Yachting Faire!

Back in the day when millionaires had yachts that were worthy of being called yachts, an invitation to cruise the Mediterranean on one was snapped up without a second thought. Nowadays the mega yachts are just examples technological excess, to see who can build the biggest and the fastest with the most amount of boy toys installed.

The yacht by which all others were judged back in the 50’s and the 60’s was the “Christina”, Onassis’ mega yacht named after his daughter. Onassis a man who had as about as much savoir faire as a mollusc on a hot rock, outdid himself when it came to the “Christina”!

One of the chicest places to be in the 50’s and 60’s thanks to Tina, Onassis’ first wife, a week cruising the Mediterranean was pure heaven, albeit with a bit of intrigue and drama.

Winston Churchill was a regular, Liz Taylor made several appearances, Maria Callas first started her affair with main man himself, and Jacquie O also laid the seeds for her future marriage on the yacht.

By today’s standard’s she is small and outdated, however her salons were hung with priceless works of art, and her dining room decorated with panels painted by Vertes. The aft main deck had an outdoor pool with a mosaic floor that rose at the push of a button to form a dance floor and the barstools in the bar were upholstered in very soft, fine leather made from the foreskin of a minke whale.

His first wife, shipping heiress Tina Livanos, said, “The yacht is his real passion. He is like a housewife fussing over it, constantly looking to see that everything is impeccable.” Impeccable indeed—a crew member once explained, “You could smash up a $20,000 speedboat into pieces and not a word would be said, but spit on the Christina’s deck, and you were out of a job.

Now available for hire at around $45,000 per day, you too can indulge. Just don’t forget to invite me!

Simple Savoir Faire

Ok, I had a really hard time in selecting photos for this entry, as out of around 30 photos available I was swooning over each outfit.

With Haute Couture week happening in Paris at the moment, we are all so familiar with the big designers such as Dior and Givenchy. While their creations are absolutely fabulous and oozing with luxe and savoir faire, we are left pondering what sort of woman will be wearing these clothes and where?

Enter Bouchra Jarrar, who presented her second Haute Couture collection this week in Paris. Jarrar a relative newcomer, who was previously at Lacroix and Balenciaga presented a tour de force in refined simplicity and elegance. After reading several reviews on the collection I was surprised that no journalist had mentioned the Courreges type look of the clothes. This was the first thing I had thought of, as the collection was full of simple creams and blacks with contrasting piping and the minimum amount of bling. They seemed an evolution of the Courreges look of the late 60's.

Fabulous boat necks competed with plunging V-necklines, while cutaway panels exposed a glimpse of bare skin or a tiny panel of gold lame.

The collection was incredibly cohesive without a mish mash of styles fabrics and colours parading down the runway. These are clothes you can imagine real women in, going to work or a swish evening of cocktails and dinner.

"Really, my only inspiration is the world outside me, the women who surround me," said Jarrar, "I tried to create a sort of ideal wardrobe with all the elements women now need."
I say mission accomplished and more!

More Savoir Faire with a Conscience!

As a lot of you know I do a lot of volunteer work for Ten Thousand Villages here in Toronto, with most Sundays seeing me volunteering.

Here are a few new offerings from TTV, which means that you do not have to sacrifice style and savoir faire to make a difference in the world.

We have absolutely stunning rugs from the North West Province in Pakistan, where we support 900 families by providing them with sustainable income. Unfortunately even with my staff discount, they are just a tad out of my price range.

The below jewellery is just great for a bit of casual savoir faire, and is very very reasonably priced.

With so much waste going on in the world with tons of garbage being thrown out each year it is nice to see recycling at work. The below come from Bangladesh and Bolivia respectively. It is always difficult to pack glassware for an al fresco picnic, well now your problem has been solved, with this set of glasses in a basket.

Let’s not forget napkins for that picnic!

I also love blue and white (anything really) and the little box from Peru caught my eye. There is a matching tray which again is perfect for outdoor entertaining.

The wooden tea caddy from Vietnam with ceramic drawers is so cute!

And to top it all off, I have been lusting after the below onyx lamps from Pakistan for sometime now! Only problem is I have no where for it! Oh well c’est la vie!

Under Cover Savoir Faire

After a long week of torturous temperatures it has finally cooled down and is raining! Out comes my trusty black Fulton Brolly to keep me dry.

I have always liked the original Dior logo, formulated back in the late seventies, way before we bacame logo mad. I always thought it was elegant and sophisticated. Vintage logo makes all the difference compared to the newer tripe which is out there today.

SAvoir Faire Must Have

Would I be pushing it a bit too far if I wished to use this Cartier malachite and ruby ring tray as a soap dish in my bathroom?

Maharani Savoir Faire

Labelled the Wallis Simpson of India, not only for the fact of her royal suitor while married to another man and her love of fabulous jewellery the Maharani Sita Devi of Baroda was one of those rare breed of women who never ceased to amaze.

With a rather matter of fact statement she also put poor old Wallis in her place.


One of Sita Devi’s passions was for jewellery and the magnificent collection she amassed would leave everyone with open mouths. Even Wallis Simpson and had open mouth after the following little episode. The magnificent Star of the South diamond necklace seen below was one of the fabulous pieces she owned.

Back in 1953 the Maharani sold a pair of diamond and emerald anklets to Harry Winston, who subsequently re set the stones into a fabulous necklace. Wallis who as we know just loved jewels purchased said necklace and wore it to a 1957 New York ball at which the Maharani was present. Overhearing other guests were admiring the necklace, the Maharani was heard to exclaim that the jewels had looked just as nice on her feet. Wallis, rather humiliated or embarrassed returned the necklace to Harry Winston the next day.

Pooling Your Resources with Savoir Faire

As we head into Day 4 of the heat wave here in Toronto and the eastern US, I am pining away for a decent swimming pool here in Toronto to cool off in. Having been rather spoiled in Australia where every country town has a decent sized pool, I am longing for a dip with some savoir faire.

One of my favourite pools is Andrew Boy Charlton pool in Sydney. Perched on the edge of the harbour next to the business centre, where there was always a mass exodus at lunch times of gentlemen in their suits and ladies in their stilettos, down to the pool for a dip to cool off before returning to the office perfectly dressed and cool.

Another fabulous pool in Melbourne is the lap pool of the Adelphi Hotel. Overhanging the street by a metre or so, it is a surreal experience swimming here.

On a recent trip to Egypt the pool at the Grand Hyatt was a welcome relief after hot days of sightseeing. This time perched over the Nile; it was just wonderful to watch the sun set over Cairo of an evening, now being deliciously cool after sightseeing.

Here are some other pools that given half a chance I would be like to lounging around today with savoir faire!

Hotel Fullerton Singapore

Mykonos Grand

Oberoi Amarvilas Agra

Oberoi Rajvilas, India

Australian High Commision, Colombo

And for the ultimate in infinity pools, the new Marina Bay Sands in Saingapore!