The last time I wrote to you, I was planning my packing for a carry-on for this exact trip and building an outfit around a vintage mandarin jacket. So here’s the follow-up report: the jacket came with me, it worked, and I’m coming home with a few new finds.
For some context, we had a baby at the end of last summer. Somewhere in the months since, my husband floated the idea of flying to London for a weekend to attend an event we’d been invited to. The timing wasn’t perfect, since we have a close friend’s wedding in Brittany at the end of June and two trips across the Atlantic in one month feels like (is) a lot.
But living in New England makes a quick London trip feasible (faster than SF with the right winds) so we went for it. The clincher was one of the events was white tie, and I’ve been waiting years for an excuse to wear opera gloves.
This trip was surgical (two nights of events, plus sleeping, which is what vacation means to me now), with a little vintage hunting squeezed in.
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Thursday
We took the day flight over, which I cannot recommend enough. You take off mid-morning and land right before dinner in London. Most importantly, you arrive still feeling human.
For the plane I wore butter yellow jeans and a Quince cashmere sweater with a tank underneath. My ideal travel outfit: comfortable (the jeans are v stretchy), put together, warm enough for aggressive plane air conditioning, and easy to dress up on the other side.
We checked into Claridge’s, which was a splurge and worth it. It’s a classic London hotel with Art Deco interiors (thanks to a 1920s–30s redesign). It has quite the history which earned it the nickname “the annex to Buckingham Palace.”
For dinner we walked down the street to La Petite Maison, a cozy French spot. Dinner was good, but it would make a perfect summer lunch spot (great outdoor seating on a mostly pedestrian street).
I swapped the butter jeans for the Ganni skirt (also love this one I posted about a few weeks ago), kept the Quince sweater and tank on top, and added the heels I packed for Saturday night and the clutch I packed for Friday night.
Friday
We slept in, which as a new parent is a rarity. We had lunch at Scott’s, the old-school Mayfair seafood institution, where we sat outside. It’s nicer, as everything in Mayfair is more upscale, but great for people-watching.
Friday was the day the mandarin jacket vision came to life, and I was very pleased. The white base I’d planned held up exactly as I’d hoped and the silk jacket was perfect for the weather.
After lunch I talked my husband into some vintaging in Notting Hill, one of my favorite ways to spend an afternoon here. A few stops:
Archive by Natalie, where I was tempted by a little woven bucket bag. I imagined wearing it out west with brown suede and dark denim.
The Hirst Collection, which has incredible vintage costume jewelry…lots of insane 60s, 70s, and 80s earrings. I could have spent HOURS in here.
Vault Vintage was a favorite. I got the below three things but could have left with six.
The Friday night event was a river cruise on the Thames, dress code formal cocktail. I’d found a floral SIR dress on The RealReal that hit the floor o n me but is still linen (someone get the last size in this similar one). It felt right for a summer evening on the water.
I’d ordered a deep green shawl from Etsy that didn’t arrive in time, so I substituted a vintage fringe shawl (similar vintage one here). It’s a good example of why I adhere to a ‘buy-it-when-you-see-it’ motto, especially when it comes to accessories. The clutch is old-school J.McLaughlin. I loved the wood texture and dark tones against the darker floral of the dress.
Saturday
On Saturday, we treated ourselves to room service for breakfast. I love the Claridge’s china. Every time I’m in London I come home recommitted to having a proper tea with a proper setup. This year, maybe.
For the day I wore the yellow La Veste pants from my midi-skirt post that I picked up at the NYC pop-up a few weeks ago . The fabric texture is unreal and the yellow makes me happy.
We walked over to Savile Row to shop for my husband, and I admired this rugby shirt at Drake’s.
From there we went to the National Gallery, where I made my customary pilgrimage to Whistlejacket (one of my favorite paintings). We wandered back toward the hotel with a stop in Liberty London, which was having its annual sale, so I could have spent hours there. We picked up a very cute pajama set for our little third musketeer at home.
Saturday night was the white tie event, and styling for it was so fun. Per Emily Post, white tie essentially requires floor length dresses, closed-toe shoes, silver jewelry, and hair-up. The men, for their part, are in coats with tails.
I usually try to wear a designer from wherever I’m going (in my other life I do some public speaking at conferences, so this weirdly comes up more than you’d think).
I had bookmarked this dress from ByVarga, a very small London brand. However I’m petite and I was afraid the high-back would be too much on my frame. I reached out to Fanni (the designer) directly and asked about having it made to my measurements with a straight-across back, and she did. (Just another perk of shopping small!)
I loved working with Fanni (who also made the dress to my exact measurements, in addition to changing the back, at no charge). It’s always worth reaching out to small makers, where pieces are typically made-to-order, to see if they’ll make adjustments for you.
The rest came together around it. I found the silver clutch on Poshmark for $60 (similar here) and wore vintage earrings (I had also saved these). The opera gloves came from a small glove shop in New York that fits them to your hands, which was absolutely as fun as it sounds. The shoes are the same ones I’ve posted about before and highly recommend.
Sunday
We had a midday flight out and made it home right before bedtime. Ironically, less time in a city is less overwhelming: you know going in that you won’t do too much, so you’re pleased with anything you squeeze in. We did, and I was.
Per my last trip
An aside, do we like travel posts? They feel oversaturated yet I personally always enjoy reading more real accounts of travel (and what was packed/worn), so we’re giving it a try.
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Finders keepers,
SN
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Bookmarking these london stops ASAP. Need to find some killer handbags of my own!
Loved the post and all of your beautiful and thoughtful outfits!