Dress circle sunset Kokomo private island villa fiji skelly
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Why Koko pops | a new Fijian paradise | Lang Walker’s home away from home

Groucho
Brainy and cheeky. Witty and inventive. Always smoking hot.

A passion project of billionaire Australian property developer Lang Walker, Fiji’s newest luxury resort epitomises barefoot luxury. Susan Skelly dips a toe in the water… Christopher Kenyon’s beachfront studio might be pumping with Prince’s Little Red Corvette but the canvasses surrounding him reflect every blue of a Derwent pencil set – ultramarine, teal, turquoise, aqua,…

Gaia retreat Komala Villa bath natural luxury
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Saluting body and soul | tree pose | Mother Earth

Garbo
Cool, understated elegance that belies inner sparkle and sizzle.

Seeking body work, wattle seeds and Wollomi pines at Gaia Retreat & Spa in the Byron Bay hinterland With Gaia, you never lose that sense of returning to the fold. It’s like swapping medieval armour for a muslin baby wrap. This was Excess All Areas’ third visit. Last time, 2015, we were there to celebrate…

remymartin XO cognac cinnamon notes sydney 12micron barangaroo
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Cognac couture | the XO factor | aromarama

Brando
Charisma and character - and just a little bit game-changing. Action!

Describing the ‘notes’ in a glass of wine or Cognac has always been the somewhat mysterious art of the connoisseur. Rémy Martin’s international ambassador Alexandre Quintin puts a simple spin on it. The six-foot long table in the private dining room at Barangaroo’s 12-Micron restaurant table is dressed like an Old Master’s still life. It’s an artfully…

nick smart agence de parfum sydney distributor niche perfume
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Prince of perfume | sniffing the breeze | glitz and spritz

Monroe
Sexy and glamorous. Red carpet ready. Did someone say 'rescue fantasy'?

Perfume lovers have Nick Smart to thank for retail access to some of the oldest and loveliest fragrances in the world. So how did a property lawyer ended up shrouded in the mists of time? Niche perfume is one of the fastest growing sectors of the multi-billion-dollar fragrance and beauty industry. Of the 2,240 fragrances released last year,…

cacao beans venezuela criollo chocolate domori gourmet
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In search of the best chocolate | Cacao couture | The block

Garbo
Cool, understated elegance that belies inner sparkle and sizzle.

Technique, vision, and a Venezuelan cacao bean have produced a chocolate that leading chefs are doing their block over … Some never forget a face. Chef Giovanni Pilu, of the award-winning Sydney restaurant, Pilu, never forgets a taste. Several years ago, he encountered what he thought might be the perfect chocolate. “It was at the…

rose bay marina regatta sydney waterfront autumn dining photo susan skelly
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Food’s ugly ducklings | who dares, wins | An outing with offal |

Groucho
Brainy and cheeky. Witty and inventive. Always smoking hot.

  Offal is possibly one of the food world’s most divisive menu items. Most people either love it or loathe it.  If it’s the latter, there’s a harbourside dining dock that might change your mind…   Offal is never going to be the gourmet world’s red carpet glamourpuss. Not for brains, tripe or liver the…

Elbphilharmonie Concert Hall hamburg hafencity music acoustics landmark photo susan skelly
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Hanging out in Hamburg | new music landmark | G20 leaders “at leisure”?

Groucho
Brainy and cheeky. Witty and inventive. Always smoking hot.

  Naughty nightlife, a unique hangover cure, a new downtown quarter, and culture at 20 paces … Sunday morning coming down in Hamburg As G20 leaders gather this weekend for their 2017 summit, all eyes are on the port city of Hamburg, home to the new landmark Elbphilharmonie Concert Hall, expected to boost annual visitations of…

ritz cuffs fine jewellery ritz london lobby
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Ritzy jewels | not just afternoon tea | Put a ring on it |

Monroe
Sexy and glamorous. Red carpet ready. Did someone say 'rescue fantasy'?

While waiting to be seated for jewel-like morsels of afternoon tea, there’s a very different menu to check out at the Ritz… There are many things the Ritz Hotel London is renowned for: the world’s best-dressed afternoon tea (five sittings, these days), a tea sommelier, the creamy white Ritz rose bespoke-bred in the Netherlands; acres…

graffiti art hosier lane melbourne flinders lane pop colour photo susan skelly
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foraging in flinders lane | melbourne calling | laneway browsing

Groucho
Brainy and cheeky. Witty and inventive. Always smoking hot.

From gourmet fuel to new wardrobe staples, painted laneways to lessons from history … Melbourne’s Flinders Lane is a cultural mixed tape for the day-tripper, dedicated browser or business boffin playing hooky. These are Excess All Areas’ evergreens…. Grain Store We’ve high-tailed it down to the “wrong” end of town, where the queue for takeaway coffee…

twelve apostles great ocean road surf coast susan skelly
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Great Ocean Road | Bush meets beach | off-season getaway

Garbo
Cool, understated elegance that belies inner sparkle and sizzle.

In search of glorious bush and seascapes when the hordes have returned to work after the holiday crush, Excess All Areas heads to Fairhaven, and that portfolio of retreats on Victoria’s Great Ocean Road that also includes Bells Beach, Aireys Inlet, Lorne, Anglesea and Apollo Bay. Home to the famous sea-locked rock stacks The Twelve Apostles…

Copyright © Susan Skelly 2020.