Cross To Bare

I spoke recently about having cross fatigue. The cross is a motif I've been fascinated with since the early 80's but one which has been well and truly pillaged by the high street. I realise it's the purpose of the high street to respond quickly and efficiently to zeitgeist, but there absolutely comes a point where it sucks the life right out of any meaning/irony - good or bad - it once had, leaving an empty husk where youthful rebellion and fervour once was.

The cross has also become part of the omnipresent Tumblr look, where girls who desire to differentiate themselves from the mainstream end up in vast stylistic herds, dressed in a singular uniform, somewhat ironically. 

The same Tumblr/high street bastardisation has successfully stripped away the I-don't-give-a-shit attitude and in it's place perfectly posed looks, all put together with the sharable 'selfie' in mind. 500 likes. I'm an internet darling.

Maybe I'm just having a cynical moment of course. It happens in old age. Maybe this, like all fashion, will pass too as something else captures the imagination of the high street. Or maybe I just need to stop looking at Tumblrs composed by middle class, teenage girls!

Alternatively, I could ignore the plagiarisation. Afterall, the only benefit of being nearly 40 is that you've been working most of this shit since the first time round, so why abandon it now? 

I might have cross fatigue, but I can't let go of my love of diabolic jewels. Never! Two decades of listening to Slayer has seen to that. I'll still happily wear a cross in jewel form. But I think that also stems from my strange fascination with naughty nuns!

I'm always looking for pieces to accompany my beloved theBEALine thorn bracelet and high on my list is a thorn collar from New York based designer Sara Samoiloff.

Sara has designed previously for the likes of Givenchy and Karl Lagerfeld and her tough luxe designs are all beautifully crafted with a very organic feel to them and, surprisingly, very affordable.

The thorn collar comes in silver or brass and is only $360, which is actually pretty amazing considering the workmanship which has clearly gone into it. Each piece looks love worn and oddly delicate, in spite of the slight darkness of subject.

Time to start saving the pennies methinks...

Queen Michelle