London Calling

October 16th, 2007

AH&L’s favorite New York Design Diva, Marcia Sherrill, sends dispatches from recent travels in London.

Last week London was enjoying a spot of global warming and the usual blustery, damp autumn season was all golden light and jacket-warm weather. Browns Hotel, with its aristocratic history is all tarted-up with posh interiors and a bar scene that is strains of Josephine Baker-ish Jazz and Sloane ranger-types crowding the bar. Down the street is super-hot Italian restaurant Ciancimeno just past Paul Smith’s antiques gallery with its Mid-century Karl Springer and Tommy Parsinger pieces that even with the pound almost at $2 are worth it at twice the price.

We went to the renowned Battersea Antiques Show and saw an acre of beautiful British and Continental furniture and a shocking mix of mod from dealers like De Parma who are usually down the way at the famous Alfie’s market (pictured above) with a jumble of vintage jewelry, clothing and furniture and the downstairs has just been renovated by Decoratum—a splashy new face on the contemporary scene with giant vintage photos of Twiggy and Marilyn Monroe and ultra-glam pieces from Brazil.

On Pimlico Road and nearby in the antique gallery-strewn side streets are such famous firms as Zuber (the French wallpaper house known for its gilded tea papers), Nicky Haslam and Nina Campbell and they were all abuzz. Nearby at V V Rouleaux (a grab fest for Vogue editors) were the most fantastic ribbons and trims while Top Shop was packed with customers clamoring for their right-off-the-runway looks at shop-girl prices and downstairs they were nearly rioting for the new Kate Moss line.

Three new restaurants, Daylesford Organic, Megan’s and Dinings (former Nobu-ites are the owners) have London recahing for something other than Yorkshire pudding and the chic and ultra-exclusive Aspinall’s Club was a thrilling respite from the world with its casino and posh restaurant serving from a menu that offered complete Thai, Chinese and Japanese cuisine and for an ole Southern gal like me some steak hopefully untainted by Mad Cow disease (if only that would explain my behavior).

The Brits are still stiff-upper-lipish but were universally amused when I took off my stilettos for a trot down Jermyn Street in a Top Hat and Escada gown suffering Jimmy Choo foot-fatigue and hell bent on making it to Turnbull and Asser before it closed—well, I have brothers to shop for, and those boys are the perfect Southern Gentlemen and will settle for nothing less (though I did get a text message from Brother Billy requesting a vintage Sex Pistols t-shirt).

Flying on OES out of JFK was a rare luxury on the first-class only jetliner and the week long sojourn was a glorious spree topped off with the new play “Billy Elliott” that celebrated its 1,000th performance by doling out marzipan-frosted cupcakes to all the lucky theatre goers. Pound for pound still a lot of bang for the buck!

Want more Marcia? Click here for recent columns. More London? Be sure to check out our December issue for more on London and the best of luxury travel.

Entry Filed under: Marcia Sherrill