Plum Sykes’s Favorite Things

“Teatime is ingrained in the English psyche, and I always stop work at 4:30 or 5:00 for it. At best, I make scones in the Aga and pile on clotted cream and blackberry jam with friends; at the very least, it’s Mariage Frères tea leaves in my gorgeous Herend pot, which I’ve had for twenty years. Making tea in a horrid mug with a cheap teabag is a travesty.”

“This bath oil was originally created in Germany in the early 30s. A friend brought it to me as a house gift, and I was instantly hooked: one drop and the entire room smells of the mountains, like an Alpine paradise. The oil is so powerful, and you need so little, that one small bottle lasts months.”

“When I first visited Marrakesh I fell in love with the colors and textures of Berber blankets and brought a few home to put on our beds. They are incredibly heavy and act like weighted blankets, promoting deep sleep, but look utterly beautiful.”

“My old friend Miranda Brooks gave me a Paravel collapsible weekend bag monogrammed with my initials, P.S. It was an incredibly sweet gift, and it’s perfect for one night away.”

“Possibly the most natural fake tan for the face out there. It makes you look sun-kissed. I use it after moisturising with the Omorovicza Rejuvenating Night Cream.”

“There is no wittier comedy than that of the goofy toff Bertie Wooster and his loquacious valet, Jeeves. I love the Everyman hardbacks, with their squat, square design, and I rarely travel without a P.G. in my bag to cheer me up.”

“I discovered this delectable red wine at Huntsworth Wine Company in Kensington. The store’s owner, Tuggy Meyer, told me I could give this £20 wine to people who drink £200 bottles and they wouldn’t know the difference: he was right.”

“I’m a total sucker for the Gucci stripe. I bought a pair of these sunglasses about ten years ago in the Boston airport, and I’m still wearing them. They’re classics.”

“For me, the ‘Whitney’ is the new Kelly bag: it’s named after Whitney Bromberg, founder of Flowerbx and the impossibly elegant wife of Peter Hawkings, the brilliant successor to Tom Ford. A white bag feels luxurious because it’s so absurdly impractical.”

“I live on a farm in Gloucestershire, which is my excuse for driving a 4x4. I treated myself to a used Range Rover Sport about two years ago, which felt like an incredible indulgence. I spend so much time in it that I feel like I live in it, and the heated seats and steering wheel make freezing winter mornings bearable.”

“When I unwrapped a birthday present to find a miniature Hermès box inside, and inside that a pot of nail polish, I was intrigued. It looks like molten chocolate on your nails, and that little orange box is a dream to have on your dressing table.”

“I think Manolo designs the best stiletto of all time, period. There’s just no competition as far as I’m concerned, and these work with everything from jeans to a ballgown.”