A pair of country mice recently packed up their Vuitton’s and headed to the big smoke for a day’s shopping. London was officially calling and we fancied ourselves as Town mice for a day.Why ever not.
We arrived at the train station, with what seemed like the entire population of the town, but despite the throngs of people we soon boarded our train, headed for the bright lights of the big city.
Once on board we did as any good country mice would do and had our breakfast.
Starting the day right. Naturally.
After what felt like a short journey, curtailed by copious amounts of gossip and snorting with laughter, mostly at ourselves, we arrived at Waterloo.
We scuttled down to the South Bank, admired the landmarks and made our way over towards shopping mecca…
We crossed over at the Golden Jubilee footpath, this is a great spot to see the famous dome of St Pauls from afar and lots of other lovely London Landmarks.
As faithful fashion servants we made our way to the West End and to Selfridges. There’s so much joy all under one roof! We started by worshipping at the Shrine of Dior…
I’m coveting a rather delicious bag and thought it proper to pop in and say hello to her…”it won’t be long before we are together my love”
(This photo does not do her justice- she is 10 times more beautiful in the flesh!)
After reassuring my future bag of our inevitable union, we headed to the makeup emporium, where we could have quite easily spent the rest of our day.
I adore the makeup emporium, it’s so bright and exciting. Everything is extra sparkly and alluring. It’s impossible not to believe that you don’t NEED everything on offer!
We managed to try on almost every foundation in the store and were still undecided which was best. Undeterred, we kept our peckers up and forged ahead…to the shoe department.
We put on our sensible heads (reluctantly) exercised restraint and waded through the delights. We made just a few key purchases and then headed off on foot toward Claridges.
I love to admire the architecture in London. The Victorians and the Georgians certainly knew what they were doing when it came to design and building. These beautiful pieces of history have stood the test of time and will be here long after us.
Our slow amble across Mayfair meant that we were a little late for a ‘real’ breakfast at Claridges, and so we jumped into a cab and made our way to another British insinuation; Liberty
I love travelling by car through London, despite the traffic. It affords you the opportunity to see all the sites and become familiar with the city, something which is lost when travelling on the underground.
Uber cabs have always been reliable, efficient and extremely well priced in my personal experience. I’d urge anyone visiting the city to give them a try. Simply download the app, update your details and you’re away, literally.
We arrived at Carnaby street and made our way to my most favourite of department stores.
I adore the eclecticism of this store and how it celebrates smaller and lesser known designers and ranges. You’re sure to find something a little different here.
I settled on a new perfume called ODeJo. It is a delicious and refreshing mix of Rose and Cucumber. It was a welcome scent on a hot day in the city. I was instantly hooked. You can get it here if you like a fresh fragrances, which the creator Jeff Lounds likens to “magical summer evenings mixed with sea breezes”. What’s not to love?!
After thoroughly basting myself in the perfume hall we had a quick peruse around the vintage collections and the shoe hall. We also tried on every pair of sunglasses and remained undecided. A Sagittarius trait I’m learning to live with – much to the frustration of my friends and family.
I made a few more fragrant purchases and then with an iconic purple bag in hand, we set off again.
Thoroughly parched we wandered along Carnaby street and into a little cocktail bar called Soho Zebrano. We ordered several drinks and rested our feet. A day in London does terrible things to your achilles!
If you follow my snapchat this one might be familiar!
The cocktails are cold and long. Perfect. You can also order off menu. The competent mixologist will whip up your hearts desire; apparently my hearts desire is a Porn Star Martini. Who knew!
After a satisfying rehydration session we made our way to Covent Garden, with a quick diversion through Seven Dials. This is one of my favourite shopping areas in London. With stores like Club Monaco, Orla Kiely and Coco De Mer (why not!) and eateries such as Mon Plaisir and Scoff and Banter, Monmouth Street and Seven Dials is somewhere everyone must visit at least once. Trust me you’ll want to return.
Covent Garden is of course the better known more famous relation, where you can easily spend an entire day. It is a must for every visitor to London and Locals alike. So much to see and do. A real melting pot of activity.
Covent Garden was of course originally a flower market. Much of that has now moved but the body of the market remains, replaced by high end shops, independent boutiques and eateries. You will unsurprisingly stumble across pretty blooms and be reminded of the Markets providence. The Covent Garden Flower Academy is a particularly pretty spot for fresh blooms.
This is the rare and exotic Charlotte Flower. Blooming lovely.
Our tummies rumbled signalling that women cannot survive on cocktails and Prossecco alone (anecdotal, no real evidence to substantiate this!). We wandered back to SOHO and settled on a little nostalgia. Burger and Lobster. Being costal country mice we felt a seafood fix was necessary.
It was a Friday evening and amazingly we were accommodated. We sat at the bar which is no problem if you’re just having a drink and a bite to eat. If you’re making an evening of it as group I would suggest booking ahead.
The restaurant is pulsating with energy. The decor is a great mix of striped brick walls, aged leather booths and clean marble surfaces. It works well, a sort of languid chic.
I ordered the Lobster roll and Charlotte ordered the Lobster and chips.
The food was great, just what our hungry tummies needed. Service was efficient and the staff were polite and attentive. If you have to go to a chain restaurant whilst visiting the city, this one is definitely a safe bet.
With our tummies full and our feet thoroughly exhausted it was time to head back to Waterloo and get the train home. We’d had a fun day in the big smoke, we’d seen plenty of the sights and had our makeup and cosmetics fix. Well at leas for this month.
If you haven’t had a day out in our great capital what are you waiting for?! Here’s a great website for planning your trip; visit London
Amellia Mae
