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Sunday 14 December 2014

Hand me down...



“Time does nothing but hand you down shabbier and older things.”
Cabbages & Kings NY
It was forest green, covered in tiny flowers with an attached, white lace pinny. The skirt of the pinny had worn away or was removed because it was worn. It was made from 100% polyester. There is a photo sitting at home, in the farmhouse, of me at a family function wearing the remarkable dress that seemed to have lasted through the war and maybe still is doing the rounds. As a child, I guess, I didn’t have a voice on what I should be wearing. Those were the days when polyester was hailed for its washability and durability.

So, yesterday, quite by chance, I came across this gorgeous retail website, specialising in luxury kids knitwear. Alpaca appears to be the yarn of choice and all knitting is done by hand through a fair trade initiative, in South America. Ethics aside, its the asthetics that caught my attention. Cabbages and Kings NY is a modern, cool, re-invention of kids knits that didn’t exsist when I was growing up. We had to make do with itching powder infused Arans from Auntie Nodie or oversized, geometirc knits from Mum. I had one of those moments, where you find yourself checking out kids clothes and wishing they made them in adults sizes. This clobber is beautiful! The colour range, the style, design and workmanship is all exquisite.  The site committed me to full on retrospective envy, on behalf of my younger self, who, alas, made do with hand me downs, from the far side of  sibling number six. 

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