What have we been reading this month?

It might only be a short month, but we have been racing through our books. Maybe because there's nothing good on the telly and it's still too cold to go out. Here's what we've been reading this month.

Sian: I'm still reading Great Expectations, but only because I keep putting it down to read something else (since Dickens serialised his books, it feels quite natural to take a break). I'm a bit miffed at The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, I felt emotionally manipulated through the whole thing, despite it being fairly dull. I've also read Dan Rhodes' Marry Me, after picking up a copy at Book Slam (that event was the best six quid I've ever spent in London). This short story collection isn't as good as Anthropology, sadly. I've also been dipping in and out of New York Stories. Most excitingly, I started my MA reading! I kicked off with The Man Who Was Thursday (great book, the cover DOES NOT look like tampons). Next up? The Turn of the Screw and To The Lighthouse. Oh, and the rest of that Dickens.

Hazel: I went to stay with an old friend of mine who's dad is Ralph Steadman, an incredible artist and writer, he gave me his inimitably illustrated "Book of Cats" which is wonderful in its total lack of soppy cat sentimentality, its hardcore kitty rage and brilliance. I'm still carrying Caitlin Moran's How to be a Woman in my bag and dipping into it whenever I find myself in a coffee shop. I've also just been given Elizabeth Ayrton's The Cookery of England which is full of long forgotten regional dishes like Hindle Wakes which is a chicken dish that dates back to the Middle Ages, my kinda cook book.

Sel: I made the conscious decision to make more time for reading this month which has meant that I have finally finished reading A Dance With Dragons, the latest in the A Song Of Ice And Fire (or more commonly, Game Of Thrones) series. I don't normally read fantasy books but these are so brilliant, you don't even question the magic and dragons. If you've enjoyed the TV version, you'll love the books even more. Next on my list is finishing Parade's End. I'd only vaguely heard about it before I watched the BBC adaptation but that made me want to read it. So far, it's incredibly dry humoured and best enjoyed reclining with a gin.

Caleigh: I've spent much of this month in airports or hospital waiting rooms so I've mostly been reading short stories from Christopher Brookmyre's Jaggy Splinters. They're easy to dip in and out of when I need to and they all have Brookmyre's usual dark humour and delightful twists. I read The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories by Washington Irving, after catching the end of the movie on TV. I decided that it was the sort of book I should have read and I'm glad I did, it's a lot of fun. I'm still reading Marvel Comics: The Untold Story and I'm enjoying it. Hopefully I'll have some time next month to finish it!

Laura B: This has been a bumper reading month for me. I started the month with Jonathan Franzen's book of essays, Farther Away, a mix of articles on far-reaching topics, both amusing and thought-provoking. I then devoured his novel Freedom, a brilliant portrait of contemporary American family life. I also re-read The Great Gatsby in anticipation of the movie (I can't wait!), and Nabokov's Pnin - so funny and endearing.
I was late to The Art of Fielding party, and Chad Harbach's college 'n' baseball story swept me up and kept me captivated until the final page (I hate baseball, but the book is so much more than that).

My absolute best February book purchase is Chris Ware's Building Stories, a massive box filled with 14 stories centring on the inhabitants of a Chicago brownstone, all printed in different formats - newspapers, pamphlets, even a fold-out board. Dip in and be amazed. I'm finishing the month with my head in Zadie Smith's NW - I'm not thrilled yet, but I am only a few pages in!

What books have you had your nose stuck in?

Dream Dress: Miss Selfridge Petites Lace Tutu Dress

Things have gone a bit Alice in Wonderland when your resident DS giantess is going "Cor! Look at that!" at frocks from the petite section.

But when this Miss Selfridge tutu dress (sizes 4-14) rocked up in the all dresses list, I had to have a look. And when I'd gawped at it, I thought our petite readers had to see it with their own eyes and go "Cor! Look at that!" too.

Back at our book launch, Ms Sian wore a fabulous ballerina-style dress with a low back, and that's what came to mind when I saw this one. I am a complete sucker for an A-line skirt at the best of times, and if it's got netting, so much the better. But a low back is a much underestimated thing of beauty. Your back is ace. EXPOSE THE HELL OUT OF IT.

Reviews (very good ones, mind) say that this dress comes in quite small, so you might want to try on a couple for good measure. It's £45 and it's very, very pretty.

Sluttishly Simple: Salsa Verde

Do you stick rigidly to a recipe or do you make it up a bit? This was just one of the topics we discussed on Monday's Sluttery Food Chat and the consensus was, we like to make it up a bit. Apparently, none of us are very good at following rules! When you see a recipe you like, but don't have all the ingredients, or don't like one of the flavours, you don't let that stop you from making something slightly different, but equally as delicious.

Salsa verde is just the sort of recipe that lets you do your own thing. Traditionally, it contains parsley, basil, garlic, capers, anchovies, olive oil and vinegar, but you can swap the ingredients around. You can switch the vinegar for lemon juice and add mustard, if you fancy. If you don't like anchovies, leave them out (although, I recommend leaving them in there, just once - you might be surprised by how good it is) and if you love garlic, add extra.  For an oriental twist, use coriander, mint and lime juice with chopped chilli instead of capers or try adding tarragon and white wine vinegar for chicken. This version is especially good with fish, but feel free to experiment…

Salsa Verde (serves four)
You'll need:

• 50g parsley
• 20g chervil
• 10g mint leaves
• 1 tbsp capers, rinsed
• 1 fat clove of garlic
• 2 anchovy fillets
• ½ lemon, zest and juice
• 150ml olive oil
• salt, to season

Make it!

1. Finely chop the herbs and capers.
2. Bash the garlic and anchovies into paste with a pestle and add the herbs.
3. Stir in the lemon juice and olive oil to make a loose sauce.
4. Taste and add salt if needed (remember that the capers and anchovies are both salty, so you might not need to add more).

or 

1. Put all the ingredients in the food processor and pulse until you reach the right consistency.

Sluttishly Savoury: Caramelised Red Onion and Emmental Tart

I very rarely make tarts and pies outside of work but I had a craving for one today so raided the freezer for some pastry and the fridge for whatever came to hand. The result is an absolutely gorgeous tart that looks quite impressive but is actually super easy.

I'm a total vol au vent addict, they're not just for Christmas you know, I look for every opportunity to get my vent on and this is basically a massive version that's filled with sweet caramelised onions and nutty cheese. You don't have to stick to those though, you could throw in some red peppers or some of those jarred artichoke hearts if you have them or a mushroom version would be amazing!

Caramelised Red Onion & Emmental Tart (serves 4-6)
You will need:

• 50g butter
• 3 large red onions, finely sliced
• few sprigs thyme
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 2 whole eggs plus 1 egg yolk
• 100g garlic and herb cream cheese
• 100g finely grated Emmental/Gruyère cheese
• pinch freshly grated nutmeg (use a microplane grater)
• salt and pepper
• 500g pack puff pastry
• splash of milk for brushing

Make it!

1. Pre-heat your oven to 190C/375F/Gas mark 5. Put the butter, thyme and onions and fennel seeds in a pan and heat gently for about 45 minutes, stirring every now and then until the onions are very soft and caramelised, remove from heat and set aside to cool.
2. You will need a sprung cake tin about 30cm diameter, oil the base and sides well then roll out the puff pastry so that it is about 2mm thick (otherwise you will have a soggy bottom) and will easily cover the entire tin. Gently place the pastry over the tin and then carefully push it inside to cover the bottom and sides, you can trim any excess and use it to patch up any gaps or pop it in the freezer. Prick the base all over with a fork then put it in the oven for about 15 minutes. When it comes out the centre will probably have risen right upso just run a knife around the inside to separate it from the sides and carefully push it back down. 
3. Whisk together the eggs and cream cheese then add the onions and finely grated cheese, season well and grate in a bit of nutmeg then fill the pastry case, brush the pastry with a bit of milk and pop it back in the oven for about 20 minutes. Allow it to cool for 10 minutes before releasing the tin and moving the tart to a serving plate.

Hero Heels: Geekyfoot

Superheroes are everywhere in fashion right now - technically speaking our clothes have never been less  in peril. You might even call them Marvel-lous (POW! Comic book puns strike again.)

And then KABLAMO! It just got even better - thanks to Cardiff-based designer Shelley. Her aim in life - via her website Geekyfoot - is to make our footwear all heroic.

ZAP! Wonderwoman and Powergirl courts!

All of her shoes are custom-made: you pick the style you want (from ballet pump to hi-top converse to platform heel) and the comicbook theme (she does everything from Batman to My Little Pony), and then Shelley makes all your superhero-shoe-related dreams come true. Just like she did for the person that wanted those Hulk platforms at the top of this post.

It's not just for the girl-geeks among us either - oh no. She also fulfils orders for fellas who like their Vans with some serious Hulk smashing.

"GASP! PONAYS!" My Little Pony pumps

Prices start at £40 per pair and go up to around £75 for more formal/bulky designs, but Shelley also gives quotes for children and baby shoes too. I can imagine nothing more adorable than mini superman sneakers.

Or, come to think of it, these grownup sneakers either. Avengers Assemble!

If you're after some serious geekery, she also does quotes for specific/rare issues. There are literally too many designs to show you here - I suggest you check Geekyfoot out on Facebook if you want to view more.

Now I'm seriously in need of saving - which pair do I choose?

Sluttery Fantasy: Spec-tacular Sunglasses Mirror

Look at yourself. Just - look at yourself.

When I first saw this metre-wide Thabto mirror (or spec-tacular sunglasses mirror as the website rather adorably puts it) I gave it two thumbs up. It's a gimmick! And few people love a gimmick more than I do.

 It wouldn't work in my flat for the simple reason that I've run out of walls - ooh, unless I put it at the top of the stares and scared everyone senseless. Hum. A plan, it forms - but in a large room where you can give it the space it needs, I think it's a goer. If you had a period property with that sort of decor, popping in a mirror like this would stop it being rigidly era-appropriate and give it a nice dig in the ribs.

My enjoyment of it rather faltered when I found out it cost £200 (free postage at least). Then again, most actual designer sunglasses cost at least that unless you do some sensible sales shopping. But hey - if you're in the market for a large pair of sunnies to admire your reflection in, you won't do better than these.

Just don't be this guy.

Be bold, be brave in risky plus size picks

Larger ladies often find themselves subject to all kinds of rules as to what they're supposed to wear. If it's not 'flattering' or 'slimming' or 'curve-skimming', to many minds it's off-limits. But the truth is no amount of clever dressing is going to make you look like you're a size eight if you're not, so why should you follow the rules all the time? Obviously it makes sense to buy clothes that fit, work for your body and make you feel great, but sometimes you need to think outside of the box. Here are five things that could possibly be considered 'risky', but are available in plus sizes and shouldn't be discounted...

A Jumpsuit

When jumpsuits first came back into fashion, aside from wondering whether we were all crazy for wanting to dress like giant babies (little did I know the onesie would soon follow) I also thought they were best left to very tall, very slim women. How wrong I was. A well-cut jumpsuit looks incredible on a curvier body shape, and if you haven't tried one I implore you to do so - you may be surprised. This one is from Very's 'So Fabulous' range (up to size 32) and it's only £15 so totally worth the risk!

Horizontal Stripes 

If you search for the phrase 'horizontal stripes make you look fat' on google, the first two results are both from The Telegraph. One proves the theory true, the other proves it false. Who do I believe? I think the more important question is who cares?! If you want to wear horizontal stripes, wear horizontal stripes.  Better still, stick two fingers up to convention and wear bodycon stripes (£28 at ASOS Curve, sizes 20 - 26). Once again, sorry about the not-a-size-20 model. ASOS's fault, not ours!

Buttoned-up high necks

Fact: high necks and button-up styles can be hard to wear when you have a big bust, because they often gape even in the right size.

Not a fact: all plus size women have massive boobs.

Previously, it's often been hard to find anything for larger women that doesn't have a v-neck, scoop neck or mock-wrap, because many retailers assume larger women have larger boobs and won't want high necks that create sexy shelf-boob. But what if you don't? Well, this season things have finally changed, and you can button up to your heart's content - this Carmakoma number (£79.54) is a great place to start, available up to a size 28.

A (faux) Leather Skirt

Leather skirts are no longer best left to Dorian in Birds of a Feather. Longer lengths, pleats, textures and trims have turned the tables on the style, making it suitable for more occasions and more women. AX Paris have added some length and laser-cut detail to their PU number (£30) which is part of their Curve collection, available in sizes 16 - 22.

Skinny Jeans

We've gone past the point of no return now. Everyone can wear skinny jeans. If only because no other jeans type seems to be available any more. If you're still unsure about this cut, save your pennies and start off with a cheap pair like these H&M+ grey skinnies for £30, worn with a longer line top and a massive pair of wedges. If you're feeling braver, try a peplum top and ankle boots. Regardless of how safely you style it, the point is to try something you may have been told to avoid in the past - rules are made to be broken!

Uncle Roy's Comestible Concoctions

FOODIES! I have important and urgent news to impart. 

I've noticed Uncle Roy's Comestible Concoctions in delis and posh foodie shops before - who could fail to notice this beautiful Flowers of Scotland seasoning rub, jam-packed with edible petals and herbs? - but, despite making a living writing some of the internet, it had never occurred to me to check out their website. UNTIL NOW. My mind has officially been BLOWN by the sheer choice of unusual comestible concoctions the aforementioned Uncle Roy has to offer. Browsing the site, it seems like almost everything has won a Great Taste Award - they've managed to pick up a whopping 26 of those since 2001 - and even more impressive is that fact that the prices are very bank manager-friendly. 

I've got a jar of this Chocolate Chilli mustard, £2.95, and before you start scrunching up your bonnie wee face and shrieking, I can vouch for its deliciousness. If chocolate isn't floating your boat, there's a whole host of other speciality mustards for you to salivate over.

If you like the flavour of mustard, but not the heat, you're in good company - Roy started making mellow Moffat mustards thanks to his hatred of English mustard, and that's how Comestible Concoctions began. I am dying to try this Earl Grey version, £2.85. 

Fudgetastic sauces! Scrape me off the floor and fill my face with fudge, please. With seven flavours to choose from, whether you're a cherry chocolate sort of gal, or a butterscotch and whisky connoisseur,  there's a sauce for you! They're just £4.49, and taste great drizzled over ice cream, scooped on to meringues and profiteroles, or simply eaten straight from the jar (spoon optional).    

Bakers and confectioners will have a field day exploring Uncle Roy's range of Eat Me! edible flowers. I've been looking everywhere for sugared violet petals to use on chocolates, and here they are for just £4.95.

Obviously brown sauce is the best accompaniment to haggis, closely followed by whisky sauce. HOWEVER, I'm willing to give this special haggis sauce a try in the name of research. Made with redcurrants, whisky, and horseradish, it sounds like an winning combination of flavours. And at £2.95, can I say no? No.

I'm guessing our resident gourmet and whisky drinker Hazel will adore this jar of smoky whisky salt, £2.65. Use the gourmet salts range to marinade or garnish fish, meat and vegetables, or sprinkle over salads for a little extra zing. Apparently some people use the Scottish purple heather salt in their morning porridge. These people are clearly either braver, more patriotic, or simply more bonkers than me.     

These natural extracts and essences are what I'm most excited about. There are 90 different flavours! NINETY. Nine-oh. If you can think of it, it's there. And yes, there is a gin one. They're all £2.75 for a generous bottle with, crucially, a nice long shelf life. I'm a convert to these extracts - my collection is growing bigger by the day. Favourites so far include melon, fig, pomegranate, and woodsmoke. 

Hurrah! I've managed to get to the end of this post without mistakenly typing Combustible Concoctions! They're for another day...

Etsy Pick: Upcycled Board Game Jotters

Ah, jolly old upcycling. It's already doing stupendous things for the environment - and growing more popular by the day - but when you add a great big pinch of nostalgia into the mix it becomes bloody brilliant.

UK-based Green Elephant on Etsy has got the right idea. It's run by a lady called Kerry in Coventry, and in her words "All my items come with good karma!" She upcycles board games she finds in charity shops into journals, notepads and planners - just like the Monopoly journal at the top of this post.

Ooh look! A scrabble notebook to match your scrabble rug from last week. And it can be personalised with scrabble letters spelling out a word of your choice on the front. Both this and the monopoly one are £10.

The board games she uses generally can't be sold by the charity shop because they have pieces missing - but Kerry pays for them and puts them to good use. As you can see from this amazing Trivial Pursuit journal (also £10), she also adds a little 'charm' using the playing tokens:

In fact, she actually collects the pieces, cards and other innards of board games, and if she has the spares to finish an incomplete set she donates them so the game can be sold by the charity for a higher profit. What a nice lady.

She even does speciality board games, like this Spiderman Monopoly notepad. This one is £10 like the others - which I don't think is unreasonable - but she does even cheaper ones, like this one made from a favourite board game that I'd completely forgotten about - Shopping List! It's £7:

She even does mini pokemon card notepads for £3.50. The notepaper inside the pads is wastepaper sourced from local businesses, and Kerry can refill the notebook for a small fee when you've used all the paper.

Yet another bonus about these notepads? FREE SHIPPING to the UK! These notepads just keep on giving.

Design Porn: Noma Bar

Sometimes research for Domestic Sluttery has a domino effect. In discovering Kristjana J Williams beautiful bird prints, I also stumbled across Outline Editions. There I found these prints by Noma Bar. They look like one thing, but they're actually another. Not unlike the amazing Paris Vs New York designs.

Is it a penguin, is it a lit match?

I love the humour in this dog sniffing print.

Could be bird, could be a wind up handle. Or a wind up bird.

OK, so Noma has a bit of a bird theme going on, but I like this play on shadow puppets.

Prices for the prints start at £85 and go right up to £500. Get the cheaper one and hopefully it'll still look like one of the really expensive editions.

Sluttery Fantasy: The Shrine Storage Cube

The Shrine Storage Cube is like a box of magic. It's a 'crate-shaped hub' that's full of little rooms and secret hideaways and locked away compartments. The doors are only opened by little brass keys. For goodness sake, please don't lose them all. Then you've just got a posh box.

Designed to fit everything from a bottle of whisky to a turntable, this is a really impressive piece of design. Actually, I think it would make a very cool coffee table. But if you ever got a coffee mug ring on this, I would have to kill you in your sleep.

I never made anything like this in woodwork lessons. I made a picture frame. And it was shit. Designed by Sigurd Larsen, a Danish designer based in Berlin, it's inspired by the 'labyrinth courtyards of Berlin’s Kreuzberg neighborhood'. Is that a strong enough reason for a David Bowie video? 



Yes, yes it is.

I love The Shrine Storage Cube SO MUCH. It's a gorgeous piece of design. It's also a whopping £5354.53 from Aha Life and at least four of those numbers are making me want to cry. Maybe I could hide myself in the box when the bailiffs knocked on the door.

Sluttishly Sweet: Hangover-tastic French Toast with Berry Compote

Up until my recent  trip to The Gallivant Hotel, French toast had never really been on my radar, that was until I discovered it to be possibly the best hangover cure ever! They served their beautifully fluffy dipped toast topped with a gorgeous berry compote that seemed to have magical soothing powers (which were definitely needed).

Eggs are an established grade "A" hangover cure and fruit is always a good start to your day, bung in some much needed restorative sugar and I went from a blurry "eww...can't face food" to "bring it on! Let's go for a walk on the beach!" in just 20 minutes. Now in the true nature of scientific research I decided to repeat this experiment back at home, and you know what? Not only did it do it's wondrous work once again but it has now become my new favourite lazy weekend breakfast.

 If you can head to The Gallivant to have theirs then I highly recommend it as you might also get to play with their dog "Camber" (another excellent hangover cure), but if you wake up at home feeling all sorry for yourself then this should get you well on the road to feeling much better. If you have a pan big enough to cook both slices at the same time that's great but it only takes a few minutes to cook so it's fine to cook them separately.

French toast with berry compote (serves 2 big portions)
You will need:

• 250g frozen berries (I used Blackforest mix)
• 100g caster sugar
• 2 tblsp water
• 2 large eggs (room temperature)
• 50ml milk
• 1/2 vanilla pod (just the seeds, pop the pod in a jar of caster sugar for lovely vanilla sugar)
• 2 thick slices of white bread (use a whole fresh loaf and slice yourself rather than pre-sliced)
• knob of butter for frying

Make it!

1. Put the berries, sugar and water in a saucepan and heat gently, stirring every now and again for about 5 minutes or until all the sugar has dissolved and the fruit softened. Taste and add a bit more sugar if you like it sweeter.
2. Beat together the eggs, milk and vanilla seeds in a big bowl that will allow the slices of bread to lie down flat. Put one slice of bread in the mixture and turn to make sure its coated well, leave for about 30 seconds to allow it to absorb all the vanilla eggy mixture.
3. Heat the butter in a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat then carefully place your egg soaked slice in. Leave to cook for about 2 minutes then turn over. Whilst it's cooking soak your other slice of bread ready to cook. The toast is ready when it goes from feeling soft to being more firm. Pop it on a plate and spoon over your warm berry compote.

If you're not a fan of fruit then give our sweet, sticky cinnamon french toast a go, and if you can then cuddle a big friendly dog then you're definitely winning (cats also work wonders).

The Mojito Shoe

Say hello to the Mojito shoe. It's a single twist of material that looks more like a brush stroke, curled ribbon, or conceptual art piece. These are seriously beautiful shoes, but they're not destined to languish on your shelf or Pinterest board - they're wearable and don't cost a millionty pounds.

They make more sense when you learn they were designed by an architect, Julian Hakes. He wrapped tracing paper round his foot and worked out that shoes only need to support the ball and heel of the foot. He called his squiggly prototype the Mojito as it resembled the curl of lime in the cocktail (oh Mr Hakes, you are a man after our own hearts), and was overwhelmed by people clamouring to buy them.

Three years later, you can buy them from Schuh. Yes, a high street shop, not a tiny London boutique with snobby assistants and a three-month waiting list. A shop that offers student discount and takes Paypal.

CRUCIAL QUESTION #1: can you wear them for longer than car-to-bar? Online reviews from shoppers report they're light, airy and comfortable. They're not style over substance - they're designed to support your feet, and come with a memory foam padded lining.

CRUCIAL QUESTION #2: how much are they? They're £155, making them expensive but not as ludicrously unattainable as you might expect.

The Mojito shoe comes in six colourways in sizes 3-8. Go and have a gawp. They're so intriguing I'm going to have to try a pair on to see how they work. Might wait til after payday as I fear this may be instant love.

Tree-mendous Trend: Wearable Wood

I am an awfully superstitious person. I ask magpies how they are, I boycott peacock feathers, I shudder at crossed cutlery, and I can't brush my hair after 6pm. My go-to superstition, however, is definitely 'touch wood and whistle'. Mild panic has been known to occur when there's no wood in the vicinity, and I am left helplessly watching my future career down a completely unsuitable path thanks to a laminate floor.

I clearly need a piece of wood with me at all times in case of superstition emergencies. Luckily for me, wearable wood is everywhere right now. I'm in love with these Bosworth sunglasses from Finlay & Co., available in three wood finishes from £105 a pair. Now we just need a bit of sunshine so I can wear them without feeling like a total ponce/wannabe Hollywood movie star.

I'm a sucker for fancy headphones. I wrote about (and bought!) Urbanears' Harris Tweed pair a while ago, so I can't really justify buying these ebony Meze 55 Classics headphones at £99.99 as well. Can I? Should I? Oh, go on then. You've twisted my arm. 

Obviously I searched for an L necklace to use here, but even I have to admit that A is a more interesting letter to look at. These lace laser-engraved pendants are £30 from All Things Original and are a pretty take on the ubiquitous initial charm. 

Much as I love unadorned wood, sometimes you need a little colour injection to stop you looking like an all-out tree. These resin and wood bangles from Oliver Bonas are £14 each, and the one on the right is making my heart sing - mainly because it reminds me of Lego.     

Wooden heels are wonderful. During the summer months, I live in my Lotta From Stockholm clog sandals (a great low-cost alternative to Swedish Hasbeens), clickety-clacking to my heart's content. I'm fancying these Zara sandals to add to my wooden shoe collection. They're £59.99, and so, so shiny. I could stroke that sole all day.  

We've featured WeWood's gorgeous watches before, but here they are with a new style for us to feast our eyes upon and adorn our wrists with. The Metis watch is available in pale or dark wood, and you can get your sticky little mitts on one for £88.99. I'm also super-excited about the launch of Lorenzo Buffa's Analog wooden watch range, and have my fingers tightly crossed that there will be a UK stockist - you'll be the first to know if we get wind of one! 

Excuse me a moment while I wake up from my cute coma. These personalised postcard brooches are just £18 from All Things Original, and you can specify six words to have etched into the wood. Choose carefully, people, and remember to spellcheck!   

This oak bag has been handmade in Istanbul by Haydanhuya, and I want it desperately. Alas, at $235 (£156 at the time of writing), plus $60 (£40) postage, it's going to firmly remain a dream just now. While I raise the necessary funds to buy it, I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for wooden bags in French Connection, who seem to share my penchant for timber totes, and usually have new wooden designs each season.

So, which of these pieces wood you wear? (I couldn't help it. Don't groan.)