The casa grande could be an ancient chalet in the Austrian Tyrol. A steeply gabled roof to slough off the winter snow, dandelion-yellow paintwork, and inside a treasure trove of all an outdoorsman loves. Antlers jostle for space on every wall. There is a tack room thick with the leathery tang of saddles, a bathroom
When I was 20 and tentatively trying to write, every single person I knew read Ian McEwan’s First Love, Last Rites (1975). It not only gave the short story a good name, but it also gave writing a good name. It was like a punk moment converted into fiction. People used the word “macabre,” but
Washington, DC might not seem the obvious choice for Britain’s oldest wine and spirits merchant to establish its first US outpost, eschewing more likely suspects such as, say, Manhattan. But that’s exactly what Berry Bros. & Rudd, founded in 1698 opposite St. James’s Palace in London, has done. “We’ve quickly earned recognition across all of
Every J Craft’s retro-style hull conceals ultramodern comforts and a setup fit for a tech-savvy Viking If you are familiar with the Ship of Theseus paradox, you’ll know that dating back to the Greeks, the famous philosophical question is this: if a boat has all its components replaced, is it at the end still the
One day during my first job as an aspiring journalist at a serious newspaper, the editor told me how much he liked my writing. Flushing with pride, I asked which particular piece I’d penned. “No!” he interrupted abruptly, before I’d even finished my question. “I mean your handwriting.” It was the note I’d scrawled rather
“You can just do things.” It’s a popular phrase on X, usually in response to someone accomplishing something remarkable, taken to mean that there’s nothing stopping you from doing something out of the ordinary. SpaceX might post video of a rocket landing – “you can just do things.” Victor Vescovo might be the living embodiment
As the high-end auction year gets underway in earnest, interesting lots are coming under the hammer over the next few months, ranging from wines forming the second-largest collection in Europe to American muscle cars, and from images created by one of the world’s most celebrated photographers to the multi-million-dollar paintings collected by a former US
An imposing castle that has been in the same family for 200 years, and was featured as the location for Shiv and Tom’s wedding in Succession, is well worth a visit. And now you can hire this very big house in the country for your own discerning yet hedonistic fun “What is luxury now,” asks
After being put on the “worst dressed” list for the 1989 Oscars at which she won Best Actress for The Accused, Jodie Foster decided that she needed professional fashion help. Giorgio Armani answered the call. “For the next Oscars, I wore a beautiful and striking cream-colored tuxedo chosen for me by Mr. Armani, and guess
Maximillion Cooper is the ringmaster of a 21st-century Wacky Races for a high-powered bunch of people who come together in a spirit of adventure On June 4 this year the annual Gumball 3000 rally will rumble out of Miami, beginning a 3,000-mile route from Miami to Mexico City, taking in Florida’s Amelia Island, New Orleans,
Away from the hard-luxury world of Lalique bottles (sorry, “decanters”) art labels, and rare-wood boxes, the whiskey world has evolved a niche that focuses on data and details and speaks more directly to a younger audience. Independent bottling favors discovery and knowledge over branding or partnerships, and typically these whiskeys are from casks that the
Once upon a time, Lego was just a toy that we grew out of. Except that it never really was just a toy, and the generations that grew up with the clever building system never forgot the lessons it taught in mechanical thinking, or lost the fascination with structure, motion, and cause-and-effect that it engendered.
In a small town south-west of Nottingham in England’s East Midlands, lies one of the world’s true textile pioneers. Founded in 1860, Sunspel has been quietly revolutionizing the industry by developing ever-better quality fabrics. As a specialist in luxury underwear for men, having introduced the boxer short to Britain in 1947, it was ideally placed
There is something faintly absurd about a modern sailor checking the tide on a mechanical wristwatch before leaving the dock. It’s a defiant act of Luddism. Whether it is TAG Heuer’s new Seafarer – a revival of a sun-bleached Abercrombie & Fitch regatta chronograph – or IWC’s technical Portugieser Yacht Club Moon & Tide, the
An icon of British craftsmanship, Edward Green has been handmaking shoes in Northampton, the home of the UK’s shoemaking industry, for 136 years. The original Edward Green’s vision – to attract the best craftsmen, united under the slogan “excellence without compromise” – still holds true today, with 60 skilled artisans using techniques that have been
Martinis remain one of the most popular cocktails of the moment – pristine and dry or filthy-dirty-hazy, vodka or gin, olive or twist, there’s one on every menu. But the iconic drink sure does pack a punch. In a moment where many – particularly younger consumers – are drinking less, even the classic martini is
The actor David Suchet, who starred as Hercule Poirot in TV films and on the big screen, has recounted trying to perfect the Belgian detective’s fussy walk, as described by his creator Agatha Christie. In the end, Suchet placed a penny between his butt cheeks and shuffled like a penguin to keep it in place,
Ester Ledecká, Tomoka Takeuchi, and Arthur de Villaucourt were all part of the Richard Mille “family” at Milano Cortina 2026, and while the first two competed in the Women’s Parallel Giant Slalom for snowboard, the latter attacked the Men’s Moguls and Men’s Dual Moguls. For athletes to have associations with watch brands might not be
As the saying goes, “Time and tide wait for no man.” Perhaps this is why Australian Andrew McUtchen is in such a hurry to spread the word about what he calls watch “microbrands.” These are the product of young watchmakers who have developed small runs of interesting and innovative watches and are challenging the hegemony
Founded in 1879 in Northampton, Crockett & Jones sits at the center of British footwear. While other venerable shoemaking names have chased trainers and other youthful styles, marketing and e-commerce director James Fox says the family company (Fox is the son-in-law of managing director Jonathan Jones, fourth generation of the co-founding Joneses) preferred to “double
Even in my own hilly, albeit domesticated National Park of Exmoor in south-west England, you can easily get lost. And when the light fades and the clouds descend, the marshy bogland can be not just unpleasant, but lethal. Garmin’s inReach Mini 3 Plus is now not so much a luxury as a necessity for any
There can be resistance to Raphael. A bit unfair, really. Just as Renoir is considered the soft-edged Impressionist, Raphael (1483-1520), indisputably one of the three great artists of the Renaissance, is often eclipsed by his near contemporaries, Leonardo and Michelangelo. Is it because his works are just too beautiful, too ethereal, too perfect? This view
In 1924, it is said, the company that became Montblanc – the Simplo Filler Pen Company – developed special pens for customers who wanted something more refined for use on a Sunday. Dubbed Meisterstück designs (literally “masterpiece”) these took a number of forms before settling on the 149 model, the iconic cigar-shaped style we know
The decision by Italian clothing brand Corneliani to use American psychedelic folk musician and artist Devendra Banhart as its “face” for this season is a telling one. This firm from Mantua, which has been making sartorial Italian menswear for nearly a century now, made its name creating traditional style for professionals. But times change, and
Jewelry designer Cora Sheibani’s eye for detail and form was refined from a young age, having been brought up immersed in what sounds like an exciting epicenter of the art and design world during the 1980s and ’90s. Her father, the Swiss-based international art dealer Bruno Bischofberger, and her mother Christina, both collectors, invited guests
Firefighters are universally loved, right? Of course they are – heroic lifesavers rushing into danger in those big red engines… what’s not to like? Back in the 1980s Andrea Della Valle, a young Italian, was certainly fascinated when he encountered a bunch of ex firefighters who were wearing the garments of their former trade. “I
Lila Raicek likes a big swing. Just last year the New York-based playwright and screenwriter debuted My Master Builder in London’s West End – only a matter of months after the first draft landed on director Michael Grandage’s desk. Most writers wait a lifetime to catch even a whiff of a Broadway or central London
In the early days of the motor car, if you wanted to cross the high-altitude Upper Engadin in Switzerland, your vehicle had to be pulled by horses. Because up to 1925, the townsfolk of St. Moritz had a ban on driving. When it was lifted, Shell opened a petrol station. It also funded the paving
“What is a coral?” If you can answer that question, you are smarter than I am. My interlocutor is a 27-year-old Tahitian called Titouan Bernicot, and you should note that name, because this young man is doing remarkable things. We are in Thailand at the HQ of Coral Gardeners on the small island of Koh
Even by the standards of Cambridge University, the influence of St. John’s College on modern society is eye-watering. At last count, St. John’s alumni include 12 Nobel Prize winners, seven prime ministers, three saints, two poet laureates, and the current Prince of Wales. However, it could be argued that the college’s greatest and most universal
