Words by Lorna Luxe
8:45 AM It’s the first day of London Fashion Week and I’ve woken up late. Fortunately I’m staycationing for the next 4 nights in central 5 star hotel The May Fair... so skip the first show and spend the morning hoovering croissants and planning outfits. I’m staying in the Schiaparelli Suite and the Carrie Bradshaw closet is well worth the extra airtime.
9:15 AM Friend and fellow blogger Nicole Ballardini joins me for breakfast, she brings four bags of press-loan clothes for us to try on and I bring out the sewing kit when the zip on a sample dress busts. We post our faves to insta stories and let the audience majority vote decide our first look - matching tailored layers.
I have a chauffeur driven Mercedes-Benz G-Class for the week and Jon our driver calls and confirms he’s scored a spot directly outside the hotel. We invite him up for croissants and a second opinion on the tailoring.
10:00 AM Eventually we leave the hotel revved up from two Nespressos. Climbing into the G-Wag Jon explains he’s been briefed by last season's chauffeur Nick and has stuffed the car seats with wine-gums and Diet Coke. Jon is clearly good people.
10:30AM We ask Jon to drive us to Bond Street so we can shoot our outfits for Instagram. After that we head to Annabel's where I’m attending a lunch for Susie Lau’s new shoe collection. I’m early so head straight to the bathroom and take a healthy amount of selfies in their infamously ostentatious ladies room.
12:45AM Last to leave the lunch I get caught by the paps outside Annabel's who clearly mistake me for someone else and I don’t have the heart to correct them. Jon’s waiting outside and climbs out to usher me to safety. We giggle about it while he’s driving me back to The May Fair and I update my followers on stories about the mishap.
1:00 PM Lunch is a quick bite back at the hotel and chauffeur Jon and Nicole join me for tapas and gossip. Nicole and I have rosé and decide to appoint that as our tipple for the week.
2:00 PM After lunch blogger Bonnie Rakhit returns from a show and agrees to shoot with us and wear pieces from my collection with IN THE STYLE ... the three of us coordinate in matching porcelain prints and blues and then head out to shoot our second look.
2:15 PM Jon drives us to Mount Street for the shoot so that I can pop in to Roland Mouret for a fitting before the show on Sunday. The pieces Roland has selected are lovely but the skirt doesn’t fit and eventually I leave with wide leg pants and a completely different look. I rejoin the girls and we use the G-Wag as a prop for our shoot climbing on the roof which draws quite a crowd. Driver Jon films it and I post it to my Insta stories - the response is fairly hysterical but after flicking through the camera reel we all agree it was worth the embarrassment.
4.00 PM I leave the girls in Mayfair and Jon whisks me to a presentation before I head back to the hotel for drinks with a pr friend.
6:00 PM Nicole and I meet at Daniel Galvin for a blow dry before the evening events, we barely chat as we’re both so focussed on work... I have to post an Instagram at 6:30 and need to engage before and after with my audience.
7:00 PM Mr. Luxe arrives to meet us at the salon and then we all climb into the G Wag and head out for an early supper at Mews of Mayfair before my evening event. I convince our driver Jon to join us and we bond over burger and fries.
8:45 PM Back at the hotel, I change into a black tuxedo and Louboutins and Mr. Luxe accompanies me to a Magazine event hosted by a good friend. We stay 'til midnight and then make our excuses and head back to the hotel.
I’m shattered and still need to fake tan and plan tomorrow’s outfit before we do it all again.