A meeting in Westbourne Grove

Westbourne Grove is my favourite part of London.  It is like a perfect village, there is not an excess of anything, but everything is just so and it is the ideal place to while away an hour between meetings.

Who can resist these gorgeous clothes, thank goodness for a God-daughter so that I now have an excuse to indulge.

The food is terrible the wine is warm and the cocktails dire and overpriced, and yet I still love this place.  It reminds me of first arriving in London in the 80s as a wide eyed country girl, this was quite the most sophisticated place that I had ever come across. Combine that with the Armistead Maupin link and the joyous Tales of the City series that were my favourite read at the time and it brings back the happiest memories of long summer evenings when everything was possible.

The interior is a little eclectic, but I love the drama.
Diptyque is my favourite for fragrance, currently my obsession is L'Ombre dans L'Eau (shadow in water), it is the fragrance of mermaids at midnight, the antidote to the slightly insipid Issey Miyake, L'Eau d'Issey which was my memory of the smell of the early 90s.  Although it is quite specific and one that is a real love it or hate it.

Brissi looking like it is morphing into Cabbages and Roses or Runaway Coast, I am not to sure about the pastel stripes, Brissi is best when it is powder grey, ivory aged wood and silver plated baths, definitely not Shabby Chic, a hybrid of Scandinavian, Italian and French all put together to perfection.

Dogs at Emma Hope, this is her flagship shop and the collection is stunning this year, these are shoes that you will never find copied in China and precisely because they are not the cutting edge of fashion they are chic forever. A pair of Emma Hope shoes can be spotted a mile off, because her design and quality of workmanship, no need for any statement red soles to make the point.

 The pots were waiting to be arranged into a garden that is maintained outside the store through out the summer.

Cute dresses at Nanette Lepore.

 Easter at Tom's Deli.

 Possibly the most expensive flower stall in London.

 Dreaming of summer at Heidi Klein, who do fantastic spray tans to get you in the mood.

 The new sea green at Smythson,  it is not as turquoise as these pics would suggest.

 My favourite boutique in London, Feathers maintains quite its own look; bias cut silk John Galliano dresses worn with oversized embellished shearlings and biker boots.  Or super body hugging Rag and Bone dresses worn with leggings, shoe boots and fitted leather jackets.  The looks work on any age from 16-80, although I don't quite carry off the rag nymph and look more like a post apocalyptic warrior with my stringy hair and american footballer's shoulders.

 Twenty Twelve (the Miller sisters) doing yellow and denim for S/S12.

It's just a regular residential road, that is what makes this place so unique.

 Daylesford; the best place to drink frothy coffee and sit and watch the world go by...

Which are your favourite 'villages'?