It's Chocolate Week (funny, I always thought that was Easter...) and to celebrate, London's finest chocolate retailers, restaurants and hotels are offering a host of cocoa-flavoured events, freebies and special offers. Here are my picks of the week featuring London's top chocolatiers:
3. Four places I would rather be right now: (birdy blows the budget) - Staying at this amazing hotel in Copenhagen:
- Norway - Finland - Soaking in a hot tub in a hip chalet in the French alps ... why, this one would do nicely, ta:
4. Four of my favourite places to eat: (birdy on a budget) - Song Que (Vietnamese), Kingsland Road - The raclette stand, Borough Markets - Climpsons & Sons, Broadway Market - Story Deli, Brick Lane (all coming to you in a 'London Must-Eats' post, soon!)
6. Four TV shows I watch over and over: (all on DVD) - Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Angel - Firefly - Bodies (yes, I'm a Joss Whedon nerd with a side interest in gory BBC dramas about inept NHS maternity wards. Which has got nothing whatsoever to do with Max Beesley's delightfully hairy bottom. I swear.)
I've also been tagged by fellow Aussie ex-pat and magazine journo, Cricket Family with the 'quirky things' meme. I'm all tagged-out, right now, but here's one I did earlier - all fairly quirky, I'd say.
Whilst our global markets go into meltdown, we're battening the hatches at the Wee Birdy nest.
So now that birdy is on a budget, I'll be keeping an eagle eye out for clever buys, thrifty shopping and lower price points. And even though I love a great bargain, this doesn't mean that I'll be reporting from Primark every week. I'll still be scouring the streets of London (and the interwebs) for new shopping gems, but I'll be flagging any particularly good buys, as well as solid and innovative design and quality craftmanship. In fact, it's more important than ever to support your local independent shops and designers.
I'm also embracing Make Do and Mend's concept of 'slow fashion' - consuming slower, turning away from fast, disposable fashion, and looking for investment purchases that will last longer than a couple of spin cycles in the washing machine. Mixed in with carefully considered high-street purchases, they can go a long way to extending the life of your wardrobe.
In the meantime, let me know if there's anything in particular you'd like me to cover.
Tweet hair slides, £6.99, from Of Cabbages and
Kings. Thanks to the lovely Jess G. from Cult Beauty for the tip - head over there now for her interview with Lipstick Queen, Poppy King.
We fully embraced the cream of London's parklife this weekend, with Hampstead Heath on Saturday and Greenwich on Sunday. The best bit? Parklife is the ultimate in thrifty credit-crunch living, not that you feel the slightest bit frugal when you're too busy frolicking on the heath, enjoying the princely views, and feeling smug about wearing a t-shirt and eating ice-cream in mid-October.
If today is anything to go by, London is in for some gorgeous Autumnal weather this weekend. I'm heading to Hampstead Heath for lots of kicking of leaves, throwing of frisbee and hunting for shiny brown conkers and chestnuts. Perfect.
When H&M announced its upcoming collaboration with Commes des
Garcons, the fashion world’s jaws collectively dropped. What was Rei
Kawakubo thinking? How is she going to pull it off? And um, when can we
get our freakin’ hands on it? (that would be moi.) Well, the wait is
almost over as the launch date draws near, and I’m wondering if I should be furtively planning my own little tent city outside Regent
Street’s H&M. Better still, I’m hoping to get tickets to Vogue’s
exclusive preview evening on Wednesday 12th November. Preview and buy
from the entire collection the day before it goes on sale worldwide? 25
per cent off all other H&M ranges on the night? I’m (hopefully)
there. Apply for your two tickets now.
Opening tonight at Nelly Duff is UK artist Patrick Thomas’ first-ever UK solo show. Be quick if you want to snap up some previously unseen limited edition screenprints and original artworks, as the show is only open for three days.
Patrick Thomas - SOLO Nelly Duff 9-11 October, 2008 156 Columbia Road London E2 7RG Thursday 9th October: 6pm to 9pm Friday 10th and Saturday 11th October:12-7pm
It’s Meet the Experts month at Selfridges right now, with an impressive line-up of launches and experts from some of the top beauty brands. Check out the full schedule and book early if you want to participate in any of the events. Here are my top picks:
Friday October 10th Lancôme: National Makeup Artist Benjamin Rousseau will be in store for Lancôme showing you the metallic colours of the season. To place a booking call 0207 318 3739.
Saturday October 11th Nars: Update your look with NARS National Stylist Benoit Dumond and discover the hottest trends for Autumn Winter.
Marian Newman: America’s cult favourite Marian Newman Nails launches exclusively at Selfridges with a PA from the creator herself.
Wednesday October 15th NARS: Book in for a colour match consultation and receive your complimentary trial sample of Nars’ new Firming Foundation.
Thursday October 16th Sisley: Expert Make up Artist Armand Beasley will be in store advising customers on this season’s must have looks. A £25 booking fee will secure your booking and is redeemable against any Sisley product purchased at the store on the day. Armand is visiting the counter on Thursday 16th and Friday 17th October. Phone: 0207 318 3475
Friday October 17th Dr Sebagh: Let yourself go by experiencing the launch of new face serum, Supreme Maintenance, treat yourself to a personal one on one session with Dr Sebagh himself who will be in store in Personal Shopping from 10.am till 7.pm.
Monday October 20th Giorgio Armani Cosmetics: Razzle Dazzle your eyes, visit the Giorgio Armani Eye Master class and learn how to create the iconic smoky eye.
Cheep cheep! Be prepared for a mega shit fight at 10am tomorrow, when
Diesel celebrates its ‘dirty thirty’ birthday with the global release
of £30 limited edition jeans – for one day only. If you want to get
your hands on one of the 30,000 female (Matic) or male (Heeven) pairs
of jeans, get your elbows out and head to one of the following Diesel
stores below. (Non-Londoners: click here for your participating Diesel
store).
Well that was a much longer pause between posts than I intended, apologies for my blogging absence over the past week. But it's not for lack of inspiration, mind you. It's been a busy couple of weeks here at the Wee Birdy nest, with deadlines mounting after the rush of LFW followed by Design Week. But I've been making like a magpie, collecting shiny bits of news and eye candy for future blogging entertainment. In the meantime, meet these cuties for 'birdy pick of the week':
This is Lucy, my favourite two-year in the blogosphere and her pet cockatiel, Hobson. Based in New Zealand, Lucy's mum makes adorable children's clothing for her Etsy shop, Lucy's Place. I've blogged about her skirts before, but I particularly love her range of simple smock tops and dresses for summer, and tiny print-trimmed peacoats for winter. It's like (more affordable) A.P.C. for toddlers.
You can read more about Lucy over at her mum's blog, Lucy and I, where she discusses her passion for birds (they house lots of rescue birds), where to buy Repetto shoes in New Zealand, and her latest fashion creations (including cool smock tops for grown-ups).
