emotionalties

Fashionista and journalist Anna Harvey on Chanel dolls, Charles and Diana and her Condé Nast legacy

This Chanel doll came from a window display in one of its store windows about ten years ago. All my career I’ve had a love affair with Chanel. It has always been very much my aesthetic – classic, but with a twist of wit and fun.

I bought this print in Udaipur while on a trip of a lifetime round India’s Golden Triangle three years ago. My daughters Hettie and Eleanor were my companions and we had such a good time.

This beaded dodo was bought from a roadside vendor in Cape Town. It’s an instant reminder of the wonderful colours and smells, spectacular storms and fantastic freedom I enjoyed as a child growing up in South Africa aged three to 14.

I have worked with Lord Snowdon a lot and we’ve remained close friends. He designed this commemorative mug for Wedgwood in 1981 to celebrate the marriage of the Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer.

I’ve always loved dressing up – and dressing other people up, too. Whenever I wear this necklace [a gift from Erickson Beamon’s Vicki Sarge about 20 years ago], it twinkles away and makes me feel like a million dollars.

I recently found this Coronation carriage in a trunk of old treasures at our house in Sussex. It takes me straight back to coming to England from South Africa by boat with my mother and brother to see the Coronation in 1953. It was the first time I really connected with my family’s roots – it made me proud to be English.

I wear all these rings together. They range from my engagement ring and ones made by my sons Charlie and Oliver at school, to a copy of my mother’s eternity ring and a rose-cut diamond from Vogue India, a gift when I left. I’m always fiddling with them – each one brings back a flood of memories.

Jonathan, my husband, gave me this watch at least 30 years ago and it has only now finally decided to give up working. As my partner, Jonathan has put up with a lot and I couldn’t have done my job without him.

My daughter Eleanor drew this Vogue cover for me when she was about ten. It’s lived with me ever since and hangs in the hall. I feel so lucky to have been a part of Vogue for 45 years – it was a privilege to work with the best in the business.

This bear was a gift from Vogue Russia. As Condé Nast International’s editorial director, I launched dozens of magazines, living and working in countries such as Greece, Portugal, Turkey, Ukraine and the Netherlands.

Anna’s book Timeless Style: Dressing Well for the Rest of Your Life is published by Double-Barrelled Books, price £18.95*