Europe's Most Exclusive Furniture (Interior Design Documentary) | Abode

The peek into the world of luxury interior design focuses on Chelsea, one of London's most exclusive boroughs. Leading architect Sally Mackereth is transforming a former artist's studio into a fully furnished apartment for a luxury developer. Travelling across Europe, she collects and commissions exclusive furniture - from satin wall lining to a table made from 8,000-year old wood - as she tries to appeal to an international buyer interested in Chelsea's artistic heritage. Meanwhile, Russian property investor Julia Solovyev seeks inspiration as she sets out to furnish the Chelsea house of her dreams.

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High-End London Property Prices Falter on Budget Worries
CNBC: Prime Central London property had looked almost immune to economic problems in the rest of the U.K and the euro zone in the past couple of years.

This could be changing.

In July, prices for properties over 2 million pounds ($3 million) in areas like Chelsea and Mayfair grew by 0.5 percent — the lowest rate of growth in almost two years — according to estate agents Knight Frank.

This came despite plenty of interest from buyers elsewhere in the euro zone looking for safe havens. Interest from prospective buyers rose by 23 percent in the three months to July compared to the previous quarter, according to Knight Frank.

And internet searches for London property rose by 9 percent from Italy, 10 percent from Spain and 50 percent from Greece in May, according to Savills. » | Catherine Boyle, Staff Writer | Thursday, August 02, 2012

No Oprah or Obama as Chelsea Clinton Weds Marc Mezvinsky
THE GUARDIAN: Tight security and low celebrity count as Bill and Hillary Clinton's daughter marries investment banker

In the end, Oprah Winfrey was a no‑show. In fact, the occasion was notable for its relatively modest sprinkling of celebrities, in tune with the family event that the woman at its centre had wanted it to be.

Not that the wedding of Chelsea Clinton on Saturday was low-key. Beaming in a veiled Vera Wang dress on a gorgeous day in upstate New York, she was led down the aisle by her father Bill, the former president, who kept his promise not to cry and certainly looked as though he had also lost his pledged 15lbs judging from the set of photographs given out by the family.

Hillary Clinton wore a dress by Oscar de la Renta.

The groom, investment banker Marc Mezvinsky, who was a childhood friend of Chelsea's and who shared some of the peculiarities of her upbringing by being the son of Democratic politicians, wore a yarmulke and a tallit prayer shawl. >>> Ed Pilkington in New York | Sunday, August 01, 2010

Prince Charles Rebuffed by Qatar Royal Family over Modern Flats
THE TELEGRAPH: The Prince of Wales has been rebuffed by the Qatar Royal Family in his battle to stop a £1 billion modern flats development in a historic part of London.

Sheikh Hamad bin Jaber Jasim al-Thani has been urged by the Prince to reconsider the Chelsea scheme . Photo of Prince Charles courtesy of The Telegraph
The Qataris, who had been reported to be on the verge of backing down in the face of the onslaught from the Prince, have instead reaffirmed their commitment to the luxury apartments development on the site of Chelsea Barracks.

The Prince had written to the Prime Minister of Qatar appealing to him to scrap the modern steel and glass development. He also asked to be involved in the discussions over the future of the site.

But the Prince's hopes that the scheme would be withdrawn are at an end after the Qatari Diar, the development arm of the country's royal family, issued a statement confirming it's commitment to the scheme.

The statement said: "The owner and developer of the Chelsea Barracks site is concerned that several recent reports in the media have either stated or implied that it is actively considering abandoning the scheme which it submitted for planning to Westminster City Council February 27, 2009. As a direct consequence of these reports, we have written to Westminster City Council confirming wholehearted commitment to the scheme." >>> By Andrew Pierce | Friday, May 1, 2009