Les Senteurs

If, like me, you get a bit bored of fashion house perfumes (a thoroughly mixed bag) and celebrity scent (which usually smell like sweets), Les Senteurs is a great place to head. This artisan perfumery offers a fantastic selection of classic, timeless fragrances that smell deep, complex, luxurious and sophisticated. Located in the heart of Victoria, just off Sloane Square, Les Senteurs is an upmarket perfumery. A family run business set up by husband and wife team Betty and Michael Hawksley in 1984, this store offer a huge range of perfumes with an equally diverse price range (starting at a very reasonable £25, they sour to an eye-watering £180+).

 Specialising in imported, high quality, and typically French perfumes, often from impendent perfume houses, Les Senteurs offer forgotten classics from brands such as Creed and Caron, alongside modern, niche fragrances. They stock a full range of each scent families – oriental, green, citrus, leather, floral, fruity, chypre, woody and aquatic – with handy colour coding for each perfume, so you can get a vague approximation on the type of scent it will be.

 Les Senteurs have a good online store, which offers a sample service where they will send you vial of each scent that you are interested in. Vial’s cost £5, no matter what priced scent you wish to try, and you get a good quantity of perfume, enough of a month of constant usage, so you can really asses the scent. Excellent for when trying something new, or when buying perfume as a gift. The in-store service is by far the best option though if you can get to London easily. Les Senteurs offer an excellent personal service, with knowledgeable and patient staff, and an ideal environment to experiment and discover in.

http://lessenteurs.web-epos.com/

Kate Sheridan

Kate Sheridan has been a creator and purveyor of whimsical accessories since 2001. First there was Sheridan and Minns, a joint venture with friend and textile designer Helen Minns; then there was What Katie Did Next, a collection exclusively for Topshop; and now there is simply an eponymous label, which has been running since 2004. Sheridan’s work has consistently received high praise from fashion publications and buyers in all her creative incarnations, with her work has most recent appeared in The Observer, Elle, Harpers Bazaar, Grazia and Cosmopolitan.

Sheridan’s work is at times slightly offbeat, but there is always a strong foundation of tradition and luxury in each item. The shape of every individual bag, purse or wallet, typically takes inspiration from vintage styles, with classic purse shapes including brass wiring and clips.

Nature is a clear passion for Sheridan, which is transferred to many of her accessories pieces. Beautiful ink patterns often adorn her creations, with wolves, birds, berries and flowers a typical focus, looking a little like a snippet of an ornate Arthur Rackham illustration. Her work is certainly not girlie, however, it simply appeals to the more tender, genial side that we all have. Indeed, much of her new collection for A/W 2011 is quite androgynous. There are lots of navies, tans and blacks, constructed in utilitarian cotton twill and sometimes decorated with understated Aztec prints. Any man with a bit of style would be hard pushed to dislike her new wallets.

Kate Sheridan’s current collection is available online, at numerous boutique stores across London, as well as in Harvey Nichols and Urban Outfitters stores across the country. The leather items can be a bit dear, but her fabric bags are very reasonably priced, and you can get excellent bargains, either during her online sale, or there is a discount stall at Spitalfields Market on Sunday’s.

http://www.katesheridan.com/index.html