Crossing Time Zones

My own mother is a master at three things: canasta, checkers and packing. Though she still beats me at the game of checkers, and I never sat still for long enough to grasp the rules of her favourite card game, I am happy to report that I too have packing down to an art form.

My father, meanwhile, understood colour, patterns and proportion. As a child, I automatically reached for the bog standard gray crayon when filling in a rock. But his version was done in shades of bronze, blues, slates and streaks of silver from my Crayola crayons box, colours and combinations thereof that would have never occurred to me at age five.

So when he took it upon himself to designate colour palettes for his three daughters, I trusted him completely. He was way ahead of the Colour-Me-Beautiful curve…

My rule of thumb when packing is simple: my wardrobe consists of a blue/gray combination or black/beige, a pair of jeans and one smart white blouse. I bring a large silk scarf I wear around my neck or as a belt. I never leave my house without a bright pashmina: not only does it work as a wrap over a summer dress, or that extra layer in cold weather, but rolled up it becomes my soft pillow on the plane that always smells fresh.

When it comes to shoes, I enlist the bare minimum: one pair of heels, sandals and pretty flats for summer climes,  Chelsea boots and an over the knee flat pair, and my trusted trainers for a jog or a long hike. 

Stone beads are my answer to everything and go with gold or silver. The only earrings you need bother with are pearls or diamond studs, real or faux. Bring  several necklaces to change your look from smart casual to smashing. If they are in the same colour-way, pile them on for maximum effect.  My favourite number of necklaces to wear when I’m dressed head to toe in one colour is three.

Here’s another packing gem: white tissue paper not only helps keep your clothes from wrinkling in your suitcase it’s also very good to wrap your Felina London pieces in for extra cushioning in your carry-on.

Must focus on an upcoming trip that includes running a half-marathon, touring and business. In two different time zones and climates...

Now there’s a challenge!

Sensual Stones: Turquoise

This stone has been revered since the dawn of man as being a sacred piece of the sky available to have and to hold and wear as often as we like, whether it's your Sagittarian birthstone or not.

Its recorded healing properties date back over 5000 years, in an area stretching from the Persian Empire to the Americas. Healers say that Turquoise dispels negative energy, calms nerves, stabilises mood swings and strengthens the meridians of the body and the subtle energy fields. In ancient times, it was said to  have protected riders from falls and injury;  American Indians used it to invoke the sky gods for much needed rain; to the Aztecs, its valued surpassed that of emeralds - and even gold.

The name comes from pierres Turquoises, Turkish stones, which made their way into Europe by way of the Silk Route purchased from Venetian merchants in the lands we now know as Turkey.  

One of the most notable turquoise inlaid masks belonged to the young Egyptian Tutankhamun; the other to Moctezuma. In fact, the Aztecs called this stone chalchihuitl and legend has it, the blue-eyed god, Quetzalcoatl himself, taught Moctezuma's people how to cut and polish it to perfection.

Navajo, Zuni and Apache jewellery is synonymous with turquoise. Its colour comes in a stunning a variety of shades, depending upon the mine. For example, when the blue is more prominent, copper is present; blue-green means the mine has aluminium; and the more rare American turquoise that comes in a yellow- green shade is only be sourced in the state of Nevada.

Since all shades of enticing turquoise flatter all skin tones, wear it to make an entrance.  And frankly, if you wish to catch everyone's attention, why wait for summer?

The Necessity of Beauty

Jewellery adorns. It frames one's face, draws attention to a woman's cleavage - whether she is voluptuous or not. Pearls illuminate your very skin and facetted rocks ratchet up the volume of even the most sleepy of eyes.

A well chosen piece  instantly becomes a working woman's tiara, gives us mere mortals a dusting of Olympian allure and can even feel as impressive and impermeable as armour whether we're battling in the boardroom,  passing laws in Parliament or delivering a speech in the Senate.

And who doesn't need at least one beautiful accessory to elevate herself in this fast paced, demanding-yet-exciting times?

Adornments are as vital to the female gender as the air we breathe. The jewellery we reach for daily broadcasts much of who we are to all those we encounter: love, fidelity, status, background, education, sense of humour, religion and culture. Extrovert or introvert. Tasteful or clueless.

Jewellery speaks volumes in its unique international wordless language such is its power. Temples and mummies are quite a find, but when it comes to unearthing pottery over the treasures of a long lost Empress, it's the contents of her jewellery box that draw the masses into the exhibitions...

Felina London honours the human tradition of adornment and celebrates the aesthetic value and creative spark required in every beautiful piece of design.  Our bespoke jewellery provides you with the language of style, self-confidence and timeless chic.

Every time.

For every occasion.

Come rain or shine.