Quality Vs Quantity

So, I went to a gala dinner on Sunday. Excellent fun it was too; to say it was full of party animals is an understatement – I danced for 4 hours straight and the dance floor was always crowded. In the end, they had to turn the music off and switch all the lights on just to get us to leave. The hallmark of a terrific party. When the invitation arrived, a friend had asked me if I was buying a new frock. I looked at him in amazement – What the blazes is a ‘frock’? This is not 1940! Anyway, I quite liked the idea of a frock but seeing as AlaraApothecary guzzles up all my readies, it was nix to that. As I have a roomful of clothes, it seemed a bit crazy to shell out for a new dress, indeed, on a new anything. So, I dug deep and there I was on Sunday in my amazing Rifat Ozbek dress (size 10, and that’s a designer size 10 which is a high-street size 14 :-)) It clung and skimmed and flattered, it was so beautifully cut. Kenzo jacket (size 36!!!. I don’t remember ever being that thin!) It was extremely satisfying to still be able to wear stuff I bought 20 years ago without having to resort to Spanx…… The Chanel set which if purchased now wouldn’t leave much change from 2K and the 5-inch Gucci heels didn’t hurt (well, they did after the fourth hour of dancing but were super-comfy till then) My point is not to swank by dropping all these designer names (much 🙂 ), I can’t afford any of them these days, sob. I literally avert my eyes when I pass Chanel, it’s much safer that way….. The point is that these items have lasted forever. If I had tried to wear the high street equivalent from way back when, quelle horreur. It would have been quite a scary outcome. Seams would be popping and heels cracking all over the place.

So, quality matters. Obviously, there’s a point where the price differential becomes insane. Couture, anyone? Whilst not dissing the value of a £5 pair of faux-GGS from Primark if you’re boracic (apart from the fact that you have to dismiss the thought of how much the maker was paid if you are buying them so cheaply, and hope you don’t go to hell), disposable dressing is bad for the environment and bad for our self-esteem. Buy some good stuff, and less of it. It doesn’t have to be Gwyneth Paltrow-style £600 T-shirts either as we are not crazy people. One day you’ll need a frock, and – hey presto. That’s why I insist on quality ingredients for my products. I would make more money using cheaper ingredients, but I’d be too embarassed to look myself in the eye in the mirror. The images are of some superb quality products. Can’t afford any of them but I can admire the workmanship. That Pedro Da Costa Felgueiras table is £7320 plus postage and packaging 🙂 . Love that £20 at the end, don’t you? Don’t you ever wonder how much money you would need to have before you would consider a 7K side-table a reasonable purchase? I mean you’d probably have a great big house with many rooms needing side tables. The maths makes my teeth hurt.

I leave you with one of my trademark terrible jokes:

Q: How do the Welsh eat their cheese?

A: Caerphilly.

Now that’s what I call a cheesy joke! Have a fun-filled, pun-free week.

(Photos: Brando wall light, Samuele Mazza; Fly chandelier Ola Masiero; Gilded cork vessel, Pedro Da Costa Felgueiras ; Candelabrum table, Pedro Da Costa Felgueiras)

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