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10 Issue 66

Contents 

10 | Written in the Stars From astronomers to fashion designers, we investigate those looking to the skies for inspiration this season

14 | Lone Wolf

Actor Ed Speleers talks fight scenes, family sagas and his role in new ITV drama Beowulf

49 | Bags of Style

Contemporary accessories designer Jérôme Dreyfuss celebrates the opening of his store in Mayfair’s Berkeley Square

58 | Working Nine to Five Designer Tom Dixon on the launch of Interchange, a co-office space in Camden

68 | Food for Thought From green juices to cheat day lychee martinis, discover the two extremes of ‘foodstagramming’

80 | Sugar, Spice and All Things Nice Lisa Faulkner reveals her recipe for happiness and why she won’t be detoxing this January

88 | Another Day in Paradise Live like an A-lister in the Dominican Republic, shape up in Antigua or party in St Barths

regulars - 19 -

collection

- 29 -

spotlight

- 35 -

fashion & beauty

- 55 -

HOME & interiors

- 63 -

health & family

- 77 -

food & drink

- 85-

the art of travel

- 101 -

property

editor's letter

JANUARY 2016 / ISSUE 66 acting Editor Lauren Romano Collection Editor Annabel Harrison Contributing Editors Richard Brown Olivia Sharpe editorial assistant Ellen Millard Editorial intern Amelia Mayes Senior Designer Daniel Poole Production Hugo Wheatley Oscar Viney Jamie Steele Alice Ford Client Relationship Director Friday Dalrymple Executive Director Sophie Roberts General Manager Fiona Fenwick Managing Director Eren Ellwood Proudly published and printed in the UK by

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From the editor “The night sky is a window into the vast, ever-changing realm of the wider universe,” says Dr Edward Bloomer, astronomer at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. In a month when resolutions are rooted in our minds, we begin our January issue with a celestial intervention. From astronomers to amateur photographers, fashion designers to therapists, we investigate those looking to the skies for a greater sense of perspective this season (p.10). One rising star worth looking out for this year is the charming Ed Speleers. The Downton Abbey and Wolf Hall actor has donned chainmail and learnt to sword fight for his latest role in the forthcoming ITV series Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands. He’ll also be appearing in Alice Through the Looking Glass later this year as well as alongside Tom Sturridge in an arthouse flick, I discover when I meet him for tea. We talk being typecast and why he would wouldn’t turn down the opportunity to work alongside his man crush Michael Fassbender (p.14). Unfortunately we can’t just hibernate under a duvet watching drama series until spring arrives. With this back-to-work mindset, we turn our attention to interior designer Tom Dixon, who has created the perfect co-working office solution in Camden. He shares some of the highlights from his colourful career as a musician, welder and designer (p.58). Elsewhere I try (and fail) to get over my aversion to celery when I go on a health kick with a little help from The Detox Kitchen (p.66), while Lisa Faulkner tells me she’s ditching diets altogether. The actress-turned-chef shares her recipe for success and the perfect lemon drizzle cake (p.80). And if all that doesn’t beat the January blues, take some style inspiration from our cruise collection-themed fashion shoot (p.38) and jet off to the Caribbean (p.88). Practise your golf swing in the Dominican Republic, dance on tables in St Barths, or, if you’re feeling semi-virtuous, take part in a boot camp at Curtain Bluff, Antigua, where squats and high kicks come with a side order of rum punch...

Lauren Lauren Romano Acting Editor

On the cover Travel in style with our cruise-themed fashion shoot from p.38. Photography by Phillip Waterman and styling by Jess Stebbings

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From zodiac-inspired shop windows to dressing by your star sign, astronomy took fashion light years ahead last season. As a new year dawns and our interest in the cosmos continues to rocket Lauren Romano investigates our fascination with galaxies far, far away 

“T

he night sky is a window into the vast, ever-changing realm of the wider universe,” begins Dr Edward Bloomer, astronomer at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. “There is always something new to see, or the chance to look at a familiar object in a different way. The urge to explore and discover is a very important human trait, and what better testing ground could there be than the entire cosmos around us?” I’m at the observatory to take a look at the winning entries in the Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition. More than 2,700 images from 60 countries were submitted, capturing the universe’s abundant nooks and crannies in all its mesmerising, hypnotic beauty. Swirls of an iridescent Milky Way, snapshots of the incandescent sun and close-ups of constellations beam back at me. Overall winner Luc Jamet’s bleak depiction of last year’s total solar eclipse, taken 100m above a wintry valley in the Norwegian territory of Svalbard, looks like it could have been the work of a paintbrush, not a camera. The Sir Patrick Moore prize for best

newcomer meanwhile was awarded to David Tolliday for his snap of the Orion Nebula 1,300 light years away, snapped in the Elan Valley in Wales. Blasts from the cosmic past are everywhere you look; some of the photos on display represent millions and billions of light years in the blink of an eye. “There can be something quite exciting about testing your mettle against the biggest playground in existence,” Dr Bloomer explains. “In some ways though, astronomy can often be about unlocking one piece of a giant puzzle, contributing to a vast and growing body of information. There is a wonderful sense that the vastness of the universe is not something you’re necessarily taking on by yourself.” Until Galileo turned his telescope to the skies in 1610 we didn’t know much about the universe; we had yet to learn that Saturn had rings, Jupiter had moons and that the Milky Way was a collection of stars. Since then technology has enabled us to peer in even further, to poke around the darkest depths of outer space. Last year marked 25 years since the Hubble telescope was launched

“There is a wonderful sense that the vastness of the universe is not something you’re necessarily taking on by yourself ”

feature Eternity and Astrophotographer ÂŠ Yuri Zvezdny (Russia) Runner up in the People and Space catergory of the Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2015

lu x u r y l o n d o n .c o.u k

Vantage | 11

Left: Sequin Eye Shadow, Bobbi Brown

into low-space orbit. It’s currently whirling around the earth at 17,000mph, beaming back pictures of the very distant past – more than 13.4 billion light years from earth. Perhaps it’s this recent anniversary that has unwittingly given designers everywhere stars in their eyes. We, in turn, have fallen under the spell of fashion’s celestial tribute, which is admittedly less about telescopes and more about tarot cards. The catwalk is spearheading the space race, and mystic charm was laid on thick last season. Stellarinspired A/W15 offerings included Jimmy Choo’s collaboration with Moonboot on a range of lunar landing-inspired snow shoes; Charlotte Olympia jazzed up her Birthday collection of loafers with zodiac symbols (each pair comes with a horoscope book so you can find out what your shoes say about you); and Amanda Wakeley did the same with her cashmere zodiac scarves. Even the bathroom cabinet didn’t escape a brush with astrology. Aesop’s Maps of Light Kits are themed around six of the 88 constellations recognised in 1922, while Bobbi Brown’s shimmering Sterling Nights collection draws inspiration from the starry night skies of South Africa. We’re all more inclined to the odd bit of glitter and sparkle here and there in December, but from the looks of things cosmos chic isn’t just for Christmas. Next season Mary Katrantzou’s S/S16 collection mingles whimsical Roma gypsy floral prints, tiny sequins and metallic quilting in a way she has described as a fusion of “cosmic and chaos ideologies”. The new Oseanyx collection from jewellery house Venyx continues to draw on founder Eugenie Niarchos’ passion for all things sci-fi – “the DNA of Venyx World” – (the brand’s name is an amalgamation of the planet Venus and onyx), by exploring the depths of the ocean and the weird and

Above: Mary Katrantzou S/S16 collection

Orion DT © David Tolliday (UK) Winner of the Sir Patrick Moore Prize for Best Newcomer

wonderful creatures found within, and comparing this to the vastness of outer space. Niarchos has incorporated several out-of-theordinary stones to tie in with her otherworldly collection, including a larimar – a rare stone that can only be found in the Dominican Republic – along with moonstone (her birthstone as a Cancerian). “There’s nothing wrong with having some fun with it all,” proclaims Linda Joyce, the astrologer and life coach who administers personal consultations and readings from her New York base to clients across the globe. We’re talking about Selfridges’ shop by your star sign service that was launched to coincide with its zodiac-themed windows last month. An ‘astrolounge’ was created and an in-house psychic was on hand to offer intuitive shopping as well as readings and crystal massages. “If people go into a store and learn something about themselves how fabulous is that?” Even though she peppers our chat with lines like:

Above: Amanda Wakeley astrology scarfs

feature

Below: Rainbow necklace in 18-carat yellow gold with diamonds and coloured stones; Star pearl earrings in 18-carat yellow gold with diamonds, white sapphires and akoya pearls; Moonshell ring in 18-carat yellow gold with diamond, emerald, amethyst, citrine, chrysoprase, opal, lavender, caledony, blue topaz and garnet. All Oseanyx collection jewellery by Venyx

Eclipse Totality over Sassendalen © Luc Jamet (France) Overall winner of Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2015

“Pisces is about fantasy. Steve McQueen was a Pisces – talk about fantasy!” Joyce is no Mystic Meg. Her straight-talking soul-searching makes our conversation feel like a therapy session, in a good way. “Ahh,” she says pensively when I reveal my birthday, as if suddenly that explains everything. “Everybody’s looking for a focus. Most people have trouble thinking for themselves. Why do you think people have trouble dressing themselves?” The answer according to Joyce is that we don’t actually know what we want, but luckily astrology can point us in the right direction, as it can pinpoint our strengths and our weaknesses. “Astrology is a map of who you are. The answers lie within. The more you understand yourself, the easier it is to present yourself to the world in the most positive, powerful way.” One of the biggest hurdles we have to overcome is our collective inability to say no. “You can’t build a life when you can’t say no,” Joyce asserts. “No is a confrontation, you might be disappointing someone or rejecting them, but the truth is when you stand up for yourself you become much more attractive.” So is the New Year the right time to work on the new you? “I think resolutions are wonderful, but the problem with them is that nobody makes a real commitment. We all get inspired by new beginnings, but most people have trouble with self-discipline and commitment, myself included!” she laughs. Joyce is a firm believer of looking to the skies for answers. Glimmers of self-revelation, clarity and inner calm, she believes, come from unlocking the secrets to the

stars. Nevertheless the sheer enormity or what surrounds us, the millions and billions of years of history is arguably far from reassuring. For many the dawning realisation of our own insignificance, as tiny specks in an evolving, infinite universe, means the cosmos can seem elusive and forever out of reach. Back at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich the search for answers is never over. The team are currently keeping an eye on Britain’s first European Space Agency-trained astronaut Tim Peake, whose mission to the International Space Station is about to begin. Will the romance of space ever fade for Dr Bloomer? “I have a very early memory of being shown the Aurora Borealis by my parents as a child. Admittedly I was so small that I didn’t really appreciate that the sky wasn’t always changing different colours, but it may have planted a seed,” he smiles. “Astronomy ‘opens up’ the more you look into it, so the wonder of discovery and exploration never fades.” And in a month like January, couldn’t we all do with a little wonder? Instead of looking forward this year, maybe we need to start looking up.

The dawning realisation of our own insignificance, as tiny specks in an evolving, infinite universe, means the cosmos can seem elusive and forever out of reach

lu x u r y l o n d o n .c o.u k

The Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year exhibition runs until 26 June at the Royal Observatory, rmg.co.uk Linda Joyce is available for readings and life-coaching sessions, lindajoyce.com

Vantage | 13

Actor Ed Speleers returns to our screens in the ITV drama Beowulf this month. He talks fight scenes, family sagas and his man crush on Michael Fassbender with Lauren Romano ď&#x192;ľ

Image ÂŠ Damian Weilers, lovelymanagement.com

INTERVIEW

d Speleers isn’t about to be typecast in a hurry. Since making his acting debut 10 years ago in fantasy teen flick Eragon, Speleers has played a mountaineer on the run from a murderer (A Lonely Place to Die), a courtier to Henry VIII (Wolf Hall) and one half of a 1950s husband and wife detective duo (BBC1’s Partners in Crime). He’s starred in a creature horror film (Howl) about a midnight train attacked by a pack of werewolves and ruffled feathers upstairs and downstairs as the smooth-talking footman Jimmy Kent (Downton Abbey). Blockbusters, teatime dramas, independent films, you name it – Speleers has been there and got the T-Shirt, the breeches and the Teddy Boy quiff. He’s about to add warrior armour to the list too. Anyone looking for a new TV series to see them through January should tune in to Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands, the 13-part ITV drama that airs this month, with Speleers playing one of the leading roles. When I tell Speleers I’ve been trawling the internet all afternoon for pictures of him and joke that my search history must make me look like some sort of stalker, he squirms, shyly, in a way that’s hard not to warm to. “I hate having my photo taken,” he says, as I mention that he is unrecognisable in the latest set of production shots I unearthed. For Beowulf, Speleers has been stripped of his trademark tousled tresses and boyish charm to play the brooding underdog Slean, the rugged-looking rightful heir to a mythic kingdom. Beowulf has been billed as a ‘Western set in the Dark Ages of Britain’s mythic past’, and the old English poem has been given the primetime drama treatment; the special effects team has created a cast of mud monsters, trolls and sandworms. “I only read the poem once I got the part,” Speleers admits, conspiratorially. “The thing is, it’s only about 300 lines long,” he says of the apparently not-so-epic epic. It’s only later when I find my largely unread Medieval literature anthology from my uni days that I realise he’s miscounted the lines by a few thousand. But whether he’s got a handle on the poem in its entirety or not is no matter – as Speleers got well and truly under the skin of his character. He tells me he “enjoyed getting ready for Slean”, and I don’t think he’s talking about donning a fur cloak, or the hours spent in hair and make-up. Even as we talk about it over tea, he’s physically psyching himself up, gesticulating and slipping from third to first person in an interconnected stream of

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consciousness. “He’s quite troubled,” Speleers says. “He’s been brought up in a world where all his life he thought he was going to be king, but his father [played by William Hurt] hated him and on his deathbed he decided to make Slean’s mother queen instead. To add insult to injury, my father took in this young boy Beowulf when he was nine and took more of a shining to him than to me and that f***ed me off,” he adds, switching to first person. “That’s just the first episode,” he laughs. “It all kicks off very quickly.” The filming took place in a bleak quarry in Northumberland, which sounds as though it had its own microclimate. But despite the daily barrage of hail, snow, sun and mud, being away from his family ended up being the toughest element of all for Speleers. He is guarded about his private life but mentions his young son in passing and his partner Asia Macey, who works as a costume and wardrobe assistant. To prepare for the role Speleers took a field trip to an old Iron Age fort near his home in the West Country. “The magnitude of the place gave me a sense of how you would have felt. You’ve got to bear in mind that it would have been so dangerous at that time with so many rival clans. We wanted to recreate that in the show, so we were actually going hammer and tongs with real swords, not wooden ones,” he tells me with glee. Will he be watching himself when Beowulf airs this month? “I don’t know. I always say that I’m not going to watch things anymore and then I end up doing the opposite.” His mum is his number one fan. “Delusions of grandeur about my actual ability don’t even cover it,” he laughs. “She’ll be championing it. I’ve got nieces and nephews who are about the right age to enjoy it too, so it’s nice to be doing something that will appeal across the board.” Something else he deems “nice”, in his typically modest way, is his upcoming role in Alice Through the Looking Glass, the sequel to Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. He didn’t meet Johnny Depp but he did get to work with Mia Wasikowska.“That was good enough for me,” he quips. You’ll also be able to catch him alongside Tom Sturridge in Remainder, directed by contemporary video artist Omer Fast, which received its world premiere at the Tate Modern during the BFI London Film Festival. “It’s proper arthouse. I never know how to explain it,” he laughs. Speleers is the first to admit that his path to fame, on paper, was

perhaps more straightforward than he anticipated. “When I got to secondary school I had this drama teacher and if things were going slightly awry he’d make sure I did a play or something constructive, and he had a couple of connections with casting directors.” It was one of those casting directors that put Speleers forward for the Narnia films. He lost out on the role of Peter Pevensie to William Moseley, but he landed the lead in the 20th Century Fox film Eragon soon afterwards. One minute he was at home in Sussex and the next he was being whisked off to Eastern Europe with Jeremy Irons, Garrett Hedlund, Robert Carlyle, John Malkovich and Rachel Weisz; surely a dream scenario for any 17-year-old would-be actor? “I just always presumed that I’d have to go down a very standard path and I think one of the difficulties was the fact that I was a bit of a tearaway at school and suddenly I was put in an environment where there were a lot

“As long as the role is right and the script is going to drive me to a new dimension it doesn’t matter what form it comes in”

INTERVIEW

Clockwise from far left: Ed as Edward Seymour in Wolf Hall © Company Pictures/ Playground Entertainment for BBC2; Ed as Slean in Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands © ITV; Ed with Cush Jumbo in Remainder, released by Soda Pictures in 2016 © Chris Harris; Ed as Jimmy Kent in Downton Abbey, courtesy of Carnival Films © Nick Briggs

of older people around me. I was a very young guy and I thought I knew it all. Trying to get yourself up in the morning to go to an audition when actually all you want to do is stay in bed – you don’t realise how much it might mean to you. It’s been tempestuous,” he says with a wry smile. It’s easy to picture him as a cheeky teenage troublemaker. Today grown-up Speleers has coined a new brand of charm offensive – he is polite, unscripted and thoughtful, with a fidgetiness and a roundabout way of answering questions that is less preppy and polished than I was anticipating. He apologises profusely for being (five minutes) late, compliments

lu x u ry l o n d o n .c o.u k

me on my choice of outfit (he’s a big fan of stripes), and reprimands himself for swearing – “He’s not very eloquent is he?” he jokes in a mock posh voice. These days lie-ins are still few and far between. He’s back and forth from London most weeks and uses the commute to catch up on box sets. “This is how technically inept I am, but I’ve only just discovered the iPlayer app,” he laughs, adding that now at least he can download London Spy for the journey. He appreciates the popularity of a TV series and how they can make or break a career; “I suppose that did have a bit of hype,” he adds drily when I remind him about his part in Downton Abbey, but he doesn’t want to pigeonhole himself as an only TV or film kind of actor. “I’m still learning, but as long as the role is right and the script is going to drive me to a new dimension it doesn’t matter what form it comes in. I want to do it all and as much of it as possible. And as long as people keep casting me I’m happy. I’m 27 so I hope I’ve only just started.” His all-time Hollywood hero is Paul Newman, although he admits he’s currently “in awe of” Michael Fassbender. “I’ve got a man crush on him and I don’t have man crushes on anybody,” he smirks. “I think the subtlety to what he does is just superb. I watched Frank the other day and the guy’s got a paper head on for most of the film and you’re so gripped by what he’s doing.” His leading lady is harder to pin down. In the end he decides upon Cate Blanchett or Jennifer Lawrence, throwing Olivia Colman in for good measure and adding that “the missus was part of the costume department for Broadchurch”. I remark that they sound like the dream team. “She’s the dream of the team… Oh that sounds so cheesy though, you can’t put that in,” he flounders, adorably tongue-tied. “You’ve also got to say I said it was cheesy,” he protests. “I’m sure I’ve just come across as an absolute numpty.” Richard Curtis might not have fallen over backwards to cast Speleers as awkward rom com hero yet, but it’s still early days. Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands will air on ITV on 3 January at 7pm

Vantage | 17

COLLECTION

Rock around the clock Every year Harry Winston partners with some of the most creative minds in independent watchmaking to produce an extraordinary, limited-edition timepiece. In 2015, the company collaborated with ex-Greubel Forsey employee Franck Orny and Johnny Girardin, previously of Patek Philippe. The result was the Opus 14. Inspired by 1950s America, the watch houses a patented miniaturised jukebox mechanism, where four discs display local time, GMT time, the date and a star bearing the signature of Mr Harry Winston. Note, too, the vinyl-style finishes on the watchâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dials. Opus 14, ÂŁ327,800, Harry Winston harrywinston.com

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COLLECTION

Jewellery news By Olivia Sharpe

All ears Post-Christmas is the time to pinch pennies, but this is often when we are most in need of some retail therapy to get over the January blues. Fortunately for us, since launching its first store in 2012, Cadenzza has been committed to providing customers with trend-led fashion jewellery that won’t break the bank. Along with its wealth of luxury fashion brands – from Azzaro to Oscar de la Renta – Cadenzza also stocks its own private

label and the latest pieces from the A/W15 Elementary collection include a number of covetable ear jackets, one of the latest jewellery statements to have hit the industry. Arriving in rose, yellow gold and rhodium-plated styles and starting from just £59, it is music to our ears. cadenzza.com

Clear as crystal

Monkey business

It was the Ancient Greeks who believed that crystals have spiritual healing properties. While the Vantage team is slightly dubious as to the restorative power of stones, we can at least admit that Noor Fares’ new jewellery line, Krystallos, has renewed our faith in the power of fine jewellery to lift our spirits. The name of the capsule collection is taken from the Greek word meaning ‘ice’ and comprises an array of precious stones – from white and rose quartz to amethysts and lapis lazuli – that have been set into geometric pendants, earrings and rings.

2016 is the year of the monkey in Chinese astrology and jewellers have paid tribute to the animal with witty, inventive and playful designs. Known for her whimsical pieces, Lydia Courteille has created the Mono ring, which features a monkey’s head carved in 18-carat yellow gold and ornately decorated with green tsavorites, orange sapphires, amethysts and diamonds. Meanwhile, Spanish brand Carrera y Carrera has designed a number of new earrings, our favourite of which presents two monkeys dangling mischievously on either earring while holding a bunch of pink opals.

Krystallos collection, £3,000 to £8,000 noorfares.com 20 | Vantage

lydiacourteille.com; carreraycarrera.com

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WATCHMAKING

EXTREME

Above: Richard Mille Right: RM 19-02 Tourbillon Fleur

Purveyor of specialist sports watches for the seriously well-heeled, Richard Mille’s disruptive approach to timekeeping – along with the brand’s phenomenal growth – has left many in the watch world spellbound. More than manufacturing high-performance timepieces, the brand is in the business of creating uncompromising status symbols for the 21st century. Richard Brown reports 

COLLECTION

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Vantage | 23

here has, in the past two decades, been a trend for big-name watchmakers to abandon their posts at big-name watch companies and set up specialist ateliers of their own. The result has been a new type of haute horology – ultramodern timepieces produced in super-limited numbers that are characterised, typically, by their renegade design, novel mechanics and preposterous price tags. Of the cluster of watchmakers that have come to define this realm – MB&F, Christophe Claret, Hysek, HYT and Urwerk (although there are others) – only one has successfully seeped into the collective consciousness of the watch-wearing public: Richard Mille. Thanks to partnerships with Felipe Massa and Rafael Nadal, and then with Yohan Blake and Bubba Watson, and through strategic sponsorship of teams like Lotus F1 and Manchester City Football Club, Richard Mille has ensured that its watches – or at the very least its logo – occupy a place in the public psyche that’s far more prominent than any of its avant-garde stable mates. De Bethune, Hautlence and Roger Dubuis all make fantastic watches. All remain unknown to the man on the street. Richard Mille, the man, established his eponymous company in 2001. Never having trained as a watchmaker himself, Mille had spent more than two decades in the commercial divisions of various watch and clock companies before having the entrepreneurial vision to create what was effectively his very own watch segment. Considering the current crop of calibres used in sports watches to be archaic and uninteresting, the Frenchman employed his old friend Fabrice Deschanel, general director of Renaud & Papi (movement makers to

Audemars Piguet), to find a way of modernising the way watches are made. Mille’s aim, which became his slogan, was to manufacture ‘racing machines for the wrist’. Fourteen years after Richard Mille debuted his first watch – the skeletonised RM 001 borrowed subtle touches from watches Mille had worked on at previous employer Mauboussin, and established the now immediately recognisable tonneau-shaped case – the brand is now selling some 3,000 watches a year. Its loftiest creation, the RM 056 Felipe Massa Limited Edition Sapphire Tourbillon, will set you back a princely £1,560,000. Entry-level prices – for the RM 023, RM 029, RM 010 and RM 016 – start around £60,000. Even sales at this price point suggest an annual turnover of almost a quarter-of-a-billion quid. Not bad for a man who refused to do any market research, or study his competition, prior to launch. Mille, now 64, is as cool a cucumber as you’ll find in the watch industry – bespectacled, funny and full of bonhomie. Even so, the success his company has enjoyed must have taken even him by surprise? “Only at the very beginning,” Mille answers, implying success is something you quickly get used to. “I literally went from showing the first pieces to prospective buyers and hoping for their interest, to having to produce a larger number within only a few weeks. It has been a non-stop, high-speed ride ever since.” So, what’s Richard Mille the brand all about? In a word: performance. Performance under duress; performance when the wearer of the watch is pushing it to its limit. Most sports watch ambassadors will remove their watch before they compete. Not Richard Mille’s. Bubba Watson wears his while driving golf balls over 310 yards; Nadal’s is subjected to serves of almost 120 mph. Such forces would affect even the most basic of mechanical movements; the ones inside Bubba’s and Nadal’s are tourbillons. Bubba’s, the RM 38-01, contains a mechanical G-force sensor that’s able to record the force of a golfer’s swing – a world first, unsurprisingly – while Nadal’s, the RM 27-01, is officially the planet’s lightest tourbillon wristwatch, weighing just 19 grams, including the strap. “For anyone looking for a no-compromise timepiece that is at the cutting edge of 21st century haute horlogerie, our watches perfectly fit the bill,” says Mille. He insists, too, that the profession of his chosen partners helps, rather than hinders, innovation at the company. “The collaborations are beneficial for everyone concerned. I am not talking only about money here; much more interesting for me is what we learn about watchmaking as we face new challenges with different disciplines. These experiences on track and field cannot be

Sales at this price point suggest an annual turnover of almost a quarter-of-abillion quid

RM 26-02 Evil Eye Tourbillon

COLLECTION

RM 056 Felipe Massa Limited Edition Sapphire Tourbillon

given a value, as the knowledge we gain working with each personality flows through the entire collection.” In trouble-shooting problems like the violent accelerations and vibrations experienced during a F1 grand prix, Richard Mille gives us things like baseplates made out of high-density carbon nanofibres. Once the preserve of the aeronautic and space industries, carbon nanofibre is created under 740 bars and a temperature of 2,000°C, making it highly resistant to shocks and thermal influences. When Felipe Massa crashed at 170mph during qualification for the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2009, his RM 006 proved completely unaffected – largely, it’s thought, because of the cutting-edge composition of the materials inside. Massa and fellow F1 driver Romain Grosjean, along with nine-time World Rally Champion Sébastien Loeb, wear a Richard Mille every time they race. Though his creations may model things as far-out as dragon’s eyes (the RM26-02), magnolia plants (the RM 19-02) and diamond-encrusted spiders (the RM 19-01), Mille insists his watches are “anti-bling”. “There are no gimmicks to be found in my watches; everything I do – absolutely everything – has a clear reason behind it. Great attention is paid to every single detail, even to such small items as specially-made screws, each of which takes 20 separate operations to create.” In the case of the examples above, this means that the five handcrafted petals of the magnolia flower open and close automatically to beautiful effect; that the ‘Evil Eye’ motive is actually a type of enamelling that requires applying several layers of oxides onto gold at temperatures of 900°C; and that the skeletonised baseplate of the RM 19-01 is machined into the shape of a spider’s web from 18K white gold before being decorated with hundreds of black sapphires. “If you are just looking for a big chunk of gold to wear, or a watch whose only interesting feature is that it has a magnesium and aluminum ring inside it, then I’m not your man. We have presented several new movements over the past five years; an unheard-of amount for a small company like ours. It’s even more crazy when you realise that some of these new, highly complex movements, like that for the RM 19-02 Fleur, RM 69, RM 031 or RM 27-02, were developed for only a handful of limited-series watches.” It’s not difficult, nowadays, to find a watch that will set you back the price of a two-bedroom house in suburbia. Richard Mille’s pieces, though, will more regularly afford you an apartment in Fulham. When your creations command some of the highest prices in the industry – justifiably so or not – discourse has a tendency to centre on money rather mechanical mastery. By remaining uncompromising in its commitment to pushing boundaries, both in the movements it makes and the materials it uses, Richard Mille will at least be able to reassure its clients they are getting what they pay for. Richard Mille, 90 Mount Street, W1K richardmille.com

RM 19-01 Tourbillon Spider

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M ESUR E ET D ÉMESUR E *

TONDA 1950 TOURBILLON

World’s thinnest (3,4 mm) automatic ﬂying tourbillon Platinum micro-rotor World’s lightest titanium cage (0,255 g) Hand ﬁnished movement, case and dial Hermès alligator strap 100% engineered and made by Parmigiani Manufacture Switzerland www.parmigiani.ch

ATELIER PARMIGIANI 97 MOUNT STREET, MAYFAIR, LONDON W1K 2TD, TEL. 020 7495 5172 LEICESTER

LUMBERS | LONDON SELFRIDGES, THE WONDER ROOM ARIJE | HARRODS, MONTREUX JAZZ CAFE WATCHES OF SWITZERLAND | FROST OF LONDON | BEAU GEMS SCOTLAND AND NEWCASTLE ROX DIAMONDS AND THRILLS WINDSOR ROBERT GATWARD JEWELLERS

collection

Watch news By Richard Brown

Perpetual innovation “I call perpetual calendars boomerang watches,” says Maximilian Büsser, founder of MB&F. “Boomerang watches because they come back for repair so often.” The trouble with perpetual calendar watches – those that automatically account for months of varying lengths and leap years – is that mechanisms jam and dates jump when they shouldn’t. MB&F’s solution is the Legacy Machine Perpetual which, instead of using a conventional space-consuming big-lever system to flick through dates, uses a series of superimposed disks. MB&F’s system eradicates the need to skip over redundant days, meaning there is no possibility of the date jumping incorrectly. Legacy Machine Perpetual £109,340 (before tax) in platinum MB&F, mbandf.com

Perfect timing After subjecting the watch to five tests, including three measurement cycles, exposure to magnetic fields, and exposure to more than 150 impacts, judges at the biennial International Chronometry Competition named Louis Moinet’s Vertalor as the most accurate tourbillon of the past two years. The most precise mechanical watch ever created remains Greubel Forsey’s Double Tourbillon 30°. Vertalor, £130,000 Louis Moinet louismoinet.com

Art for art’s sake The most complicated watch ever made A complication, in watch speak, refers to anything a timepiece does over and above displaying the hours and minutes of the day. Launched in 2015, Vacheron Constantin’s Reference 57260 features 57 complications. It will tell you everything from the time in 24 cities, to seasons, equinoxes and signs of the zodiac. It has 31 hands, two dials and 2,826 parts. Reference 57260, vacheron-constantin.com

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Jaquet Droz’s The Charming Bird has won the 2015 Mechanical Exception prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève. The miniaturised bird plays no part in telling the time and will only sing once activated. Instead, the piece pays homage to the mastery of the company’s namesake – who built mechanical birds in the 18th century. The Charming Bird, approx £264,480, Jaquet Droz jaquet-droz.com

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unmissable sale 1 st â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 31 st January

Ligne Roset Westend | 0207 323 1248 www.ligne-roset-westend.co.uk

Modern masterpieces January is a time for resolutions – whether that involves reacquainting yourself with the crosstrainer, putting up the flat-pack shelving unit that has been gathering dust in the corner with books piled next to it, or finally adding finishing touches to your living room. If you’re looking to invest in some contemporary art, a visit to London Art Fair is a must. The fair encompasses everything from the Dialogues for Art Projects, which is dedicated to international, emerging artists, to Photo50, a guest-curated annual showcase of contemporary photography. Among the vast collection of works, we think this eye-catching print by Jim Lambie should be bright enough to beat the January blues. 20-24 January, day tickets from £15, Business Design Centre, N1, londonartfair.co.uk Sun Visor by Jim Lambie Courtesy of Glasgow Print Studio

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EDITOR'S PICK

Mapped out Whether you are navigating Westfield’s floor plan or the Tube map, a keen sense of direction always helps when trying to find your way around the capital. Tap the Store Street Gallery postcode into Citymapper and head over for You Are Here, which features four artists who have creatively re-invented the humble map. Alongside bespoke offerings and maps handcrafted from gold leaf, silk and resin, Yanko Tihov’s centrepiece, made from foreign passports belonging to people who now reside in London, celebrates diversity.

Local news

21 January – 13 February, 32 Store Street WC1E, storestreetgallery.com

Left: Christopher Shannon S/S16 Image courtesy of Christopher Shannon

By Amelia Mayes

Stay on track Now Christmas is over and your extended family have lumbered back to their homes, it’s time to return those unwanted gifts and treat yourself to something better instead. Do so with ease using Bicester Village’s new train station, which connects London Marylebone directly to the famous designer shopping outlet, letting you travel straight to its glossy doors and avoid the miserable January weather. There are two trains an hour so you can make a day of it and shop until you drop. bicestervillage.com

Dream team Teenage boys are a strange breed, and to celebrate their peculiar habits, SHOWstudio editor Lou Stoppard has curated Mad About the Boy, an exhibition showcasing and exploring fashion’s obsession with youth. “The fluidity and possibility of the teenage years seems to unite fashion’s obsession with the boy: sparked, perhaps by a strange belief in the precious genius of youth,” comments Stoppard. Together with input from big fashion names such as Raf Simons, Meadham Kirchhoff and Larry Clark, the exhibition aims to tackle gender stereotypes and gives an insight into the mind of the ever-mysterious teenage boy. 8 January – 2 April, London College of Fashion, 20 John Prince’s Street, W1G fashionspacegallery.com

spotlight Gir Lion Lodge veranda artist impression ©ZSL

The wild house ZSL is giving big cat lovers the chance to get up close with the king of the pride thanks to the new Gir Lion Lodge. Although the nine cabins don’t open their doors until the spring, you can book to secure your room now. Guests will enjoy two exclusive tours of the zoo and learn about ZSL’s conservation work to help protect the endangered Asiatic lion. From £378, zsl.org

Endellion String Quartet © Eric Richmond©ZSL

String thing If you’re a classical music fan, you might fancy a night out with the Endellion String Quartet. The talented foursome’s repertoire covers the musical greats, dabbling in not only Ludwig van Beethoven, but also Franz Schubert, Joseph Haydn and Claude Debussy. The two-hour live show promises to include a range of dramatic, expressive and romantic pieces.

Clockwise from left: Ewan David Eason, Mappa Mundi London, 2013, silkscreen and gold leaf, 90 x 90 cms, £3,200; Yanko Tihov, London Passport Map; Ewan David Eason, Sacred Booth

18 January, from £15 36 Wigmore Street, W1U wigmore-hall.org.uk

“Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy” – Ludwig van Beethoven

Lights on

From left: BINARYWaves, Lumiere 2011; Janet Echelman, 1.26 Durham, Lumiere 2015, both produced by Artichoke and © Matthew Andrews

Lumiere London will be lighting up the capital this month with 3D projections and interactive installations hitting sites across King’s Cross and the West End. Some of the city’s most recognisable buildings and locations will be seen in a whole new light thanks to illuminations by a range of national and international artists. Head over to expel the post-Christmas blues and brighten up dark and dreary January. 14-17 January, happening across King’s Cross and the West End visitlondon.com/lumiere lu x u r y l o n d o n .c o.u k

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Left: Ellsworth Kelly, Broad Street studio, New York, 1956 © Onni Saari Below: Colors for a Large Wall, 1951, oil on canvas, 64 joined panels, 94 1/2 x 94 1/2 in, 240 x 240 cm Far right: Chatham X: Black Red, 1971, oil on canvas, 2 joined panels, 108 x 95 3/4 inches, 274.3 x 243.2 cm Courtesy of Matthew Marks Gallery

True Colours As a monograph of his most famous work is published, Jack Watkins celebrates the extraordinary career of Ellsworth Kelly 

rt makes no concessions. Once it grabs you, as a career, you’re a captive for life. It’s why Picasso went on until he was in his 90s, and why Michelangelo was still making sketches for the basilica of St Peter’s in Rome until three weeks before he last drew breath, aged 89. And Frank Auerbach’s work, currently on display at Tate Britain, is the subject of one of the most attentiongrabbing exhibitions in London at the moment. Auerbach is 84 and still paints daily in the north London studio he has lived and worked in for more than 60 years. Ellsworth Kelly, 93 in May, maintains a similarly focused schedule in his self-designed studio a couple of hours from upstate New York, where he was born in 1923. His first solo exhibition was staged in Paris in 1951. Now he’s regularly hailed as a legend of modern painting, or “the king of colour”. The New Yorker praised his most recent show, held last year, as his best yet. “Part magician, part mathematician, he works

with the precision and clarity of a poet,” AM Homes once wrote in The Guardian. To mark a seven-decade career, the first truly definitive monograph, created in collaboration with Kelly, has just been published. It includes all his major works and stylistic transitions, from his early figurative art to later ones featuring blocks of single, flat colour and silhouetted shapes. Also explored are his lesser-known ventures into printmaking and large-scale outdoor sculptures. Featuring essays by American art experts, the whole work is authored by Tricia Paik, curator of contemporary art at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. There’s no single reason why a comprehensive work for such a well-regarded artist has taken so long to be published, says Paik. “One practical reason is that he’s been so much in demand, showing at significant group exhibitions throughout his career, as well as major solo exhibitions, or working on important commissions. So I don’t think he’s had much time to focus on a project like this. But he’s also been overlooked at certain points in his career. It’s not the case now but, in contrast to some of his contemporaries who received broader recognition earlier on, I do believe that the international acclaim Ellsworth has received in recent years has been undeservedly delayed.” Paik says many of her colleagues are surprised that this is the first major Kelly monograph to have been produced in nearly 45 years. Now, though, she points out that alongside the Phaidon book, the first volume of the Ellsworth Kelly Catalogue Raisonné

spotlight

has just been published, written by the leading scholar Yve-Alain Bois. During the project Paik had direct access to the artist. “He has a razor-sharp memory and can still recall his experiences with specific detail, even though he claims he can’t remember stories like he used to,” she reflects. “He might not be able to recall someone’s name as quickly, but he can still remember other facts as if he learned them yesterday. What I find so inspiring about Ellsworth is how, at 92, he is still quite critical and demanding of himself, in a good way. He always wants to do whatever he is doing better than before. He is also surprisingly humble for an artist of his calibre.” In the colour of Kelly’s work you sense he has retained an almost childlike joy in the natural world beyond the studio door. This comes from his first experience of birdwatching, when he was five. “After school he would escape into the woods where he’d spend hours looking at birds, studying their shapes and colours,” Paik says. From there he developed an interest in the brilliantly coloured prints of the great John James Audubon, the 19th century American ornithologist and painter of birds. Kelly remains an admirer of Audubon to this day. Critics have praised the visual pleasure and feeling of spiritual uplift derived from the process of standing in front of Kelly’s work and simply gazing at it. The impression is that the creator of such works must be the opposite of the caricature image of the dark, moody, self-obsessed artist. Did Paik find this to be so? “I can’t speak for what he was like when he was a young artist in the 1950s and 1960s,” she responds, “but he’s often talked about how quiet and shy he was in those days, sometimes uncertain and doubtful because he didn’t feel understood when it came to his art. But in all the time I have known him, since the late 1990s, he has always been thoughtful, generous and curious. I always leave my visits to him looking at the world in a new way because of something he has pointed out to me. He’ll frequently point to a tree or some shadow or shape and make me see something I had not seen before. I think this is what great artists do. They take the everyday experience, find out what’s special about it and then transform it into a great work of art.” Kelly began as a figurative painter and a 1947 self-portrait, with its accomplished expressionist brushwork, reveals someone steeped in classical traditions. It wasn’t until arriving in Paris in 1948 that he embraced European abstract artists like Kandinsky, Miró and Picasso. Yet Kelly developed a method that followed no masters, based on observation of everyday objects, whether it is the windows of a

“He’ll frequently point to a tree or some shadow or shape and make me see something I had not seen before”

medieval cathedral or bands of chimney pipes running down the side of a Paris apartment block. One of his earliest works, Reflections on Water in 1950, arose from looking at the shapes of fragmented light on the shimmering surface of the Seine. Kelly’s geometric compositions, made of clearly delineated areas of bright colour, are devoid of all referential context. Thanks to the brilliance of the colours, parallels have been drawn with Matisse’s cut outs. It’s been argued that his wall-to-floor paintings have a quality akin to sculpture. For Paik, one of his greatest artistic legacies is the integration of the architectural wall into his paintings. “He doesn’t view his paintings as separate entities in themselves,” she explains. “For him, the wall on which his paintings hang is part of the art as well.” She thinks this may be the secret of his longevity as a working artist. “This concept, which he developed as a young man in France in the early 1950s, is crucial because it allowed him to work on various scales throughout his career, from the intimate to the monumental. It’s enabled him to create significant commissions around the world, not only for major museums and art institutions like the new Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris, but also for the German Parliament in Bonn and the American Embassy in Beijing. With such important commissions, his abstractions continue to be as influential and relevant as ever.” Ellsworth Kelly by Tricia Paik, published by Phaidon, phaidon.com

All works © Ellsworth Kelly, 2015 Courtesy Ellsworth Kelly Archives Reprinted from Ellsworth Kelly (Phaidon, 2015)

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Club Tropicana January in England might be a miserable affair, but elsewhere in the world bobble hats and thermals aren’t the order of the day. Those jetting off to the Southern Hemisphere in search of some sunshine should pack Amanda Wakeley’s Cruise 2016 collection, a tropical range of jumpsuits, maxi dresses and bright and breezy tops. The cobalt blue shirts and palm prints have got us logging onto lastminute.com faster than you can say piña colada, but for those staying at home the wide-legged jumpsuits and suede dresses are smart investments that will see you through the year, whatever the weather. From a selection, amandawakeley.com

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Fashion news By Ellen Millard

Soft touch The phrase ‘good things come to those who wait’ has never rung more true than now, as London, after a 218-year long wait, welcomes the first Johnstons of Elgin store outside of Scotland. The Mayfair flagship will house the label’s luxurious cashmere clothes and interiors that are still made in Scotland using one of the last vertical mills in the UK. The latest range, Uber Luxe, will be available at the new store and focuses on timeless pieces, including polo neck jumpers, cardigans and cable knit accessories. 77 New Bond Street, W1S johnstonscashmere.com

Greece is the word

Pyjama party

It might not seem like the weather for open toes, but we advise you to snap up the collaboration range between Ancient Greek Sandals and Peter Pilotto pronto. The pair have joined forces for the latter’s Resort 16 range, combining Pilotto’s love of print with the shoe brand’s sleek leather gladiators. Inspired by vintage pinball machines and board games, the sandals will keep you one step ahead in the style stakes thanks to their pop art designs and bright colours.

Nightwear designer Olivia von Halle’s pre-spring range gives us all the more reason to stay indoors this month. Inspired by Madrid, the Castillo collection – named after interior designer Lorenzo Castillo, whose home is the setting for the new campaign – comprises silk pyjama sets, kimonos and nightdresses in bold prints. What’s more, this season sees the return of that black and white striped pyjama set, a favourite of Kate Moss.

From £175 ancient-greek-sandals.com

From a selection oliviavonhalle.co.uk

fashion

The desert trail Beige, camel and sandy hues make Kenzo’s Resort 16 collection look a bit like it was photographed using the sepia filter on Instagram, but don’t let the lack of colour put you off. Camouflage two-pieces, cacti print jumpsuits and utilitarian styling add a playful touch to the desert-themed line, which calls on ‘the intrepid woman’ for inspiration. Take your pick from silk parka dresses, washed out denim and, for those nights spent in front of a box set, tracksuit bottoms emblazoned with the Kenzo logo.

Sole mate The devil might wear Prada, but the label’s bespoke made-to-order Décolleté collection could only have been sent from heaven (sorry). So it’s good news that it’s back for a second instalment, offering customers the chance to choose from 19 styles, seven heel heights and a host of different materials. New offerings include the lipstick and molecule prints and a new sole option in the Saffiano design. Get them before they’re gone.

From a selection, kenzo.com

From £530, 16-18 Old Bond Street, W1X, prada.com

Coming up roses

EDITOR'S PICK

It’s been 20 years since Vivienne Westwood showcased her Gold Label A/W95 collection at the Carrousel du Louvre in Paris, and she’s celebrating by launching a limited-edition collection called Vive La Cocotte. The designer has produced a special version of her Cocotte dress made from silk satin, featuring a rose print. Just 20 dresses are available at the Davies Street store, in either pink or black. £2,950, available at 6 Davies Street, W1K, 020 7629 3757

Flower power

Hats off If a woolly hat isn’t really your thing, look to Maison Michel for decorative headwear this month. The French label has just unveiled its pre-spring collection of trilby, wide-brim and panama hats in felt, straw and suede. Floral embellishments add a summery vibe, but those looking for something a bit more winter appropriate should go for the navy, camel or suede options. From a selection, 46 Burlington Arcade, W1J, michel-paris.com lu x u r y l o n d o n .c o.u k

What do Goldie Hawn, Mia Farrow, Pattie Boyd, Anna Karenina and 90s TV show Twin Peaks all have in common? They’ve all acted as inspiration for Erdem’s pre-spring collection, along with the 1960s and Victorian fashion. An odd combination, but the result is a striking explosion of florals, two-piece suits and lace midi dresses. Contrast is the name of the game here, with delicate flowers embroidered onto androgynous suits and boyfriend coats. We approve. From a selection, erdem.com Vantage | 37

Good Light A

This yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cruise collections are all about detail. Get the look with lace, floral embroidery and sheer fabrics ď&#x192;ľ Photography Phillip Waterman

stylist Jess Stebbings

Floral embroidered top, ÂŁ2,380; Floral embroidered skirt, ÂŁ1,890, both Erdem; Diamond bracelet, ÂŁ5,120, Messika, all available from Harrods

Above Dress, £1,755, Mary Katrantzou, marykatrantzou.com Right Suit jacket, £375, Max Mara, Old Bond Street, W1S; Diamond necklace, £1,149, Stone Paris, mytheresa.com

Above Lace dress, Burberry Prorsum, £1,995, burberry.com; Glasses, £395, Cutler and Gross, Old Spitalfields Market, 55 Brushfield Street, E1 Left Blouse, £485; Trousers, £465, both J.W.Anderson, j-w-anderson.com; Feather earrings, £3,450, Bee Goddess, available from Harrods

Above Silk dress, £1,737, Rochas, net-a-porter.com; Sword bracelet, £3,950, Bee Goddess, as before; Glasses, £330, Cutler and Gross, as before Right Dress, £1,880, Fendi, 141 New Bond Street, W1S; Tulle skirt, £195, DKNY, 27 Old Bond Street, W1S; Diamond hoop earrings, POA, Noa Fine Jewellery, noafinejewellery.com; Circular diamond ring, £6,250, Noor Fares, Dover Street Market, 17-18 Dover Street, W1S

HAIR & MAKE-UP Elliot Bssila @ Terri Manduca using Aveda; Katie Pettigrew using YSL Beauty PHOTOGRAPHER’S ASSISTANT Kiti Swannell STYLIST’S ASSISTANT Gemma Carey MODEL Grace @ Elite Shot on location at ME London, 336-337 The Strand WC2R, melia.com

Left to right: Metallic jacquard boots, £410, Dries Van Noten, mytheresa.com; Glitter ankle boots, £775, Maison Margiela, mytheresa.com; The Lunch Bag large perforated leather clutch, £680, Proenza Schouler, net-a-porter.com; Trunk mini metallic leather shoulder bag, £1,030, Marni, net-a-porter.com; Navy blue floral jacquard ankle boot, £870, Dior, 31 Sloane Street, SW1, dior.com; XL crinkle silver-plated cuff, £1,070, Jennifer Fisher, net-a-porter.com

Daisy Chain ď&#x192;ľ Photography Ian Walsh

stylist Vanissa Antonious

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interview

S tyle

Bags of

As contemporary accessories designer Jérôme Dreyfuss arrives in Berkeley Square, Marianne Dick meets the man behind the brand that’s both heart-warmingly fun and effortlessly cool 

Jérôme Dreyfuss A/W15 campaign

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t stands to reason that Jérôme Dreyfuss is a believer in love at first sight. When it came to choosing the location for the first London store to house his eponymous handbag and accessories brand it was very much a case of the designer’s heart ruling his head. You’d be forgiven for thinking this expansion from Paris to Berkeley Square was down to his wife, style queen Isabel Marant, whose boutique is found just a few doors down on Bruton Street. But Dreyfuss discovered much of the city through the window of a black cab, which is how he came across the Zenith Bank on the corner of Bruton Street, the building that recently became chez Jérôme. “I passed by that bank and I thought, ‘Oh my, I wish I could have my store there’, but it was a bank so it was impossible… but, generally, when I want something I know how

to get it,” Dreyfuss chuckles, although I sense that on this occasion he isn’t entirely joking. “I thought it was a really beautiful location to have a shop. It was later that I discovered it was 100m away from my wife’s store. We have lived together for almost 20 years now, it’s normal that we like the same places and the same things,” he remarks of the romantic coincidence that means he is within walking distance of Marant’s only British standalone boutique. Geography aside, this is not the first time the couple have drawn parallels in their profession: their collections are often regarded as complementary, with a shared laidback, design-focused appeal. In the early years of his career Dreyfuss was an assistant at John Galliano before he went on to launch his debut collection, Couture à Porter, which earned him numerous awards and crowned him

“I love my job. I love being in my factory, doing things, sewing the leathers, cutting them, that’s my job”

Above: An impression of the store © Jérôme Dreyfuss Opposite, clockwise from left: The new store © Polly Braden; Jérôme Dreyfuss A/W15 campaign; the exterior of the store © Polly Braden; Eliot bag, Paco bag, Popochel bag; Gino bag All Jérôme Dreyfuss, 20/22 Berkeley Square, W1J, jerome-dreyfuss.com

interview

the new ‘enfant terrible of French fashion’ at the tender age of 23. A year after that he was designing costumes for Michael Jackson. Now, he has achieved cult status with his chic, understated handbags, which are practically the antithesis to the flamboyant design influences that helped create him. Handbags were not the initial game plan. The idea came about after an evening with Marant and her friends when the topic of conversation turned to the lack of beautiful and practical bags. This compelled Dreyfuss to get back to the drawing board – an incident he later recalls as something of “a joke”, although I’m not sure whether that’s just modesty talking. Twelve years on, he has also entered the arena of men’s accessories and has a total of eight boutiques around the world. What really sets his designs apart is the charming and thoughtful details, such as detachable pockets and miniature torches, which come in rather handy when fumbling around in the dark for your wallet or lipstick. Dreyfuss likens his approach to design to that of an architect, who caters to the various needs of their clients and their ever-evolving arsenal of modern commodities. “I love my job. I love being in my factory, doing things, sewing the leathers, cutting them, that’s my job,” he states simply. His candour and involvement in shaping every aspect of the brand is apparent in the new Berkeley Square store. Designed by Dreyfuss and Franklin Azzi, it is inspired by nature and brutalism, featuring concrete and wood with finishing touches that will change with the seasons.

Now situated within a glittering fold of stores that includes the likes of Gucci, Hermès and Chanel, the utilitarian values of the house of Jérôme Dreyfuss seem a world away from his former ‘enfant terrible’ label and the haute couture of Galliano, but remnants of the rebel still live on in his attitude. “People are playing a rule, but they are not themselves,” he proclaims, dismissing anything labelled an ‘It’ bag. There’s something very refreshing about Dreyfuss, the man and the maison: from the amiable male names he gives his bags (The Mario, The Raymond or The Gary, anyone?), to the eccentric website that explains each item’s personality, like a lonely hearts advert. “I’m always saying we are not saving the world, we are just making clothes, we are just trying to give pleasure to the people,” he explains. When I ask him what first drew him to fashion design, Dreyfuss recalls the philosophy of French singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg. “When Serge was talking about his music, he was always saying that he played music to seduce women. You need to have a point to reach, and for me, that’s a good point!” He may not be saving the world with his designs, but he does intend to seduce it – and the object of his affection right now is here in London. Jérôme Dreyfuss 20/22 Berkeley Square, W1J jerome-dreyfuss.com

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Beauty news By Ellen Millard

Let it glow Good news: the ‘no makeup’ make-up trend is here to stay this year. Those looking to achieve the au naturel look without compromising on coverage should try Chanel’s new Healthy Glow foundation, a liquid form of the brand’s Healthy Glow Sheer Powder. The light texture glides onto the skin easily, providing full coverage and SPF 25 without suffocating the skin. No brush required, simply apply using your fingertips. £36, chanel.com

Opale fruits Precious stones are the inspiration behind YSL Beauté’s new collection, for which two limited edition palettes have been created. Gypsy Opale combines four pastel shades to add light to the face, while Indie Jaspe features green, gold and silver eyeshadows. For the cheeks, the brand’s new fusion ink blush – available in four shades – will give you a rosy glow that will last up to 12 hours. From £25 for the YSL Beauté Fusion Ink Blush yslbeauty.co.uk

Primer time

A stroke of brilliance Those who have to ditch their lipstick for lip balm when winter rolls around will be pleased to hear of the new Clarins Joli Rouge Brilliant range. The collection offers the same pop of colour as its sister lipstick Joli Rouge, but with a new moisture-enriched formula made from organic marsh samphire extract and mango oil that will protect your lips from the harsh weather. Choose from 12 new glossy shades, including raspberry, coral tulip and fuchsia. £20 each, clarins.com

EDITOR'S PICK

Dior’s latest range, Diorskin Forever, aims to give women a flawless complexion that will last all day, no matter what the conditions. The first step to perfection is the Diorskin Forever and Ever Wear Primer, the ultimate base that reduces the appearance of pores and imperfections. For the best results layer under foundation to create a matte look. From a selection, dior.com

bag

beauty

In the Our pick of the latest must-have handbag essentials

1. Charlotte Tilbury swears by her new Magic

Night Cream, claiming that her skin looks younger now than it did five years ago. With eight deageing ingredients, the cream plumps, smooths and tightens the skin, using stem cells to rejuvenate your complexion overnight. £100, charlottetilbury.co.uk

2. Spray paint is no longer reserved for graffiti

artists. Now manicurists across the country are whipping out cans to decorate their digits thanks to Nails Inc. The brand’s Paint Can – currently available in shades Hoxton Market (hot pink) and Shoreditch Lane (silver) – coats nails in seconds, and doesn’t require any drying time. £10, nailsinc.com

3. Let Jo Malone transport you to the Tuscan hillsides this January with its new fragrance, Orris and Sandalwood. With a top note of violet, this captivating scent is the perfect balance between a floral and woody perfume. £105, jomalone.co.uk 4. Matte lips are all the rage at MAC, which has just launched a collection of Retro Matte lipsticks in 15 shades. Colours range from peachy nudes (Back In Vogue) and light pink (Divine-Divine) to dark reds (Dance With Me) and an intense violet shade not for the faint hearted (Recollection). £21, maccosmetics.co.uk 5. Christian Louboutin has gone tropical for the New Year with a new collection of nail lacquers called Hawaii Kawai. Fight off January blues with bright shades of turquoise, red, coral, orange and fuchsia, all available to buy together in a gift set complete with a Hawaiian-inspired print. £65 each, christianlouboutin.com 6. This month Bulgari pays homage to the jade stone with a trio of scents, La Gemme Imperiali. All three fragrances are inspired by the magnolia flower, with Splendia (pictured right) offering complementary notes of narcissus absolute and oak moss. £231 for 100ml, available at Harrods 7. Combining the benefits of a BB cream with blur technology, La Roche-Posay’s new Effaclar BB Blur reduces the appearance of redness, acne scarring and enlarged pores. Providing medium coverage, the lightweight formula absorbs oil and smooths the skin’s texture, creating a naturally flawless look. £16.50, escentual.com 8. Italian fashion house Missoni has ventured into

the world of beauty with its debut eponymous fragrance. Jasmine is blended with wood and tonka bean, resulting in a fresh, feminine scent. From £42 for 30ml, available exclusively at Harrods

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BESPOKE HANDMADE FURNITURE www.oficinainglesa.com London Showroom

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Floor fillers Minimalists look away now. Home-grown designer Paul Smith is celebrating 15 years of creative collaboration with The Rug Company by designing a new collection of feature floor coverings and there’s not a magnolia-toned fibre in sight. The man behind one of fashion’s most famous stripes – second only to the Breton – has lent his flair for print to hand-knotted runners, rugs and cushions adorned with vibrant patterns. Take your pick from pastel geometric shapes, whirlwinds of arrows or the designer’s signature multi-coloured stripes. Split Bright by Paul Smith for The Rug Company, hand knotted Tibetan wool from £880 a square metre therugcompany.com

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Interiors news By Amelia Mayes

The new hue Whether you’re a neutral devotee or a lover of bright colours, you can find the perfect shade to match with Farrow & Ball’s new collection. To celebrate its 70th birthday, the quintessential British brand is launching nine new colour shades early this year, encompassing soft neutrals and pastels and more vibrant, rich tones. The new colour palette completes the extensive Farrow & Ball range of 132 shades, so you can take your pick from Drop Cloth, Salon Drab, Worsted, Shadow White and more. From £39.50, farrow-ball.com

Let there be light Bring the great outdoors into your lounge with artisan Jeremy Cole’s flora-inspired lights. Based in New Zealand, Cole’s collection is influenced by his surrounding environment and the timeless yet evolving natural beauty of the landscape. Brands like Bulgari, Harry Winston and Franck Muller are all fans of Cole’s contemporary creativity and expert craftsmanship, so take the lead from the fashion forward and shop for freestanding lamps or wall lights that will light up any room. From £845, jeremycole.net

Tea for two No one appreciates tea quite like the British and now thanks to fragrance brand T London you can even enjoy it in your home perfume. Inspired by the gardens and hills of the Himalayas where tea leaves grow, T London’s latest collection combines the fresh, crisp scents of lemon and orange peel oil with the rich spicy aroma of nutmeg and black tea. As well as releasing an exotic aroma, the ingredients have a variety of health benefits and encourage relaxation by reviving the senses and improving concentration. From £20, t-london.com

interiors

Dream weaver “The painterly effects on my latest rug designs are inspired by an artist’s abstract brushstrokes arranged across a canvas. Softer hues create a sense of calm elegance while contrasting colours can be employed for more dramatic effect,” says bespoke rug designer Jennifer Manners. Her boutique features handcrafted, made-to-order rugs, including everything from woven flat weaves to Tibetan knotted floor coverings and hand-tufted carpets, all worked by hand into eye-catchingly colourful, geometric designs.

Fit for a king

From £250 jennifermanners.co.uk

A bed of roses There’s nothing better than the smell of fresh bed linen, except perhaps a pillow spritzed with Frederic Malle’s coveted scents. The fragrance house recently released its first ever perfume for bed, Dans Mon Lit, with essential rose water and a hint of musk to leave your sheets with that fresh and newly washed aroma. As an added bonus, new scientific research suggests that sleeping in a floral-scented environment helps keep nightmares at bay, so you really can enjoy sweet dreams. From £70, 14 Burlington Arcade W1J, fredericmalle.com

Swanky storage Famous for his quirky style, Jonathan Adler has designed a new storage range to make tidying a treat. Using glossy lacquer and bold orange and smooth oak, this new collection incorporates exotic and lively designs inspired by the Danish modern movement. The range joins Adler’s impressive collection of homewares, featuring all sorts of accessories to add a statement finishing touch to any room. From £2,450, uk.jonathanadler.com lu x u r y l o n d o n .c o.u k

Roberto Cavalli is bringing his couture fashion flair to furniture. In partnership with Kings of Chelsea, Cavalli’s latest home interiors winter range incorporates his distinctive style and uncompromising dedication to luxury products of the highest quality. The two new collections – Essential and Iconic – encompass deep metallic colours, plush leather and bold animal prints. From an armchair with metal snake sides to a wire side table (pictured below), expect the unexpected. From £3,025, kofc.co.uk

EDITOR'S PICK

Bottoms up Give your nightcap a classy upgrade with Biarritz’s new crystal glassware collection. At the end of a long working day, relax with your favourite red in this beautifully designed wine goblet. Handcrafted by Portuguese artisans, the exquisite glass is made using fine crystals, giving the glass a high shine. Designed to be the perfectly balanced weight when held, the glassware will make an attractive addition to your dinner table. £50, luxdeco.com Vantage | 57

W orki n g Nine to

Five

Portraits on this page and overleaf ÂŠ Peer Lindgreen, courtesy of Tom Dixon

INTERview

The new Interchange workspace in Camden © Alice Whitby

Break-out zones, fridges stocked with beer, bean bags – when it comes to office design, plain open plan just doesn’t cut it any longer. Ahead of the launch of Interchange, a new co-office space in Camden, Lauren Romano talks to its designer Tom Dixon about his vision for creating a fun, functional, yet grown-up space for the capital’s start-ups 

ong gone are the days of the lone freelancer. The stories of entrepreneurs launching .com websites from their bedrooms – or writers setting up shop in cafés with free WiFi are becoming few and far between. These days small businesses are more likely to desk share with other creatives. Many of us want greater flexibility when it comes to our working hours, but we still crave company and good coffee, as designer Tom Dixon, OBE has discovered. Dixon has hardly followed the typical job path himself. I imagine it wouldn’t be too much of a hardship to work a nine to five at his HQ – a striking industrial space on the banks of the Grand Union Canal in Ladbroke Grove. But Dixon isn’t really a

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stay-behind-the-desk sort. His career highlights include appearing on Top of the Pops, having his S-Chair included in the permanent collection at New York’s Museum of Modern Art and a stint as the creative director of Habitat. Since establishing his eponymous brand in 2002, Dixon has expanded his design aspirations from lighting, furniture and home accessories to several high-profile projects. His team were responsible for the restaurant at The Royal Academy, Jamie Oliver’s Barbecoa, Shoreditch House and the Thames-side Mondrian Sea Containers. And now the designer has set his sights on a co-working office space called Interchange in Camden Market. Here he reflects on how to create the best working environment possible…

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Britishness in design is still a tough quality to describe. More honest, a bit more engineered, Mondrian Hotel bathroom, © Peer Lindgreen, courtesy of Tom Dixon

I have no design training. I never planned to be a designer. I would have been happy as a chef, or a painter, or a musician again; perhaps even an explorer or a museum curator. I was a late developer. I started making objects when I was a musician as I had lots of hours free during the day. After trying art college for six months, I broke a leg in a motorcycle accident and gave up education in favour of a career as a bass guitarist in a disco band. After another fortuitous motorcycle accident that meant I was unable to join the band on tour, I discovered welding, and driven by my enthusiasm for making functional forms in metal, I began a series of radical experiments in shape and material.

I’ve tried every type of design, from making things with my own hands to collaborating with big companies, as well as being creative director of Habitat. Fourteen years ago I started my company under my own name; we’re engaged in interior design and development with a global sourcing network, which means things are now made and sold to 68 countries.

I still work with a lot of metal in my designs. Copper gives a richer, softer and more feminine look, which works well in sophisticated environments. My favourite project is always the next one I am working on or the one that I have not finished yet. When a project is over, I don't think about it – otherwise I want to make it better. Harrods Café © Peer Lindgreen, courtesy of Tom Dixon

slightly less conceptual, a touch more rugged than the other nationalities, whatever it is, we think that there is a re-emergence of it, a new confidence and depth to it that is increasingly recognised worldwide.

Interchange is not my first working environment as such, but the first that is purpose built. A couple of years ago we did the interiors for the McCann Erickson advertising agency in New York, a whole floor of a skyscraper on Third Avenue. It was really about the evolution of the office. Traditionally directors get the corner, with new arrivals in the middle or by the stairs. America’s led the revolution in more flexible working environments, mainly with Google and other super-innovative places, which are basically playgrounds with bean bags and jars of M&Ms in the kitchen. I was tasked with removing formality without descending into a children’s environment, and that gave us a taste for working spaces.

Shoreditch House was where I really learnt about the evolution of work. Initially it was a members’ club with WiFi, and very quickly it turned into a much more affordable office for people with much better coffee. The result was that more people were buying memberships to work in a club environment rather than a traditional office.

“Making spaces that work effectively from a social perspective is very good for productivity”

The tools for the trade have changed; we no longer need filing cabinets or fixed phone lines and this has completely revolutionised the way we work. Lots of people presumed

that freelancers would have home offices by now, but we do need to congregate, we still need to look each other in the eye, and so making spaces that work effectively from a social perspective is very good for productivity.

Interchange is a very glassy building, which is fortunate when there’s a lovely sunset as it sets off the lamps rather well. What’s amazing is the connection with Camden, and the way you feel elevated. The architecture helped us out, but with so much glass and concrete it needed a bit more

INTERview

Dixon’s trademark lighting at Interchange © Alice Whitby

texture and softness. Lamps give the space a more organic feel and make it warmer. They were designed on a laptop and made in Luton. We wanted to create unique assets for the project, but we only had three months, which seemed implausible, although I like the adrenaline that comes with a tight deadline.

“In London the only way we’re going to survive is by sharing spaces”

I used to live in Camden and it’s one of the few parts of London that I think will both resist and embrace change. Camden Market

can absorb many different models – the big buzzword in tech is sharing economy – and what I’ve learnt is that in London the only way we’re going to survive is by sharing spaces a bit more. Today, people are more flexible and smarter about how they use spaces.

Everything that I haven’t made yet is exciting to me. I would love to make new buildings

Desk space at Interchange © Alice Whitby

and bridges and cars. I would love to be involved in things that have not had a lot of design input yet. My dream project is the unexpected. I’d like to do urban planning: watching the goods trains and canal boats go by is fascinating, just thinking about the extra things this city can do.

My advice to entrepreneurs starting out is to remember that your social life is nearly as important as your work life. Use this opportunity to fiercely network in the way hubs like Interchange are intended for. And let’s encourage more drinking. Interchange, Stables Market, Chalk Farm Road NW1, interchange.io; tomdixon.net

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CAPE COD The new bathroom series by Philippe Starck. info@uk.duravit.com www.duravit.co.uk

Cameo role Liberty Londonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cameo print, first created by the department store in 1933, has been revamped and recoloured for an exclusive collaboration with Nike. The sports brandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s signature Air Max Thea, Air Force 1 Hi and Roshe One trainers have been decked out in the floral print and teamed with navy, pink and khaki accents. Limited edition apparel in the form of tapered jersey pants, a cotton T-shirt and a sweater are also available in the stylish print, so you can wear it from head to toe. From a selection, nike.com

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HEALTH

Health & fitness news By Ellen Millard

Runners need When it comes to designing fitness gear we imagine an interest in exercise helps, so it’s good news that BoomBoom Athletica founder Ann Johannson is an ultra-marathon runner. Combining her interest in style and her love of fitness, Johannson has designed a sleek collection of black workout gear that not only flatters the figure but allows you to move freely while exercising. What’s more, the range is resistant to sun cream and provides high levels of UV protection, so you can exercise all year round. boomboomathletica.com

Snow way Whether you’re a whizz on the slopes or better suited to après-ski, Fendi’s quirky range of skiwear will keep you warm and stylish both on- and off-piste. Make a statement with the label’s monster jacket, complete with yellow eyes and fluffy fuchsia eyebrows, or for those after a more minimalist approach to winter sports attire, the navy and grey two-tone set is equally chic. From £425, available at Harrods, harrods.com

The new you Get your skates on

EDITOR'S PICK

We might not know how to perform a Goofy-Foot, a McTwist or a Laser Flip trick like pro-skater Tony Hawk, but we’re willing to put our (amateur) skills to the test with Emilio Pucci’s new range of skateboards. Pick up the Street Shape version – available in either Dolce Vita Aldente or Dolce Vita Limoni prints – on your way to the skate park, created specifically with tricks in mind; or nab the Cruiser Shape, a smaller model designed for everyday use. £330, emiliopucci.com

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Many a new year has passed with a pledge to turn over a new leaf, but two weeks in and the phrase ‘new year, new you’ has usually been forgotten. Not so for Belsize Health, however, which has already put the mantra into practice with a hefty redesign. A new reformer Pilates studio is ready to welcome those guilty of tucking into one too many mince pies, while the beauty department has new treatments like the Heaven’s Organic Bee Sting Facial to help you see the new year in in the most relaxed (albeit painful sounding) way possible. 16 Englands Lane, NW3 belsizehealth.co.uk Vantage | 65

health

New Balance Lauren Romano jumps on the healthy eating bandwagon, with a protein kick courtesy of The Detox Kitchen

etox is almost a dirty word. As Nigella Lawson proclaimed when interviewed by the BBC: “I think behind the notion of ‘clean eating’ is an implication that any other form of eating is dirty or shameful.” The domestic goddess explained she wouldn’t want to eat chia seed pudding every day any more than she would eggs benedict. I agree. I’ve never really understood the urge that compels people to queue for the crosstrainer clutching their cartons of coconut water on 1 January. Shedding the Christmas pounds is all well and good, but the last thing I want to be doing at the most miserable time of the year is shelling my way through a box of edamame beans after an hour-long spin class. Thankfully, I’ve pre-empted the January blues this year by opting to get on the straight and narrow before Christmas. I couldn’t help feeling smug dipping cucumber batons into a pot of beetroot hummus and sailing my way through my usual 3pm slump, while my colleagues decided whether it was acceptable to open the next three days of their advent calendars early. My Duracell battery-style reboot comes courtesy of The Detox Kitchen. As well as its new flagship deli (complete with a fully-equipped fitness studio) that opens in Fitzrovia this month, The Detox Kitchen offers a range of cleansing and energising meals delivered to your door. Elle Macpherson, Gwyneth Paltrow and Sophie Dahl are all fans, so it must be good, I surmise as I peruse the options, which are all free from wheat, dairy and refined sugar. Keen for a kick to get me through December’s endless festivities I opt for the protein package – 1,500 calories worth of whole grains, legumes, nuts,

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seeds and lean protein delivered to my door every morning. Each food parcel contains breakfast, a fresh juice, a nut pot, lunch, a snack, dinner and a pudding, plus a shot of the day, a cleansing Pukka tea and some BioCare Acidophilus supplements packed full of probiotic bacteria. Luckily the offerings aren’t Gillian McKeith-style meagre, although I’m not a fan of everything. The unpalatable wheatgrass shot makes me heave and I have to shovel down several spoons of porridge oats with fruit compote before I can get rid of the dirty pond water taste in my mouth. And my ambivalent relationship with celery is put to the test daily thanks to the juices. The bitter stalks are whizzed up with everything from carrot, ginger and apple to beetroot and lime – cue lots of grimacing from me. But the plus points outweigh the bad. Aside from now being a convert to the virtues of rice milk, I discover I do actually like quinoa (when it’s combined with roasted aubergine, onion and tomato sauce). The quality of the produce shines through in the dinner dishes: the king prawn and Thai green curry is deliciously fresh, while the grilled chicken with winter vegetables and salsa verde is another wholesome highlight. By the end of the program I’m not exactly bouncing off the walls, but I do feel much more virtuous, far less sluggish and my jeans aren’t quite so tight. And to reward myself, there’s a tin of Quality Street with my name on it. I’ll see you in the gym queue. Protein packages from £34 a day, detoxkitchen.co.uk; The Detox Kitchen opens on 4 January, Fitzroy Place 10 Mortimer Street, W1T

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Food

for

Thought

From daily green juices to cheat day lychee martinis, Sarah Statman considers the two extremes of ‘foodstagramming’ 

only need to glance at my own Instagram page to see that I’m guilty of it. Scrolling through my images, aside from an obvious obsession with the Valencia filter, one thing really stands out. Like most people these days, snapshots of food feature heavily in my photo feed. Look a little more carefully though and another thing is glaringly obvious: the food featured in said posts ranges rather drastically from angelically clean and green, to sinfully sugar-laden. Every gloriously righteous ‘health-spo’ photo is followed by a line-

up of lychee martinis or a giant ‘cheat day’ bowl of tiramisu. I have become a tale of two extremes. Social media is a great tool for flagging up certain behavioural patterns – where else do we document our daily lives for all to see and scrutinise? So it’s no surprise that looking through other people’s Twitter feeds and Instagram pages, I see plenty of fellow sufferers who follow two wildly opposing eating patterns, on a regular basis, and are keen to let everyone know about it. When I bring up the notion with friends, I’m inundated with confessions

health

Breakfast brioche bun from Patisserie Made Simple by Edd Kimber © Laura Edwards

From Patisserie Made Simple by Edd Kimber © Laura Edwards

of similarly Jekyll-and-Hyde style ‘eating-and-posting’. Is this simply the viral evidence of a balanced lifestyle – iron willpower at times and a little bit naughty at others? Or does it point towards a new phenomenon? Has a decade of food porn – started by food bloggers, and taken to a whole new level in the age of social media – caused us to become more extreme in the way we choose to eat and share it with the world? It’s very easy to pinpoint the days when I post my own ‘good’ food pictures and ‘naughty’ food posts. From Monday to Thursday, my Instagram feed features a predictable surge of green smoothie snapshots and close-ups of organic chia pudding. Invariably these posts take place at 9am, post-workout (to boost the smug-factor) and are accompanied by a barrage of hash-tags, alluding to every health fad going (it’s a fact that adding #paleo to your photo will gain you triple the amount of likes). Unsurprisingly, from Friday onwards, a shift in pattern takes place. Jumping straight out of the health camp I dive headfirst into the weekend, via a stream of images portraying post-work Prosecco and cheeseburgers that couldn’t be less #dairyfree #gluten-free or #vegan if they tried. That cup scribbled with permanent marker is no longer a Barry’s Bootcamp ‘Simply PB’ shake, it’s a red Starbucks number, pumped full of caffeine and vanilla-flavoured E-numbers. The ubiquitous avocado-on-toast, often dubbed ‘the most annoying photo on Instagram,’ sits somewhere in the middle ground (full of nutrients, but rather carby), also known as Saturday brunch. The most popular insta-food sharers generally fall in to two distinct camps. There’s the clean-eating, juice-cleanse brigade, powered by the likes of

Warm winter salad, from Deliciously Ella by Ella Woodward © Clare Winfield

The ubiquitous avocado-on-toast, often dubbed ‘the most annoying photo on Instagram’

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HEALTH Chocolate souffle tarts with salted caramel, from Patisserie Made Simple by Edd Kimber © Laura Edwards

Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop blog, and nutritionists and lifestyle bloggers such as Ella Woodward of @deliciouslyella fame, whose account of her own inspirational plant-based diet has amassed her more than 644,000 followers. Over on the more devil-maycare side, sit gloriously indulgent Instagrammers such as @theboywhobakes, sharing images of rainbowlayered cakes. The two groups can be easily divided in to those who eat to live and the rest who live to eat. It’s undeniable that the world of media – social and otherwise – has a focus on food that’s more extreme than ever before. The general consensus of psychologists is that posting endless images of what we are eating can indicate a problematic relationship with food: we post photos of what is important to us, and ‘foodstagramming’ can indicate an unhealthy preoccupation with what’s on our plates, one that can lead to weight gain and eating disorders. Our food photos say a lot more about us than what we like for breakfast. “Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are” said the French lawyer Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin. Documenting what we eat tells our friends and followers about our habits, our personality and our lifestyle. We are all guilty of using social media to self-publicise our lives, be it consciously or not. By posting evidence of our two extreme eating behaviours we are telling the world: ‘Look! I’m normal! Yes I eat courgetti, but I also eat spaghetti carbonara when the mood takes me!’ There has been a notable backlash on social media recently, with some well-known Instagrammers

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claiming the photo-sharing site causes us to sugar-coat our lives and only show off the glossy, filtered version, which in turn can give people – particularly young and impressionable teens – unrealistic expectations of life. Most recently, the prolific blogger and avid Instagrammer formerly known as The Blonde Vegan spoke of the downsides of leading a highly restrictive diet, but even more so of the dangers of documenting it at every opportunity. She admits that constantly photographing her food and posting it on social media forced her to focus on food in a way that became an unhealthy obsession. She took the decision to embrace a less restrictive lifestyle, reintroducing previously offlimits refined food in to her life, and admits that both her physical and mental health improved. Frighteningly, it also lost her 1,000 of her Instagram followers. Am I going to change my own ways, having reflected on what my extreme food posting could say about me? Probably not. Mid-way through writing this feature I stopped to post a photo of my virtuous 11am snack of Coyo and almond butter (it’s Tuesday), and felt smug as the ‘likes’ rolled in. Let’s face it: we all want to be that yoga-honed green-juice-toting raw foodie. Sadly however, the truth is that come 5pm on Friday we feel we’ve earned that glass (oh go on then, bottle) of pinot noir. I might be a tale of two extremes – like so many of my Instagram peers – but let’s face it, some days that almond matcha latte tastes so much better with a chocolate brownie on the side – even if it is a #gluten-free one.

If you need a healthy kick or a sugar hit try Deliciously Ella by Ella Woodward, Yellow Kite, £20 Patisserie Made Simple by Edd Kimber, Kyle Books, £19.99

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H A M P S T E A D

M A Y F A I R

T H E

C I T Y

06/07/2015 10:43

Family news By Amelia Mayes

Anchors aweigh Bold prints and primary colours make up the new S/S16 range from Petit Bateau. Featuring cotton jumpers, T-shirts and dresses adorned with polka dots, stripes, anchors and stars, the collection has a nautical theme to attract little sailors or pirates-to-be. Focusing on a bright primary colour palette of red, yellow and blue, the collection is perfect for mix and match essentials. From £8, petit-bateau.co.uk

Story tellers Celebrating the release of new illustrated children’s book Eddie Meer and Barter in the Bush, designer brand Barker & Barker has launched a kids’ range to complement the fantasy tale. Eddie Meer and his gang of meerkats are captured in a range of cushions and decorative posters, with beautiful illustrations by Olivia Watkins. From £8 barkerandbarker.co.uk

From tusk til dawn The ‘bring your pet to school’ days may be few and far between, but thanks to Oilily’s charming walrus rucksack you can have a constant animal companion. With side flippers, a furry mouth and two dangling fish, the bag is interactive as well as practical. Featuring one zipped and two open pockets, the multi-functional rucksack has handy adjustable straps, a top handle, and a Velcro flap for versatile style. £65, kidscavern.co.uk

FAMILY

Paws off Karl Lagerfeld is back, and this time he’s not alone. The designer with his fingers in too many pies to count has teamed up with MeliJoe to launch a debut S/S16 collection for children and babies. The collection features fun, edgy prints, including depictions of Lagerfeld’s feline muse Choupette, who crops up in a variety of designs. As well as fingerless gloves and ballerina pumps, the cat ears will top must-have accessories lists for the warmer months ahead. From £19, melijoe.com

We all know that children’s bedrooms can be a haven of chaos. Keen to bring style to even the most cluttered of areas, design house Hibou Home has launched a new Raindrop wallpaper collection to give tiny people some serenity. By avoiding twee and cluttered prints, the wall coverings aim to calm your tot’s place of play, and the collection of silver, gold, pink and blue designs, with shimmering hints of metallic, can create a charming feature wall in any bedroom or bathroom.

Soul sisters

£70 per roll, Liberty, Regent Street, W1B hibouhome.com

Elfie’s S/S16 collection is inspired by the childhood memories of its two founding siblings. The new range provides classic British style with a fairytale twist. With a paisley colour palette, the pastel prints and gingham designs reference summer holidays in the Canary Islands. In a more mythic vein, the hand-drawn unicorn motif is inspired by the 80s film, The Last Unicorn.

Easy dreamer

From a selection elfielondon.com

EDITOR'S PICK

Roll up

Sweet feet Shoe designer Mini Melissa has teamed up with Vivienne Westwood to create the ultimate jelly shoe. The Orb style is available in three colours and features metallic detailing above the classic peep toe and an easy Velcro fastening for quick party feet. Smelly soles will be a thing of the past with these sweetly scented pumps and the hidden heel and textured materials used are designed to give comfort and support to little feet.

Getting a good night’s sleep is one of life’s many challenges, but Silver Cross Baby’s new cotton bedding range ensures little ones (and parents) can drift off with ease. The To The Moon and Back collection of luxury sleep suits and super-soft padded and quilted bedding in neutral white and grey tones will help keep even the most reluctant of sleepers snug as they drift off. From £18.99, silvercrossbaby.com

From £72, childrensalon.com

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Shaw thing The fad dieters are out in force this month, but if you can’t stomach four weeks of spirulina-infused juice, no matter how many turkey and stuffing sandwiches you’ve scoffed, then take a leaf out of health coach Madeleine Shaw’s book (incidentally it’s called Get The Glow). Shaw is Chef Of The Season at Harrods and will be developing a range of nutritious detox dishes designed to help revive and recharge your body. A range of light lunches, dinners and desserts will be available to buy exclusively from the Harrods Food Hall. Download Shaw’s upcoming Glow Guides app to help keep you on the straight and narrow and you’ll be a green, lean, fully-functioning machine in no time at all. The range will be available from 4 January until end of February at Harrods

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©David Loftus

Grand scale Dimension wise, restaurants seem to come in one of two extremes: 20 covers or 200. Either you end up poking your neighbour with your chopsticks, jostling for enough space on the communal bench to tackle your sticky pork belly bun, or you’ll get lost trying to navigate your way past row upon row of leather booths en route to the bathroom. Bellanger, the latest venture from the brasserie masterminds Corbin & King, sizes up like the latter. The team has gone to town with the décor – the wood panelling, antique chandeliers, ornate plaster work and woven blue banquettes lend a regal feel, although the menu will be a relaxed, all-day affair, including authentic Alsatian dishes such as Choucroute, a meaty stew of sauerkraut with sausages. 9 Islington Green, N1, bellanger.co.uk

Food & drink news By Lauren Romano ©John Carey

EDITOR'S PICK

The right note St John’s Wood favourite Megan’s is offering something new for the weekend this winter. Returning after Christmas from the second week of January, the restaurant will be hosting live music on Friday and Saturday evenings. The line-up is set to include singers, pianists, guitarists and even a saxophonist to serenade you over your antipasti sharing board or chargrilled delights from the grill menu. Make ours a bavette steak with garlic parsley butter. 120 St John’s Wood High Street, NW8 megans.co.uk

Hopp to it The Sethi siblings responsible for Marylebone’s Trishna and Gymkhana in Mayfair have gone more low-key for their latest venture. Inspired by the roadside shacks of Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka, Hoppers has mutton rolls, duck roti and dosas on the menu. Make sure you leave some room for the namesake dish, a thin, bowl-shaped pancake made with fermented rice batter and coconut milk, served with a choice of meat, seafood and chutneys. There’s also rice and roast dishes including buffalo shank biryani to share, which beats a British roadside bacon butty or cone of chips any day. 49 Frith Street, W1D, hopperslondon.com

Shack for good Pop-ups are often like long-lost relatives – they turn up unannounced on your doorstep for a fleeting visit and end up staying for much longer. But unlike aunty Janet, Shackfuyu hasn’t outstayed its welcome. We weren’t quite ready to bid goodbye to the Bone Daddies spin off, so the news that it has secured a permanent venture means we’ll be enjoying Mylor shrimps with curry salt, Orkney scallop sashimi and the legendary kinako French toast with soft serve ice cream for hopefully a long time to come. 14a Old Compton Street, W1D bonedaddies.com/shackfuyu

food&drink

Restaurant review

You sexy thing Lauren Romano finally gets a table at the hottest opening of the year, Sexy Fish 

ne of the plus points of naming your restaurant Sexy Fish is that nobody’s going to forget it in a hurry, which is obviously what the branding team at Caprice Holdings thought. It might sound like a bad joke, but they’re having the last laugh now – the 190-cover restaurant is already giving the likes of Nuno Mendes’ gaff, the Chiltern Firehouse, a run for its money. “We’re fully booked until mid-November,” says the voice down the phone when I try to bag a table that same week. Even my friend’s boyfriend, who only dines where his Tastecard permits, knows all about Sexy Fish. Mid-November comes and goes and eventually I manage to get a table, but as I’m not Ronan Keating, Joan Collins, Rita Ora or any of the countless other famous faces that have been spotted tucking into delicacies from the raw bar under Frank Gehry’s shiny, life-sized crocodile, I have to run from Green Park after work to make my early doors reservation. But it’s worth the stitch. As its name suggests, subtle is not part of the Sexy Fish vocabularly, which becomes immediately apparent when I spot the waterfalls running in rivulets down the window panes all the way from the other end of the road. Inside, the huge, sumptuous space has been decked out with Damien Hirst mermaids and jazzy fish shaped ceiling lights. Downstairs there’s a private dining room with an enormous tropical fish aquarium. I’m figuring out how best to eat the edible sand from my Shipwrecked cocktail – a pineapple-infused Plymouth gin concoction that sits in a stoppered bottle in a pirate chest ©Sim Canetty-Clarke – when who I think is property tycoon Nick Candy, minus Holly Valance, sits down next to us. I eventually conclude it isn’t him, but the non-sighting keeps me buzzing all the way through my sandcastle, which I end up tackling with a straw. Once inside it doesn’t matter who you

©Paul Winch-Furness

Even my friend’s boyfriend, who only dines where his Tastecard permits, knows all about Sexy Fish

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are though. You’ll have the upmost attention of an army of staff who have choreographed a seamless routine. Distractions over, it’s time to consult the menu, which includes a raw bar and a range of robata dishes. The Sexy Fish sushi roll with salmon and yellowtail rolled in ribbons of cucumber is deliciously fresh, while the tempura prawns are plump and served with the most delicious dashi dipping broth. The Isle of Mull scallops with jalapeño sauce divide opinion, although neither of us could deny they left a kick. I polish off a crispy duck salad with pomegranate seeds, sesame and pomelo, followed by a succulent beef rib skewer smothered in wasabi crème fraîche. The must-try dish of the evening however is a faultless sesame seed encrusted sea bream with pickled kohlrabi and beetroot. Soy, caramel, malted milk and honeycomb ice creams served with a fish-tail wafer finish things off nicely before I head to the bar, for a Raja Gin Fizz perched next to a bronze mermaid bust. This place is so unashamedly OTT, it’s picking up the mantle where Justin left off: it’s bringing sexy back. Berkeley Square, W1 sexyfish.com

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Sugar, Spice and All Things Nice Actress-turned-chef Lisa Faulkner tells Lauren Romano about her recipe for happiness and why she won’t be detoxing 

s a binge of the food channels confirms, chefs are a motley crew. Flick through and you’ll be presented with the human pressure cookers (Gordon Ramsay), the eccentric professors (Heston Blumenthal), the Usain Bolts of the kitchen (I’m looking at you Jamie Oliver and your ‘15 Minute’ Meals) and those who make basting a ham with cola look so sexy (Nigella Lawson). Hot on their heels, an army of amateur cooks is joining the food royalty ranks. If you’re a celeb and you look half decent in an apron (Fearne Cotton, Millie Mackintosh) then releasing a cookbook is the thing to do. In the culinary no-man’s land sits Lisa Faulkner. Most will remember the actress from Celebrity MasterChef, which she won back in 2010. Since then there have been stints in professional kitchens, food programmes and yes – books. Three and counting to be precise. But having the seal of approval from Gregg Wallace and John Torode isn’t the meal ticket to a job that some might presume it to be. “I wouldn’t have pursued anything in food without having won MasterChef,”

All imagery features in Faulkner’s book Tea and Cake Photography by Chris Terry

Faulkner tells me, with a tone that suggests she still doesn’t quite believe her luck. “It was the most terrifying experience of my life, but I loved every minute of it. Well, actually I loved and hated it in equal measure because I got so nervous but at the same time I was just learning and learning and thinking to myself ‘you can do this – I want to keep doing this’.” True to her word, her trophy barely had time to collect dust before she leapt out of the proverbial frying pan and into the fire. Faulkner was determined to prove herself to the pros. On one of her first professional jobs at Smiths of Smithfield, she had to clean out the huge storage fridge before she got anywhere near a cooker. “Women are strong; when a woman wants to do something nothing stands in her way, so I don’t think it is harder for us to succeed in professional kitchens. You just have to get on with it,” she says. I wonder if Faulkner is the one calling the shots in her own kitchen. A few years after MasterChef, she found her way to judge John Torode’s heart, presumably through her cooking. She insists there

INTERVIEW

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Lisa Faulkner at the Heinz Chilli ‘Sauce Off’ event

isn’t any competition in the kitchen. They sound like a match made in culinary heaven – Torode has just published My Kind of Food: Recipes I Love to Cook at Home, which joins Faulkner’s third book Tea & Cake on their shelf. She’s slightly hesitant to talk about him, but he does crop up from time to time in conversation. “My favourite chef, apart from my boyfriend, obviously – it goes without saying that he’s pretty good…,” she trails off. “We cook together and we have a lovely time.” Faulkner’s eight-year old daughter Billie plays sous chef in the line-up. “She has no choice really!” she laughs. “I cook all sorts at home. Billie always wants a roast dinner, or mac and cheese. We tend to make tacos quite a lot.” Family plays a big part in Faulkner’s life. Her mother, who died of throat cancer when she was just 16, had a huge impact on her emotional relationship with food and among Faulkner’s books, Recipes from my Mother for my Daughter has a special place in her heart. “I actually feel closer to her when I’m cooking,” she admits. “I had all her recipes scattered in different books that she’d written them in and on scraps of paper and the back of envelopes and I just wanted to put them in one place, somewhere I could always see them.” Her latest book, Tea & Cake, published last year, was written with family in mind too. “I don’t really consider myself as a baker. I’m a cook and I make things that go in a cake tin to have with a cuppa. It’s not the stuff of a Great British Bake Off showstopper – those are just incredible. I was doing a food show at the weekend with the lovely Nadiya [Hussain, the last season’s winner] and she told me that her children always want to cook from Tea & Cake. ‘Oh my god I love you!’ I thought.” Food festivals and appearances take up a lot of Faulkner’s weekends. When I ring her she’s having some well-deserved time off at home in Barnet after judging the Heinz Chilli ‘Sauce Off’ at L’Atelier des Chefs the night before. Fifteen food journalists battled it out to create a standout dish to champion one of the five sauces in the range. Faulkner wastes no time in telling me she tucked into avocado, sourdough, eggs and a splash of Heinz Sriracha sauce for breakfast. “I love spicy food and Sriracha is perfect if you like a kick to your food. It’s

“I’ve been quite lucky, apart from that time on This Morning when they asked me to do Pancake Day and I flipped the pancake and it went into the gas”

not a horrible heat, it’s very tomatey,” she says in a tone that sounds too genuine to be a rehearsed plug. But even if it is, Faulkner has been well cast; she is the perfect Heinz pin-up. Like a can of Cream of Tomato soup on a cold day, I imagine she really is as warm and homely as she comes across over the phone in real life. The competition might not be in quite the same league as Celebrity MasterChef but I get the impression she’s enjoying how the tables have turned. “It was lovely for me as a cook to be able to share ideas and get excited about food. I always love talking about food!” she laughs. Appearances like this are also less

INTERVIEW

daunting than a live TV recording I imagine. “After a while you get used to doing it, so it’s weird when it’s not live and you have to keep stopping and starting. As for slip ups, I’ve been quite lucky, apart from that time on This Morning when they asked me to do Pancake Day and I flipped the pancake and it went into the gas. It was so embarrassing!” I suggest she adopt a mantra along the lines of: never work with children, animals or frying pans on live TV, but it’s clear she’s not about to give up on mixing her cooking and acting ambitions just yet. Faulkner fell into acting after her mum died. Her roles as Dr Victoria Merrick in Holby City and later appearances in Spooks made her a household name. But after three failed rounds of IVF, she put her career on hold to adopt daughter Billie with her ex-husband Chris Coghill. She agreed to appear on Celebrity MasterChef while she was contemplating what to do next. “The experience undoubtedly changed my life,” Faulkner reflects. Today she’s sitting writing cookbooks (she hints that a fourth is in the pipeline for later in the year) on her mum’s old kitchen table. Her home life sounds very contented, but when she gets a rare night off from cooking her and John head to Primeur in Canonbury. “It’s all Mediterranean small plates written up on the board and you can sit at the bar and drink a glass of lovely wine and just relax.” Will she be swapping the vino for a green juice detox this month? “I think we’ve all gone crazy. People forget that we are intelligent beings!” she exclaims. “We know we shouldn’t eat too much sugar, or too much red meat, but if you make your own food you know what goes in it. I don’t smoke, I don’t drink loads, I just want to have a bacon sandwich or a slice of lemon drizzle now and again. Besides, in cold, dark January the last thing I want to do is stop myself from having anything that might make me feel better.” Stick the kettle on, Faulkner’s having her cake and she plans to eat it too. Tea & Cake with Lisa Faulkner, published by Simon and Schuster, £20, is available now

 Lemon Drizzle Cake  “This is one of my sister Victoria’s failsafe cakes. As I write this I have just come off the phone after a long conversation with her about what she can make for dinner this week. We are constantly chatting about what to cook, what to wear and what to do with the children at the weekend – and a slice of this light lemony cake and a cup of tea (of course) is the perfect accompaniment to our constant nattering. She likes to cook but doesn’t love it, so anything she makes has to be easy and quick and something the whole family will enjoy. This ticks all the boxes!” INGREDIENTS (MAKES 1 LARGE LOAF) ◆ 125g (4½oz) butter, softened, plus extra for greasing ◆ 175g (6oz) caster sugar ◆ 175g (6oz) self-raising flour ◆ 4 tbsp milk ◆ 2 large eggs ◆ Zest and juice of 2 lemons ◆ 5–6 rounded tablespoons icing sugar Method ◆ Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F), gas mark 4. Grease a 900g (2lb) loaf tin with butter and line it with a strip of greaseproof paper along its length and up the short sides – leave some paper hanging over the edges so you can lift out the loaf easily once it is cooked. ◆ In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, then mix in the flour, milk, eggs and lemon zest. ◆ Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 30–40 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven but leave it in the tin. ◆ Heat the lemon juice in a small saucepan. Add the icing sugar and stir to dissolve. ◆ Using a skewer, make a few holes in the cake, then pour over the lemon juice mixture and leave to cool in the tin before turning out.

Imagery on this page and far left are featured in Faulkner’s book Tea & Cake Photography by Chris Terry

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the art of TRAVEL Terminal chic Off duty airport chic is a hard look to master, especially if you’ve been up since five in the morning measuring all the totes you own and discovering that none of them meet the hand luggage dimensions. Thankfully Heathrow’s Terminal 5 has become something of a luxury shopping destination. Joining the likes of Louis Vuitton, Prada, Burberry, Cartier and Rolex, Chanel opened its doors last month, and to celebrate Yasmin Le Bon has teamed up with Heathrow Airport to create A Journey in Style. The coffee table book (proceeds from which will go to Oxfam) celebrates the enduring relationship between flying and fashion and features snaps of everyone from Clint Eastwood and Jackie Kennedy to Twiggy. Many of the images have been shot by Dennis Stone, Heathrow’s resident photographer since 1946. A Journey in Style, £15, available at Heathrow Airport’s T5 Art Gallery or amazon.co.uk

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Travel news By Amelia Mayes

Mauritius

HOTSPOT

Say goodbye to stress and hello to excess Vitamin D with a visit to Mauritius With the thermometer hitting 25-27 degrees in January, it’s no surprise that Mauritius is a popular tropical escape from the gloomy British weather, but there’s more to the country than its white sands and sapphire seas teeming with exotic marine life. The volcanic island is the perfect retreat destination and the ideal place to kick-start your New Year’s resolutions. Give your fitness levels a boost by hiking through the beautiful terrain, taking in waterfalls and rainforests along the way, as well as botanical gardens and colonial plantation houses. The capital, Port Louis, is also worth a visit if you want to reconnect with a slightly faster pace of life and make the most of its lively mix of museums, shops and art exhibitions.

Why

The new and improved Shangri-La Le Touessrok Resort & Spa reopened last month after an extensive renovation. Set on a stunning stretch of beach, the hotel takes design cues from its unspoilt natural surroundings and mixes Mauritian influences with European glamour and Asian elegance. The new set-up is family friendly. If you want a break from the kids, drop them off at the popular T-Club while you slink off to the Chi spa or to enjoy one of the eight new dining concepts. For the more active adventurer, a range of water sports and island activities are on offer – if you can tear yourself away from the resort’s soft, sandy beach, that is.

stay

Rooms from £347 a night, shangri-la.com

tr avel

Director’s cut Often the best part of a holiday is the memories you take back with you. Trisara Phuket has taken memory-making to a new level with the introduction of its Director’s Den, a digital lounge based at the resort, designed to help you capture the magic of travelling. The den allows you to make high-quality videos, featuring your favourite songs and quotes to commemorate your trip, so you can keep your holiday memories alive long after your tan has faded. GoPro rental from £300, trisara.com

Under the sea To celebrate David Attenborough’s Great Barrier Reef, which airs on BBC1 this month, Hamilton Island has launched the Reefsleep experience. Guests can enjoy a night under the stars in a traditional ‘swag’, bobbing with the tides on a pontoon above Hardy Reef. You can learn all about the reef’s ecosystem from an expert guide by day and put your knowledge to the test with an afternoon of snorkelling. Nighttime scuba diving is also on offer for those who dare to take the plunge as the reef comes to life after dark. Reefsleep experience from £220; nightly rates at the Reef View Hotel on Hamilton Island from £191 a night hamiltonisland.com.au

Hit the slopes Skiing has been given a hipster makeover at Rooms Hotel Kazbegi, a 156-room glass and steel retreat in the Caucasus Mountains. Stylish yet almost industrial, the Design Hotel has a library and casino as well as a traditional restaurant, but it’s the new heli-skiing partnership that has everyone talking: skiers face a 20,000-metre descent on open slopes guided by Austrian specialists from January to March.

Breathe easy  SHORT HAUL 

Sixth sense Why practise your sun salutations at home when Six Senses Spa Marbella is launching a new winter yogic programme at Puente Romano? Featuring three new intensive programmes – Yoga, Yogic Detox and Yogic Sleep – you can learn how to improve breathing and focusing techniques, using physical movement to calm and strengthen your mind and body. The Andalusian scenery and winter sunshine will ensure total relaxation too. Namaste. From £655 for 7 nights puenteromano.com

 long HAUL 

Set sail Keen sailors can test their sea legs in style in New Zealand and Micronesia with the SENSES yacht. Chartered through Y.CO, it gives explorers the chance to delve into sunken volcano craters and see the incredible Nan Madol ruins. Discover tropical islands as you take part in an array of water sports and dip and dive past exotic marine and bird life on a jetski. The yacht includes a touch-and-go helipad and world-class dining, so all you need to do is dust off those binoculars, pack some sun lotion and get ready for an adventure.

Rooms from £155 a night, designhotels.com/rooms-hotel-kazbegi From £266,000 for 7 nights, y.co

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Rock Ages of

Tom Hagues spends a blissful few days in St Barths’ Eden Rock, a sanctuary of timeless luxury, unfettered relaxation and life-affirming gastronomy 

t’s on the cusp of June when I wait in the departure lounge during a short layover in Antigua, desperate to get out of my welltravelled clothes and into something much more comfortable and island-friendly. There is still the small matter of getting from this island to Saint Barthélemy, however, a tiny rock in the north-western reach of the Caribbean Sea that is often touted as the most exclusive corner of the island collective. Waiting for me on the tarmac is a propeller jet that has been designed for diving in and out of mountainous ski resort airports – something that I’m not sure we need here. I’m wrong, of course, and as we approach

our final descent after 40 minutes in the air, we circle the island’s capital, Gustavia, giving us a great view of the harbour with its big-bucks-boats and yachts and, more worryingly, the large outcrop the plane is heading for. The undercarriage all but skims the top of it and before us is an alarmingly short runway, and at the end of it the glittering cyan sea. I watch out of the cockpit window with increasingly widening eyes as we plummet, touch down and screech to a halt (mercifully) well before we become a waterborne craft. I bustle through Gustaf III Airport, a task that takes all of two minutes such is its minuteness, and am met by a uniformed member of the Eden Rock team who takes my

TRAVEL

bag and leads me into an air-conditioned car. He hands me a cold flannel and bottle of water and just as I’ve got the cap unscrewed, we arrive at the hotel. It’s at this point I begin to get the impression that this island might be ever so slightly smaller than I had first imagined. Eden Rock is famous for its positioning on the beach. It is, as the name suggests, situated on and around a rock, with different accommodation options scattered about, from plantation houses and beach huts to a honeymoon suite and private villas. I’m led to my room, which is on the ground floor of one of the plantation houses and left to my own devices. It’s well-appointed: the bed is huge (for the entire stay I

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only use a third of it) and the private decking at the front is an added bonus. I have a few hours to kill before dinner on the beach, so I slip into a white T-shirt and red swim shorts and trot down to the water’s edge. I stroll along, letting the bath-warm water wash up my legs and begin to notice people looking at me. What, I wonder, are they so interested in? It becomes clear, when I see some of the staff delivering drinks to other beach bums that my chosen attire is identical to that of the Eden Rock team. I slink back to my room to change into something different before anyone asks me for a glass of wine or where they can hire the kayaks.

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Dinner on the beach that evening is a quiet affair and it’s the first chance I get to sample chef JeanGeorges Vongerichten’s delectable cuisine. The meal consists of various pièce de résistance items on the menu, including a truffle flatbread (salty, savoury, big-flavoured and satisfying) and sushi tit-bits that showcase Vongerichten’s dedication to his craft. The main course of lobster salad, with plump, walnutsized pieces of crustacean, is one of the most satisfying dishes I have enjoyed in a while and I leave, completely full, utterly shattered but very content. I’m up at half five the next morning and I take to the beach again before breakfast. I delight in not seeing anyone that I might embarrass myself in front of and I wallow happily for an hour in the early morning sunshine and the utter tranquility of the surroundings. After a seemingly endless breakfast of pastries, fruit and eggs, I’m whisked off on a tour of the island, where I glimpse the vast villas that the hotel services. These gargantuan buildings, almost all set within the mountainside, can be rented out and the hotel can offer its catering services, as well as concierge personnel. We stop at one Japanese style villa that’s hidden behind a gate and down a steep driveway for lunch. We mill around on the terrace, drinking champagne and eating amuse-bouche delicacies. The terrace has an infinity pool that stares out across a sweeping bay and the silence is blissfully broken by crashing waves, trickling pool

water and the clinking of glasses. I soon learn that this villa is owned by renowned French musician Johnny Hallyday and I admire the man for his choice of mountainside paradise. I spend the afternoon exploring the island’s capital, Gustavia, which is a quaint town no bigger than a postage stamp. Its spick-and-span cleanliness and high-calibre shops make it look like a film set, but with the most laid-back atmosphere imaginable. Designer boutiques rub shoulders with independent bars and eateries and at one end there’s a small church where a St Barths wedding is taking place, giving the afternoon even more of a celebratory feel as I sample some of the local cocktails. Back at base camp I bump into Fabrice Moizan, Eden Rock’s general manager – a charming, suave Frenchman with decades of hotel experience under the belt that holds up his pristine white Miami Vice chinos. On his recommendation we go for dinner at Le Tamarin, a pagoda in the middle of reeds, fronds and palm trees, with lily pad-adorned ponds and luscious foliage lining the pathway up to the main eating area. The next morning I draw up a pact to make the most of Eden Rock’s beachside position. I kayak and paddleboard my way around the bay until my muscles can take no more. I’m then introduced to a Seabob; a machine that has James Bond villain written all over it. It’s essentially the coolest hand-held jet ski ever; as I grip the handles and press the accelerator I’m propelled through the water, arms first. I point it downwards and become a human submarine, allowing me to circle corals and rocks and part of a plane wing, presumably deposited by an overzealous pilot coming into land at the hair-raising runway all too quickly.

The terrace has an infinity pool that stares out across a sweeping bay and the silence is blissfully broken by crashing waves

TRAVEL

That evening, we set sail on a sunset cruise, but due to the Caribbean being on the brink of hurricane season, we have to reconsider our route. Instead, we’re taken on a tour around the island, swinging into various bays, each with water of a different aqua hue. In one bay, which is overlooked by an abandoned villa once owned by the Rockefeller family, the water is so clear we can see starfish sitting on the seabed. One of the crew members dives into the water and swims down, bringing two of them up in his hands. As the night settles in, we return to the hotel for dinner at the chef’s table at On the Rocks (be sure to sample the black cod) before heading off to enjoy the island’s nightlife. I’ve found my new favourite spot at Le Ti St Barth, a nightclub swathed in crimson velvet and comprising reinforced tables on which people are encouraged to dance. Ending my short excursion in the Caribbean is difficult. I’d much rather stay here, lounging on the beach, dancing on top of tables with American billionaires and storming around the crystal-clear seas on a big yacht, but reality beckons. This garden of Eden has led me to temptation, and I’m sure I won’t be able to resist its allure again before too long… Rooms start from £440 per room per night including breakfast and return airport transfers edenrockhotel.com

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Calling Your Bluff January doesn’t have to mean miserable diets, as Hannah Lemon discovers on a visit to Curtain Bluff where she works on her bikini body Antigua style – with cocktails and sunbathing on the side 

y cheeks look like swollen tomatoes, I’m sweating profusely (I’ll spare you the details), my lungs are struggling to inhale enough oxygen and I have celebrity trainer Adam Rosante telling me to work harder. This is not what I thought a holiday in Antigua would be like, but I am now in the throes of Curtain Bluff’s Fitness Weekend and, despite my aforementioned grumbles, I am actually having the best few days of my life. I’m not an overt fitness freak (my exercise hero is Mr Motivator, lurid multicoloured spandex leotards and all), but the luxury resort has managed to charm me into a false sense of security with its laid-back attitude and five-star service, so that getting fit doesn’t feel too taxing. The calm and stress-free tone is established right from the moment my feet touch the tarmac at Antigua airport, where a steel band greets passengers with a vat of rum punch and a few chants to Take it easy. During the short half an hour trip to the resort, my driver Maurice provides a running commentary of life on the island, including stories from his childhood in the small village Swetes that we pass through. Antigua is delightfully vibrant, with pastelcoloured chattels littering the landscape and a happy-go-lucky vibe – men napping in the afternoon sun on their porches and cars idly swerving around goats nibbling at the grassy fringes of the road. Maurice makes a pit stop to unhook some mangoes off a tree growing outside his front garden and offers them to me for breakfast. Before arriving at our destination, I ask for his opinion of the resort, to which he

replies simply: “There is no other hotel where you will see the manager carrying the bags.” True to his word, when I arrive, Rob Sherman, the managing director of Curtain Bluff welcomes me and heaves my bags from the back of the car. His friendly spirit and wry jokes continue throughout my stay. This is all part and parcel of the family-run feel of the place, which was set up by Chelle Hulford and her late husband Howard. Back in the 1960s they were told that by law they couldn’t build a house on the land, only a hotel, so that’s exactly what they did.

Antigua is delightfully vibrant, with pastel-coloured chattels littering the landscape and a happy-golucky vibe

tr avel

I am guided to my room, which overlooks the wet and windy south-facing beach of the bluff. The junior suites are airy and comfortable; my bedroom faces floor-to-ceiling windows that open out onto the balcony. The large bath tub has room for two and a shower equipped with luxury lotions and potions. As Curtain Bluff is all-inclusive, the mini-bar is continually stocked and you can request anything, from champagne to cans of Jamaica’s favourite soft drink Ting. I enjoy breakfast at The Tamarind Tree, which serves a combination of local dishes such as salt fish and chop-up (a soft vegetable mash of okra, aubergine and spinach) as well as pancakes and continental options. Lunch at the Sea Grape restaurant, found on a veranda at the end of the calmer, north-facing beach, is a relaxed affair and includes a barbecue buffet of fresh seafood such as mahi-mahi. The service is slow but as there are no pressing engagements to be had on this Caribbean isle, it hardly matters. But unfortunately, I am here for Fitness Week and not to get sidetracked by the good food and beach views. Every morning involves an outdoor yoga session overlooking Carlisle Bay. A 7am start on holiday may be difficult for some, but stretching out underneath palm trees while listening to the sound of the waves is an excellent way to warm up for the day’s activities. The programme on offer is varied. On my first day local tennis experts advise on my swing and positioning and, when I run to the net too soon, call out: “Relax. There’s no rush. You are not in London anymore – you’re in the Caribbean!” A side note: for those preferring racquet and ball games, Curtain Bluff holds three tennis events a year with some visiting tennis champions, including Tracy Austin, Annabel Croft and Ross Case. There is also aqua-aerobics in the main pool. I’ve often thought of it as sedate pastime with its hair nets, noseplugs and gentle movements, but I quickly learn a harsh

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TR AVEL

lesson and emerge from the water half an hour later, huffing and puffing. A boat trip for snorkelling leaves the beach most days and complimentary watersports, such as wakeboarding, monoskiing and paddleboarding are available whenever. The catamaran tour with the Fitness Week guests is a highlight, especially as Rosante is adamant that we enjoy every moment. (Including the rum punch – after all, sustainable diets are all about everything in moderation). And this includes ordering a Caribbean Fantasy and a Gentle Kiss at the bar later that evening, which are Antiguan cocktails, before you get any ideas. Each day involves a fitness class with Rosante. Known in America for getting results quickly, Rosante encourages people to have fun while working out (it is possible, honest). The key to his success is through short, but intense fat-burning sessions. Although our lessons are about an hour long, the actual workout is for just 20 (not entirely painless) minutes. Six moves, including squats are performed for 30 seconds each, back to back, followed by a rest of 30 seconds. This is meant to be completed six times. By the end of the week my ratio of resting to exercise has somehow increased, but, nonetheless, I feel the burn. To regain my composure, I pay the spa a visit and opt for a full body massage. I recommend booking a late afternoon treatment so you can witness the beautiful sunset from the outdoor Jacuzzi and the glorious view out onto the bay below.

By the end of the week my ratio of resting to exercise has somehow increased, but, nonetheless, I feel the burn

94 | Vantage

As I check out I feel a rush of sadness. How am I supposed to do this at home? It’s all very well enjoying it here, but it just won’t be the same doing stretches, lunges and high-kicks without the sound of the waves lapping on the shore and the promise of a Gentle Kiss afterwards. There’s only one thing to do: book my flights for next year.

 Need to know  Adam Rosante Fitness Week is at Curtain Bluff from 14-19 January Curtain Bluff, Antigua is offering a five-night package for the Adam Rosante Fitness Week from £2,174 per person, plus taxes. Price based on two adults sharing a Deluxe Room on an all-inclusive basis, with Fitness Week activities and return airport transfers. British Airways & Virgin Atlantic fly from London Gatwick to Antigua. curtainbluff.com

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Paradise

Another Day in

Jennifer Mason lives like an A-lister at the Casa de Campo Resort in the Dominican Republic 

or the first (and probably the only) time in my life I can truly say that I understand what life must be like for a Hollywood superstar. And it’s not because I’m being followed everywhere by a pack of photographers or because I’ve been spotted stumbling from a taxi outside Mahiki. Rather, my imagined celebrity status has everything to do with the breathtaking Villa La Laguna del Mar in the Casa de Campo Resort estate on the south-eastern coast of the Dominican Republic. My home (or should I say palace?) for the next week. Boasting some of the best beaches on the island as well as a packed sporting and relaxation timetable to suit even the most itinerary-loving holidaymakers, Casa de Campo’s 7,000-acre resort offers 185 hotel rooms and suites, as well as a marina and 50 multi-bedroom luxury villas dotted about. Given those numbers you might expect the kind of all-inclusive, packed-like-sardines

feel of a package holiday – but thankfully nothing could be further from the truth. This is where the super rich and famous come for their holidays (Casa de Campo boasts fans such as Beyoncé and Jay Z, and the late Michael Jackson). Our villa – a Balinese-inspired masterpiece that houses six suites as well as a sunken gazebo for outdoor entertaining, not to mention the oceanfront infinity pool – is just moments from the property rented by the Clintons on their recent getaway. Staying at an opulent villa such as this you’d be forgiven for choosing never to step outside its walls; after all, everything you might need to relax and refresh is available on site – from a private pier to personal butlers and chefs. But, if you decide to venture out into the main resort do so in your own private golf buggy – races against your villa mates are optional but huge amounts of fun. During our trip we pledge to try a little bit of everything Casa de Campo has to offer. Day one

Staying at an opulent villa such as this you’d be forgiven for choosing never to step outside its walls

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begins with a tour of the award-winning golf courses Teeth of the Dog (famous for using the ocean as a part of the course), Dye Fore and The Links. While the more experienced head out to try their luck over 18 holes, those of us who are newcomers to the sport opt instead for a lesson with one of the resort’s pros. After an hour of swinging I’m proud that my instructor seems impressed with my technique, but I’ll now think twice before continuing to mock my father about how little effort a game of golf requires. It’s much harder work than it looks – particularly in the humidity of the late-morning Caribbean sunshine. After a delicious buffet lunch at the Lago Grill, including some of the tastiest and most creative salad combinations I’ve come across in a while, as well as fish straight from the grill, it’s time to head out to the Shooting Centre. The centre caters for all skill levels and tastes, with a variety of different options available. We decide to stick with the basic clays – deeming those difficult enough for shotgun novices. Hungry from all of the day’s physical exertions, we’re more than ready to take the short drive out to the village of Altos de Chavón. Before we settle in to eat at La Piazzetta, we take a tour of the town – a replica of a 16th century Mediterranean village that’s perched high above the Chavón River. Designed by Dominican architect José Antonio Caro and created by the Italian cinematographer Roberto Coppa, the village is an homage to the arts, with creative workshops, galleries, exhibition spaces, a museum and even an amphitheatre for concerts all crammed into the warren of cobbled streets. The next few days pass in a blur of horse riding, snorkelling and excursions – the most memorable of which is the boat trip out to Catalina Island just off

Guests can enjoy beach mud-rubs and therapy sessions under the stars

the coast of the Dominican Republic. Strong winds out in the Atlantic have changed the currents offshore during our visit, meaning our day trip is more adrenaline-fuelled and full of salt spray than we anticipated, but well worth the white knuckles when we arrive and sink our toes into the warm sands. Although relatively unspoiled compared to the development on the main island, I’d recommend taking the earliest boat out in the morning so you have plenty of time to enjoy the quiet beach. On our final afternoon we take a trip up to a remote villa overlooking the cliffs to meet Kyra Montagu, who runs the wellness programme at Casa de Campo. For those looking for something a little more thorough than a simple spa treatment during their stay – although in my opinion there’s nothing more indulgent than a massage in a beach cabana looking out over the ocean – or a holiday entirely focused on yoga and detox therapies, Kyra is the woman for the job. Based at the villa, she runs retreats catered to many different emotional and physical needs, so guests can enjoy bespoke programmes with nutritious meals made especially for them, as well as beach mud-rubs and therapy sessions under the stars. All too soon, it’s time to leave this paradisiacal resort and head home. I wonder whether the person that coined the phrase ‘playground of the rich and famous’ had ever visited Casa de Campo. After reflecting on my stay, I’m definitely convinced that this is my kind of playground.

All images courtesy of Casa de Campo and Jennifer Mason

TRAVEL

 Need to know  Accommodation rates per night at Casa de Campo start from $355 for an Elite Patio Room, $405 for a Balcony Room, $805 for an Elite Suite and $863 for a Classic Villa (casadecampo.com.do) British Airways flies twice a week to Punta Cana from London Gatwick. Prices start from £495 return, including all taxes and charges. For reservations visit ba.com or call 0844 493 0758

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property

Property Listings See below for estate agents in your area

Arlington Residential 8 Wellington Road NW8 9SP 020 7722 3322 arlingtonresidential.co.uk

Aston Chase 69 / 71 Park Road NW1 6XU 020 7724 4724 astonchase.com

Hanover 102 St John’s Wood Terrace NW8 6PL 020 7722 2223 49 Welbeck Street W1G 9XN 020 8128 0675 hanover-residential.com

ian green residential 28 De Walden House Allitsen Road NW8 020 7586 1000 iangreenresidential.com

Laurence Leigh 60 Queens Grove NW8 6ER 020 7483 0101 laurenceleigh.com

Marsh & Parsons 35 Maida Vale W9 1TP 020 7368 4458 27 Parkway NW1 7PN 020 7244 2200

PHILLIPS HARROD 85-87 Bayham Street NW1 OAG 0207 1234 152 phillipsharrod.com

Property Divas 34a Rosslyn Hill NW3 1NH 020 7431 8000 propertydivas.com

91 Salusbury Road NW6 6NH 020 7624 4513 marshandparsons.co.uk Globe Apartments 45 Chiltern Street W1U 6LU 020 7034 3430 globeapt.com

Knight Frank 5-7 Wellington Place NW8 7PB 020 7586 2777 79-81 Heath Street NW3 6UG 020 7431 8686

Hamptons International 99 St John’s Wood Terrace NW8 6PL 020 7717 5319 21 Heath Street NW3 6TR 020 7717 5301 hamptons.co.uk

RUNWILD MEDIA GROUP

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55 Baker Street W1U 8EW 020 3435 6440 60 Salusbury Road NW6 6NP 020 3815 3020 2c England’s Lane NW3 4TG 020 3815 3350 knightfrank.co.uk

Parkheath 208 Haverstock Hill NW3 2AG 020 7431 1234 8a Canfield Gardens NW6 3BS 020 7625 4567

Savills 7 Perrin’s Court NW3 1QS 020 7472 5000 15 St John’s Wood High Street NW8 7NG 020 3043 3600 savills.co.uk

savills.co.uk 192 West End Lane NW6 1SG 020 7794 7111 148 Kentish Town Road NW1 9QB 020 7485 0400 parkheath.com

TK International 16-20 Heath Street NW3 6TE 020 7794 8700 t-k.co.uk

If you would like to appear within the property pages of VANTAGE, contact Friday Dalrymple, property manager, on 020 7987 4320 or f.dalrymple@runwildgroup.co.uk

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P R O P E RT Y Showcasing the finest HOMES & PROPERTY from the best estate agents

Elegant & exclusive The latest prime properties

EVENT PROFILE

OPEN HOUSE Mark Pollack from Aston Chase explains what it takes to sell a house in the current market

White Lodge Close, N2 (Off The Bishops Avenue)

POA

property

s has been well documented in recent months, the housing market in prime central London is becoming an increasingly challenging environment to sell high value property, which is placing more importance on making a particular listing stand out from the crowd. Indeed, since the increase in stamp duty and the various taxes being implemented for international buyers, the housing market has seen a significant reduction in transaction volumes. Using typical marketing vehicles like magazines and property portals to promote a house has its benefits, but agents now have to think beyond conventional marketing. As the joint selling agents of Willowbrook – a substantial low built detached house situated just off The Bishops Avenue – the team at Aston Chase together with Goldschmidt & Howland decided to invite people from the property industry to get together for a networking evening. Singers, canapés, champagne and poker and roulette tables were there to entertain, while negotiators from both agencies showed guests around and explained the layout and the newly consented plans to create an amazing lower ground floor swimming pool and leisure complex. The contemporary décor throughout was complemented by an array of artworks from Zebra One Gallery, which were available for sale on the evening. Our guests consisted of local residents, property solicitors, search agents, relocation agents and surveyors, as well as agents from Kensington, Chelsea and Knightsbridge because we believe that the incoming purchaser is likely to buy the property based on the price per square foot figure, which offers great value for money. Since the event we have received very positive feedback from our guests, and as a result of the evening we have arranged viewings for several prospective purchasers all of whom were introduced to us by guests who attended. Currently the house offers 6,840 sq ft of stunning lateral living space arranged over two floors. The property also benefits from a grand double height entrance hall, a number of spacious reception rooms and seven bedrooms, including a master suite with a private balcony. The CGI (left) shows the consented lower ground floor, which measures approximately 2,045 sq ft and would certainly add even more value to the property once the work has been completed. For more information contact Aston Chase 69-71 Park Road, Regent’s Park, NW1 020 7724 4724, astonchase.com

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Elm Tree Road, St John's Wood NW8 Seven bedroom gated family home with off-street parking Tucked away behind electric gates on Elm Tree Road lies this beautiful family home with off-street parking. Master bedroom with en suite, dressing area and roof terrace, 4 further bedrooms (all en suite), 2 further bedrooms, family shower room, 2 guest WCs, kitchen/family room, dining room, drawing room, rear garden, swimming pool, garage. EPC: E. Approximately 405 sq m (4,363 sq ft). Freehold

Guide price: £7,500,000

KnightFrank.co.uk/stjohnswood stjohnswood@knightfrank.com 020 7586 2777

@KnightFrank KnightFrank.co.uk

KnightFrank.co.uk/SJW150333

6 Elm Tree Road - Vantage January 2016 -print

10/12/2015 12:45:48

Blomfield Road, Little Venice W9 Six bedroom house including a separate mews house and off street parking A substantial stucco fronted period house positioned at the end of terrace on Blomfield Road benefitting from a large wrap around garden affording two outdoor dining areas. Master bedroom with dressing room and en suite bathroom, 5 further bedrooms (3 en suite), 7 bathrooms, 2 reception rooms, 2 kitchens, breakfast room, selfcontained apartment, living room, gym, conservatory, 2 balconies, front and rear garden, patio, private parking. EPC: E. Approximately 411 sq m (4,424 sq ft). Freehold

Price on Application

KnightFrank.co.uk/stjohnswood stjohnswood@knightfrank.com 020 7586 2777

@KnightFrank KnightFrank.co.uk

KnightFrank.co.uk/SJW150296

15 Blomfield Road - Vantage January 2015

10/12/2015 13:10:34

Marylands Road, Maida Vale W9 Two bedroom flat with garden and garden studio An architecturally designed flat on the lower ground floor of an attractive period building. 2 bedrooms, bathroom, reception room, kitchen, dining area, garden, garden studio. EPC: C. Approximately 107.9 sq m (1,161 sq ft). Share of freehold

Guide price: £1,200,000

KnightFrank.co.uk/queenspark queenspark@knightfrank.com 020 8022 5466

@KnightFrank KnightFrank.co.uk

KnightFrank.co.uk/SJW150350

Vantage -January- Queen's Park

10/12/2015 13:22:21

The Avenue, Queen's Park NW6 Interior designed family home in a prime position A unique opportunity to purchase a family house in a prime position in Queen’s Park facing Tiverton Green, which has been newly refurbished to an exceptional standard. 5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, reception room, open plan kitchen/family room, south facing garden. EPC: D. Approximately 304.6 sq m (3,279 sq ft). Freehold

Guide Price: £3,300,000

KnightFrank.co.uk/queenspark queenspark@knightfrank.com 020 8022 5466

@KnightFrank KnightFrank.co.uk

KnightFrank.co.uk/QPK150166

Vantage -January- Queen's Park

10/12/2015 13:22:21

L E T T I N G YO U k N O w w E ’ v E G O T I T c Ov E r E d

Achieving a successful let can sometimes be unpredictable, just like the British weather. However, at Aston Chase we take care of every detail in order to ensure a favourable outlook. We understand that paying close attention to the individual needs of every client is the hallmark of excellent service. Our expertise in lettings and property management, honed over the last 30 years, makes us adept at carefully matching discerning tenants with quality properties and providing a service that’s second to none. We call this service ‘Letiquette.’ Our meticulous approach ensures that whether you’re a Landlord or a Tenant, when it comes to lettings you can rely on us to bring a little sunshine. Letiquette — The Art of Letting. 6 9 – 7 1 PA R K R O A D | L O N D O N | N W 1 6 X U | T + 4 4 ( 0 ) 2 0 7 7 2 4 4 724 | A S T O N C H A S E.C OM

SPRINGFIELD ROAD ST JOHN’S WOOD NW8 FREEHOLD GUIDE PRICE £8,500,000 JOINT SOLE AGENT

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On the market for the first time in 25 years is this substantial, double-fronted detached residence, offering some 4,000sq ft of accommodation over just three floors and occupying a double plot on the south side of this prestigious tree lined road. The house is located close to Loudoun Road, within walking distance of The American School in London, St John's Wood Underground Station (Jubilee Line) and the numerous amenities of St John's Wood High Street.

ACCOMMODATION AND AMENITIES Drawing room, dining room, kitchen/ breakfast room, utility room, study, large entrance hall, guest cloakroom, principal bedroom with en-suite bathroom & his & hers dressing rooms, 6 further bedrooms (2 with en-suite bathrooms), 2 family bathrooms, carriage driveway, double length garage, large south facing rear garden. EPC=E.

10/12/2015 12:42

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astonchase.com

BRUNSWICK PLACE REGENT’S PARK NW1 CROWN ESTATE LEASE 83 YEARS £8,950,000 SOLE AGENT

12:42

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6 9 – 7 1 PA R K R O A D LO N D O N N W 1 6XU 020 7 7 24 47 24

An extensively refurbished beautiful Nash residence providing approximately 4,600sq ft of family accommodation and enviably located moments from the beautiful open spaces of Regent’s Park and the exclusive resident-only gardens of Park Square West. This magnificent five bedroom property (all en-suite including a steam cubicle in the principal suite) has retained many of its original period features, including high ceilings and cornicing.

ACCOMMODATION AND AMENITIES Principal bedroom suite, 4 further bedrooms, 2 further bathrooms (en-suite), 2 further shower rooms (en-suite), reception hall, drawing room, dining room, family/media room, kitchen/breakfast room, utility room, gym, guest cloakroom, underfloor heating, air conditioning, CCTV, landscaped front courtyard garden, additional courtyard space, balcony, residents’ parking, access to the exclusive resident-only gardens of Park Square West. EPC=F.

10/12/2015 16:10

WORONZOW ROAD ST JOHN’S WOOD NW8 FREEHOLD GUIDE PRICE £4,250,000 JOINT SOLE AGENT

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A semi-detached period house (253sq m/ 2,724sq ft) which has recently undergone a complete programme of refurbishment and now offers a striking contemporary interior with a newly created lower ground floor. Woronzow Road is a quiet and highly sought after street on the east side of St John’s Wood. It is also within a short walk of both St John’s Wood High Street, St John’s Wood Underground Station (Jubilee Line), and Regent’s Park is also moments away.

ACCOMMODATION AND AMENITIES Principal bedroom with en-suite bathroom, 3 further bedrooms, family bathroom, guest/staff bedroom with en-suite shower room, 2 reception rooms, kitchen/breakfast room, guest cloakroom, utility room, Sonos sound system, Lutron lighting, underfloor heating, feature staircase, courtyard garden, front garden. EPC=E.

10/12/2015 15:27

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astonchase.com

THE ATRIUM ST JOHN’S WOOD NW8 LEASEHOLD 976 YEARS PRICES FROM £4,050,000 JOINT SOLE AGENT

15:27

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6 9 – 7 1 PA R K R O A D LO N D O N N W 1 6XU 020 7 7 24 47 24

An opportunity to acquire one of the last two remaining three bedroom lateral apartments, set within this landmark purpose built block. The Atrium is one of the finest new build blocks in St John’s Wood and benefits from a 24 hour concierge service run by Harrods Estates, with secure underground parking (by separate negotiation). Both St John’s Wood and Baker Street Underground Stations (Jubilee, Circle, Hammersmith & City, Metropolitan and Bakerloo Lines) are within close proximity.

ACCOMMODATION AND AMENITIES Principal bedroom with en-suite bathroom, bedroom 2 with en-suite bathroom, bedroom 3, family bathroom, kitchen, reception room/dining area, guest cloakroom, decked balcony, underground parking, 24 hour concierge service run by Harrods Estates with valet parking.

10/12/2015 16:12

Belsize Park NW3 ÂŁ2,250,000

A stylish and spacious maisonette set over the upper floors of a stucco Belsize Park villa, with a private terrace.

2055 sq ft/191 sq m Bright 25â&#x20AC;&#x2122; reception 4 double bedrooms, 3 bathrooms Top floor terrace Central Belsize Park Contact Belsize Park Office 020 7431 1234

South Hampstead 020 7625 4567 nw6@parkheath.com

Belsize Park 020 7431 1234 nw3@parkheath.com

West Hampstead 020 7794 7111 192@parkheath.com

Kentish Town 020 7485 0400 kt@parkheath.com

Property Management 020 7722 6777 pm@parkheath.com

Kensal Rise 020 8960 4845 kensal@parkheath.com

www.parkheath.com

Holly Walk NW3 ÂŁ1,550,000

Within an historic Grade II listed residence in Hampstead Village, an outstanding period apartment set over two floors.

1260 sq ft/117 sq m Ornate 25â&#x20AC;&#x2122; reception 2 double bedrooms, 2 bathrooms Off street parking Secluded Village location Contact Belsize Park Office 020 7431 1234

South Hampstead 020 7625 4567 nw6@parkheath.com

Belsize Park 020 7431 1234 nw3@parkheath.com

West Hampstead 020 7794 7111 192@parkheath.com

Kentish Town 020 7485 0400 kt@parkheath.com

Property Management 020 7722 6777 pm@parkheath.com

Kensal Rise 020 8960 4845 kensal@parkheath.com

www.parkheath.com

Regent’s Park ————— Enviable position in one of Regent Park’s finest Nash Terraces

Cumberland Terrace Regent’s Park, NW1 £7,950,000 - Sole Agent

A magnificent, recently refurbished, three bedroom first floor apartment featuring high ceilings and a large private terrace situated within a long colonnade of iconic columns. Cumberland Terrace is a neoclassical terrace situated on the Eastern side of Regent’s Park, designed by British royal architect John Nash built in 1826. This elegant lateral apartment provides spacious and elegant entertaining space, as well as having breath taking views across the communal gardens and over Regent’s Park. In addition, there is a self-contained one bedroom first floor apartment situated in Cumberland Terrace Mews, basement studio room, basement store room, single garage, further limited off street parking and excellent porterage. Long Lease

020 7722 2223 | www.hanover-residential.com

Regent’s Park ————— Stunning duplex apartment on the southern perimeter of Regent’s Park

Nottingham Terrace Regent’s Park, NW1 £3,695,000

A newly refurbished, three double bedroom, two reception room ground and first floor duplex apartment (Approx. 1869 sq ft / 173.6 sq m) set within a private gated development with 24hr uniformed security, a reserved underground parking space, additional limited off street parking and store room. Nottingham Terrace is a private road located on the southern perimeter of Regent’s Park within York Terrace West, close to Baker Street underground station and Marylebone High Street with its fashionable shops, bars and restaurants. The apartment is offered with a long lease.

020 7722 2223 | www.hanover-residential.com

The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings

Drawing of St Dunstan-in-the-West by SPAB Scholar Ptolomy Dean

Founded by William Morris, the SPAB protects the historic environment from decay, damage and demolition. It responds to threats to old buildings, trains building professionals, craftspeople, homeowners and volunteers and gives advice about maintenance and repairs. Since 1877 countless buildings have been saved for future generations.

Information about maintaining your home is available through events, courses, lectures, publications and telephone advice. To support our work why not join the SPAB? Members receive a quarterly magazine, our list of historic properties for sale and access to our regional activities.

www.spab.org.uk 020 7377 1644 A charitable company limited by guarantee registered in England & Wales. Company no: 5743962 Charity no: 1113753 37 Spital Square, London E1 6DY

THE BEST LIFE STOREYS

The new St Pancras Square at King’s Cross with the station and Great Northern Hotel beyond

LIVE IN AMAZING KING’S CROSS You have restaurants, cafés, parks and fountains; you have shops, squares and the joys of a canal; you have the best national and international rail connections in London and an extraordinary choice of some of the Capital’s most extraordinary homes. Move in now and experience living at King’s Cross.

You have 6 tube lines, 3 mainline stations and a Eurostar. Live just 5 minutes from Oxford Circus and Covent Garden and a mere 8 minutes from Victoria and Piccadilly Circus.

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Please contact us at: enquiries@livingatkingscross.co.uk or call +44 (0)20 7205 4349 kingscross.co.uk/homes Marketing suite: The Plimsoll Building, 1 Handyside Street, King’s Cross, London, N1C 4BP

www.kingscross.co.uk

09/12/2015 12:49

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TRIP ADVISOR REVIEWERS K N OW HE AV EN W HEN THE Y SEE IT.

It’s always good to listen to people who’ve actually been to a destination. So we’re proud of what you’ll read on Trip Advisor about Saint Peter’s Bay, Barbados. This select collection of properties is beautifully designed, equipped – and just a few shimmering steps from the fabulous beach and ocean. Around you, the best of everything: pampering, watersports, fitness, gastronomy and all the fun a family can handle. Join us. Come for a holiday and, who knows, even acquire your own piece of heaven.

UNNA Luxury Resorts & Residences

Visit stpetersbaybarbados.com and then call 0800 097 0847

THE WORLD AGREES, IT’S A WORLD APART.

Willesden Lane NW2 £3,995,000 This exceptional six-bedroom family home has been renovated to a high standard, offering spacious living and entertaining space with the amenities of Willesden High Road close by. Freehold. EPC=D

• Extensive refurbishment • Substantial family home • Six double bedrooms • Private driveway

QUEENS PARK SALES: 020 7624 4513 sales.qpk@marshandparsons.co.uk

Delancey Street NW1 £2,650,000 An impressive grand Georgian four-bedroom house, boasting fantastic space throughout and arranged over five levels, located on a prime street close to Regent’s Park in Camden Town. Freehold. EPC=D

• Large family house • Bright and spacious • Period property • Close to Regents Park

CAMDEN SALES: 020 7244 2200 sales.cam@marshandparsons.co.uk

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