Kerry Taylor Auctions in London is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading salesrooms specialising in rare and historic fashion. The auction house focuses exclusively on vintage couture, designer fashion, and exceptional garments, with many lots achieving five-figure sums, and occasionally even six.

Among the most sought-after pieces are creations by Alexander McQueen, particularly those designed by the late, eponymous founder himself. His theatrical, boundary-pushing designs consistently generate global interest among collectors and institutions.

One of the most famous examples came in 2019, when a pair of McQueen’s iconic ‘Armadillo’ boots from his Plato’s Atlantis Spring/Summer 2010 collection sold for £60,000, rumoured to have been bought by Lady Gaga.

On March 10, the auction house will present a more focused sale dedicated to rare menswear, including 21 pieces from Lee McQueen’s personal wardrobe. The selection spans sharply tailored suits by Gucci, Margiela and Prada, as well as rarities by Vivienne Westwood – including pieces from her legendary Seditionaries boutique and some extraordinary knitwear finds – alongside a selection of his much-loved trainers. For example, a pair grey pony skin and blue suede Nike Terminator High Supremes lined with faux fur are sure to excite sneakerheads.

Menswear sales devoted to collectible fashion remain rare, making the event something of a milestone. As Director and Auctioneer Alex Baddeley explains, “Men haven’t typically been well served in fashion auctions. We were among the first houses to stage dedicated menswear sales beyond the draw of celebrity wardrobes.” Baddeley, who began his career in the contemporary art department at Sotheby's in London and New York, notes the breadth of the offering: “The earliest piece in the sale is a green silk waistcoat dating from 1770. From there, we move through to a menswear Chanel by Karl Lagerfeld piece from his 2016 Métiers d’Art show, and garments by Virgil Abloh for Louis Vuitton.”

Baddeley introduced “The Male Sale” as a recurring event at Kerry Taylor Auctions, and this edition casts its net wide. Among the highlights are 63 lots by Austrian designer Carol Christian Poell, all from a single private collector. One of fashion’s most elusive figures, Poell has cultivated a near-cult status among aficionados. He is renowned for avant-garde footwear and artisanal ready-to-wear crafted from experimental materials and treated leathers that evoke a distinctly gothic sensibility. Assembled largely by hand, his pieces are textural, distressed and sculptural, probing the boundaries between beauty and horror.

“There’s something unsettling about Carol Christian Poell’s designs,” says Baddeley. “The way he treats leather can make it appear almost skin-like, the stitching reminiscent of sutures. They are so rare and hard to come by. In fact, one collector told me that there are only 10 clients in the whole of the UK, so they really they are like art objects. There’s a tragic brilliance to them that echoes McQueen’s work, something you saw so powerfully on the runway." It's no wonder that McQueen was a fan too: among his 21 lots are a pair of Carol Christian Poell grey leather pointed boots, with side zips extending all the way to the soles.

Another standout piece from the late British designer’s wardrobe is a striking white double-breasted suit by Tom Ford for Gucci’s Spring–Summer 2003 collection. McQueen wore it to accept his International Award at the 2003 CFDA Awards in New York, cementing his place in fashion history. He later rewore the suit for his Autumn–Winter 2004–05 “Pantheon as Lecum” show, where he was photographed backstage with his close friend Kate Moss, she holding a glass of wine and a cigarette, perhaps accounting for the faint burns visible on the jacket’s white cuff. Far from detracting from the garment, these marks are a kind of label-defining hallmark, underscoring the glamour, mischief and creative freedom that defined McQueen’s life and aesthetic vision. "It's rare that a condition report that includes faults actually adds to the allure of a piece!" laughs Baddeley.

Another label close to Baddeley’s heart is Paul Harnden, who began his career as a shoemaker before moving into meticulously crafted, handmade clothing. His work is steeped in Victoriana, blending a romantic, bucolic spirit with a subtly distressed, modern edge. Each fabric is woven on handlooms exclusively for the designer, underscoring the rarity and uniqueness of his practice. The ultimate niche designer, famously worn by John Galliano, Harnden’s pieces are released in small drops through highly specialised boutiques, such as the Blue Mountain School in East London.

Among the eight Harnden lots on offer is a single ensemble: a brown waxed cotton coat layered over a green tweed jacket and an ivory cotton button-down shirt, paired with a grey lambswool–cashmere rib-knit cardigan and completed with brown leather gloves. The look channels a hardy, rugged strain of workwear, timeless in construction and evocative of a bygone era.

As for the Alexander McQueen headline pieces, Baddeley explains, they offer a fascinating window into the designer’s personal journey through the fashion industry. “In the 1990s, he had a slightly larger physique and dressed casually in plaid shirts and trainers. Coming from a working-class background, he gradually entered the world of luxury, and you can trace this evolution through his wardrobe. By the 2000s, his choices became sharper and more tailored reflecting his own background as a tailor on Saville Row, with carefully selected pieces by Gucci, Prada, Ralph Lauren, and Hermès."

Lot 134 is something truly special: a black-and-white photograph of Lee McQueen by Craig McDean, taken in 2002. McQueen is captured walking with his hands tucked into his jean pockets, a cigarette perched in his mouth, the background a wire fence lending the shot a raw industrial edge. “I think this is a touching image of a man deep in thought,” says Baddeley, “pensive, yet marked with quiet determination.”

The Male Sale takes place on March 10th at 14:00. Register to bid.

Since the 1950s, the mid-length grey skirt has swung between provocative allure and conservative modesty. On the one hand, this classic garment evokes images of demure workwear tied to the secretarial trope and popularised, for better or worse, by Hitchcock’s heroines. After all, who can forget Kim Novak in Vertigo, looking polished and oh-so-proper in an Edith Head-designed wool grey skirt suit? The actress later admitted she hated the ensemble, but acquiesced when Hitchcock insisted that its restrictiveness would enhance her portrayal of the deceitful Madeleine.

Figure-sculpting, soft on the hips and turning each step into a soignée sashay, the grey pencil skirt first entered the fashion scene as a prim-yet-sexy head-turner. But every classic can overreach: after power dressing peaked in the 1980s, the grey pencil skirt lost its potency along with its form-fitting edge. It became looser, duller and less flattering, a quick office uniform snatched from the high street rails. No longer a signifier of sharp sophistication, it became a ubiquitous functional go-to, at least until mid-1990s minimalism reinvigorated the style with low-slung waistbands and stretch fabrics.

In our collective memories, the grey pencil skirt continues to vacillate between quick-grab fashion and cool sartorial statement, and while it is often labelled a ‘wardrobe staple,’ this understates its standout moments on the catwalk and in fashion culture.

In 1995, the late Stella Tennant fronted an entire Vogue editorial dressed in grey tweed pencil-skirt suiting; in one now-famous image shot by famed photographer Arthur Elgort (see top of article), she dives fully clothed into an outdoor pool on a country estate, wellies and all.

Years later, Sex and the City offered its own subversive take on standard office wear: in season 5 of the series released in 2002, Sarah Jessica Parker’s Carrie Bradshaw wears a tight dove-grey pencil skirt with a black tank top, fuchsia Manolo Blahnik Hangisi heels and a tiara, transforming what was once associated with a nine-to-five uniform into a defiantly impractical, fashion-forward look – and, importantly, one more suited to a freelance, work-from-home life.

American Vogue’s former editor-in-chief Anna Wintour remains an enduring fan of this ashen-grey style, as does French fashion editor Carine Roitfeld, but the ultimate devotee is Miuccia Prada, who frequently dons a dark grey, slightly more A-line version to take her final runway bow.

The spring/summer 2026 catwalks signal a renewed embrace of the grey pencil skirt’s stylish credentials. Wraparound styles showcase dynamic front slits and straight silhouettes sit high on the waist, while low-rise iterations echo the archival looks of the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Calvin Klein’s new wool Luna skirt, unveiled during Veronica Leoni’s debut for the house, is one such Y2K-inflected example. Paired with a coordinating blazer on the SS26 runway, the style reads as a sleek reimagining of the brand’s minimalist DNA, defined by precise tailoring and clean lines. If the cult 1988 movie Working Girl, starring Sigourney Weaver and Melanie Griffith, were ever to be remade, this would be a costumier’s dream.

According to a February 2026 Net-a-Porter report, customer searches for grey skirts on the shopping platform increased by 275% in the first month of the year with the Luna in high demand.

Coming at this classic skirt style from a more creative perspective, Prada’s rendition feels distinctly collegiate, defined by a high waist and soft pleating. The new skirts are spliced with contrasting fabrics to form an asymmetrical silhouette, reinforcing the theme of the SS26 show, ‘The Body of Composition’, which explored the “dispersion and reunion of different elements, unexpected and unanticipated, composed on the body.” Prada’s charcoal grey mid-length skirts mix textures for a modern take on a classic, pushing the boundaries of femininity and formality.

At Chanel, creative director Matthieu Blazy’s SS26 ready-to-wear collection featured grey, knee-length wrap skirts characterised by a loose and breezy ease of wear. A low-slung, pocketed silhouette was punctuated by a front slit cut high across one thigh, asserting bold femininity. Inspired by an imagined conversation with Gabrielle Chanel, the collection evoked freedom, fluidity, and self-assuredness, with the skirts reinforcing this sense of autonomy and agency.

Jil Sander has long been a go-to for knee-grazing grey pencil skirts. For the coming season, creative director Simone Bellotti has revisited this archival style with a range of pencil silhouettes, enhanced with cut-outs at the waistband, deep central slits at the front, and even dramatic slashes across the fabric, creating a sense of fluidity, as if the material has a rhythm of its own.

Ultra-sheer fabrics, some sculpted into layers resembling plumage or floral clusters, were de rigueur on the Max Mara SS26 catwalk. Yet a dove-grey pencil skirt was crafted in its purest form, featuring a seamless, gossamer construction that sat low on the waist.

For something completely different, Dries Van Noten’s cotton-jersey longline skirt features a ruffle at the waist and an asymmetrical cut, lending a couture twist to a loungewear-inspired look.

For a more minimalist take, turn to The Row, Totême, or Victoria Beckham, where sleek pencil skirts are structured for effortless elegance. Unchanged since 1993, the Issey Miyake Pleats Please midi skirt remains the ultimate classic, with a straight cut, elasticated waistband, and two pockets. Available in slate grey No. 12 or silver light No. 10 from the brand’s coveted (and often sold-out BASICS series), it proves that a classic grey skirt is a timeless investment that never goes out of style.

Back in the hazy days of 1980s London, a group of six Belgian designers arrived to show off and sell their radically new styles. They were billed as the Antwerp Six. Now, 40 years on, MoMu (Fashion Museum Antwerp) is devoting a show to the work and impact of the group: Dirk Bikkembergs, Ann Demeulemeester, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dries Van Noten, Dirk Van Saene and Marina Yee, who collectively put Antwerp on the fashion map.

The Antwerp Six, although very different in their stylistic language, were united by pragmatism, ambition and a belief that a team can make a bigger impression than going solo. They chose the British Designer Show as the launch pad in 1986. ‘You had the post-punk movement; you had the New Romantics. London really was a centre for innovation, for youth culture, which was also inspiring the Six,’ says Kaat Debo, director of MoMu. ‘I think fashion was also ready for something new,’ she adds.

Their ‘newness’ ranged from Demeulemeester’s languid gothic garms to Van Noten’s elegant textile-rich ease, Van Beirendonck’s provocative street style and Bikkembergs’ new-wave tailoring – yet the Six were unified by their passion for craftsmanship. ‘They never collaborated on collections in a creative or artistic way. Yet they studied together, influenced each other and inspired each other,’ says Debo.

Belgian fashion at that time was known for mid-tier contemporary clothing, but not for ‘designer’ fashion, and the Antwerp Six grew out of a state initiative to boost the country’s emerging creative capital. ‘The Belgian government came up with a five-year programme, which was a kind of Marshall Plan for the industry. It founded an institution called ITCB (Institute for Belgian Textiles and Clothing of Belgium) to develop this plan, and one of the ideas was to foster young talent and matchmake that talent with manufacturers through a competition called the Golden Spindle Contest,’ Debo says. For the Six, that meant high-profile campaigns, editorial and professionally produced collections that met the high standards of luxury. They were soon picked up by retailers including Barneys in New York, and Whistles and Browns in London. A guerrilla runway show at London’s Westbourne Studios cemented their reputation. Today, the fashion department at Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts is one of the most renowned in Europe, spawning talent including Raf Simons, Meryll Rogge, Julie Kegels, Demna Gvasalia and Haider Ackermann. They too benefited from the Antwerp Six’s impact with Dirk Van Saene and Walter Van Beirendonck holding professor positions.

Around 80 designs are on display, alongside memorabilia, video and photography. ‘I hope that the show will also bring attention to the importance of building ecosystems in fashion. The system has to come up with new recipes,’ says Debo.

The Antwerp Six, 28 March 2026 until 17 January 2027, MoMu – Fashion Museum Antwerp

One of the most anticipated debuts at Milan Fashion Week this month was undoubtedly Demna's collection for Gucci. When the Georgian fashion designer took the reins from Sabato de Sarno last year, he began immersing himself in Italian culture. Visits to museums and galleries ensued, with Demna finding himself particularly captivated by Sandro Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus.

His debut collection was a celebration of Gucci's heritage. "Above the product, Gucci is culture, it is a way of thinking and a way of being," Demna said in a press release before the show. And the pieces certainly created a mood. Walking in a set that resembled a museum, a star-studded cast of models – including Gabbriette, Alex Consani, Kate Moss, Karlie Kloss, Amelia Gray and Emily Ratajkowski – wore silhouettes that heralded a new era for Gucci, while fully comprehending its enormous legacy.

It was sexy – skin-tight mini dresses, gothic lace and fur coats were accentuated by sequins, slits and cut-outs. The hues were dark and metallic, the makeup moody. Nods were paid to Tom Ford's revolutionary reign at the house back in the 90s – but this was no throwback. Demna just ushered in a new era of Gucci girl.

The baseball cap has evolved far beyond the sidelines. Now a staple of the fashion crowd the world over, it brings ease, attitude and subtle luxury in equal measure. From understated classics to designer statements, these are the caps we’re wearing now.

Dries van Noten first launched the eau de parfum Soie Malaquais in 2022. Created in partnership with perfumer Marie Salamagne, the formulation of Soie Malaquais lists notes of blac currant, bergamot, cacao, silk and roses. “The most striking note is the chestnut,” says Dutch artist Bouke De Vries. “It’s so rich and warm and it reminds me of when I first got to London in the winter and there would be people roasting chestnuts on a brazier creating the evocative smell of chestnuts .”

Born in Utrecht, Netherlands, De Vries trained at the Design Academy Eindhoven and in London, at Central Saint Martins. Following a period of working with fashion designers including John Galliano and Zandra Rhodes, De Vries changed tact somewhat, specialising in the conservation and restoration of ceramics. And he continues to work with ceramics to today, which led Dries van Noten to partner with him. Five masterpiece bottles of Soie Malaquais are the result of the collaboration, rendered in De Vries’ signature collage of ceramic fragments. “The fragments I use are from everywhere, they are mostly 17th and 18th Century porcelain from China and Delft ware from the Netherlands. These are all things I have collected over the years,” explains De Vries.

“For this project, it wasn’t just the fragrance itself that directly inspired the work, but mainly the blue-and-white porcelain element of the bottle,” he continues, describing the scent’s Delft ware influenced flacon. “The Dries van Noten team felt that this detail, belonging to their iconic Soie Malaquais, resonated strongly with my style, providing an opportunity to take a fresh and distinctive approach to the bottle design.”

One particular De Vries Soie Malaquais vessel is festooned with a rose-like arrangement, ceramic shards fanning out like a circle of petals. “The idea was that roses grow well in clay soil,” De Vries explains. “Clay was also used to make these porcelain objects, the fragments of which I then used to grow my own rose.”

Swiss perfumer Christine Nagel has been with Hermès since 2016. During her decade as the French maison’s in-house nose, Nagel has authored scents such as Agar Ebene – part of the Hermessence line of perfumers’ perfumes, Agar Ebene lists notes of oud, ebony and vanilla – and Twilly, which smells of ginger, bitter orange, tuberose and jasmin, and is named after a signature ribbon-like Hermès silk accessory. To Nagel, Hermès is a house with kaleidoscopic inspirations and themes. And for her, all began by researching the materials Hermès works with across its many metiers, from saddlery to fashion and jewellery.

“Right from the start, I immersed myself in materials – the leather store in particular – because at Hermès, everything starts with exceptional materials, unique know-how and carefully executed gestures,” she explains. “The saddle stitch, for example, is not just a technique, it’s a language: a way of assembling two elements together in such a way that they reveal each other over time.”

It’s this stitch that recently inspired a new scent. Released this month, Musc Pallida is part of Fleur de peau, a Hermessence group of skin scents. “In Musc Pallida, I have translated this idea into fragrance – like two pieces of leather stitched together, iris and musk gently merge, intertwine and gradually reveal their intimacy.”

Musc Pallida is above all a tribute to these two key notes, iris and musk.“Iris pallida is one of the most precious raw materials in my perfumer’s palette. It is a form of olfactory gold: radiant, subtle and profoundly elegant,” explains Nagel. “With Musc Pallida, I want to move away from an overly powdery or distant iris to reveal instead its softness, its light and its almost tactile dimension.”

To this, she added musk. “Musk is a surprising material that is difficult to describe in words,” says Nagel, and continues, “If I had to express it in an image, I would say it acts like an invisible underskirt. When it’s not there, everything is flatter. It gives a fragrance more volume. Together, iris and musk form a second-skin fragrance that is at once intimate, sensual, carnal and extremely delicate.”

As tributes and reflections on the late Valentino Garavani still reverberate, one striking and emotive exhibition tells a world of stories through the eyes of artist Joana Vasconcelos. Entitled Venus and staged at Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti’s art and educational foundation, PM23 in Rome – it is the last exhibition that Garavani conceived before his death in January this year.

Garavani first met Vasconcelos in 2018 visiting her studio in Lisbon. “Valentino had an instinctive and deeply cultivated relationship with art. For him, art was never distant; it was a living presence, a space of dialogue and transformation. His sensitivity extended far beyond fashion: he understood the power of creation as a shared human language, capable of expressing fragility, strength, beauty, and resistance all at once,” says Vasconcelos of the kismet.

Known for her provocative mega-scale installations – often made from everyday objects (tampons, mirrors, pots included) conversations continued with Garavani, inviting the Portuguese artist to offer an interpretation of his archive through her eyes. The upshot, Venus, sees 33 couture outfits in dialogue with 12 artworks that play off the abstract and the intimate, the rigour of couture with explosive soft sculptures. The centrepiece is Valkyrie Venus – a monumental work featuring a host of spectral ceiling-hung female forms created in an intricate patchwork of 3D textiles and illuminated with tiny LED lights. “Valkyrie Venus emerged from an in-depth study of Mr. Valentino’s aesthetic codes – his reverence for line, texture, and expression – reconfigured through scale, abstraction, and craft. Couture maintains an intimate relationship with the body, while my work externalises and amplifies gesture into spatial and symbolic realms. Both are languages of form and presence,” explains Vasconcelos.

The creative confluence is vibrant and expansive. While Valentino gowns are adored for their jewel-like colours, poetic embellishments and serpentine silhouettes, Vasconcelos takes ideas of beauty, gender and identity as her field of exploration. She examines female archetypes such as Marilyn: a site-specific installation created from domestic objects (pans, pots) sculpted into towering heels and flanked by three couture gowns. The exhibition culminates with Garden of Eden, an immersive environment inhabited by mythic women – Cinderella, the Femme Fatale included – who are positioned amongst a series of iconic embellished black dresses in tulle, silk, georgette and lace. Outside the gallery I’ll Be Your Mirror is giant mask fashioned from multiple decorative vanity mirrors acts as entrance and finale.

Vasconcelos does not work in an ivory tower and engages communities to take part in the artistic process. ForValkyrie Venus, she worked with social platforms across Rome, including a woman’s prison, inviting over 200 participants to create crochet panels that weighed in at 200kg and which wrap the 13m long Venus in a ‘second skin.’ “I hope visitors leave with the sense that beauty is generative – capable of provoking thought, fostering empathy, and creating unexpected connections. Seeing art and fashion as complementary ways of engaging with human experience can open broader reflections on identity, craft, and collective life,” she says.

When Valentino planned his legacy, PM23, was conceived as a cultural and educational arts space and also a tribute to Rome, the city that spawned Valentino Garavani’s ambition and profound sense of beauty. “The collaboration with Joana Vasconcelos allowed us to explore new languages, weaving together different skills, hands and stories, and to make visible the value of collective work and creativity as tools for empowerment,” said Garavani and partner Giammetti.

The Venus exhibition opens to the public on January 18 at PM23 – Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti Foundation. Tickets are available via the PM23 website or at the ticket office in Piazza Mignanelli.

Valentine’s Day has a habit of swinging between cliché and excess, but at its best, it’s really about attention: little gifts that suggest you know your beloved better than most. This edit, for him and her, is for those who’d rather sidestep the obvious in favour of objects that feel considered – offerings with a sense of story and craftsmanship, that will be treasured beyond February 14th.

Jonathan Anderson’s first couture show for Dior, presented in Paris this January, was a reminder that great design often starts with a simple idea. This creativity touched everything from the silhouettes to the beauty looks, including the remarkable hairstyles, masterminded by revered hairstylist Guido Palau.

Mirroring Anderson's own directive for the collection, Palau translated a personal exchange between the Irish designer and former Dior creative director John Galliano into a romantic vision: a series of blush-pink wigs and pom-pom florals. The inspiration came from a bouquet of cyclamen – soft lilac and powder-pink blooms tied with a black silk ribbon – that Galliano gifted Anderson during a visit to his atelier last year. Anderson later described the gesture as “perfect,” and it ultimately became a defining motif of the collection, subtly referencing Christian Dior’s enduring love of flowers and horticulture.

The wigs were cut into ultra-short bobs with veil-like fringes obscuring the models’ faces, evoking mystery and purity. Their unexpected faded-pink hue added an avant-garde edge, encapsulating a fashion house that has balanced elegance and innovation since its founding in 1946.

Pink hair has an uncanny ability to etch itself in the collective imagination, repeatedly emerging as a symbol of joy, rebellion, and romance. Among its most iconic moments is Kate Moss’s Spring 1999 Versace runway appearance with bright pink hair, a seminal example of unconventional beauty styling. This same year, she posed for Juergen Teller’s famous 1998 photograph 'Young Pink Kate', in which she is seen tucked up in billowy white linens, her head surrounded by sprawl of pink locks, capturing the nonchalant, kittenish charm that defined her public persona.

Pastel-tinted hair, however, is far from a modern invention. In the late 17th century, women of the French royal court dusted their wigs with soft pink, lavender, and baby-blue pigments, an aesthetic echoed in Kirsten Dunst’s cotton-candy coiffure in Sofia Coppola’s 2006 iconic movie, Marie Antoinette. In Britain, this rococo hairstyle trend was more subdued, embraced by flamboyant dressers and rendered with particular sensitivity by miniature portraitist John Smart who excelled at capturing its rosy tones.

The appeal of pink hair arguably reached a pinnacle of popularity in the bold, defiant aesthetics of the 1980s, swiftly embraced by music icons such as Cyndi Lauper and Madonna. In more recent decades, the shade has been revisited by a wide range of celebrities, from Lady Gaga and Lily Allen to Nicki Minaj and Bella Hadid. Guido Palau famously coloured model Kaia Gerber's hair pink in 2020, a colour he later described as " a little soft and a little antique," a description that seems fitting of his latest wigs for Dior too.

On the runway, Jean Paul Gaultier was an early pioneer. His Fall 1992 show at Los Angeles’s Shrine Auditorium, staged as a fundraiser for amfAR, featured male models with choppy, bubble-gum-pink crop cuts, setting the tone for an evening of irreverence and expressive freedom. Madonna, bleach-blonde on this occasion, famously walked the runway in a black maxi dress with cut-out breasts.

For Spring/Summer 2003, Gaultier adopted a more sculptural approach inspired by the mobiles of Alexander Calder. Natalia Vodianova appeared in two memorable pink constructions: an exaggerated nest-like topknot, followed by a swirl of candyfloss shaped like a giant sunhat, both styles finessed with long, cascading strands. For his Spring-Summer 2003 Haute Couture collection, some models' hair was braided with pink buttons.

Pink hair also recurred throughout Galliano’s work, both at his own label and during his tenure at Dior. In his Belle Époque–inspired Spring/Summer 1998 collection, Shalom Harlow appeared in a rose-embroidered pink organza gown, complete with a cherry-hued flapper wig. Galliano’s long-time collaborator Julien d’Ys later created the now-iconic carnivalesque wigs for his Fall 2009 catwalk, including a vivid candy-pink version that remains widely circulated on social media today.

Beyond Galliano, d’Ys’s decades-long collaboration with Rei Kawakubo at Comme des Garçons has yielded countless sculptural hair designs, with bright pink a recurring favourite. For the Fall/Winter 2009 'Wonderland' collection, exaggerated fuchsia chignons crowned the head like balls of wool, transforming softness into something strange and otherworldly.

A new generation of models has continued to redefine pink hair as a statement of self-defined beauty. Charlotte Free sparked a global craze in the early 2010s with her trademark pink locks, walking runways and fronting campaigns for the likes of Vivienne Westwood, Jeremy Scott, and Chanel.

More recently, Chinese-Australian model Fernanda Ly has brought a sleek, retro-goth sensibility to pastel pink hair, photographed by Juergen Teller for Louis Vuitton’s Fall/Winter 2015 and Spring/Summer 2016 campaigns. Kate Moss reprised her electric pink 90s look for Marc Jacobs' resort 2022 campaign, while Aeri Uchinaga (AKA Japanese-South Korean rapper and singer Giselle) who recently embraced what fans are calling her 'pink-haired era', was the star of LOEWE Paula's Ibiza 2025 campaign. Proof that pink hair remains a potent and exciting force in fashion imagery.

From wrists to necks, Guerlain has added scent to pulse points for almost two centuries. The French heritage brand was founded in 1828, when Pierre-François Pascal Guerlain, a chemist and perfumer, opened his first boutique Paris’ on rue de Rivoli. Following generations were to cement the Guerlain family name within modern perfumery, authoring fragrances such as Jicky - a unisex scent released in 1889 that is notable for its use of synthetic molecules – Shalimar, Samsara and the 1959 Guerlain Vétiver, a masculine best-seller.

And throughout, six raw materials proved pivotal in defining what Guerlain smells like. Notes of bergamot, jasmine, iris, vanilla, rose and tonka bean are listed in many of the company’s formulations. They make up the so-called Guerlinade, a secret concoction – or concorde – that since its introduction in 1921 by Jacques Guerlain has united a number of Guerlain creations. It’s there in Jicky and in Shalimar, in L’Heure Bleu and also in more recent launches such as Mon Guerlain.

This year, Guerlain pays further tribute to this sextet of scents by introducing a line of candles as an extension of its prestige L'Art & La Matière collection. The bee has long been a Guerlain mascot; here, highest-quality beeswax is perfumed and contained within two-tone, mix-and-match jars, which are refillable.

Blended by the brand’s perfumer creation director Delphine Jelk, among the offering is Iris Pallida (iris butter, musk and almond), the jasmine, strawberry and candied apricot Jasmin Grandiflorum and Rose Centifolia, a mix of May roses, patchouli and frankincense. Each L'Art & La Matière Guerlain candle can be engraved with initials or a personal message.

On Paris’ glamorous Rue Saint-Honoré, dwarfed by the vast, gleaming shopfronts of Saint Laurent, Dior and Balenciaga, there is a charming little outpost of the shoemaker Paraboot. The store is blink-and-you’ll-miss-it small, but it holds its own against the industry’s biggest fish. And it’s all thanks to one decades-old creation.

The Michael is the French brand’s flagship design, and the closest thing menswear has to an ‘it’ shoe. For the uninitiated, the Michael is a simple Derby with a flat, moccasin toe, short laces and chunky rubber sole. Not as sleek as a Chelsea boot, nor as elegant as a cap-toe Oxford. You might even call it ungainly. But for those in the know, the Michael is a fail-safe style icon and a totem of good taste. Sitting somewhere between a sneaker and a dress shoe, it marries equally easily with casual wear and tailoring, and is at once low-key and interesting.

In turn, it has become almost ubiquitous amongst the men’s style community over the past few years, with scores of collaborations, special-edition models and even copycat brands. It’s been so popular, in fact, that American GQ recently asked, ‘Is this the most important shoe in menswear right now?’

‘I’ve worn Paraboot since I was a young man,’ says David Keyte, co-founder of cult British clothing brand Universal Works. ‘I bought my first pair of Michaels 40 years ago.’

Keyte espouses the Michael’s versatility, but also appreciates the design for its post-war asceticism. ‘It was made at a time when World War Two was still fresh in the mind in Europe, [so] clothing and shoes had to suit the times; had to be versatile; had to be practical; had to be affordable; had to be utilitarian.’

‘Maybe the design came from post-war austerity, but it’s really stood the test of time,’ Keyte adds.

The Michael turned 80 this year and, as part of the celebrations, Paraboot and Universal Works have come together on a project titled ‘La Beauté Dans L’Imperfection’, which explores the nature of leather and how a piece’s flaws make it all the more special.

The collaboration has resulted in a concise clothing collection featuring graphics lifted from the Paraboot archive, and a reworking of the Michael in three colours. It features a removable leather tassel under the laces and the project’s poetic title embossed onto the side. ‘Every pair is made by hand,’ says Keyte, ‘so no two are ever identical. That’s where their soul lies.’

Foulard – doesn’t it sound so much more suggestive than the Anglo-Saxon scarf?

But that is the way with our French neighbours and silken scarves – at once a trophy, a social signifier and a seductive flourish that might swish past or simply shield la coiffure from the fluctuations in weather. The foulard is a gesture as much as it is an item – and it tells many tales.

At the Hermès Spring/Summer 26 collection, artistic director Nadège Vanhee reimagined the house’s leitmotif silk scarf as a flirtatious accessory to drape around the neck and down over the nipples via the revealing cut of her crop-leather harness tops. ‘I was thinking about the Camargue landscape and Arlésienne folk dress,’ said Vanhee of her stylistic triggers. Once a symbol of French upper-middle-class status, here the scarf took on an impromptu role of breast veil.

And don’t the French do impromptu well? It’s the reason why the silk scarf has been in the armoury of women (and men) for generations, magically transforming into a weather shield, flirtation tool, savvy neck wrap, sarong, bag accessory, and – via the ever-changing artistic prints – a talisman of the zeitgeist. Along the way, legions have tutored newbies in the dexterous skill of scarf tying, extolling its various functions in a way that British royalty never quite proffered.

‘What is interesting is how just a square of silk can become such a symbol for other things,’ says French author and writer Kelly Kaprielian. ‘For instance, wearing one vintage Hermès on my hair one day outside a pub in London, a man asked me if I was Muslim, while my scarf was – in my poor mind – a reference to the style icons of the 50s and 60s: Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly or Jackie Kennedy.’

In the UK, silk scarves were once firmly in the SW1 and shires postcodes, but now, thanks to the voracious appetite of Gen Z and a general impulse to upturn conventions, the scarf is coming into a new golden age. ‘We are draping and tying silk foulards to add colour, drama and interest to simple, elegant looks – styling small scarves on wrists as belts, hair ties and bandanas to bring colour and quirk and character to the everyday,’ says Jacqueline Ednie, head of design, scarves and soft accessories, at Liberty. ‘The origin of every Liberty scarf is an authentic archive source and each has been redrawn and reimagined for today,’ says Ednie, of the ever-growing library of styles.

The big boon to scarves is that they are precious yet versatile – wearing a big headscarf with a sporty tracksuit thwarts expectations, as does tying a triangle fold over the hips of a sheer midi skirt. Luxe brands, including Celine under the new artistic direction of American Michael Rider, are also upping the ante. Rider turned a blue-toned, white-edged, emblem-printed scarf into a number-one accessory, floating from bag handles, over shoulders and cowboy-style tucked into necklines.

In a delicious entente cordiale, I’m taken by the Bouquet Final design in Hermès’s seasonal collection, designed in collaboration with illustrators and artists across the globe. The bicolour orange and ivory design by English creative Katie Scott comes in a leather-fringed silk twilly version. In my view, that’s value-added swish and sway to the foulard game.

‘The scent of skin after effort, of strength giving way to intimacy. Notes of frankincense, patchouli and sandalwood linger like heat on the body, evoking the aura of a man returning from battle, ambition still in his blood.’ Sharmadean Reid, a successful serial entrepreneur, is describing the scent of Denarii, one of four oil body cleansers with which she recently launched 39BC.

With her business, Reid references traditions of bathing. Many are centuries old; cue North African hammams and Japanese onsens. It’s a proposition anchored in historical research: when developing the brand, Reid read widely, and her debut offering is inspired by Cleopatra and Mark Antony.

As well as Denarii, there is Sage Water, which Reid developed ‘thinking of the Priests of Isis in retreat from Rome’ and which lists notes of salt, aldehydes and moss; Silk Veil is a tribute to Cleopatra and smells of neroli, musk and tuberose. The aromas of violet leaf, coconut, fig and cyclamen feature in Fig Milk. ‘It smells of ripeness and of something on the verge of becoming,’ Reid muses. ‘It’s inspired by Cleopatra’s handmaiden but carries the same tenderness and tension as a French coming-of-age film, when yearning and discovery blur into one. A study of pleasure before experience, of desire before understanding.’ Rich in narrative, 39BC is a luxurious addition to everyday rituals.

In his 2015 book, Americana: How Japan Saved American Style, writer W. David Marx illustrates how, in the middle of the 20th century, a modest group of style-conscious Japanese souls imported, appropriated and perfected classic American ‘Ivy League’ clothing and workwear.

As Ametora (which translates as ‘American traditional’) thrived, America’s own sartorial industry – denim mills, shoemakers, workwear brands, and so on – dwindled, and so now, if you want the best old-timey Americana, you should head for Tokyo over Tallahassee.

That said, there are some holdouts. Wisconsin’s Allen Edmonds is still one of the foremost names in fine men’s footwear – and a pillar of classic Ivy style – after more than a century in operation. The brand’s Port Washington factory still churns out thousands of pairs a year, including a Reserve collection – handmade, Goodyear welted, cut from the finest calfskins, etc. – but over the past few years, there has been a swing for modernity.

Last year, the brand brought menswear deity and influencer-in-chief Nick Wooster on board to consult on creative direction. And a culture of vibey collaboration has emerged via the Legend series, which has seen the brand partner with the likes of fashion designer Willy Chavarria and shoemaker Armando Cabral on special editions of its classic styles.

In a boon for Ametora-heads everywhere, the latest collaborator to join the fold is Daiki Suzuki, founder of cult Japanese brand Engineered Garments. For decades, Engineered Garments has sat at the intersection of workwear, classic American sportswear and Japanese streetwear, creating what it describes as ‘garments that become more personal through the experiences you have with them’. It is the kind of label that others want to work with for its zeitgeisty halo effect. But this team-up has a full-circle feeling to it.

The result is the Adirondack Low Hiker – a take on Allen Edmonds’ classic Sun Valley hiker boot, a shoe that Suzuki has in his own wardrobe. The new hiker – somewhere between a mountain shoe and a dress shoe – features a Goodyear welt, EVA midsole and matte black hardware, finished with bold blue laces.

True to Engineered Garments form, the shoe is a slightly spooky riff on a menswear staple, but if it seems a little too out there, hold tight, a more conservative monk strap shoe will be launched in the run-up to Christmas. A little more wearable perhaps, but no less Ametoran.

Fermented skincare dates back to ancient Egypt, where sour milk and patchouli were common treatments for acne. Some five millennia on, a number of brands are tapping into the transformative power of fermented ingredients (albeit in a slightly more palatable way). FKA Haeckels has just released its Fermented Corneum Renewal, a lightweight cream that gently peels dead skin to reveal a clearer, firmer complexion. It is formulated with the company’s signature Spiraglow ingredient, made from spirulina that is slow-fermented in-house at the brand’s headquarters in Margate, Kent, to enhance its antioxidant power, calm inflammation and boost radiance. Even better, the cream comes in 100% compostable packaging.

Like FKA Haeckels, The Nue Co. is known for its innovative, ingredient-conscious approach to all-round wellness. The company rose to fame with its gut-health supplements, which combine clean ingredients with cutting-edge science and Ayurvedic and Chinese medicine teachings. With its Barrier Clear Treatment (£45), the brand translates its expertise into a topical cream that combats acne without irritating skin. It is formulated with live probiotics scientifically proven to inhibit skin bacteria, as well as bio-fermented essential minerals, including zinc, iron, silicon, copper and magnesium, to improve barrier function against pollutants and act as an anti-inflammatory.

For make-up lovers, the Isamaya Microbial Gel from Isamaya French is a prebiotic primer that is both make-up and skincare in one. It is formulated with prebiotics to shield skin against environmental pollutants and is enhanced with four different types of hyaluronic acid, soothing botanicals

Former beauty editor-turned-skincare founder, facialist and acupuncturist Joanna Ellner has made fermented ingredients a foundation of her skincare line and holistic health practice. According to Ellner, fermentation makes for uniquely effective skincare. ‘The benefits are three-fold,’ she says. ‘Firstly, you have the increased compatibility of ingredients with the skin, since fermentation breaks raw ingredients down into smaller, more bioavailable molecules that the skin can absorb more efficiently.

‘Secondly, despite the notion of it being all compost bins and huge leaps, fermentation is an incredibly sophisticated process with incredibly potent ingredients; the fermentation process essentially sharpens ingredients, removing what isn’t needed, and proliferating what is. And finally, and possibly the most important aspect of this, is increased skin tolerance. Our skin barriers are continually compromised and we are always searching for a band aid. Biotechnology, and fermentation as an extension of that, removes the band aid and builds a hospital instead. It’s an entirely new way to view skin science, and it’s built with the aim of not destroying and then rebuilding skin, but gently guiding it back to optimal balance.’

Ellner capitalises on the benefits of fermented ingredients with her brand Reome. Its signature Active Recovery Broth (£125) uses 16 clinically proven bio-fermented and biomimetic actives to enhance barrier function and provide supercharged hydration, while the new Firming Eye Treatment, with DHK-3, harnesses the power of a biotech-fermented triple flavonoid, known for its skin-repairing and firming properties. It also incorporates fermented minerals, botanical extracts and adaptogens that have been through controlled fermentation to enhance bioactivity while remaining highly tolerable across skin types.

Beyond skincare, Ellner recommends maintaining a healthy, ferment-filled diet. ‘My degree in Chinese medicine has taught me that our skin is a beacon of our physical and emotional health,’ she says. ‘The skin tells us what the body cannot. There is, however, no “one size fits all”.’

However you get your ferments, one thing is evident – they are the key to clear, healthy-looking skin.

Anyone who has been to the rodeo is familiar with its unique, terrifying thrill. A young cowboy decked out in his finery – hulking belt buckle, spurred boots, leather hat – mounts a bull; the crowd cheers; a gate is opened and out the pair go, flinging and spinning around until he’s flung to the ground. It is a short performance – the rider needs to stay on the bull for eight seconds in order to be deemed a success – but one that looks, from the audience’s perspective, impossible to achieve.

Byredo’s latest fragrance, Rodeo, pays homage to this brave and foolhardy ritual, its beauty and its violence. ‘Rodeo the fragrance captures the scent of the rodeo itself,’ says Byredo’s founder, Ben Gorham. ‘It’s the art and poetry of the rodeo, the violence, the fascination with the extremity of it. It’s the crackling sound of an old saddle, the singular focus of the bull rider. That moment when everything is calm, just before the rodeo starts.’

In particular, the fragrance is meant to conjure the exact moment those gates swing open, releasing the raging bull into the ring. It opens with warm leather and soft tobacco that recalls the smell of the saddle and the rider’s clothes before transitioning into refined notes of suede and violet, a nod perhaps to the surprising elegance of the performance; and then finishes with earthy vetiver and salted amber that give it a rugged touch, evocative of the dust floor as it’s kicked up by the bull’s hind legs.

It is also the last fragrance that will be released under Gorham’s leadership. Since founding the brand in 2006, Gorham has shepherded it into one of the most innovative beauty brands on the market, with a range of iconic perfumes and a make-up line developed with Isamaya Ffrench and later overseen by Lucia Pica. Byredo will continue without Gorham, but his departure certainly marks the end of an era. In true rodeo fashion, he’s going out swinging.

Despite its ever-evolving nature, there are still plenty of places in London that allow you to temporarily step back in time. Spectacle maker Cutler and Gross opened its first store on Knightsbridge Green, a narrow cut-through between two of west London’s busiest streets, in 1971, and if you peer into the window today, you’ll see a scene largely unchanged in over half a century. Neat rows of elegant frames, stylish staff and customers that look like they lead supremely interesting lives.

Graham Cutler and Tony Gross met at optometry college in the early 1960s, and soon came together to form a kind of yin and yang of eyewear. Cutler was fastidious, concerned with function and utility, whereas Gross favoured flamboyance. ‘People who need glasses don’t have to feel separated from glamour,’ he once said.

That balance between craftsmanship and flair garnered immediate attention from the art set – the likes of David Hockney, Grace Jones and David Bowie. They were drawn in by the melodramatic shapes, the richly coloured acetates, the handmade quality and the capacity for self-expression. Spectacles were once items of pure function – Cutler and Gross made them objects of desire.

Inspiration for new styles could come from anywhere: a film, an exhibition, a moment on the street, and when an idea struck, Cutler and/or Gross would scurry up to the studio and put George Smith, the original frame-maker, to work. Fittingly, the room above the Knightsbridge store is today the place where customers explore the brand’s bespoke service.

The Cutler and Gross collection is broad, ranging from chunky acetate statement-makers, to ascetic metal specs that you’ll barely feel on your nose. There are zeitgeisty collaborations, too, most notably with Palace, for whom Cutler and Gross recently made three pairs of sunglasses, the skatewear brand’s first foray into eyewear.

But the bespoke service, which starts at £895, offers the most authentic C&G experience. The Blend met with Marie Wilkinson, the brand’s style director (and design maven since 1983) at the Knightsbridge store to understand what might be possible.

Bespoke clients start by choosing a frame, she explained, noting how ‘modern workers’ (business types) tend to lean towards Cutler’s more restrained designs, while those in the art crowd – Peter Saville, Hans Ulrich Obrist and Bella Freud among others – still go for Gross’ ‘maximalist’ aesthetic.

They then choose the material, either the finest Italian acetate – polished at the factory near Como for 96 hours, part of a more than 200-hour process for each pair of frames – or buffalo horn, and then the design details. Perhaps your initials engraved at the temple, a parallel etching of New York’s Chrysler Building on the barrel in the arm, or star-shaped pins to hold everything together.

Then it’s the lenses. Cutler and Gross thin its lenses down, so the wearer’s eyes aren’t magnified from within. And unlike most specs, Wilkinson says, ‘they’re built without an ‘optical centre’, so you have the same clarity wherever you look.

Delightfully, the frames you eventually receive will be identified by a code, rather than a name. This is the same for all Cutler and Gross frames, bespoke or otherwise, to avoid the feeling of wearing someone else’s specs.

‘They’re not Elton’s glasses’, explains Wilkinson, highlighting the Rocket Man’s appreciation for the brand, ‘they’re yours.’

Choose your own details – perhaps your initials engraved at the temple or a parallel etching of New York’s Chrysler Building on the barrel in the arm

Cutler & Gross , 16 Knightsbridge Green, London, SW1X 7QL

Could it be a nostalgia for The Wolf of Wall Street vanity and insanity? A yearning for the stability of a corporate ‘uniform’ in uncertain times? Or a desire for a dress code that signals ‘winner’ when success can be so fleeting? The trio of impulses is enough to launch a new ‘corpcore’ mode into the style consciousness. Pinstripe suits, collared shirts, pencil skirts, blazer dresses, polished Oxfords and even attaché cases (courtesy of Balenciaga) are lining up like dutiful executives at a leadership conference.

The pronounced shoulders, sleek lines and sense of polish are a rebuttal to years of work-from-home casual attire that dominated post-Covid. Stylistic cues are being taken from Savile Row tailoring, from 90s dress-for-success manuals, from corporate thriller films and dramas: cue up Meghan Markle in Suits, Michelle Pfeiffer in Scarface and Cate Blanchett in Tár. But the twist in 2023 is towards an approachable kind of power.

‘In the past, power was communicated through sharpness, shoulder pads and a kind of armour. The sexualised version – the secretary look – was more about how men wanted to see women. Personally, I admire women who dress for themselves: sensual and intelligent, using their femininity as a tool in clever, unexpected ways. Intelligence is the new power,’ says Vienna-based designer Petar Petrov, whose leagues of C-suite clients are drawn to his distinct suiting cut in fine, light wools. ‘A friend joked she was still searching for her “boss-lady look”. All her employees are younger, and she wanted to feel fresh while also representing authority – but with comfort. She was frustrated because she couldn’t find much out there that balanced those needs,’ continues Petrov. Standouts this season (complete with punchy names) include The Strategist, a single-breasted jacket with a slim, patched pocket, and The Foundation Jacket, cut in Italian flannel with a hidden drawstring at the back to subtly adjust the silhouette.

The demand for assertiveness and efficiency is being answered across the board, from Prada’s slate-grey wool suiting, to Stella McCartney’s double-breasted pinstripe blazer mini dress and lace-trimmed pencil skirt (Rachel Zane to a tee), to Saint Laurent’s Prince of Wales checked jackets and matching culottes. Sets and suits alleviate the morning drama. ‘When we launched the brand, we kept coming back to the idea that a man could throw on a blazer and instantly look put-together. Why didn’t women have that same one-and-done piece? Executives still want to look powerful, but also gorgeous and confident,’ says Veronica Miele Beard, the American designer who co-founded the Veronica Beard brand with her sister-in-law, Veronica Swanson Beard. Their solution is interchangeable sets – crop jackets, midi skirts, button-down shirts, waistcoats and the bestselling Dickey jacket included.

The shared mission is to ease the dull anonymity associated with tailoring via details, proportions and styling. ‘Women in executive roles are prioritising comfort, levelling up and using fashion as a way to connect, rather than to create distance,’ says James Servini, head of personal shopping at Selfridges. ‘Well-made, well-cut tailored pieces can lift an outfit by the way they make the wearer feel and carry themselves. It’s that sense of confidence which makes them a valuable, long-term wardrobe asset,’ he says, noting how tailored trousers worn with sneakers, or jackets with capri pants all amplify individuality.

One of the most charming interpretations of corpcore came from 26-year-old Belgian designer Julie Kegels in a collection entitled Dress Code that debuted after finding a 1980s book Executive Style: Achieving Success Through Good Taste and Design by Judith Price. The glossy tome suggested how a whole office deco/wardrobe ‘look’ might guarantee professional success. Kegels wanted to capture that in clothes. Cue poplin shirts with giant shoulder pads, pencil skirts peeled down at the waist to reveal pale blue silk linings and boss-lady briefcases with their own waterproof ‘capes’. If only the route to the C-suite could be so simple.

Whether your dream retreat is chewing spelt at the Mayr clinic in Tyrol, a master detox at TheLifeCo in Turkey, or a head-to-toe diagnostic-led overhaul at Palace Merano in Italy, preparedness is key. You need to pack well to undergo the rigours of any reset health regime, because often the tough gets going before the benefits emerge and comfort is key. But what does comfort look like in the burgeoning sphere of wellness retreats? How much do you want to express your innate style when you have a packed daily schedule of colonics, vitamin injections, hiking, Pilates and hydrotherapy? Or is stealth-wealth anonymity the goal? These are conundrums worth investigating ahead of investing thousands in self-care with the end ambition of feeling rejuvenated and, well, swell. Those old Covid-era sweatpants don’t really make the grade – and who wants to be reminded of that tragic time?

For Paris-based creative consultant and curator Carmen Haid, founder of vintage site atelier-mayer.com, cosy is the goal. ‘I like to feel cocooned, practical and far away from fashion, make-up and high heels. Most retreats have bathrobes – but I check beforehand, as if not, I bring my own. I pack long kaftans by Marrakshi Life and New Tangier, a cashmere tracksuit (old Celine) and cashmere socks from The White Company, tank tops, T-shirts, a swimsuit by Eau, yoga kit, sunglasses, hoodie, comfy boots, and trousers for outdoors – plus hat, gloves, sunglasses, oil-free sunscreen, sleep mask and AirPods,’ says Haid of her typical packing list for her annual detox at TheLifeCo on the Turkish Riviera. ‘And I always bring my own slippers and a water flask!

Going on a retreat is not dress to impress, it is comfort and utility above all: a chance to explore my inner – rather than the outer – world, and not giving a toss about other people’s outfits,’ she adds. Yet, somehow, not dressing to impress can be just as demanding as the sartorial opposite. You need to think about activities and environment, not to mention your fellow wellness-seekers – shouty, logo-laden fabulousness is not going to go down well when everyone’s into the aching-limb, headache drudge of day three of a master detox.

‘Dress codes depend on where you are going, whether that’s a cleanse or a sports retreat, and remember – there will be different phases of how you are going to feel,’ says fashion editor and creative consultant Claire Thomson-Jonville. ‘As a general rule, I bring logoless things – a full black sports look by Nike, which has great new seamless sports bras and flattering leggings, a cool Champion hoodie, white tube socks, Birkenstocks and sneakers. As the day progresses into early evening, I like a cosy, chic vibe with knit joggers and Loro Piana cashmere,’ she adds.

Thomson-Jonville channelled her own experience of detox holidays into developing retreats around the world with her company, Out of State. Four or five times a year, she runs a silent retreat from a château in the Loire Valley. At the last edition, she welcomed 22 guests from 18 different countries to embark on five days of silence, a total digital detox and a juice cleanse. The thinking behind the retreat is the opportunity to reconnect with self and with nature. ‘People generally experience an emotional breakthrough, and the silent aspect is an opportunity to connect with spirit, soul, and one’s own intuition, which we don’t tend to listen to. Without talking, new connections are made, and that can be transformational,’ she explains, adding that a great Moleskine notebook is a good idea for journalling, along with an Anya Hindmarch zipper pouch and a tote bag for carrying your things around between activities.

Little personal elements can make a big difference. ‘I recently shopped for a client heading to SHA Wellness Clinic in Spain,’ says Sukeena Rao, co-founder of personal shopping/styling service Luminaireco. ‘I chose Alo bodywear, a wonderfully soft fleecy cashmere zipper sweater by Brunello Cucinelli, an all-climate Beta AR Arc’teryx jacket, a pack of three pairs of Raey silk ribbed socks (you always need more than you think), bodywear by The Esthe (the fine-mesh layering pieces are so gentle on the skin) and Olivia von Halle silk pyjamas. And I secretly added Vyrao scent sticks, because you want your room to smell gorgeous.’

In the process of transformation, whether physical or mental, one might also seek aspects of semi disguise. Lara Mead, the co-founder and CCO of Varley, a lifestyle brand with a recently opened store on London’s King’s Road, opts for headwear. ‘Comfort is key, but I also like to feel considered. A DoubleSoftTM tracksuit, which is elegant and laid-back, and an oversized Varley knit are my go-to, and I never travel without a baseball cap – it finishes off a look and hides a multitude of sins. For workouts, it’s plain black leggings – the Always High from Varley are a favourite,’ says Mead, who has the Lanserhof in Sylt on her escape list for 2024. DoubleSoftTM (a mix of viscose, polyester and elastane) is lightweight and breathable, and the signature zipper funnel necks are also handy if you’re leaning towards incognito.

When working hard to rejuvenate from the inside out, choose fabrics that work equally hard for you. Anna Laub, founder of activewear and eyewear brand Prism London (prismlondon.com), with a store on Chiltern Street, spent years developing a seriously stretchy knit fabric for her multi-use Prism2 range that includes bralettes, T-shirts, swimsuits and leggings in gorgeous colours such as olive, apricot and rusty pink. The fabric is quick-drying, sweat-wicking and chlorine-resistant, the swimwear doubles up as bodywear and the leggings are chic enough to wear as everyday runarounds. ‘Prism2 is sustainably made in Italy using a 3D knitting technique that minimises waste, and an eco-dye technique that is Greenpeace-certified. The pieces are all multi-fit too,’ says Laub.

One might experience weight loss on a retreat, so by the end of the stay, a crisp cotton oversized shirt (try With Nothing Underneath or Charvet) and a swimsuit will suit the big feel-good reveal. Think of yourself as a butterfly emerging from a cocoon. Pack well and pack light – because, after all, you are worth it.

The language of textiles and rugs is a mysterious one. A vocabulary with differences that lie, quite literally, on the floor, but also in details that only the specialist can discern. One of those experts is Jess Maybury. ‘I’m used to looking at 5,000 things and seeing that one incredible object,’ the textile dealer says of her globe-spanning sourcing trips, going on to explain, ‘It started with Ralli quilts from Pakistan’s Sindh region.’

Formerly a model, Jess faced campaigns for Lanvin, Vivienne Westwood and, most notably, Marni – a brand she remains close to. ‘If I’d done a modelling job and was a bit flush, I’d buy 10 or so quilts and sell them through my Instagram,’ Jess says of the beginnings of her business.

From there she went on to host pop-ups and collaborate with furniture dealers such as Milo Cordell and interior decorator Jermaine Gallacher. Now having established her showroom in London’s Hoxton, Jess’ space exemplifies her eye for beautiful discoveries. ‘I have suzanis from Uzbekistan, kanthas, Iranian wall hangings, banjara bags, kilims and more,’ she gestures. The thrill of the chase has always driven her, ‘Whether at a market, auction or even house clearance, I’m guided by instinct, looking for what’s been forgotten. I get so happy spotting something that I’ve never seen before.’

Growing up in Woodstock, Jess was surrounded by exquisite fabrics; her mother, Louisa Maybury, is the founder of a beloved textile gallery in the small Oxfordshire market town. ‘When I was young, I joined her on sourcing trips and now at 32, I’m still doing the same,’ she says of a tutelage that’s taught her well. The pair visited India earlier this year, ‘We met dealers that I’ve known since I was 10 and am now working with. My mum’s influence has been fundamental to me, her curiosity always inspiring.’

She recently returned from a visit to New York where she is stocked by Surrender Dorothy on Union Square. The bright, block-coloured walls of the cult store act as the perfect foil for a selection of her richly patterned quilts. ‘A textile is artwork, much like an abstract painting. Some with psychedelic or science-fiction-like results,’ Jess laughs. It’s an exciting aesthetic but it’s never too serious; it feels joyous.

Parsing the history from each piece is important to her too. ‘People have been trading in fabric crafts for thousands of years, there is a deep tradition of visual storytelling intrinsic in every stitch. Definitions vary from village to village, one natural dye to another. I’m still learning all the time,’ Jess admits modestly. ‘Decoding a rug, for example, can sometimes be much harder than a painting or sculpture.’ A collection of reference books in her showroom is testament to this. Riffling through archaic tomes is part of the job, but Jess doesn’t deny the utility of a Google reverse image search. In the esoteric world of textiles, there are positives to technological advancement.

There’s also no denying the emotional resonance each piece holds. ‘I always think about the women who so often made them in groups,’ Jess says. ‘These have taken hours of work to create, usually way beyond the input of an “art bro” painting... Textiles can still be represented as a twee, feminine hobby, but what’s quaint about women making things together? To me, people being creative is one of the purest things.’

Now with clients including stylist Francesca Burns, designer Ashley Williams and actor Patricia Arquette, what’s next for Jess? ‘It’s more about where I’d like to learn about next... I want to explore South America and the textiles of Guatemala,’ she says excitedly.

Fitted with a blush-pink door, a neoclassical townhouse on Charles Street, Mayfair, is the London pied-à-terre of Dr Joseph Hkeik. In his native Sydney, the Australian cosmetic physician founded his All Saint Clinic in 1999; in London, his recently opened site goes by the name Le Petit Saint. It’s a place where innovative tools and techniques are framed in artistic flourish, including light fixtures by designer Lee Broom and Vivienne Westwood rugs. But, aside from consultations with Dr Hkeik, who will travel between his clinics during the coming months, it’s Le Petit Saint’s on-site facilities that are worth booking in for.

A menu of non-invasive facials includes treatments using advanced Synchronous Ultrasound Parallel Beam Technology (SUPERB™) to stimulate collagen production, the EmFace with sculpting synchronised radiofrequency, or LED light therapy.

For the Saint Rexonage Quantum Lift, the clinic’s team uses the Rexonage, designed to interact with the skin’s stem cells using Quantum Molecular Resonance technology. Non-invasive, the treatment is said to increase dermal thickness.

IV therapy – such as the Longevity Experience IV, which combines the coenzyme NAD+ (widely discussed as a tool to rejuvenate cells) with essential nutrients – forms part of the boutique clinic’s whole-body wellness offering, which also includes Hyperbaric Hydroxy Therapy, experienced via a 30-minute lie-down in the clinic’s own cylindrical device. Promised benefits include skin rejuvenation, a reduction of inflammation and a boost of energy. Elsewhere, a 20-minute catnap in one of two Energy Pods is soundtracked to content mixed to match the three key phases of a short sleep cycle.

Following the introduction of its Dior Lady Art project 10 years ago at Art Basel Miami Beach 2016, the maison has extended carte blanche to a global list of creatives. Both blue-chip names and artists on the rise have since reimagined the Lady Dior bag. Among them are Mickalene Thomas, Ian Davenport and Judy Chicago. In 2017, German-American artist Friedrich Kunath, whose work – created in his studio in southern California – features permanently in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New York, and Paris’ Centre Pompidou, added rainbow-coloured handles and cloud-shaped charms to his Lady Dior.

French painter Inès Longevial is among this year’s line-up of 10 collaborators, which also includes UK-based artists Marc Quinn and Lakwena, and Haitian-American painter Patrick Eugène.

Longevial is known for her use of colour in portraiture. It’s a specialism she has now applied to a trio of Dior creations. One Lady Dior bag is emblazoned with a blue-tone female likeness embroidered with multidirectional threads; another is made using a patchwork assemblage of the artist’s best-known works and is topped with a crown of dusty lilac feathers. ‘As a child, I watched my grandmother assemble fabrics with infinite patience. Patchwork has always been a part of my imagination,’ Longevial explains of the design. ‘I worked on an assemblage of faces and details, such as flowers, suns and snakes.’ Finally, a mini Lady Dior is embroidered throughout.

At Dior, every Lady Dior bag comes with a bundle of charms spelling the brand’s name in polished metal. It’s a detail Longevial reinterpreted on her feather-topped design, separating the four letters and placing them across to visually striking effect. ‘This bag could well be the evening companion of David Bowie or Niki de Saint Phalle,’ she decrees.

The bottles of a group of recently launched fragrances are more than mere vessels. Considered objects, some are shaped from materials more regularly used in a sculptor’s studio than perfumery laboratory, others are the creations of award-winning architects and industrial designers.

At Louis Vuitton, Fantasmagory, the seventh scent of the maison’s Les Extraits line, is the work of in-house master perfumer Jacques Cavallier Belletrud. Here, the key note is vanilla: Cavallier Belletrud chose tahitensis vanilla, whose pods, once sourced in Papua New Guinea, are pulped and then cryogenically frozen, before CO2 extraction captures their aroma. Fantasmagory’s flacon is equally visionary, as Louis Vuitton’s signature rounded glass bottle (designed by Marc Newson) is topped with a silver metal cap in the shape of a wind-blown flower, as sketched by Frank Gehry.

French creative Philippe Mouquet designed the bottle for Barénia Eau de Parfum Intense by Hermès. A follow-up to 2024’s Barénia Eau de Parfum, for this year’s iteration the brand’s in-house perfumer Christine Nagel swaps the formulation’s patchouli note for the rich scent of a patchouli absolute. Mouquet is well versed in Hermès’s visual vocabulary, having previously designed printed silks, timepieces, including the Heure H, and the Terre d’Hermès bottle, among others. This new flacon is lightly dressed in an amber tone degrade lacquer, its metal plate inspired by Hermès’ Collier de Chien bracelet.

Another French heritage business, Trudon has introduced Nuit Rouge, a new collection of three night-time fragrances. All three, including the amber woody Midnight Omen (by perfumer Émilie Bouge), come in ruby-red lacquered glass bottles with golden metal name plaques. At Perfumer H, a golden beetle sticker is placed on limited-edition issues of Rose With Insect, for which Lyn Harris added the scent of peaches, neroli, cardamom and musk to rose. Gold tones also come to the fore at Dries van Noten. An olfactory interpretation of nights in Cuba, perfumer Jordi Fernández’s Havana Gold blends the scent of liquorice with tobacco, all captured in an amber-tinted glass flacon with an aged brass base.

Also of note are Eragon by Parfums de Marly – one of three fragrances that make up the brand’s new Les Extraits offering, which is inspired by guillochage, a centuries-old mechanical engraving technique, and which come in glass bottles topped with tactile, engraved metal caps – and Lazuliou by Diptyque. Themed around peacocks and the bird’s striking plumage, Lazuliou’s paper box is decorated with a watercolour by artist Nigel Peake. A textured illustration also features on the glass bottle, framed in Diptyque’s signature oval.

Elsewhere, it’s the possibility to personalise that makes flacons stand out. Dior’s Rose Star is a thematic tribute to Christian Dior’s favourite flower and his lucky star. Created by the maison’s perfume creation director Francis Kurkdjian, 100ml and 200ml bottles of Rose Star can be ordered with Couture caps – embossed with Dior Oblique, Cannage, Houndstooth, Toile de Jouy, Plan de Paris or an animal-theme Mitzah pattern – as well as complimentary engraving.

Staying with caps: at Loewe, the lids of three new Crafted Collection bottles (Roasted Vanilla, Iris Root and Bittersweet Oud) are sculpted from pale white granite.

Finally, Ffern. The creations of the Somerset-based company are released seasonally and available by lottery. If successful, expect to receive new scents with each season’s solstice or equinox. At Ffern, sustainability is writ large. Outer packaging is free of plastic, there’s a kraft paper tube in lieu of caps, and the glass bottle is fully recyclable via regular recycling collection.

Gucci Westman

Make-up artist, founder of Westman Atelier and Italian pyjama enthusiast

Charles March

The Duke of Richmond and Gordon, philanthropist, artist, founder of Goodwood Events and wearer of buffalo horn sunglasses

Liza Laserow Berglund

Co-founder and chief creative director of Nordic Knots, who serves tea from antique teapots

Rosemary Ferguson

Wellness expert, founder of the R Health Club and Smythson note-taker

Kesewa Aboah

Artist and lover of thoughtful discussions

Jonny Gent

Founder of Sessions Arts Club and Cabin Studio, and Takibi Firepit Chef

Oona Finch

Drama Student and Keen Sunglasses-Wearer

Álvaro González

Designer and Player of Rummikub

Tapestry by Graeme Black, POA

Graeme presented this new tapestry work in October at Thorns Gallery in Yorkshire and then in London. The colours, the texture, the proportions are beautiful, elegant, modern and warm. His work is a study of tree trunks found around his home in Yorkshire. He started in charcoal, then oil and now wool.

A stay at the Lanserhof medical spa, Tegernsee or Sylt, Germany, POA

I love going to the Lanserhof. It’s my time to unwind, recharge and take care of myself. I like to spend time in nature, swim in the lake (if I’m at Tegernsee), and focus on balance rather than restriction. A week of treatments at Lanserhof truly feels like the ultimate luxury. The Tegernsee location is just an hour outside Munich, making it wonderfully easy to reach, but if I can slip away from work a bit longer, I’ll go to Sylt – the island is pure magic.

Necklace in 18k Fairmined textured gold set with white diamonds and rock crystal by Ana Khouri, POA

When I decided to create my own textures while working with gold, I felt an incredible sense of freedom. I develop each texture separately and then incorporate it into the metal on each piece. Since most of my work consists of one-off pieces, I have the liberty to craft unique compositions using the rarest and most precious materials. For example, we began this necklace by moulding the design to the body, perfecting its function, and only then moved on to working with the chosen materials. I love shaping and moulding the rock crystal, then combining it with gold and white diamonds.

Wedged precariously between the industrial hulk of Newcastle and the biting hostility of the North Sea, South Shields doesn’t exactly scream ‘fashion industry’. And yet, since 1894, it’s been home to one of the UK’s most important and celebrated heritage clothing brands. And, right now, that brand is cooler than it’s been in a long time.

Like Hoover vacuum cleaners or Google, the name Barbour has long ceased to refer to just matters of the company itself, and is now a catch-all term for any and every piece of outerwear made from waxed cotton. Many brands make them, but if you take to the street (or the harbour, or the moors) in a wax jacket, people will assume it’s a Barbour.

Scotsman John Barbour came down to South Shields at the end of the 19th century with the view of outfitting the town’s seafarers and fisherman in his oil-cotton outerwear, and that he did. For almost a century, a Barbour jacket was a piece of hardy workwear and little more – popular, capable and reliable, but culturally unremarkable.

Then, in the early 80s, Barbour released the Bedale and Beaufort, two jackets that would swiftly reposition the brand as unofficial outfitter to the British upper classes. They were favourites of the Royal Family – who duly granted Barbour a series of warrants – and then, perhaps even more influentially, the Sloane Rangers, a group of preppy young aristocrats that adopted the Barbour as their default outer layer. Princess Diana wore one while visiting the Isle of Barra in 1985, shielding herself from the persistent Scottish mizzle.

Apart from a brief period in the heady days of roughboys ‘Indie Sleaze’, the Barbour wasn’t ever quite as zeitgeisty as it was in the 80s. But recently, the brand’s stock seems to have suddenly risen once again.

Collaboration is nothing new in fashion – and over the past few years Barbour has variously teamed up with the likes of Noah, Supreme, YMC and Ganni – but this autumn/winter, there is a flurry of new partnerships across the price spectrum and, curiously, each collection features its take on one cult Barbour in particular.

The Spey was another of the brand’s 80s creations, replete with the corduroy collar, the South Ayrshire tartan lining and the oversized two-way zipper. But, designed for the rigours of fly-fishing, it was cut with a drastically short body. The Spey remained the reserve of country sportspeople for decades, but in line with latter-day trends for cropped-torso clothing, its star has risen, and though it started as a cult buy for those in menswear’s preppy fraternity, it seems that, now, everyone wants a piece of the action.

This season, there are cropped collaboration Barbours in collections at Arket, Levi’s, Paul Smith and John Lewis, although none are quite as aggressively short as the original Spey, which Barbour still stocks.

The best of the bunch is at Margaret Howell, where the cropped Barbour forms part of the brand’s fourth collection together. ‘Exploring their archive again reminded me of the strength and purpose in traditional outerwear,’ says Howell, a designer lauded for her mastery of luxuriously functional clothing. ‘I find real satisfaction in refining pieces that are made with care, designed to be worn and built to last.’

Durability is indeed integral to Barbour’s appeal, and purists may decide to seek out an authentic 80s model, though an original Spey will probably set you back well over £1,000. If you don’t want to follow the crowd, the smart move might be to invest in a Barbour homage from the likes of Drake’s, Ralph Lauren or James Coward.

That said, it’s hard to argue with more than 129 years of coat-making heritage. If it’s good enough for the King himself, perhaps it isn’t worth the gamble.

For most people, the holiday season is a month-long Ferris wheel that cycles between moments of high and low energy – from party to exhaustion; overbooked calendar to comatose on the couch; expertly executed glam to pyjamas and Netflix. In preparation, we’ve compiled an edit of the best beauty products to see you through both sides of the spectrum, a toolkit that allows you to easily transition from party mode to the day after.

For make-up lovers, the launch of Chanel’s limited-edition holiday collection is a noteworthy event of the season, especially since the brand unveiled its Cometes Collective in 2022. Composed of three make-up artists – Ammy Drammeh, Cécile Paravina and Valentina Li – the collective has breathed new life into Chanel beauty with a radical approach to colour. This season, French make-up artist Cécile Paravina took charge of the holiday collection with a rich range of blues inspired by a starry night sky. The Les 4 Ombres eyeshadow palette in Nuit Astrale (£60) features a glimmering purple-silver shade, medium matte blue-grey, elegant lavender and aqua-blue highlighter. Cosmique, a matte blue-grey nail polish (£27), complements the shades.

Where Chanel took inspiration from the sky for its holiday make-up collection, Byredo looked to the sea. Designed by Lucia Pica, Byredo’s make-up partner and another master of colour, the collection features a range of shades inspired by ‘the shifting light and contrast of the Nordic Sea’. The most innovative of these designs, pictured below, is the Liquid Lipstick Vinyl in Sea Whisper (£45), a transparent shade glimmering with subtle silver pearls that wears elegantly alone or adds a glittering touch to any of your lipstick shades.

For an extra touch of glitter, try Dior’s Forever Glow Maximizer in the limited-edition shade 001 Abracadabra (£38, dior.com). The most sparkle-filled edition of the brand’s beloved liquid highlighters, the formula is infused with iris extract to hydrate skin. To wear, daub the applicator in a crescent shape from the uppermost part of the cheekbone along the hairline, then blend with your fingers. It can also be applied to the bow of your lip for added plumpness or worn as a gloss on eyelids for extra shine.

Finish your party prep with a spritz of All Night Until First Light by Discothèque (£120), a fragrance inspired by Ibiza’s Amnesia club, which opened in 1976 and is credited with popularising house music. A warm, citrus scent, it features heart notes of saffron and magnolia, blended with warm cashmere and juicy grapefruit and rum.

When the sun actually does rise, and you have cold city streets, not glimmering Ibiza sand dunes, to face – fear not. First, give your skin some much-needed hydration with a product like Omorovicza’s Daily Dew (£110), which is formulated with the brand’s patented Healing Concentrate (a high-powered distillation of Budapest’s mineral-rich waters) to deliver a boost of moisture, while also blurring pores and creating a dewy glow – in short, quickly reversing the effects of a night that was high on revelry and low on sleep.

A swipe of Macrene Actives High Performance Eye Cream (£105) gives an additional plumping and brightening boost to the delicate under-eye area, with a blend of 38 plant extracts, hyaluronic acid and peptides, formulated by New York dermatologist to the stars Dr Macrene. While a glaze of Guerlain’s new Abeille Royale Bee Lab Shot (£51, guerlain.com) on top will deliver a concentrated blend of 20 percent vitamin Cg for a radiant glow and Norwegian black bee honey to support the skin’s natural repair process.

To feel as good as you’ve managed to make yourself look, try taking the NRC + Resveratrol supplement from Australian wellness brand SWIISH (£49.95), which is formulated with a potent dose of vitamin B3, known to reduce tiredness, fatigue and support alcohol metabolism.

In Sense Check, our monthly Q&A, we unearth the sensorial pleasures of a contemporary tastemaker.

What is the first thing you see in the morning?
My husband, asleep. I'm a morning person and he's a night person. Then I look out of the window to see what the weather is. I rarely close the curtains. I like to see what's going on with the day.

Describe the view from where you are right now...
I'm actually looking out of my cottage at a white beach with a palm tree. I have been dodging the rain for a few days in the Caribbean, on Mustique.

Is there a view you can't quite forget?
Being at the top of Oblivion at Alton Towers. It tips forward before you plunge into the dark. I'm not great at heights, but I love rollercoasters.

Which artwork could you see every day?
My husband [Jake Chapman] is an artist, so I am lucky to have lots of things. I see a Mat Collishaw every day, a Damien Hirst, a huge Harland Miller Penguin print, and the Chapman Brothers' art.

What sound do you wake up to?
I live in the country, so in the summer it's birdsong. In the winter, it's quiet. It might be my dogs barking downstairs! I'm usually up by sixish. It's quiet and calm, and I quite like that.

What sound would you like to wake up to?
I suppose because of where I am today, waking up next to the ocean is pretty nice.

What gets you dancing?
I'm a bit of a 90s raver, so I like house music. Disco will always get me on my feet. Being around my girlfriends makes me feel like dancing. There's been a lot of dancing here – on the beach, in the kitchen, around the pool…

Which singer or song do you never tire of hearing?
The Stone Roses' "I Am the Resurrection". Also, Alison Limerick, "Where Love Lives". Music is amazing. It can change my mood.

Which smell takes you back to childhood?
When I was seven, we lived in Rio for two years. Then my dad moved to Kuala Lumpur. So the smell of tropical rain really reminds me of being a child.

What do you smell of today?
I just had a dip in the sea, so I smell of the sea and a bit of suncream. And the Dior perfume Lucky.

Does your home have an aroma?
Usually whatever my latest cooking adventure is. Garlic, herbs, things like that. And I usually have a candle going. Ambre Nuit by Dior is amazing.

What's your flavour?
I love spices, like cumin, turmeric and coriander seeds. Anything with ginger in it, I'm happy with.

Describe a dish that's stayed with you...
When I'm away, it’s vongole. I am not a massive pasta fan, but vongole to me is always like you're on holiday. Even just the clams – delicious!

What is the taste of spring?
I'd think of the colour green: cabbages, spring greens. Spring can still be a bit cold, so I'd make a roast chicken with slaw, new potatoes and mint.

Olive or a twist?
Are we talking Martinis? They are my go-to and I like the best of both. A Dirty Martini with a twist.

A dish you cook for yourself ?
I have a Thai green curry that I like to make. It's really easy, you just put everything into a blender. I love the taste of it and enjoy the whole process.

Silk or cashmere?
I'd say silk pyjamas but cashmere for everything else. The feeling of cashmere is the best.

Marble or wood?
To touch, wood. Marble is quite cold and hard.

What does spring feel like?
To me, exciting. It's a fresh breeze rolling in after winter. You can see things coming up, growing. This sounds cheesy, but spring feels quite hopeful!

Favourite piece of furniture at home?
My bed – I look forward to getting into it. I actually have a dead posh cashmere blanket on there, from Louis Vuitton. I love my sleep, basically

roseferguson.com

This article was originally published on The Week

‘A good perfume is one whose scent corresponds to an initial dream,’ the perfumer Jacques Guerlain said. For Guerlain with Shalimar, the dream was the love story between Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan I and Princess Mumtaz Mahal in 17th-century India, and the scent he created corresponded so well that he not only created a ‘good’ perfume, but one of the most successful in history.

Shalimar takes its name from the royal gardens the emperor built for the princess, before her untimely death inspired him to build one of the seven new wonders of the world – the Taj Mahal. Moved by this story of tragic love and the imagined culture of a land far from his native France, Guerlain set about creating a sensual and smoky fragrance that, in his words, ‘lets your senses take over’.

The real key to Shalimar’s innovation, however, came courtesy of Guerlain’s friend, a chemist named Justin Dupont who was experimenting with a new compound called ethyl vanillin. The synthetic ingredient created a uniquely potent vanilla scent that became the foundation of what would not only become Shalimar, but a whole new category in the history of perfumery: amber fragrances.

Amber perfumes are defined by their unique blend of warm, sweet and powdery notes, a profile Shalimar achieves through a combination of fresh bergamot with floral notes of rose, jasmine, iris and that signature, synthetic touch of vanilla and tonka bean. This unique combination of notes also forms the foundation of Guerlain’s ‘Guerlinade’, an accord that has become a signature feature of almost every one of its scents since Shalimar’s creation in 1925.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of Shalimar and to celebrate, La Maison Guerlain has created Shalimar L’Essence, a fragrance that reconfigures the original’s essential components into a new, more modern variation.

Shalimar L’Essence celebrates the vanilla character of its ancestor with a new interpretation of the ingredient. Delphine Jelk, perfumer and Guerlain’s director of perfume creation, formulated Shalimar L’Essence with a rich Madagascan vanilla tincture that heightens the woody, slightly leathery qualities of the original formulation. Notes of subtle bergamot are still present, as well as a blend of rose absolute and powdery iris. Rich in added musks that did not exist a century ago, this new iteration of Shalimar is richer in a way that is designed to appeal to modern tastes. The new edition also features a fresh update of the perfume’s classic art deco-inspired ‘batwing’ bottle, with a bold, gold-lettered logo emblazoned on its front.

‘I wanted the new Shalimar to keep the emotion, to go into its heart, its essence,’ says Jelk. But, she continues, ‘I wanted to associate it with certain ingredients, like certain musks that didn’t exist in Jacques Guerlain’s time, and bring it a sensuality that fits with the spirit of the times.’

For a long time, lip unguent didn’t come on a stick. It wasn’t served up in smooth columns of ruddy, angle-cut perfection and didn’t benefit from a bullet-like compact casing and micro-engineered, swivel-action system that delivered lushness to mouth, to order, in evenly intense quantities.

Five thousand years ago, things were more make-do and basic – the men and women of Mesopotamia crushed gemstones to smear onto their faces, while Egyptians ground cochineal insects to make carmine colour for the lips.

During the Bronze Age, women from ancient Harappan Civilisations in Southern Asia used pieces of ochre with bevelled ends as early experiments with lip decoration. As far back as the second and third centuries, Sanskrit texts report Hindus preferring to colour lips with red lac resin and beeswax, while flamboyant types from the Tang Dynasty used scented oils for extra enticement.

Long associated with seduction, emancipation and sensuality, lipstick gained in popularity in the 1500s when it was boldly adopted by Queen Elizabeth I. However, the lead and vermillion concoctions acquired a reputation as the uncouth warpaint of actors and prostitutes (in the 1500s a law was passed ‘declaring the use of make-up to deceive an Englishman into marriage punishable as witchcraft’). But gradual social acceptance, better formulations (beeswax, castor oil, pigment and silica) and a Jazz Age rebrand caused a century-long boom. Silent-movie star Louise Brooks helped by providing big-screen endorsements.

But who actually invented the game-changing rouge à lèvres twist-up case? The first lippy actually on a stick?

The French claim that the Parisian beauty house Guerlain got there as far back as 1870 – a maison employee being inspired by the screw mechanism seen on a candlestick. Picky historians have a different view, citing the hand of innovative jewellers in the 1920s who repurposed used cartridge shells from World War One, fashioning make-up holders which were added to the purses and chatelaines of Clara Bow types.

Over in the US, circa 1915, powder-puff magnate Maurice Levy sold lipstick in a small metal canister called the ‘Levy Tube’, which deployed a lever to raise the lipstick's bullet, Americans also maintaining that the first swivel tube was patented in Nashville, Tennessee, by James Bruce Mason Jr. in the 1920s... or was it the Scovill Manufacturing Company’s metal-cased swivel tube patented in 1923? A case must also be made for inventor William Kendall whose ‘neat, ornamental and serviceable lip stick holder’ including ‘a lipstick receiving follower’ was registered in January 1917.

Toutefois, the Maison Guerlain prevailed – making lipstick for the European masses and going on to lip-service the rest of the world. Other French fashion and cosmetics houses would follow.

One hundred years later, variants such as Chanel Rouge Coco and Rouge Dior 999 shift multimillion units annually. Back in 2023 the global lipstick market was valued at $9.5 billion. It is projected to reach $15.6 billion by 2033.

Our favourite lipsticks

‘Number one on the side and don’t touch the back, number six on the top and don’t cut it wack, Jack.’

Were the Beastie Boys responsible for the tonsorial nomenclature known as the mullet? Certainly, the lyrics to the New York hip-hop trio’s track Mullet Head, from their 1994 album Ill Communication, is widely acknowledged as the first time this particular hairstyle – short on the sides and top, lengthy and ratty behind – was given a definitive name, having been previously referred to, variously, as ‘hockey hair’, ‘bi-level’ or ‘Bowie’ cut.

Currently enjoying a quasi-ironic renaissance among east London hipsters, trending with public schoolboys and even adopted by Hollywood actors, including Gladiator II’s Paul Mescal, the ‘do’ actually has a much longer (at the back) history.

Roman emperor Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus, born in 42 BC, was said to wear his hair ‘rather long at the back, so much so as even to cover the nape of his neck’ following a Claudian family tradition.

In the sixth century, the prominent Byzantine scholar Procopius noted that factions of young males were leaving their hair long at the back but cutting it short over the forehead – both practical and stylish, the barnet kept hair out of the eyes, while providing warmth and protection for the neck. Procopius described the thatch as ‘Hunnic’, preceding 20th-century German males’ devotion to the mullet by some 1,400 years.

But was the mullet, so beloved of cinema’s warriors and heavy-metal drummers, originally designed for war and aggression? Native American tribes and Celtic warriors of the Iron Age chopped their locks just so for intimidation and heroism, thrilling at their flowing manes as hand-to-hand battle commenced. Then, in the subsequent un-rockin’, namby-pamby centuries, wigs took over and men’s heads were hidden under the preposterously powdered postiche of times past.

History records that David Bowie, during his Aladdin Sane period, revived it in the 1970s (with the help of Bromley pirate Suzi Ronson, then Suzanne Fussey). Much imitated but never bettered, it was called a ‘feather cut’ back then; versions appearing on Aussie Rules footballers, across Scandinavia and skimming the shoulders of pretty much every male musician from Rod Stewart and Keith Richards to Paul McCartney.

In the 2010s, the style appeared on Iran’s list of ‘un-Islamic’, ‘decadent Western cuts’ and was reportedly banned by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. Some tastemakers believe that similar tonsorial draconianism might be appropriate for the men of Hackney and Shoreditch.

The fashion industry is known for its capriciousness, but 2025 has been an especially volatile year, with a litany of high-profile creative directors changing places. From January through to the summer months, there have been new designers installed at Bottega Veneta, Chanel, Gucci, Balenciaga, Maison Margiela, Jil Sander, Versace, Marni – the list goes on.

But the most resonant move was that of industry darling Jonathan Anderson, from Loewe to Dior, and his debut show, men’s Spring/Summer 2026, was perhaps the most hotly anticipated catwalk presentation of the past decade. In the end, amid all the tumult, Anderson chose to build his inaugural collection around one piece of classic menswear: the simple, blue-and-white-striped business shirt.

In various guises, striped button-ups – in lightweight poplin, rather than thick Oxford cotton – popped up under preppy ‘repp’ ties (also striped), or peeking out from beneath slubby wool blazers, or paired with matching boxer shorts. They even made it onto the show’s front row, where the likes of Robert Pattinson and Josh O’Connor dutifully scrunched their crisp collars out of shape, as per Anderson’s preferred styling method.

Just a few days before, in Milan, resurgent British brand Dunhill had put the striped shirt at the heart of its collection, too, though the collars all laid as intended. In more of a nod to the riverbank than the Square Mile, creative director Simon Holloway broadened the stripe to a deckchair gauge, and used it in shirts that splayed out at the neck to make space for a neckerchief, and even worn neatly beneath bow ties and tuxedo jackets.

‘The blue-and-white-striped shirt is a classic because it takes you away from plain blue or white, but still looks timeless,’ says Luke Sweeney, co-founder of tailoring brand Thom Sweeney, where the brand’s archetypal point-collar shirt is available in a simple ‘Bengal’ stripe. Named for a regiment of the British Indian Army, the narrow stripe helps to give visual texture to otherwise simple outfits, and looks especially good with navy tailoring, adds Sweeney.

For inspiration, Sweeney’s co-founder Thom Whiddett points to financier Gordon Gekko in Wall Street (1987), who opted to finesse his striped ‘power’ shirting with a contrast collar (and in doing so, created the de facto ‘banker’ look). A faithful rendition of that shirt – known as the ‘Gekko’ shirt – is available at Jermyn Street’s Turnbull & Asser, and offered to ‘any high-flying city gent with a fondness for cinema’.

For something a little less boisterous, the head of tailoring brand Husbands Paris, where the striped, contrast collar has been softened, in line with the maison’s sense of chic 1970s glamour. The blue-and-white stripe is flecked with a little black, and the collar is fuller, designed to sit beneath an extra-wide suit lapel.

Proof, perhaps, that the humble blue-and-white stripe is as timeless as the collared shirt itself, and that even in this ever-changing landscape, there are sartorial constants. Crumpled collar or not.

Ten years ago Dr. Barbara Sturm released the most fundamental creation in her skincare line: the Hyaluronic Serum. Since its launch, the product has gone on to achieve icon status among those who care about skincare, thanks to its exceptional hydration and anti-ageing benefits. Its key ingredient is hyaluronic acid, a naturally occurring molecule in the body that’s known for its capacity to retain large amounts of moisture. Because of its ability to improve skin hydration and elasticity, hyaluronic acid is practically ubiquitous in skincare. However, Dr. Barbara Sturm’s take on the ingredient is unique.

Before Dr. Sturm was a skincare mogul, she was an orthopaedist in Düsseldorf working with star athletes, such as Kobe Bryant, after they sustained potentially career-damaging injuries. The key to her success was a signature treatment that used proteins from patients’ own blood to reverse degeneration of the injured area, effectively triggering the body to supercharge its repair process. Fast-forward a few years, and Sturm realised she could apply this same rapid repair technology to reverse ageing on the face through treatments – hence the now-famous ‘vampire facial’ and her widely successful skincare line.

For Dr. Sturm, great skin comes from protecting at a cellular level what skin already has, and rebuilding what it has lost. Hydration is a key element of that protection and repair process, and it is for this reason she considers her ultra-hydrating Hyaluronic Serum the ‘white T-shirt’ of any skincare routine.

The significance of the serum is the result of three key factors. The first is its use of long-chain hyaluronic molecules, which stabilise the skin’s protective barrier and hydrate the skin’s surface to plump fine lines and wrinkles. Then there’s the use of small- and medium-chain hyaluronic molecules, which hydrate deeper into the skin to optimise collagen and elastin for a firmer skin feel and appearance. Finally, there is the biofermented purslane, an anti-ageing superstar that boosts the skin’s antioxidant supply. According to a Harvard University study it not only slows the ageing process, but can reverse it too.

Not many products deserve a celebration for their tenth anniversary, but Sturm’s serum is an exception. As well as giving skin a notably dewier appearance after only a few uses, it also turns back the clock on skin damage, creating skin that looks both healthy and youthful.

When it comes to applying the serum, Sturm recommends applying a few drops to your face, eye area and neck before gently patting in, and then following with a face cream. The serum is also available in a Darker Skin Tones variation for melanin-rich skin.

After a few seasons in the doldrums, supplanted by dramatic tailoring, floor-length coats and sheer fabrics, for example, the leather jacket looks set to make a triumphant return to mainstream menswear this autumn.

The first signs of its comeback appeared at the fashion shows at the beginning of the year, when moody, tough-guy leather was on the march at the likes of Amiri, Dolce & Gabbana and Louis Vuitton, which is perhaps not too surprising. However, there was deft use of leather at less maximalist brands, such as Lemaire or Auralee, too. And even Prada – usually so ascetic and sleek – played host to a clutch of two-piece leather suits.

But few designers indulged in biker-ready animal hide like Haider Ackermann, who unveiled his debut collection for Tom Ford in Paris in March. The label has long been known for its nightclub loucheness, replete with furs, jewel-toned tailoring and winkle-picker boots sharp enough to dispatch a small animal.

However, the first look of Ackermann’s era at Tom Ford was an all-leather affair. Like something lifted from the deserts of Mad Max, it combined a cafe racer jacket with skinny, low-rise leather pants and a leather crew-neck top, all in black, punctuated only by the model’s peroxide-blonde buzz cut. (The boots, it should be said, made it into production.)

Further looks introduced sharp, 80s-era power tailoring – inspired by American Psycho’s Patrick Bateman, Ackermann told reporters – but the leather motif was sustained in slick overcoats that offset the power-dressing red of a Wall Street tie, or in the soft creak of hitman gloves peeking from crisp white cuffs.

Granted, there are few pieces of menswear as divisive as the leather jacket. For some, it is akin to a trilby hat, or a pair of dungarees: not impossible to pull off, but fundamentally unwearable for mere mortals and men on the street.

For others, though, the leather jacket is the height of masculine cool, and pop culture would tend to agree: cinema is littered with good guys – and some of the best bad guys – dressed in leather, from Marlon Brando’s Schott Perfecto in The Wild One, to Harrison Ford’s hyper-space Harrington in the Star Wars series.

‘Over the past century, leather-clad men have always worn it with a sense of confidence,’ says celebrity stylist Gareth Scourfield, pointing to such icons as Steve McQueen, James Dean, and David Beckham, each of whom has left an indelible mark on the leather jacket’s rebellious reputation. ‘It’s a skin that’s always had a slight irreverence to it,’ he adds. ‘Leather leans towards an anti-establishment mentality.’

For the uninitiated, Scourfield suggests starting with accessories – a leather rucksack, perhaps – that ‘can mix into your everyday wardrobe without causing a raised eyebrow’. He adds, ‘You can even play with some muted colour or texture.’ At Auralee’s AW’25 show, leather was considered more as a layer than the main event, sneaking in under neat woollen coats or as a replacement for a suit jacket.

The perfect leather jacket, says Scourfield, is probably vintage – well-worn and softened by years on the back of some wayward rockabilly. But the more generous, oversized leather bombers at Zegna’s AW25 show were ‘perfectly styled on both older and younger guys’, and may serve as a more luxurious way into the trend.

At Saint Laurent, the French label synonymous with rock’n’roll chic, leather took the form of thigh-high boots, worn, curiously, with razor-sharp tailoring and lashings of hair pomade.

Despite the formality, however, you’d be safe to assume such boots won’t make an appearance in your neighbourhood any time soon – but there is a way to wear leather in a municipal environment should you so wish.

‘Keep to the classic colours of black, chocolate brown and maybe a dark olive green,’ advises Scourfield. ‘Pare back on the hardware details in a neat bomber or biker style to give the leather an elevated appeal, or throw on a Belstaff belted Trialmaster over a pair of tailored dark denims and navy crew knit. The leather jacket will pull the look together without shouting “look at me, I’m a rebel without a cause”.’

Three years ago, Tom Ford was purchased by Estée Lauder Companies for $2.8 billion, and, after a handful of critically underwhelming seasons, the hope is that Ackermann’s new, historic-biker vibe will re-inject some life into the label. That he chose to use leather to do it, with all its capacities and connotations, speaks to the material’s perennial appeal. And, perhaps, to a gap in your wardrobe.

Sailors and fishermen once wore knitwear with a wide, scoop neck – a ‘boat neck’, designed for an easy entrance and exit, even with hands numbed from the cold seawater. From the 16th century, variations in ecru, black-sheep or dark blue worsted wool were found up and down the country. In Ireland seafarers preferred the Aran jumper (the Geansai Árainn) – knitted in cable patterns using a báinín yarn of unscoured wool that retained its natural lanolin oil, helping keep the garment waterproof.

Northern England and Scotland had the ‘gansey’, worn without an undershirt for maximum insulating effect, handmade by fishermen’s wives using knit patterns personal to their husbands – nets, anchors, diamonds, ropes, ladders, etc. – each fishing village and harbour having its own design. The patterns had a grim purpose – should the wearer be shipwrecked, bodies washed up on the shore could be identified by their ganseys and returned to their families for burial.

In the south of England the guernsey is probably the original and oldest seaman’s knit, dating back to the late 15th century. The still-popular sweater’s name came into use after a royal grant was obtained to import wool from England and re-export knitted goods to Normandy and Spain during the reign of Charles I. History reports that guernseys were worn by navalmen at the Battle of Trafalgar, while Mary, Queen of Scots was said to be so enamoured with her fisherman’s tricot that she had the royal wardrobe staff run her up a pair of guernsey-knit leggings for her February 1587 execution.

Then, in 1914, warfare went underwater – U-boats v E-class submarines – requiring new naval knits. The Admiralty instructed the British War Office to supply thick wool sweaters in ecru, grey and navy blue. For improved insulation, these ‘Submariner’ jumpers had a new innovation – a high ‘roll neck’.

During WWII, submariners’ woolly attire was co-opted by RAF pilots looking to add a little swashbuckle to the skies, and, in later years, beatniks and 1960s groovers including Mick Jagger joined the roll call of roll-neck wearers.

Who wore the submariner best? Dennis Waterman in the 1968 cult classic The Junction? Or Jürgen Prochnow in 1981 thriller Das Boot? (A Deutsche Marine variation with a quarter zip for the Germans.) Let’s fly the Jolly Roger and the royal ensign for Jack Hawkins in 1953 epic The Cruel Sea, his hardy corvette commander Captain George Ericson fighting the brutal North Atlantic in a duffel coat and a high-necked, ecru chunky knit. “Torpedoes! Fifteen miles astern!”

Gabrielle Chanel understood the transformative power of details. A string of faux pearls could turn a little black dress into a statement, a metal chain could add a certain je ne sais quoi to a handbag, and buttons could reconfigure the style of an entire outfit. ‘Buttons,’ she is even on record saying, ‘are very important,’ advising that one should always ‘seek out and find charming little buttons.’

Chanel’s beauty team has done just that for the latest iteration of its Les 4 Ombres collection, with four new palettes that contain colours embossed with motifs inspired by the brand’s buttons.

Since 1982, Les 4 Ombres has been a foundational product in the Chanel beauty line-up, its lacquered black case stamped with the iconic double C and containing four high-pigment colours inside. The palettes are, like all things Chanel, designed to be worn with effortless elegance and reconfigured, according to your taste, for complete individualisation. Each palette usually contains a mix of matte, satiny, iridescent and metallic, that range in colour intensity. The idea is that the colours within each one can be blended in a variety of ways to achieve a natural, smoky, intense or sophisticated look. They are intuitive to use and transition effortlessly from day to night, work to party. Just apply, add a touch of mascara, et voilà.

This latest edition sees the beauty classic get a whimsical new twist, with iconic house symbols like a perfume bottle, a camellia, and the number five decorating certain shades, while others look just like the buttons you would find on a Chanel tweed jacket or couture dress. Each of the four palettes has a mood, ranging from subtle neutrals to flamboyant metallics.

The Mademoiselle palette, for instance, contains tones of pink, beige and taupe for a polished, natural look. The Couture palette offers a deeper range of neutrals, with rich browns and a mauvy taupe. Baroque is the most exuberant of the collection, with a shimmery magenta purple, a satiny orangey gold, copper red and soft pink. While Stellaire contains four celestially inspired shades – a milky beige, gold highlighter, glimmering copper and silver blue.

How you wear your palette is up to you, but for a fail-proof look, we recommend you start by applying the medium-dark shade along the eyelid. Next, add a touch of the darkest shade to the corner of the eye and then medium-light shade along the upper eyelid for added dimension. Finish with a hint of the highlighter shade on the inner lid.

Whatever application you go for, you can be sure the results will have a transformative effect, just like a button.

The legendary Parisian editor Carine Roitfeld once opined that women should retire or choose muted leopard prints over the age of 40 (for fear of looking predatory) and migrate to subtler snakeskin. But time and context have a habit of changing both the medium and the message. Now animal prints are back, beckoning us with their optic brilliance, symbolic power and undisputed glamour.

While leopard – in all manner of patterns and hues, from gingery-brown spots to stark black/white and classic tan/black – remains a top contender, the big cat has been joined by a menagerie of species from dappled pony skin to python and zebra. Styles span blazers, car coats, tailored trousers and pencil skirts, through to handbags, headwear and heels. And following a year of plain hues and matte materials, the vibrancy is deeply appealing, a little risky and sexually switched on.

'Animal prints sit at the crossroads of identity and instinct. They’re bold, tactile and emotionally charged – inviting wearers to express facets that might otherwise stay hidden,' says fashion psychologist Jennifer Heinen, who coaches clients in matters of style and identity. 'Whether it’s the confidence of a leopard-print coat or the rebellion of a zebra mini, these prints act as “visual amplifiers”. They intensify presence.'

There’s also a neurological component: the brain is wired to notice high-contrast patterns such as stripes and spots. So, animal prints are literally attention-grabbing. They’re also loaded with pop-cultural and historical status that might range from royalty draped in ermine, to supermodels in Alaïa leopard to pub landladies in ‘big cat’ blouses. The prints have slithered in and out of fashion over the decades, accompanying a resurgence in glamour and a clamouring for attention. 'Today, animal prints are less about dominance and more about duality. They allow wearers to embody both the wild and the refined. A snakeskin heel might feel sleek and elegant – but underneath is a pulse of danger. A tiger-print blouse can signal bold femininity and playful subversion,' adds Heinen, noting how Gen Z is reclaiming animal prints as genderless, ironic or nostalgic.

The prompt to incorporate animal print in design and style is often instinctive. Accessory designer Tissa Fontaneda took the cue while rewatching Anthony Minghella’s 1996 film of The English Patient. 'A story steeped in passion, exoticism and the mystique of Africa. In this context, leopard print emerged capturing the spirit of the moment,' says Fontaneda. The upshot is a flap shoulder bag in leopard-print calf hair with a polished horn fastening. For Stella McCartney, a staunch vegetarian and animal rights activist, faux snakeskin becomes a protest against the use of exotic skins. In her latest line-up, Laptop to Lapdance, pixellated snakeskin appears on viscose and jersey pieces, while mycelium-based material is fashioned into handbags.

Meanwhile, Swiss designer Kevin Germainer deep-dives into optics with his latest collection, entitled Les Jouesse. 'I experimented with prints – polka dots, snake, painted leopard, stripes – with bold colour combinations and exaggerated volumes. It felt light-hearted, dynamic and energetic,' he says.

How best to get dressed? First, banish self-limiting associations such as ‘cougar’ and start from a point of playfulness. If in doubt, mix with pale blue or apricot, which nicely offset the wild girl edges.

"I am obsessed," says Dr Barbara Sturm. "It's the shortcut to absolute age reversal and longevity!" Sturm, who established her namesake business in 2002 with products and treatments inspired by her medical career in orthopaedics, sums up what makes the Super Anti-Aging Dual Serum, her latest concoction, stand out.

It's a dual-phase product, meaning it harmoniously combines two different compositions. In this case, the clear, hyaluronic-acid-based Super Anti-Aging Serum (skullcap and purslane feature on its list of ingredients) is paired with a milky ceramide-peptide complex, formulated to influence the skin's natural collagen, its barrier and its elastin reservoir.

With its promise of efficacy and efficiency, Dr Sturm's super serum forms part of a new group of power ointments invented by brands that go big on science. From Augustinus Bader, a brand founded on the scientific breakthroughs of Professor Augustinus Bader, a biomedical scientist and physician with a career in regenerative medicine and stem-cell biology that spans more than three decades, comes The Skin Infusion.

A four-week programme, The Skin Infusion pairs an advanced version of Bader's signature TFC8®, a patented technology that uses vitamins, amino acids and synthesised molecules to promote the skin's own healing and renewal processes, with a plant-based vitamin D activator, zinc PCA and provitamin B5. Because The Skin Infusion is free of preservatives, it has a limited shelf life of just 12 months.

Microdosing is a leitmotif at Noble Panacea. Created by Sir Fraser Stoddart, a British-American chemist and 2016 winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, awarded for the design and synthesis of molecular machines, Noble Panacea packs potent formulas into dinky packages. The brand refers to these as active doses, and one is to be opened for each application.

A new addition is The Exceptional Eye Lift Concentrate, with retinal (vitamin A) and octapeptide – made up of amino acids – among its ingredients. Persian silk tree essence has been added to ward off dark circles and puffiness.

Swiss luxury brand La Prairie presents its new Life Matrix Haute Rejuvenation Cream, which it describes as a masterpiece, in partnership with Clinique La Prairie, where it is now a part of the site's legendary rejuvenation programmes. "The idea was to work on the health span of skin cells," explains Dr Jacqueline Hill, La Prairie's global director of strategic innovation and science, "to keep skin cells healthy and high-functioning for as long as possible."

The team's work has been inspired by Dr Paul Niehans, who in 1931 at Clinique La Prairie made important progress in cellular therapy. The result is a new Exclusive Matrix Complex, a combination of molecular actives sourced from peony roots and calendula flowers. "Life, in its essence, is based on information," says Dr Hill, "and cellular life is based on cellular information."

In north London, where Cross Street meets the leafy meander of Upper Street, there is a grand total of three trendy opticians, and all within eyeshot, depending on your prescription that is. Ace & Tate, Jimmy Fairly and Cubitts are perhaps the foremost trio of a spectacle boom that has steadily spread across the capital and beyond over the past few years, but they are not alone. There is also Finlay with stores in Soho and Notting Hill and Bloobloom, a French brand that launched in 2019, which already has six locations in London.

Traditionally, buying prescription glasses was a somewhat uninspiring affair. You'd head to an ersatz optician on the high street for an eye test, and peruse the branded frames that lined the stark, municipal shelves, wondering whether to opt for something cheap but dreary, or branded and expensive. But in the 201os, as e-commerce platforms became more sophisticated, more and more direct-to-consumer (DTC) spectacle brands started popping up and, because they circumvented the long-established wholesale model, they were able to offer high-quality, considerately designed frames at lower-than-average prices.

'The internet cut out the wholesalers,' affirms Tom Broughton, founder of Cubitts, which now has 18 stores in the UK, and two in New York. The second big thing was CNC manufacturing, he adds, referring to the machinery that creates the frames. 'Only in the last 10 to 15 years has it become economical for CNC factories to make small runs, in the region of 500 to 800 pieces,' which are more economical to sell directly to the end user.

For most of the past couple of centuries, eyewear in its various forms was broadly bespoke-made, from fine horns and precious metals, and therefore luxurious. But throughout 'People are looking for specialism as opposed to mass-market luxury' the 20th century, via free NHS optometry, its appeal dulled to the point of stigma, and most people considered wearing glasses something of a necessary evil. But in just a decade or so, these DTC brands have been able to reframe spectacles and imbue them with cool and social currency, like a luxury watch or brand of beer.

'People are looking for specialism,' says Broughton, 'as opposed to mass-market luxury.' Broughton notes the emergence of a hyper-expensive corner of the market, too, where brands such as Jacques Marie Mage offer thrillingly cool specs for hundreds, if not thousands, of pounds. 'Mid- and true-luxury eyewear brands were among the best-performing product categories of 2024,' says Mario Ortelli, managing partner of luxury M&A firm Ortelli&Co., who notes that the entry-level price points Bloobloom frames start at £99; Ace & Tate from £125 - were especially appealing to aspirational consumers that have been 'alienated' by recent accessory price hikes from luxury brands.

The ever-expanding array of stores offers insight into how the industry is shifting, too. The triumvirate of Boots, Specsavers and Vision Express still represents the lion's share of the market, but they are all still recognisably opticians, whereas many of these DTC brands feel like they might be better suited to the fashion industry.

Recently refurbished, the interior of Cubitts' Islington store, for example, was overseen by hip Milanese design studio Tutto Bene, and inspired by the work of American surrealist painter and poet Kay Sage. The curious, curvilinear sofa at its centre is an homage to her 1939 work, No One Heard Thunder.

'We design the stores to be beautiful, to reflect the area, and create an environment where people just want to be,' says Broughton, who notes that Cubitts' 'archetypal customer is a 38-year-old guy who lives in Hackney and works at a creative agency - although the customer base is broad. But Broughton also suggests it might not be long until technology allows us to conduct eye tests from the comfort of our homes, so the role of the store will have to change once again. More bad news for the high-street optician, it seems.

There are trainers and then there are Louis Vuitton trainers. In fact, there are LV Buttersoft Trainers, the new style from Pharrell Williams introduced during the house’s Autumn/Winter 2025 show. A manifesto in footwear, they are emblematic of the menswear creative director’s design viewpoint that blends streetwear and dandyism with a luxury sensibility, adding a sense of relaxed refinement that is both personal and playful – itself a layering of global cultural references alongside niche, insider codes that are designed to be cracked.

Formed by Louis Vuitton’s Italian artisans using supremely supple leather, from which the LV Buttersoft takes its name, the pillowy shape is anchored by a rubber sole dotted with the ‘grain de riz’ texture of the house’s Damier pattern. As an expression of the history of streetwear, the LV Buttersoft has it all. Not only does it echo the first sportswear sneakers that transitioned into our everyday wardrobes with the 1960s’ loosening of fashion protocols, but it also mirrors the inflated footwear popularised by noughties hip-hop artists, where a sneaker’s proportions were oversized, never slim.

In recent years, with dress codes further deconstructed – or, at least, more open to interpretation – versatility is key to any shoe that enters your style rotation. Coming in 24 colourways and compositions, the LV Buttersoft could be reinterpreted whenever and wherever. Popping brights, classic neutrals or pastels with hand-painted contrast ‘bruni’ edges, feature throughout. And, naturally, a handful come adorned with vibrant variations of the Louis Vuitton monogram, each one finished with leather detailing lifted straight from the house’s famed leather goods. So good he put his face on it, the tongue of the trainer also includes a ‘Phriendsip’ stamp: a silhouette of Pharrell Williams’ side profile.

And finally, there’s an ‘Easter egg’ treat just for the wearer. Hidden on the back of the shoe is an embossed lobster – a motif that recalls a shared memory of the men’s creative director and his long-time collaborator, Nigo. As ever with Pharrell’s designs, if you know, you know.

"It's so interesting to be in this space, as I am learning so much about a whole different segment. This role gives me more reach than I have ever had, as so many people dress in Uniqlo." So says Clare Waight Keller, the former Givenchy creative director and creator of Meghan Markle's wedding dress, who was named the creative director of Uniqlo in September and is now steering the core collection from Tokyo and London.

Waight Keller's move from luxury fashion to mass apparel came as a jolt to many. The misconception is that designers look down on commercial clothing retailers, and never the twain shall meet. But Waight Keller, who was born in Birmingham and trained at the Royal College of Art, has often taken the zag to predictable zig in a stellar career that has taken her Stateside to work with Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren, to Milan to join Tom Ford at Gucci, and back to the UK to head up Pringle of Scotland, before she became creative director of Chloé in 2011.

Her last haute job was creative director of Givenchy, working in the most rarefied echelons of fashion artistry, stirring up aspiration amongst the one per cent. "I would not rule out another move back into luxury, but when you can create hits on this scale, it makes you so proud," smiles the 50-something mother of three, now ensconced in her barn conversion in Cornwall after a two-week trip to the Uniqlo HQ in Tokyo.

"I live in London, but being here is a great way to shake off the jet lag," she laughs. Her experience, beginning as a specialist in knitwear, is impressive and she is propelled by new challenges and problem-solving, often joining brands at critical moments.

But perhaps it was her time in New York in the 1990s, when the Brit Cool explosion was just happening, that helped define an approach that is open-minded and capable of communicating across cultural and geographic boundaries.

Waight Keller's appointment comes at a time when the apparel mammoth is planning a major expansion in the UK (where it currently has 20 stores), America and Australia. "In the home market, Uniqlo has been around for 40 years and millions of Japanese people have grown up with the brand. Expansion into Europe began in 2001, and in the US from 2005, so it’s still fresh in that sense," she says.

"The East represents 70 per cent of the network and the West 30 per cent, so being part of this expansion feels great. With that scale comes incredible access to innovation, amazing fabric mills, and quality. The company spends a lot of time developing the quality of its products."

Waight Keller's entrée into the brand happened when she was asked to create the C line that launched in 2023. Her elegant pleat skirts, trench coats and tailoring were a hit, leading to seasonal collections and the launch of menswear C this September.

"The C line was growing much bigger, and part of the equation was figuring out how that relates to the main line. I organically became more involved, and that evolved into the creative director position. It is a whole new territory for me and leads me deep into technological and material advances, as well as overseeing the colour, silhouettes and styles," she explains.

Waight Keller definitely has a knack for designing winners, such as the sweatpants and hoodies in the first men's collection that became top five Uniqlo global bestsellers, or the trench coat that has now moved into the core collection. "My agenda is to bring an element of fashion into the main line, but it is not a fast-fashion approach, it is about items that have longevity with a style point of view," she says.

The appointment comes at a time when the entire fashion system is evolving rapidly. Zac Posen, who built his career creating glamorous big gowns, is injecting new life into Gap Inc. as creative director, while Stefano Pilati, who once helmed Yves Saint Laurent, has released a range with Zara.

The drive behind such high-profile appointments is to create more distinct products that have a bigger presence in our wardrobes than mere basics. With prices escalating, luxury is becoming increasingly niche, and mass offers huge opportunities.

Travel is a great eye-opener and Waight Keller, who spends, on average, 12 weeks a year in Tokyo, is thriving on the contrasts. She now commutes across the city without a map and has her favourite haunts in the Shibuya district. Weekends are spent exploring areas of Japan as well as neighbouring Asian cities such as Seoul.

"In the coming decade, I do think the East is going to be more interesting in terms of fashion. There are so many small emerging brands that are not emulating luxury. For me, that is where things are exciting, and I am fascinated seeing it bubbling up." Meanwhile, it's back to the day job of being one of fashion's most influential creatives.

For a capsule collection of Louis Vuitton bags, Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry reconsidered his own back catalogue of famous buildings. The nine designs, which are grouped into four umbrella themes drawn from Gehry's illustrious career (Material Exploration, Architecture and Form, Animals and Twisted Box) were first unveiled last December, at Art Basel Miami.

The heritage brand's Capucines bag has been given the Gehry treatment. The architect's seven takes on the Louis Vuitton accessory include the now-glossy Capucines BB Shimmer Haze, inspired by the dazzling effect of the 21,000 painted aluminium and stainless steel shingles that cloak Gehry's building for the Museum of Pop Culture in Seattle. In partnership with Louis Vuitton's master makers, Gehry devised bags such as the Capucines MM Concrete Pockets, realised through 3D printing techniques.

The creation is an homage to the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao. Seen here, the Capucines BB Analog Bag is clad in screen-printed leather shaped using bespoke moulds. Its angular structure is a tribute to Gehry's IAC Building. Completed in 2007, this was the architect's first building design in New York City. Elsewhere, Gehry nods to his previous work with the maison. His Twisted Box Bag made its debut in 2014 and now appears in smooth black leather, embossed with Louis Vuitton's famous Monogram motif.

louisvuitton.com

Good to know

Frank Gehry has previously collaborated with Louis Vuitton. In Paris, he designed the Fondation Louis Vuitton. The art museum and cultural centre is housed in a two-storey building and includes an auditorium and several roof terraces; its use of glass was inspired by 19th-century buildings such as the glass Grand Palais nearby. More recently, in 2021, Gehry dreamt up bottle caps for the brand's Les Extraits line of perfumes.

Describe the view from where you are right now...
I'm looking at my ferns. They're newly potted and I have beautiful new shoots coming up. And I'm looking at all my little samples and smelling strips. The usual desk nonsense.

What is the first thing you see in the morning?
I open the curtains and see the park, and also my dog.

Is there a particular artwork you always return to for inspiration?
At the moment it's Monet's "Impression, Sunrise". I like the tension in it, because it's an industrial harbour scene but there's also the natural beauty of the sunrise. I've just created a fragrance around it [available in a limited-edition candle], also called Sunrise, especially for Sotheby's.

Is there a view you can't quite forget?
My grandparents' garden in Scotland.

What is the best film you've seen recently?
"The Taste of Things" with Juliette Binoche.

The best book you've read?
"The Living Mountain" by Nan Shepherd. I just came back from Scotland [where the book is set] and I'm obsessed with it again.

What sound do you wake up to?
The birds. I'm so lucky to hear them because where I am in London is right by Primrose Hill.

What sound would you like to wake up to?
Still the birds. There's such a variety in how they sound according to where I am in the world, and I love that.

What gets you dancing?
"Show Me Love" by Robin S.

What song always makes you cry?
"Drive" by The Cars always reminds me of my dad and it makes me cry, but in a positive way.

Is there a song that always makes you smile?
"Hounds of Love" by Kate Bush. It reminds me of times gone by.

Which smell takes you back to childhood?
The smell of fires.

What are you smelling right now?
This new fragrance I'm working on, which is inspired by my recent trip to Portugal.

What is your earliest scent memory?
I always remember the way my best friend smelled of candy. She was always eating candy and I just loved being next to her because she had this gorgeous smell.

If you were going to bottle the feeling of happiness, what scents would it contain?
It's this smell of heat and moisture with nature. Either a flower or a fruit. I just love how humidity touches nature, I can't get enough of it.

What is a dish you love to cook for yourself?
I'm obsessed with Ottolenghi. I got the "Simple" cookbook and it completely changed my life. Now that I understand the logic of Ottolenghi, I can cook anything.

What restaurant do you bring people to when they're visiting your city?
Café Deco in Bloomsbury.

What item of clothing do you treasure most?
My Army jacket.

If you had to wear a uniform every day, what would it be?
I'd go for a simple off-blue shirt from agnès b., a pair of Acne Studios jeans and some New Balance trainers.

Favourite piece of furniture at home?
I have an old-fashioned armchair that Bobby Mills made and that I'm obsessed with.

perfumerh.com

Louis Vuitton's master perfumer, who is about to publish the maison's new book, "A Perfume Atlas", reveals why these mouillettes are key to the nuance in his creations – and how they have always been a part of his life.

"Paper blotters have been an essential part of me discovering my work as a perfumer. In fact, these small pieces of paper have been with me since I was born. My father was a perfumer, and my grandfather too: there were many of them at home. My father would give me blotters scented with dry, raw materials. I have since discovered that this link between the raw material, my nose and my brain is facilitated by these blotters. Without one, you cannot make an olfactory analysis.

"At the Louis Vuitton fragrance headquarters in Grasse, Les Fontaines Parfumées, we have a ritual: each day, from 10 to 12, it's our smelling session. This includes raw materials and new work from a few days before. We judge our creations and control production of Louis Vuitton perfumes, what will be in the bottle in the boutiques. Then there is a blind test of raw materials. And everything is done with blotters. I have also designed a special protection, a paper envelope, for my blotters so I can take 10 or more home with me, in my Louis Vuitton Keepall."

"Louis Vuitton: A Perfume Atlas" (Thames & Hudson) is out now.

Florence ranks as one of the world's most beautiful cities. Indeed, it's so packed with wonders that it has inspired a psychosomatic condition, Stendhal syndrome – named for the French author who first described it in 1817 – which induces rapid heartbeat, fainting and even hallucinations when individuals are exposed to so many objects and artworks of great beauty.

It's therefore no surprise that the world's most beautiful – and possibly oldest – pharmacy, the Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella, which opened in 1612, calls the Tuscan capital home. The perfumery is still attached to the 13th-century Dominican monastery where mediaeval monks concocted fragrances and herbal remedies. The monks have since sold out and today Santa Maria Novella products are available around the world.

CEO Gian Luca Perris comes from a family of perfumers – they own the venerable Parisian house Houbigant. His job is to delicately balance expanding the business with honouring its unrivalled heritage. So while perfumery has changed enormously since the days of the monks, Perris is determined to stay true to their spirit. "Now we have access to incredibly high-quality synthetics," he explains, "but we are also going back to old ingredients."

And while Santa Maria Novella has been importing exotic ingredients such as ylang-ylang, a native of the Philippines, since the glory days of Venice and Florence, Perris is particularly excited by what can be found on his own doorstep. "For example, the bizzarria is a Tuscan citrus fruit that was long presumed lost until it was rediscovered in the Boboli Gardens in the 1970s," he says. Today it is an important ingredient in the new, and appropriately named, range I Giardini di Medicei.

His personal favourite, however, is the ancient symbol of Florence, the iris. "The quality of this local ingredient is unmatched," he says. The flower itself has little smell, so the unmistakably earthy and powdery perfume is extracted from its rhizomes. The result is a heavenly fragrance that those old monks could only have dreamt of creating.

Recognisable at airports around the world, the grooved shells of Rimowa suitcases – made from polymers or, most famously, aluminium – are in and of themselves a tribute to aviation.

Originally, the parallel pattern was designed – in 1950 – to mimic the corrugated fuselage of the pioneering all-metal transport aircraft Junkers F 13, which first took to the skies in 1919. It's a fitting homage, as the history of Rimowa, which this year celebrates its 125th anniversary, is chaptered by changing modes of transport.

"What is interesting with our cases is that they are a clear demonstration of the evolution of travel in general," says Emelie De Vitis, Rimowa's senior vice president of product and marketing. "You can see different milestones, like the explosion of air travel in the 1950s."

Paul Morszeck established the business that would become Rimowa in 1898, opening a saddlery shop in Cologne. The company specialised in travel wardrobes and steamer trunks, built for ocean crossings and longer train journeys.

Displayed as part of Rimowa's "Seit 1898", a touring exhibition that has stopped in Tokyo and New York and is soon to open in Shanghai and then Cologne, is a sizeable wardrobe trunk lined in fabric and dated to the 1950s. It is built from steel and vulcanised fibre, and made complete with wooden hangers.

Somewhat more agile are cases proportioned to be attached to early automobiles and made from leather-coated plywood or vulcanised fibre. Aluminium was introduced in 1927, offered as a metallic trim that catches the eye.

In 1931, Paul's son Richard joined the company – Rimowa is a portmanteau of his name and Warenzeichen, the German term for trademark – and not long after, in 1937, the family embraced aluminium as a core material.

"Do you know that serendipitous anecdote of why we use aluminium?" asks De Vitis. "There was a fire at the factory. We were making leather and wooden trunks, which all burned. The only thing that stayed was the aluminium component."

Aluminium has since been used to fabricate carry-on and check-in luggage; Rimowa has also used the metal for more experimental designs: bespoke cases shaped to hold a dozen bottles of champagne, golf clubs, watches or vinyl records.

Elsewhere, the brand, which in 2016 joined luxury goods group LVMH, has extended carte blanche to creative collaborators: Dior's artistic director of menswear, Kim Jones, has cloaked anodised aluminium in the fashion house's famous Oblique logo pattern; last year, Paris design practice Avoir envisioned a cabin built from grooved aluminium.

"Aluminium is a strong symbol of Rimowa," says De Vitis. "[It] is complicated to use and that's why we are one of the few brands to have aluminium cases. It takes a long time to develop the frame, the moulds, everything that we need. Sometimes people say that we are slow, but that's because there is so much engineering that goes into the aluminium, it takes time to come up with solutions."

It's a way of working that at Rimowa has been christened Ingenieurskunst, which translates as "the art of engineering". Explains De Vitis: "We say it's like a symphony, mixing German engineering with craftsmanship, technique and finesse."

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Good to know

Fans of Rimowa include Patti Smith, Takashi Murakami, Roger Federer and Martha Stewart, who customises her trunk using a black marker pen. "I write every destination of my trips on my Rimowa," says Stewart. "It’s called memory keeping."

What is the first thing you see in the morning?
The pristine, serene austerity of my white walls.

Describe the view from where you are right now.
I am looking into the loving, questioning eyes of a pitbull called Basil.

Is there a view you can't quite forget?
The immensity of a wide desert in Namibia.

An artist or artists' work you could look at every day?
The raw and emotive work of Tracey Emin. The simplicity of the abstract birds of Constantin Brâncuşi. The organised chaos of Francis Bacon.

Favourite album cover?
"Unknown Pleasures" – Joy Division.

What sound do you like to wake up to?
The early, careful footsteps of my Loved One.

What gets you dancing?
Any beat that makes my heart beat faster gets me dancing.

When did you last dance?
During a one-night escape to Seoul.

Which singer or song do you never tire of hearing – and why?
"Into My Arms" by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Those haunting, noble words.

Is there a smell that takes you back to childhood?
The scent of smouldering stones.

What do you smell of today?
Joy.

What does your Augustinus Bader bottle feel like?
One’s own reflection.

What is the aroma of home?
Safe.

Vanilla or lime?
Acid lime.

What's your flavour?
I am not the person you should ask...

Describe a dish that's stayed with you.
Freshly caught fish, burnt by a grill.

Sweet or savoury?
That depends on the hour.

What is the taste of winter?
Hibiki whisky, cigarettes, vanished perfume mingling in the night on one's skin.

What is the taste of autumn?
A silk scarf touched by mist.

What is the taste of summer?
The tender flesh of figs.

Silk or cashmere?
The enveloping nature of cashmere.

Marble or wood?
The embracing nature of wood.

Favourite piece of furniture at home?
The absence of furniture in my apartment.