Cocktails and Chanel

It's ironic, really. In an age when books are being bypassed by iPads, Kindles, iPhones and other electronic reading devices, libraries are becoming more and more coveted. It's almost as if book lovers have realised that books might become obsolete in a decade or so and have started stockpiling titles – and creating library spaces in their houses to showcase them in. Not only that, hoteliers are now creating library retreats in their boutique hotels and hideaways so that guests may be able to withdraw to their rooms for the night with a good book or three under their arms.

Ian Schrager is one such visionary. The celebrity hotelier recently opened a new hotel in Chicago called PUBLIC, which features a sexy reading room-bar called The Library. By day, it's a French patisserie-style cafe offering coffee and home-made gourmet treats, but by night it turns into a dramatic, dignified, book-lined retreat with an enormous, custom limestone fireplace that usually contains a roaring fire. (It is Chicago, after all). Guests are invited to relax, order a drink and browse through piles of specially curated coffee-table books, newspapers and magazines. Just the thing after a hard day of airports, appointments and time-zone adjustments

The Trump SoHo has also decided to appeal to book-minded travellers, reasoning that these guests would be the kind of people it would like to attract to its sophisticated suites. The hotel outfitted its library with mint-condition Taschen books (okay, so they're more glamour reads than high-brow titles), and immediately saw its media mentions rise on the strength of the Taschen brand alone.

And lastly, London's Halkin hotel has decided to go into partnership with French publishers Assouline publishers, stocking its lobby bar (pictured above and below) with Assouline's supremely stylish fashion, art, and design titles. The space has now been transformed into an elegant reading retreat featuring Assouline's iconic books, such as those on Chanel, and Dior. So now guests can pour over gorgeous fashion titles while the bartender is pouring their Bloody Mary. Author talks are also scheduled for later this year. (Images via the Halkin hotel and hotelchatter.com)

(Still) Seeing Red

The cute red kitchen in the previous post has started me thinking about the colour red. I can't imagine why I haven't considered it of late because it's difficult to miss it this time of year! I've always loved red, however, and not just at Christmas. How can you resist a colour that looks so luscious? Red is one of the colour wheel's drama queens but it's also one of the colour world's most misunderstood shades. Red isn't as wicked as everyone thinks. After all, it's the colour of summer strawberries, London post boxes, cute frocks, the tunics of the Queen’s Guards, great rosé and gorgeous Chanel lipsticks. Okay, it's also the colour of glamour. Remember Audrey Hepburn sashaying down those Louvre stairs in that strapless red Givenchy dress and white gloves in Funny Face? I always buy my trench coats and luggage in red. (It's amazing how stylish they look when you're travelling through grubby airports – and how much they cheer you up at the end of a long-haul flight.) Beach houses always look good when they’ve got a touch of red. So, too, do flags. And movie stars seem to go far in their Hollywood careers when they die their hair this colour. I’ve even fallen in love with a red head (who looks a little like a young Robert Redford). Here, in tribute to Christmas, are some of my (other) favourite reds.

The Raleigh hotel, Miami
Love this place. www.raleighhotel.com

The Beach House, Harbour Island, Bahamas

Part of the Coral Sands hotel, this separate beach house is a brilliant piece of architecture designed by Barbara Hulanicki of Biba fame. www.coralsands.com/our-rooms

The Landing hotel and restaurant, Harbour Island

Owned by an Australian and a Bahamian couple I know, it’s one of the best places to spend an evening. (Apparently Mick Jagger loves it.) www.harbourislandlanding.com

A red bathing box at Brighton Beach, Australia.

Hotel de l'Abbaye, Paris

A fantastically chic little hotel (pictured below) in the 6th arrondissement, and a great hideaway if you're partial to the colour red, as I am. www.hotelabbayeparis.com

Hotel Maronniers, Paris

Another gorgeous red interior. This hotel (pictured below) is in a great location, just behind the Boulevard Saint-Germain, and not only has a lovely garden but also generally has great rates. www.hotel-marronniers.com

The exquisite Petit Fer Au Cheval cafe, in the Marais, Paris. 

One of the loveliest cafes in all of Paris.

Well Red

I've been told I'm being a Christmas Grinch. I've been told that I'm not embracing the Christmas spirit to a sufficient Christmas standard. (Well, it IS only December 3.) I never thought I was a wowser but it does appear that I have lost the spirit of Christmas from the days when I used to live in Denmark. And so, to appease those who feel that I should be celebrating the festive season with a lot more punch (and glogg), here are some Christmas-inspired delights...

The Master of Red Drama isn't Santa Claus but another flamboyant gentleman... Valentino. No one does a red dress like this man. (Via manycolour.com)

I've seen this gorgeous Valentino gown a few times but I still love it. Imagine wearing THIS to an office party. I can imagine that longed-for raise would be forthcoming fairly quickly. In fact, wearing this dress, you could probably throw a couple of extra noughts on that figure you mentioned. (Via lyst.com)

More subdued but still very sweet. This cutie is one to wear to a Boxing Day luncheon with the aunts. Imagine it with a pretty hot pink ruffled skirt? It's called the "Seeing Spots" cardigan – which is what I'll probably be doing after too much mulled wine this Christmas Eve. (Via Gourman – www.gourmanshop.com.au)

Now THESE are worth being good all year for! Christian Louboutin's 'Eugenie' red satin pumps. Have you ever seen a more glamorous shoe? (Via theclshoesoutlet.com)

Now THIS is what you should be asking Santa for... Come to mama... (Via jewellery-ring.com)

Take a bit of festive cheer with you when you go on holidays. The Jets Classique spots collection is a little 1950's retro but still oh-so-sexy. Polka dots have never been so hot. (Via Jets.com)

Estee Lauder's Fig lipstick is so popular that some women have been known to ask their interior designers to match their walls to it. I think it would look beautiful in a dining room, with crisp white trim.

Ralph Lauren's Dressage Red. Interior designer Suzanne Kasler thinks this is the perfect red. "When I look for red I want a pure, true red, like the colour in the American flag," she says. "Ralph Lauren does absolutely the best. It's the essence of red, that American classic red. It makes me think of boating, or polo..."

This is what I received as a belated Chrissy gift from a very kind Santa last year: Louis Vuitton's limited edition volume of 100 Legendary Trunks. (Love the red spine!) What an incredible book. It was inspired by the equally incredible Louis Vuitton exhibition I saw at the Musée Carnavalet in Paris last year: a beautifully curated show of the French company's most memorable travel trunks, such as this, below. It just made you wish you had enough money to commission a set of Louis Vuitton luggage of your own.

Such as this, for example:

The Louis Vuitton Vacation Trunk. Not only does this fine piece of first-class luggage come coated in LV's protective Taiga leather, it features brass fittings, a glamorous red interior finish, a coffee maker, drawers for your laptop, and even a couple of solar panels within to power a flatscreen TV, a DVD player and a two-way radio. Everything you need for a prolonged stay on a desert island, really...

And one last cute pic. Wouldn't this kitchen look gorgeous in a classic old beach house? This would be the perfect setting to create a magical Christmas feast in. (Via haveninteriors.blogspot.com)

Inspiring Libraries, Part 2

As libraries seem to be a popular post on this site (you lovely readers are people after my own heart!), I thought I'd do another little post about some more inspiring literary spaces. Here are some of my favourite hotels that offer guests carefully curated collections of beautiful books. And beautiful spaces to browse them in.

HOTEL LE A, PARIS

The Hotel Le A (pictured below) is just about one of the most stylish little boltholes you’ll ever see in Paris. The result of collaboration between conceptual artist Fabrice Hybert and renowned interior designer Frédéric Méchiche, it was inspired by the shape of the Eiffel Tower (thus the ‘A’), and also the name of the street it sits on (Artois). Like its name, the hotel's interior is a picture of graphic simplicity. The lobby/reception is a slash of black while the bar and dining room is a whisper of white – a contrast of tones that results in pure architectural poetry. But by far the most irresistible space is the library, a elegant, licorice-coloured room graced with more than 300 books on design and fashion. No wonder the place is loved by magazine editors and photographers, particularly during Fashion Weeks. A place where pure minimalism meets maximum glamour, Le A is, to use well-worn cliché, a little bit of ooh la la. www.paris-hotel-a.com

THE MERCER HOTEL, NEW YORK

The Mercer (pictured below) is one of those typical New York hideaways that looks so edgy, you daren't go in. But don't let the facade and the A-list stars put you off. (The lobby is literally littered with them.) It's a surprisingly relaxed hotel with a surprisingly easy-going atmosphere. Even when the celebrity guests have a little hissy fit (as Russell Crowe did when he threw a phone around – yes, it's that hotel), the staff barely blink a professional eyelid. My favourite space in the hotel is not the restaurant (wittily named The Kitchen), or even the suites, but the lobby. Designed with an enormous floor-to-ceiling bookshelf filled with art, design and fashion tomes, it's the kind of reception where it's a sheer pleasure to wait for someone, be it a guest or a friend for a lunch date. (I confess that I often get there half an hour before an appointment, just so I can flick through the latest fashion volumes!) www.mercerhotel.com (Image courtesy of Mercer)

THE LIBRARY HOTEL, THAILAND

Sleek, minimalist and utterly surprising. If the cranberry-red swimming pool and matching umbrellas don’t hook you in, then the extraordinary architecture will. The all-white library (the only shots of colour are the book spines) is simply sublime. (Pictured below) As the old saying goes, read it, and weep, er... sleep. www.thelibrary.co.th (Image courtesy of The Library Hotel)

CARLISLE BAY, ANTIGUA

I haven't had the pleasure of travelling to this lovely hotel (pictured below), but I've heard so many fab things about it that it's high on my list. Particularly since I've learned that it has a fantastic library of 1,2000 titles, hand-picked by Philip Blackwell of the bookselling dynasty. The library is the inspiration of owner Gordon Campbell Gray, who, when he first opened the hotel, solicited lists of “Top 10 Beach Reads” from friends and travel editors. He then went and bought them for guests to read, and the library grew from there. There's nothing worse than being bored while on vacation but here, you don't need to worry. Just fill your bedside table or poolside stool with a pile of titles, ask the bartender for a cocktail fill-up, and sit back in literary heaven. http://www.campbellgrayhotels.com/carlisle-bay-antigua. (Image courtesy of Carlisle Bay)

Excuse me, Karl, It's up the Back...

For a few thrilling minutes, I was beside myself with excitement. I had heard through a Paris-based editor that Karl Lagerfeld had bought a copy of my Design in Black and White book. He had also decided, she said, to stock it in his 7L bookstore in Paris. This was, as you can imagine, astonishing news. I was so touched that I was almost speechless.

Then I saw this...
Somehow, I don't think he'll even notice my little book.

(Via The Selby)

PS Seriously Karl, this is not a good system. How are you going to find anything in this library? I'm worried for you. If you need me to re-organise, I'm more than happy to...

Apartment Rental in Paris

If you're considering visiting Paris next year, don't book into a hotel – although there are some truly lovely ones around, such as Le Senat and the Pantheon. Try renting an apartment instead. An apartment gives you a) more flexibility, because it will usually have a kitchen (great for preparing your own breakfasts and dinners), b) more privacy (no maids coming in at 11AM to tidy the room), and c) a more intimate sense of Paris. You really feel like a local when you're walking through a classic Parisian courtyard and then up an ornate Parisian stairwell to your own front door.

Here is a small selection of some fabulous apartments I've found over the years.

The Brad and Angelina Apartment

Once rented by Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and the Pitt-Jolie family, this glamorous penthouse, 'Brochet', is located on the Boulevard de Grenelle and is available to rent through parisluxeapt.com Love the view from the bathroom! (Images courtesy parisluxeapt.com)

The Quintessential Parisian Apartment

This apartment, 'Voltaire',  has everything you've ever dreamed of, right down to the elegant Parisian furniture and the silk taffeta drapes. Available through Chez Vous Paris Apartments - chezvous.com (Images courtesy of Chez Vous)

Another Classic Parisian Pied-a-Terre

This one, 'Sortilège', is also from the Chez Vous Paris Apartment group (www.chezvous.com). Their vacation rentals are some of the most stylish in the city.

Paris in the Winter

I love Paris in the winter. Most people don’t realise that Paris is more beautiful going into the colder months than at any other time. Under a dignified sky the shade of Dior grey, you can see the ‘bones’ of the city, including its noble architecture, through the brittle branchs of the trees. Somehow, the city seems finer, grander, and more spectaculaire. The shimmering cognac shade of the Seine under the morning sun (which changes through the day to a luminous petrol blue and finally to a silver the colour of evening slippers at twilight), the grand Aubusson grey of the famous cobblestoned avenues and the fine huître (oyster) shell grey of the architecture all co-ordinate to give the city an almost gentlemanly feel. The city is distingué (distinguished), poised and more handsome than Vincent Cassel.

Here are some images of Paris in this glorious season of starkly sophisticated beauty.

A Parisian Typeface

Here's another glamorous typeface. A designer called Moshik Nadav was so inspired by the world of fashion that he decided to create his own 'Paris' typeface, which is now being picked up by fashion magazines and luxury brands. The typeface is a cheeky, chic mix of beautiful ligatures and sexy numerals. You never hear those two words together – "sexy numerals" – do you? Well, it's about time we did! Personally, I'm rather fond of a sexy numeral, especially if it has more than seven 0s on the end...

Via trendland.net/paris-typface-by-moshik-nadav/

High Heels Typeface

So very clever! The clearly chic designer Zummi has created an alphabet inspired by elegant shoes. Mr Blahnik would surely love this.

Via trendland.net/high-heels-typeface and justbaustralia.com.au