When a website greets me with art that is reminiscent of Victorian times and the phrase: “The weird and the wonderful”... well, then I consider that clickbait of the strongest sort.

Which is exactly how I’m greeted when I stumble upon the Madeliene Rose website, which is exactly what it says on the packet. Both weird and wonderful.

It is so weird, in fact, that it took me a couple of clicks to realise that what it boils down to, in fact, is a fashion website.

Now, I’m hardly the sort to enjoy browsing fashion sites. I only shop when I have a specific goal in mind. I will hunt that goal down and, if I don’t find it in under 20 minutes I usually give up and wave goodbye to my shopping mood. I don’t even have the obvious online stores saved on my favourites, because for me they are not browsable.

Give me half an hour on Etsy any time, and chances are that I will find what I’m looking for pretty fast. And those are my fashion needs taken care of, which is probably one of the reasons why other women find me somewhat strange. I shop like a man (we all know there is no gender equality on this one, so the feminists chill).

This means that when I realised that Madeliene Rose had been masquerading under a false identity, I was slightly teed off. But not enough to quit the site.

You see, my initial browsing had convinced me that what I had discovered was a literary site, replete with delightful short verses, quirky tales and the like. And it is. The fact that it also sells clothes and accessories is very cleverly hidden.

Let’s start with the stories part. If you’re more of a bookish bent like me, start with the link called ‘Conversations’.

You will be immediately rewarded by prose such as: “We wore our sheer gowns, us women, with our trails skimming the marbled stairs, and the men in their suits and unbuttoned shirts, listening to the distant violins of the skeletal maestro’s orchestra.”

Each look gets its own visual vignette, telling a story

The prose is interspersed with Victorian art and photos of clothes, jewellery, the most adorable little hats... you get the drift.

Pure genius, the idea of combining fashion and literature, guaranteed to get my little geeky heart racing.

The art is just as intriguing as the prose – black and white photo­graphy, famous repro­ductions, Victorial fashion shoots... all very inspiring, and it does put you in the frame of mind to press that seductive ‘buy now’ when you spot something you like nestling among the rest.

For those who would rather go straight to the main event, as it were, fear not. There is a straightforward ‘shopping’ option, where you skip the frills and satisfy your urge for retail pronto.

But even here, the presentation is so original that it still beats going straight to the online shop in question (the collections include items from big brand names).

Each look gets its own visual vignette, telling a story, before taking you to Asos, Debenhams or wherever.

I would call this site a carefully-curated forum where you can explore a love for unusual styles with something that is also good for the soul.

Ladies, you’re welcome.

ramona.depares@timesofmalta.com

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