I HAVE twisted my ankle, and I am limping around my flat when suddenly the phone rings. I almost miss the call as I it takes me longer to get to the handset than it normally would, but I get to it just in time: ‘Darling it’s Lucinda, would you join us for a spot of lunch at The Hospital in Covent Garden and a tour of Seven Dials?’ I laugh and explain to her that given the state of my foot, nothing would be better than going to The Hospital, accept the invitation and order a cab.
I arrive at The Hospital, a brand new organic cafe and restaurant, which comprises a new and exciting exhibition space, TV and recording studios. The venue is clean, spacious and modern and I meet my friend who wants to show me around Covent Garden’s Seven Dials. Recent openings in the area such as lingerie store Coco de Mer, The Hospital and the funky boutique Paul Frank, have made it one of the hippest areas in London. Just the right side of edgy, the area is full of character, vintage and chic…
Our tour begins at Coco de Mer situated on Monmouth Street (a street described by Esquire as officially the sexiest street in London). The shop is full of beautiful lingerie, and brings together bed linen, bedroom toys and seductive underwear. Like the palm tree it is named after, it truly is underwear’s equivalent to the forbidden fruit and seed of desire… Then, a few doors down we enter Miss Sixty, (the one where Britney went on her last visit to London and bought a pair of jeans!) a fab Italian brand which is fun, vibrant and as rock chic as you can get. Their low-cut hipster jeans are fabulous, I may return for a pair…
Then Lucinda leads the way into the uber-chic Koh Samui. A word of warning: keep your credit cards at home, as you will almost certainly fall in love with — and will simply have to have — some of their Julien MacDonald or Tristan Webber little numbers. To finish our mini fashion tour we go into Oxfam Originals. This is a charity shop with a difference. It is always full of unique gems and is under the constant scrutiny of students from London College of Fashion and St Martins. It’s trendy, funky and could leave you wearing clothes once owned by Kylie Minogue or Madonna!
Having had a good look around the shops, we decide to stop off at the Covent Garden Hotel but first, a quick visit to Neal’s Yard, the trendy alternative medicine establishment where surely I will find something for my swollen foot!
We enter the shop: stacks of dark blue glass bottles, pots full of creams and ointments ready to make you better, softer or fresher, cover the shelves all around the store. At the back, large glass containers store herbs and seeds, with hand-written lables on the front. I find a rich foot lotion which not only smells divine but promises the world, so — needless to say — I go for the large one!
All set to go to the Covent Garden Hotel, which is one of the most elegant hangouts in Seven Dials. We have an informal coffee at Brasserie Max on the ground floor and feel very inspired by the beautiful decor: classic with wood panelling giving it a slight colonial feel. Lucinda tells me that she is organising a party for members of the press to attend, in order to promote the up and coming Seven Dials area. We talk about ideas for it and before we know it we have had two capuccinos and run out of time! We say our goodbyes and promise to call each other soon. ‘By the way Lucinda,’ I add. ‘Let me know how you get on with your event.’ Dare I say break a leg?
Laia Farren Graves
n www.sevendials.net
