Beautiful Chaos

Sometimes names can be deceptive. Dover Street Market sounds like it should be a bustling seafood bazaar, perhaps located somewhere in the East end – all wet streets, loud street hawks, and a whiff of fish so strong it makes your eyes water. But it's not.Instead, the only fish that come anywhere near this super stylish, upmarket department store that is the real Dover Street Market are mercilessly taxidermied and triumphantly on display in one of the many fascinating (if admittedly pretentious) wooden cabinets dotted around the shop. There's certainly a smell in the air- but it ain't fish, it's the whiff of fashion snobbery sniffing their noses at anything priced at less than four digits. For here, cutting-edge haute couture meets derelict art gallery. Designed with the concept of “beautiful chaos” in mind, it’s the brainchild of Comme des Garçons’ visionary founder Rei Kawakubo- a 6-floor palatial market just off Bond Street retailing only the most influential designers in fashion. From Hussein Chalayan to the ever-covetable Alaia, this is the shop where fashion dreams are made and destroyed (by lack of cashflow). Perhaps one day in a gazillion years' time I might just be able to afford an Alaia dress. Or, to be more precise, the belt of an Alaia dress. Hell, who am I kidding: the buckle of the belt of an Alaia dress.

But for all the expense and exclusivity, Dover Street Market is undoubtedly London fashion's first port of call for sartorial elegance and incredible design. Everything here is thoughtfully contemplated - from the designers' individual spaces to the main window display (this year crafted by irreverent wind-up artists Jake and Dinos Chapman, featuring smiley faces on flags and dinosaurs- wacky, yes, but also a little underwhelming given their rich imaginations). Each year, the marketplace undergoes a biannual Tachiagari (Japanese for beginning) – a transformative period when the marketplace retreats into its chrysalis for 3 days, only to emerge with reworked spaces and new collaborative concepts. 2012’s first Tachiagari has recently been unveiled- and with its scaffolding remnants, untreated white floors, and exposed electrics, the entire feel is one of scrubbed down chic. Rebooted spaces from the likes of Alexander Wang, Ann Demeulemeester, and the hotly-anticipated introduction of Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen (visionary creator of that royal wedding dress) continue to put DSM firmly on the map, proving it is still the destination for cherry-picked, to-die-for style. Even if you're only here to window shop. My secret tip? The market is now newly-opened on Sundays , and with the delicious Rose bakery on the 4th floor serving up a mouthwatering brunch menu that includes smoked salmon (oh look, they do sell fish after all) and scrambled eggs, pancakes with banana and maple syrup, muesli with fresh berries and more, now you have yet another excuse to visit. After all, at reasonable prices, this brunch is probably the one thing in the entire 6 floors which normal people can realistically afford. All diehard Sunday shoppers, just make sure you shop first and eat later: brunch this good means you're sure to be one little piggie rolling out of the market.

http://www.doverstreetmarket.com/