Advent Calendar Day 11: Blue (The Colour for 2013?)

Some time ago I did a post on periwinkle blue. It received more hits that many of the other posts on this blog, apart, perhaps from the Anna Wintour one. (For the record, I like Anna.) Blue is clearly one of our favourite shades.

If you believe the rumours flying around the design world, Monaco Blue is being tipped to be the hot new hue for 2013. Predicted by Pantone to be a 'colour to watch' in the months to come, it is already being seen in fashion and interior collections. I know Pantone has recently nominated Emerald Green as the 'official' colour for 2013, but we've seen a lot of green this year, so my hunch is that one of Pantone's other favourites, blue, steals the colour show. There was already a lot of blue in Paris when I was there for work recently. Cornflower blue at Versailles (although it was always Marie Antoinette's favourite shade). Powder blue at Le Bon Marche. Denim blue in the Marais. China blue in the design stores of Rue de Furstemberg. And a delicate, gently-faded vintage linen blue in the fabric shops of Montmartre.

Here are some beautiful blues to inspire you all as the sun sinks shines over our perfect, porcelain-blue sky today. BTW, that gorgeous trend for blue patterns that resemble chinoiserie porcelain is still going strong in the fashion and design fields, despite having being around for a year or so. We just can't get enough of blue and white chinoiserie, it seems...

{Top image of Lacroix stilettos shot at Didier Ludot in Paris in October this year.}

A beautiful blue door in Paris. {Shot by me in October this year as I raced by to avoid a rainshower!}

The Hearst Pool, California. 

We saw this many years ago, but the intensity of the colour has never left my memory.

Daphne Guinness wearing blue Chanel in Tatler.

YSL's spectacular blue garden in Marrakech. {Via Elle Decor}. I'm dying to see this place.

The tropical blue skies over the Florida Keys. {Photographed on our last night in the US in May this year.}

The Blue Hour, Paris. {Photographed October last year.}

One of Collette Dinnigans's latest designs. It's a terrible scan from newsprint, but it's the most beautiful Chinoiserie-inspired ballgown.

Our new summer slipcovers, in royal blue pinstripes. This striped vintage French linen was picked up for an incredibly cheap price in The Cloth House in Soho, London, but I know Designer's Guild has a similar print.

Alannah Hill.

Kate Spade. Would love this bag for Christmas parties. 

BTW, we went to a Doggy Christmas Party last week in Como Park. Peter Alexander's dachshund Penny did the judging of the canine costumes. It was hilarious. But the interesting thing was, a lot of dogs were wearing blue...

Kate Spade. Coveting this too.

The Seine under a blue twilight sky, Paris. {Photographed last year}

The blue interior of Jamaica Inn, in Jamaica.

Have you noticed that Jamaica has suddenly come screaming back into travel fashion? I'm longing to visit the Blue Mountains of this beautiful country, and this gorgeous blue hotel too, especially since I've just read Daphne du Maurier's Jamaica Inn. Must see the film version by Alfred Hitchcock too...

Collette Dinnigan.

Manuel Canovas's 'Jardin Blue' wallpaper.

Manuel Canovas L'Isle Bleue linen fragrance, which apparently makes your room smell like "the isle of Capri, sumptuous verdant gardens and languid afternoons". I'll have some of that.

A window of the Lanvin store in Paris. {Photographed in October}

And the blue that started it all... Pantone's Monaco Blue: one of the hot tips for 2013.

Advent Calendar Days 4-10: Where To Find Great Books

It seems I've missed a few days in the old advent calendar. I am so sorry. I can't apologise enough. December is crazy, as you all know, but this week's been crazier than crazy. All of a sudden I find myself at the helm of a new business venture. It's a curious fork in the career road, but a wonderful one nonetheless, and I'm so grateful for it.

Something else I'm grateful for is our team of tradesmen. We've found the loveliest people to fix our various bits and pieces. One 

of these much-loved tradies was here last week rewiring some power points. He spent an hour poking around the corners of our house before coming to find me. "I saw those books of yours beside the bed," he said. "Oh?" I said nervously. "Which ones are those?" (Between you and me, I was slightly scared by what I might have left there.) "Those business books," he said. "And the inspirational ones too. I like those books. They're much better reading material than that architecture tripe you usually write." 

It was hilarious. (I think it was tongue-in-cheek?)

"Quite right!" I said. "I can't imagine why I put my name to such fluff, really?"

So here, for all you lovely lit-wits, is a little advent post about books, inspired by our highly educated electrician. There are also lots of tips on buying books, supplied by The Library's wonderful readers. Thank you so much for sending in your kind comments this year.  I know I've said how grateful I am, but a heartfelt thank you once again.

WHERE TO FIND GOOD BOOKS

A recent post on this topic had lots of readers talking. Bookstores? Book Depository? Even a librarian wrote in to me offering her opinion. (I love librarians. Don't you? They deserve more credit.) 

This is what The People said:

BOOKO 

Recommended by several readers. I've never used it but it's supposed to be an excellent Australian search engine that compares prices for major bookstores and online sources. I've started to investigate it and it is very good. I can see I'll become a Booko convert. www.booko.com.au

FISHPOND 

Another great site recommended by many of The Library's readers. This is an online Australian/NZ online bookstore and it often has the cheapest prices around – plus free delivery! www.fishpond.com.au

BOOK DEPOSITORY 

Offers free shipping worldwide. Good if you just want one book. Also offers 11,000 free ebooks. Some people lament the fact that Amazons owns Book Depository. (This worries me too.) So I'll leave you to make up your own mind. www.bookdepository.co.uk 

HEYWOOD HILL  

Heywood Hill in Mayfair is a remarkable London bookshop that has stood the test of time. So many serious book lovers I know are devoted to it. It sells new books but it's really famous for its old and antiquarian books as well as its themed catalogues. Specialities are literature, history, architecture, biography and travel. At the moment, the store is selling – with a little help from the Dowager Duchess of Devonshire who is a Heywood fan – special limited edition boxed sets of the re-issued Nancy Mitford novels. (Nancy worked at Heywood for a period.) The five novels have been designed fit snugly into a beautiful blue box, with "Love from Nancy" printed in gold on the top and on the back of each. There's also an interview with Deborah Devonshire on the website – great reading. Debo and Andrew bought many of the books in Chatworth's library from this magnificent place. The store can also find you obscure books in most categories, and is happy to post them across the world. www.heywoodhill.com

JOHN SANDOE 

One of the best loved and longest surviving independent bookshops in London, .John Sandoe in Chelsea is revered with an almost religious zeal by so many book lovers, including many writers and celebrities. In fact, it seems to have attracted a rather famous clientele. Regulars have included Mary Quant, Keith Richards, Lucian Freud, Dirk Bogarde, Tom Stoppard and Edith Sitwell, (who was in love with Mr Sandoe), plus Katharine Hepburn was chased out by accident one day when they thought she was a stray homeless person. The location – in Chelsea – may have helped its reputation, and the credit Mr Sandoe offered was probably appealing too – but it's the books they come for. And oh, what books they are! I particularly love their garden list. What a list. Far, far more than just a bookshop. www.johnsandoe.com

LIBRARIES 

I went to our local library last Friday to return some books. It's one of those glorious, old-fashioned libraries where there's no exterior shoot so you have to go inside to drop off your borrowed books, which of course means borrowing more books while you're there. Furthermore, the system is still a card one: no computers here. I borrowed AS Byatt's Possession and Peter Carey's The Chemistry of Tears. But I couldn't have easily borrowed the entire biography section. Libraries. Take the time to rediscover them. (PS The State Libraries of Victoria and New South Wales are amazing places. Their architecture alone is worth a look.)

INDEPENDENT BOOKSTORES

The Hill of Content. Readings. Avenue Books. Even tucked-away places like Lesley McKay's beautiful bookstore in Woollahra, Berkelouw's outlet bookstore in Bowral, Domain Books in South Yarra, Rosetta Books in Maleny and Jeffrey's Books in Malvern are all worth the trek. I also love newcomers such as Coventry Bookstore in South Melbourne. Independent bookstores are often run by people with passion, and they're great at recommending good reads. You know how bartenders are trained to sum up a person's choice of drink when they walk in the doors? Well, most independent booksellers are trained to do the same thing.

WHERE TO FIND RECOMMENDATIONS

Book recommendations are a tricky thing. They're similar to when people set you up on a blind date. You hope the setter-upperer has good taste. The best thing is to look for people who have the same taste as you, and who have loved books you've loved. Chances are, they'll have read other books you'd like, too. Other great places to find ideas are here. (Pic of Vogue: The Editor's Eye book launch from Barney's)

Jennifer Byrne's First Tuesday Book Club

Did you see the '10 Books To Read Before You Die' episode last week? It was an unusual choice of books. www.abc.net.au/tv/firsttuesday

The New York Times 

I don't set much by the NYT's bestseller lists, as they're supposed to be 'rigged'. (Shhh. Who said that?) However, their book reviews are splendid. It's the reviews that are really revelatory.

The Guardian London 

As with the NYT, The Guardian is full of intelligent discussions. It's often quite witty too. And not afraid to pull punches. Or hair. At the moment there's a story by Bret Easton Ellis about how "Kathryn Bigelow is overrated because she's hot", another list of the "100 Greatest Novels Of All Time"and a rather scary photo of EL James and her story about Ikea and fish and chips. www.guardian.co.uk/books

BOOKS I'VE LOVED (OR RE-READ) THIS YEAR

Advent, Day 3 : Secret Stores (Hermes, Chanel, Armani)

A few tips for great fashion stores, from fashion editor friends...

HERMES SALES

Once or twice a year, Hermès runs a private sale, or Ventes Promotionnelles, where the company discounts stock by up to 90%. It isn't held at the flagship store but at Palais des Congres in Port Maillot. The summer sale usually begins around the 4th of July and runs for several days. The winter sale generally runs for four days during the third week of January. The sale features a lot of Hermès products but if you're on the hunt for wallets and bags you'll have to go very early as they go first. (The line usually starts queuing at 6am.) Tip: Don't wear any Hermès as they'll think it comes from the sale and will make you purchase it.

ARMANI FACTORY OUTLET STORE

A great place to buy heavily discounted Armani. (All the fashion editors love it: they race here after the Milan Fashion Shows.) This outlet carries all of Armani's ranges, from Giorgio Armani down to the diffusion lines. To go by public transport, take the local railway line that goes from Malepensa to Como NL. (From Milan you can catch this train at Milan N CA. Note that this is not the central train station, and the train leaves every hour. The train station you get off is: Fino Mornasco (from Milan it is 45 min; from Como NL it is 15 min.) There are taxis outside the station, and the taxi will take around 15 min and will cost Euro 11 one way. Provinciale per Bregnano, 12 | Vertemate, Italy. Ph: 0039 031 887 373.

VINTAGE CHANEL JEWELLERY

One of the best places to buy vintage Chanel jewellery is actually in New York, at the Showplace Antiques and Design Centre. This enormous upmarket flea market has hundreds of small stores where stallholders sell authentic costume jewellery for very good prices. Many of them sell vintage Chanel. Last time I was in New York, I was almost tempted to buy a beautiful long Chanel necklace and a classic Chanel cuff – both would have been great investment pieces. But I'd already spent my shopping budget on books! It's just near the Flatiron Building, in an area famous for great flea markets. 40 W 25th Street, New York. Ph 212 633 6063.

Advent Calendar: Day 2 – A Glamorous Gift Guide

FASHION CLASSICS

Beaton in Vogue (book). US$25 {Amazon}

UNMISSABLE TV

Downton Abbey, Series 1 and 2, Limited Edition Set. $25 {Amazon}

VINTAGE READS

Party of the Century: The Fabulous Story of Truman Capote and His Black and White Balls. $12 {Amazon}

SCENTED PLEASURES

Jo Malone's new fragrance, Blackberry and Bay. Set to be as popular as her Lime Basil & Mandarin, judging by the reviews. {jomalone.com} {Image via Bloomingdales}

SARTORIAL ADDICTIONS

Annual subscription to Australian Vogue. A beautiful magazine. $69. {vogue.com.au}

CHIC THINKING

'Cookies and Cream' tuxedo-style laptop bag. Forever New. $49. {forevernew.com}

GLAMOROUS GLOBE-TROTTING

'Sienna' bow-tie carry-on case. Forever New. (A great fashion store for gorgeous clothes as well as chic and cheeky gifts) $99. {forevernew.com}

PARISIAN MEMORIES

A romantic, cinematic photo shoot with One and Only Paris. {oneandonlyparisphotography.com}

MORE VINTAGE READS

The Man Who Was Vogue: The Life and Times of Condé Nast. (Great book){Amazon}

MUST-SEE FILMS FOR BUILDING A FILM LIBRARY

 Don't Look Now, one of Julie Christie's best movies, based on the Daphne du Maurier story. One of the great Gothic horror films, it's set in Venice and is still considered a great film. (I won't tell you about the sex scene as it's unladylike: but do some research and you'll see why Donald Sutherland was in trouble and why Christie's boyfriend Warren Beatty demanded they edit it out.)

INDISPENSABLE REFERENCE MATERIAL

1001 Movies To See Before You Die. $21 {Amazon}

FASHION CLASSICS

Audrey: The 60s (Hardcover). Published November 6, 2012. $22 {Amazon}