It has been an insanely beautiful couple of weeks here in London! I don't know where the sun came from, but it hasn't left and we are all enjoying the patio weather.
Over the weekend my gf and I took advantage of the gorgeous weather and headed over to the BADA Antiques Fair on Kings Road (Thanks Robyn!). It took us about a minute to realise we could not (and maybe never will!) afford any of the beautiful fine art and antiques the British Association had to offer.
Took the afternoon to have a typical girly day of lunching and shopping.
Just outside the fair and in the Duke of York Square, there was a farmers market and about a hundred people perched up on the sidewalk and walls munching away.
We were no exception. Yum.
After a long walk, I met up with Mass and he took a few shots as the sun went down.
Just behind me is the Old Street roundabout, home to some of the best coffee shops / alternative bars and restaurants. Worth a visit if you're in London!
Happy Sunshine!
Kooples jacket, Tory Burch crochet sweater, Guess jeans, Ferragamo flats, Fendi scarf, Prada bag, Wayfarers
I swear this is Mass' future son.
If you haven't seen this blog, you absolutely must take a look at it! The future fashion editors / dreamers / designers of the world.
Image via Children with Swag
In addition to the first post here on afternoon tea in London, this is another review of a tea session at The Connaught.
Some gfs and I organised a get together to celebrate our friend's pregnancy (and almost birth!). At this point she was heavily pregnant and ready to pop at any second but still braved the swelling and came out for a lovely Sunday afternoon. Despite that, she still looked more gorgeous than ever!
For the occasion we chose The Connaught, a beautiful Mayfair hotel. Again, another winner of a Tea Guild award, the best part was definitely the scones. In fact, they were likely to be the best scones I have ever tasted in my life. Coupled with your choice of a variety of different jams, it was truly delicious. They're so special they get served separately; definitely a must try.
A couple weeks ago we had dinner at Dinner by Heston. Largely known for bringing a taste of Fat Duck to London, I must admit that he did not disappoint. London is a revolving door of restaurants, always changing and adopting/creating new trends. That said, there are a lot of repeat restaurants in the city who copy the style and palates of others. Dinner, however, was definitely not just another. No white table cloths, just simple ambiance with plenty of tables (unlike pretentious restaurants who need at least 10 feet between each 'elite' table). Apparently you can even take your chances on a walk in as they reserve tables for their hotel patrons anyway; conduct unheard of in a michelin star meal.
Everything was quite savoury, but especially delectable is the Tipsy Cake for dessert. You absolutely must try this. It requires advance ordering but well worth it.
I highly recommend Dinner by Heston and should you heed my advice, here are their details:
Dinner by Heston
Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park
66 Knightsbridge, London SW1X 7LA
+44(0)20 7201 3833
And to end, I leave you with a few more photos from that evening. I know, I have a face of a model...what can I say.
Have a great weekend!
For this rendition of insta-Mondays I want to talk to you about Crockett and Jones. I'm a bit bias when it comes leather goods for the soles; I have had it drilled in me that Italian shoes are by far superior to any other shoe out there. When it comes to design, I definitely could not agree more. Between the French and the Italian, they both get my heart rate up. However, when it comes down to pure quality minus the aesthetic, I do think that English craftsmanship is pretty spot on.
There are many fine English shoemakers in London: Church's, Oliver Sweeney, etc., particularly for men. Men can have a mold of their feet made and a shoe that is custom made to fit that specific mold. The model is then kept in their library of clients and every time you want a new pair of shoes, they will gladly make another pair in accordance with those same specifications. Pure luxury at a price of £2000-3000. Some men say its the smartest thing they've ever done; one pair will last them 20 years by getting them resoled every year.
For others, there are stores like Crockett and Jones. Still unbelievable quality but at a more marketable price tag of £350 and up. Same principles apply where a single pair from here could last you years depending on how often you wear them. Just get them resoled every 6 months and remember to use your shoe tree and this fine shoe will keep going for as long as you can. A sound investment for any man.
Over the weekend, we made a pit stop in C&J and Mass tried on some of their shoes. First they measure your foot like above and then pick out a shoe that fits with your measurements. If you do decide to purchase a pair, they will keep your file on record along with your measurements, and when you come in next time you just need to say your surname.
I saw these amazing slippers they had for men which could also be customised with a monogram / colour / lining of your choice for £240. Fortunately I found the same slippers at their women's store down the street! I got a generic stock pair without any customisation or monograms for much less.
If you want to try out a pair of their shoes I suggest going to one of their two stores on Jermyn Street.
“If you want to know the measure of a man look at the shoes he wears“ - Aristotle Onassis
Yesterday was International Women's Day. Now I can't say I was aware of this holiday before my facebook newsfeed at 7am, but any reason to celebrate us ladies is fine with me. Coincidentally, it was also the day where my gf and I decided to meet up Bicester Village for some much needed girl time and shopping. You may or may not know that I LOVE myself a good deal. In fact, I swear by the Outnet. I don't often shop for high street items; I tend to like to save my money for a quality piece. If that quality item comes with a bargain price tag, then we're sold.
You can understand how Bicester Village got me excited. For those of you who haven't been and are planning on going, it is a simple 45 minute train ride from London Marylebone station for about £30 return fare. When you arrive at Bicester North station, a shuttle will whisk you away to the outlet where you can hunt for the bargains. Of course, like many outlets, you have to search and the stuff is likely to be from two seasons prior. However, if you're like me, I know that no matter what the trend is right now, I would look disgusting in pastel yellow so it doesn't matter if its not current. Like the French girls do, always wear what suits you, not the season.
After a long coffee chat, my gf and I walked through all the stores first before buying anything. I think this approach allows you to consciously budget your money and decide what you really want vs what is just a good deal. In the end, I came out two pairs of shoes richer, both dawning gold and black contrasts. I'll show you the second pair soon as I plan on wearing them asap!
Gucci sandals
Next stop, the antiques trade show, thanks to another generous gf who gave me a spare ticket!
I had forgotten what alcohol taste like...
I love this pic of you, Sonia!
Caroline's on the blog!
As you know, almost all of 2012 was spent in the library in an effort to pass core exams. You can imagine that the second the last exam was done we were all tired, relieved, excited, and definitely ready to drink (if lawyers are only good at one thing, you know its inebriation). That night G35 went out to drink, eat and dance. Fooseball was played, lots of tequila was had, and some questionable one on one male dancing occurred. Nevertheless, we thoroughly let loose and reminded ourselves of a social existence once more.
As we are about to embark in the second (and hopefully last!) term of our legal studies, G35 will definitely live on and I hope we will continue to be G35 well into our careers as (disgruntled) lawyers.
xx
I am absolutely no tea connoisseur by any means, but over the years I have tried my fair share of the English tradition. For my dear friend's birthday, she told she had never been yet so of course I took it as my duty to bring her for her birthday.
Typically I go to afternoontea.co.uk to check out who won a Tea Guild award in the past year and then decide from there which venue suits best for the occasion. One hotel not listed on there but is supposed to be fantastic is Claridges. I have yet to try them and fingers crossed will one day get to! Booking is seemingly impossible though.
Back to Marta's birthday. We went to Hyatt Regency and tried their Sex and the City tea. I realise this might sound a tad cliche, and it was, but surprisingly the mini burgers and mini hot dogs REALLY hit the spot! I guess I am a street dog girl through and through over a petit sandwiches with the crust cut off kinda girl. The menu even had specific tea selection for each of the girls.
One thing to be weary of every time you go to afternoon tea is that if you're looking to bring a male, whether that be your brother / husband / boyfriend / best friend, he should know that he will likely be the only male in the room, at least on the weekend. Weekdays you may find the overseas business meetings taking place.
In any case, if you do make it over to London you should definitely give it a whirl.
Intermix fur vest bought at a ridiculously cheap price on boxing day with my love Ivy, Topshop shirt, Guess jeans, Jimmy Choo booties, Hermes belt, Roberta Freymann necklace
