Cocooned in style at the Ritz’s Salon May 15, 2012 THE Salon is a little known part of the Ritz, up on the seventh floor. It’s a surprisingly unguilded haven – plainly decorated, and quiet but for the civilised murmur of ladies having their hair and nails done and the odd door closing softly behind someone going in for a treatment. Into this rarefied atmosphere [...]
Prep for summer with Rodial’s new sculpt treatment May 15, 2012 FIT IN THE CITY This week I continue my search for the city’s best beach shape-up regimes. TRIED & TESTED: THE POWER PLATE/RODIAL SUMMER SCULPT Every so often a collaboration occurs that’s so sexy you sign up for it without really knowing what it is. This summer’s sexiest link-up is between Power Plate (www.powerplate.com/uk) and [...]
The Empress takes a sow’s ear and ends up with a silk purse May 14, 2012 RESTAURANT THE EMPRESS 130 Lauriston Road, Hackney, E9 7LH FOOD **** SERVICE *** ATMOSPHERE *** Cost per person without wine: £25 Somewhere along the line, gentrification became a contentious topic. It tends to mean rapidly climbing property prices and lots of nice new coffee shops filled with prams that smell of Ribena and baby vomit. [...]
Mascara to keep you floating on through spring’s rainiest days May 14, 2012 Hypnose Doll Eyes by Lancome If you can forgive the name, this Hypnose edition gives massive curl and volume. £21, at Debenhams Exaggerated lashes mascara by Yves Saint Laurent YSL is one of the daddies of the mascara department. Always good for volume and separation, this is one of the best. £15-23 at Debenhams Faux [...]
FOOD & BOOZE NEWS May 14, 2012 Grab a Tortilla next time you’re in Wimbledon Posh Mexican take-away Tortilla has continued its expansion with a new branch on Wimbledon’s The Broadway. The grill specialist now has stores in eight locations across the capital, including Leadenhall Market, Canary Wharf and Southwark. If freshly prepared burritos and fajitas are your thing, this is the [...]
The return of the Old Fashioned is proof of a cocktail renaissance May 14, 2012 FADS in cocktails come and go, but with each movement something of the best is kept, or later rediscovered. Quality endures. And thankfully we’re drinking through something of a renaissance, with no resurgence as welcome as that of the Old Fashioned. The Old Fashioned represents everything that’s good and true. Its name derives from around [...]
Britain avoids global prime property slip May 13, 2012 THE VALUE of prime property in the world’s major cities dropped in the first three months of 2012, industry figures revealed today – the first time prices have fallen since 2009. Knight Frank’s prime global cities index registered a 0.4 per cent fall, led by Tel Aviv’s 6.6 per cent drop, Kiev’s fall of 6.4 [...]
Opulence and elegance in rural England May 13, 2012 I’ve been lucky enough to wake up to some spectacular sights: the glacial, serene Lake Lucerne in Switzerland; the endless, pulsing cityscape of Tokyo; the stark, rugged mountains of Aspen. On the right morning, though, few things can beat the understated grandeur of the rolling English countryside. The view from the window of the Cornflower [...]
Strange but good: a slice of Asia in Alicante May 13, 2012 My friend Jo and I did not feel we were en route anywhere nice one recent Friday morning. We were on an EasyJet flight to Alicante, surrounded by stags roaring for more Stella and Jack Daniels. Once in Alicante, a people carrier drove us through a parched landscape that looked a little worse for wear, [...]
A Mexican adventure in high style May 13, 2012 The last time I came to central America was 15 years ago on my gap year. Bed for the night tended to be a hammock, or mosquito-infested beach shack if we were pushing the boat out. Clothes were stuffed in a backpack, made heavier by my inspired first day purchase of a 5kg granite pestle [...]