by Claire Etchell | 4th January 2018 | Blog, Feature
Almost three years ago I went freelance in the most haphazard clumsy way imaginable. I have made all the mistakes, fallen spectacularly into all the pitfalls and (so far) have survived to tell the tale because I am working and living in London with lots of lovely...
by Claire Etchell | 27th October 2017 | Blog, Halloween, London
When I was growing up, Halloween was one night a year, you’d carve a pumpkin or a turnip and wear a makeshift witches outfit and off you trotted trick or treating. Now we’ve gone ALL American about it and it practically lasts a whole month with decorations and fancy...
by Claire Etchell | 1st September 2017 | Blog
The humble festival has exploded over recent years into a colourful Catherine Wheel combining music, food, yoga, face paint (AND glitter bras?), we’ve moved from wellies to high end Hunters and from day festivals to VIP experiences. In the world of marketing,...
by Claire Etchell | 7th July 2017 | Blog, Feature
Italy is colourful and passionate and wonderful. It has fresh sharp lemons and the juiciest oranges and brightest flowers. It has narrow coastal roads that have been nicknamed Mamma Mia from the shock visitors express on their first experience as they overlook sharp...
by Claire Etchell | 4th June 2017 | Blog, Feature, London
Kew Gardens has such a special place in my heart – I mean flowers and gardens – what is not to love? It is in Richmond and has it’s own picturesque train station with a delightful looking pub right next to it. Kew Gardens itself, or Royal Botanic...
by Claire Etchell | 3rd June 2017 | Blog, Feature
It was in April 2011 when Vogue hailed the Kimono the new Spring Jacket as they fell for the kimono’s liquid-silk allure. This might have been, erm, years ago but sometimes things bob around being micro-trends, before, well Zara makes an epic one and BOOM –...
by Claire Etchell | 26th February 2017 | Blog, Feature
My Claire & The City blog and business is all about honesty and going behind the smoke and mirrors of the PR & Marketing industry… But today I find myself in unfamiliar territory and am looking to a relationship guru to share his secrets instead. Who is...
by Claire Etchell | 15th February 2017 | Blog, Feature
How to Influence an Influencer Spilling secrets is fast becoming something that LornaLuxe and I excel at. Especially if it is combined with an audience, an agenda about digital and each other (and possibly a bottle of Champagne if it is after 5pm soz 7pm – tee...
by Claire Etchell | 28th October 2016 | Blog, Interview
The thing is…I’m not a film expert which, when you’re in a cinema full of movie fans at the BIFA Central Picturehouse watching Michael Sheen being interviewed for Time Out London can be a bit of a daunting realisation. BUT I have seen five Michael Sheen films, oh yes....
by Claire Etchell | 18th September 2016 | Blog, London
Sometimes in London, it feels like you know ALL KINDS of things you really don’t need to. Like when a new hotdog joint is opening, how Pret Sandwiches are ranked from 1 to 50, or how big the waiting list is at a swanky restaurant you’re never likely to...
by Claire Etchell | 5th September 2016 | Blog, Feature, London
St Paul’s Cathedral, where I’m sitting right now, is literally blowing my mind. The very famous London landmark was built by Christopher Wren and accessoried (shall we say) with intricate mosaics after Queen Victoria called it ‘dull, cold, dingy and...
by Claire Etchell | 4th July 2016 | Blog, Interview
If you had to pick one fashion designer for a cracking night out, I would suggest Henry Holland. Firstly, from what I have gleaned, from last Friday evening while he was in conversation with Kinvara Balfour. He is exceedingly charismatic, funny, honest and I’m...
by Claire Etchell | 8th June 2016 | Blog, Interview
All I could think about on my way to see Kinvara Balfour interview Zac Posen was Claire Danes’ stunning light up dress on the red carpet at the 2016 Met Gala. The theme for this year was Manus x Machina: Fashion in the Age of Technology in association with...
by Claire Etchell | 28th May 2016 | Blog, Chelsea in Bloom, Feature, London
What’s a flipping silver gilt when it’s at home? Why does a show garden differ from a artisan garden? Do I have to wear white linen trousers to get in? Will they know the only flower I’ve successfully kept alive is a Flaming Katie from Tesco? These...
by Claire Etchell | 23rd May 2016 | Blog, Chelsea in Bloom, Feature, London
RHS Chelsea Flower Show is a huge event in London with thousands of people descending on the capital each May to see the fabulous blooms on display. This year is no exception and the surrounding retailers take part in ‘Chelsea in Bloom’ which this year has...
by Claire Etchell | 1st May 2016 | Blog, Feature
Beyoncé is a Lycra and Swarovski crystal covered marketing dream, a sparking stick of dynamite with so much business sense I think she could actually run the world – B for president? Introduction for Beyonce’s Ivy Park Anyway, Queen Bey has been busy in...
by Claire Etchell | 28th April 2016 | Blog, Interview, London
I like design duo Peter Pilotto and Christopher De Vos from the very start of their interview with Kinvara Balfour at the V&A. They’re thinkers; they exude a quiet confidence and talk carefully and honestly about their luxury fashion label. There’ll be...
by Claire Etchell | 21st April 2016 | Blog, Feature
In PR and marketing terms, underwear is dynamite. It can make you thin, get you laid, define your abs, give you a bigger butt, enhance your cleavage, say ‘hello boys’, impress the girls, you know the drill. As I talked about in my blog ‘Who Sells You...
by Claire Etchell | 24th March 2016 | Blog, Feature, London
I am a London Time Out Tastemaker. Intrigued? This doesn’t (sadly) mean that I work for Time Out writing witty and entertaining copy about London every day, nor does it mean (even more sadly) that I am wafting around Poppy Delevingne style and party-hopping on a...
by Claire Etchell | 27th January 2016 | Blog, Feature
As a relative novice in menswear, this was my first visit to Chester Barrie’s LCM show, but boy they knocked my socks off. The venue was a sublime room at the Waldorf Hilton which was so grand, I could have just stayed there forever. It had much the red carpet...
