Part 4: London Calling

A Change of Pace

Just one of the many rooms in the Sir John Soane Museum that was packed to the gills with antiquities

We planned our trip to Paris Deco Off with a stopover in London on the way home, and it greeted us with the architectural fever dream that is the Sir John Soane Museum – a place that makes your most ambitious Pinterest board look positively minimalist. Imagine if a brilliant architect had a serious collecting addiction and absolutely no one to tell him "maybe that's enough antiquities for one house."

The result? Pure genius. Speaking of fever, that's exactly what hit me next. Nothing says "authentic London experience" quite like being confined to a hotel room with tea and paracetamol as your only companions. At least the hotel was fabulous in every way…

Book the Boutique Hotel

The private lounge at the Broadwick Soho, whose design concept is said to have been the intersection of the designer’s grandmother’s house and Studio 54.

Let's talk about our accommodations at the Broadwick Soho, or as I like to call it, "That Time I Felt Like I Was Living in a Martin Brudnizki Fever Dream” (in the best possible way). This new boutique hotel is a maximalist's paradise, where Italian-inspired glamour collides with Soho's electric energy. Think sumptuous velvets, intricate patterns, and colors that would make even the most adventurous designer say "why not?"

The designer's touch is everywhere, from the 1920s-inspired Jacquard Loom restaurant to the devastatingly chic rooms where every corner feels like it was curated for the design-obsessed Instagram feed you wish you had. The rooftop bar offers views that remind you why you fell in love with London in the first place, serving cocktails that are as artfully crafted as the interiors.

Fair warning: staying here might ruin other hotels for you. In fact, it probably will. When a place manages to be both outrageously stylish and genuinely comfortable, while somehow making clashing patterns look like they've been best friends forever, it sets an unreasonably high bar. It's the kind of hotel that makes you seriously consider if you could pull off that level of pattern mixing in your own projects (spoiler alert: you'll definitely try).​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Y’all. Big Ben is really big. I was surprised at how big, actually.

Once I recovered from my minor setback (an upper respiratory infection, diagnosed and treated by a very efficient urgent care clinic just around the corner from The Broadwick), we took in the classic sights: Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and Buckingham Palace (King was in residence). Each iconic in their own right, they offer a crash course in British architectural history and royal grandeur.

Our group made it to Buckingham Palace at the most beautiful time! Sunsets begin around 4:30 London time, and the sky this night was a gorgeous pinky-lavender. Also, the flag was raised at Buckingham, signaling that King Charles was in residence.

The Crown Jewel: Althorp

Althorp, lit up majestically at sunset (4:47pm!)

The highlight of our London journey was undoubtedly the private tour of Althorp, the childhood home of Princess Diana. Althorp House, a grand Grade I listed stately home in Northamptonshire, has been the seat of the Spencer family for over 500 years, with the current house dating largely from the 16th century with significant renovations in subsequent centuries. The 13,000-acre estate is where Diana Spencer spent her formative years, living there from 1975 until her marriage to Prince Charles in 1981, and today, under the stewardship of her brother Charles, the 9th Earl Spencer, it not only houses one of Europe's finest private collections of furniture, paintings, and ceramics but also serves as Diana's final resting place on an island in the estate's Round Oval lake, where visitors can pay their respects at a memorial temple on the shore.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Before the tour, we enjoyed lunch at a local pub in Brighton Village called the Althorp Coaching Inn - so quintessentially English, I half expected Hugh Grant to stumble in and charm everyone with an endearingly awkward monologue. The pub's ceiling beams were low enough to remind you that people were apparently much shorter in ye olde days, and the menu featured dishes with names that sound like they were invented during a particularly spirited game of British Mad Libs.

Althorp Coaching Inn’s charm is quintessentially English

The tour itself exceeded all expectations, beginning with an unexpected greeting from Earl Spencer himself, who emerged from the front door to welcome us personally. The house is a testament to British history, with furniture so exceptional it's no wonder Theodore Alexander sought to license a collection. (Be sure to click that link for a fun video featuring Earl Spencer, Diana’s brother!)

We were treated to an incredible tour of the home, including some rooms that are not on the regular tour, as well as tea service in the library! An experience we will never forget.

The interiors of Althorp offer a masterclass in traditional British design, where every piece tells a story and every room holds centuries of history. For an interior designer, it was like walking through a living museum of the finest English craftsmanship. As our tour was private, and held during the off-season, we were asked not to take photos of the interiors, which we respected. However, we couldn’t resist getting one photo of ourselves just outside the front door!

Final Thoughts & A Trend Prediction

With Jessie Preza at a Parisian cafe overlooking the Seine

This journey through Paris and London offered more than just inspiration – it provided a deeper appreciation for both historical craftsmanship and modern innovation in design. From the textile markets of Paris to the historic halls of Althorp, each experience contributed to a richer understanding of our design heritage and its future.

It isn’t difficult to have some trend-spotting observations while traipsing through Paris and London, and we have a prediction about vibrant green:

A photo I snapped of a French woman whose outfit perfectly matched the window she was peering into. I showed her the picture after I took it, and she gave me a thumbs up and an enthusiastic “Superbe!”

Mark my words: this particular shade of verdant green is about to have its main character moment. While wandering through Paris & London, this fresh, optimistic hue seemed to be playing hide and seek with us – first catching our eye on impossibly chic Parisian women in beautifully tailored coats, then popping up in showroom after showroom at Deco Off and in front of Buckingham Palace in London. It's not quite kelly, not quite forest – it sits in that perfect sweet spot between earthy and electric that makes it both bold and surprisingly wearable. This is the kind of green that whispers "I'm sophisticated" while shouting "I'm not afraid of color!"

When we spotted it in Manuel Canovas's new collection and then again at Jim Thompson (paired brilliantly with rich oranges and unexpected blues), we knew this wasn't just a coincidence – it's a full-blown color movement in the making. It's that rare color that works equally well in fashion and interiors, which usually means we're about to see it everywhere. Consider this your early warning: this green is going to be the new "it" color of 2025.​​​​​​​​​​​​​

While not every moment was perfect (the restless evening I spent running fever chief among the lows!), the overall experience was invaluable. It reminded me that in design, as in travel, it's often the unexpected discoveries that leave the most lasting impressions.

If you enjoyed this insider's look at London, be sure to revisit the Paris part of our journey in Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3!