Bugsy Malone at the Troxy

13-year-old Jodie Foster as the fabulously slinky Tallulah (Image source)

It's a well-known fact that Bugsy Malone is one of the best films ever made. And now Future Cinemas is putting on a live cinema event with all the trimmings (including showgirls and custard pies) at the Art Deco Troxy cinema for several nights over the next few weeks.

I really hope I can get myself into gear and go along, even though my thesis is due in only FOUR WEEKS. Eep! My sister and I used to bounce and dance and run and sing our way around our living room as kids, acting this film out. I used to dream of having one of those pedal-powered cars and being part of a world like Bugsy's. So this is pretty much as close as I think I'll ever get to a childhood dream come true.

If you're in London, go along! If you're not, grab a few friends and watch it at home, getting up to dance around if you feel so inclined.

Love letter in the New York Times

Photo by Tomas van Houtryve for The New York Times

I've been awfully busy of late so not had much time for blogging BUT I just had to come by to tell you that my post on Oscar Wilde's tomb has been quoted in a New York Times article!  You can imagine my surprise and delight when I discovered this!  A couple of my lovely readers' comments were quoted as well, namely the lovely Superheidi who blogs over at The Swing of Things and the fabulous Miss Rosette Brune.

Also this week, I hit 50 followers, which is great news as well!  Thanks to all of you who read along and comment and who make the whole blogging lark so enjoyable.  Special thanks to Wendy over at The Butterfly Balcony for being the first brave lass to follow me!  Also to Betty Boots, who is the latest to join in the ride.  But you're all great and I look forward to (hopefully!) continuing to entertain you with my wee blog and to hearing more thoughts and comments from you.  I should have a think about a doing a special 50 followers/Christmas giveaway too...

Love,
Lisa Marie x

Kaspar's Tale (aka The Lucky Black Cat)

As promised, I now bring you the strange tale of Kaspar the Cat.

The story begins with the millionaire, Woolf Joel.  He and his brothers, Jack and Soloman (Solly), grew up in the East End but had made their fortune with gold and diamond mining in South Africa, thanks to their uncle Barney Barnato.  In 1898, Joel gave a dinner party at the Savoy Hotel, a farewell before he headed off to South Africa.  There were supposed to be 14 people in the party, but one guest cancelled at the last minute.  Although warned that to have 13 guests would be bad luck, the party went ahead.  Having to retire relatively early to be ready for his departure abroad, Joel left the table before all his guests, dismissing the superstition that whoever left the table first would be destined to die first.

Mere weeks later, in his office in Johannesburg, Joel was shot dead by a blackmailer, Baron Kurt von Veltheim.  When this news reached the Savoy back in London, they knew that they couldn't risk such ill fortune falling upon another one of their guests.  As such, whenever there happened to be a party of 13 guests, they would recruit a member of staff to join the table.  However, this set up was less than satisfactory as the party would often wish to discuss private or personal matters, in which case it simply wouldn't do to have a stranger in their midst.  And this it where Kaspar comes in...

The solve the problem, Basil Ionides, who was responsible for the redecoration of the Savoy Theatre in the late 1920s, was brought in for an extra, unusual commission - to design and craft a 14th guest who could sit in on dinner parties without imposing on the conversation of the guests.  And thus, Kaspar was born.  This beautiful Art Deco cat was carved from a single piece of plane tree.  Whenever there is a party of 13, he is seated on the 14th chair with a napkin tied around his neck and is served up every course, like all other guests.

When he's not indulging in luxurious meals, he can be found in the hotel lobby, enabling goofy people like me to pose with him...

 

I will return soon with more tales of my evening at the Savoy, including the architecture, the cocktails and my new favourite dress!

Kaspar the Cat

I'm heading to the Savoy with the Cat on Saturday evening for a very belated birthday drink.  It would have been sooner but time escaped us...  So, exactly one month on from my birthday, I'll be indulging in one of my very favourite places, with my Cat and another certain cat that goes by the name of  Kaspar.  Here's a chocolate version of Kaspar to tantalize you...

... and I will return to tell you the true tale of this fabulous cat at a later date.

Have a good weekend, my lovely readers, whatever you do!

Love Letter to an Artist

If I could have my portrait painted by any artist in history, I think Tamara de Lempicka (1898-1980) would be very high on my shortlist.

Portrait de Madame Allan Bott (source)

I've been obsessing over the above painting in particular recently.  Beyond finding her painting style fabulous, I love the sitter in this picture - her pose, her dress, her makeup - and I love the background of the dark city.  It's so incredibly beautiful.

A lot of people are probably familiar with her famous self-portrait...

Autoportrait (1925)

... but perhaps know her other work less well.  Let me share some of my other favourites I came across.

La Dormeuse (1932)

Young Lady with Gloves (1930)

The Girls (c.1930)

I love the way she paints curls in those pictures above, don't you?  Like beautiful, silky ribbons.

Saint Moritz (1929)

Blue Scarf (1930)

Calla Lillies (1931)

She looked pretty fabulous herself too...

(Source)

...had a beautiful studio...

(Source)

...and had an appropriately jazz age lifestyle.  Born into a wealthy family in Poland, boarding school in Switzerland, to Italy and the French Riveria at a young age, parents divorced when she was 12, went to live with her aunt in St Petersburg.  Her husband arrested by the Bolsheviks during the Russian Revolution, she secured his release and they ended up in Paris via Copenhagen and London.  In France, she became part of the bohemian set in 1920s Paris, where she had affairs with men and women alike.  She had a daughter who she painted often but neglected due to her obsession with her art and her debauched lifestyle.  Etc, etc, etc.

But most importantly, what an amazing artist.

Thames Times Fun

Anyone in London this weekend, the 10th and 11th September, should get themselves down to the Thames Festival.  True, some of it will probably leave a lot to be desired but, having a quick squizz at the programme, it looks like there's some good music and dance events lined up - there's a jive dancing area, there's electro swing (which I've found snippets of online and am desperate to get to a live show), and I'm sure there's lots more. And, you know, the parade of boats will probably be quaint and fun, if you can get a good spot!

But, the best thing will surely be if you get yourself a ticket for the SS Atlantica event - a 1930s-themed evening onboard an art deco boat, promising to take you back to the golden age of glamour.  Sounds divine...

I'm sad to be missing it all, but I'm off to Scotland for the next five days, so that should make up for it!  In fact, I ought to be packing right now...

Country Walks

The Friendly Road, 1922, courtesy of Art Deco Blog

First year of uni is officially over so I'm heading off for a few days break out in the countryside.  Will report back with photos and thoughts on my return.

Have a great weekend, dearest readers.

Love,
Lisa Marie x

Pierre Bex and eBay

I'm not generally an ebay user but I was on the look out for something very particular the other day and ended up getting rather deeply sucked in...

The item I was searching for, I did manage to find - and win - hurrah! But it's yet to arrive in the post so I will save that story for another post.

However, my perusals ended in the purchase of more than one item, it must be confessed, and this was the first to arrive:

The brooch, obviously. The flower I picked on the way home so thought I'd throw it in for added interest. The bush was growing in my local churchyard so I figured it was okay to pick one for myself as I live in the local parish (Or do I? One to check out on the historic maps at work tomorrow!). I would have just snapped a picture of them all tumbling over the railings but I was sans camera, so a sneaky "pruning" it was.

But that's going off on a tangent. This lovely brooch I scored whilst searching under "art deco brooches". I feel a distinct gap in my wardrobe/jewellery collection created by lack of brooches so that was the focus of my hunt. And why not narrow it down to deco while we're there? This isn't exactly of original deco-era 1930s vintage but is, rather, by Pierre Bex. I'd not heard of him previously but I discovered (through a little googling) that he was doing a lot of this kind of thing in Paris between 1969 and the late 80s, and apparently using original 1930s moulds and tools.

After learning this, I discovered that he's got quite a lot of wonderful stuff awash on the internet for sale. (Try here or here or just ebay, like me!) Some of it is veering dangerously into kitsch and garish with the choice of colour combinations but there is some lovely stuff there as well, using more subtle colours complemented with a good smattering of rhinestones. And all with the wonderful geometric shapes so characteristic of deco. A lot of it is in new condition too because they just never made their way out of the factories. The one I nabbed is "pre-loved" but in great condition, and with the most wonderful, ingenious clasp on the back which I feel should last forever... (Famous last words...)