CRYSTALLIZE/SURPRISE ME

Lesley Vik Waddell



Officially a crystal convert (no I haven't joined some weird cult!).

When I signed up for the Swarovski Crystallized Vogue reader event I did it on a whim and to be honest my expectations weren't high since I've never been a big fan of Swarovski (I always think of dusty crystal menageries locked away in some old lady's sideboard).
I couldn't have been more wrong because like any Vogue reader event the evening was great.

I took some snaps of the amazing 'Runway Rocks' creations, my personal favourite being the dreamy, ice-queen-like (think Tilda in Narnia) sweater dress:

Julien MacDonald


Christopher Kane

Roksanda Illinic





Sarah Ho

Viktor&Rolf (those are matte black crystals by the way).

Rodrigo Otazu

Philippe Ferrandis

We treated to delicious cocktails (a peculiar but tasty virgin one that consisted of black cherries and bay leaves) and melt-in-the-mouth canapes. But the best surprise of all was the arrival of Dolly Jones. She is incredibly charming and witty(almost laughed out loud at her Fashion Week misadventures) . Also she looked stunning, check out those tights!

We also got a free goody bag which include a ring and a DIY phone charm kit.

On the way out I grabbed a copy of the Crystallized magazine which was huge and almost sent me flying backward when I took one of of the shelf. If you go to the Crystallized store you must go upstairs to the lounge and graba copy. The quality and content is excellent.

Swarovski pencils anyone?

I actually though for a second that these were free! Turns out they are £6 each, good thing I asked.

The Importance of Colour in a city that is Grey

Sometimes I wonder if colour, rather than blood or oxygen is what keeps me alive.
Strolling through China Town the other day when the sky was an opaque grey,was like strolling through a palette of smells and colours. I sat down in the Golden Gate Cafe and had an HK style (hot) bubble tee and a vibrant green pandan slice (If you've never had anything that is Pandan flavoured, please, please correct this immediately!). On the way back to work I stopped by the indoor flea market and bought 12 rubber bangles. You know the kind that every little girl seems to have in abundance. The stall that I bought them from sells them for 20p each or 6 for £1. What I like is the generous selection of colours and the subtly different shades of blue, purple, green, pink etc. So that you can have an armful of baby blue but each one is a slightly different shade of baby blue:

Like a child, things that are simple, cheap and colourful never fail to please me.