Chanel Flagship Store Dazzles with Decadent Design

London`s Chanel flagship boutique – situated in New Bond Street - creates a perfect platform for showcasing one-off art pieces and world-renown Chanel designs. Inspired by Mademoiselle Chanel's iconic apartment at 31 rue Cambon in Paris, it greets you with this astounding sculpture of twisted pearls, which are suspended from the ceiling and cascade down to the ground, three floors below. The sculpture was made by Jean-Michel Othoniel entirely from hand-blown Venetian glass in black, grey and silver, in tribute to Coco`s penchant for wearing necklaces made of multitude strands of pearls.

There are many exquisite artefacts scattered around every room, and they complement ribbon and hand woven metallic walls, gravity-defying staircases, and marble floors of this vast townhouse. The only sculpture I wasn`t blown-away by, was a life-size statue of a glitzy deer designed by Marc Swanson. Someone said it had been made of nearly 200,000 silver rhinestones, which were applied individually by hand.

I have never seen so many comfy and at the same time stylish sofas in any other store, but this supposed to feel like Chanel`s living quarters so we are also spoilt for choice with many attractive fireplaces, and window curtains adorned with large panels of pallid pearls.

Chanel aficionados will find here rare collection designs as well as classic pieces, including an entire wall dedicated to scarves, belts and ties, as well as handbags and beauty products.

The man behind this elegant emporium is a New York-based architect Peter Marino, well-known for working on Chanel boutiques around the world. Here in London he succeeded in bringing together Chanel`s timeless vision with modern vibe and constructing 12,600 square feet of luxurious wonderland.

Weird and Wonder-Food

My husband brought home this peculiar-looking vegetable, which his friend harvested from his allotment. Its name is tromboncino  - `little trumpet` in Italian - also known as zucchetta. It is a type of squash, some varieties of which are also called marrows. Our specimen is 33 inches long and smells of fresh soil. We were advised to shallow fry it in polenta.

I aim to eat as varied food as possible, and I never diet. I don`t believe anything should be forbidden, on contrary, I eat everything: white bread, meat, cheese, fish, chocolate, pasta, fruit…..anything in moderation. I believe 80% of our diet should be healthy choices, and additional 20% ought to consist of `guilty pleasures`. Let`s not be however fooled by media hype about benefits of some varieties, which – on close inspection – aren`t any good, like – for example – breakfast cereals, which are processed food. A lot of fruits have high sugar content and therefore a fruit-based diet is also not particularly beneficial. As for tromboncino, I`ve heard that if left to ripen, it can grow over three feet in length (!) A friend of ours suggested it looked like an `exotic dildo`, and another said it reminded her of a `spastic banana`. Well, I can`t wait to find out what it tastes like.

BBC Proms - Yet Another Amazing Performance

Last night took me to Royal Albert Hall for The BBC Proms. Founded in 1895, the Proms bring an eight-week summer orchestral classical music extravaganza to London, and consist of over 70 concerts.

I went to see the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra under Canadian Yannick Nézet-Séguin, a highly expressive but very meticulous conductor, who took us through Prokofiev's Symphony No 5 in B flat, as well as – my favorite on the night – Tchaikovsky`s Fantasy-Overture 'Romeo and Juliet'. Italian Anna Caterina Antonacci joined us for Wagner’s Wesendonck-Lieder, which didn`t elicit as much enthusiasm from me….it wasn`t as uplifting in my opinion, as I have expected, and I was distracted by the soprano`s choice of outfit – a masterfully-monochrome, black-and-cream dress, with a plunging neckline (I like!) but sleeveless; I thought her upper arms would look leaner with a bit of a cover. Nevertheless, she coped extremely well with over 20 minutes-long song-cycle.

I was wearing a Grecian-style Giambattista Valli dress; a Juicy Couture shoes and a clutch from Aspinal of London.

To top this great night out, I was complimented on my way home by two hip, very young fashionistas – you look so pretty – they commented.

You Handbag Defines You

Past glory: with a Luella bag, part of Luella vintage collection that I sold this summer

A handbag is our `calling card`. It can reveal so much about the person who carries it.  It indicates what lifestyle you are leading – a structured Prada number would sit comfortably in a boardroom, while a slouchy style from Next would feel at home on any university campus.

It hints at your wealth -  a Hermès Birkin can only be purchased with a serious money, but a simple tote from M&S doesn`t require deep pockets.  

Our choice of handbag can even reveal our attitude towards noble causes –when Gucci celebrated Mother's Day with the release of the Mamma Bag, it caught the attention of those who wanted to make a difference to less fortunate families, as a quarter of the sales of the limited edition bag went to UNICEF's HIV and AIDS programs.  

Some of us would happily swing a reptile from our arm, while others would never touch anything made out of exotic skins and instead opt for non-leather bags, such as mock croc styles available from Clarks.

I – personally – wouldn`t buy even a prettiest purse if it doesn`t carry the name of one of my favourite designers, but a friend of mine would nonchalantly carry her latest prized possession purchased on a holiday in Istanbul.

The size of the bag also tells a story – a gym fanatic needs a roomy holdall, while those frequenting  heady dance floors of decadent nightclubs would choose a tiny clutch.

And remember the IT bags? Well, those were made for super-fashionistas, while others were content with less obvious sartorial statements.

Happy handbag shopping!

How Much?….You are Kidding Me!

I just bought these fabulous shoes, by Bally of Switzerland, and almost had a heart attack when I looked at the original price…. £565.00 (!) Luckily, I took advantage of `end of sale` reduction but it made me think about the reasons why high quality, designer goods command such high prices.

Firstly, a lot of thought goes into the original design, and testing and that cannot be cheap. My new shoes have two-tonal platform: partially in navy blue leather, and partially in bottle-green hide. The platform – as high as it is – is shaped so well, it provides good support for my feet.

The quality of craftsmanship, super-soft skin, and the fact the product is made in Italy, and not Asia, where workforce wages are lower, is another reason for a hefty price. The high-end name, expensive premises in prime locations, and big budget advertising campaigns for the brand also drive the prices up.

Interestingly, in time of austerity many consumers turn to luxury goods, especially as their price is often reduced at the end of the season. No surprising, as they keep in pristine condition for much longer and provide better value for money than `throw-away` fashion.

Shopaholic Snares Discounted Michael Kors

My husband and I spent a long weekend in Chester. As part of our fun-packed excursion my bestest friend took me to Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet. It is situated just north of Chester and we accessed it within minutes in her shiny pinnacle of motoring engineering.

It hosts over 145 boutiques – ranging from Mulberry to Lacoste - restaurants and cafés, but because we only had one hour for our shopping expedition, we decided to hit Michael Kors store, and not bother with the rest. To my surprise, it sells accessories as well as clothes, not like Bicester Village outlet where only accessories can be found. My favourite designer had 40% discounts on majority of products, plus some additional mark-downs on selected clothing ranges. Hurrah! I couldn`t be happier.

I quickly selected this silk tunic and also chose a white raincoat, garnished with MKs logo in gold-coloured metal.

-          `Let me give you the price for this clutch` – stopped me a very pretty shop assistant pointing at my very own Michael Kors handbag.

We laughed when she realised my girlfriend and I both sported Michael Kors bags from previous collections.

We used the `regular customer` mantra when we started price negotiations at the till. You see, many shopping voyages to the Emirates taught us to demand bargains beyond already discounted prices.

-          `Be a good boy by becoming a bad boy` – we teased a young store manager whom we eventually managed to wear out, and we enjoyed an additional 8% reduction on our final bill.

Tout Bien au Rien

Only 30 minutes away from London by train lay Horsley Park - 70 acres of spectacular parkland, and within it, a real jewel – a grand Victorian mansion, called Horsley Towers.  It was built in 1820s as the ancestral home of the Lovelace family. One of the family mottos was; `Tout Bien au Rien` which translates as `Do your best or not at all` - a great slogan for today`s challenging times, don`t you think?

The place is steeped in history. In 1835 the Earl of Lovelace married Augusta Ada Byron, the only daughter of Lord Byron, who was – rumour has it – an opium addict, just like her farther, and unfortunately died of drug overdose in 1852.

In the late 1850s a system of cloisters were built at the back of the original building. They served a similar purpose to modern conservatries, and to these days are real feasts for the eye.

Local folk believe in some spooky presence in the house, but I only experienced a total silence at night, which was extremely relaxing.

I am wearing an Escada t-shirt and shorts and clogs by Chanel

Marie- Antoinette – the First Fashionista

I attended a very interesting lunch-time lecture in the Wallace Collection on the subject of `Marie –Antoinette – Trendsetter in the French Decorative Arts`. Presented by Gabrielle Verrall - an elegant and eloquent speaker – the story took us to the Château de Versailles, a playground of young, naïve, spoilt and uneducated Marie- Antoinette, whose indulgence of choice was art, fashion and idleness.  Her marriage to King Louis XVI wasn`t consummated for the first seven years, but despite her unhappy relationship, or maybe because of it, she spent lavishly, creating visual delectability wherever she went.

She found Court life boring – she has resided in Versailles for 21 years – and started refurbishing her private apartments in 1777.

On the left, the first piece of furniture – a writing desk – supplied by Jean-Henri Riesener, for Marie-Antoinette`s private study at Versailles, c. 1780

She was expected to spend generously on her attire, to be able to outshine other women at Court, and quickly become tastemaker extraordinaire. And so the power of fashion – which reigns to these days – was born.