Happy Christmas

It's been an enormous year for Read+Bell, but a great one.  We have worked incredibly hard and really feel our little acorn of an idea that we decided to pursue in 2009, is finally finding it's niche.

We are heading back to India in February next year.  Based on feedback from our wonderful customers and friends we have a stash of great ideas and designs, as well as some pieces we already have in the making.

In the meantime we are looking forward to a well earned Christmas and New Year break with our families and wearing our Read+Bell tunics and dresses to the beach.

The online store will be open over the break,  but any orders made after December 20, won't be despatched until January 14.

We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and New Year and we look forward to seeing or hearing from you in 2013.

Our Annual Indian Summer Trunk Sale Nov 9-11; Prosecco & Samosas!

Excitement brewing at Read+Bell central.  We are gearing up for our annual Indian Summer Trunk Sale.  Our favourite weekend of the year.  This year, not only are we showcasing our new range, but we are selling off lots of old stock at fabulous prices.  Some serious bargains to be had!  Would love to see you, so if you happen to be in the Sydney Inner West, Friday November 9 to Sunday November 11, pop in.  Friday night is always fun, look forward to some Prosecco and samosas! 183 Rochford Street, Erskineville (near the corner of Knight St).  Fri 10am-8pm.  Sat/Sun 10am-4pm.

Heaven in Mykonos

I have had this hotel site bookmarked for quite a while, San Giorgio, Mykonos, and when I am feeling the need for a bit of visual heaven, I have a quick peep.  It looks so divine, the perfect retreat.  It is the collaboration between long time friends, Thomas Heyne and Mario Hertel together with the owner Markos Daktilidis, who approached Design Hotels to create a new hospitality experience.  You would have to agree, they have certainly achieved this.  Enjoy.

Win a $200 Read+Bell Gift Voucher for Spring

Need to update your spring and summer wardrobe? We are offering you the opportunity to win a $200 gift voucher.  To enter simply like us on Facebook (click on Facebook link on our Home page).  We will be in touch with the winner on the first day of Spring.

The added benefit of being our friend on Facebook is that we will be regularly posting special offers, event dates and the arrival of new stock.  It is a great way for us to keep you informed without inundating you with emails.  If you are not on Facebook, we will be also posting this information here on our blog.

Amazing images from photographer Karen Knorr. Enjoy.

These incredibly beautiful images are from a photographic series by London based photographer Karen Knorr.  She has taken shots of Mughal and Rajput palace architecture, havelis and mausoleums and then seamlessy inserted shots of live animals into the architectural sites.  You can read about Karen and see the whole series here.  Stunning.

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Just arrived - 100% merino wool dip dyed scarves- 30% off.

These wonderfully soft scarves come in four different colour ways; navy, chocolate, burnt orange and pink.  $65 each.  For any orders made before midnight, next Wednesday August 1, take 30% OFF (down to $45.50).  Not on the website yet, please email us to make an order.

Be prepared to swoon! Heidi's dream home.

Heidi Middleton, co-creator of the eponymous label Sass & Bide, has created the most wonderful sanctuary for her and her family on the tip of the northern beaches of Sydney. Like her label, her home oozes style and creativity.  Be prepared to swoon. Layers of gorgeous textiles and vintage pieces add character to an already stunning home, the view is incredible. You can see the full story and photographic tour here.

Autumn/Winter Trunk Sale - June 1, 2 and 3

The invitations are here for our Autumn/Winter Trunk Sale, thank you to Eme at Forgery, she has done another great job.  Note these dates on your calendar; Friday June 1, Saturday June 2 or Sunday June 3 to come and visit us at 183 Rochford Street, Erskineville.  We know, technically it's not really Autumn in June....creative licence.

We have had to put the dates back because of some fraught weather conditions in India; our handstitched cushions are behind schedule.....flooding in Kashmir and hand blockprinted tablecloths and clothing running late......extreme heat in Jaipur. We have some gorgeous pieces finally on the way, so it will be worth the wait.  We look forward to seeing our loyal customers, as well as some new ones (hopefully). As you can imagine, we are in mad preparation mode but as pieces arrive we will post some shots.

Beyond exotic - We're in love!

You can't help but be seduced by Jade Jagger's beach pad in Goa.  Boho luxe heaven. We love her use of Indian colour and textiles, the pinks are amazing. She's looking pretty fabulous too.

All shots via An Indian Summer.

India Vogue Magazine

These are so divine.  Illustrations done for some issues of India Vogue.  I found them here.  

We're home.

After 16 days dealing with the elephants, cows, camels and general chaos of India, it is wonderful to be back.  Our trip was fabulous, but exhausting.  We have sourced and are having made some wonderful pieces, can't wait for them to arrive, always so exciting when the boxes get here.

Now in organising mode for our May trunk sale, will keep you posted re the final dates.

Great to be back.

Now in Jaipur

After months of planning we are finally on our annual buying trip, and are now in our favourite city, Jaipur, it is a wonderful place to just hang out.  It exudes style, old fashioned graciousness and creativity, you can't help but be inspired.  Looking forward to having some time out and heading to the early flower markets or getting lost in the jewellery bazaar.  We are in heaven.

40% off all hand printed tunics and dresses. Happy 2012.

We had our first day back at the office this week, as per the photo below, we kicked off with a well earned lunch at Bourke Street Bakery, (love that aged door in the background).  We were of course, discussing our plans for our next trip to India. Very exciting, we are booked to go mid February.

In the meantime we have reduced all our hand printed tunics and dresses by 40%.  We still have quite a few warm months ahead of us, so if you have loved the ones you have already, it is definately worth picking up a few more to get you through.

We have some fantastic new designs and ideas for 2012 and look forward to sharing them with you.