Those of you who know me will know that, as your resident Highland Style Goddess, I am primed to sniff out the very best, most lust-worthy goodies and to bring them back to our little store in The Highlands.
Over the last few months, I have enjoyed seeing and speaking to many of our customers in the shop but I have also been busy travelling to and from the various Trade Shows and Supplier Show Rooms, sourcing the best of what’s out there and ensuring that we get those pieces into The Old School Beauly. I have been particularly taken with certain special pieces (be they clothing, gifting or books) that made my heart sing and which are perfect as we go into my favourite season - Autumn.
1. Ethical Clothing that Will Make You Look and Feel Fabulous!
About three years ago, my mother-in-law asked me if I could stock a label because she had a particular pair of trousers which she simply adored. She had worn them and worn them, and even to this day, she wears them on her farm when she goes out to feed her animals (they have a few rips and holes now!) The coveted label was Two Danes and, when I took a look at those much-loved trousers, I could see exactly why she loved them so much. They were made from 100% bamboo cotton, were super soft and yet held their shape. So, I duly set about tracking down Two Danes Clothing, an ethical, sustainable brand which uses only natural fibres.
This season I am thrilled to receive in a plethora of their much sought after tunics, leggings, trousers, jumpers, cardigans and dresses. Of particular interest to my customers in our store is the lovely range of 100% cotton needlecord Two Danes tunics and dresses machine washable at 30 degrees and well priced, between £79 and £85. Just team one of these with our 100% Bamboo Cotton tights and you will be in Autumnal sartorial heaven.
Knowing you are wearing sustainable, ethical brands is one thing, but feeling super comfortable and looking bang on trend at the same time? Well, that puts a big smile on my face and, importantly, it also makes my mother-in-law smile!
2. Bringing the Outdoors Inside
This year we were delighted to introduce our own label hand poured, organic candles and reed diffusers. Inspired by our love and knowledge of The Highlands, they are contained in recycled glass votives and gift boxed in recycled cardboard.
Within the range, one particular candle has resonated very much with our customers, namely The Glen Affric Candle. Glen Affric is a beautiful glen located south-west of our little shop and is home to an array of ancient Caledonian pinewoods. Our Glen Affric Candle is scented with Black Oud, a very precious oil which emanates from resin saturated agarwood. In fact it is so precious that it is often referred to as “Liquid Gold.”
The scent is deep and woody and divine and we love to burn it in our home especially in the Autumn and Winter months because it reminds us of long walks in the stunning Glen Affric. Our Home Candle is £15.50 and burns for a massive 45 hours. Our wee Travel Candle is £7.50 but still packs a punch with its 30 hour burn time. The Reed Diffuser is £17.50 and is a perfect hostess gift.
3. Snuggling Up With a Good Book
We simply love books and have an ever changing offering, not only in our Book Room, but also throughout the other areas in our shop. If you were to pop into our house for a cup of tea you would find books everywhere not least because our children are voracious readers and leave their books all over the place! This month I have been particularly bowled over by two hard back books which our customers have found irresistible, A Poem for Every Night of The Year and A Poem for Every Day of the Year.
These books contain supremely thoughtfully curated offerings of poems pertinent to the day or evening in question. A lovely couple popped into our store last week and the gentleman was keen to purchase both. His other half sort of berated him, saying that they couldn’t move at home because of his collection of poetry. They duly left empty handed and the gent was a little bit sad. The following day the lady in question was waiting for us to open our doors at 9am. You’ve guessed it! She made a bee line for those books and purchased both, had them beautifully gift wrapped and went away with a rather mischievous grin on her face. Mission accomplished : the most delightful gift for her spouse and something which they will enjoy not only through the Autumn, but year round. I rather like that!
4. Cosy Knits & Scarves
It always makes me feel happy when our Autumn collection of jumpers and scarves arrive. I think someone quipped that “Sweaters are just blankets you can wear to work” and that really made me laugh because it is so true! A lovely jumper with a cosy scarf ticks all the boxes for me and this season we have a large selection in the shop.
One of my absolute favourites is the Tocca Roll Neck Pullover in Ketchup. It’s just a snuggle blanket to be honest! We have this cosy jumper every single year with the only change being a change in colour. It is just the chunkiest, cosiest sweater I have yet to encounter and this year the warm ketchup colour somehow makes it even cosier!
I also love the Mibby Pullover with the matching super cosy Itna Scarf. Team that with your favourite jeans and you are talking my language! Dare I say it, I can even get away with those sneaky little extra pounds under my jumper - necessary padding for the colder months. As my better half likes to say say, "Extra poundage rounds off the curves."
So, that is my round up for Autumn, for now anyway. I do hope you enjoyed reading this and please do leave any feedback or questions below. Alternatively, you can always pop into our shop and see us. We are open 7 days a week and love to meet our customers.
I wish you all a super cosy Autumn!
Best wishes, Mrs Crawford. x