Nadia Araujo, Aarti P, Hannah Almassi, Ruby Hammer and Jacqui Burchell
On the same day that we launched Who What Wear UK's first-ever Beauty Issue, we celebrated its arrival with a boujee dinner at Mimi Meifair, London's most opulent and fabulous Chinese restaurant. Nestled in the gloriously eclectic confines of the private dining room resplendent with coral-red lacquer woodwork, charming frescos, extravagant chandeliers and our very own bar serving the most summery Strawberry Spritz cocktail from Sipsmith, we assembled an intimate guest list of some of beauty's leading figures, a slew of London's coolest talents and our editors.
"Celebrating our inaugural beauty issue with some of the industry’s most esteemed experts and personalities was such an honour," says beauty director Shannon Lawlor. "We spent all night chatting about everything from skincare and fragrance to hair and makeup, and generally bringing the joy of our beauty issue into the real world over delicious food and drink in the most beautiful setting. It was a total privilege for us to host this event, marking such a monumental moment for Who What Wear UK."
A snapshot of a great evening fuelled by dim sum, Sipsmith cocktails and Penfolds wine
Although technically there was no dress code, this moment at the end of a hot day in London clearly marked a summer-has-begun turning point for Shannon and editor-in-chief Hannah Almassi, who both showed up in a flurry of ruffled, bohemian chiffon: mimosa-yellow for Hannah in Queens of Archive and soft lilac from & Other Stories for Shannon. With our subtle-glam looks catered by Bobbi Brown's pro makeup artist Hollie Olivia Burke, the colours and softness of our outfits, makeup and setting neatly reflected the strong pastel hues of our cover shoot with Leomie Anderson.
Mimi Meifair's stunning interiors
After our goblet-sized glasses were filled with Penfolds wine, we shared dim sum platters (wow—the scallop siu mai) whilst discussing the surprising amount of sunscreen you actually need to use for adequate protection (three whole fingers' for just your face!) and discovered that the British Beauty Council is fighting this week for the government to take off the tax from SPF products—too right, and we wish them the best of luck in getting this through.
For the main course, we tucked into the most delicious clay-pot black-bean aubergine dish and sanpei chicken with a mountain of jasmine rice, finishing off with a light vegan coconut-mango sundae. Delicious!
