Archive: Feb 2009

1. Birdy pick of the week

   February 9, 2009 4:47 pm 3 Comments

   

   

   
   
   
   
   
   
   

   
   

   
   

   
   

   
   Canary bell brooch, £24, and Cockatiel ring, £9, from Tatty Devine.

2. Help for victims of Australian bushfires

   February 8, 2009 10:42 pm 5 Comments

   I've just been reading all the shocking reports about the tragic bushfires in Victoria and it's just headlined on BBC News in London tonight.

   If you would like to lend your support to the victims of the bushfires, Melbourne-based Pip from Meet at Mike's has just written an excellent post about the various ways you can help. Please note that the Australian Red Cross is in desperate need of monetary donations, blood and volunteers. xx

3. For hot and bothered Aussie birdies

   February 7, 2009 6:07 pm 10 Comments

   

   I've just been reading about the truly frightening temperatures in Australia right now.

   May I suggest you meditate for a few moments on my snow angel from earlier this week? Pretend you're lying in it right now. Naked. Think cold deep snow, cold deep snow ...

4. Wee finds: Keep Calm lip balm

   5:36 pm 4 Comments

   
   Introducing the latest in Keep Calm and Carry On paraphernalia: the lip balm. Handmade and available in assorted flavours including almond, blackberry, pistachio, strawberry, apple and peppermint.
   What say you? (You may like to refer to this Wee Birdy post.)
   Coming soon to Lapin and Me.

5. My Secret London with Alex Monroe

   February 5, 2009 7:18 pm 13 Comments

   London-based jeweller (and Wee Birdy favourite) Alex Monroe is renowned for his delicate, whimsical (and Valentine's-worthy) creations. So when I had the opportunity to ask him about his secret London destinations, I jumped at the chance. Here's what he had to say ...
   
   "Warning! Don’t forget that although I make particularly feminine jewellery, I am a bloke! Which means that I have a whole different relationship to shops and shopping to women. Bear this in mind and forgive my sins ..."

   

   Best for a bargain? 
   "Guilty secret: I love cheapie shops like Uniqlo, Hennies and Gap. And they’re all over the place! I sometimes pop into town with my eldest daughter to buy piles of skinny jeans (for her not for me!). The kids grow out of things so fast, which isn’t a problem when they’re cheap. We always have a bit left over for Hot Chocolate at Leon, and a treat lunch in Sakura (on Hanover street). I’m afraid I’m not much of a bargain-hunter, except for my bi-annual purchase of John Smedley pull-overs from London Fashion Week-end. Oh, and the odd spree at The White Stuff."

   Best for vintage?
   "I only ever buy vintage bikes and crockery. I don't know how many bikes I have - Holdsworths and Hetchins from the 1960s. Ahh. Bliss. Herne Hill bike jumble if you’re a ‘Classic Lightweight’.
   Never drink out of a mug. I get my cups, saucers, tea-pots, etc from car boot sales. Now friends buy me bits and bobs whenever they see something. There’s a handy car boot sale in Battersea on Sunday morning, or check out Bermondsey Market on a Friday morning."

   

    

   Margaret Howell's spring/summer 09 collection.

   Best for fashion?
   "Margaret Howell, mmm! Or Old Town Clothing, they rent a showroom in Dickensian East London once in a while. You have to get in touch and make an appointment. And John Smedley. For browsing, stroll from Angel tube station through Camden passage and along Upper Street. Don’t forget to stop for a coffee and treat in Ottolenghi!"

   
   
   Old Town Clothing.

   Best for jewellery?
   "Ha! Me, of course! But seriously ... Liberty are re-doing their jewellery department for Valentines Day, it should look great. Harrods have a fab department. Sweet Pea in Primrose Hill is lovely, as well as Kirt Holmes in Camden passage. It's harder work, but it's really exciting to see the St. Martin’s degree show exhibition in June, or New Designers in Islington in July."

   
   

   
   Alex Monroe jewellery.
   
   Best for interiors and gifts?
   "For gifts, head to Burlington Arcade. Lovely macaroons from Laduree, tea from Luponde, or smellies from Penhaligons. Anything extra, pop over the road to Fortnum and Mason (and get afternoon tea while you’re there!). Petersham Nurseries are fab. They have a lovely nursery, cafe and wonderful shop in the old greenhouses. Lovely gardening pots, strings, and gadgets all on a dry mud floor intertwined with jasmine and honeysuckle. It’s heaven. Great furniture, too."

    

   Best for stationery?
   "Smythson of Bond Street. (Save up for it though, it’s not cheap!)"

   Best for kids?
   "My kids are out-doorsie so we love Nunhead Cemetery and Dulwich Woods."

   Best for beauty/skincare?
   "I’m a bloke! But my wife is an aromatherapist at Neal’s Yard in Marylebone. She does natural facial rejuvenation which is fantastic."

   

   Number one London shopping secret?
   "The Neal’s Yard Dairy cheese shop in Borough Market. I love it!"
   

   Best London souvenir?
   "Cheese of course!"

   

   Best for food?
   "Depends if you’re feeling poshy, or noshy. For Posh I love a long lunch at Roussillon in Pimlico. The wine is perfect and the food - well, try it for yourselves. It’s a taste-bud treat from heaven.

   For Nosh there’s only one place, The Anchor and Hope in Waterloo. I’m a real fan of great British food, and that’s what they serve. Crab on toast, mackerel with pickled cucumber, potted shrimp and beetroot salad. All washed down with a lovely Kentish beer. It doesn’t get much better than that. The freshest of local ingredients at a great price. I go there every week to catch up with my big brother. We have a chat, a drink and some grub. It’s lovely."

   For all addresses and a Wee Birdy map of Alex's secret London, click here.

   Click here for Alex's jewellery and blog.

    

6. Snowed in

   February 3, 2009 7:53 pm 19 Comments

   
   Here are my some of my photos from London's Day of Snow yesterday. Like the rest of the street, I got the camera out on Sunday night when the first few flakes started to fall. But that was nothing compared to waking up to a complete white-out on Monday morning, the heaviest snowfall London has experienced in 20 years.

   
   The view from my window at 7.30am.

   With public transport completely shut down and no way to get into central London, there was nothing else for it but to don a pair of wellies and embrace the situation. So we decided to head over to Greenwich to take in the sights. The usual breezy 20-minute walk turned into 40 as we trudged through knee-deep snow and negotiated icy pavements. And despite the fact I was wearing bedsocks over a pair of cashmere tights and jeans, it was still toe-numblingly cold. But it was all so pretty - even the dumpsters at the side of the road took on a fairytale, sugar-coated appearance.

   
   
    

   

   

   

   As soon as we got to the park we followed the sounds of wild whooping and cheers to find half of South-East London using every kind of flat implement to hurtle themselves down the hill. I spotted quite a few baking trays and road signs - but I was also surprised by the number of old-fashioned wooded sledges and snowboards that turned up. The local dogs went batshit-crazy by all the excitement.

   

   

   

   

   After learning the fine art of rolling a snowball worthy of the finest snowman, we retired to the first open cafe we could find for a restorative cuppa. I have no idea where we ended up, but as most of Greenwich had closed down, that little cafe must have done a roaring trade. By the time we got home I felt like I had trekked to the Arctic and back, and rediscovered the simple pleasures of a steaming bowl of tinned Heinz tomato soup.

   
   Snowman wears COS scarf.

7. Birdy pick of the week

   February 1, 2009 10:39 pm 4 Comments

   
   Silk Willow pockerchief, £40, from Liberty.

   Liberty
   Great Marlborough Street
   London W1B 5AH
   Tel. 0207 734 1234
   Nearest tube: Oxford Circus
   Click here for a Wee Birdy map.
    
   Click here for more shops in W1.