The glam yet practical Hemera bag is sure to become a firm favourite in your wardrobe and the envy of your friends.

Eel skin may sound unusual or even unpleasant to the uninitiated, but for those in the know it’s the most luxurious leather available.  Incredibly soft and yet harder wearing than cow leather, eel skin is on the up having been picked up on by stylish labels such as Bobelle.  As a by-product of the Korean food industry it’s a low impact leather, and the hand-made bags are then fairly-traded with Bobelle who enforce high ethical standards through their production chain.  These are the kinds of people I love to work with, and with such a fantastic product it’s no surprise that Claire Watt-Smith has been receiving press coverage for her fantastic efforts.

Available in decadent Deep Purple as well as classic Light Grey, both are beautifully lined in red faux suede, and are available on EmmieJay now!

We’ve got some gorgeous items which are guaranteed to win any man a whole heap of brownie points this Valentine’s Day.  Various styles of Hearts recycled jewellery mean we have something perfect for everyone, and luxurious eel-skin leather bags and purses stand out as the must-have items this Spring.  Whatever you choose it’ll certainly put a large smile on your lovely lady’s face.

To make it a little easier on your wallet, we’re also giving you 10% off everything ordered until midnight February 14th.  Just enter the code VALENTINE10 at the checkout.  www.emmiejay.co.uk

This week the Prince of Wales has launched The Wool Project, a campaign to promote the wool industry specifically focused on the UK, Australia and New Zealand.  Wool used to be a staple in most people’s wardrobes, but having had its ups and downs over the years it’s now considered either expensive, itchy or difficult to look after by many consumers.  We’re so used to finding man-made alternatives in our shops many of us don’t even own any wool items these days!

It does seem a shame – it can be beautiful, is extremely hard wearing and is a material we can produce in the UK.  It may be a more expensive product, but then it’s also going to last.  You shouldn’t compare buying a quality item that will last years with the throw-away fast fashion found on most high-streets, yet we all do it and often opt for the cheap option that lasts even less time than the bag it came in.

There are some great British designers working with wool, producing really exciting pieces that are fashionable, very wearable and beautifully made, Izzy Lane and Makepiece being the obvious examples.

Let’s hope this campaign helps give wool a higher profile, encouraging more designers, retailers and consumers to get involved.  It would be great to see more material produced, processed and made into the finished article all in the UK.

I love my bamboo socks because they are super soft and keep my feet nice and warm in this chilly weather.  I know they are very absorbent and anti-bacterial, but have recently discovered that Karen Biers from Utah State University has carried out research which supported the theory that wearing bamboo socks can cure athletes foot.  50 participants suffering from athletes foot were asked to wear bamboo socks and the results wear impressive:  ”All individuals reported that the burning and itching associated with the condition disappeared within one to two days after the test began. Within two to six days, the blistering and sores characteristic of the condition disappeared and the skin returned to normal.”

This is apparently due to a property referred to as bamboo kun, which is a naturally occurring anti-microbial.  This is what stops your bamboo socks from getting smelly as the odour-producing bacteria don’t get a look in.  The best thing is this doesn’t get washed straight out, unlike chemically added fresheners, further research has shown that these anti-fungal and anti-bacterial qualities last after many launderings.

All that from a pair of socks – marvellous!

As of very early this morning the EmmieJay online shop is live!  It’s a fantastic feeling to have reached such a major milestone.  It’s been a long time coming, but, mostly thanks to the huge efforts and encouragement put in by H, I’ve made it at last.

First order has already been received!  I’m just in time for Christmas shopping, so hopefully lots more to come soon.  I feel so excited about sharing my baby with the wider world, and full of ideas for expanding the range and promoting the website next year.  There’s so much to do and never enough hours in the day, but it’s just brilliant to be spending time working on something that I love so much.

I hope you’ll like the site and the products as much as I do.  Whatever you think, I’d love to hear hear it.  Either leave me a comment here, or contact me via www.emmiejay.co.uk .

This Sunday I went along to the first day of the Pure London trade show.  Having never been to a trade fair before it was certainly over-whelming, but fantastic.  I can see why they recommend you need more than one day to get round –  if I’d been wanting to look at every collection I would have struggled in a day.  However, I was only interested in those stands classing themselves in the “ethical” camp.  Pure has been promoting their increased coverage in the ethical arena this year, with around 50 brands present out of the 800 showing – not at all bad, and certainly a great opportunity to get to see lots of new collections in one place. (more…)