Happy Christmas One and All!

There is nothing like a trip to London at Christmas to get you in a festive mood.

So the girls and I decide on a day out for some shopping, a bit of chatting, some more shopping, a spot more chatting (you get the idea!) and then off to see a show. And in my opinion there is no better place to start than Fortnum & Mason on Piccadilly.

Until recently I thought of Fortnum & Mason solely as a food shop.

How wrong I was!

If you are in London and want to spend a gloriously girly hour, I suggest taking the lift to the top floor in Fortnums and then wandering slowly down through the departments. There are heavenly fragranced toiletries, sumptuously silken lingerie, Doris Day hats and gloves and banks of exquisite stationery. This is a soft carpeted world of understated, undiscovered, luxury. On the way through the store there are enticing spots to stop for coffee - or in our case a brunch of mini pastries, muffins and smoked salmon and scrambled egg, served with freshly squeezed juice and fabulous coffee (all for a very reasonable price).

The ground floor is an Aladdin's cave of all things foody. But make sure you leave some time to sweep down the circular staircase to the basement, as this is where the flowers live.

Using as much home grown as they can, this is a deliciously English display of blooms and bouquets.

And what better place to be (with a very big smile on my face ....flowers ...Fortnums ...a day with my girls) to be wishing you all a VERY happy Christmas.