Zedel

Just off of Piccadilly Circus there is a sign for a "Brasserie", this is where you find Zedel. Zedel is a very special eating experience especially if you care about aesthetics. You walk into a dark bar room and follows signs and arrows leading you down a staircase. When nearing the end of the staircase you see a huge glass chandelier. It really catches you by surprise. 

At the bottom of the stairs you have to choose a room, we chose the Brasserie room but the other options are the "Bar Americain", "The Crazy Coqs" and the "ZL Cafe". Each one has different ambiances and different food and drinks. When walking into the Brasserie we got a little nervous, because after passing the door the room opened up into a huge marble ballroom filled with people dining. And we hoped we didn't need a reservation. The Concierge gave us a card and told us to wait at the bar until a table would be ready for us. So we joined the crowded bar and ordered some wine for the wait. Feeling a little under dressed we looked around trying to catch a glimpse of the food. After about an hour or so we were seated. 

The menu was very French, and I overheard a woman say that they change it every time she's there. We decided it was worth getting a starter and a main because how often are you in a beautiful ballroom having dinner? I got some paté as my started because its one of my guilty pleasures. I just love how good paté tastes. And as a main I got duck confit with lentils.

I think what I enjoyed the most about this dinner was that I had food which I love and it was up to my standards. Of course we didn't pass on dessert therefore we each ordered a creme brule. This was when we should have stopped, and maybe gotten one to share. The creme brule was delicious but it left us feeling much too full, uncomfortably so. Other than leaving the restaurant with the impression I was about to explode it was an incredible meal. It wasn't even too pricey, I think I spent around 35 pounds for the whole meal and the wine at the bar. I will definitely go there again, I just need a new food-loving buddy.

Here's their website: http://www.brasseriezedel.com/

Belmacz Gallery

The Belmacz gallery is a tiny little gem in Mayfair. My friend Kristin's cousin showed his work there so she was invited to the opening of their new show. The gallery is tiny, with one room on the ground floor and a smaller one below but the space is used well. The pieces are shown in the window and one along each wall, except for two smaller pieces on the largest wall. Sculpture is also well integrated into the exhibit and it is set up in a way that you can truly only focus on one piece at a time, which I really liked.

One of the organizers of the gallery (Julia Muggenburg) has her own jewelry brand and make-up brand. Her necklaces and other items are shown throughout the gallery in a metal glass display hanging from the ceiling on the ground floor and in a wall display on the lower floor. Also, when arriving on the lower floor you can peak into their offices which gave me a bit more understanding of the process behind it. 

The night itself went really well, we drank a few whiskey sodas and mingled with a few artists trying to understand their thought process behind their work. The more traditional pieces were by artists who had very strong technical skills whereas the most controversial piece (Kristin's favourite) was done by a man who programmed the whole image on a computer. He was able to create a person in 3D form digitally and then map out the shape. His friend then drew the whole image that was then mapped back onto the digital body. The other layers in the piece were also created by the artist using digital software. This was really interesting to us because it shows how much the world is changing with technology, and it was really great to see what we could create. 

Here's the gallery's website: www.belmacz.com

Kew Gardens

My friend Daniella and I escaped the city life for an afternoon and went to Kew Gardens, the Royal Botanical Gardens in west London.You do have to stay on the District Line for quite a while to get there, and there is an entry fee, but it was worth it. We brought a picnic with us, but we stopped and looked through the "Palm House" a huge green house devoted to plants from near the equator. On the lower level of the Palm House there was also a small aquarium where we saw seahorses and jelly fish as well as other different fish species. 

We then went on to have our picnic on the grass beneath a tree. It was great because it was a sunny day, and the park had a lot of people walking around but no one really disturbed each other because we were all trying to take in the nature and the experience. We stopped in an area of the park to then take photos of us in a huge bush of hydrangeas. And then went on to a wooden structure they built to see the view from the trees, which was pretty nice, I enjoyed seeing how far the park could stretch on, and we did get a little bit of sun. 

Of course when glancing through the flyers they gave us at the entrance we saw that there was an ice-cream shop which sold orchid flavoured ice-cream. So that's where we headed next. We walked through the Queen's Garden and back around to the Café with the ice-cream. But they didn't have orchid ice-cream that day so we ended up choosing apricot, honey and yogurt flavour, which was incredible. 

We then went to look at the green house filled with cacti and succulents which is names the Princess of Wales green house. And then we went on to the Rock Garden. After that we walked through some shops and sat down in front of a chapel like house, to relax before going home.

Going to Kew Gardens was a perfect afternoon, and I'd probably go again, because we were unable to see the whole park in one day. Here's their website: http://www.kew.org/

Hackney City Farm

Walking towards Broadway Market one Saturday, my friend and I happened to see a sign for "Hackney City Farm". I was a little shocked, a farm in a city, what? Really? Yes, a farm in a park in east London. We followed the people with children, and the signs and walked into an area which was the farm. There were chickens running around everywhere, a house for the donkeys, a house for the rabbits and guinea pigs and a house for the pigs. 

The chickens were let out to walk around freely, and so were the ducks. The donkeys, sheep and goats were in a larger more open space grazing and enjoying the warm weather. And the cute little guinea pigs were in their homes rolling around in the hay. Children were making animals sounds, or chasing chickens. Couples were looking at the different animals and walking around.

I don't know what it is about farms, but somehow everyone seems to love seeing the animals interact with each other and the big city seems so distant. I'd probably go there again, just to try to pet a sheep, I got so close to a lamb at one point! 

Here's the farm's website: http://hackneycityfarm.co.uk/

Hermes at the Saatchi Gallery

In May 2013 there was a craft fair at the Saatchi Gallery. The craft people showing their work were people from the Hermes workshops in France. There were many different different mini studios set up showing the craftsmen at work. There was a leather worker, a tie maker, a print maker, a bag maker and a watch maker. It was incredible to see all the work behind one item which we then get to hold. 

There was a live show showing the silk printing of the silk Hermes scarfs. The presentation had a man explaining the process and the actual person doing the printing. The man explained that yes Hermes do use machines but "Hermes has found the perfect balance between man and the machine" for all of their products. The work surface in the Gallery only had enough space to print two scarfs at a time being a table of about 4 meters in length. In their workshop (they do not like you calling it a "factory"), the table is 100 meters long, so that they can print more scarfs at once. 

The technique has very many steps, each colour has to be printed on in different layers, starting with the darkest and then going to the lightest. However if the darkest colour takes up a lot of space on the silk then it must be printed last because it will remain wet longer than the lighter colours. In their workshop their tables have heaters underneath so that the ink dries faster. Also everything in their workshop is monitored, the temperature of the silk is measured so that it can be the perfect humidity and the ink stays on the silk the longest possible. 

Every year they come out with 10 prints for the fall and 10 prints for the spring. Out of these prints the colourists must come up with 20 different colour combinations on the same pattern where then only 10 get selected. All the heads of the international branched of Hermes then come together in Paris and select the coloured prints that will sell the most in their countries and make their order for the factories. Occasionally certain prints are brought back in new colours to update the old designs.

Each of the Hermes designs are meant to show a story, every image they print they collected from around the world. Culture is a very important thing in the Hermes family. After seeing into the way Hermes works at this work shop, I was inspired to try to work with them. Companies who have a story mean a lot to me, and I think its important to cherish tradition as well as bringing in modern things and they are able to do this with their scarfs. 

Here's the Saatchi Gallery website: http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/

and here's the Hermes site: http://uk.hermes.com/

Blackbird Tea Rooms

At the Frock Me! Vintage Fashion Fair there was also a Tea Room set up. The people running it were the people from Blackbird Tea Rooms from Brighton. They came all the way to London for the event. The waitresses were dressed in little polished outfits, and you had to wait in line to be seated. Each table had a perfect frilly table cloth and the bar was lined with different cakes. 

I studied the menu and finally decided to have my first English muffin. It was with ham, cheddar and tomato chutney. It came with a salad and I tried to eat most of the salad before touching the English muffin because I knew that if I ate the muffin first there was no way I was going to eat the salad. 

I drank a ginger beer which I really liked because it had that little kick that sometimes you need. The room the tea room was set up in had a long brown wooden bar, and a sofa for the people waiting. This was a side room of the Chelsea Town Hall. It was nice to be seated near the fireplace of the room because even if the fireplace wasn't on you could look at all the intricate detailing in sides of the fireplace. 

It took us quite a while to be served but we're glad we waited because everything was delicious. Here's their website: http://www.blackbirdtearooms.com/

Frock Me!

On the 19th of May I went to the Frock Me! Vintage Fashion Fair in Chelsea Town Hall. When I was a kid I remembered going to this town hall to see many different things. I think there was one time I remember really well because I was surrounded by like pink and beige clothes, it was a Burberry sample sale. This time I recognized traits of the building but not much else. 

We paid our 2 pound entrance fee, and walked inside, astonished by the number of stands selling clothes from different eras. I'm very picky with vintage clothes, they need to actually be old and represent something from the past to me, instead of being something from a few years ago with a label I recognize. Both my friend and I were able to find something we liked that wasn't incredibly expensive. However there was this one princess chiffon dress which I would have loved to own but it was a little out of my price range (280 pounds). 

Everyone selling things was really friendly allowing us to try things on, and when we didn't have enough cash, to go to the machine across the street to get money for the item we wanted. We got to hold a phone-bag which was used in the film "An Education", and see clothes that could have been featured in the Marie Antoinette film. Overall, it was like a little fairy tale. The next Frock Me! event is on the 8th of September, but there is also one on the 20th of October too. 

Here's their website: http://www.frockmevintagefashion.com

Slate

Walking towards Old Street I convinced my friend to try a new coffee shop and not go to her usual one (Fix 126). We stopped at Slate, which is on Curtain Road as well. The grey exterior isn't very inviting but it didn't look empty and there were a lot of fresh baked goods on display near the bar. We both got coffee, and my friend spent about 15 minutes talking with the barista to try to figure what all the flavours of the cookies were. 

I instead decided to have dinner or what I like to call "late lunch" there, and I got a cheese and bacon sandwich on ciabatta bread. (It was incredible). We sat down at the nearest table, all the tables are different and so are the chairs. I tend to like this design aesthetic when done well because it makes you feel more relaxed and free to do and say what you want. 

The food was brought out to us on black slabs, kinda like a black board or a "slate" which I thought was a creative way of serving small dishes. Everyone inside was so friendly and kept smiling so it was nice to be there. I'll probably go back again, just for another one of those sandwiches. 

Here's their website: http://www.slatecoffeelondon.co.uk/

Sadler's Wells

On the 16th of May my friend Daniella and I were lucky enough to go see the ballet at Sadler's Wells in London. We chose to see this ballet because it was advertised all over the tube, and it was based on a story we both know very well, The Great Gatsby. With the release of the film this year we thought it was only appropriate to see the ballet as well for a full cultural immersion. 

Even though there was a huge struggle getting everyone to stand so that we could get to our seats everyone attending the ballet was super friendly, the couple sitting next to Daniella recommended we go to a cute french style restaurant near Piccadilly Circus which I still intend to go to. Once the music starts everyone goes silent and the ballet begins. After each scene the whole crowd claps every dance move is elegant, graceful, and perfect. 

It was like a community of art lovers, the art just happened to be movement. Everyone was so friendly and happy to be there and its rare to find moments like that around London where everyone happens to be in a hurry to do their own thing. I really enjoyed going to Sadler's Wells and it was worth the money I spent on the ballet (36 pounds). I'm going to constantly check their website until they show something else I'd love to see. Here's their website: http://www.sadlerswells.com/

Spitalfields Market

Spitalfields Market has something going on every single day. The actual infrastructure is called "Old Spitalfields Market" and on each side of the square there are a few permanent shops, as well as some restaurants. But during the day, until around 5pm, there are street markets. On Thursday the market specifically has vintage stands which sell everything from clothes to home decor, and old cameras. Every stand has some little story linked with each individual item on sale. 

If you have time you should browse slowly and talk to each of the sellers and get to know the products you're interested in. I generally try to avoid that because I spend ridiculous amounts of money when I start to like someone, I tend to feel like I have to buy their stuff. I go there for the atmosphere because everyone is somewhat creative and interesting and at some point everyone is willing to tell their story. 

I tend to buy small postcards for my room because I like to imagine what was going on when the photo was taken and where this place could be. Spitalfields Market, like other markets in London, for me is an escape a way to submerge myself into a different life just for a moment. 

Here's the market's website: http://www.spitalfields.co.uk/

Paper Dress

Paper Dress is a vintage shop in Shoreditch which happens to be a cafe/bar as well. Its really cute from the sign on the outside attracting in customers to the blackboards inside near the bar showing all the available drinks. There are a few small coffee tables inside, and a bigger one with a large couch. There is also cute detailing near the changing rooms where there are old beauty mirrors for the customers to look at the clothes on themselves.

All the clothes sold in Paper Dress are vintage, and the racks are divided by colour and time period, everything is well labelled, showing the decade it is from and any other particular remark. Vintage in London however is never cheap, but there were a bunch of vintage sunglasses for about 10 pounds each, which isn't too bad for some nice sunglasses. 

Generally, the greatest thing about this place is the ambiance, its like you walked into an old movie, because the employees of the shop are all dressed in their favourite eras of the past. Unlike most other stores, there is also a menswear section, which means if you bring boys they wont die of boredom like the normal shopping trip, cause if they don't like the clothes they can sit down and grab a beer. 

Here's their website (they also do cute vintage events once in a while): http://paperdressvintage.co.uk/