How to spend it in December

SUBSCRIBE

A supply of books for espionage afficionados

It was Heywood Hill’s proximity to MI5’s former headquarters on Curzon Street, Mayfair, that made it the favoured bookshop of the intelligence community. Its reputation was solidified when John Le Carré sent George Smiley off to browse its shelves in his 1974 novel Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. The shop is now cashing in on its espionage expertise by launching a spy book subscription service. Six times a year, subscribers will receive a carefully wrapped package containing two books: one classic novel of the genre in paperback and a new publication in hardback, by authors such as Ben Macintyre or Claire Hubbard-Hall. Baya Simons

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SHOP

Supermodel-approved partywear

From her insouciantly cool Glastonbury ensembles to that infamous sheer metallic slip dress, Kate Moss’s style has made an indelible mark on fashion. Now she is bringing her style nous to a collaboration with retailer Zara. The exclusive partywear collection, which has been designed with her close friend and collaborator Katy England, spans sparkly slip dresses, ankle-skimming evening coats, leopard print hotpants and skinny scarves, infused with the supermodel’s haute-grunge sensibility. “I wanted to create the perfect party capsule,” says Moss. “Pieces that feel effortlessly chic but with an edge.” Sara Semic

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EAT

Wine-focused dinners at a buzzy bistro in Istanbul

Opened in 2022 in a converted 1960s villa in the Etiler neighbourhood of Istanbul, Arkestra has quickly become a hotspot, known for its blend of French-Japanese cooking and its bar, which is overseen by its co-founder, a former NTS radio DJ. In December it launches its first Wine Dinner series at its low-key bistro Ritmo at the same address, showcasing wines from different winemakers or guest sommeliers alongside specially designed menus. The first event will be focused on wines from Kuzubağ Winery, located in the Denizli region of Turkey, perched high above the Aegean coast. BS

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SEE

Alexander Calder and Anne Imhof sculptures in Amsterdam

Amsterdam’s Stedelijk Museum for modern and contemporary art and design received a slick white extension in 2012, making room for a restaurant and library but supplanting the historic sculpture garden. In its place now comes the newly opened Don Quixote Sculpture Hall, which fills the glass-fronted wing (dubbed the “bathtub”) with works by Alexander Calder, Anne Imhof and more. Marion Willingham

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WATCH

Jazz and cocktails at the Assouline bar

Luxury publisher Assouline has turned 30, and to celebrate it’s hosting a series of live jazz performances with the Christmas Crooners and Annie Bea at the Swans Bar, located inside its London flagship. They’ll be serving 20 speciality cocktails (as published in a new book of recipes) including the Lake Como Idyll, a blend of gin, orange bitters and ginger liqueur, and Pisco Sours served in chilled coupetini glasses. Inès Cross

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SHOP

Festive felt decorations at Diptyque

Felt artist Lucy Sparrow has collaborated with Diptyque on a “Festive Felt Delicatessen” this Christmas. The shop, which sits in the flagship store on New Bond Street, will house more than 2,000 felt creations that Sparrow made specially for the space. Each one is a unique piece of art available to purchase, from Christmas tree decorations to larger objects such as panettones, Christmas puddings, extra-large Diptyque candles, Christmas turkeys and bottles of champagne – all handmade in felt. Shelley Rubenstein

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SEE

Jamie Hawkesworth’s lyrical photographs of life on a Kashmiri lake go on sale for charity

Photographer Jamie Hawkesworth is known for his tender documentary portraiture taken around the British Isles, and the naturalistic fashion campaigns he’s shot for Loewe and Chanel. These particular photographs, however, were taken on a trip to Kashmir in 2015, where he came across the vast expanse of Lake Dal, just north of Srinagar. “It was gigantic. There was so much going on there,” he says. “People live on the lake, so you just have an extraordinary sort of ecosystem.” Rowing around its shores, he saw two boys swimming, jumping in the water, collecting rubbish and “just having a laugh… It just seemed like a very honest, genuine moment.” His photographs of the pair splashing around are now going on show at Paris’s Program/me gallery and will be up for sale, with all proceeds going to fund work by The Cycle, who work to provide water, sanitation and hygiene services for communities around the world. BS

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BUY

Dinnerware inspired by the lavender fields of southern France

Deck your halls – and your tables. Tiffany & Co has reprised its “Comtesse de Grignan” pattern from 1961, which was named for the lavender fields in the Grignan commune of south-eastern France, in a new dinnerware set designed by artistic director Lauren Santo Domingo. IC

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BUY

Alasdair McLellan’s photographic tribute to Scotland

In Scotland, the newest addition to Louis Vuitton’s Fashion Eye photobook series, photographer Alasdair McLellan shares photographs of his ancestral homeland. The nation he depicts places tartan traditions amid vibrant diversity, and rugged mountains alongside lofty industrial towers. Rachel Rees

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EAT

Krug celebrates the flower

Every year for the past decade, champagne house Krug has matched that year’s Grande Cuvée Édition with simple ingredients: the lemon, the onion, rice or fish. For 2024, it’s the flower. They are celebrating with a series of dinners pairing this year’s Krug Grande Cuvée 172ème Édition and Krug Rosé 28ème Édition with flower-infused food. On 2 December, Claridge’s chef Simon Attridge will cook a menu of pouched turbot with truffle, celeriac and chamomile, venison with black garlic and juniper, and brie with truffle honey and lavender. BS

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SHOP

Loro Piana takes over Harrods

How to make London’s most luxurious shopping destination even more deluxe? Wrap it in cashmere. This Christmas, Italian brand Loro Piana has taken over Harrods in Knightsbridge with 36 window displays featuring Merino sheep and fluffy cashmere clouds. Inside, the pop-up is stocked with limited-edition accessories, the home range and a cashmere atelier, where visitors can create their own textile baubles or swing by the monogramming desk for some last minute gift personalisation. IC

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MAKE

Pierogis at one of east London’s best bakeries

This winter, cult London bakery E5 Bakehouse is adding to its workshop offering with a select number of classes dedicated to Pierogi, the Polish dumplings. Students will learn how to mix the dough using freshly milled grain flour, fill and shape dumplings and prepare Surówkam, a traditional red cabbage salad, to be eaten with their dumplings at the end of the class. IC

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BUY 

A photography book exploring the world of amateur astronomy

One of Daniel Stephen Homer’s only memories of his grandfather is the way he “would hoist me atop his shoulders, point upwards and name the constellations”. So, when the Midlands-born photographer read an article about an amateur astronomer in 2018, it caught his attention. He soon went down a “gargantuan rabbit hole” investigating stargazing enthusiasts who are aiding scientific research through their study of the heavens. This community is the focus of Homer’s new – and first – photobook, which spans amateurs working in Hampshire fields, on rooftops in India, mining towns in Australia and the rural Route de la Belle Étoile (Route of the Beautiful Star), which gives the book its title. RR

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SEE

Paintings exploring the funny side of dinner parties

British artist Jack Penny has collaborated with The Dot Project gallery and skincare expert Teresa Tarmey on a solo exhibition of his works, which will be on view at Tarmey’s clinic in Notting Hill throughout December and January. Penny’s subjects are often depicted at dinner parties, and this exhibition, titled Blue Cheese, explores the potential for chaos and comedy within meals. IC

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BUY

Photographs of people reading, taken over a lifetime, in a new book

Since the 1950s, David Hurn has been photographing people as they read, capturing them absorbed in their books in every corner of the world, from Arles to Qatar. He has caught moments snatched with a novel in the front seat of a car, children crouched over picture books in the middle of a park, and women reading outside cafés. He has pictured them in offices as others type in the background, and lounging in the back of exercise classes. Now for the first time, the photographs have been collected into a book. Taken over a period of 70 years, they form a paean to the total immersion that reading can offer. BS

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DRINK

Central European wine and small plates in a north London pop up 

Quince Bakery in Islington was quick to draw a queue to its doors. Only opened in February this year, it has already become beloved for its well-fired country loaves, rice pudding tarts, and loganberry swiss roll. This winter it joined forces with central and eastern European wine importer Basket Press, which has taken over the bakery space in the evenings to serve a menu of natural-leaning wines and cheese and charcuterie. BS