In Focus: The 100-carat diamond tiara once owned by one of history's greatest spendthrifts
Matthew Dennison takes a look at the life and times of Henry Paget, aka the 'Dancing Marquess', whose legendary shopping sprees saw him blow a vast fortune.
Style & Fashion
The luxury pages of Country Life feature some of the most exlusive clothes and accessories for men and women – not many publications cater to both. In addition, every week online we find some of the most beautiful things to buy for yourself, or a loved one. Often made by some of the oldest, and most loved British brands, these pieces are the best we can find, whether it’s a classic trench coat or a Christmas party dress.
-
-
Best Christmas gifts for outdoorsy people, from £12 to £9,900
If you're looking for a present for someone who loves getting out and about and finding new adventures, Toby Keel, Hetty Lintell and Alexandra Fraser have picked out some great Christmas gifts for lovers of the great outdoors.
-
The best of the Black Friday deals: Desert island holidays, bread makers and beer by post
The world seems to be going Black Friday barmy this week. We've picked out a few of the best deals.
-
Tailored for Life: How Savile Row's finest are keeping going even as the new lockdown takes hold
Modern tailoring needn’t be saved for the boardroom: mix and match garments more casually and invest in beautiful separates to be passed down as heirlooms, re-tailored to fit the next generation.
-
How to make Christmas jewellery shopping fun, with the wisdom and tips of Cassandra Goad
Choosing the perfect present needn’t be a chore — in fact, it should be fun. Choosing jewellery from Cassandra Goad is a good place to start, and Country Life's Luxury Editor Hetty Lintell picks out some of her favourites.
-
14 perfect Christmas gift ideas for the man or woman who has everything
From beautiful books and artistic accessories to a weekend away in one of the country's most famous castles, these gifts from our carefully-selected partners offer options for everyone — no matter how tricky to buy for.
-
The Utterly Inessential Shopping List: Headphones for wannabe rock gods, an indoor jungle and notebook nirvana
-
The Utterly Inessential Shopping List: Winter's least appropriate shoes, a bed of rare glory and an everything-proof mobile for adventurers or the incurably clumsy
Every week in this little slot, we lament the nastiness out in the world and suggest that you alleviate some of that negativity with something to make you smile. This week's selection comes from Victoria Marston and Toby Keel — enjoy.
-
The Utterly Inessential Shopping List: A watch that's older than planet earth, the ultimate bowl for tasteful dogs and saving the planet via the medium of cashmere
If Nero were alive today, he wouldn't have fiddled while Rome burns — he'd have bought stuff off the internet. And this is the page he'd have come to in order to help make his choices, where he'd have found the weird and wonderful as picked out by Victoria Marston and Toby Keel.
-
In Focus: How Pimlico went from Mozart's playground to a world-famous hub for design and antiques
London’s premier design district is home to some of the world’s leading interior-design and furnishing shops, but its refined façades belie a bohemian past, as Carla Passino discovers.
-
The Utterly Inessential Shopping List: The smartwatch equivalent of a 110-blade penknife, time-travelling teddy bears and a sewing kit that's cross-stitch meets clock-stitch
Is it right that we fight off the ennui of 21st century life by buying things we don't really need, but want anyway? Probably not, but that's the world we're in, and Toby Keel and Victoria Marston are here to help you navigate your way through it.
-
The Utterly Inessential Shopping List: A city girl's guide to surviving the Scottish Highlands
Much of this year, Utterly Inessential has focused on things to make staying in your own home for months on end a more pleasant experience. This week, though, we've handed over the keys to Country Life's luxury editor, Hetty Lintell, who went up to Scotland over the summer — and made these notes on how to make it through in one piece.
-
The Utterly Inessential Shopping List: The ultimate face mask, salvation for bored dogs and saving the world, one coffee capsule at a time
Well all be wearing face masks for a long time yet, so in a shockingly topical twist to Utterly Inessential we have one that fits the brief of design-overkill quite magnificently — as well as our usual mix of wonders. Victoria Marston is your guide.
-
Utterly Inessential Shopping List: Defying the end of summer, a clock that doesn't tick and a dinner party in a box (N.B. dinner not included)
Time to forget the necessities and indulge in this week's nice-to-haves. Victoria Marston and Toby Keel are your guides.
-
The Utterly Inessential Shopping List: Back to university special, featuring eight creative ways to blow through your student loans
-
The Utterly Inessential Shopping List: Tea for one, gin for anyone, and the solution for a ponging pooch
Victoria Marston guides us through this week's collection of wonders, where every whim of fussy humans and even fussier dogs is taken care of.
-
The Utterly Inessential Shopping List: Cute cups, posh pants, and a secret snooker table
After a few weeks of sipping cocktails beside a hotel bar in Cap d'Antibes, albeit sadly only in their dreams, Victoria Marston and Toby Keel get our Utterly Inessential shopping guide back up and running.
-
Where I work: Jane Taylor, milliner
-
Cassandra Goad’s inspirational quote pendants: Priceless sentiments, written in gold
-
Utterly Inessential: A pile of dogs, a bee that can open a beer and the bag which fires tennis balls at unwanted intruders (really)
Victoria Marston outdoes herself this week with a collection of quite spectacularly non-critical things which, somehow, you'll still want to buy.
