Laia’s London

Singin’ in the rain
I’M SOAKED from head to toe: my sling backs are sodden and my hair looks like rats’ tails — wet rats’ tails, to be precise … British summer is famous for its unpredictability– or lack of existence altogether. Take one morning this week, for instance: a beautiful blue sky shone upon us and managed to stay blue just long enough for me to leave my apartment without my umbrella.
Mind you, I still made it to the sales …
Let me tell you a bit about myself: I’m a journalist and fashion stylist based in the heart of London’s Notting Hill. I come from a family of writers: my grandfather was the poet and novelist Robert Graves and my mother, Lucia Graves, is also a great writer. I currently contribute to New Woman, Metro, Tatler, etc., and work as a stylist with bands, commercials and fashion magazines.
I met Ambrosia three seasons ago, at the Nicole Farhi show at London Fashion Week. She sat next to me, asked me for a pen, and the rest is history.
I love living in London, but it is a fast pace which is hard to keep up with at times — so much to do and so little time! Take this week, for instance. I spent two days working on the fashion styling for a cover shoot for a London-based magazine. The idea was strong and simple: to have a girl meditating in the Lotus position, dressed beautifully and in an opulent environment. How hard could that be?
But shoots are never simple, as there are so many people involved. On this occasion, for instance, we had a photographer and his assistant, the art editor and the editor of the magazine, the studio owner, the model, the make-up artist, my assistant, the bodyguard for the diamonds, and to top it all off, a girl on work experience!
The physical position of our girl also turned out to be a bit tricky. The Lotus position isn’t actually that photogenic if you think about it, so we had to fake it a little by placing the legs strategically behind props. Mind you, by the time we finished with her she was looking as calm as a Buddha and glowing with serenity.
I never thought trying to achieve peace could be so stressful: by the time the lime green lotus-shaped floating candles had arrived and the Bulgari diamonds (which come with bodyguard included!) were on site I was ready to have kittens. Still, it looked fab, and if any of you might be wondering about the boho-hippie look I would say it is definitely here to stay — provided, of course, it is teamed up with some deluxe accessories.
Looks like the sun’s out again, must dash!