How to style your home like a Mandarin Oriental hotel

By Dominique Afacan

January 16, 2023

Dominique Afacan, founder of the Nesting newsletter, picks her must-haves from Shop M.O.

Whether it’s the perfect pair of slippers, or a stack of tasselled Moroccan towels, Shop M.O. lets you bring home a touch of Mandarin Oriental luxury. Dominique Afacan is the author of Nesting, a newsletter that celebrates ‘all the best things about hanging out at home’. Here, she shares her must-buys that will help you style your home like a MO hotel.

Best for… being the perfect host

‘Perhaps I’m biased here, as I spent half a decade living in Hong Kong, but I’m all about this Classic Hong Kong ice bucket. To me, even owning an ice bucket is a mark of glamour. Usually, when I’m trying to fix G&Ts for guests, you’ll find me desperately rifling in the freezer for ice cubes. Goodbye to those sub-par hosting days, and hello to the new, infinitely more sophisticated me – I’ll be putting mine in pride of place on my cocktail cabinet.’

Best for… starting the day right

‘Never underestimate the importance of good towels. Drying off with a tired, bobbly towel is never going to get the morning off to a promising start. But pulling a fluffy white towel from the heated rail, adorned with a chic tassel? That’ll put a spring in your step. That’s why I am choosing these Moroccan tassel towels. Face towel, hand towel, bath towel – sign me up for all of it. I have showers to take, baths to luxuriate in, and I need to get dry in style.’

Best for… keeping it all together

‘I have a confession to make. I lose my bank cards on a bi-monthly basis, and don’t have a much better track record with my phone. Thank goodness, then, for these glorious leather phone pouches, which I have decided are going to put a stop to all of this silliness. With my possessions literally hanging around my neck, there’s no way I can lose them, right?’

Best for… little loungers

‘I have a three-year-old niece, who was born to wear this MiniMo waffle bathrobe. I can already see her wrapped up in it, demanding room service from my sister. Meanwhile, I’ll get myself the bronze-trim grown-up version. Gone are the days when I’d simply get out of the shower and dress for work – this robe demands that I lounge for hours sipping Crémant, consuming vast amounts of chocolate buttons. Can’t wait.’

Best for… fashionable feet

‘Most slippers offend me. Must style always be sacrificed in the name of comfort? These Aquazzura slippers, though, are another story. It’s almost a crime that they’re meant only for wearing indoors. I can’t quite decide between the tassel and the pompom, but whichever I choose I know that they will make me happy (and a tiny bit smug) when I look foot-ward between Netflix episodes.’

Best for… promising first impressions

‘Fragrance is a big deal. Just step into the lobby of a Mandarin Oriental hotel and you’ll understand the power of a refined scent. Before you’ve checked in to your room, you already know you’re somewhere special. Well, I would like to recreate some of that magic at home, so I am going to pick one of these home fragrance diffuser sets. There are six fragrances to choose from and I’m not one to have favourites, so I will simply have to take them all.’

Best for… sleeping for days

‘I have never had a problem falling asleep. I have literally slept through earthquakes quite happily. But that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate quality when it comes to my sleeping kit. That is why I will love and cherish this goose featherbed mattress topper. It’s the thing you don’t know you need until you have it, and then the idea of sleeping without one suddenly seems absurd. This level of cloud-like cushioning means that my bed might well become my permanent home. But I’ve made peace with that – and now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off for a nap.’

You can purchase all of these items, and many more, at Shop M.O.

About the Author

Dominique Afacan

Dominique is an author, editor and interiors aficionado, who contributes to the likes of The Telegraph and Forbes.