Salubrious Stockholm

My new urban crush is now Stockholm. Having just returned from a weekend in Sweden visiting my oldest friend who is now residing over there, I can verify that everything is explicably true- its spankingly clean, beautiful and boasts girls every inch as wholesome and genetically blessed as it says they are. I can now see why this place comes with a hefty price tag (my gin + tonic cost me £16 a pop) and a tax thrashing to match.

I sadly didn't have time to explore the city in much depth (this was more of a personal endeavour than a sight seeing one). However, aimless wondering is often the best way to soak up a city's flavour so we went for coffee culture over the militant city guide route. Bottom line is that people are so friendly in Stockholm and they have the coolest shops in terms of design (typical scandi minimalism design i mean). 

My favourite area (as recommended on Emma's blog guide to Stockholm) is Sodermalm. It's the more bohemian laid back side of town and great for people gawking and cute cafes. We ate at a place called Muggen which does killer open sandwiches, free rustic bread + tapenade with eclectic interiors and trendy staff. Another highlight was interiors boutique E.Torndahl - with unique gold jewellery bits and amazing home accessories.

Badabling

Tuesday was our work press day so during a short breather from the hysteria, Leon from blog iundereye and I had a coffee and sit down, whilst confessing our poor commitment to our blogs (Leon hasn't written his in over a month so I'm not feeling quite so guilty). I also took this opportunity to photograph Leon's knuckle dusters and his Guess watch which Ive been perving over for a while now.

Bobbled knuckle duster, armour ring, spiked cuff- (Topman). Black bracelet- (Links of London). Watch- (Guess).

Little Venice Meets The Hamptons

I’m now in holiday mode. Just went to Little Venice to meet some girlfriends for lunch at The Summerhouse (seafood pop up restaurant on the Union Canal) and feel like I’ve just returned from  the Hamptons (not that I have ever been there but I imagine it’s got the same nautical aesthetic in the resident beach apartments of the rich and famous?). I had the moules with chunky chips with lashings of garlic mayo whilst enduring food envy of Hazel’s posh swordfish and mango stack. This place isn’t cheap but won’t bend the plastic if you stick to a main, great for watching good looking thirty-somethings in oversized designer sunglasses and blue polo shirts and soaking up some rare British sun.

Open April until end of October. The Summerhouse, opposite 60 Blomfield Road, W9; 020 7286 6752

Give Me A 'J'

I’ve just been having a post-holiday catch up with my friend Jo from work. She’s been hanging out in NY for the last week and I couldn’t help notice her new bling. The gold flower is from Hells Kitchen Flea Market and the J for ‘Jo’ (obv) is from vintage Art and Design market ‘Artists and Fleas’ in Brooklyn. Anyone over that way purlease get me a ‘K’!

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Girl Friday: Marion Cotillard

I've just got back from seeing french film 'Little White Lies' (les petits mouchoirs) at Screen on The Green, and I feel like I've been through an emotionally fuelled crisis with eight of my best friends. Despite the hard hitting ending and powerful underlying message (about friendship, our own fickleness and love) this film is funny and irresistibly charming. It also serves as a reminder that parisians know how to live better than we do; red wine (lots of it), food, sun, ray bans, love making and copious cheek kissing all being a running theme.


Not only is this film such a good mix of sentiment and humour (bring your hanky- its a bit of a choker), Marion Cotillard is captivating. She is entirely natural, passionate and effortlessly cool (enviously so) in her role at laissez faire Marie.


Below is my Girl Friday Marion montage...

Home Bound

I feel hideously guilty with myself I haven't posted here for over a month. Whenever someone has mentioned my blog i have to push it back to the teeniest deepest darkest corner of my mind so the guilt doesn't engulf me. So here is my list of hopeless but entirely genuine excuses...
1. I've been looking for a home- I say a home but more specifically a 2 bed flat in North London which I have now resigned myself to the fact i can't afford. This conclusion has resulted in a termination of my 5 week intensive search :(
2. I have been looking into painfully boring things such as mortgages - I'll spare you. Saving grace is that if I had ended up blogging during this time I might have actually talked about them on my blog. Doesn't even bare thinking about.
3. I have been interviewing for a new job (1 specifically)- and I have one! hurrah! I won't divulge too much but i get to blog for a living (!!)

Anyway bottom line is I am back in the blogosphere. Despite this being a fruitless search I just wanted to share this flat i saw up the road from where I live (2 bed Hornsey Road). Its a painful slip of the button when you forget to enter the 'max budget' on Right Move but surprisingly inspiring for nicking interior styling tips from properties you clearly can't afford! After seeing this sublime abode I now have a penchant for wardrobes which look like giant industrial fridges, tarnished wooden floors and making an outdoor feature of giant wood logs...

Sadly i believe this flat is now under offer. But click here to see it on Foxtons...

Through the Lens: Clare Shilland

I came across the wonderful Clare Shilland's 'Love from Alice' photo essay (of her scandinavian muse Alice) whilst browsing Dazed Digital the other day. Like an aryan dream these pictures have a special innocence to them. Eager to see more, I came across South London born Clare's portfolio of photos which boasts higher profile subjects such as band Warpaint, Alice Delall and Keira Knightley. But its her more personal pursuits that really got me... I particularly love her 'Girl Drummers' and 'Underage Festival' project images. Here is my edit of the best...

Breakfast At Wallace & Co

Saturday morning i popped over to Putney to meet some girlfriends. I rarely venture south of the river (not my stomping ground) but was charmed by our catch up spot Wallace & Co cafe. Owned by Greg Wallace (Masterchef judge) the location felt suitably apt (Masterchef now being my mid week guilty viewing pleasure). I can't comment on the lunch spread but the eggs benedict is perfection, the decor feels fun (posh greasy spoon meets english tea shop) and i love the bold 'Wallace & Co' branding. It wasn't far off what Jamie Oliver has done with his Recipease shop over Clapham way. If you want an easy, cute tea shop to take your mum or have a coffee over a flapjack this is your stop off. Oh and with it being Greg's famously notorious weak spot, not too surprisingly sweet desserts and naughty bites were in abundance

Here are some pics...



Pammy Love

I first came across jewellery designer Pamela Love on The Selby, featuring her and her boyfriend (equally cool photographer and musician Jordan Sullivan) holding their cats in their eclectic NYC apartment. Turns out not only does she have the design talent but she also has the home and fella to match! Her guy Jordan even shot her SS11 look book… cute.

Having done collaborations with the likes Twenty 8 Twelve, Zac Posen and MAC, Pamela Love has already earnt herself a celeb following including Alexa Cheung and French fashion royalty Julia Restoin-Roitfeld. I’ve just been browsing the SS11 collection and I think I might just love her crafted, creepy gothic inspired jewellery (think tribal spikes, claws and sacred hearts) so much, my next pay cheque may have to take a brandishing.

Here are my pics of the best new and old…



 

Pamela and Jordan's NYC appartment from The Selby

Illustration Disaster Class

A couple of Fridays ago I was propelled into an illustration masterclass by my friend Kelly. Every Thursday and Friday evening The National Portrait Gallery put on The Late Shift where the gallery opens its doors after hours to enjoy lots of arty excursions from talks and lectures to art workshops and mini pop up exhibitions. Or if socialising is more your bag, rub shoulders with other creative beings (this place was crawling with trendy art students).

Excited to muscle in on the creative hub I arrived wide eyed to enjoy what I thought was a 'spectators' live drawing class (i.e. get to watch illustrators in action) but the ticket  Kelly had kindly spent the last hour scrambling for found me sitting amongst the talent itself, large sketch paper, chalk and pens at the ready! To my horror the masterclass was being watched by an audience of 50 and I was on the wrong side of the fence. Wondering whether to make a run for it - I held fast, chalk in hand and decided to embrace it (wing it). Despite the military style teaching (you had approx 8 mins per sketch) it was extremely liberating (i haven’t put a pen to paper since my art GCSE) and actually kinda fun (until the end when you hold your art up for the Head of Illustration at the LCF to come round and judge!). Of course my piece was a bit of a shocker but I loved seeing the results of all the other illustrators and getting an eyeful of them in action during the whole debacle. Take a look at the results below, as well as my friend Kelly with her favourite piece.

If you get a chance to go down there, look on the master classes with glee or if you are any good at your scribbles be brave and give it a go yourself...