gypsetting...

The Mignot Sisters in Sayulita Mexico - ultimate gypsetters!

Jade Jagger - gypsetter

‘Gypsetting’ “an approach to life that fuses the wild and unconventional ethos of a gypsy with the sophistication and speed of the jet set. It’s a lifestyle that crosses high and low - a surfer who is also a fashion designer, an artist who traded the go-go New York City art world for Bali’s low key tropical shores, a jewelry designer who would rather work out of a town in Mexico than in the uber-chic Saint-Germain-des-Pres.”

First coined by by Julia Chaplin in her book ‘Gypset Style’ (Assouline, 2009) it is a term regularly read about in glossy magazines and it is somewhat of a buzz word.

I must admit, I'd never heard of gypsetting until the other day and well, just perhaps..... I have found my calling life!

FIONA : someone who is essentially a bohemian nomad, albeit one with luxurious taste. FREEDOM!!!

Gypsetting is about thriving on the search for new living paradigms.

In the book, Chaplin tells of the Mignot family and their trans-continental/trans-oceanic adventures. In all of these stories, it’s about creating reality and populating it with scenery and characters that are glamorous by way of their boldness, individuality and artfulness.

The book is full of stunning images and makes a wonderful coffee table book.

The reality check of course, is that you need stacks of $$ to live the gypset lifestyle. The other thing that would bother me about gypsetting would be the inevitable implosion of hangers on, which in the end would destroy it.

How about an 'eco friendly' form of gypsetting - but alas in our quest to reduce carbon footprints we would end up staying put which would signal the end of 'setting' of any description!!!

Gypset Style $45 from Amazon

A pretty & new take on the old classics....

Sunshine and the UK don't tend to go very well together, but I seem to have been blessed!!.. and since arriving back from India the sun has been shining... wonderful!

Today, as I strolled through London it did cross my mind that there are few places in the world better than this city when the sun makes an appearance!!

For those lucky enough to be able to spend their days in the park or, in fact even those less lucky, but equally determined to grab a quick half hour to indulge in a great book - then can I suggest you pick up one of these stunning White's Books artistic versions of the old classics...

Each book is clothbound with a unique wrap around cover design and comes with an elegant font..titles to choose from include -

Emma - Jane Austin

Wurthering Heights - Emma Bronte

Pride & Prejudice - Jane Austin

Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson

Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte

Books cost 20 uk sterling each and make great presents as-well as personal reads!

www.whitebooks.com

bon voyage...

Travel in style and 'in the know' with the 2010 Luis Vuitton City Guides which give the secrets of 31 wonderful European locations. Including hotels, restaurants, galleries, fashion stores and much more. The guides make a great gift for that 'annoying' person who seems to have absolutely everything and don't be put off by the designer tag either!

• 9 soft-back guides in a Boxed set
• 31 cities include: Paris, Bordeaux, Deauville, Marseilles, London, Leeds, Dublin, Amsterdam, Brussels, Knokke-Le-Zoutte, Geneva, Basel, Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Vienna, Rome, Genoa, Milan, Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga, Lisbon, Moscow, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Warsaw, Athens, Mykonos, Instanbul, Tel Aviv
• 7000 addresses, including over 2000 new listings

Cost 85 uk - guides also available for NYC, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Mumbai amongst others.

La Strada della Dolce Vita....wish list

For inspiration and lavish over-sized images of colourful sumptuous floral prints, as-well as textiles and accessories from all over the world hunt down a copy of La Strada della Dolce Vita.

La Strada della Dolce Vita is a style book from Californian decorator Lynn von Kersting - indulge in a spot of globe trotting glamour and expect to be inspired.

The book is only available through Indigo Seas, von Kersting's LA emporioum a MUST if you are ever visiting the West Coast. Additionally next door, von Kersting and her husband own the uber trendy and acclaimed Ivy Restaurant another MUST MUST.

Taken from the book some wonderful lines by Axel Munthe ( La Storia di San Michele):

The house was small, the rooms were few

but there were loggias, terraces, and

pergolas all around it to watch the sun, the sea

and the clouds -- the soul needs more space

than the body.

Book costs approx $68 usd.