Here's a London Xmas mystery for you to solve.
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? 
I was assured these were the Christmas windows!? 
What? 
Is it possible? 
Mustrooms and moss + British jams..? 
Giant acorns + tiny lamps... 
Champagne amidst the leaves - this looks a tad Christmasy... 
But silver champagne glasses full of green moss? Huh? 
Champagne and macarons, contact me, 9" x 11"Please say it isn't so! 
I can live with a Beefeater chess set - what a perfect Xmas gift. 
Burgundy velvet slippers in the hay? Hmm... 
French parfums amongst the moss..? non non non! 
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!
Beatrix Potter was, among other things, a mycologist...
ReplyDeleteI'll take Peter Rabbit and Beatrix Potter anyday over these roots and toadstools,
ReplyDeleteThank you very much!
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.
ReplyDeleteI think they're kind of pretty, actually, a little bit Dickensian....
ReplyDeleteI like the velvet slippers
windeater.blogspot.com
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
ReplyDeleteI 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!
ReplyDeleteThank 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!
ReplyDeleteOMG!! Are you in London now?? Sooo jealous! Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteJam is good ANYTIME!!!
ReplyDeleteHooray for J A M !
Jam is the saving grace of this mossy morass IMHO
absolutely, incredibly enchanting and perfect for the season...after all, where do you think santa's reindeer get the 'inspiration' to fly?
ReplyDeletefly agaric (Amanita muscaria) bein sur! ho ho ho indeed, steph
Well! very different~ but red velvet slippers in hay & parfum in moss!! so...pleased you took a peek inside
ReplyDeleteMossy Christmas
xx
Dianne
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.
ReplyDeletex
They look very fairy-tale-ish to me. Definitely takes you away from the ordinary. I kind of like 'em--otherworldly, right?!
ReplyDeleteThanks for showing us what they had in their windows.
Hey! Where's the snow?
ReplyDeleteI can live with the moss and all of the forest stuff, but sprinkle in some snow :)
seems a bit "dark"
ReplyDeleteDo 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!
ReplyDeleteyou 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.
ReplyDeleteOh well K & S,
ReplyDeleteThe 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?
Incredible windows and so beautifully done. I love when styling is taken so seriously. Lovely post. Carla
ReplyDeleteSuper groovy but confusing for Christmas.
ReplyDeleteOctober ... November ... but ... hmmm.
Lovely though.
The displays are beautiful, but Christmas-y? Not so much! Dessert,on the other hand, is always in season!
ReplyDeleteI think it's perfectly magical!
ReplyDeleteLove the red velvet slippers...and the desserts, of course!
ReplyDelete~Leah
(http://simplesplendidthings.wordpress.com/)
guess the windows will have people talking...and there's no fear of the lovely gifts getting lost in surrounding beauty!
ReplyDeletesinply wowww...and eye catching
ReplyDeleteregards
No, you're not folle... these are totally autumnal. Shame on F&M. Cake for all!
ReplyDeleteIt would seem those British have a wry sense of humor...?
ReplyDeleteCheerio.
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.
ReplyDeleteHopefully friendly to the so far snow-free environment.
They were the Autumn windows, not the Christmas windows!!
ReplyDeleteI know as I made the majority of the mushrooms, acorns, trees etc,