Friday Evening In Selfridges

About six o'clock is best. It's bustling. It's different to any other time. One can almost smell the scent of 'Friday evening in Selfridges.' Oh to be able to bottle that atmosphere. Friends together, women alone, partners maybe in town for the weekend. The beauty counters are alive with colour, people and anticipation. The nail bars are full and the shades are shades for the weekend. Walking through, or gliding up the escalators, to the clothes high street, high end or both. It doesn't matter here. I would never casually wander into the shops of the concessions that I stroll through here. Wistfully pretending that I may need/want these clothes for every day, for that special occasion. Seeing up close and personal what the dress in Vogue is like in real life. I can lose myself amongst the rows of clothes - to touch, to try on, to daydream. Clothes to be worn tomorrow night, or maybe another time. (It's why internet clothes shopping and me will never be as close as shopping in shops shopping are. That inability to touch.)
So, that's why I love Friday Evening in Selfridges. I've always loved it. When single I looked forward to a Friday evening mooch by myself before meeting friends or going home. I still relish wandering by myself and returning to Warmth, meeting him or friends later. Even if I don't buy tonight I've still had a fabulous time and think about what I may buy another time. Yes, the whole Friday Evening in Selfridges is a 'gesture of optimism' to me.

'Buying clothes is a gesture of optimism about the future...' L. Grant Vogue November 1996