Friday, December 10, 2010

Fortnum and Mason Xmas Windows?

FORTNUM & MASON Here's a London Xmas mystery for you to solve.
FORTNUM & MASON When I saw the windows at Fortnum and Mason in October I was puzzled.
I went inside and asked the liveried doorman if these mushroomie, underworld, Hobbit-esque window decorations were for Halloween?
FORTNUM & MASON I was assured these were the Christmas windows!?
FORTNUM & MASON What?
Is it possible?
FORTNUM & MASON Mustrooms and moss + British jams..?
FORTNUM & MASON Giant acorns + tiny lamps...
FORTNUM & MASON Champagne amidst the leaves - this looks a tad Christmasy...
FORTNUM & MASON But silver champagne glasses full of green moss? Huh?
FORTNUM & MASONChampagne and macarons, contact me, 9" x 11"Please say it isn't so!
FORTNUM & MASON I can live with a Beefeater chess set - what a perfect Xmas gift.
FORTNUM & MASON Burgundy velvet slippers in the hay? Hmm...
FORTNUM & MASON French parfums amongst the moss..? non non non!
FORTNUM & MASON Mustard under glass - is this a vision from the latest, darkest Harry Potter movie? Please tell me someone was pulling my leg.
This can NOT be Christmas at F n' M in Piccadilly.
Doesn't one deserve a bit of dessert after that?
BONJOUR FORTNUM and MASON!

29 comments:

  1. Beatrix Potter was, among other things, a mycologist...

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  2. I'll take Peter Rabbit and Beatrix Potter anyday over these roots and toadstools,
    Thank you very much!

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  3. lovely - it's quite enchanting ... Beatrix painted as much flora/fauna .. maybe more, than she did rabbits. Thanks for taking us to the windows of F&M.

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  4. I think they're kind of pretty, actually, a little bit Dickensian....
    I like the velvet slippers

    windeater.blogspot.com

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  5. It's quite different for Christmas, but interesting. It does seem much more like an autumn display. I do like the merchandise! Lovely watercolor as usual! Bess

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  6. I actually like it as well (perhaps your lovely photos make it look prettier than it actually was). Or maybe it's just because I could do with some F&M jam right about now!

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  7. Thank you for taking us into the fairie world of this year's Fortnum and Mason window and displays. They do seem to give a bow to the fey sensibilities of a bygone Britain...parhaps as it might be imagined today. I loved it, though it might not be as magical or Beatrix Potter-like in person. Delightful to see, none the less.... And may I just say thank you so much for a year of beautiful and inspiring posts! As I tell each friend I send the PB blog to, this is one thing I am really happy to see in my mailbox. Beautiful work, Carol, and such exquisite paintings too! Thank you!

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  8. OMG!! Are you in London now?? Sooo jealous! Enjoy!

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  9. Jam is good ANYTIME!!!
    Hooray for J A M !
    Jam is the saving grace of this mossy morass IMHO

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  10. absolutely, incredibly enchanting and perfect for the season...after all, where do you think santa's reindeer get the 'inspiration' to fly?

    fly agaric (Amanita muscaria) bein sur! ho ho ho indeed, steph

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  11. Well! very different~ but red velvet slippers in hay & parfum in moss!! so...pleased you took a peek inside
    Mossy Christmas
    xx
    Dianne

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  12. Anonymous3:52 PM

    I saw these myself in October. I thought the same - it looked more of a thanksgiving harvest type window to me but still oh so lovely.
    x

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  13. They look very fairy-tale-ish to me. Definitely takes you away from the ordinary. I kind of like 'em--otherworldly, right?!

    Thanks for showing us what they had in their windows.

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  14. Hey! Where's the snow?
    I can live with the moss and all of the forest stuff, but sprinkle in some snow :)

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  15. seems a bit "dark"

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  16. Do you know how happy I could be sipping champagne and nibbling macarons while wearing burgundy velvet slippers? Extraordinarily so! Thanks for your hot chocolate suggestions. I may just order that 2.2-pound vat of l'Ancienne!

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  17. Anonymous12:12 AM

    you have such a great blog! it's the only one I check regularly anymore. full of so many beautiful things. - thanks for all that hard work, it creates much needed eye candy for the rest of us.

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  18. Oh well K & S,
    The Brits did give us The Hobbit, Harry Potter, Watership Down, The Dark Materials etc. - all a bit dark and undergrowthy...so not so unexpected after all.
    It is interesting that a major traditional department store like F&M would go this direction -
    Not very Macy's is it?

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  19. Incredible windows and so beautifully done. I love when styling is taken so seriously. Lovely post. Carla

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  20. Super groovy but confusing for Christmas.
    October ... November ... but ... hmmm.
    Lovely though.

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  21. The displays are beautiful, but Christmas-y? Not so much! Dessert,on the other hand, is always in season!

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  22. I think it's perfectly magical!

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  23. Anonymous11:30 AM

    Love the red velvet slippers...and the desserts, of course!

    ~Leah
    (http://simplesplendidthings.wordpress.com/)

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  24. guess the windows will have people talking...and there's no fear of the lovely gifts getting lost in surrounding beauty!

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  25. sinply wowww...and eye catching

    regards

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  26. No, you're not folle... these are totally autumnal. Shame on F&M. Cake for all!

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  27. It would seem those British have a wry sense of humor...?
    Cheerio.

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  28. Went to a very lavish and wonderfully decorated Christmas party this weekend...but the really funky touch was all the fake snow in and around the plantings, as we walked up the path to the house.
    Hopefully friendly to the so far snow-free environment.

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  29. They were the Autumn windows, not the Christmas windows!!

    I know as I made the majority of the mushrooms, acorns, trees etc,

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