Last night saw the official opening of the 2009 London Design Festival at City Hall with a champagne reception courtesy of Veuve Clicquot. Hosted by London’s Mayor, Boris Johnson, the event brought together many of the partners who are taking part in the Festival with a week-long programme of exhibitions, events and installations all over the capital. Boris gave us all a rousing call to action, praising the creative industries in London and the part they can play in bringing Britain out of recession. Everyone admired the panoramic views of London’s skyline at night whilst exchanging views on what they were going see during the week.
This September sees the opening of The Icecreamists, a pop up ice-cream boutique at Selfridges. As an ice- cream addict I headed straight down to check it out. With an exciting menu of unique sweet and savoury ice-creams ranging from pistachio to beef bouillon, you will also find frozen yoghurt, sorbets and cocktails each made from closely guarded recipes, all freshly prepared for your guilty pleasure. The boutique will be open from 11th September to 1st November so, for discerning ice-cream eaters who enjoy more than a flake in a ‘99’, be sure to pay it a visit!
Freida Pinto and Dev Patel turned out last Monday as French luxury brand Hermès galloped into Liberty for an historic partnership. The two fashion forces launched an ‘ephemeral’ store for six weeks (through 18th October) in Liberty’s new scarf room and collaborated on a limited edition series of scarves and ties entitled ‘Hermès Pour Liberty’. For the party we transformed the scarf room into a life size Hermès gift box. Guests played dress up with the haute accessories and captured their look in a special photo booth. We jammed to cool tunes and a live set from Marina and The Diamonds and sipped on Kir Royale.
Last weekend in Paris, Merci hosted a party to celebrate their latest exhibition. Italian designer Paola Navone transformed 1000 kg of porcelain ‘seconds’ from the Tuscan factory of Richard Ginori into colourful new pieces, from mugs to plates to soup tureens. As part of the installation, pieces of the china were suspended by ribbon into the entrance of Merci – it was the best thing to see during Maison & Object.
Bocca di Lupo, “mouth of the wolf” in Italian, opened earlier this year. Chef Jacob Kennedy, who previously worked at Moro, has come up with a way of providing Italian cuisine through a menu which changes daily, offering starter-sized servings of skilfully prepared regional specialities. We opted to sit at the counter and watch the chefs’ work, though you can always sit at the back away from the action. In an environment of understated luxe the outstanding food is surprisingly reasonable and I will definitely be back to continue my gastronomic tour of Italy.
prima by zaha hadid for swarovski at vitra campus
Royal Academy Summer Exhibition Party
18 Greek St
Swarovski Foundation and John Pawson - Perspectives - at the San Giorgio Maggiore Venice
Five Guys Burger is coming to London!