The new RRCHF is one of the slimmest chronos on the market. The new RRCHF is one of the slimmest chronos on the market.
Рубрика: General
-
Why Sofia, Bulgaria’s Capital, Shout Be On Your Travel Radar
Designer boutiques, bold restaurants, and stylish accommodations – the Bulgarian capital has much to show off.
It feels a touch unjust that Sofia is only now shuffling into public consciousness for reasons that are good to know about but completely unsexy. Last year, Bulgaria was finally absorbed into the EU’s Schengen Area, instantly making it easier to incorporate a visit into a broader European itinerary. This January, the nation adopted the euro, streamlining the travel process further.
Go ahead and visit the capital, though, and you’ll tell friends much more interesting stories. At over 7,000 years old, Sofia is one of the world’s longest-standing cities. Amble from the gargantuan, copper-domed neo-Byzantine Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and you’ll bypass cobbled boulevards with jaunty old-European mansions, Roman ruins, Ottoman mosques, formidable Communist-era monoliths, and a notable absence of identikit soulless skyscrapers. Instead, the low-slung city is framed by views of the nearby Vitosha Mountain — a popular spot for hiking and biking in summer and skiing come winter.
See also: Mandarin Oriental Just Took Over This Iconic Dutch Hotel
Dot Sofia ©Assen Emilov The city is home to a flourishing community of creatives and entrepreneurs, and what they’re concocting is genuinely exciting. Major luxury hotel brands have yet to sprout here (despite on-off talk about a potential Nobu), but in any case, I found Dot Sofia much more interesting. Behind a fiery Corten-steel facade, its 11 minimalist apartments include a three-storey penthouse whose roof terrace gives 360-degree views of the city. There are 200 Bulgarian artworks on show throughout the property and temporary exhibitions are held at its on-site gallery. And, at its Bulgarian restaurant Komat, the chocolate parfait with tonka and rosehip was the most drop-the-spoon delicious dessert I’d had in months.
Sofia’s great for inventive, laidback dining and drinking experiences more generally. At 3 oz. Bar, top-tier mixologists make a punchy Negroni if asked but prefer to conjure up bespoke cocktails, something they do with aplomb. At fine-dining restaurant Cosmos, classic local dishes like tarator, a refreshing summer soup made of cucumber, walnuts, and yoghurt, are re-interpreted with a refined touch, and complemented by some robust regional reds.
See also: This Exclusive Heli-Ski Trip Takes You Where No One Has Skied Before
Komat ©Plamen Gavrilov You get a further sense of the money and decadence that are increasingly flowing through the city when shopping at All-u-re’s two minimalist boutiques, artfully stocked with Alaïa and Dries Van Noten, but the most rewarding discoveries are found in the city’s cultural district Kvartal, like the pretty handmade porcelain homewares from Art.e, or along artsy Shishman Street, with its jumble of jewelers, like the contemporary Testa Gallery, and concept stores.
A broader overview of the capital’s culture and character, and a greater insight into Bulgaria’s complex history, await at its many museums and galleries. The fortress-like National History Museum sits in what was the residence of a Communist leader of Bulgaria, one big enough to now house 700,000 or so exhibits. In a former royal palace, the grand National Gallery displays centuries of Bulgarian and global artistry alongside surprising temporary exhibitions. Academy Award-winner Jessica Lange is among the artists who’ve been celebrated here, though her recent retrospective was dedicated to her decades of work as a photographer rather than as an actress. That meeting of Hollywood and Bulgaria might seem incongruous at first, but it makes sense when you’re in the thick of Sofia’s open-minded approach and surprisingly playful sense of creativity.
-
The World’s Most Beautiful Hotel Pools to Dive Into
From cliff-edge infinity pools to floating lake retreats, these are the hotel swims worth traveling for.
-
Getting Married? These Exclusive Bridal Designers Should Be on Your Radar
The couture ateliers, private salons, and bespoke houses creating six-figure gowns for brides.
A wedding dress is one of the most emotionally charged fashion decisions a bride will ever make – and it’s rarely a spontaneous one. In an age shaped by social media, glossy wedding features, and endless visual inspiration, gowns are no longer chosen in isolation. They are curated for their life beyond the aisle.
Personalization now leads the conversation. Made-to-order and bespoke designs unfold over months of private fittings and fabric sourcing, mirroring the traditions of haute couture. More than a single-day statement, the modern bridal gown evokes artistry and heritage, designed to endure long after the last dance.
See also: The Most Luxurious Destination Wedding Locations for 2026
Unlike ready-to-wear, couture gowns are built from scratch. Patterns are hand-drafted and embellishments crafted by specialist artisans. Teams of cutters, embroiderers, and tailors work over months, sometimes a year, producing a dress that exists nowhere else.
To guide brides-to-be, Elite Traveler has curated a little black book of the world’s most exclusive wedding dress ateliers, from British workrooms to international maisons and bespoke services where six-figure commissions are increasingly common.
Luxury wedding dress designers
Vivienne Westwood Bridal
Estimated price range: $25,000–$80,000+
For brides seeking fashion history woven into every seam, Vivienne Westwood’s bridal atelier remains unmatched. Known for sculptural corsetry, dramatic draping, and subversive romance, Westwood gowns are crafted using couture techniques. Made-to-measure and bespoke commissions often involve extensive fittings and pattern drafting, so start your shopping process as far in advance as possible.
Dolce & Gabbana Alta Moda Bridal
Estimated price range: $90,000–$250,000+
Dolce & Gabbana’s Alta Moda program operates more like a private cultural salon than a fashion line. Bridal gowns are created as couture artworks, frequently referencing Italian religious, historical, and architectural motifs. Brides receive immersive design experiences, often including fittings in Milan, Rome or Sicily.
Notably, Lauren Sánchez commissioned a custom lace gown inspired by Sophia Loren’s 1950s screen style for her wedding to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Featuring a high neckline, corseted bodice, and a row of hand-finished covered buttons extending down the front, the dress took over 1,900 hours to make. The result was an old-Hollywood silhouette reinterpreted through Alta Moda’s modern couture lens.
Phillipa Lepley
Estimated price range: $30,000–$100,000+
Often described as the gold standard of British bridal couture, Phillipa Lepley runs a London atelier specializing in corsetry and construction. Each gown begins with an internal structure engineered to sculpt the body before layers of silk, lace, and embroidery are applied.
Lepley’s clients commit to a highly involved process that can span up to a year, with multiple fittings and hand-finished detailing all part of the process.
Halfpenny London
Estimated price range: $18,000–$60,000+
Founded by designer Kate Halfpenny, Halfpenny London is revered for its modern approach to bespoke bridal – combining couture craftsmanship with contemporary silhouettes. Known for elegant separates, feathered overlays, and fluid tailoring, the brand appeals to brides who want individuality without overt formality.
Its bespoke service includes full design development, custom textiles, and atelier fittings in central London.
Vera Wang Bridal
Estimated price range: $20,000–$75,000+
Vera Wang’s name remains synonymous with modern bridal luxury. While her ready-to-wear collections are globally accessible, her couture and custom bridal services operate on an entirely different level. For brides seeking understated glamour with editorial polish, Wang’s atelier remains a go-to.
Oscar de la Renta Bridal
Estimated price range: $25,000–$90,000+
Oscar de la Renta’s bridal atelier often builds upon the house’s signature femininity. Custom gowns are developed in collaboration with the design team, often incorporating hand-applied embroidery, floral motifs, and couture lacework.
Clients receive private consultations and multiple fittings, with gowns frequently produced in limited or one-off iterations.
Elie Saab Haute Couture Bridal
Estimated price range: $40,000–$150,000+
Elie Saab’s bridal couture is defined by luminosity: layers of silk organza, crystal embroidery, and ethereal trains that ooze visual impact. His Paris and Beirut ateliers specialize in fully custom bridal commissions involving hundreds of hours of handwork. Saab’s gowns are particularly favored for destination and palace-scale ceremonies.
Zuhair Murad Couture Bridal
Estimated price range: $35,000–$120,000+
Zuhair Murad’s atelier produces some of the most ornate bridal gowns in the world. Known for intricate beadwork and illusion detailing, the brand’s custom designs are unapologetically glamorous.
Each couture bride works closely with Murad’s team to develop a personalized design, often incorporating bespoke embroidery patterns and custom-dyed fabrics.
Christian Dior Haute Couture Bridal
Estimated price range: $100,000–$300,000+
Dior’s haute couture atelier represents the pinnacle of Parisian craftsmanship. Bridal commissions are handled privately and discreetly, with gowns created entirely from scratch, from textile development to embroidery. Every piece is produced in the maison’s couture workshops, often requiring months of artisanal labor.
-
How This New Lodge in the Scottish Highlands ‘Rewilded’ 13,000 Acres to Create a Natural Wonderland
Meaningful change is afoot in Scotland, particularly across Kilchoan’s massive sprawl in Knoydart. Meaningful change is afoot in Scotland, particularly across Kilchoan’s massive sprawl in Knoydart.
-
Manhattan’s $10 Million Condos Are Flying Off the Market—Even as Sales Slow Elsewhere
Trophy-home deals jumped nearly 50 percent in Q1, according to new reports. Trophy-home deals jumped nearly 50 percent in Q1, according to new reports.
-
Audemars Piguet’s Complicated New Pocket Watch Can Date Holidays For the Rest of the Century
With its latest horological masterpiece, Audemars Piguet proves you can teach an old model new tricks. With its latest horological masterpiece, Audemars Piguet proves you can teach an old model new tricks.
-
Spain is Set to Experience Three Solar Eclipses – Here’s Where to See Them Best
The country will be one of the best places in the world to experience the 2026 eclipse’s concluding moments.
Spain is preparing for a rare celestial spectacle: a sequence of three solar eclipses over the next few years that astronomers have dubbed the ‘Iberian Trio.’ The country will be one of the few in the world where two total eclipses and an annular eclipse are all visible within such a short period, offering keen astrology travelers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Total solar eclipses are exceptionally rare at any single location, and Spain will hold the unique distinction of being the only country worldwide where the final phase of a total eclipse can be observed. Occurring in the summer months, these eclipses also benefit from a higher likelihood of clear skies, ensuring optimal viewing conditions.
See more: Astrotourism: The Brands Taking Travelers Out of This World
What is a solar eclipse?
©Unsplash A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes directly between the Earth and the Sun, temporarily blocking some or all of the Sun’s light. During a total solar eclipse, the Moon completely covers the Sun, briefly turning day into night and revealing the Sun’s faint outer atmosphere, known as the corona. Observers see a progressive sequence as the Moon gradually obscures the solar disk, and, after the dark ‘moment of totality’, the Sun reappears as the Moon moves away.
A partial solar eclipse occurs when only part of the Sun is covered, while an annular eclipse, sometimes called a ‘ring of fire,’ happens when the Moon is slightly farther from Earth and appears smaller, leaving a bright ring of sunlight around its silhouette.
Experts stress the importance of safety: never look directly at the Sun during any eclipse without certified filters or eclipse glasses, as ordinary sunglasses do not provide adequate protection.
When will Spain’s solar eclipses be visible?
The Iberian Trio will unfold during the summers of 2026, 2027, and 2028. The first, on August 12, 2026, is a total solar eclipse – the first visible from the Iberian Peninsula in more than a century.
Where is best to view Spain’s solar eclipses?
©Unsplash Occurring at sunset, the path of totality will sweep from northwest Spain eastward, starting in Galicia, where A Coruña will witness the eclipse at 7:31 pm, and continuing across northern Spain to the Balearic Islands at 7:38 pm. Thirteen autonomous communities lie along the path, including Oviedo, Santander, León, Bilbao, Zaragoza, Valencia, and Palma.
In these regions, the sky will briefly darken to twilight, and the Sun’s corona will become visible, while observers outside the path of totality will see a deep partial eclipse. For the clearest view, it is best to choose a location with an unobstructed horizon, free from buildings, trees, or mountains.
The second eclipse will take place on August 2, 2027, this time visible across southern Spain, including Cádiz, Málaga, and the southernmost regions such as Ceuta and Melilla.
The series concludes with an annular eclipse on January 26, 2028, when the Moon will appear slightly smaller than the Sun, creating a dramatic ‘ring of fire’ effect visible across much of Spain.
-
The Underrated Status Clue? It’s Sitting by Your Sink
What’s cooler than a Dior Saddle bag? A Loewe Tomato candle.
A Rolex, Patek Philippe, or Audemars Piguet peeking from beneath a cuff revealed that you’ve worked hard and played hard, too. Likewise, a Chanel 2.55 Flap, Dior Saddle, or Fendi Baguette suggested a cultivated elegance. Either way, these objects signified more than wealth, but something that’s much less attainable: taste.
Lately, however, it seems like those signifiers have shifted – dare I say slipped – within the hierarchy of what is considered refined. The language of taste has slowly been migrating inward, no longer just worn but displayed in our homes.
It began, curiously enough, with a hand wash – I suspect you already know which one I’m referencing before I state it – Aesop’s Resurrection Aromatique Hand Wash. Introduced in 2006 by the Australian brand, it formed part of the wider Resurrection Aromatique line, carrying its signature citrus and herbaceous profile through a blend of orange, lavender, and rosemary oils. By its own description, it has since become “the most coveted hand soap in the world.”
©Unsplash The evidence is difficult to refute. Step into any design-conscious restaurant or impeccably curated hotel, and you are likely to encounter it in the bathroom. Its presence has become so culturally coded that it no longer signals cleanliness or quality, but a certain aesthetic literacy – one that, increasingly, extends even to the selling of homes.
“We started noticing in Melbourne that if someone has their home on the market, they’ll put some Aesop hand wash in there before showing prospective buyers,» Kate Forbes, Aesop’s general manager of products, research and development, told Esquire in 2019.
At the height of the “shelfie” era – an Instagram-born phenomenon of the 2010s in which bathroom cabinets were meticulously staged and photographed for social media – any image of consequence invariably featured the same hand wash. That spurred a wave of luxury lifestyle brands to launch their own, in a bid to fill the demand Aesop had created. Malin + Goetz leaned into its cult-favourite Rum hand wash; Le Labo championed Basil; Grown Alchemist found a bestseller in its Invigorate formula – a fitting successor for hands already, ostensibly, “resurrected.”
The appetite for $50-and-up handwash only grew with the onset of the first lockdown, when expendable income that would usually be spent outside the home was used for everything in it, contributing to the rise of luxury bodycare sales.
With that came the desire to further accessorize, and therefore these same brands, alongside a growing cohort of competitors, started pushing candles. According to the research group Kantar, sales of scented candles and essential oils for diffusers jumped 29 percent in October 2020.
Loewe’s Tomato Leaves candle ©Net-A-Porter Loewe, for instance, has become nearly as synonymous with its candles as with its ready-to-wear; the September launch of its tomato iteration briefly captivated the zeitgeist, elevating the tart nightshade into an unlikely object of olfactory desire. Meanwhile, Cent.Ldn – launched in 2020 while founder Hayley Mack was furloughed from her brand strategy job in London – quickly secured retail partnerships with Selfridges and KITH for its boombox and gin bottle-shaped candles. The brand made £100,000 (approx. $134,000) in revenue in the business’ first year. That spring, fragrance brand Boys Smells had a 1,200 percent increase in wholesale order volume.
As well as being deemed a home luxury, these beautifully-designed candles offered ready-made Instagram content at a time when daily life afforded little else worth documenting. (That was also the case for perfumes, too, which also saw sales spike in the latter half of 2020.) And, of course, the rise in luxury hand wash was inextricably tied to a moment when the act of washing one’s hands took on near-ritualistic importance.
There is, of course, the matter of accessibility. Traditional signifiers of taste have, over time, become more attainable – aspirational consumers are increasingly willing to save for sartorial purchases, inevitably diluting their once-exclusive aura (recent price escalations from the major houses may yet recalibrate that balance). But the psychology differs when it comes to the repeatedly consumed. Would the same buyer indulge, again and again, in something inherently transient? Unlikely. Those with the means, however, can absorb that cadence of spending with ease – and in doing so, reinforce a marker of distinction.
Marketing, too, plays a decisive role in conferring this sense of taste. Aesop and Loewe carefully position themselves at the intersection of art, literature, and design, imbuing otherwise mundane rituals – washing one’s hands, scenting a room – with cultural weight. To add to that, ingredient provenance is of the highest quality and often touted so.
Perhaps it’s that these products can only exist in the home that adds to it. Wearing designer clothing out and about forces people to notice, and that could be perceived as flashy or gaudy. Having signifiers in your home that only those you’re close enough with will see has a subtlety to it, in the same vein as the ‘quiet luxury’ trend in fashion. As the adage goes: money talks, but wealth whispers.
