Category Archives: Hotels

Cooden Beach East Sussex +

Posted on June 5, 2020 by Lavender's Blue

The Steady Path to Abstraction It may not be as obscure as Donegal’s Murder Hole Beach but Cooden Beach is certainly lower profile than its better known Sussex coast neighbours Bexhill-on-Sea and Eastbourne. The Cooden Beach Hotel, a half timbered … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Hotels | Tagged bexhill on sea, cooden beach east sussex, cooden beach hotel, eastbourne, lavender's blue, murder hole beach donegal, piet mondrian, stuart blakley | 2 Comments

Chelsea Harbour + Chelsea Harbour Hotel London

Posted on April 26, 2020 by Lavender's Blue

Suite Success Over the course of multiple visits – breakfasts and brunches, dates and dinners, walks and weekends – Lavender’s Blue cover and discover and rediscover London’s best Eighties development. Back in the day, Astrid Bray was Director of Sales … Continue reading →

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Design, Developers, Hotels, Luxury, People, Restaurants, Town Houses | Tagged alvar aalto, apt architects, belvedere, bulthaup, chelsea harbour design centre, chelsea harbour hotel london, chelsea riverside brasserie, conrad london, david hicks, earl snowdon, fishers, honfleur, hurel, ken los memories of china, lavender's blue, lionel richie, lord lichfield, marco pierre white canteen, mary fox linton, michael caine, moxley jenner, ray moxley architect, robbie williams, robin partington, seguso, stuart blakley, take that, tina turner, viscount linley deals, westlife | Leave a comment

Oranmore House + Garden Ballymena Antrim

Posted on March 31, 2020 by Lavender's Blue

Good Natured Of course, the drawing room mantelpiece has some rather fetching garniture. A pair of Staffordshire dogs are very on period. Books on steeplechasing ride high over the piano under a painting of ‘Beef or Salmon’, a past winner … Continue reading →

Posted in Country Houses, Hotels, Luxury, Restaurants | Tagged ailesbury road dublin, galgorm road ballymena, hennessy gold cup, hospital road omagh, lavender's blue, malone road belfast, oranmore house ballymena antrim northern ireland, stuart blakley | 3 Comments

Antrim + Down Coasts

Posted on March 24, 2020 by Lavender's Blue

Dockers and Carters Once a place to leave, not to live, never mind visit, least of all for a luxury travel experience, how times have changed. The east coast of Northern Ireland (Counties Antrim and Down with Belfast sitting over … Continue reading →

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Country Houses, Hotels, Luxury, People, Restaurants | Tagged architect john o’connell, ballintoy harbour, ballygally castle hotel, bank house whitehead, café parisien, carrickarede rope bridge, chef michael deane, city hall, county antrim coast, county down coast, dark hedges, eipic restaurant, galgorm hotel, game of thrones, giants causeway, grand central hotel, hammy lowe spectrum cars belfast, heneghan peng architects, lavender's blue, mamma mia, maureen ohare cnn, merchant hotel belfast, meryl streep, montalto estate ballynahinch, oranmore ballymena, orla maguire, oscar oscar architects, ox restaurant belfast, rory mcilroy, royal belfast, royal county down, royal portrush golf course, st annes cathedral, stuart blakley, titanic hotel, titanic museum, toast the coast portia woods, whitehead, whitepark bay | 3 Comments

Rare Champagne + La Dame de Pic Four Seasons Hotel 10 Trinity Square London

Posted on December 31, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

Lotto and Cavagnole and Faro and Lansquenet Writing in Edwardian Architecture, Alastair Service describes the host building and its place in the architectural lexicon: “The commission for the Port of London Authority building was won in a competition of 1912 … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Hotels, Luxury, People, Restaurants | Tagged alastair service, anne sophie pic, cavagnole, charles holden, claridges, core by clare smyth, director of wine jan konetzki, edwardian architecture, edwin cooper, faro, harrods, head chef luca piscazzi, hedonism, la dame de pic four seasons hotel 10 trinity square london, lansquenet, lavender's blue, lotto, marie antoinette, pinte majeure, piper heidsieck, port of london authority building, rac club, rare champagne, ritz, samuel wyatt trinity house, scotts, selfridges, sexy fish, st marylebone town hall, stuart blakley | 1 Comment

The Shard + Shangri La Hotel London

Posted on December 21, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

Curtins Closing The last hurrah. Armed with a camera, a lust for life and a lack of vertigo, it’s all about a 26 second ascent to the 34th floor of The Shard, roughly halfway up the UK’s tallest cloudscraper. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Hotels, Luxury, People, Restaurants | Tagged lavender's blue, renzo piano, shangri la hotel london, shard, stuart blakley, susan sontag | 3 Comments

Lavender’s Blue + Rue de Rivoli Paris

Posted on November 29, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

A Boulevard of Dreams and Things “We met at the little bar across the place from Dior’s called the Fontaine-de-something and had one – two – three Champagne cocktails on my expense account. Then we had lunch.” Shamrocks and Unicorns, … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Fashion, Hotels, Luxury, People, Restaurants, Town Houses | Tagged 228 rue de rivoli, alain ducasse, elisabeth visoanska, hotel meurice calais, lavender's blue, le meurice paris, lord kilbracken, nairns paris, philippe starck, shamrocks and unicorns, stuart blakley, versailles | Leave a comment

Hôtel Charles V + St Paul Le Marais Paris

Posted on November 27, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

De Temps en Temps Continuing the bookending theme of a year well spent: Easter in George V, Christmas in Charles V. The former, westward upstream of Notre Dame; the latter, eastward downstream. One, extrovert art deco; the other, discreet Swedish … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art, Fashion, Hotels, Luxury, People | Tagged charles the wise, european house of photography, george v hotel, hotel charles v, hotel daumont, hotel de sens, hotel henault de cantobre, hotel st pol, ian nairn, la male deffeene, lavender's blue, nico thibault francioni, notre dame, river seine, rue st antoine, st paul, st paul le marais paris, stuart blakley | Leave a comment

Paris + Autumn

Posted on November 25, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

Coucou Loulou Frou Frou Paris was a dream that autumn, a beautifully drawn dream.

Posted in Hotels, Luxury, People, Town Houses | Tagged frou frou, lavender's blue, loulou, paris, stuart blakley | 2 Comments

Chicks with Bricks + The Prince’s Trust + The Ned London

Posted on November 24, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

Changing the Narrative It’s the time of year for females to be out in force. And a few feisty males. Celebrating women in property and construction is what makes Chicks with Bricks tick. The pre Christmas highlight is a fundraiser … Continue reading →

Posted in Hotels, People | Tagged charles hanson auctioneer, chicks with bricks, de montfort university, donald urquhart, holly porter, iceni, jo richardson, kdh associates, kirsty hall, lavender's blue, lucie cox, mandrake hotel, mello view gardeners shed, nomad, princes trust, sadiya yasmin, stuart blakley, tala fustok, the line, the ned city of london, vivienne westwood | 2 Comments

World Boutique Hotel Awards 2019 +

Posted on November 19, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

The Four Score Nations Robin Sheppard, Co Founder of Bespoke Hotels, calls it, “A star studded, must attend, essential date in the world’s perpetual calendar.” The ninth World Boutique Hotel Awards takes place, as ever, in Merchant Taylors’ Hall in … Continue reading →

Posted in Fashion, Hotels, Luxury, People, Restaurants | Tagged 2019 world boutique hotel awards, antonelli puglisi, awarta nusa dua resort and villas in bali, bradley goian, director schlomo gabbai, elisabeth visoanska, eroline lamontagne, fond doux plantation and resort st lucia, founder eco luxury, francisco seresina, laura scampini proprietor tenuta montemagno resort, lavender's blue, lyton lamontagne, maureen ohara cnn, merchant taylors hall city of london, mestyle garage hotel bangkok, ninth world boutique hotel awards, phatthamon sangratkanjanasin, robin sheppard co founder bespoke hotels, silent pool gin, stuart blakley, tenuta montemagno relais and wines, villa sostaga gargano, wild retreat vancouver island, worshipful company of merchant taylors, writer cheryl king | 2 Comments

Sir Simon Milton Foundation Gala Dinner + The Nine Kings Suite Royal Lancaster Hotel London

Posted on November 13, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

Lots of Fun The first charity ball of the season interlocked the party circuits of London life. After being bagpiped into a drinks reception flowing with Champagne Irroy and Bergerie de la Bastide 2015, Robert Davis MBE, Chairman of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Hotels, Luxury, People | Tagged 34 restaurant, abbas angels, annabels; scotts, balthazar, belmond orient express, bergerie de la bastide 2015, chairman robert davis mbe, champagne irroy, chief executive major general matthew sykes, christopher biggins, daphnes, dorchester collection hotel, j sheekey, ken howard, lady lucy french obe, lavender's blue, le caprice, le meurice paris, maureen sutherland smith, nine kings suite royal lancaster hotel london, no 50 cheyne, park hyatt mallorca, queen, queen of afternoon teas cafe royal, rhianna, sexy fish, silken strings, sir elton john, sir simon milton foundation gala dinner, sir simon milton westminster university college pimlico, sloane street deli, st marks, stuart blakley, take that, taylor wimpey central london chairman john barradell obe, theatre royal drury lane, william edwards fine bone china | 2 Comments

The Jetty Restaurant + Harbour Hotel Southampton

Posted on October 31, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

The Munificence and Counsel of Steel Magnolia Surrounded by a sea of sails, Harbour Hotel itself is tiered like a mega yacht, ship shape, a frozen avalanche of balconies cascading down to the pier. HGP Architects’ expansive use of glass … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Hotels, Luxury | Tagged chef alex aitken, harbar, harbour hotel southampton, hgp architects, jetty restaurant review, lavender's blue, stuart blakley | 1 Comment

La Divine Comédie Demeure Privée + Spa Avignon

Posted on October 3, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

A Sense of Theatre A private paradise. A secret world. A hidden kingdom. Cloistered glory. The very essence of exclusivity. If luxury could be bottled… heavenly scent. A multiple epiphanic realisation of complete beauty and tranquillity. Not even a Gallic … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Country Houses, Design, Fashion, Hotels, Luxury, People | Tagged amaury de villoutreys, avignon, colette gigi, colette the cat, dante, donald tusk president of the european council, frances hodgson burnett the secret garden, gaston, gilles jauffret, la divine comedie demeure privee spa, lavender's blue, min hogg founding editor of the world of interiors, provence, rue des bains, rue sainte catherine, rue saluces, simone, stuart blakley, theatre du chene noir, theatre golovine, thedule | 2 Comments

Forss House Thurso Caithness + The Chimneys

Posted on September 19, 2019 by Lavender's Blue

Passing Places Really, a newspaper cutting was enough to book Forss House for a Highlands escape. Those chimneys, even looming large in a thumbnail! Close to the northernmost point of Britain, Dunnet Head, the hotel overlooks a serpentine river and … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Country Houses, Hotels, Luxury, People | Tagged anne mackenzie general manager, chimneys, dunnet head, forss house hotel thurso Caithness scotland, galignani messenger, john gifford, joseph gribben belfast builder, major charles radclyffe, pevsner guide buildings of scotland highland and islands, sinclairs of orkney | Leave a comment