WHO: MADELEINE THOMPSON
WHAT: CASHMERE QUEEN
WHERE: LONDON
VISIT: www.madeleine-thompson.com
FFF LOVES… Madeleine’s cool, chic and contemporary take on fashion’s most luxurious fibre.
MADELEINE’S LIST:
EAT: Cafe Ino in Greenwich Village, New York. It’s a tiny little place similar to an Italian wine bar. Serves great panini and Italian sandwiches. Go for brunch and try the truffled egg toast.
FFF note: The truffled egg toast sounds positively perfect! For more mouthwatering information, read New York Magazine’s review of Cafe Ino.
STAY: The Mandarin Oriental Hotels are the ultimate in style and luxury. They serve the most DELICIOUS food, taking it to a whole different level. My favourite is the Mandarin in Hong Kong. It is totally unique.
EAT: Shui Hu Ju is a beautifully decorated restaurant in a great location in Hong Kong’s Soho (68 Peel Street SoHo, Western, Hong Kong,+2869-6927). It’s so chic and the northern Chinese food is quite extraordinary in that it is so delicate and ever-surprising. I can’t recommend it enough. It’s great to get a private room there and have a party as it has an amazing atmosphere!
Agyness Deyn (L) and Sienna Miller (R) wearing pieces by Madeleine ThompsonSHOP: Lane Crawford in Hong Kong is the best department store in the world. I absolutely love it.
EAT: Borough Market, London’s oldest food market, is ‘foodie’s’ heaven! The stalls sell everything you can possibly imagine and there is a great restaurant there called Roast.
SHOP: Matches boutique in London is so directional in terms of it’s stock and how they merchandise it. I trust them implicitly. Their staff are the ultimate in cool as well as being amazingly friendly.
GRAZE: Tendido Cero serves up the best tapas in London. If you go during Wimbledon you will definitely see Rafael Nadal there!
EAT: Chi’en Men 23 is the former American Embassy from the early 20th Century. It’s punky bars and great restaurants in these amazing colonial buildings. It is such a juxtaposition with the rest of modern Beijing.
STAY: The Opposite House is the new Swire Hotel in Beijing. It’s designed by Kengo Kuma and is a combination of the five Chinese elements with a modern design. It’s pretty spectacular.
WINDOW SHOP: The Harrods Food Hall is one of my favourite places. Not only can you buy every type of delicious food you can think of, it’s actually just fun to wander around and ‘window shop’. Just try not to go when you are too hungry!
SHOP: I love the Bluebird Shop on the King’s Road in London. The space is so cavernous and chic and they pick the most amazing pieces. It’s almost impossible to leave without buying anything – be warned!
About Madeleine Thompson…
Inspired by her birthplace, Hong Kong and her formative years spent in England, 28-year-old designer Madeleine Thompson blends her love for eastern tradition with a cool western eye. After graduating London’s Durham University with a law degree in 2002, she returned to Hong Kong where she worked as a buyer for one of the world’s most prestigious retailers, Lane Crawford. Always creative and often complimented on the jewellery she made for herself, Madeleine couldn’t resist starting her own jewellery collection in 2004. In 2007, Madeleine branched into knitwear and cashmere clothing. Her cashmere beanie became the ‘must have’ of the season. Fall/Winter 2009 marked the launch of her collection in the US, which now includes a chic button-less cardigan, a wrap around shawl and thick chunky knit scarf. The pieces complement each other well in the same muted tones and high finish. Kate Moss and Renee Zellweger are fans of her jewellery while Agyness Deyn and Sienna Miller (pictured), Poppy Delevigne and Lily Donaldson have bagged cashmere beanies. She has recently added an interiors line to the Madeleine Thompson collection which includes beautifully indulgent throws offset by luxurious cable knit cushion covers.