride and building community awareness, local currencies encourage a mutual support system that, through keeping money in their neighborhood, continues to sustain itself. And with vibrantly-designed denominations like these, who wouldn’t be encouraged to spend?
The B£ follows the successful introduction of the Totnes Pound in Devon, Lewes Pound in Sussex and Stroud Pound in Gloucestershire. Could district-controlled monetary systems be the wave of the future? Is encouraging a more cash-based society the answer to the credit crisis? It’s no government bailout, but it’s definitely a plan you can take to the bank.
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Fancy That: Artwork by Hilary Williams
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Sara fancies the colorful and imaginative works of local artist Hilary Williams. Her limited edition screen prints incorporate layers of photography, stencils, paintings, and drawings to express wistfully charming moments in and around San Francisco. Much of her work explores the juxtaposition of the urban and natural elements of life here, capturing both the soothing beauty of the City, and its prickly underlying energy.
“My works deals with a variety of emotions about the coexistence of our urban landscape, nature and humanity… I desire to create a surreal vision of reality that incorporates the past, present, and future of our worlds, landscapes, and characters, causing reflections on where we are today”
Hilary also plays with her methods of combined media and layered materials to create textural paintings that defy the bounds of a frame, and wonderfully engaging fabric sculptures that seem to invite you into a secret magical world.
Take a peek at Hilary’s work in person, including her new “Petite Prints,” at her solo show opening tomorrow at Tedda Hughes gallery boutique. While you’re there you can peruse the works of other talented local clothing and jewelry designers including those of the proprietor herself. You can also visit Hilary in her studio every Wednesday, 4-7pm, and learn all about her creative process.
Opening reception is Saturday, Nov. 14th, 7-10pm. Tedda Hughes is located at 1623 Polk St., between Sacramento and Clay in San Francisco. Open Wed., Thurs., Sun., noon-7:30pm; Fri. and Sat., noon-9:30pm.
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Fancy That: This Table Will Self-Destruct
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Kay fancies the self-destructing wood and concrete coffee table from Studio 1 a.m. Etched with the warning, “This Table Will Self-Destruct,” every piece is crafted as a series of concrete pixels. Each time the studio produces a new table, the design team removes one pixel from the design. Part eye-catching sculpture, part social commentary on mass production, the idea is that every new table presents a universal pattern of self-degradation, becoming more intricate and multidimensional as it diminishes until, ultimately, it is no longer useful.
One cannot help but embrace the irony that, when placed adjacent to a person’s preferred at-home seating arrangement, it’s a pedestal for serving all things self-destructive. We’ll leave the rest for your imagination to construct.
Studio 1 a.m. is the brainchild of Chicago-based design partners Donna Piacenza and Jody Work. The duo specialize in creating cerebral yet functional objects for home and for you.
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Fancy That: Ateliers Ruby Helmets
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Michael fancies the lux line of jet helmets from Les Ateliers Ruby. Their sleek carbon fiber shell and crimson nappa lambskin lining bring together the best in material science and retro styling. The result— the ultimate status symbol for, as Ruby puts it, “everyday heroes and heroines.”
The Pavillon is Ruby’s flagship, open-faced model and is currently offered in three distinct colorways— Shibuya (peppermint), Concorde (black) and St. Honore (white). The Belvedere model builds on the classic form with the added feature benefit of a full-face visor, showing a clear homage to American and Japanese science fiction.
It’s no surprise that founder Jerome Coste drew his inspiration from the legendary speed racer himself Steve McQueen. It doesn’t get much cooler than that.
Ateliers Ruby helmets are available in the Bay Area at either Vespa of Walnut Creek (2780 Camino Diablo) or Rockridge Two Wheels in Oakland (5291 College Avenue).
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Fancy That: Paranoia Dolls
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Sara fancies dressing up on Halloween. It brings back the days of girlhood–dragging the big cardboard Dress-Up Box out of the closet and diving into feathered, sequined accessories, and colorful Halloween costumes of years past. My mother is an excellent seamstress and my father is clever and inventive. Together they used to whip up amazingly creative and ornate costumes for me overnight. I wish I still had them all. To fill the void, and revive my inner child, I may have to start collecting Paranoia Dolls. Except that these dolls are most certainly for grown-ups.
These emotive porcelain dolls seem at the same time eerily human in their expressions, and like haunted creatures from another world. Incredibly detailed down to the eyelashes, the dolls range in style from mystical doe-eyed princesses to red-eyed tributes to Twilight. Hitting the vampire culture/couture craze at its mass-market peak and just in time for Halloween, paranoiadoll.com is due to launch sometime in October. Perhaps then we can learn more about the creator of these rebellious toys, because it seems the brand is appropriately named—there’s nothing to be found about the artist online.
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Fancy That: Gaga for Kitty-chan
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Michael fancies character reinvention and none seem to manage it quite as proficiently as the enigmatic shape-shifter Lady Gaga. No stranger to risky wardrobe choices and her affinity for Muppets, Gaga revels in her skillfully-orchestrated ex-club kid persona and proves that pop culture relevance is as closely tied to a playful appearance as it is to catchy tunes.
To mark the 35th anniversary of Hello Kitty or (as she’s known in Japan) Kitty-chan on November 1st, Lady Gaga posed as the Sanrio leading lady for celebri-photogs Markus Klinko & Indrani. She even got into character for a recent appearance on a morning talk show in Japan, where donning a bit of cosplay evidently ensures you unlimited pokes and prods from your band of interviewers.
Still debating how to dress this Halloween? Take a cue from Lady Gaga— go big and go glam.
Lady Gaga kicks off her world tour The Monster Ball in November. She performs at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco on December 13th.
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Fancy That: Bijules Fools Gold Bangle
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Kay fancies the Fools Gold Bangle from statement jeweler extraordinaire, Jules Kim, designer and founder of Bijules. Kim’s latest collection is featured prominently in the October 2009 issue of Zink magazine (which also features blingy-zingy experimental makeup trends this month). Raw design details aside, what pyrite (fools gold alloy) may lack in preciousness, it more than triples in promise: its very existence often signals that a mother lode lies hidden nearby. It’s a subtle reminder to keep on digging.
Find more from Bijules at SF-based shops Acrimony, 333 Hayes St., or American Rag, 1305 Van Ness Ave.
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Fancy That: Theroux by Moscot
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Michael fancies the limited edition Theroux eyeglass frame by Moscot. Named for the “Mulholland Drive” star Justin Theroux, these frames are an exacting replica of the 1960s French originals that his character wore in the film.
A fixture in the optical industry since 1915, Moscot carries a handsome collection of frames for men and women. Can’t get to one of their myriad international retail locations? Their online shop takes the guesswork out of frame selection. With style suggestions for every face shape and a virtual “try on” simulator, Moscot’s number one priority is keeping all eyes on you.
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Fancy That: Tautou No. 5
There’s nothing like your first crush. And if you’re anything like us, you crush hard and often. This is where we pay homage to all things worthy of lusting after.
Watch the Chanel No. 5 commercial with Audrey Tautou here.
Sara fancies The City of Light and all things quintessentially Parisian. And nobody manifests impressions of Paris better than Coco Chanel and the French actress we fell in love with as quirky and charming Amelie, Audrey Tautou. Every time the new Chanel No. 5 commercial comes on, I feel transported to a fairytale land where the scent of a woman and the romance of a train ride have the power to make lovers out of strangers.
Of course it’s no coincidence that Ms. Tautou is gracing the small screen with her presence in association with Chanel. She is the reincarnation of the legendary mistress of fashion design in the feature film Coco Before Chanel, directed by Anne Fontaine and released just last week in the U.S. Give yourself a spritz on the wrist, catch the flick, and remember “fashion fades, only style remains the same.”
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About
Culturcosm is your online authority on the climate of trend throughout the Bay Area. Your roving reporters are taking to the streets and chasing down the real story. Be it stormy or serene, torrid or just plain tragic, we will break it down before you hit it up. Stay tuned. There's a new trend breaking every minute.
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General Inquiriesinfo@culturcosm.com
Michael, founder / editor-in-chiefmichael@culturcosm.com
Kay, founder / contributing editorkay@culturcosm.com
Sara, trendcaster / managing editorsara@culturcosm.com
Heather, social commentatorheather@culturcosm.com
Taylor, music trendcastertaylor@culturcosm.com
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