Posted on Wed, Sep 29, 2010 @ 03:27 PM
I have had a long standing love affair with ANTHROPOLOGIE. And modeled for them over the years. Sometimes on my own, sometimes with a member of the wild bunch. They sold my books, ISLAND LIFE and ISLAND BEAUTY, and a few years ago we designed for them exclusive packaging for my Island Living Crabtree & Evelyn collections. Our guests sleep in their ITALIAN CAMPAIGN BED'S and our table is set with Anthroploogie Fleur De Lys Dinner plates. I keep cosy in the autumnal English Countryside wearing their SWEATERS and Father Christmas fills my stocking with teeny weenyANTHROPOLOGIE nick knacks. And now at last a Flag ship store in London. On Regent's Street.......across from CRABTREE & EVELYN, six degrees of separation. For other Anthroholic's out there see my Deconstructing Home suggestions.... >> CLICK HERE.
Posted on Tue, Sep 21, 2010 @ 03:22 PM
If only every one out there had the panache, the bravery and the style of ANYA HINDMARCH, shopping for THE SUGAR MILLwould be so much more exciting.
I was welcomed aboard M.Y HINDMARCH to the sound of a gypsy violinist, accepted tea and flap jacks, and got down to the business of being introduced to the spring summer collection of hand bags (we were politely reminded, in case of sea sickness, to use the goodie bags provided and not the hand bags on display).
Every design, in its pure and fresh palette, would have felt at home in THE SUGAR MILL, all 60 or so styles. Thank God I had declined a tot of Anya's Navy Rum, came to my senses and edited the selection.
The lovely Anya exhausted, but happy, disembarked with me, to trot home to a significant cluster of children. I remember Anya once saying that she white knuckled her way through the exhaustion. Running an empire, mothering five and personally being on board must involve immeasurable amounts of white knuckling.
Posted on Thu, Sep 16, 2010 @ 03:22 PM
Layer your lair with love, says Jonathan Adler, my alliterative judge on Top Design.
So I put the groove back into the Sugar Mill chair,
I surrendered to the power of cardinal purple and scarlet
Est voila! Ce n'est pas une catastrophe anymore. Or is it?
Posted on Mon, Sep 13, 2010 @ 03:22 PM
There really is no place like it. The Home Shopping Network.
My first introduction had been several months ago. It had not gone well. My puppy had pooped all over their floor.
This visit was more promising. I had been allocated 4 shows, to sell my new India Hicks Getaway bag, lovingly designed by me in collaboration with Crabtree & Evelyn.
Day 1 was filled with legal meetings. I was asked not to make legal claims, use trademarked language or refer to celebrities. Hhhmmm. Was Prince Charles a celebrity? My products carried the Royal Warrant, a seal of approval from the Prince of Wales's Royal Household, and as he was my God father I was hugely proud of this. Could I prove he was my Godfather, the HSN lawyers wanted to know. Could I prove he was my God father? Would I really invent that? Mind you judging by an alarming gentleman who tries to contact me weekly, insisting that I and the Queen need to take action to save the Commonwealth, there are people out there who do have vivid imaginations.
On Day 2 I attended a training session, hugely reassuring, and by the end of it I wanted to buy everybody else's product. We were educated in the importance of 'The Show Host' - as it turns out as vital as never going to the park with out nanny.
Day 3 was my first show, billed as a Show Stopper. Crabtree & Evelyn were delighted. I was petrified. Four minutes before seven I took the death walk from Green room to studio. It felt like slow motion. Evvvveeerrrryyytthhhiiinnng haaaad sloooowed doooooowwwn. "Ready for action?" the producer asked. Suddenly we were off. Show Host's introduction, camera close up, compelling demo, a daring mention of Prince Charles, personal stories, pay options, auto-ship, extra flex, buy more, save more, definitely buy more, buy more, buy more. And the 20 minutes were over. I thanked my host whole heartedly.
Day 4, which I think was really still Day 3, I was up long before the crack of dawn, sipping a disturbing breakfast ofRed Bull. A harder show. Like pulling teeth. Unfortunately the 94 million households that HSN reaches were sensibly still asleep. However by lunch time those expert shoppers were wide awake and by my final show, that evening, we were selling 75 bags every 30 seconds. Astonishing.
HSN, there really is no place like it.
Posted on Wed, Sep 08, 2010 @ 03:22 PM
How do you get 1 motor bike, 3 dogs, 4 children and a kayak into a Landrover?
with a lot of pushing, shoving and swearing. (And making sure the kayak is deflatable)
Posted on Thu, Sep 02, 2010 @ 03:22 PM
A rare shrimp that is believed to be the most ancient animal species on Earth has been discovered alive and well in Scotland.
Fossil records show that the shrimps are virtually the same today as they were 200 million years ago, when dinosaurs first evolved.
Of course this plastic shrimp was discovered by me in a chinese restaurant.
