A trip into London and a very early start

Tuesday was a day for me to run around London all day to find as much research and inspiration for my current university project on perfume, and of course, find some time for a little shopping and lots of food! It was a long day, up at 6 am and returned back in Notts at 11pm...

I went to all the famous stores, Liberty's, Selfridges, Oxford Street Topshop and other niche perfume stores to find out more about my target audience, speak to industry professionals and find inspiration from everywhere. The flowers in the photo below were outside Liberty's and I couldn't resist taking a photo as the sun was shining bright and the summer feel I've been looking for was in the air.

Christmas Spirit in NYC

As my countdown to the big apple trip is in full swing ( 34 days to be exact) i thought today i would blog about the best of the best window displays that consist in New York this Christmas. From Macy's to Bloomingdales there is no hiding that this year its all about the bigger the better 3D designs, strong and contemporary themes.

Traditional wintry themes of icicles and snowscapes run throughout, with Barney's taking it to the next level by transforming windows into ice lockers featuring live ice sculpting and continually growing ice caverns. Department stores partner with world-renowned sculptors, florists, luxury brands and childrens’ television shows to create striking Holiday windows

Lets have a look at the best...

Barney's

An overarching theme of Chillin’ Out, which is taken very literally in these 2 displays. Barney's brought in ice formation company Ice Castles to create a fully operational ice locker to continually grow an ice cavern throughout the duration( image on the right) The second display, In the live performance, raw blocks of ice are carved into sculptures using chainsaws, chisels and drills to celebrate and glorify the craft.(image on the left)

Saks Fifth Avenue

Adopting a cold, icy feel in its Winter Palace-themed windows. More than 225,000 lights have been used on the facade, transforming the store into a winter palace complete with crystal spires, towering icicles and snow-covered magnolia arches. The windows represent some of the world’s greatest wonders, reimagined in subzero temperatures.

Bloomingdales

Bloomingdale’s partnered with world-renowned florist Jeff Leatham for this year’s windows, entitled Holiday Through the Senses. The displays reference each of the five senses through floral assemblages, faceted sculptures and props. Best collaboration I've seen!

Macy's

Inspired by Charles Schulz’s Peanuts gang, and are a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the first airing of A Charlie Brown Christmas.

The windows are 3D representations of six iconic scenes from the animated television special, featuring characters Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy, Linus and Schroeder among others.