From West to East, London’s most stylish neighborhoods
Nestled between Oxford Street and Piccadilly, you’ll find Bond Street,
both Old and New. Founded in the 17th Century by Sir Thomas
Bond, Bond Street was merely an area of open fields with a Piccadilly
Mansion called Clarendon House. During this period, Mayfair, an area
of mainly open fields was beginning its transformation into one of the
most desirable locations in the world. When Sir Thomas Grosvenor,
3rd Baronet and later to become the Duke of Westminster, married
Mary Davis, heiress to the Ebury Manor, the Grosvenor family would
gain 100 acres of Mayfair land and thus start the development of the
Mayfair we all know today.
From Traditional Luxury to Modern Urbanism, if we head east away
from W1 to the cobbled backstreets of E1, we find ourselves in
Shoreditch, arguably the coolest place in London. Dating back to
medieval times even the name is of legend. It’s thought that Shore’s
Ditch was named after a mistress of King Edward IV, Jane Shore, who
is thought to have been buried there. Shoreditch was also home to
many theatres and a number of Shakespeare’s plays were performed
here. In fact Romeo and Juliet gained its plaudits and would go down
in the history books as arguably Shakespeare’s most famous play
while being performed at the local Curtain Theatre.
Old and New Bond Street depict when the two were developed. The
Construction of New Bond Street did not take place until 40 years
after the Old was completed. Where the two meet, one will find the
statue “Allies”. Unveiled in 1995 to commemorate 50 years since
the end of World War 2. The statue portrays Winston Churchill and
Franklin D. Roosevelt sitting on a park bench in conversation. This
street feature is popular with locals and tourist alike.
Today, Shoreditch is one of the most culturally diverse areas of
London. Some parts are compared with Silicon Valley as tech
companies’ flock to the converted warehouses that have been turned
into offices and lofts. On any given day in a number of the stylish
cafes, digital business is being conducted through the infinite number
of Macs adorning table after table of young coffee drinkers. While
other parts are compared to New York’s Lower East Side or Paris’s
19th arrondissement. Here you will find local Londoners wearing the
latest fashions in the ever so typical London way of wear whatever you
want and see if you can make someone bat an eye.
Traditionally Bond Street was home to many of the World’s top art
dealers and antique shops. Sotheby’s Auction House has had its
London office on Bond Street for more than 100 years. Today Bond
Street is home to the world’s top fashion brands. Strolling down the
famous street, one can find shops from the likes of Louis Vuitton,
Ralph Lauren and Chanel. In 2010 it was Europe’s most expensive
retail location notably confirming the reason why Bond Street is one
of the most valuable squares on the Monopoly board.
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Made up of Shoreditch High Street, Old Street, Brick Lane and
Hoxton Square, visitors to this area will find food markets from various
countries, trendy restaurants from famous chefs, independent shops
with the latest styles and the epitome of art and design. If you’re lucky,
you might even catch a glimpse of the latest street art by the ever
elusive Banksy. In this neck of the woods, urban is in and posh is out.