After hearing about the myriad of stores that had opened on Mayfair's Mount Street I had to take a look...though only from a window shopping perspective...sadly my budget does not run to Lanvin's leopard print dresses or Balenciaga's iridescent jackets (and Marc by Marc Jacobs falls under the category of "there's a store across town from where I live, why would I cross an ocean to buy their wares?").

The thing that strikes you about Mount Street though isn't the fashion...it's the wealth...the not-so-discreet odor of money that oozes out of every pore. Lunchers dining al fresco at the restaurants or private clubs are coddled by heaters every couple of feet (the mega-rich obviously feel the cold more than lesser mortals)...Balenciaga was so discreet with their signage that I almost walked past it, and indeed wouldn't have missed much as you need to peer through the blinded windows to view the shimmering goods inside...and, though the sun was shining, the overall impression was oppressive. If this is what the mega rich really want it's depressing...not exclusivity as much as a frigid lack of emotion.

Thank God for the whimsicality of Lanvin's windows and Goyard's construction cover-up...