Weekend Musings | Selfridge's

Oxford Circus is a mess of mayhem. The combination of tourists, shoppers, noise, lights, action, and oddities can be a little overwhelming. Fun, though, and many exciting, world renowned attractions. Selfridge's flagship store is one such attraction that's earned worldwide notoriety.

I was breezing through this are a little while ago and, despite being in a hurry and feeling anxious to get away from the throngs of people, I was struck still by the window displays in Selfridge's. So. Beautiful. Inspired by Shakespeare, windows were emblazoned with quotes from his greatest works, and the fashion featured was decidedly sumptuous, regal and luxurious.

Truthfully, it reminded me of Holt Renfrew on Bloor Street in Toronto, and the incredible displays they strike up - particularly around Christmas. Which led me to do a little research and discover that, lo and behold, the Weston family owns Selfridge's flagship store. And they own Holt Renfrew. And they own Loblaws. They are retail royalty.

If you're interested in learning more, here's a link to a really interesting interview with Galen and his daughter, Alannah, who lead the Selfridge's team.

In the meantime, here are some shots (albeit blurry) that I managed to snap inbetween the groups of people walking back and forth.

Weekday Inspiration | Evening Stroll through City Centre

I was enjoying some extra balmy London summer weather, temperature was mid 20s, sun was shining bright. I wasn't ready to go home right away so there I was, strolling through the street, shades on my face and sick tunes blasting through my ears. So many beautiful sights in London!

Photography | Flower Power

Here are some shots from a recent evening walk through my neighbourhood. I love all the green thumbs that seem to live near me. Mid August, peak time for flower blooms?

Weekend Musings | Recent Embarrassments

Sometimes you make a fool of yourself. For me, this seems to happen quite a lot. Over the past few months, I’ve had a few moments that made me cringe quite heavily when they happened. And, let’s be honest, cringe for about a week afterwards every time I thought about it. Landing in a new city, finding my way around, connecting and meeting people, putting myself out there - lots of opportunities for acting foolish. But, the beauty of these moments is how fleeting and non-permanent they are. After a week of cringing and post-incident embarrassment, I now find them either hilarious and relish telling the story, or they’re pretty much forgotten until I delved deep into my memory for the purpose of this post.

Read on for a list of my most embarrassing moments since moving to London:

Fun Things | Saturday Adventures

Last Saturday I went on an adventure to pick up some DJ equipment from a 'Gumtree' ad (like Kijiji). It was weird. 

We followed the address to a street that is full of hotels. A lot of the beautiful, old Victorian row houses in the city centre have been converted to boutique hotels to truly capitalize on their charm and location. This street was no different. Nestled right in the heart of Marylebone, we stumbled into a rather odd little hotel.

It had obviously seen better days, and it was not an intuitive entrance. The front doors weren't even unlocked and it was 1pm! The lobby was pretty dank and dark, but the front desk reception was friendly and helpful. She led us to the person from the ad, a man who was mounted ontop of a pile of nightclub equipment. Turns out he's gutted a nightclub and is selling all the used lights, sound system, DJ equipment, and a lot of other really random stuff.

The incongruity of a gorgeous chandelier, soaring ceilings, high reaching windows and a room full of clutter was certainly odd. So odd that I knew I had to take a photo. Or maybe a few....

Read on for more random-ness captured in photographs.

What I Ate | Polpo

Last week, the beau and I tried a new restaurant. He found it, I was 20 minutes late, he had some pints, I was heavily apologetic. He had been holding a table for us but it came and went before I arrived so we were faced with a 40 minute wait, or seating at the bar. We were HUNGRY, so bar it was. And a nice, roomy bar space at that. It turned out to be the perfect choice as the entrance filled with even more people than were there when I arrived.

The place, you ask? Polpo, a charming and atmospheric spot in Soho. I stuck with their homemade iced tea - I think it was called Bombay Ice Tea? My better half got a Manhattan and raved about it. We ordered a few small plates to share, probably 6 in total. Prices got a little steep, and the food was really mediocre.

Their fennel salad was heavily vinegar and, otherwise, quite plain. We shared the fried, stuffed olives but they weren't even stuffed, just battered and fried :( The grilled focaccia was nothing to write home about. Oh, but here I am writing home. Haha, phrasing fail!

Would we go back? Maybe. But probably not for food. There was a great little 'Campari Bar' downstairs, and the environment is nice.

More and more I'm understanding why that stereotype about British food exists...

Click through for more food shots - if you dare!

Weekday Inspiration | St. Paul's Cathedral

London has no shortage of beauty, history and architectural divinity. At least once a day I have a moment of 'pinch me' while I casually drive by Tower Bridge on a double decker bus, or see a building that's older than Canada. 

With so many beautiful options to choose from, how could one possible choose their favourite London landmark?

I'll admit, I've done it. I've beaten all odds and can isolate my top favourite - though by no means am I saying the other tourist attractions and historical feats of humanity are any less wondrous. 

There's something about St. Paul's Cathedral that's captivated me from day 1. Perhaps because it was the first (and only) tourist hotspot we managed to see on our first day in London? Everything from that day, after our walk to St. Paul's, is a jet-lagged blur - maybe that's why it's my most loved haha?

Here are some shots of St. Paul's from the last few months - I'm sure there will be many more, as I seem to end up near this gem more often than not :)