London & Partners

SHOPPING
Shopping
With Jo Caird
What’s hot
London’s January sales are now such an important feature of the shopping
calendar that many of them begin straight after Christmas, before January
has even started! Oxford Street (Ë Oxford Circus/Tottenham Court
Road/Marble Arch. Map B4/B5/B6), with its dozens of top high-street
shops and huge department stores, is the capital’s ultimate sale shopping
destination but there are bargains to be had all over. Try Regent Street
(Ë Oxford Circus/Piccadilly Circus. Map B5/C5) for smarter boutiques,
Bond Street (Ë Bond Street/Green Park. Map B4/C4/C5) for luxury
shopping and Piccadilly for foodie paradise Fortnum & Mason (p. 62).
Smart art
If you’re in the market
for some art this
January, there’s no
better place to be than
at London’s many
art fairs. First up
on 10-13 Jan is the
Mayfair Antiques
& Fine Art Fair,
where you’ll find
paintings and
sculptures, as well
as luxury antique
furniture and
jewellery. Admission
£10 (London Marriott
Hotel Grosvenor
Square, Duke Street,
W1. mayfairfair.
com Ë Bond Street.
Map C4). Then on 16-20 Jan the London Art Fair shines a spotlight on
modern and contemporary British work, such as Dream World No. 3 by Ye
Hongxing (pictured). Admission £16, £12 in advance (Business Design
Centre, 52 Upper Street, N1. 08448 480 136. londonartfair.co.uk
Ë Angel. Off map). Finally, find prints, drawings, watercolours, posters
and photographs from the early 17th century to the present day at the
Watercolours + Works On Paper Fair on 31 Jan-3 Feb. Admission
£15, children free (Science Museum, p. 55. worksonpaperfair.com).
On the buses
Carry a little bit of the capital with
you wherever you go with these
adorable London bus baby shoes
from ShooShoos (pictured). They’re
available in four sizes (0-24 months),
have non-slip soles and are made
from leather so soft that they won’t
constrict growing feet ( 01278
434 440. hippychick.com). And
while we’re on the topic of transport,
on 9 Jan the Big Smoke celebrates
the 150th anniversary of the
London Underground. The London
Transport Museum has a great
range of T-shirts for both kids and
adults – the perfect way to get into
the party spirit (p. 54.
ltmuseumshop.co.uk).
Nickel Spa
Men needn’t feel shy about taking care of themselves these days and
they’ll find the Nickel Spa (pictured) is especially designed for them.
Situated among the bustling shops, bars and restaurants of Covent
Garden, it’s perfectly placed for a post-shopping spree spruce up.
Services range from grooming to pampering, such as the glorious destressing
aromatherapy massage, which I can personally recommend.
Alternatively, undo all the damage from the party season with the
fitness facial, happy feet callus peel, anti-wrinkle injections or love
handle wrap. Review by David G. Taylor
27 Shorts Gardens, WC2. 020 7240 4048.
nickelspalondon.co.uk Ë Covent Garden. Map B6.
SALES IMAGE © VISITBRITAIN/SIMON WINNALL; DREAM WORLD NO.3, BY YE HONGXING, COURTESY OF SCREAM
60 | visitlondon.com|LONDON PLANNER|January 2013