New Books, Hotels, Hideaways & Other Discoveries

New Discoveries of 2014.

Some have been launched for a little while; 

others are getting ready to be launched in the next few months.

Hayman Island, 

Great Barrier Reef, Australia.

Getting ready to re-open after an enormous renovation under new owners One & Only Resorts, the island resort of Hayman will look remarkably different from its old self. Newly decorated suites seem larger and more modern, the service is already better and the excursions to neighbouring islands and the reef promise to be trips to remember. Prices, while not cheap, aren't prohibitive, with rooms being offered at a 25% discount through the soft opening period. 

Opening July 2014.

Ham Yard Hotel, 

London. 

Firmdale Hotels' latest venture, with the usual sublime decorating by Kit Kemp. Just as beautiful as Number Sixteen, Dorset Square, Covent Garden and all her other projects.

Opening June 2014.

The Ritz, Paris.

Also getting set to re-open after a 2-year closure for refurbishment.

(If you can't afford a room, slip in for a drink, a meal, or to use the extraordinary spa and pool.)

Opening mid-year.

Hotel Fabric, Paris.

Created from a former textiles factory. Full of fabric whimsy. And not expensive, either.

Open.

The Siam, Bangkok.

My new favourite. The interior design is sublime.

Open.

Park Hyatt, 

Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Another new favourite. Refashioned from the Hôtel de La Paix, the new Park Hyatt-managed hotel, which re-opened late last year, hasn't lost any of the Paix's legendary grace and style, but has simply refreshed the space. So incredibly cheap too. As are all the hotels in Siem Reap.

Open.

The Beaumont, 

Mayfair, London.

Opening soon in the shell of a former 1920's Art Deco garage. So striking.

Opening later this year.

Living Life Beautifully:

Christina Strutt.

A new book from one of my favourite designers, Christina Strutt of Cabbages & Roses, who's not only opened a new Cabbages & Roses store in Chelsea, right next door to The Chelsea Gardener, but is also holding a marvellous summer fair in Bath, where her country home is, in early June. (Run together with Love Love Vintage; who have the most wonderful vintage wares and fabric fairs).

Published by Cico Books. Out now.

ABC: David Collins Studio

An eagerly awaited new book about the work of London designer David Collins, who sadly passed away last year. The new book was in production when David Collins was alive, and has been written by him, with a foreword by Madonna.The launch is edged with sadness, but I think he would have liked the finished project.

Published by Assouline this month.

Dior: The Legendary Images.

Published to accompany the new exhibition at Le Musée Christian-Dior, at Granville in Normandy, opening shortly.

 Published by Rizzoli this month.

The Glamour of New York, Part 2

And so ends another week of work in Manhattan... Memorable photo shoots, sublime new hotels, glamorous West Village boutiques, gorgeous Bowery stores, and still-scented late summer gardens... New York is always kind to me, and I'm always grateful in return. I still long for the day when we can have a teeny crash pad near Gramercy Park, but until then it's the 20-hour commute from Australia...

We're off to Charleston and Savannah this week for a little break after the madness of Fashion Week. (I was in NY to shoot a book about style rather than attend the fashion shows, so I only saw fragments of the mayhem – and did it in flat shoes, Grace Coddington-style black workhorse clothes and inferior hair – but it was still an eye-opener.) 

Next stop: The South. And then to London for a little while. Posts may be sporadic, but will try to do an Insider's Guide to London – beautiful, grand, dignified, refined old London. Who can complain about travelling when the upsides are so wonderful? As my intrepid globe-hopping grandmother used to say: Seeing the world is surely one of life's greatest privileges...

PS I'm heading to Instagram soon with everyone else, but will still try to post here too. As always, thank you for reading. I hope you find things to be grateful for in your life as much as I do in mine.

Jx

Ovando in the West Village

Possibly Manhattan's most beautiful florist.

Bond St Perfumery

Scented heaven.

(I loved 'Bryant Park' and 'Central Park South', but I did wonder if they'd considered making a perfume called 'Late Night In The Meatpacking District'?))

Madeleine Weinrib's beautiful atelier at ABC Carpet & Home.

Shop chic on the Upper East Side.

Gramercy Park Hotel's Do Not Disturb signs, which are the last word in Do Not Disturb style.

Ovando's floristry wonders again.

Kate Spade's new flagship store on the Upper East Side.

Rizzoli bookstore, a mecca for lovers of design titles.

Henri Bendel department store's ornate balconies.

Colour co-ordination to the nth degree in front of Bergdorf Goodman.

A perfect outfit during Fashion Week: taxi-cab yellow and zebra crossing-style stripes.

More lovely lemon in the West Village.

More from Kate Spade's new flagship store. 

(The pale pink silk sofa was as covetable as the chaise.)

The shoes of Kate Spade's senior strategist, whom I met when we were comparing shoes in the uptown Kate Spade store. 

(Her were far superior.)

An exquisite window display of antique silver hand mirrors in the West Village – classic Fashion Week chic.

My new shoes. J'adore.

A store that designs paper bags for New York boutiques.

Just fabulous.

The Lion restaurant

Still a favourite.

Dior at Saks.

Sublime merchandising, in true Dior style.

Adieu from the always-gorgeous New York.

Paris in Black and White (and Grey)

I'm still chained to my desk, writing a book about Provence and the south of France that's facing a tight deadline, so hope to catch up with all your lovely emails, comments and also a few overdue posts by the end of this week. In the meantime, here's a glimpse at Paris, in all its black and white glamour. 

(I was showing a friend some pix of the recent trip the other day and we noticed that all I seemed to take photos of was fashion and flowers. So apologies to all those who are tired of seeing frocks and floral borders. Will try and resume regular posts soon, including Harbour Island, New York and London.)

Paris in black and white.

The newly restored cafe of the Musée d'Orsay.

(And the famous clock, through which you can see a fantastic view of Paris.)

Vintage Dior gowns at the Haute Couture Exhibition at the Hotel de Ville in the Marais.

(This exhibition was free. Don't you love that?)

More gorgeousness from the Haute Couture exhibition.

A flashback to 1980's Chanel in the window of the Rue Cambon store. 

(Apparently Chanel jewellery from the 1980s is hugely popular again, according to a dealer I met in New York.)

A present for my mother for her birthday.

The Chanel exhibition.

(Which was also free. And not a single person in the queue.)

The beautiful powder room of the Hotel Trocadero Dokhan, where a group of us met for a few bottles of Champagne one evening. 

(I picked up the tab. The price of 200 Euros made my eyes water slightly. But it was a wonderful evening, and the group hadn't let me pay for dinner once during the week. Such lovely people.) 

Ralph Lauren's Left Bank boutique.

Always love to peek in here.

The simple but classically stylish fitting rooms at Ralph Lauren.

Artwork at the Hotel Maurice. 

This quirky grey painting said, simply, 'Versailles'. Not sure if the chairs were part of the installation? 

The foyer of the Hotel Maurice. 

Had afternoon tea here with a friend. I hadn't realised how magnificent it was inside. 

Some of our cute group taking in turns to take a photo of the Eiffel Tower. (I had taken them to a secret place where you can get the perfect shot of the Eiffel Tower, and they'd all lined up in a row to compose it.)

This photo makes me smile every time I look at it. Look how happy they look? No barging in front of each other, no complaining, no whinging that people are in their way. Just patience and pure joy to be on holiday. That's what travel is about.

A quiet corner.

Dinner at a classic restaurant on the Seine.

A quiet street near the Luxembourg Gardens.

A glimpse of an icon.

The gates of the Fashion Museum.

A blink-and-you-miss sighting of my books in the WH Smith on Rue Rivoli.

Valentino. Oh, Valentino.

A great little store on the Left Bank that sells vintage Louis Vuitton and other labels, including old steamer bags and trunks.

Look at the lovely old cash register with the LV on top.

Pure Paris.