I AM looking out of a window on a top floor. Opposite the building I am in, there is a building site, and directly opposite me – as if suspended in the air – is a crane with two builders on a platform pretending to be photographed and posing in a very funny and exaggerated fashion. You may be wondering if I am imagining this or perhaps I am talking about a dream I have had… The reason they are posing is because they can see into our hotel room where we doing a photo shoot and as we take pictures they are playing along. It’s the funniest thing I have seen in a long time.
Let me tell you a little bit about this shoot: a new magazine supplement is being launched in the New Year, so the editor gets in touch with me and asks me to style a cover shoot focusing on the latest Spring Summer ’05 collection from the label Mulberry. I am so excited I can hardly wait!
First I need to go to the Mulberry showroom to choose the outfits. I arrive at their press office, which is located above their Bond Street store and go through the clothes. They really are stunning: Capri pants worn with matching cotton v-necks, silk pink skirts and patterned blouses. Very feminine yet wearable at the same time. To complete the look I borrow some beautiful leather bags and shoes, which I can pretend to own on the day of the shoot!
All in hand, I am now scheduled to meet Bel, the editor, at the venue, to ensure it will be in tune with the collection. We arrange to meet at 3pm at Miller’s Residence, an exclusive guesthouse located in the heart of Westbourne Grove. I arrive early and the owner greets me. We start to talk and she offers me a cup of tea – an offer I can’t decline. It’s freezing outside, so the sight of a roaring fire in the main lounge is like a dream come true. The hotel is simply stunning, a ‘maximalist’ environment full of the most incredible chaotic arrangements of antiques. The walls are covered in ornate framed oils and etchings that make you feel like they could tell a story or two. And there are bookshelves stacked with books, travel guides and knick-knacks from all around the world. For once I am speechless.
Bel arrives and looks around the room, and then at me with an ‘Oh my God!’ expression on her face. We sit down and discuss where the shots should take place: by the hall mirror, by the fireplace, by the staircase to the top floor. It will be perfect. We check our diaries and agree on a day for the job. All we need to do now is confirm the rest of the team (make-up artist, photographer and model), and after a few phone calls we decide that Tuesday will be best.
I am walking back home through the market. The days are so short now that it’s getting dark at around four o’clock. I pick up some flowers from the market stall to put in my office, and remember the incredible ornaments I just saw at Miller’s Residence: from Buddhas to bowls full of boiled sweets and garden gnomes dotted around the place. I open the door to my flat and put the flowers in a vase. An environment so minimal that they immediately change the room, and I smile remembering the clutter I just came from…
Laia Farren Graves
n Miller’s Residence, www.millersuk.com
