The name’s Bond. James Bond.

Bond...James Bond

British style icon, man of action and drinker of martinis - shaken, not stirred: that is of course Bond, James Bond. The Barbican is hosting an exhibition this summer celebrating all things Bond, especially his Englishness. As one quote in the exhibition puts it, women leave a Bond movie admiring James Bond, and men leave it “standing tall”. I’m not entirely sure I agree with that, or even understand it, but the exhibition turned out to be a lot of fun.

In the foyer of the Barbican, Bond (in his Sean Connery iteration) leans stylishly in his stylish Saville Row suit against his stylish Aston Martin sports car. It’s all about style. Inside on view are many of the costumes from the movies, including the sumptuous evening gowns from ‘Casino Royale’. Of particular interest to exhibition-goers are Bond’s teeny swimming trunks, and the bikinis-with-knife-belts worn by his glamourous co-stars. There are jewels, diamonds (of course), golden guns, white dinner jackets, furs and ski-suits - including a memorable yellow and red number worn by Bond as he leaves the latest blond, clad only in a white fur, in the mountain hut and goes out to ski right off a mountain side:

“But James, I need you.”

“So does England”.

There’s M’s office re-imagined with it’s buttoned leather doors, and Q’s laboratory with its clever gadgets for beating bad guys. I particularly liked the “Re-breather”, a simple device to be inserted between the teeth, enabling Bond not only to swim underwater without his SCUBA gear, but to do so in his Saville Row suit, emerging merely a little (handsomely) disheveled. 

There are snippets of the movies playing throughout the exhibition, reminding us of such classic moments as the shower scene when Bond and his lady are spied upon by a robot (“What’s he doing?”; “Oh, just cleaning up a few things”). The body of Pussy Galore, asphyxiated by being painted all over with gold paint, is recreated in full life-like splendour. Bond, strapped down and with a laser beam headed for his crotch: “You don’t expect me to talk, do you?” Bond at the casino tables of Monte Carlo (“shaken, not stirred”); Bond piloting a gondola not only along the canals of Venice but also through it’s streets; Bond tobogganing down a mountain with the girl de jour, in her cello case (the case is on display) holding her priceless Stradivarius over his head. 

Shaken, not stirred...

Ah, yes. The adventures and the contraptions become more and more ridiculous as expensive stunts (a 1977 ski stunt was in its day the most expensive movie sequence ever produced, at half a million dollars) give way to the era of digital technology (Bond’s ski-do thing hooked to a glacier, which calves off into the ocean, melting on the way, allowing him to convert his machine to a windsurfer and windsurf off into the ocean -- really??) The story boards and sketches used to imagine these ridiculous escapades were endlessly fascinating.

But in the end, and despite my skepticism, the sheer amusing campness of it all converted me to a Bond fan. So naturally I had to visit the martini bar to imbibe a ‘Vesper’, Bond’s preference in ‘Casino Royale’: gin, vodka and Lillet Blanc - shaken not stirred, of course.

London Fog

'London Fog'

In fact the air was surprisingly clear today in London, where we enjoyed a day of blue skies, fluffy white clouds and sunshine, quite a change from yesterday's rain and gloom. I was informed that 17th January is regarded as the most depressing day of the year, which might explain why my thoughts turned to SAD yesterday. However, even with today's sunshine the temperatures didn't rise above 7 degrees C, so there was still good reason to wear an overcoat.

Who is that trench-clad person?

I packed my full selection of overcoats when I moved to London. In Sydney one's overcoats rarely wear out, being worn so infrequently, so I have an extensive selection gathered over the years. There is one in particular that I rather like, having found it in a rack of 'vintage' (i.e. pre-loved, aka second-hand) coats in a bric-a-brac shop in Canberra. It is a classic 'London Fog' (brand) trench coat, light weight, shower-proof, an unexceptional tan colour, with the fold-up collar and belted waist that places it squarely in the fashion genre "private detective, circa 1945".

You may have heard of the "London Fog" brand - its history goes back to 1923, when the 'Londontown Clothing Company' was founded, but note that it was a US company, which didn't open it's first London store until the 1970s. In the 1980s it was the world's largest maker of raincoats and outerwear. The company now has the ubiquitous 'superstores' and sells into the high-end market, with advertising campaigns featuring curvaceous models showing generous cleavage peeking out from their raincoats, indeed some barely clad in the coats. Whatever happened to the private detective in his trench?

The Thames River Valley

Of course the phrase 'London fog' also refers to London's (in)famous 'pea-soup' fogs of the 19th and early 20th century, caused by the fires from millions of chimneys, combined with the mists from the Thames River Valley. In fact, foul air from coal fires had been a feature of London life for centuries, ever since they chopped down all the trees for firewood and around the 12th century began burning icky coal fires. Read the history on this web site. One of the most startling facts about London fog is that a four-day fog in 1952 killed about 4000 people - following which some clean air regulations were finally passed - The Clean Air Act 1956. Almost as startling as the thought that someone over in the US would decide to name an overcoat after the fog...

Meanwhile, the fog must have been quite evocative, because it not only passed into folk-lore, with nicknames such as 'pea-souper', but also cropped up in stories, poems and songs. Arthur Conan Doyle's 'Adventures of Sherlock Holmes' (1880s - 1920 ish) wouldn't be the same without the foggy London streets through which the clients and criminals make their furtive way to 221b Baker Street.

I can also vividly recall reading for the first time of the image of 'yellow fog' in T S Eliot's 'The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock'. I used to know this poem by heart:

The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes,
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes
Licked its tongue into the corners of the evening,
Lingered upon the pools that stand in drains,
Let fall upon its back the soot that falls from chimneys,
Slipped by the terrace, made a sudden leap,
And seeing that it was a soft October night,
Curled once about the house, and fell asleep.

And then there's Ella Fitzgerald singing 'A Foggy Day in London Town', a song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and sung by Fred Astaire in the 1937 film 'A Damsel in Distress'. Lots of people have recorded it (Ella's version is a favourite of mine). Here's Fred doing the number - smooth, Fred, verrrry smooth....

A foggy day, In London town,

It had me low, And it had me down

I viewed the morning, With much alarm,

The British museum, Had lost it's charm

How long I wondered, Could this thing last,

But the age of miracles, It hadn't past

And suddenly, I saw you standing right there

And in foggy London town, The sun was shining everywhere

Humphrey Bogart, fetching in his trench coat

I think that's enough of a paean to air pollution. Let's return to the trench coat. Despite it's nominative connection to London, the 'London Fog' brand coat was not the first trench, and may not have been the brand Humphrey Bogart wore. The British trench coat was developed as an alternative to the heavy serge greatcoats worn by soldiers in the First World War. Invention of the trench coat is claimed by both Burberry and Aquascutum, with Aquascutum's claim dating back to the 1850s. The London Fog company made weather-proof coats for American soldiers in World War Two. As to the brand Humphrey is wearing...anyone know?


There's no doubt the trench coat looks fetching in winter weather, especially, I think, my somewhat crumpled 'vintage' version, labelled - UK origin or not - 'London Fog'.












Images from:
http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&op=listing&product_id=2292844
http://www.anatomyofaclassic.com/?m=200912
http://www.4us2be.com/uncategorized/places-to-visit-before-they-disappear/

Ugh.

Ugg is in.

Around London during this wintry weather, everyone is wearing boots, and a goodly number of them are Ugh - or possibly Ugg - boots. This unique Australian export has been embraced wholeheartedly by people who want warm and cosy feet, even though I could tell them that Ugh boots and rain really do not mix well.

In the Guardian the other day was a letter to the advice column:

'In the winter, no matter how good my intentions are in the morning, I always end up wearing my Ugg boots. How can I break this cycle?'

Reply:

'You can't...Ugg boots are modern-day versions of...the Red Shoes - footwear that are like vices around one's lower extremities, rendering escape impossible...I don't think anyone has the willpower to use them properly. One minute you're just being sensible and keeping your feet warm, and the next you're wearing them in the rain in full knowledge that sheepskin does not mix well with water, but you just can't go one day without them.'

 As you may know, the Ugh boot has had a meteoric rise from ugly 1970's hippie footwear, roughly made and basically impractical, to fashion footwear of the stars. In Australia, small operations have been hand-making the things ever since the hippies needed something for their feet once summer passed and going barefoot lost its attractiveness. However, despite the name 'ugh' or 'ugg' being commonly used to describe the boots, one hopeful entrepreneur in fact registered the term as a trade mark back in the 1970s. He sold a few boots in the USA, but it wasn't a big business, and the word slipped into, or remained in, generic use in Australia.

Fast forward to the 21st century, and an enterprising company from the land of real entrepreneurs, the good 'ole US of A, bought the registration, adopted the mark, registered it in other countries and produced a damn fine quality example of the genre. They spent a lot of money on product development, advertising and - in a stroke of marketing genius - 'product placement' with the stars, managing to get Hollywood starlets to wear the things in public. Instant overnight success, and boots you could buy for $25 in Australia from a road-side sheepskin handcraft joint now cost $250.

The American company - being well advised by their trade mark lawyers - knew that they could never monopolise the name in Australia, where it was in general generic use. In other countries, however, they claimed ownership of 'Ugg' as a trade mark. From the hue-and-cry that broke out in Australia - of the 'multi-national steals Aussie icon' variety - you would have thought the US company was the devil incarnate. But the mark they use - on the boots of the London girls as well as everywhere else - is 'Ugg Australia', and I think that most if not all their sheepskin is sourced from Australia. The mums-and-dads running the roadside handcraft places also promptly put up their prices, riding off the back of the massive publicity generated by the despised 'multinational' - including selling on the internet into markets where the US company held trade mark rights. And they started spelling 'Ugh' as 'Ugg'. Thus began a trade mark dispute which produced a number of silly decisions and wasted a lot of money. The upshot is that 'Ugg' and it's variations are considered generic in Australia; but a Californian court has ruled that the word has only trade mark significance in the USA.

This is the official site for 'Ugg Australia' boots. They have sure come a long way from my hippie days. Here's how the company describes it's acquisition of the name:

A look back at 25 years of Sheepskin

The UGG® Australia story began in 1978, when Brian Smith, a young surfer from Australia, took a trip to the United States with a bag full of sheepskin boots. After finding a new home amongst California surfers, the UGG® Australia brand began to take shape.

Deckers Outdoor Corporation acquired UGG® Australia in 1995. By 1998, the product line had grown to include two boots, four slippers, and a few casuals. It was in 1998 that UGG®Australia brand first stepped up alongside the world's finest luxury footwear brands. UGG®Australia was positioned as a high-end luxury brand, made evident by a premium distribution strategy and high-end fashion marketing and communications.

The luxury and comfort of UGG® Australia proved to be a perfect fit for the high-end footwear world and soon Nordstrom had become the destination for UGG® Australia. The media reach expanded into more and more high-end magazine titles. The business continued to grow steadily as UGG® Australia reached beyond the beaches of California to New York City - and beyond.

In 2003, UGG® was named Footwear News' "Brand of the Year" and was responsible for the creation of an entirely new category of footwear. UGG® has also been featured on "Oprah's Favorite Things" five times since 2000, most recently in the Fall of 2010. Sheepskin footwear is seen on the runways in Milan, Paris and New York; and it all began on the beach in Australia.

Here's an example of an Australian site claiming to sell 'the original' boots. You'll note the spelling 'Ugg', the use of a font similar to that of Deckers' logo, and the placement of the logo on the exterior back of the heel, just like Deckers. The bedazzling array of variations on a theme also owes its existence to the fashion trends started by Deckers, to say nothing of the price (in this case A$169 for the 'classic' boot). Good luck to these entrepreneurs, but don't start whinging about the big, bad American stealing the little Aussie icon, eh?

I might  also mention that it is very easy to find lots of sites selling sheepskin boots and calling them 'ugg boots' in a generic way (an example) -- lots of work there for Decker's trade marks attorneys! 'Ugg Australia Logo' is a registered trade mark of Decker in the UK.

To end on a slightly ridiculous note - even more ridiculous than Ugh boots on the fashion runways - Pamela Anderson was one of the celebrities commissioned by Decker to flaunt Ugg boots. It is said that she later renounced the boots when she realised they were made from animal skin. I wonder what she first thought they were made of? She wrote on her website: "I thought they were shaved kindly?"  Oh dear.

You thought I was kidding about 'my hippie days', didn't you?
Proof from 1974

Images from:
http://www.hvacproforums.com/showthread.php?t=10810
http://www.supplierlist.com/b2b/products/nikemvp/p-0/showroom.htm
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flock_of_sheep.jpg

Do you want to look like a meringue?

You have to at least try it...(Wendy Makin Design)

 A trip to a wedding dress shop with a bride-to-be – such as that I enjoyed today - raises a lot of interesting questions about taste, tradition, aesthetics, history and superstition.  Oh, and princesses.

Victoria and her Albert 1840

The tradition of the white wedding dress actually only dates back until 1840 and the wedding of that trend-setter in so many things, Queen Victoria. She wore white silk and Honiton lace for her marriage to Albert, because she had a piece of white lace she wanted to incorporate into her dress. Her train measured eighteen feet in length and her dress was trimmed with orange blossoms. Many people will tell you that white is the virginal colour of purity, but in fact blue was generally considered to play this role, being associated with the Virgin Mary. Many brides chose to wear blue, up until Queen Vic set the trend. Blue is still popular – note its frequent use as the stone in engagement rings – and the superstition of the bride wearing “something blue”. Brides who wore blue believed their husbands would always be true to them, so even if their gown itself was not blue, they would be sure to wear something blue about their person. Queen Victoria was the first royal bride to have bridesmaids to carry her train too, which also set a fashion.

These days, white is considered ‘traditional’, but is by no means compulsory. But brides-to-be might want to take note of the old rhyme:

Married in white, you will have chosen all right.

Married in grey, you will go far away.

Married in black, you will wish yourself back.

Married in red, you’ll wish yourself dead.

Married in blue, you will always be true.

Married in pearl, you’ll live in a whirl.

Married in green, ashamed to be se.,

Married in yellow, ashamed of the fellow.

Married in brown, you’ll live out of town.

Married in pink, your fortunes will sink.

Interestingly, (for those who hadn’t heard this rhyme, at least) pink was once a popular colour, considered most suitable for a May wedding. It is flattering to most complexions and associated with girlhood, but some superstitions held it to be unlucky. Red was definitely taboo by Victorian times, with its reference to scarlet women and hussies.

Amongst the unpopular shades was green. This was considered the fairies' colour, and it was bad luck to call the attention of the little folk to oneself during a time of transition. It was also linked with the lushness of verdant foliage, and so risking rain spoiling the big day.

The bright shade of yellow has had varied popularity. In the eighteenth century it was THE trendy colour for a while, and many wore it, but before that time it had been associated with heathens and was considered an unholy shade to wear in church.

These colour superstitions belong to the Western Judeo-Christian tradition, of course. In China red has long been the rage, and I hear that black was big in Scandinavia for a while.

Vintage pretty - Wendy Makin Design

Centuries ago a marriage was more than just a union of two people; it was more generally a union of two families, even two communities, and sometimes two countries. The bride would be expected to be a symbol of her family’s pride, social standing and possibly wealth.  To this end they used as much costly material as they possibly could, such as velvet, damask silk, satin, fur and fabrics woven with gold and silver thread. The skirts would be gathered and full, the sleeves would sweep the floor and trains would fall behind to a length of several metres. The dress might be sewn with precious gems - diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds and pearls - so the bride would glitter and flash in the sunlight. In the fifteenth century when Margaret of Flanders was married, the result was so heavy that she could not move in her robes and had to be carried into the church by two gentlemen attendants.

In the nineteenth century, even a bride who wore white would expect to wear her dress again. For the season of her ‘bride visits’ when she would do the rounds of family, friends and acquaintances as a newly married woman, she would wear her bridal gown, with the train and flowers removed. A higher class bride would then adapt the bodice of the outfit (which was often made separately) and re-trim it for evening wear for another season. Queen Victoria herself removed the lace overskirt from her dress and frequently used it again - she wore it over a black silk gown for her Diamond Jubilee celebrations over 50 years later (which is perhaps taking sentimentality too far).

Princess Grace of Monaco 1956

In the 1920s wedding dresses were in the style of the moment, reflecting the slim-line flapper dresses and cloche hats of the era. When Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (later the ‘Queen Mother’) married HRH the Duke of York in 1923, the ceremony took place in Westminster Abbey, and the bridal gown was the traditional full length, with a court train behind. Current fashion was followed in the dropped waist and generally unshaped bodice, and in the way the head-dress was worn low over the brow, clasping the veil to the bride's head in a way that echoed the cloche hat every woman was wearing then. The style was described in the contemporary press as "medieval", but was really very trendy, except for the length. She chose a traditional bouquet (which does not appear in her official photographs as she laid it at the tomb of the Unknown Warrior on her way out of the Abbey, in memory of her brothers, and others killed in the War) but many brides emphasised the medieval effect by carrying sheaves of white lilies. 

When WWII hit, clothes were rationed, uniforms were ubiquitous, and frivolity was frowned upon.  Servicemen and women married in their uniforms, and generally everyone made do with something practical, for reasons of patriotism – and rationing. When fashion was allowed come back, everyone was keen to wear long gowns in luxurious fabrics on their wedding day, despite – or perhaps because of - the ever increasing popularity of casual, easy-wear clothing and trousers for women in daily life. As fashion has become more relaxed and sporty, so wedding styles have diverged more. Although each decade's brides are easily distinguished by the styles then in vogue, it is not because of that style's resemblance to general fashion.

I can't believe I'm posting this photo - but look at the sleeves!
1978

Sleeves were the big feature of seventies dresses (when your blushing blogger was married – and yes, since you ask, the dress did have the big sleeves). After twenty years of tight sleeves cut to a point over the hand, Princess Anne led the way with her extravagant Tudor sleeved wedding gown, and the brides of this decade followed suit with sleeve styles culled from every era. Yeah, we just went wild.

If Princess Anne's wedding dress influenced the seventies bride, the Princess of Wales' extravagant skirt and huge sleeves proved the style icon of the 1980's. After the restrained outlines of the previous decade, every bride now wanted a fairytale crinoline and tiara. Waistlines had already returned to their natural position. After Diana's dress, everyone had full skirts gathered to the waist, and big sleeves to the elbow, with flounces and bows and lace embellishments. There was a surge in popularity for taffeta and silk. Her flowers also signalled a return of the big bouquet, with trailing greenery.

Lady Di sets the 80s trend

Then once you have decided on the dress itself, there is of course the good luck rhyme that every bride will hear at some point: she should wear ‘something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue’.  Old: the family link over generations; New: a bright and happy future for the couple being married; Borrowed: showing that the couple will receive support from family and friends around them not only on the day but in the future; Blue: the colour linked to purity, loyalty and faithfulness.

There are also some traditions that, thankfully, are not around today.  One such tradition was for guests to break off a piece of the bride's dress which they then kept for good luck. However, in Germany I’m told that it is still a modern tradition for the bride's veil to be ripped apart and the guests will keep the fabric they have collected.

And if you do decide to go for white? You will need to choose ‘the right shade’ of white; something to go with your skin tone, or your tan. Hmmm...here's some advice on this tricky question.

Still don’t know if you want to look like a meringue? Check these '20 Iconic Brides' for inspiration. Personally, I like the deep blue number worn by Burlesque queen Dita Von Teese in 2005.

Now THAT'S a wedding dress.

The white dress photos are from Wendy Makin Design.

Wendy Makin Design

And did you know that you have to order about six months ahead for these Pronovias gowns from Barcelona? For some reason Barcelona seems to be the fount of all wedding gowns at the moment. Look at this one from Aire Barcelona. Now that's a meringue.

Aire Barcelona

Shop till you drop....

Info and pics from:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wedding_dress

http://www.fromtimespast.com/wedding.htm

http://www.dressfinder.com/history-wedding-dresses/

http://www.weddingchaos.co.uk/BridesArea/history-of-the-wedding-dress.asp

http://weddings.lovetoknow.com/wiki/History_of_the_Wedding_Dress

An English Afternoon

Fortnum and Mason

A day of Londonesque experiences.

I began the morning with "Caragh Mary Bernadette, the Irish Chiropractor of Harley Street", for some further back assistance. Things are improving glacially. She is going to work with "Dan ('Stomp') Baines", my trainer, to continue the sorting-out process. It's good to know that The Team is on the job.

The Wolseley, Piccadilly. A Grade II listed building.

Somewhat loosened up, I then tottered down to the West End, alighting from the Tube at Piccadilly Circus, my objective - lunch. I surveyed the section of the Monopoly Board around me. Hmmm...Duke Street, Jermyn Street, Bond Street, Regent Street, The Burlington Arcade, Fortnum and Mason, The Ritz...ah, here's a nice looking place: The Wolseley. In I popped and asked if they could seat one for lunch. The main dining room looked sumptuous - a beautiful old building carefully restored, black suited waiters and white tablecloths, dessert displays, cheese displays, wine racks, low chandeliers. I was ushered to a table in a front room and received impeccable service (in London!) and excellent food. The cuisine was quintessentially English. Just my kind of thing.

The Wolseley's lovely interior

While I was indulging in dessert, a fellow diner engaged me in conversation. Recognising my accent (as everyone here immediately does, unlike in the USA) he of course had to mention the cricket. People! Can't you do something about the cricket? You can hear the glad chortles everywhere here. I try to be gracious and say how nice it is to finally have a proper competition, and muse that there are young cricket fans in Australia who have never before seen Australia lose (all of which is really rather back-handed graciousness). And I harp on the hat-trick a bit. But it's hard, very hard. Tell the boys to pick up their game, will you please?

???

Anyway, in the course of this conversation, once we got off the cricket and had dealt with what is wrong with the Obama presidency, my companion asked if I knew the presenter of something called 'Top Gear'. Since this is a television program, I didn't, but understood that I should be impressed when told that this person was sitting  in the dining room next door. I was informed that The Wolseley is the "in" restaurant in London at the moment, popular with 'media and entertainment types', and that it is very difficult to get a reservation. Apparently the front room we were in is where they put the 'walk-ins' - the main room is booked solid. And here was I, fetching up here merely by dumb luck. Anyway, as I mentioned, it is lovely with great service and food, so deserves to be "in". Hopefully I can return some day.

Royal Academy of Arts

My apres-lunch goal was the Royal Academy of Arts across the road - a building with an exquisite interior, by the way. There they are showing an exhibition entitled 'Treasures from Budapest' which closes in a few days. Subtitle: 'European Masterpieces from Leonardo to Schiele'. I found it interesting, but of course the most interesting pieces were the ones by Leonardo and Schiele, as the marketing department clearly appreciated.

A little shopping?

Directly opposite the Royal Academy, conveniently and enticingly placed, is Fortnum and Mason, that majestic emporium of fine food and luxury products of all kinds. Thinking that a little window-shopping couldn't hurt, I inspected the floors of perfumes, lingerie, Christmas trimmings, the most spectacular shower caps you're ever likely to find, and....the Food Hall. Ah! The rest is history.

Laden with bags full of magnificent confectionery (I am bringing it all home to Sydney, I promise), I stepped across the road again, this time to a shop full to the rafters with winter coats. Yes, it seems I had found the mother-lode of Barbour jackets and coats. You may recall earlier blog musings on British Fashion in this season of chills and snow. Well, I made a prudent decision, with an eye on the forecasts of further snow in the offing, and am now the proud possessor of a down-filled, shower-proof, super-warm Barbour jacket, complete with  fake-fur lined hood. And, for good measure, one of those checked scarves that make you look like an English country squire-ess. I am now fully equipped for a week-end in the English countryside, should the opportunity arise. Bring on that snow!

The new Barbour - "fully prepared"

By now I needed a cup of tea, and where better than back at Fortnum and Mason? A pot of early-picked Assam, an indulgent piece of Victoria sponge cake, and my very English afternoon was complete.

The black cab ride home in the evening (which falls at about 4 pm these days) took me through all the West End Christmas lights of Regent Street, Bond Street and the aptly-named Oxford Circus. The lights in these West End areas are lit up all at once on special days in the lead-up to Christmas, generally in November (which I consider a little early, but that's just me), drawing thousands of merry on-lookers. London does 'festive' very well.

Oxford Street

Regent Street

Bond Street

Images from:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/advice/christmas/christmas-pictures/2009/11/03/oxford-street-xmas-lights-turned-on-115875-21870707/
http://london-tours-attractions-hotels.blogspot.com/2010/11/regent-street-christmas-lights-9th-nov.html
http://www.ukstudentlife.com/Ideas/Album/ChristmasLights.htm
http://www.anousdeuxlondres.co.uk/Saint%20James's%20Walk.htm
http://www.londonbreaks.com/extras.html
http://www.robert-nicoud.ch/00_01_Holidays/pages/FortnumMason.htm
http://davidcollins.com/projects/categories/restaurants/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/roboppy/319047790/
http://www.atlasventure.com/contactus/offices_london.cfm
http://www.atlasventure.com/contactus/offices_london.cfm

British fashion

The temperature is dropping (7˚C today), the weather is turning to drizzle, and darkness is falling by four in the afternoon. It’s time to consider that question all antipodeans need to face when confronting their first Northern Winter: what to wear?

I don't have to have the dog too, do I?

I consulted Carrollanne on this question. She recommended boots, a Liberty skirt, a cashmere sweater and something called a ‘barbour’. In explaining this coat-like garment, she claimed it was like the Australian Driza-Bone®, but upon checking I find that it has more of an English country look than Australian outback. Think relentless drizzle rather than “drought and flooding rains”. And rather than team it with your R M Williams boots, the welly seems to be the footwear for Barbour® wearers. Yes, I’ve added a ‘registered’ symbol, because these coats are made by J. Barbour & Sons Limited, and apparently have been since 1849. Excuse my ignorance. As they seem to be warm and waterproof, I will be adding a ‘Barbour’ to my shopping list. But the quilted or the waxed? On the names alone, the waxed ones may have it: you can choose from ‘Badminton’, ‘Blenheim’, ‘Defence’ – and one named ‘Kate Jacket’ which may or may not have appeared after yesterday’s announcement of Prince William’s proposal to Kate Middleton. Decisions, decisions. I must consult Carrollanne again.

As to the footwear question, the frequent rain calls for more stamina than my suede fleece-lined boots (bought in New York in the winter) can hope to supply. I have therefore invested in a pair of ‘all-weather boots’ that feature rubber soles – ordered online, so yet to be tested, but hopes are high.

As to the Liberty skirt, there appear to be many options,  and I’m not sure which one Carrollanne would regard as de rigueur – but perhaps this Vivienne Westwood number at £260? Just perfect for sloshing through the English winter?

I adopt a mocking tone, but it is a serious question. My principal aim will to be warm and dry. Or at least  warm-ish. And dry-ish.  But many a young Londoner is not to be satisfied with such unadventurous goals – they aim also to be stylish. One young lady I followed down the street yesterday was rather spectacularly attired, thus: shiny men’s brogues (flat and practical lace-ups), pencil-thin trousers on skinny legs, rolled about four inches above the ankles, which were clad in warm men’s socks. Above the trousers, a black fake-fur jacket with a high cosy collar; and the head topped off by a white-and-orange woolly hat. She actually looked great. Skinny but warm.

As to the fake fur coat, I wonder if I will be able to get through the winter without one?  I also came across a blond, walking along hand in hand with her boyfriend, wearing a wide white fake-fur cape. I thought capes were dead forever, but apparently not. All the shop windows feature the fake-fur you must have. I may not be able to resist as the temperatures plummet further.

I read that the conservatively estimated revenues of the fashion industry worldwide are US$500 billion, making it the fourth-largest industry globally. It seems likely that London shops account for a large slice of this, despite the economic doom & gloom here. The Guardian’s ‘Style’ page recently featured the enthralling question: How to Tie Your Scarf This Winter:

Listen, we’re not Trinny and Susannah but, honestly, there are ways of doing things. This paper’s very own fashion editor has declared a loose loop to be the scarf look this winter. Elsewhere on the fashion desk there is much talk of tucking your hair into the scarf. This looks very cool and a bit French. Meanwhile, over at Vogue HQ, Emma Elwick-Bates tells The Briefing she’s channelling Balenciaga’s super tight tucking-in scenario of autumn/winter 2007. Has the snood got as many options? I don’t think so.

Images from:

http://www.guardianoffers.co.uk/mall/productpage.cfm/GuardianOffers/_WINTERBOOTS/-/All-weather-boots

http://www.topshop.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?beginIndex=0&viewAllFlag=&catalogId=33057&storeId=12556&productId=2118028&langId=-1&sort_field=Relevance&categoryId=209744&parent_categoryId=208526&sort_field=Relevance&pageSize=20

http://www.liberty.co.uk/fcp/categorylist/dept/womenswear_skirts?resetFilters=true