OUT OF OFFICE March 9, 2011 PLAYBOY CLUB LONDON: OPEN FOR NEW MEMBERS There seems to be a rule with casinos in London that they must either be lowest-common-denominator hellholes or so smart and snooty you can barely raise a smile without being stared down. Well, that should all change with the soon-to-open Playboy Club, a “retro chic” affair if ever [...]
Vive la difference March 8, 2011 DRIVING the Peugeot iOn is certainly unusual. Until now the only electric cars I have driven have been the excellent Tesla sports car that looks like a Lotus Elise, and the considerably less good G-Wiz which looks like Noddy built it on his weekends from a kit. These cars exist at opposite ends of the [...]
CAR TALK March 8, 2011 Mini Rocketman Ok, so it’s an awful name but this is the coolest Mini since Alec Issigonis penned the original. Unlike the Minis in the current range, this one – called Rocketman – is a real mini Mini at last. Launched last week at the Geneva motor show, the car has a 3+1 seating layout [...]
Episode four: pass the parcel time March 7, 2011 I PRESS?play. “Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O.” The parcel wends its way in a clockwise direction. Noel. Emma. Billy. Maria. Me… This morning I was at Heathrow, waiting for a flight and buying shirts in case I had to be away for a couple of days. I certainly couldn’t have left the house with [...]
The sweet smell of success March 7, 2011 AMONG the unexpected things one discovers at Ormonde Jayne, the swish private perfumery with outlets in New Bond Street and Sloane Square (plus a Harrods concession), two stand out: men make up the greater number of clients, and hemlock (the poison that did for Socrates) is an excellent perfume ingredient. As is whale vomit. Actually, [...]
Old school glam, new designers March 7, 2011 THE doors close at the E Tautz men’s fashion show during London Fashion Week, and the hustle and bustle of outdoor crowds immediately fades. There’s no bank of spotlights in the Royal Opera House’s opulent room, only a small group of photographers, no standing crowd of students and hangers on, just a few fashion writers [...]
HOW TO GET DRESSED: SPRING WARDROBE FIXES March 7, 2011 FOUNDERS OF ROUS ILAND MEMBERS’ BOUTIQUE, WWW.ROUSILAND.COM Q. The cold is not letting up but I want to start planning my spring wardrobe. What are the essential things I should focus on to update my look right now? Any tips on how I can look like a star? A. The 70s is having a real [...]
FASHION NEWS March 7, 2011 LITERARY CHIC Nothing says true luxury stationary better than a personalised, leather-bound notebook, which is why Liberty’s customisation service, part of its new swish “paperie” department, is so exciting.? For the price of a leather Liberty of London notebook and £5 per letter, fans can have gold leaf initials stamped in as little as two [...]
A truly relaaxing way to ski in snowy Switzerland March 6, 2011 WHEN you work in the City, free time is as rare as a penniless hedge fund manager, so you want to ensure that you choose the skiing trip that maximises your slope time and minimises your tedious travel time. Switzerland’s Laax resort, located 150km south of Zurich airport, promises to do exactly that – whisking [...]
A sanctuary – with iMacs – in West Sussex March 6, 2011 A WEEKEND in the country is often not so much a change of pace as stepping back into another era, where duvets are a dirty word and the closest you get to modern technology is a Teasmade. Not so at Park House, a luxury rural retreat in West Sussex. There might be rows of Hunter [...]