Mimi Berry at John Lewis, Oxford Street

Back in February I went to see Mimi launch her Spring Summer 2013 range at John Lewis Oxford Street.
Here are some of Mimi's team hard at work making the Eric bag which this season comes in deep pink, marine blue, dove grey and citrine yellow. I love the orange angle poise lamp perched on the work bench.

January 2013: Mimi sale!

Mimi's having a sale. 

Maximum Elsie, in navy, is the one I have my eye on - it's large enough for A4, and all the other bits and pieces you need for the day:

 Inside it, I would keep my Cyril Metallic purse

And this Kindle case in camel

 

Plus the kitchen sink

 

Mimi's new collection Autumn Winter 2012

Purely for research purposes (um yeah) I went to take a peek at Mimi's new collection last week, and here are my favourites for AW12. In recent times Mimi's collections have become increasingly desirable, what with their pleasing shapes, top quality leathers and nice ticking linings.  So now there is not just one but many bags that you'd happily sling over your arm.

Mimi uses is very high quality leather: hard leather which softens and develops a lovely shiny patina; and a softer grainy leather which she uses in a rainbow of colours, some of which are metallic. Mimi's bags are hand made in a number of small workshops around the UK.

This Gracie purse is a classic: new for this season are metallic colours (below is plum, also available in sapphire a dark metallic blue and bronze, as well as a range of other colours). It has a brilliant design: kiss class, granny stylee, at the top. Inside enough room to stash huge numbers of credit cards / loyalty cards, mobile phone, keys. And a zipped up section along the bottom for coins.

 Another couple of Mimi classics: Eric on the left which took the handbag world by storm last season, and Peggy on the right

 Eric in pruna, a sort of squashed damson colour- this bag can fit the essentials, but not big enough for an iPad. Frank is the larger version of this bag - also made of hard leather with turnlock catch.

 New for this season is the most fantastic tote bag Gorgeous Spike in grainy aqua leather - extremely tempting: it's a good size, not too big so it can't be overloaded. Great handle / straps arrangement: over the shoulder strap and handles.

Some old favourites: Zermatt weekender

Classic Baggins in oilskin

on a spree to New York - travel essentials

My spree would not have been possible without these travel essentials - this sounds a bit like a sponsorship deal, but I really mean it: I needed bags 'n' purses to keep all my stuff safe, and what better to take than British-made things, that are beautifully handmade out of quality materials?

I also wanted to prove to myself that it's possible to travel without those v. handy but v. ugly bits of gear made out of nylon.

(1) navy Mimi Eric handbag;
(2) Mimi Teddy tote bag for guidebook, swag and waterbottle, made out of waxed cotton;
(3) an Aubrey clutch-purse by Miller & Jeeves for my passport and ticket,
(4) the most lovely well designed luggage tag I have found anywhere also made by Miller & Jeeves;
(5) a Rachel Orme Venus purse for my $$$ (reduced to just a few cents by the end of my stay);
(6) and a polka dot silk scarf from the Linen Press to keep warm against fierce aircon on the flight and brisk breezes in the first few days.

Mimi - Spring / Summer 2012 - top picks

Mimi's collection for Spring Summer 2012 is now available online. These are my top picks:
Isabella, in green - a nice curvy shape, and one of those bags that can fit everything you need for a day out and about - it's 50cm wide at the base, 31cm high and 12cm deep. I like to carry a lot of stuff around, as revealed by Mimi's recent blog post that featured the contents of my handbag - and this bag would be perfect, especially as it has handles to wear on the shoulder and a detachable cross-body strap (the sign of a truly great handbag).  It is available in a really good Springy green colour and also black, brown, pale grey, tan, and grape. The Pelham bag has a similar design and slightly smaller dimensions.

Eric - ah, Eric, a bag which has already found fame and fortune, since it featured in the Guardian in January. It's a great size for those that like to travel light as it is big enough to take keys, purse, phone and other essentials - but not the kitchen sink. It's made of hard leather that will become more shiny and a deeper colour with age, it features a turn-catch which (in my opinion) makes it a bag of great loveliness because I don't like magnetic catches at all, and the strap can be removed so that it can be used as a clutch bag on your (rare, in my case) evening out. It's available in red, navy, black, brown and camel. Total class. Dimensions: 27cm x 17cm, depth 5cm.

Daniel Dotty in yellow - it can be used as clutch or a purse inside a larger bag - very useful for make-up, I'd say. It's available in yellow, pink, blue and taupe dotty leather. There is also a non-dotty version which is available in seven colours. Dimensions: 25cm x 20cm.

today: Emma Fox, Mimi and Kew 159

Emma Fox doves necklace, Mimi Berry handbag (Classic Ada) and pink silk / cashmere scarf from Kew 159.

today: Jo Gordon and Mimi

Fingerless gloves from Jo Gordon, and the best ever handbag by Mimi

Kindle and iPad covers

If you got a Kindle or an iPad for Christmas, you're going to need one of these to keep it safe.
Kindle covers from Little Red Designs

Kindle covers by Ali O'Brien (available from Not on the High Street and Etsy)

super smart iPad case from Mimi 

Tweed (*love*) iPad case by Breagha

leather iPad case from Freeload Accessories (from Not on the High Street)

Tatty Devine brooch and Rob Ryan card celebrating 10 years of Mimi

As regular readers will know I am a *huge* fan of Mimi's bags and purses. Mimi started out in Spitalfields Market ten years ago - she then moved to Cheshire Street, and now has a showroom in Bethnal Green.

To celebrate a decade of Mimi's beautifully designed and made handbags, Rob Ryan has designed a card, and Tatty Devine has designed a brooch featuring Mimi and her lurcher dog Dora (who is every bit as elegant as Mimi, and her handbags).  The brooch (£42) will be on sale at Tatty Devine in Mimi's pop-up Christmas shop during November and December.

Tatty Devine, 236 Brick Lane, London E2 7EB - pop-up shop open 10th November to 31st December.

Mimi's Autumn Winter 2011 collection

Oh Mimi, you temptress, what a fabulous new collection.

Peggy, in raspberry. Cute

The Superhero.

Chicken pox was the fashion statement of summer - but this Dotty Mae bag is somewhat chicer and, tbh, a lot less itchy

I don't have an iPad but if I did, I would use this to keep it safe 

(hey Mimi when are you going to make a Kindle cover?)

Mimi sale

Mimi is having a summer sale - this Mae bucket bag is worth snapping up as it is a total bargain: was £228, now £160.

It is bootiful: lovely soft leather with brass whatnots, and being bucket sized it is just the right size for all my clobber. What's more, the bag has a strap long enough to wear it cross-body, and we all know how crucial that is for me in the decision on whether to splash out on yet one more handbag.

Most importantly it makes me feel impossibly smart, and allows me to think that one day I will be the sort of gal who nips down to St Pancras 'Renaissance London Hotel' (as Marriott call it) for a cocktail before jumping on the Eurostar for a weekend in Pareee, sans enfants.

Ps - this dark brown one has been so popular, that it's now sold out... but still available in black, and grey.

Mrs Osborn's favourite shops - Mimi on Cheshire Street

Mimi on Cheshire Street is where my obsession for British-made things really took hold.  I love love love those old fashioned frame-style purses that close with a pleasing snap, so imagine my delight (c.2004) when I discovered her collection of said purses, in a rainbow of colours.  I wanted one of every colour; I settled for a green one, and a silver one (with a hot pink lining).

From there it was but a skip and a hop to purchasing bags (yes, that is plural) designed by Mimi.  I favour bags with long straps and a zip along the top - so my hands are free for swatting pesky children, and my possessions stay safe as I hurtle around town - and Mimi has designed plenty of those over the years that have somehow found their way home with me.  A particular favourite, not unlike the Delilah (see below) was made especially for me in fabulous orange leather.

I popped along to Cheshire Street earlier this week to take a look at Mimi's Spring Summer collection.

Delilah in tan.

Let me tell you all about it:

soft, slightly grainy leather,

one long strap cross-body strap, 

and one shorter strap to wear bag on the shoulder

zip top, inner pocket with zip.

Perfect.

Gracie purse with long strap - brilliant! - on mannequin.

Little Peggy satchel in hard leather hanging on wall to the left, 

and red and green ones on table (just seen)

Hero  messenger bag hanging on wall

Louis laptop case and Oscar travel wallet (on top of cabinet)

Gloria clutch bag - especially like the sparkly leather in sorbet colours- which I have seen up close, and it is delicious (top left in cabinet),

 and Lucy purses (bottom shelf in cabinet)

Big Teddy shopper bag - 

did you know the school book bags fit neatly inside? 

(hanging on wall and on desk)

Belt up: Old Town, Labour & Wait, Mimi and The Linen Press

Here are some good belts:
Fabulous snake belt style from Old Town

Belts from Mimi

And some from The Linen Press

And finally a bridle leather belt from Labour & Wait - numbers by the notches so there's no hiding your expanding girth.

Mimi's Elsie satchel

Perhaps this blog features too many bags, but this is too good to miss: Mimi's Elsie satchel is on sale, for the first time ever. I have it in yellow - it is as lovely as it looks.

hand made on the high street

Unexpectedly, a free morning: free of kids, free of work. What to do? A quick bus ride into town, to check out hand made things on the high street.
Starting off at Liberty - not exactly 'high street' unless Regent Street is your usual shopping haunt - I found Annina Vogel who makes jewellery using antique gold charms.  Each piece is unique as the charms are not replicas but the real thing and diamonds often feature. Lovely. Pricey. (I'm finding it hard to find anything on her website for less than £250) **sigh**

Might as well go for broke and show you this All Hearts Victorian charm necklace - which costs many thousands £££

On to TopShop which has been stocking hand made headgear by Chapeau Claudette for a while - today I found this Kylie clip - cost about £10, which is much more pleasing.

BARK jewellery is not currently in stock at Anthropologie, but I noticed this piece worn by one of the very nice gals in the shop:

and also Mimi's Honey bag in nice soft, slightly grainy leather - zip closure at the top, with a short strap and a long detachable over the shoulder strap too (this style is currently on sale on the Mimi website, thus cheaper than at Anthropologie).

Mimi - sale on!

Mimi, my fav bag shop on Cheshire Street, is having a sale. Unfortunately for me, the oilskin shopper bag (Teddy) I have had  my eye on ALL WINTER is no longer available, and the Beau is not on sale (and thus remains far to expensive for me to ever consider). But Dora is in the sale, marked down from £124 to £80, and it looks lovely in the pale gold (pictured here in silver).