WHY DO YOU LIKE AND COLLECT MATCHES?
I’ve always been drawn to the idea of a matchbook as a living memory and a way of commemorating a special moment in time so when I decided to launch @curioshop_, it felt essential to me to make matchboxes and make it part of the experience. One of the symbols I always return to is the lover’s eye, a brief trend dating back to the Georgian era, it was a painted miniature of your lover’s eye that could be worn in public without giving away the secret of the affair. To me that kind of ephemerality is the same as the moment of striking a match—brief but beautiful. And I adore smoking accessories, candlesticks, & candelabras so there was a practical element to including them—or so I tell myself!
WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE ONES AND WHY?
My favorite matchboxes are from places I keep meaning to return to! There are so many times in life where you go to a special place and are so caught up in the moment of enjoying it that you forget its name. I always try to take a matchbox with me so I remember to return, though I will say more often than not it ends up in a coat pocket only to be stumbled upon years later.
WHEN AND HOW DO YOU LIKE TO ENJOY YOUR MATCHES?
One of the simplest pleasures in life is eating a meal by candlelight & I love nothing more than taking great ceremony by lighting my candlesticks with a match. The smell of the sulphur and the ritual of it makes even a simple meal feel more grand and a special dinner feel like a feast. It’s so important living in this city to make time for slowing down and for me matches have always been a part of that.
