This story was shot in London town one rainy night a couple of months ago amid a lot of laughter, champagne and shenanigans. This whirlwind trip only lasted a couple of days, hence my reluctance to sleep at all - who needs sleep when there is so much to see, do and experience? I was generously flown to London by Farfetch, the new-ish kid on the online shopping block, for a special dinner with incredible people from all around the world.
The reason Farfetch is different to other online retailers is well , that they are not one in traditional terms. Farfetch is a hub that connects 300 individual boutique retailers from 30 countries to the rest of the world - when you shop on the site, the item comes directly from a far flung boutique somewhere in the world, arriving as beautifully and individually packaged as if you had visited that boutique yourself - often with a handwritten note, postcard or small token from the town. Each of the boutiques was carefully selected for their unique approach, forward-thinking attitude and diversity.
What I love most about this unique approach however is that each store will have their own buyers and their own edit from the same brands - this means that Farfetch often ends up with complete collections from designers , including the most sought-after and hard-to-find pieces each season. What is there not to love about having the broadest range of brands? From big-name luxe labels to emerging lab designers, Farfetch is now serving 270,000 customers in 170 countries. I have been crazy about Farfetch for a couple of years now, ever since I found a runway Balmain top that was available no where else online -sourced from a small store in Florence. It really is like shopping a curated edition of the best of the world's boutiques.
For this particular story I raided a boutique on King's road called The Shop At Bluebird. In the name of fashion (oh the sacrifice!) I pulled an all nighter in one of the hottest new hotels in London. Can you guess which one?
SHOP THE STORY HERE!
This year I left the Australian winter early to camp out in the Mediterranean on the other side of the world in support of my boyfriend Stephen Pavlovic's For Festival, now in it's second year on the delicious island of Hvar. Some of my dearest friends came over to join me, effectively preventing me from lifting a finger. Or perhaps it is unfair to blame my work hinderances on laughter, fun, amazing music that kept me up all night dancing and all day lounging on a beach? But what is a girl to do when confronted with paradise, sunshine, sea, cocktails, seafood dinners and bands such as Haim, Klaxons, Neneh Cherry, Darkside, Mark Ronson, Erol Alkan, Erlend Oye, Tensnake etc? I chose the path of surrender.Or maybe it was more like tightly embracing my new found mantra: laugh, swim, dance, eat a lot and enter into tan wars.Repeat !
The most wonderful part of this festival is that it's ridiculously small at only 2000 people full capacity, making it , in truth, not very festivally at all (hallelujah). But what is really special is that it is spread over 3 incredible islands of Hvar, Jerolim and Stipanska with venues ranging from an old monastery to a cute beach and a posh island disco along with happenings such as chill beach parties, open air nighttime concerts and all night pump fist disco dancing extravaganzas in an intimate environment.
Finally... well it's freaking Hvar, the St Tropez of Croatia. It's luxe, it's beautiful and it's the Med- replete with sparkling blue waters, lobsters, pine trees, cobblestones and lavender everything. Bey and Jay felt the energy when they named their daughter Blue Ivy here .And I am but a mere mortal ! Here is the first part of my travel diary ...
Yacht life with my mate Lindy Klim catching some air in our hair on the first day of the festival
Lindy's hubby Michael Klim dives into the blue
Crazy deep blue waters and the moment I realized I could really get used to this boat lyf
Sun rising over Hvar town on our taxi boat ride from Carpe Diem
Some organic island accruements
Early morning walk home through the flowering medieval town
Movement - trust me , this band will be big
Afternoon cocktails at Hula Hula bar
On the mean streets of Hvar : Jonathan Saunders, Justin Padgett and Movement's Sean and Jesse
Mojito o'clock at Laganini
French connection : Gaspar of Justice, Dimitri and SoMi
Haiming it up with Haim... awesome all sister band who actually rock and roll HARD. Talk about talent.
Lavender fields forever
Nicolas Jaar and Dave Harrington of Darkside weaving their music magick
Golden sunsets and boat taxis
Getting lost in the old streets of Hvar wearing some holiday leopard (Proenza Schouler top, Helmut Lang skirt, Tory Burch bag, Isabel Marant sneakers and Monica Vinader bracelet)
Look ma'- hardly any splash! Diving competition at Bonj Les Bains 's old swimming pavilion.
"Pirate"Jerolim beach held intimate dj sets by the sea
Erlend Oye playing his epic History of Music session, that culminated with the whole beach following him into the water during the last song .Akin to a religious experience, this man needs to start a love cult asap.
Carob and myrtle liquors at an old vineyard homestead. Zivjeli!
And the award for most laughs solicited goes to the Klaxons band! Come night they played an electric set where people swarmed the pool in front of the stage and girls took their clothes off. James Righton's beautiful wife Kiera Knightley watched the mayhem from the sidelines
