Dining, Shopping, and Partying in London

To bring you up to speed on my adventures that paralleled attending the shows…I slipped out of New York on the last day of the shows there, arriving in London a day early for an inspiration-seeking walk around Portobello Rd. and to hit up ofthe Westbourne Park stores. I love the different buys at the boutiques, the consignment stores (which sells tons on unusual cast offs) though I behaved myself and didn’t go crazy with the shopping (I was already tipping the scales even for Lufthansa’s generous business class weight allowance, never mind the spectreof the doom and gloom economy). London Fashion Week tries to make your stay aseasy as possible by putting you up in a quality hotel (The Metropolitan this time) and providing a car that I shared with a lovely bunch including Mark Holgate of American Vogue, stylist extraordinaire Patti Wilson, Tokion Magazine’s fashion director and old friend Jason Farrar. It was great to talk candidly between shows with this opinionated bunch that only enhanced the showgoing experience. Everyone had different dinner plans and so we scattered at days end.  My new obsession is Buddakan,a Asian fusion chain restaurant from the owners of Hakkasan. I’d been to Buddakan several times over the last couple year mainly to the one on Wardour Street andI understand that writing about it isn’t quite breaking news.  This time however it just click thatthis is a genius restaurant concept: handsome environments, finger licking good food at affordable prices. No wonder there’s always a queue to get into thesehot spots. I had my usual dinner with Julia Muggenburg and she introduced me toSt. John’s, one of the best restaurants, she tells me, in London with a menu that would have existed in Dicksenian times. Think all parts of an animal, from tongue to cheeks to foot, deliciously prepared in a new tasting old kind ofway.  The rabbit soup is divine.

It wasn’t all restaurants though, I made it to several events including Stephen Jones’ perfume launch in collaboration with Comme des Garcons at Dover Street Market, tea with Tamara Salman to celebrate the launch of Liberty’s conceptstore on Sloane Street, the London Fashion Week International party at The Mayfair hotel.  And to cap off the week I went out to Bungalow 8 at St. Martin’s Lane for a decadent night ofcarefree dancing and wanton shenanigans, and for someone who doesn’t hit thetown like that anymore, I haven’t lost the touch and can still rock out like someone half my age.

One of my wardrobe therapy clients just moved to London and it was a great time totouch base with her, assess what she brought across the pond and determine where to fill in. I’ve been dressing this client for the last three years or soand was impressed with how I built the foundation of her wardrobe. It requireda few injections but on the whole she was looking solid. For a spot of shopping I went to Selfridges where it was recommended that I meet up with Martina Wagener, the go-to there for VIP clients. I found a few things at Selfridges but let’s just say the service is not as tight as it is at American stores, where clerks are eager to please and tomake a sale. I then took my client to the headquarters of our media partner CoutureLab. Couturelab sells the most exquisite one-of-a-kind and hard to find pieces and she was in heaven picking up pieces from Hamish Morrow, Revillon,Bea Valdes and sundry other in-the-know brands. Couturelab yet again affirms how special the shopping is in London.