Love at first sight: Liberty window display

Passed by Liberty today whilst shopping with Chaza and Anniebelle, and came across their gorgeous, intriguing and interactive window display. I just love it! Below a couple snapshots.

Gelupo e amici

So here we are at Gelupo. An amazing gelato place in Soho. You have to try the pistachio icecream and blood orange sorbet. It's so yummy. And they have a large selection of granita.

Away and reunited, in London!

We have been away for the last few months as we have been busy preparing for Rasha's wedding! Yes, she is married now and more importantly, she has moved to London!!! (To be with me ha!). We will show you some photos below (that's if you haven't seen them yet on Facebook), and by the way the photos are taken by the talented Karen and Josette, www.karenandjosette.com.

We are now sitting together and writing this post in my favourite neighbourhood Notting Hill.

I am so excited to move to London , it has always been one of my favourite cities.

Dima, you know I love trendy and cute places, and now that I don't have a job I have plenty of time to hop from one coffee shop to another and from one museum to the next, so maybe you can give me some tips? :-)

R: What do you love about living in London?

D: I love walking around the city and in the parks. I love the different weekend markets, the diversity of people and the fact there are many museums and exhibitions.

R: What are your favourite neighbourhoods ?

D: Bayswater and Notting Hill. I like Bayswater for its proximity to Hyde Park, Heathrow Express and the roughness of Queensway, and Notting Hill for its charm and little boutique cafes, shops, and Portobello Market.

R: What is your favourite museum?

D: Victoria and Albert museum.

R: What is a very touristy place that you still love to go to sometimes?

D: Millenium bridge, I love the connection between St Paul's Cathedral to Tate Modern.

R: What is your favourite bakery or coffee shop?

D: Cocomaya, and try the multiseed loaf and their mini Zaatar croissant.

R: How about your favourite brunch?

D: Tom's and 202 on Westbourne Grove.

R: New cool and tasty restaurant?

D: Coya, yummy Peruvian.

R: What are the places not to miss when visiting London?

D: Pret-a-portea at the Berkeley Hotel and Rose Bakery in Dover street market, try their scones.

R: What is your favourite multi-brand store?and high street shop?

D: Liberty and Dover street market, and Cos because its very minimalist yet edgy.

R: Any beauty habits?

D: you can't beat a haircut from Massimo in Ora Salon in Covent Garden.

R: How do you go around the city?

D: I mainly walk, or take the bus but also I have a Pashley and I cycle around.

R: Is there a nice walk you recommend?

D: Walk from Westbourne Grove to Notting Hill, through Portobello down to Holland Park. It's a beautiful park.

R: Any favourite movie theatre ?

D: The Gate cinema in Notting Hill gate and Curzon Soho. I recently watched "Io e te" in Curzon, a nice film by Bernardo Bertolucci.

Ok Rasha, I hope this will keep you busy and let me know if you come across any nice places too!!

Condé Nast Worldwide News

Rasha,
September is the time for Vogue Fashion night out! Instead of writing about this, I want to tell you about the Condé Nast bookshop. They are the publishers of some of the worlds most famous magazines including vogue, glamour , vanity fair etc. You can go there, sit down,and check all the magazines they publish. It is also a nicely designed shop. Worth checking when you're in London next time. Located in Hanover Square.

Yayoi Kusama's dots/Louis Vuitton

Rush,
After Yayoi Kusama's exhibition at Tate Modern few months ago, the Kusama's effect is now spreading! Known for her dotted paintings and art work, Kusama is collaborating with Louis Vuitton for a small collection of clothing/accessories. I love the tshirts by the way! I walk passed the Louis Vuitton shop in Bond St yesterday and saw their Kusama window display, love it!

Selfridges also revealed their window display few days ago, and it is covered with Kusama's dots! Will post few photos soon. I will leave you with LV's window display for now.

A cute sweet shop

Rush,

Check out this cute sweet shop in covent garden. It's called Cyber Candy and they have really cute candies that you can't find in many shops. I have to go in everytime I pass by just to check what's new in the candy market but I resist to buy anything ;-) A must see when you're in London next!

London telephone booth!

Rush,

Artists have designed their own version of the London telephone booth. They are spread around London and these are the ones I have encountered so far. Which one is your favourite?

Spun by Heatherwick Studio

Rush,

It was so lovely to have you here in London, even if it was a very short visit!
Have you ever seen the Spun chair by Heatherwick Studio? They are everywhere in the V&A museum because there is an exhibition for Heatherwick Studio's work. Their work is really amazing, they challenge simple solutions to simple problems, having said that , the simple solutions are still very complex!

Here are few photos of the Spun, they are great fun and comfortable!

Made to order shoes anyone?

Rash,

I came across this lovely and simple shoe shop close to Ladbroke Grove called T&F Slack (http://www.tandfslackshoemakers.com/) and they are specialised in custom made shoes for both men and women. The concept is very simple, you go try their shoes in Selfridges to make sure the size is okay, you choose the combination of leather and sole that you'ld like et voila!
It takes up to 4 weeks for the shoe to get ready and prices start at 185£.

Here are some photos to give you a taste of the shoes

Harvey Nichols window display

Rash,
I love Harvey Nichols current window display! They turned their glass contemporary looking window into little boutique shops similar to the old London shops. Love the idea!
I have to say that I am not usually a big fan of their window display and I tend to always prefer Selfridges instead but this time it was too nice and eye catching!

Picasso and British Artists

Rasha,

I finally had the time today to go see the exhibition of Picasso and British Artists at Tate Britain which opened in February and will be on until July 15th. The exhibition is about Picasso and the influence he had on British artists such as Ben Nicholson, Francis Bacon, Henry Moore, David Hockney and a few others.

I have to say that I was really excited to go see the exhibition and I went today and left a bit disappointed. They showed his work from the early 1900s up to the late 1930s and it's really amazing to see the chronology, eventhough this wasn't very evident in the exhibit. Putting his work next to the British artists didn't work really well. You feel that they have tried to copy him but they failed, and it is quite undermining for British artists I felt. Picasso was way ahead of them, they have reproduced their 1920s 'Picasso inspired paintings' in the 1930s when Picasso was already exploring other styles and ideas.

There were some amazing paintings especially by Francis Bacon and David Hockney but it was hard to see the relationship with Picasso.

The only exhibition I have been to and is comparable to this one is Piet Mondrian exhibition in Rome in November last year, where they showed his work alongside other artists of the same era, I find it was more engaging and much clearer.

One of my favourite paintings in the exhibition is 'Head of a Woman' and Picasso's little costume design illustrations that he did for a Diaghilev ballet show in London.

I wish it was a solo Picasso exhibition, it would have probably worked better, but this doesn't mean that it's not worth seeing. Some of the work displayed is just fascinating.

There were a few paintings with the title 'Head of a Woman' and this is one of them
I couldn't find an image on the web of the one that took my breath away!

DVF for Gap Kids

Hi Rash,

I was walking past Gap on Oxford St and saw that Diane Von Furstenberg designed a collection for Gap Kids and Gap Baby, have you heard about that? I didn't go in to have a look but I can imagine it would be amazing for kids! Full of vibrant colours and patterns, perfect for summer!

Re-Spring spring spring

Hello Rash,

I haven't written anything in a while, I have been so busy the past week but I promise will post soon. London weather is unpredictable as usual, we had a lovely Spring weather the last 3 weeks and now winter is back! Well, it is normal for us to keep talking and complaining about the weather, and I probably became very English in that way.
I love the Tree that you posted, is it new in Lebanon? Is it still flowering now?
Here are a couple of photos I took of the blossoming magnolia and cherry trees. I love London in Spring!  Unfortunately, the blossoms last for 3 weeks or so only and then gone.

By the way, notice the Gorilla in the garden ;)

The best Pasteis de nata in town!

Spring is here Rasha! and this weekend I have been out and about to make the most out of this beautiful weather. London is so pretty in Spring, Magnolia and Prunus trees are flowering everywhere.
I went and had brunch at Raoul's in Notting Hill , and had my usual poached eggs on brown toast, the eggs were so fresh and delicious! Highly recommended! Then, we decided to go to Lisboa Patisserie to have the best Pasteis de nata (portuguese custard tart) in town! The Patisserie is on Golborne road, at the end of Portobello road. I leave the pictures below to speak!