Luxury: April 2020

I write this as I settle into my third week of social isolation. Since we started planning this issue, the world has shifted on its axis – reflected in an entirely new lexicon of #stayhome #socialdistancing, #lockdownnow and #flatteningthecurve.

Like millions of others around the world, the team and I are working from home, trying to conduct a distinctly collaborative process via email, video conferencing, direct messaging and good old-fashioned phone calls. There was the question of whether to bring out a magazine at all - whether it would come across as tone deaf in a time filled with uncertainty and insecurity. But, as people knuckle down and adapt to this new reality, they seem to be avidly seeking both information and inspiration.

So this is what we hope to provide – stories that distract, entertain, inform and perhaps encourage people to see things a little differently. It is a time of great anxiety, but there is also an underlying seed of hopefulness: hope that the great Covid-19 crisis of 2020 (as we will not doubt call it when we recount these times to our grandchildren) may encourage societies as a whole to reconsider their priorities. There is the hope that this crisis will act as a unifier – a reminder that we are more alike than we sometimes acknowledge, and that we are all connected, regardless of the borders and ideological differences that we so stringently uphold. It is a reminder that health is true wealth; and that the ability to interact with our fellow human beings, in real life, in real time, is a gift not to be squandered. This is a time to stop and reflect, something many of us forget to do in world that is moving unfathomably fast.

So maybe, when this is all over, we’ll all have an opportunity to do things a little differently. The people we speak to in this issue are ahead of the curve, in that respect. “It's not my purpose in life to fit in,” Waris Ahluwalia boldly tells us. The actor, activist, style maven and plant afficionado has long been concerned about our fractured relationship with the natural world. “We see ourselves as separate from nature, when in reality we are one and the same. Our relationship to nature is our relationship to ourselves. Do we treat ourselves with love? Do we treat ourselves and others with care?”

Rahul Mishra, meanwhile, is turning traditional fashion ecosystems on their head. We spoke to Mishra just before he became the first Indian fashion designer to show a collection during Paris Haute Couture Week at the beginning of the year. But his message seems particularly resonant today. Mishra champions the exquisite handcrafts and skilled partisans of his homeland, with a focus on social and environmental sustainability.

Mass production is polluting the world, in Mishra’s view. “If you create at a human pace, it can be sustainable, as the slower pace gives mother earth time to replace its resources – a mechanised pace becomes unsustainable.”

Haydn Cox, meanwhile, is trying to reduce waste in the surfing industry, by creating surfboards from recycled carbon fibre and fibreglass. “All industries need to overhaul the way they operate,” he insists.

Finally, now is a good time to go back and read some classics. Chinese author Jung Chang’s Wild Swans is a good place to start. On page 46, the author tells about the personal and poetic trials that she has faced in her quest to “write honestly”. If nothing else, Chang shows us, through her penmanship and defiance, that even the most challenging of circumstances can be overcome.

Selina Denman, editor

Pretty in Pink

Dior is forging ahead with plans to launch a Middle East capsule collection in May. Courtesy Antonie Robertson

Dior is forging ahead with plans to launch a Middle East capsule collection in May. Courtesy Antonie Robertson

“Every woman should have pink in her wardrobe,” designer Christian Dior wrote in his Little Dictionary of Fashion. “It’s the colour of happiness and femininity.”

Dior was the first luxury brand to shut all its boutiques in response to the coronavirus crisis, but that hasn’t derailed its future plans. The maison will launch a capsule collection dedicated to the Middle East in May – and the feminine hue that the house’s founder so lauded will lie at its heart.

Several of the brand’s most emblematic pieces are being reimagined, in what Christian Dior referred to as “the softest of colours”. The collection consists of evening wear, accessories and shoes, all rendered in pink and interwoven with shades of grey, another house signature. Dior’s creative director, Maria Grazia Chiuri, has created new versions of the maison’s famed Lady Dior, 30 Montaigne and Dior Book Totebags – now embroidered with beads, crafted in metallic leather or granted with an iridescent sheen. The trusty Saddle bag, meanwhile, has been enveloped in textured floral patterning.

Trademark tulle dresses and ethereal skirts, stalwarts of the Dior wardrobe, have been re-envisioned in delicate, dusky hues, enhancing their feminine feel. And iridescent mules inscribed with the words “Christian Dior” add a touch of sparkle. As the designer also said: “The tones of gray, pale turquoise and pink will prevail.”

Stories in stitches

Having debuted his first haute couture collection this year, Rahul Mishar is on a mission to create more sustainable fashion ecosystems

It is 48 hours before the catwalk show, and in a small studio tucked away in Paris’s historic Marais district, Rahul Mishra, 39, is juggling my questions, model fittings and queries about hair, make-up and some pretty sizeable diamond jewellery from the bustling team around him. The designer has one eye on me and one on the model trying on tuxedo pants and an ivory dress constructed from free-floating fern-like embroideries – a design of great complexity and delicacy. Surrounding us are rails of ravishingly pretty dresses embroidered with dreamy landscapes and naive animals that remind me of Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Book. Mishra is in the final countdown to his debut haute couture collection.

Indian couturier Rahul Mishra. Courtesy Rahul Mishra

The Delhi-based designer has presented his ready-to-wear collections on Paris’s catwalks for the past five years, since winning the International Woolmark Prize in 2014, attracting significant attention from influential editors and buyers for the way he champions the exquisite handicrafts of his homeland.

Then, last December, it was announced that he had been invited by the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode (formerly the Chambre Syndicale) as a guest member for the haute couture collections in January. He is the first Indian designer to be welcomed on the schedule alongside industry giants such as Chanel and Dior.

“I was very honoured that monsieur Morand [executive president of the Fédération] explained how everyone supported me and that it was a unanimous decision,” says Mishra. “I value that.”

With his floppy curls and easy smile, the 39-year-old designer is a strikingly humble personality in a system known for producing big egos. And this tall, courteous gentleman has a collaborative spirit.

The reason he won the Woolmark Prize and has since been embraced by the Paris fashion fraternity is, apart from his obvious talent, his philosophy. His goals are social and environmental sustainability: to create fashion that benefits gifted artisans in the villages around India, diversifying away from the big embroidery ateliers of Delhi and Mumbai, which are known to supply many prestigious names in ready-to-wear – even if these luxury brands brush that fact under the carpet.

A look from Mishra's debut haute couture collection. Courtesy IK Aldama / Indigital TV

Haute couture is famed for its embroideries from the Lesage and Montex ateliers (now under the patronage of Chanel), but in India, this is a centuries-old tradition. Mishra’s drive in working with local hand-weavers and embroiderers is to design clothes that “create jobs that help people in their own villages”. He takes work to them rather than persuading them to migrate to the city, believing that if villages are stronger, “you have a stronger nation”.

He says fashion, in terms of the environment, “is the enemy of sustainability, because fashion keeps changing. What designers are creating is something that’s made by machine, that might not be employing a human; whereas couture, which is made by hand, will create value for the 1,000 people who are supported by what we create.” He is delivering social sustainability as well as promoting the storied heritage of Indian crafts.

Haute couture supports this pace of creativity: it is better to produce these custom-made creations for clients in India (there are two flagship stores in Delhi), America and the Middle East, who are drawn to this kind of craftsmanship and want to invest in it. It is more environmentally responsible to design and make something that a client has ordered, rather than producing something in bulk in the hope of finding customers to buy it. Mass production is polluting the world, in Mishra’s view. “If you create at a human pace, it can be sustainable, as the slower pace gives Mother Earth time to replace its resources – a mechanised pace becomes unsustainable.”

Haute couture is proving viable for the designer, as business is up 50 per cent, which gives him the freedom to work with a master weaver in Kerala, for instance, who may take one month to weave a five-metre length of cloth. This particular artisan, the descendant of nine generations of weavers, has been working with Mishra for eight years, and in that time has moved from a humble hut to a house with an atelier full of looms, and now has money to send his children to school and buy a car. “Fashion provides that social mobility,” Mishra points out.

The designer is known for incorporating traditional embroidery into his creations. Courtesy IK Aldama / Indigital TV

Similarly, an embroiderer from West Bengal was persuaded to return to his village, taking work with him from Mishra, and build a business that employs fellow villagers, creating a circular economy that other local businesses benefit from. In about 15 years, Mishra has built a brand that now employs a vast number of artisans across India.

These nimble-fingered individuals have delicately hand-embroidered flora and fauna for his new collection; there is a whole ecosystem on some dresses, inspiration for which is drawn from the underwater scenery of the coral reefs in the Maldives, where Mishra and his family spent time on holiday; or the animals inspired by the film Madagascar, which he reckons he has watched at least 30 times with his daughter, 4-year-old Aarna.

Some of the dresses are experiments in 3D embroidery. Courtesy IK Aldama / Indigital TV

“There was so much happiness in the air around this collection: a shared inspiration becomes a common dream and the artisans put so much into this process, embroidering elephants and animals that reminded them of their childhood.”

Some of the dresses are experiments in 3D embroidery, such as the ivory fern dress or a jungle minidress and bodices with free-floating embroidered foliage and whimsical animals that take a moment to spot. Each piece tells a story – some designs took 5,000 man-hours to make, embroidered separately and assembled into gowns in his Delhi studio. The photographs are subsequently sent to the villages to share the vision with those involved.

Mishra is very conscious of the impact fashion has on the environment, recounting a story about his daughter, who innocently bemoaned how she missed the blue sky and sunshine when the family returned to the polluted smog of Delhi after their holiday in the Maldives.

“It is such a simple thing to want fresh air, blue sky and beautiful sunshine, but that may become a luxury.” Thinking of his daughter, Mishra quotes the famous environmentalist David Brower: “We don’t inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.”

The designer’s personal story, meanwhile, reads like a script from a Bollywood movie. His beginnings were humble –he was raised in a village in Uttar Pradesh and attended school in a structure that was little more than a mud hut with a thatch roof.

A look from Rahul Mishra's spring/summer 2020 haute couture collection. Courtesy IK Aldama / Indigital TV

He went on to graduate with a degree in physics, but abandoned that to study at the National Institute of Design in New Delhi, learning about graphics and animation before settling on fashion. “I had no idea: I couldn’t tell the difference between cotton and silk or how to sew a button on. Now I am a tailor. I am a quick learner and as a science graduate was interested in pattern-cutting and tailoring.”

His work was spotted in the Indian capital by Didier Grumbach, the former president of the Chambre Syndicale, who invited him to Paris when he saw Mishra’s debut at Delhi’s Fashion Week.

“He said call me any time you are ready to do something in Paris, but I didn’t feel ready at the time.” Winning the Woolmark Prize, an accolade whose past recipients include Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent, was the boost in confidence that Mishra needed.

His clothes are contemporary, breezily light and flattering, focusing mostly on long dresses and frothy cocktail dresses, but his embroidery is the point of difference from other names on catwalks in the French capital. “I look at embroidery as a way of storytelling, as a way of looking at my personal journey,” says Mishra. Given the benefits it has brought to the artisans he works with, it is a worthy story to tell.

Indian couturier Rahul Mishra. Courtesy Rahul Mishra

A look from Mishra's debut haute couture collection. Courtesy IK Aldama / Indigital TV

The designer is known for incorporating traditional embroidery into his creations. Courtesy IK Aldama / Indigital TV

Some of the dresses are experiments in 3D embroidery. Courtesy IK Aldama / Indigital TV

A look from Rahul Mishra's spring/summer 2020 haute couture collection. Courtesy IK Aldama / Indigital TV

The trend: Not so mellow yellow

Paul Smith

A blast of acid yellow is cut into a masculine double- breasted suit. With straight legs and barely a hint of a waist, this is pure androgyny, with an edge.

Valentino

Here, citrus shades slide into chartreuse, that amazing (but tricky) yellowy green hue. The gown has only one sleeve, which drapes beautifully.

Louis Vuitton

A strong, sassy shade of pineapple is carved into a retro mini-dress. High-necked with bishop sleeves, the only detailing is a cravat front.

Carolina Herrera

Primrose yellow is decked with huge blue flowers and cut and folded into a delightfully feminine dress. The ruffled top is nipped with a draped belt.

The new Bentley
on the block

The UK-based car manufacturer has pulled the covers off its latest creation, but you'll be lucky to even see one, let alone get behind the wheel, writes Simon Wilgress-Pipe

While Bentley has joined a slew of car manufacturers in suspending operations at its factory, production of its latest creation, the uber exclusive Mulliner Bacalar, will likely remain unaffected, since only 12 of the vehicles will be built, with delivery not due until 2021. “We’re trying to minimise disruption to our customers as much as possible. The first Bacalar isn’t due to go its owner until early next year,” a Bentley spokesperson told Luxury.

The two-seater Mulliner Bacalar is the most exclusive and bespoke vehicle that the company has produced in the modern era, it claims. The new model, revealed to the world from the brand’s headquarters in Crewe, in the north of England, is a distinct speedster of the most superior kind, based on the manufacturer’s EXP 100 GT concept vehicle.

However, no matter how big your bank balance, if you haven’t already put an order in, you won’t get one of the few that will come off the production line, freshly hand-built by the company’s team of engineers and artisans. Each of the 12 Bacalars has already been bought and no doubt allocated in advance suitably favoured spots in garages across the world.

The car's turbocharged six6-litre engine will produce 650 BHP. Courtesy Bentley

The car's turbocharged six6-litre engine will produce 650 BHP. Courtesy Bentley

The Bacalar, whose name comes from a particularly blue lagoon in Mexico, marks the luxury carmaker’s return to what is known as coach-building, which, in layman’s terms, indicates cars created with specific input from customers. Each of the 12 vehicles will, therefore, be unique.

Performance-wise, we can talk about the power and speed of the Bacalar, of course – it has a turbocharged 6-litre engine that will produce 650 BHP – but that isn’t why you’d buy a car of this sort. All that harnessed energy is part of the appeal, of course, but concepts such as beauty, exclusivity and the kind of comfort you’d only find being cossetted in an upright memory foam mattress, are what really matters.

Stefan Sielaff is Bentley’s director of design, and the man most responsible for the look and feel of the Bacalar (prior to any of the aforementioned customisation, of course). He is German, but an unashamed Aanglophile, having studied his craft at the Royal College of Art in London.

Only 12 of the vehicles will be created.Courtesy Bentley

Only 12 of the vehicles will be created.Courtesy Bentley

The Bacalar, he says, is the first release in a new strategy for Bentley, that will see the manufacturer focus on producing low-volume, coach-built cars, as well as the customisation of its core models. And, Sielaff says, despite its apparent modernity, the Bacalar takes many cues from Bentley’s classic models. “You can clearly see echoes of the EXP 100 GT in the Bacalar, as well as the influence of the past,” he says.

“Bentley has a rich history of open-cockpit cars – the design of the Birkin Blower Bentley of the late 1920s was also an inspiration,” he adds.

However, Sielaff had a remit to push the boundaries as far as possible with the Bacalar. “Customers were asking what Bentley’s take on a more expressive-looking car at this price point would look like,” he says. “We were also tasked with starting to deliver on Bentley’s promise to use sustainable materials. Within less than a year of revealing our future-focused concept, we have already delivered on this promise.”

That ethical sustainability point is something that the brand is keen to underline, which is no surprise given the mood of much of the world with regard to such matters. As an example, the paint is made of rice husks, which probably wouldn’t have been an option any luxury car manufacturer would have considered in days of yore.

Usually, at this point in an article of this sort, you might talk about when the car is available and how much it is likely to cost. Well, as we’ve ascertained, only a dozen people on the planet will get one. And the price? About Dh8.7 million, estimates suggest. No real surprises there, of course. We all like something chic and unique, but, in a Bentley Mulliner Bacalar, it was never going to be a budget option.

"The purpose
of make-up is
not to mask"

The way women relate to make-up has changed, Jérôme Touron, creative director of Hermès Beauty, tells Selina Denman

How women engage with make-up has evolved in the past ten years, suggests Jérôme Touron, creative director of Hermès Beauty, which launched its first product to much fanfare last month.

“Women today have a great knowledge of make-up,” Touron tells me. “They know exactly what they like, what they want, what best suits their skin, what best suits their style and personality. So, more than ever, make-up says something about the person wearing it.”

Hermes made its entry into the beauty market with a collection of 24 lipsticks. Courtesy Joaquin Laguinge

It has become a uniquely personal form of self expression, he maintains. Something much more than skin deep. “It is at the same time a gesture of self-aestheticisation, and something deeper, more introspective. Therefore, I think today, the purpose of make-up is not to mask, not to transform. Instead it’s about revealing the colour of the personality. It’s about creating a connection, a correspondence, between the way you feel inside and the way you look outside.”

It is also a form of self-care – something that women do for themselves, rather than others; an act for the benefit of inner reflection rather than outer perception. “It’s about well-being, about comfort and harmony with oneself,” Touron continues. “It’s also about taking care of oneself and taking time for oneself. If time is a luxury, make-up can again become a luxury. A simple and essential luxury.”

It makes sense, then, that when Hermès came to launch its first beauty product, it started with a line of lipsticks. Of all forms of make-up, it is a slick of colour on the lips that has the potential to have the most immediate impact. “The lipstick is special because it has the ability to reveal personality in a few seconds, in a single gesture, in just one application,” Touron maintains. “Instantly, it reveals the colour of the personality. In a way, it exemplifies our conception of beauty: to reveal, not to transform. Hence the desire to start Hermès Beauty with a lipstick.”

The lipsticks come with a range of accessories, including this mirror. Courtesy Mathilde Agius

The luxury maison debuted its 16th metier, or product category, with Rouge Hermès, a collection of 24 lipsticks – a nod to the address of brand’s historic headquarters on 24, Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris. Initiated five years ago, the project brought together various areas of the maison’s time-tested expertise: Pierre Hardy, creative director of Hermès jewellery and shoes, designed the case. Bali Barret, artistic director of the women’s universe and creative director of women’s silk, contributed her vision of femininity and colour; while Touron transformed this vision into actual make-up.

The myriad lip colours are housed in a distinct and elegant looking receptacle that is almost totemic in its design – a bold stack of lacquered, brushed and polished metal, in black, white and gold. “This object was about giving form to beauty – an impalpable, fragile, elusive, unpredictable and diverse combination of qualities. I sought a simple, radical form that would be a suitable receptacle for the sophistication it contains,” Hardy says.

Consisting of 10 matt and 14 satin finishes, the lipsticks come with exotic-sounding names such as Beige Kalahari, Rose Dakar, Rose Mexique and Rouge Amazone – another nod, perhaps, to the brand’s heritage and the curious, exploration-loving Emile Hermès, who is credited with laying the foundations for the brand in its current manifestation. The lipsticks are made from natural active ingredients, including white mulberry, which has antioxidant properties, and sesamine, a sesame seed extract, which has moisturising properties. For comfort and protection, formulas also contain beeswax, candelilla wax and shea butter.

The lipstick line is complemented by a lip care balm, Poppy lip shine, a lip pencil and a lip brush crafted from lacquered wood, as well as a collection of leather accessories, including a lipstick case with an integrated mirror and a moon-shaped mirror on a cord, all made in luxurious Madame calfskin. The plan is to unveil new Hermès Beauty products every six months from September, until a complete line of make-up is created.

The team was inspired by leather samples in the Hermes archives. Courtesy Maud Remy Lonvis

The brand has long been conscious of how colour interacts with the skin – whether it’s a multi-hued silk scarf that ties at the neck or a brightly patterned piece of clothing. Emile Hermès was the first person to invent a signature colour on leather when he introduced “rouge Hermès” in 1925 – a shade that sits elegantly between purple, burgundy and brown, and has become a house classic. “At Hermès, colour is an irrational, intoxicating passion, a craftsmanship of nuances, an obsession with striking the right tone, and a language all of its own,” says Barret.

So when it came to finding inspiration for its lipsticks, the team had a wealth of sources to mine. “At Hermès, colours travel,” says Touron. “They are reinvented from one material to another: from silk to leather, enamel or lacquer.

“In Lyon, we have more than 75,000 colours in our archives, just for silk. That was an extraordinary source of inspiration for lipstick shades. That was pure freedom. And at the same time, the idea was to choose from these endless possibilities to create a perfectly edited range of 24 emblematic shades. This was a challenge. In the same way, for the matt and satin textures of the lipstick, we worked around a hundred variations, over almost three years.”

With its manifold finishes and fundamentally tactile nature, leather – the cornerstone of the Hermes brand, which started out as a saddle maker in 1837 and now uses its mastery of the material to craft the world’s most coveted handbags and accessories – informed Touron’s approach. The brand’s archives are currently home to leather in 900 different hues.

“I’ve imagined the finishes of the lipsticks in resonance with certain finishes of leather,” Touron explains. “Like an analogy of materials, both tactile and visual. The matt finish is inspired by Doblis leather, with its soft, velvety, almost powdery feel. The satin finish is inspired by Box leather, with its smooth, shiny and luminous look.”

The lipsticks come in matt and satin finishes. Courtesy Sasha Marro

To describe the process, Touron draws from the world of art. “Hermès is freedom in a frame. It’s like a Carré. There is a profusion, an infinity of possibilities, and at the same time, a frame that is clear and precise. Make-up works exactly the same way. There is an infinity of options in terms of colours, textures and types of application... and at the same, it has to meet a certain function.”

Ultimately, beauty may be new as an official category for the brand, but it is certainly not new as a concept. “In a way, beauty has always been there. Beauty can be found in all Hermès’ métiers, from bags and luggage, to silk, ready-to-wear, shoes, jewellery, watches and many others… So to me, make-up is a natural continuation, a new expression of Hermès’ idea of beauty. Like perfume, it adds a final touch. It’s part of the same idea of “art de vivre”.

Hermes made its entry into the beauty market with a collection of 24 lipsticks. Courtesy Joaquin Laguinge

The lipsticks come with a range of accessories, including this mirror. Courtesy Mathilde Agius

The team was inspired by leather samples in the Hermes archives. Courtesy Maud Remy Lonvis

The lipsticks come in matt and satin finishes. Courtesy Sasha Marro

Light and Shadow

Statement pieces are given space to shine

Photography: Antonie Robertson
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey

Bag, Dh31,000, Dolce & Gabbana

Bag, Dh31,000, Dolce & Gabbana

Dress, Dh7,870, Temperly London at MatchesFashion. Sunglasses, Dh881; and chain, Dh1,248, both from Gucci

Dress, Dh7,870, Temperly London at MatchesFashion. Sunglasses, Dh881; and chain, Dh1,248, both from Gucci

Boots, Dh7,500, Christian Dior

Boots, Dh7,500, Christian Dior

Shirt, Dh2,040, Zimmermann at Shopbop. Shorts, Dh4,115, Chloe. New Drag Bag, Dh39,715, Hermès

Shirt, Dh2,040, Zimmermann at Shopbop. Shorts, Dh4,115, Chloe. New Drag Bag, Dh39,715, Hermès

Jumper, Dh8,100, Valentino. Bumbag, Dh4,550, Christian Louboutin

Jumper, Dh8,100, Valentino. Bumbag, Dh4,550, Christian Louboutin

Lady D-lite bag, Dh16,500, Christian Dior. SuperVee bag, Dh7,170, Valentino

Lady D-lite bag, Dh16,500, Christian Dior. SuperVee bag, Dh7,170, Valentino

Balloon bag, Dh10,700, Loewe

Balloon bag, Dh10,700, Loewe

Antigona Bag, Dh5,847, Givenchy. Trainers, Dh1,420, Bally

Antigona Bag, Dh5,847, Givenchy. Trainers, Dh1,420, Bally

Dress, Dh13,690; and bag, Dh8,390, both from Fendi

Dress, Dh13,690; and bag, Dh8,390, both from Fendi

Reviving a legend

How do you modernise a building that is steeped in history and ingrained in the collective consciousness? Selina Denman speaks to the designers reshaping New York's Waldorf Astoria to find out

A 110-year-old piano takes pride of place in the Waldorf Astoria sales centre on New York’s Park Avenue. The pastoral scenes painted onto the Steinway’s cover more than a century ago have been lovingly preserved, as has the piano’s unique patina. The instrument, which belonged to American composer and songwriter Cole Porter, a long-time resident at the historic hotel, is just one of many artefacts that pay testament to the property’s illustrious history.

“Cole Porter lived in the hotel for 30 years, in a six-bedroom suite, and he used this particular piano to compose many of his most famous works,” explains Andrew Miller, US chief executive of Dajia, the Chinese company that now owns the famed New York property. “Frank Sinatra later specifically rented the Cole Porter suite, for the unfathomable sum of $1 million [Dh3.6m] per year.

A Steinway piano belonging to Cole Porter, who lived in the Waldorf Astoria for 30 years. Courtesy Selina Denman

A Steinway piano belonging to Cole Porter, who lived in the Waldorf Astoria for 30 years. Courtesy Selina Denman

“When we closed the hotel, we went back to Steinway, which thankfully still keeps very detailed records of every piano it has ever manufactured. And we developed a restoration plan for it. The heritage and history are still there to be celebrated and treasured. Which is kind of how we think about all the work we are doing at the Waldorf Astoria.”

Renovation work on New York’s most famous hotel may have halted temporarily following a citywide shutdown to combat the spread of Covid-19, but the building has weathered its fair share of storms since it launched in its current Park Avenue location nearly 90 years ago. The hotel opened its doors in 1931, in the midst of the Great Depression. Spanning an entire city block between Park and Lexington avenues, from 49th to 50th street, it was the tallest and biggest hotel in the world, and soon became the go-to address for New York high society, heads of state, movie stars and musicians. Sinatra got his break singing in the hotel’s Wedgwood Room in the 1940s and returned to live at the property more than 20 years later; Marilyn Monroe stayed for an extended period of time in the 1950s, although, according to biographer Fred Lawrence Guiles: “She was often acutely lonely in her Waldorf Towers apartment, as only a famed movie star cut off from ordinary mortals can be.”

Queen Elizabeth II dined at the property during her first state visit to the US in 1957

Queen Elizabeth II dined at the property during her first state visit to the US in 1957

Prince Rainier III of Monaco and Grace Kelly celebrated their engagement at the hotel in 1956; and Queen Elizabeth II dined here during her first state visit to the US in 1957 – feasting on beef Perigourdine with truffle sauce.

The 153,290-square-metre Art Deco building has been closed since 2017, undergoing an extensive restoration project that is seeing its 1,000-plus rooms reconfigured into 375 hotel units and 375 residences. “The building itself is this marvellous Swiss watch of complexity,” notes Miller. “The existing layouts were removed entirely. In order to provide layouts that made sense for today’s lifestyles, more or less everything had to be swept clean.”

The mammoth structure is a New York City landmark, with strict guidelines about what can be modified on the inside and outside. “There are thousands and thousands of exterior landmarks in New York and just over 100 interior landmarks, and this building is both,” explains Frank Mahan, associate director and architect at Skidmore Owings & Merrill, the architecture firm tasked with modernising the property. “We have very methodically gone through all the interior spaces and are restoring many of the original materials, while updating those spaces for contemporary expectations.”

The hotel opened in its current Park Avenue location in 1931

The hotel opened in its current Park Avenue location in 1931

In the hotel’s Silver Corridor, art-quality restorations are under way on murals that have been in the property since it first opened. “People are scraping away layers of dirt and age, to restore these art pieces back to what they were in 1931,” notes Dan Tubb, senior director of sales at Douglas Elliman, the exclusive marketing and sales agent for the property. “There is also a clock from 1893, which was commissioned by Queen Victoria for the World Fair, that is being lovingly restored. There used to be a saying: ‘Meet me at the clock at the Waldorf Astoria’, and that’s going to come back into this space.” Meanwhile, the exterior will be carefully cleaned and all 5,000 of the property’s windows will be replaced and restored to their original size.

Because the Waldorf Astoria has been such an integral part of the city’s social fabric for so many decades, there is an almost communal sense of ownership among New Yorkers. However, the things that might, in the collective consciousness, seem integral to the hotel’s history and heritage are often not part of the building’s original features. “There’s an odd thing about the history of the building,” Miller explains. “Like any hotel, they typically remodelled it on a seven to 10-year schedule, which means that virtually every space in the hotel has been modified time and time again over the 85 years that the hotel was in existence.

“What that ends up meaning is a lot of the spaces that people might recognise as being historic might only date from the mid-1990s, but are done in period styles. Part of what Skidmore Owings & Merrill did was go back and look at these spaces and understand what was originally there – because in many cases, it was five remodels ago. People will come in and remark on the ceiling of the Park Avenue lobby – but that dates from 2012. It’s lovely, but it’s not actually Art Deco. It’s something new.”

French designer Jean-Louis Deniot was enlisted to design the interiors of the residences. Courtesy Selina Denman

French designer Jean-Louis Deniot was enlisted to design the interiors of the residences. Courtesy Selina Denman

French designer Jean-Louis Deniot was enlisted to design the interiors of the residences – and was conscious of not creating “an Art Deco pastiche”. Sales of apartments have commenced and a recently unveiled show apartment in the Park Avenue sales centre offers a taste of what’s to come. An expansive front door comes complete with a service closet where your deliveries will be deposited by your in-house concierge, saving you the hassle of lugging those Amazon packages upstairs yourself. Marble floors in the entrance area create a sense of arrival, while the layout of the apartment is in the European style – “where you try to avoid corridors as much as possible and to align the rooms, one after the other, which creates a sense of spaciousness”, Deniot explains.

Herringbone-esque oak wood floors hint at Art Deco styling, but are not overly classical, and the edges of the sinks in the bathroom mimic the shape and gradation of an emerald-cut diamond, to eliminate any sharp edges. “For the Waldorf, I was more inspired by all the constructivists from Holland in the 1930s and 1940s,” Deniot explains. “There are shapes that may be reminiscent of Art Deco, but there is actually nothing Art Deco here. It is trying to create the impression of the Waldorf Astoria, without recreating any specific era.”

Two-thirds of the apartments will be two bedrooms or smaller. Courtesy Selina Denman

Two-thirds of the apartments will be two bedrooms or smaller. Courtesy Selina Denman

Residents will also have access to 4,645 square metres of luxury amenities, including a 25-metre pool, overlooked by a gym and flanked by a winter garden and conservatory. There will be male and female spa areas; a “hangout” space for teenagers; a theatre with a stage for private performances; billiards and games rooms; a grand salon for events; a library; a gallery space; and private dining areas – but also quiet corners that guests can retreat to.

“There will probably never be another project in New York of this scale, which means that no one else will ever be able to do this level of amenities or services again,” says Miller.

Handover of the residences is due to begin in 2022, to coincide with the opening of the hotel. Notably, two-thirds of the apartments are two bedrooms or smaller, with prices starting at $1.7 million for a studio and going up to $18 million for a four-bedroom property. Two distinct pinnacles that sit at the apex of the building’s towers are being converted into four-bedroom penthouses, offering triple-height living rooms, private elevators and 604 square metres of living space, surrounded by terraces on all sides. Formerly home to mechanical equipment, these spaces have never been inhabited before.

The proposition of a “complete new construction within a landmark shell” is likely to appeal to buyers from the Middle East, notes Tubb. “We definitely find a relationship between this kind of heritage product and buyers [from the Middle East],” he explains. “They have stayed here, and they are used to and desire a very high level of service, and we are poised for that. We’ll have the largest service staff of any residential building in New York, with multiple layers of valet parking, doormen, parking attendants and a private residential concierge on-site. This is what that client is used to,” he elaborates.

This is the first time that people will be able to own a property in the legendary hotel

This is the first time that people will be able to own a property in the legendary hotel

The wellness component of the property will be another major draw for high-net-worth individuals, the senior director of sales predicts, as will the comfort and privacy offered by a newly created porte cochère – something that only about five per cent of residential buildings in Manhattan offer. The fact that all entrances, corridors and elevators are exclusive to the residences, and not shared by the hotel, will also appeal to potential buyers.

Miller ends with one last anecdote about the property. When the Waldorf Astoria opened in 1931, in the midst of a flailing economy, it enlisted the help of New York socialite, columnist and author Elsa Maxwell (who proves that the influencer trend is not a new one) to help generate some buzz. “They gave her a free apartment in the towers of the Waldorf, with the understanding that she would then host a series of parties in the hotel’s spaces.

“There are some wonderful photos of some of her parties; all these playful absurdities. They did a barnyard party, and there’s this photo of all these farmyard animals – ducks and sheep, who had little felt boots put on them so they wouldn’t damage the floors – coming up in the elevators. I love this idea that there were always people having extravagant parties here, being fun and glamorous. It speaks to what we want to bring back here.”

Luxury Tech

Gadgets and apps to help you relax, get fit and stay healthy

Kinesis Personal

Since we are spending more time indoors, the Kinesis Personal by Technogym is the ultimate companion. Made for co-ordinated movements using resistance, it o ers the scope for 200 workout moves, within a range of disciplines, including yoga, Pilates and Tai Chi, in a space of less than one square metre. It’ll also make a strong design statement in your space – the Heritage version comes with oak bars, and is available in four colours: black, cream, brown leather and a new limited-edition gold. The Vision version, meanwhile, is crafted from polished steel.
Kinesis Personal, Dh67,340, www.technogym.com

Ambeo Soundbar

Sennheiser’s first foray into home entertainment speakers, the Ambeo Soundbar, offers an elegant, all-in-one solution and promises a 3D home audio experience. Beneath its lacquered and brushed aluminum surface, it is powered by 13 drivers, which result in an immersive 5.1.4 sound system and powerful bass, without the need for additional speakers or an external subwoofer. An intuitive room calibration function also ensures optimised sound depending on the specific room and your preferred seating position.
Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar, Dh9,999, en-ae. sennheiser.com

Issa 2

Keep those pearly whites in mint condition with Foreo’s Issa 2 electric toothbrush. The sleek, waterproof, ergonomic design includes a soft silicone body and polymer bristles, which harbour less bacteria than normal toothbrushes. It comes in black, cobalt blue, mint green and baby pink versions. Best of all, a single hour’s charge will keep it going for an entire year. One less thing to worry about.
Issa 2, Dh850, www.foreo.com

Kokoon Relax

Created in partnership with sleep scientists, Kokoon headphones will help you nod o – or simply switch off. Flexible silicone headphones are intended for extended wear, even if you are lying down, and come with active noise cancellation and Sleepguard Audio, which will adapt your audio as you fall asleep. The headphones work with any app, but the dedicated Kokoon Relax app includes audio techniques used in cognitive behavioural therapy, as well as specialised soundscapes – from the sonance of the sea to the gentle patter of rain. Using sensor data, the app will also let you know how well you slept and o er recommendations to improve your slumber.
Kokoon headphones, Dh1,157, www.kokoon.io

Summit 2+

Montblanc is planning to launch the Summit 2+, its first smartwatch with an eSim solution from Wear OS by Google. This allows the wearer to make calls, answer messages and connect to online services at all times, even when they are away from their smartphone. The timepiece also features a speedometer, altimeter, barometer, compass and GPS, all housed within a 43.5 millimetre steel case.
Summit 2+, scheduled to launch in May, www.montblanc.com

'It’s not my purpose in life to fit in'

Designer, actor, activist, style maven and plant aficionado Waris Ahluwalia tells Sarah Maisey why we all need to reconnect with nature

“The most important and often under-emphasised element in personal style is the person. Understanding who you are and being true to yourself. Finding the self in the self-expression. That is a lifelong journey,” says Waris Ahluwalia, actor, designer, plant afficionado and, now, fashion curator.

If anyone’s fashion advice is worth heeding, it is probably Ahluwalia’s. He regularly tops best-dressed lists and positively oozes style. Blessed with an ability to turn any outfit into an exercise in elegance, helped no doubt by his statuesque turban and somewhat sumptuous beard, he has further upped his sartorial game through a recent collaboration with luxury retailer MatchesFashion.

Since launching in 1987, MatchesFashion has realised that while we all relish the ease of online shopping, there’s a lot to be said for a more personal touch. Its solution is the Curated By series, which sees famous faces hand-pick their perfect capsule wardrobe from the Matches portfolio, which the public can then peruse. Past curators have included stylist and photographer, Venetia Scott; director and former principal dancer at Ballet Frankfurt, Stephen Galloway; Arsenal vice-captain and environmentalist, Héctor Bellerín; and celebrity tattoo artist, Dr Woo.

Waris Ahluwalia’s Curated By edit for MatchesFashion includes a black and gold Versace robe

Ahluwalia joining their ranks was a straightforward process. Visiting a MatchesFashion pop-up outside Rome, Ahluwalia bumped into Robert Rabensteiner, stylist, ex-fashion editor of L’Uomo Vogueand a major force behind the Curated By series. “When Robert asked me to be a part of the next series, I couldn’t refuse. Simple,” he says.

With free rein of the brand’s catalogue of menswear, Ahluwalia’s selection is sharp but carefree. Logoed Gucci socks sit next to a single-breasted Burberry suit in baby blue, while a glossy black formal shoe from Paul Smith appears alongside a gold and black Versace bathrobe. “My personal style is a reflection of my approach to my life and my work,” he explains. “The MatchesFashion curation allowed for that light touch. The accents, the wink, if you will. Exploration in colour and texture. A reverence for tradition with some merrymaking and mischief mixed in.”

The accompanying images are not your standard glossy fare, either. Modelling his own selection, Ahluwalia looks suitably dapper whether dressed in cream high-waisted Paul Smith trousers with a P Le Moult white robe, or a black velvet collarless Giorgio Armani jacket with pinstripe Saint Laurent jeans. Despite making the selection, however, Ahluwalia was content to leave the making of the final looks to the expert. “Robert [Rabensteiner] pushes my personal style with great flare and vivid gestures. [He] is an artist and I dare not question the work of an artist.”

For the launch of the collection, MatchesFashion staged two events in February. One was an installation of the images and an accompanying video at its London town house, 5 Carlos Place, Mayfair, while an “immersive experience” took place at the Frieze art fair in Los Angeles, attended by the man himself.

Formal shoes by Paul Smith

Born in Amritsar city in Punjab, Ahluwalia moved to the United States with his family when he was 5, and now calls New York home. He has appeared in a number of Wes Anderson films, including The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou(2004), The Darjeeling Limited (2007) and The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014).

Keen to pursue various creative outlets, in 2007, he launched The House of Waris, a label focused on preserving and supporting craftsmanship, which earned him a nomination for the Vogue Fashion Fund in 2009, quickly followed by his winning a Council of Fashion Designers America (CFDA) Fashion Incubator grant. The actor also launched The House of Waris Botanicals, a tea shop, and what is dubbed The Lab, offering tea with healing as well as soothing properties. A long-time advocate of the power of plants, this is a topic close to his heart.

“Our relationship to nature is broken. We see ourselves as separate from nature, when in reality, we are one and the same. Our relationship to nature is our relationship to ourselves. Do we treat ourselves with love? Do we treat ourselves and others with care? With House of Waris Botanicals, we want to show people that they have power over their well-being. This is an exercise in slowing down. This is an exercise in taking control,” Ahluwalia explains.

That comes via the hand-blended teas sold in a tea house close to New York’s High Line. Despite its compact size, it is, unsurprisingly, immaculate, and offers a languid space where customers can enjoy a calming blend. “We work with tea estates, farms and herbalists to develop proprietary blends that harness the power of plants – ingredients that have been under our noses for centuries. Our organic non-GMO herbs, rich in antioxidants, vitamins and nutrients, come from just about everywhere – from Egypt to Oregon.”

Gucci socks

A team is tasked with researching and crafting each blend, using adaptogens that are said to help the body deal with stress (“and used by many indigenous cultures across the world from the Siberian Plains to the north-west US”), but Ahluwalia’s role is slightly less scientific. “Everything has be formulated and created as a way to help us rethink well-being as celebration. My focus is on the taste. It’s important that the blends are not only healing, but taste outrageously delicious.”

His connection to nature extends to animals too, as for over a decade, he has been a patron of the Elephant Family, an organisation founded in 2002, which works to protect Asian elephants and those who come into daily conflict with them. “It was while working on Darjeeling Limitedthat I discovered Elephant Family. Wes [Anderson] asked me to make a pin [badge] for my uniform. We then sold a version of it on Yoox to raise money for the organisation, whose mission is to facilitate coexistence between humans and wildlife across Asia. It’s easier, as individuals, to think the problem is poaching, because there are bad guys and there are victims. But the overall problem is the fact that creatures in the wild are running out of wild spaces. Over time, we’ve been removed from ourselves, from each other, and we look at it as separate things when it needs to just be one.”

Gucci oval acetate sunglasses

Ahluwalia’s passion for re-establishing links between people and nature has not gone unnoticed. In 2016, he was honoured by the Mayor of New York, who declared October 19 Waris Ahluwalia Day, in recognition of his work promoting tolerance and inclusivity. And Ahluwalia is adamant that we are all capable of a shift in our way of thinking. “Early in life, I realised that I would not fit in anywhere. It’s not my purpose in life to fit in. I do what makes me happy and nourishes my soul and humanity.

“How the world reacts is not in my hands. The goal along the way is to stay true to myself and the values my parents and culture have given me. All I had were my instincts and I learnt early on to trust them. It’s a skill we’re given, a tool. It’s up to us to sharpen it and learn to use it. We all have it to some degree. The universe speaks to us all – we just have to learn how to listen,” Ahluwalia concludes.

Waris Ahluwalia’s Curated By edit for MatchesFashion includes a black and gold Versace robe

Formal shoes by Paul Smith

Gucci socks

Gucci oval acetate sunglasses

A Dh64,000 limited-edition jukebox

The SL45 Peacock Jukebox consists of a hand-polished wooden cabinet adorned with brushed gold-effect aluminum castings. Sold exclusively at Harrods, its Art Deco graphics were inspired by the intricate bird figures found in the shopping centre’s famed food hall. Only 50 of the machines will be produced and each will be custom-built to order.

The jukebox stands at a height of 1.55 metresand weighs a whopping 130 kilograms. The colour of the LED illumination can be adjusted, and external matching speakers can be connected and controlled independently. The jukebox will work at any voltage.

The jukebox comes with a starter pack of 70 vinyl singlesand despite its vintage appeal, has a Bluetooth receiver, and AUX and microphone input. There is full remote control selection for picking songs, volume, shuffle mode, mute and auxiliary device switching.

The machine is hand-built in the United Kingdom by Sound Leisure, which has been manufacturing high-quality jukeboxes since 1978. Set up by Alan Black, it is still a family-owned and run operation, and one of only two traditional jukebox manufacturers in the world.

It is the only company in Europe to be producing these classic-styled machines and was the first manufacturer to re-engineer a vinyl 45-playing jukebox. Sound Leisure employs a team of dedicated craftsmen and women, who have been refining their skills for over four decades. The company’s machines are all built to order and can be customised to individual specifications.

“There is definitely something alluring about a classic-styled jukebox,no matter what age you are,” says Joe Armitage, design and brand manager, Sound Leisure. “Especially the dome-topped models such as our Harrords exclusive Peacock. They were originally designed to look beautiful and draw a person in to select music to play. I think we have taken that a step further with [this model]. The lighting is absolutely stunning with our ‘diamond pack’ LED lighting system behind the Art Deco-drawn peacock design. I don’t think we have ever designed a more colourful and eye-catching machine.”

“Finally, a good-quality jukebox will last a lifetime,ensuring that its allure will last for generations to come, keeping these beautiful products alive.”