Burberry

Have you got your alfresco blanket?



Aessai Condor Scarves

Tier 2 restrictions aside, we’re not in total lockdown yet. So what are you wearing for your outdoor dining experience? According to WSJ (pay wall) it’s all about the dinner blanket. Aka dress-up capes, blankets, and shawls for keeping you warm for the winter alfresco season. Should be interesting…

Chloe, Burberry and Joseph are ahead of the curve already; blanket-style dressing has been a mainstay of those brands for aeons. New to the fold is Aessai (above, a play on ‘essay’) founded by Argentinian designer Rebecca Kramer. Her all-enveloping blankets, shawls and ponchos are made from heavyweight blends of extra-fine merino wool and alpaca (more…)



Trend report: what to wear for AW20



Hermes AW20 trend report - photo by Jamie Stoker

What a weird year! It feels odd talking about new-season trends, all things considered, but there is going to be a new season and even if you’re not buying, there are other ways to be inspired by newness. Let’s say it’s also a way of looking forward, so a sort of exercise in cautious optimism. Here’s what’s in the air for AW20… (more…)



The Prada cafe, Marchesi 1824 lands in Mount Street



Marchesi 1824 London patisserie Mount Street

Dean & Deluca never made it to Mount Street, but Marchesi 1824 did.

The famous Prada-owned patisserie opened in May on the old Allens of Mayfair butchers site, retaining its façade, marble flooring and original ceramic tiling. You can perch on green velvet couches and chairs, sipping a £6 cappuccino, while sampling a huge array of sourdough pastries, bite-sized fruit tarts and Instagram-fodder finger sandwiches. (more…)



London Fashion Week AW19 – in brief(ish)



JW Anderson London Fashion Week AW19

This felt like an extremely polished London Fashion Week. Roksanda, JW Anderson, Victoria Beckham and particularly Mary Katrantzou showed mature, slick collections that nailed their individual DNAs. And while you expect the newbies to be a bit scrappier in their presentation, they too were impressively coherent.

I was blown away by Matty Bovan, who, assisted by Katie Grand’s crack styling team and a helping hand from Coach, delivered a super-sophisticated spectacle reminiscent of Westwood or Galliano. His USP is a very British artsy-craftsy take on knitwear that was bricolaged with crochet, ruffles and Liberty-print florals (more…)