The Finer Things
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The origins of the Oxford shoe and why it will never go out of style
‘Oxfords, not brogues’ are words to live by, but what do they actually mean?
By Amie Elizabeth White Published
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'There were no fireworks. The art world remained unshaken. Then, this April, a letter arrived... to see it hanging in Tate will be very special': Art dealer John Martin on the piece he'd never part with
A chance encounter with a huge, shimmering panel led art dealer John Martin to discover Nigerian sculptor Asiru Olatunde, a man who also owed his artistic career to an accidental find, as Carla Passino learns.
By Carla Passino Published
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'It’s always been more about the things than the money': The family crafting silk for Strictly, Highgrove, the House of Commons and Westminster Abbey
For half a century, Beckford Silk has been supplying remarkable textiles since 1975. Ben Lerwill discovers what makes its wares materially different
By Ben Lerwill Published
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Manolo Blahnik on Margot Robbie, Marie Antoinette, fashion and footwear
The shoe might feel inconsequential as an item of fashion, but as Marie Antoinette, Andy Warhol, Margot Robbie and Manolo Blahnik demonstrate, it's anything but....
By Will Hosie Published
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‘The atomic bomb of jewellery’: Why the brooch is back in fashion
Over the centuries, the brooch, invented to fasten garments, has become a glittering gem, a coded communication–an art mastered by Elizabeth II and a way to express personality.
By Mary Miers Published
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'I’m here to say: We’re driving. We’re buying. And we’re not going anywhere': Meet the new gatekeepers of the motoring world
From the racetrack to the boardroom to the private garage, women are taking the inside line into automotive spaces that were once off-limits
By Natasha Bird Published
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Out of this world: The watches made from million-year-old space rock
The meteorite fragments used in luxury watches are likely from one of two rare space rocks.
By Chris Hall Published
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‘A stone pounding artist — who exclaims in his sleep, “Think of me standing upon a pinnacle of the Andes — or sketching a Fuegian Glacier!!!”’
When fate handed artist Conrad Martens the chance to join HMS Beagle, he captured the Patagonian flatlands, the shores of Tierra del Fuego and the peaks of the Andes with aplomb.
By Carla Passino Published
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Arts & Antiques: Five ways in which we are living in a material world
Carla Passino looks at a new art, fashion and culture festival at Kew Gardens, and the life and work of the artist Rose Hilton.
By Carla Passino Published
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‘City gents in bowler hats beat on our shop windows shouting “immoral!” and “disgusting!”’: The rise (and rise) of the mini skirt
What the mini skirt lacked in length it more than made up for in meaning.
By Amie Elizabeth White Published
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Helene Kröller-Müller: The woman who made van Gogh
After a life-threatening illness spurred Helene Kröller-Müller to make plans for a museum, she bought modern art voraciously, forming an extraordinary collection that shaped the early-20th-century perception of Vincent van Gogh
By Carla Passino Published
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Goodwood Revival 2025: Pictures from the 'F1 of classic car races'
Here's everything you might have missed if you didn't get the chance to make it to West Sussex's most elegant event.
By James Fisher Published
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Rust-free romance: hire a classic, not the headaches
Want to drive a classic car, but don't fancy the headaches of ownership? Why not borrow one for a day and explore the most beautiful parts of England while you're at it.
By James Fisher Published
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(Space) oddities: New David Bowie centre opens at V&A East Storehouse
The museum will house and display the largest collection of the artist's costumes, musical instruments, set models, props and more.
By Carla Passino Published
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How one woman cured her fear of horses by making a perfume that smells exactly like them
The fragrant story behind one of Hermès's most exclusive perfumes.
By Kim Parker Published
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Goodwood Revival and the Scottish sheep farmer who dominated the world of motor racing in 1965
The 2025 Goodwood Revival will celebrate the 60th anniversary of legendary race car driver Jim Clark's most impressive year.
By Melanie Bryan Published
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The captivating art of the Japanese woodblock
Hokusai’s ferocious wave and Hiroshige’s relentless downpour stole the show at a sale of ukiyo-e prints earlier in the summer
By Huon Mallalieu Published
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A feat of clay: How ceramics have taken on the fine art world
'Not a Pot’, a sculptural pottery exhibition open at York Art Gallery, throws light onto the art form's evolution.
By Corinne Julius Last updated
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The Manot bed that made it from a Herefordshire attic to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, courtesy of Country Life
When Henry Avray Tipping spotted a 17th-century four poster languishing in a Herefordshire attic in 1911, he set off a chain of events that saw the bed leave its ancestral home and land at The Met in New York
By Carla Passino Published
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‘To buy vintage is to buy something with history, that’s lived a life’: Everything you need to know about the heritage watch world
Collecting and wearing vintages watches has never been cooler.
By Chris Hall Last updated
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Salon Privé 2025: Highlights, winners, and remarkable rides from Blenheim Palace
This year was the 20th edition of Salon Privé at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire, and plenty of supercar stars were on display to celebrate a fine birthday.
By James Fisher Published


