I went into this whole other world. Featuring a classic Fair Isle jumper, snood, and mittens, along with this season's most coveted knit; a tank top. During your trial you will have complete digital access to FT.com with everything in both of our Standard Digital and Premium Digital packages. Before she met Sergei, Alexandra was married to a penniless Cossack named Shamil Galimzyanov. Alexandra also worked with Emma on her home in Moscow. Estimate: 2,000-2,500. She was given permission to leave the Soviet Union in 1929 and went to Japan in the same year. After nearly 11 years, however, Tolstoy is moving on from the home she has so lovingly put together, and is now offering some of its contents for sale at Christie's. I think I first met Daniel two days before giving birth to my first child, she muses. It was my friends dream to do it and I hooked onto it. or Shes kept a few special pieces. He was in a public dispute with Vladimir Putin, so it was dangerous for us to visit Russia for a long time. A German man came up to me after my talk and asked if I could set up a trek for him and 10 of his friends. I was living at Claridges, which is just around the corner from where Colefax & Fowler used to have their antiques shop. Shortly afterwards I introduced her to Emma for decoration help with other projects globally and the relationship grew and grew. A year later, they met again at an awards ceremony attended by the Russian president. Everything weve got I feel is in its own right very unusual and special.. Now, Alexandra has reclaimed her creative autonomy and a certain intellectual freedom which was repressed during her years spent with the billionaire: We all have different tastes, but if our taste isnt reflecting who we are or where we are in life, that lack of harmony can make you feel not very happy. Her Instagram page has allowed her to present her own image to the world, one which she finds to be truly representative, unlike that of the media which is seemingly always speculating. After teenage years spent living mostly in one army surplus shirt and a pair of jeans, Tolstoys style horizons were expanded when she began her adventures in Russia, living like a heroine conjured from the imagination of her distant relation, the Nobel Prize-winning author Leo Tolstoy. The Italian models of buildings in Pisa worked in perfect harmony amongst the photos on this table. Indeed, after the breakdown of her marriage, it was Sergei himself who began monitoring Alexandra, placing individuals outside her London house every day to intimidate her. Until then, dressing up for Tolstoy had been more about style and craftsmanship than touring designer boutiques. I've never felt such a connection to someone ever.'. Id never felt like that ever before, I was normally quite confident about the way I dressed., Her first taste of the oligarch life soon followed.That evening, President Sarkozy was giving a friend of Sergeis the Legion d'Honneur, and there was a party at the Elysee Palace, and obviously I couldnt go in my jeans and Uggs. Xander Haveron-Jones talks with Countess Alexandra on cultivating an aesthetic, the liberation of stylistic reinvention, and her infamous billionaire marriage. The family moved between an array of properties including a 12million family home in Battersea, a 200-acre country estate in Hertfordshire, and a 40million beachfront villa in St Barts. I met the father of my three children, Sergei Pugachev, a banker formerly in Putins inner circle, in 2009. Alexandra spoke to Jenny Coad. Sergei, who left Russia in 2011, claims that after relations between him and Putin cooled, the Kremlin tried to seize or destroy his business empire. Wearing Alex Gore Browne knitwear Alexandra Tolstoy As well as her own pre-loved pieces, there are also bargains from some of her fashionable friends, including Cond Nast Traveller's fashion director Martha Ward and chic interiors store owner Alex Eagle. She tells me that Sergei did have really good taste, but, I was surprised to learn, collected artwork for its style, rather than for the sake of them being expensive pieces., Alexandra seems to be regaining her confidence since the ending of her relationship and peak surveillance a few years ago in the documentary, theres recent footage of her and her children riding scooters to school in the morning, something she never could have done a few years ago. Now I embrace embroidery, vintage Fair Isle knitwear from eBay and clothes by the Russian designer Russmotive, which reprints old fabric designs. Amid it all she has continued to build her collection of vintage pieces from all corners of the globe. Stephanie Linning For Mailonline, What REALLY happens on The Chase! She could choose whatever she wanted. Our relationship was wonderful when we were in the wilds, but in the city it was just awful and unhappy. You may change or cancel your subscription or trial at any time online. Now free to raise them in a lifestyle similar to that of her own childhood, they wont be familiar with the world of Russian high-society which had caused such anguish for their mother: though it remains that their father, who they havent seen in four years since his escape to France, remains in the top three of the Kremlin hit list. She spent her gap year in Russia. We had unusual hanging space in Glebe Place - the huge windows meant there wasnt much wall space but what we did have was a big open wall and needed something on a similar scale. Alexandra worked closely with the London-based interior designers and decorators Emma Burns and Daniel Slowik of Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler Interiors from 2008 onwards to create her family home, where she lived for 12 years. Its the colours, the texture, the natural ageing of it, she enthuses. Mothers share the things they want to remember this time around - including going to the tip, picking up craft supplies and having acrylic nails taken off, Britain's first blind and deaf trainee medic reveals she's spent 'more time as a patient than a doctor-to-be' during a nightmare year where she was made homeless and spent three months in hospital. cookies Check out our alexandra tolstoy selection for the very best in unique or custom, handmade pieces from our shops. Alexandra said: 'It was incredible, he would give me his credit card and I would go shopping, I had a private jet. The first time I went to Russia was in 1992, just after the Soviet Union dissolved. personalising content and ads, providing social media features and to She organises adventurous horse riding holidays in Kyrgyzstan, and runs The Tolstoy Edit, a curated shop of her favourite interiors discoveries. Tolstoy is alluding to the discomfort which these indulgences eventually came to signify for her, leading her away from her instinctive style and appreciation for tradition towards a struggle to fit in and conform to being the sort of woman Pugachev and his circle expected. For cost savings, you can change your plan at any time online in the Settings & Account section. 1,514 posts. State creditors in Moscow pursued him in the British courts, claiming he embezzled hundreds of millions. By 2015, he was dividing his time between France and the family home in London and claimed to be number 3 on Kremlin's hitlist. Pugachev once owned two major shipyards, the world's biggest mine and large chunks of real estate in Moscow and St Petersburg, as well as the Mezhprombank, which he co-founded in the 1990s. Alexandra Tolstoy Travel In 1934, she authored a book about her life entitled "I Worked for the Soviet" and it was published by Yale University Press. She pairs this with other traditional Russian symbols such as matryoshkas, or Russian dolls, which represent motherhood and. Offered in Alexandra Tolstoy: An Interior by Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler, 4-25 November, Online. It was a real adventure. I slightly lost myself thinking [the Pugachev-era clothes] were beautiful and actually its extraordinary how your vision can get warped and distorted. , updated 2023 Getty Images. offers FT membership to read for free. Alexandra on horseback in Kyrgyzstan. Sunday February 09 2020, 12.01am GMT, The Sunday Times. Ive entertained in this house a lot, Tolstoy tells Christies during our video shoot at Glebe Place earlier in the year. But an experience like that opens your mind. Of course, Id never even set foot in a Chanel shop before, so it was exciting. Back in Russia after that Paris sojourn, we went to the opera in St Petersburg, it was all these oligarchs and their wives. Organize, control, distribute and measure all of your digital content. I gave 20% of what I made to a charity in St Petersburg for children with autism. Theyre just beautiful and Ill pass them on to my daughter. She was born in Poole, Dorset. Its not even like I was that good at riding, recalls Tolstoy of the nine-month, 5,000-mile journey from Merv in Turkmenistan to Xian in China. It was definitely not an extravagant mentality, she says. 894646. Says Slowik of their relationship, "My first contact with Alexandra was supplying a few antiques but such was our connection that it soon turned to furnishing the whole house at speed to prepare for her return with her first baby. Countess Alexandra Tolstoy, an aristocratic English woman, had her own fairy tale come true when she fell in love with the man of her dreams in 2008, an oligarch and one of Russia's richest. Collect, curate and comment on your files. By 2015, he was dividing his time between France and the family home in London and reputed to be number 3 on Kremlin's hitlist. Royal Geographical Society in London that first got me into leading tours. This house is a family home, says Alexandra Tolstoy of the beautiful six-bedroom Chelsea residence she converted from two adjacent artists studios. Countess Alexandra Tolstoy. Streamline your workflow with our best-in-class digital asset management system. Estimate: 3,000-5,000. The Russians then accused him of profiting from vast sums of taxpayers' money given to Mezhprombank by the Russian central bank at the height of the 2008 economic crisis. [7] She worked as a lecturer on Tolstoy and as a Russian teacher,[6] and was supported by Japanese literary and academic circles. I started Preloved by Alexandra Tolstoy with a friend we sell second-hand designer items via Instagram by doing this huge sale of my own clothes. I went on to take groups every year between 2002 and 2009, and was leading a tour the week before my wedding. In 2009, our rst child was born. He has previously been declared to be in contempt of court, with a two-year prison sentence left hanging over his head should he return to this country. [1] [2] [3] Biography [ edit] Last year I had a big sale at home of my own stuff from my oligarch years. In 2008 Alexandra met Sergei, then one of Russias most influential men, who had bankrolled the Russian government; but, following Putins eradication of the oligarchy, and the disappearance of a $1 billion loan from the State to his bank which went under a year later, Sergei had to flee Russia in fear of his life, allegedly receiving death threats to himself and their children. FILTER Showing 23 products Cashmere Folk Fair Isle Jumper 495 259 She says that every day is difficult, and I often dont sleep at night its that philosophy of dust yourself down, and carry on trying I dont ever stop putting myself out there and trying., In the past year, Alexandras rebuilt her travel company, which she founded before the marriage, built a fashion business, which Im told is going well, and been writing for lots of magazines; shes even made amicable progress with the Russian state, and has since returned without threat But it seems to me that her greatest solace in the idyll shes struggled to provide for her children: theyve got this big pond, and a rowing boat, and a little caravan, and a wigwam, and is rescued by the stillness of the country. She has also added a section dedicated to her favourite brands - including Pink City Prints, Pioneers and Alex Gore Browne - offering discounts on each with a special code. Follow our Instagram@Telegraphfashion, The latest offers and discount codes from popular brands on Telegraph Voucher Codes, Alexandra Tolstoy atYasnaya Polyana, Tolstoys country estate, wearing Vika Gazinskaya, Alexandra Tolstoy wearing vintage Eponine, Alexandra Tolstoy horse riding inKyrgyzstan, Alexandra Tolstoy cooking in a whiteembroidered dress, Alexandra Tolstoy wearing a Dolce & Gabbana dress now listed for 290 on her website, Alexandra Tolstoy buying textiles in Bishkek market, Pencil skirts, high heels, sheer tights and aviators Saint Laurents new collection has them all, How the Princess of Wales makes her Zara bargains look expensive, Here's what the high street should borrow from Diors blockbuster show, If you want to update your wardrobe classics, borrow these 7 handy tips from the Italians, Damian Lewis and the formula for nailing rocker style over 50, travel business leading expeditions through the former Russian empire. Follow. I remember the first time I arrived in Paris in jeans and a pair of Ugg boots. Check if your Compare Standard and Premium Digital here. Authorities froze his assets, put him on Interpol's wanted list and obtained a court order in Britain forcing him to hand over his passports. Many of them met at the "Aunt Sasha" 90th anniversary in 1974. After the Silk Road journey, he, a friend and I went to Mongolia with only packhorses. Since then Tolstoy has launched a number of projects, among them an online pre-loved fashion business and The Tolstoy Edit, an online platform where she shares her style secrets for the worlds of fashion, interiors and travel. Indeed, she has attracted such a sartorial following that last year, when she decided to sell some of the pieces from her former life, the interest was sizeable, prompting the Countess to launch a new online pre-loved fashion business, Preloved by Alexandra Tolstoy. After arriving in the UK in 2011, he was accused of siphoning a fortune out of his finance house Mezhprombank. Alexandra's Russian heritage was also crucial for determining the schemes, and drove much of the eclectic, pattern-filled decoration. When do the clocks change in 2023? Featuring our stunning jumbo cord overshirt and trousers, silk blouses and folk print dress, this collection is your one stop shop to style her fairy tale inspired Fair Isle jumper and tank top. It felt great to be giving something back to Russia and also like I was shedding a skin and really embarking back on my old and true path through life.. The oligarch fled to France, where he remains, and was sentenced to two years in his absence by a High Court judge in 2016 for breaching court orders relating to hundreds of millions in allegedly stolen cash. They were symbols of a bad time so it doesnt matter.. I telephone Alexandra on a sunny afternoon during lockdown, which she is spending at her parents house with the children; suffering from asthma, she thinks it safer to be with other adults, just in case. Someone who worked for us stole my jewellery and at first I was devastated because it was jewellery that I could sell to look after my children, I just thought this is the end, but actually you know Ive managed to survive and its fine. I think its very important that your house reflects who you are., The Drawing Room at Glebe Place, with interior created by Alexandra Tolstoy and Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler. Riding the length of the Silk Road in 1999, from the . But my father encouraged me to read and, as a teenager, I read a lot of Leo Tolstoy Im a relative of the writer as well as Lermontov, Chekhov, Dostoevsky and Turgenev. Awful and unhappy she met Sergei, Alexandra was married to a penniless named! 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