The Stunning Designs of Accessories Designer Gillian Lees Booteek!!!
Monday, April 15, 2013One of the things I love about blogging is that it gives me the opportunity to discover new and exciting design talent! A mutual friend put me in contact with fashion accessories designer Gillian Lees Booteek and I'm so glad she did as Gillian's accessories are a fantastic way of elevating a simple outfit to a stunning one!
She specialises in designing high quality, quirky accessories: from necklaces and pins, even handbags! Her designs are all about fun and funky pieces which act as vocal points for an ensemble! (in fact this girl is so talented that she also designed her stunning bridesmaids dresses when she got married in 2011!)
The quirky feel of her designs are even reflected her label's name "Gillian Lees Booteek" (spelt phonetically) and I'll be honest as soon as my package arrived I couldn't wait to see what was inside!
The first thing that hit me was her attention to detail, from opening the cute tissue packaging, to seeing her pieces displayed on their branded cards, everything was beautifully presented and perfectly constructed, showcasing her fabulous workmanship!
Every one of her pieces are lovingly handmade from high quality felt with silver plated chains and fastenings, each stitch carefully placed to create her stunning designs!
The four pieces I got were two of her bow necklaces and two of her super cute daisy heart pins! What I loved about them was their sheer versatility, I'm always on the lookout for something to really make my outfits stand out and I found that each of the pieces could be worn in so many different ways!
Necklace wise I got two of her elegant felt bow necklaces, the first is a classic bow on a 49cm/19 inch silver plated chain. I love the simple clean lines of this design and the perfect symmetry of the bow! when it came to deciding how I would style it I decided I would channel my inner "Blair Waldorf" one of my style icons from "Gossip Girl". Just as Blair wore a bow style neck tie in her Constance uniform, I chose to wear my necklace high and just peeking out of the top of my Karen Millen shirt, creating a cute and sassy look! Click HERE to shop the Elegant Bow Necklace.
Gillian Lees Booteek Felt Bow Necklace worn with Patterned Tailored Shirt (HM027) from Karen Millen.
The second of the bow necklaces was a stunning embellished version with luster beads in golds and aubergine tones! Each luster bead has been sewn on by Gillian herself and sets the bow off beautifully! This version would work perfectly with cute summer dresses, such as the skater style I love so much at the moment, or would work equally well with a dressed down weekend look peeking out from behind a fab leather jacket!
However I wanted to get a little creative with my styling and I noticed that the colours of the luster beads matched perfectly with my Karen Millen snake print tote, so I turned it into a bag charm! Using the neck chain I just fastened it around the handle of the tote, and hey presto, how FAB-UL-OUS does this look!! Click HERE to shop the Grey Felt and Luster Lined Bead Necklace.
Gillian Lees Booteek Grey Felt and Luster Lined Bead Necklace on my Karen Millen Snake Print Tote (GP218).
The bow designs are both elegant and timeless yet still reflect Gillian's quirky style! For anyone who isn't brave enough to wear statement necklaces, Gillian is considering also making them in faux leather, channelling the SS13 leather trend which has been so key for this season!
Oh and the felt bow is available as a pin too!
Speaking of pins, it was love at first sight with the daisy heart pins too! Again her attention to detail is wonderful, with a quilted centre to the hearts and a fresh daisy accent with a luster bead centre, perfectly mounted onto a silver plated brooch pin! Each stitch is perfectly executed, and once again are handmade by Gillian in high quality felt!
There are endless ways to which these pins can be worn, in a coat or jacket, to secure a scarf or even pinned to a bag or purse! In my case however I went one better and pinned my Heart and daisy brooch pin to my grey Trilby hat completely transforming it! Click HERE to shop the Heart & Daisy Brooch Pin.
Gillian Lees Booteek Heart and Daisy Pin pinned into my Trilby Hat!
I also loved the strong, vibrant colours in the Twin heart and daisy brooch pin, which work perfectly for Spring Summer! In luscious pink, yellow and navy, it's the kind of quirky, unique design that can't help to put a smile on your face! I think it took me all of a split second to know what I would do with it! Since getting my Tweed woolly jacket from Karen Millen a few months back i've worn it non stop and this pin was THE perfect way to update it for Spring Summer!! Click HERE to shop the Twin Heart and Daisy Felt Pin.
Gillian Lees Booteek Twin Heart and Daisy Felt Pin pinned into my Karen Millen Woolly Tweed Jacket (JP017) & worn with Metallic Jeans (PQ055) also from Karen Millen.
All in all I was extremely impressed in both Gillian's designs and their quality and I had so much fun styling her gorgeous designs with all my outfits! All of her pieces can be made to a specific colour choice and she welcomes commissions!
She definitely has a major fan in "Elle Woods" and I look forward to seeing her future collections!!
You can shop some of Gillian Lees Booteek's pieces at her Etsy Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/GillianLeesBooteek?ref=top_trail
Or if you would like to keep up to date on her latest designs, check out her Twitter account: https://twitter.com/GLBooteek or Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gillian-Lees-Booteek/117789618231515?ref=ts&fref=ts
She can also be contacted via email: gillianlees28@gmail.com
