Afternoon Bubbles

The Jones Family Project, Shoreditch

Had an amazing Wednesday afternoon meeting with my uber-cool East London design agency. And what better environment to talk creative than a creative edgy one such as The Jones Fanily Project. It ticked all the Shoreditch boxes; exposed brick, eclectic menu, mismatching chairs, sparkly lights in your indoor tree(!) and fantastic selection of kitsch art scattering the walls. 

Over a feast of the best appetisers - Cornish Crab, Quinoa Fritters, Fillet Steak Tartare, Truffled Mac'n'Cheese, Corn Bread, Feta Cheese, Watermelon & Melon Salad - the energy levels were stoked. This place had a great atmosphere; a place where working peeps came to chat and be slowly transitioned by the dimming lights and forgotten 90s tunes turning up on the sound system into a relaxed Friday night vibe. On a Wednesday. 

Now with most places, it's estimation can with go up or down depending on the ladies powder room. Marked by a big red lipstick mark over the door, the quirks continued. The best was this...

Mirror Mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?

And loving the Aesop products - hand exfoliating wash = genius!!

Would love to go back to this place. Suitable for colleagues, friends, family. As they claim, "food, drink and great times". Great times indeed. 

www.jonesfamilyproject.co.uk/ 

That 'back to school' feeling

The post-holiday blues were kicking in this morning. A combination of this year's holiday coming to an end, a winter chill in the air and having to call on the trusty black tights, I am definitely experiencing a delayed first day of term vibe. Felt myself compelled to wear my shiniest black patent pumps for the occasion and adopt a skirt/shirt combo, all I'm missing is plaited hair and purse belt, *poof* I'm 13 years old again. Only instead of packing my summer holiday homework and fearing I'd forgotten something, I was dreading my over-flowing inbox.

However, with the energy levels restoked, I've got that geeky busy-bee, must-be-super-organised buzz to see to (the kind that applying sticky-back plastic to new school books would have sorted in Year 7). Instead, the 25 year old me is wanting to organise the kitchen, clear out my increasingly-too-small wardrobe and buy a day planner! (The Happiness Project has a lot to answer for when the aforementioned was largely suggested to me by my boyfriend who's 3 chapters in!) 
 
Though the other thing that comes with this time of year is the lurgy. *Cue Berocca fizzing on my desk* From the 30 degree heat of Italy, long lay-ins and naps upon a sunlounger, I rudely found myself in the midst of a contamination frenzy upon London's Underground. How lovely that the coughing choir was out today to welcome me back to my daily commute. Thank goodness for the last few pages of my holiday book, Nicholas Sparks is a literary genius, and I'm completed submerged in Message in a Bottle. Only 4 hours and 22 minutes until I can get back to that world...

I miss blogging.

Or, more accurately, I miss having the time to blog. To indulge in whatever fanciful thing catches my eye or weird and wonderful experience in my day to day life I want to share with the www.

Having dreamt of becoming (a slightly more thrifty and lucky in love) Carrie Bradshaw, it's sad to see how far I have let that dream slip (although I do proudly own my very own pair of Manolo Blahniks!) Whilst I've been chained to my desk, my fingers have been ferociously typing about artwork artwork artwork (full of acronyms of course like a "proper" working professional) until the cows come home, by which time my hands are weary and my mind is foggy. Not conducive to further hours spent behind a laptop screen.

So to make myself feel better, whilst I've escaped from a claustrophobic feeling office this Wednesday lunchtime to sit in the sunshine of a nearby park, I have listed all the weird and wonderful things that have happened to me recently...

*Done my best impression of Julia Roberts and flitted over to Bali for 3 weeks of treatments, yoga, sunbathing, trekking (up a volcano no less) and exploring.

*Actually reading Eat, Pray, Love too!

*Cooked a breakfast on said volcano's steam hole watching sunrise. 

*Been my mother's +1 at a gay wedding in New York.

*Bought my first designer handbag (knocking Jaegar off the top spot with Ralph Lauren). Thank you Macys. 

*Got accepted onto a marketing scheme for young managers (starts Sept)

*Been to the theatre countless times; Book of Mormon being the best

*Discovered Gossip Girl

*Started Bikram Yoga

*Unfortunately put the 'handles' into 'Love Handles'

But most importantly...

Fallen in love.

Glammersmith this morning

Last day of work for 2013 and I was up so early the sun still hadn't risen! Don't mistake the lamp-post! Luckily my home town was living up to its name at 7am this morning #fairylights #christmastime

Magic and Sparkle

Magic and Sparkle. That's pretty much everything we are looking for at Christmas time. And magic and sparkle M&S certainly delivered with their Christmas television advert. An amazing British cast interspersed and amid a fabulous celebration of classic children's stories, there's something for everyone. My favourite scene being the Mad Hatter's Tea Party from Alice & Wonderland. 

Unlike the Lily Allen accompanied Bear and the Hare advert from John Lewis, there was product placement to satisfy the sofa-based shopper. 

Friends & Food

For a group of young twenty-something girls, there are three main pleasures in a girly get-together; gossip, giggles and grub. Having promised myself a calorie-free weekend (mistake this not to mean a low-calorie intake, but just a guilt-free, turn your head the other way kind of an attitude to over indulging) whilst visiting a friend in Birmingham, I made the most of it from the off.  I won't even divulge the train journey snacking escapades but it started like this...

I can always blame alcohol for bad food judgements. I feel bad thinking back to it now so let's just skip to late Friday evening...

This was a very good friend indeed I was visiting, one who knew to stock up on Doritos & dip (main course) and Minstrels & wine (dessert) - a diet that got me through my dissertation - for my arrival.

The next morning, I awoke to the stomach rumbling wafts of bacon flowing up the stairs. And just like they say, breakfast is the most important meal of the day, I'd like to throw out the notion that a good breakfast is much the test of a good friendship. Check out what an amazing friend I have (never guess she's a feeder would you?) 

Within five hours of digesting this, I was 30 miles better travelled, the car was one friend heavier and we had left the suburbs for the midlands countryside. Settled in front of a beautiful open fire, us four girls got to the gossip and giggles...

...and without much of an appetite, my inner Burger Babe could not resist the Angus steak burger on the menu. 

YUM-MY!

At this point I'll breeze over the takeaway I had that night and just skip to the satisfied nights sleep I had that night (praying not for a heart attack!)

So on reflection I feel kinda gross but every mouthful was well and truly enjoyed! I'm now writing this Monday night and glad that I haven't had dinner tonight (but that's a whole other post in itself!)