Hidden Gem: Fever Designs

Christmas is a festival of contrasts: joy of being with your loved ones and stress and the logistics; the pleasure of gift-giving and the anxiety of the strained overdraft; the delight in Christmas lights and the frustration at the heaving shops.

It was on a trip to Oxford Street to pick up a couple of items last Sunday evening (which has long since ceased being the day of rest) when I had a wave of claustraphobia. I took the side route back, and strolled down Eastcastle Street, to be greeted by the appealing spacious and visually stunning 'Fever Designs'

Crammed (tastefully) with a Ladurée-coloured assortment of dresses, I felt it would be rude not to go in and have a little peek. I was not disappointed.

One corner of the store was devoted to Vintage wear for a lovely root through, and the longest wall was lined with changing rooms constructed from the sort of gorgeously peeling doors I've always hoped to be cool enough to pull off in (or outside!) my house.

The wall of scarves sums up the feeling of Fever's flagship store: eclectic, creative and refined. The prices are reasonable, the clothes are beautiful and the staff incredibly friendly. A far better place to pick out a few Christmas gifts than the cattle markets of Oxford Street.