As well as keeping this website afloat (one line in and already we’re with the boating puns) every three months, or so, our tireless editorial team finds the time to knock together a print publication. Its title is a little deceiving. Sure, Luxury London Magazine dedicates a good number of pages to charting the ebb and flow of life in the capital (apologies, they’re writing themselves), but we endeavour to cast our net (I’ll stop now) far wider than the Ultra-Low Emission Zone (even the planned extended bit).

It’s a natty publication, we like to think, full of pictures you might see in an art gallery and features in which we hope you’ll get lost (figuratively, not literally, they’re very well written). Each issue is designed to sit on your coffee table (we know you have a lovely coffee table) until the next edition rolls around (although we really hope you keep the old issues, lining them up in that built-in, wall-to-wall bookcase we also know you have).  

Most issues are themed. Our summer 2023 issue, for example, takes travel as its focus. So, as well as interviews with Laurent Gardinier, President of Relais & Châteaux, Davide Bertilaccio, CEO of the Villa D’Este Group, John Hitchcox, mastermind behind The Lakes by Yoo, and Italian ceramist and designer Paola Paronetto, we took it upon ourselves to take to the French Riviera in a Jaguar F-Type (the last one they’ll ever manufacture), checked into the new Six Senses in the Himalayas, and had a crack at bottling our own Bordeaux (spoiler: our writer won’t be giving up his day job).

We also did a fashion shoot. On a boat (travel issue, remember). Which we thought those of you yet to subscribe might like to see. So, here it is.

Main hero image above. Naomi wears: Cricket cable-knit cotton-blend bralette, £179, ralphlauren.co.uk, Cricket cable-knit cotton-blend short, £129, ralphlauren.co.uk; 9383 Old Havana sunglasses, £385, cutlerandgross.com. Aaron wears: Polo pinstripe wool-cotton suit jacket, £870, ralphlauren.com, Cashmere roll neck jumper, £860, ralphlauren.com, Gregory hand-tailored suit trousers, £470, ralphlauren.co.uk; 1394 Old Havana sunglasses, £385, cutlerandgross.com

Above – Aaron wears: Multicolour cotton crochet jumper, £1,150, fendi.com, Blue viscose jacket, £1,720, fendi.com, Blue viscose trousers, £540, fendi.com; 0001 Sunglasses in 18k rose gold + 18k rhodium 18k with blue lenses, £545, cutlerandgross.com

Take a stab at where we shot it. Lisbon? Miami? Some sun-kissed island in the Caribbean? Rio de Janeiro? Nope – although Regent Seven Seas Splendor®, the cruise ship with which we teamed up, does sail to all those locations. For this issue’s fashion shoot we travelled all the way to, er, Southampton. And didn’t we get lucky?

Above – Naomi wears: Jumpsuit, POA, valentino.com; 9383 Sunglasses in powder blue, £385, cutlerandgross.com; Lapis Beaded Chain, £550, Jupiter Locket, £950, loquetlondon.com

It’s always difficult planning a summer fashion shoot in the UK, especially one involving swimwear. It’s never much fun for the models, or the photographer, or the stylist, or hair and makeup, or their assistants, or the runner (me) splashing around Camber Sands in March. It used to be that you’d fly to Ibiza or the Algarve. But now every item of clothing needs to go through customs. There’s an insane amount of paperwork – and there were a lot of clothes we wanted to shoot.

Naomi wears: Crystal-embroidered single-breasted jacket, POA, armani.com, Crystal-embroidered trousers, POA, armani.com
Aaron wears: Beige suit in silk and wool, POA, canali.com, Slim-fit shirt, £295, canali.com

We’d planned for no sun. Hedged our bets. Recced the ship’s 14 decks for places to shoot when the thunderstorms inevitably rolled in. Simon Lipman, our esteemed photographer, thought he could make the ship’s grand sweeping staircase work. Sarah Ann Murray, our prized stylist, was sure she could do something in the spa. There was a casino, a nightclub, an observation lounge. We’d be fine. Still, not exactly where you’d choose to photograph this season’s chicest swimwear. A Fendi bikini in a library? Perhaps it would have worked, you never know.

Naomi wears: Blue bikini, £490, fendi.com, Blue silk dress £2,350, fendi.com; 9797 Sunglasses in colour studio solid light blue, £385, cutlerandgross.com

In the end, we got lucky. The sun shone. We hit the terrace of a grand suite (which, inside, looked like the penthouse of a Manhattan hotel). Then the main deck. Then the infinity pool. Shooting in natural light makes post-production a whole lot easier. Something for which Simon must have been thankful, given that we ended up asking him to retouch 20 images (sorry Si, we just couldn’t pick).

Southampton was great. Splendor® is quite the ship. But, Regent, if ever you have room for us in Rio, do let us know.

Naomi wears: Bespoke evening jacket and trousers, POA, huntsmansavilerow.com; Butterfly collage dress, £1,380, Dion Lee at net-a-porter.com; Slingback point pump, £245, russellandbromley.co.uk; Nazar Scatter Earrings, £11,900, Scatter floating purple Ombré ring, £1,200, ananya.com. Aaron wears: Black evening jacket, POA, huntsmansavilerow.com; Rey solid polo, £150, jlindeberg.com

Naomi wears: Ocean black pique long sleeve swimsuit, £282, odabash.com, Jemima black hat, £134, odabash.com; 9383 Sunglasses in black, £385, cutlerandgross.com

Aaron wears: Sunspel x Charlotte Gosch camp collar shirt, £185, sunspel.com, Sunspel x Paul Weller trousers, £235, sunspel.com; Woven detail slider, £195, russellandbromley.co.uk; 0002 Sunglasses in 18k gold with pink lenses, £530, cutlerandgross.com; Simply Sartorial socks, £14, londonsockcompany.com. Naomi wears (above and below): Colour shaded wool pencil skirt, £745, etro.com; Grenada aqua bikini, £128, odabash.com; All jewellery, goossens-paris.com

With thanks to…

Naomi E @ Boundary
Aaron Shandel @ Wilhelmina

Photography: Simon Lipman
Stylist: Sarah Ann Murray
Assistant Stylist: Chanell Campbell
Makeup: Julie Read
Hair: Natalie Stokes
Videographer: Kailas Gurung
Lighting: Tom Henry

Shot on location, Seven Seas Splendor®, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, rssc.com

Read more: The best swimsuits for women