I do miss the sight of gentlemen in embroidered velvet smoking hats especially sighting smokers huddled outside the restaurants & clubs of #mayfair & St James’s now Summers here.

There’s nothing like the glimpse of a smokers tassle wafting in a summers breeze to make a girl’s heart leap.

With the smoking hat readily available at most Mayfair tobacconists; Locks on Jermyn St stock them from £150 there’s really no excuse.

As a child of romantic whimsy I used to embroider them myself for for the chaps in my life – priests & fit alter boys mostly.

My father was delighted when at 10 he received my first misshapen effort – regretfully retired when he was diagnosed with emphysema.

Undeterred I made a burgundy fancy with a bold 12 inch gold tassel for my trousseau; dreaming of the day I’d gift it to my husband on our wedding night.

Yes, if smokers persist in their Byronesque love of this Ottoman habit, standing firm in the face of bans, social outcry & health risks, I really think now The Seasons arrived and we’re all outdoors smokers ought to don the essential accoutrement of the smoker – to add a dash of Timeless Smokers Sartorial Splendour to our Polo & racing events as well as our streets.

Think how much prettier our Mount Street & Curzon St would be with the clusters of smokers in their colourful hats & jaunty tassels wafting in the breeze as they sip on their Pimms & Veuve?