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Photo Diary: Taste of London, Matcha and more

Last week was a pretty busy one for me and my camera. I headed out to several press days, did brunch and visited Taste of London.
 If you have a penchant for beef burgers, or novelty items Maiden is going to be the place for you this Christmas. Whereas Sticks & Stones offer more of a relaxed, one-off vibe with their items (for both men and women). In between press days I received a matcha care package from my good friend Jess, all the way from Japan. It was the ultimate pick-me-up, which I really needed. Speaking of food, I shared brunch with friends in Village East (my favourite haunt south of the river) – I highly recommend the turkey hash and beetroot bloody mary. I headed off to the Taste of London straight after, which in hindsight wasn’t the best of ideas, although it did keep my purse firmly in my pocket. There were plenty of tasters so I did sample a few items; Korea Foods and Go Coco being my favourite exhibitors. 
bloomzy /

A Masterclass in Burlesque at Cafe de Paris

Last Friday I headed into the depths of the Cafe de Paris. When I arrived the impeccably dressed staff were hurriedly preparing everything for the night’s show. Obulent chandeliers hung from the ceiling, whilst glasses lined the tables, sparkling like crystal. A well dressed man led me to a dark room beneath the dance floor, as I stared at my surroundings in wonder. It almost felt as if I’d walked into London’s own Moulin Rouge.

This was all thanks to Sarah (of The Prosecco Diaries) who had arranged a burlesque evening for a select group of bloggers. I was greeted by Sarah herself with a delicious vodka drink from Pinky, and a lovely smile. It was obvious that everyone was eager to take part in the festivities of the evening as I’m usually one of the first to arrive, but this time round everyone was there before me! Cupcakes and macarons littered the room – a bloggers best friend. We all got to know each other as we nibbled on snacks and sipped our drinks (through adorable straws might I add). As the atmosphere built we were asked to move to the dance floor. Yes, our private room had it’s own dance floor, and boudoir…but that’s a tale for another time. You might be curious at this point as to why we needed a dance floor. Well that’s because we were in for a mini masterclass in burlesque from Zoe from The Cheek Of It School of Burlesque & Cabaret – a very sophisticated and classy lady. I am a very big fan of burlesque and have attended more than my fair share of cabarets. I’ve often left after a show and professed my desire to be a burlesque dancer to anyone who will listen. I find it such a beautiful, sexy and empowering form of art. So you can imagine just how excited I was to have this opportunity. It’s safe to say I shimmied and I shook, like there was no tomorrow! Luckily for me, my eagerness and effort paid off because Zoe chose me as one of the students of the night, alongside the lovely George. Our prize? A sparkly bottle of Prosecco (pimped out by Sparkle Up Your Life), fit for any queen of burlesque. After the class we headed back to the main area of the club to watch the cabaret show, where we sat high above the floor overdosing on fabulous drinks and sweet treats.

The show at Cafe de Paris was wonderful, which was made by the lovely ladies I got to share it with. Although our compère for the night was equal parts fabulous and fierce, I have to say that the burlesque class was my favourite part of the evening. I am hoping I can save up for Zoe’s Showtime Beginners Course because I’ve caught the burlesque bug, and everyone knows that once you’ve started shimmying that booty, you can’t stop (when you have an arse like mine anyway).

Thank you so much to Sarah for hosting another fabulous event, and for all of the goodie bag sponsors. I’ll be uploading the contents of my goodie bag and linking to the brands on my Instagram and Twitter.

Photos: Thanks to Sarah

bloomzy /

Luna & Curious AW Christmas 2014

I stopped by Luna & Curious this week to check out their Christmas offerings. Yes, it’s that time of year again, when Christmas comes early for the press, and we have to put up with carols and sparkles. Thankfully Luna & Curious weren’t playing Christmas music, but there were plenty of sparkles.
Luna and Curious is my favourite lifestyle store in Shoreditch. The items they carry are high quality, delightful and unique. Of course their AW 14 collection didn’t let me down. Beautifully intricate jewellery, stand out accessories, and winter warmers were just a few of the items that stood out. I was particularly happy to see Floss Gloss nail polishes – L&C are one of only two stockists in the UK. Their polishes are wonderful and I’m so glad to see a store stocking a different brand. Henriette Loftstrom‘s jewellery shone brightly and certainly caught my eye. The Dog Days Plates have been a personal favourite for a while – I need to add Sophia to my collection. However I think the item that epitomised the elegance and quality of the AW collection was the Belle Rose fleece-lined jacket. The lining was incredibly soft and warm, whilst the outer was smart and chic. 
It may be sweltering outside, but I can’t wait for the colder months to come and for the Christmas spirit to hit again. I already have my eye on a few items from L&C for family and friends (and myself), and I know they won’t be disappointed. 

You can shop these items and more at Luna & Curious.

bloomzy /

Photo Diary: Food & A Photography Masterclass


Waking up early on a Saturday is not something most people would do, and when I say most people, I mean me. That said, the lovely people from Simplyhealth had me leaping out from beneath my covers for a special workshop that included food and photography – two of my greatest passions in life.

The event started with a mini masterclass with the photographer Paul Hames. He taught us the basics of using a D-SLR on manual mode, something which can seem a little intimidating at times. I will admit that I’ve been lazy in the past and flicked my camera onto auto and just gone with the flow. So this gave me the kick up the derrière that I needed. It also gave me the push that I needed, to finally decide on buying a Canon…now I just need to figure out which model.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand! After Paul had shown us around the basics of a D-SLR, he took us out for a wander around Kings Cross, to try out our newfound photography skills. We headed to the viewing platform behind Kings Cross Station, which gave me a view of the area that I’d never seen before. It was the perfect place to take some snaps of London. It began to get a little crowded though so we headed alongside the canal to take some portrait shots in the gorgeous sunshine. Sarah, Jess and I became a threesome for the project and found a nice shady spot to take our photos. Both ladies were the perfect models. Although I may have got a little carried away taking photos of Sarah’s gorgeous tattoos. All that snapping finally took it’s toll on us though, and we were ready for food! Luckily the Kerb street food market was on so we headed over and wandered off in search of sustenance! Marlene and I paired up and headed to Bill or Beak for one of their amazingly juicy sandwich-burgers…I’m still not sure what to class it as. We soon found a shady spot to to keep our delicate skin from burning (it still didn’t save me) and to enjoy our food. After we’d all enjoyed our food we headed back for some more photography chit-chat with Paul, who taught us how to take a good photo.

I had such a wonderful day and was so inspired by Paul that I’ve been taking photos like there’s no tomorrow…on manual, of course. So thank you to everyone who made the day so great!

bloomzy /

Introducing: Stranger London (and a purchase)

Handmade ‘London to Japan’ Coasters, and Parisian Pouch from Stranger London
I love handmade items, and I have so much respect for those who are talented enough to create them. Yet I often find that I’m not drawn to most handmade shops due to the style not suiting my own. However when I came across Stranger London (selling handmade & one-off items) I was automatically drawn in. I knew that this is a brand that would fit into my lifestyle, and onto my dresser. I can’t get enough of the prints that Yasumi uses; they’re so perfectly suited to my style and taste. She handpicks every print and turns them into amazing bags, cases, passport sleeves and more. Yes, there is so much more –  she also sells items that she has found (including vintage pieces) and picked lovingly for the site. It really feels as if Yasumi is letting you step into her own secret magical world. 
I happened to come across her ‘London to Japan’ Coasters, which was incredibly well-timed as I happened to be looking for more items for our lounge. As avid tea drinkers I find that a coaster is always needed, but they often seem a bit old fashioned. So when I stumbled upon Yasumi’s creation I knew I had to have them! The Liberty London and traditional Japanese prints are timeless, and speak volumes about mine and Ben’s life – previously living in Tokyo and now in London. So yes, it did seem that it was made especially for me, something which is not easy to come by. The quality is superb and everything was handled professionally and quickly. So when it arrived I didn’t expect that the service could be any better. Well I was wrong. Yasumi had included a little surprise gift of a Parisian style pouch (another city I’ve lived in and loved), along with a beautifully handwritten note. C’était parfait! I will definitely be purchasing items from the store again. In fact I currently have my eye on: Jurmo Marimekko Tote, Mono Unikko Case, Texture Colour Lines Bracelet, and Stranger Forest Patisserie Tote. Hurry up pay day!
You can check out Yasumi’s creations at Stranger London.
bloomzy /

Photo Diary: The Underground Cookery School

I’ve never been into the whole housewife lifestyle – cleaning and chores aren’t for me. Yet I’ve always enjoyed cooking and baking, which means that I cook 99% of the meals in our household. I do it purely for enjoyment, but of course there are times when I can’t be bothered, or I have run out of recipe ideas. Luckily for me I was contacted by The Underground Cookery School to attend one of their classes, where I would be cooking a 3-course meal (sea bream starter, chicken main, and roulade dessert) with some fellow bloggers and writers. I was eager to learn some new skills, and pick up a few recipes whilst I was at it.

The classes are literally held underground, in the basement of a rather unsuspecting building. Walking into the school I was impressed at the clean cut look of the kitchen and the large, inviting dining table. There were some familiar faces in attendance, and some lovely new ones also. We were all handed a glass of prosecco, canapés and an apron – a brief summary of what to expect from the night. After catching up with everyone we were handed our first task for the night – shelling broad beans. It may not sound very glamorous, but in the kitchen everyone has to chip in! Soon after we were split into two groups to start on the Strawberry Meringue Roulade. Luckily Ashleigh-Jayne was in my group – a self-confessed meringue connoisseur. After prepping our meringue we moved onto filleting our fish and preparing our chicken. Now I’d never done either of these things before, but as a sometimes meat-eater I think it’s important to be more hands on with your food, and understand how it is prepared. So I got stuck in, with a lot more enthusiasm than you’d expect from someone who was just handed a dead fish/whole chicken. I won’t go into details as I know some of my readers will be veggie/vegan etc. and I don’t want to cause any upset. After we’d washed our hands (very thoroughly) we went back to our meringue and prepared our cream, which we then smothered on top of the meringue and covered with strawberries, before carefully rolling to complete our roulade.

The cooking part of the class may have been fun, but the real entertainment came when we sat down to eat! My favourite dish of the night had to be the sea bream, with the roulade coming a close second. In fact they were all delicious! We were served by the chefs, and were given a complimentary wine to go with our courses. Conversation flowed, alongside the wine, thanks to the lovely company I shared. Food is fun, but it’s really made by the company you share it with. So a big shout-out goes to Lily, Charlie, Jesse, Lucy, Cassie and Plum! Also, thank you to Anneliese for hosting us, and the wonderful chefs of The Underground Cookery School. I had a night to remember, and I will certainly be trying out some of the skills I learnt, in my own kitchen!

Find out more at The Underground Cookery School.

bloomzy /

Introducing Vivid Drinks: A Matcha a Day…

I don’t usually do posts like this, but I figured it went hand-in-hand with the blog. You might be wondering why that is, and I say, shame on you! If you don’t know of my love of matcha by now, then, well…you’ve probably been doing something productive with your life. Anyway, I do love matcha and I do like to mention it a lot, on the blog, my Twitter, and to anyone who will listen. So when Vivid sent me a crate of their matcha based drinks, I did a little happy dance. 
Vivid Drinks was set up by a fellow matcha lover – James Shillcock.
He decided that it was about time that matcha made it’s big break in the UK. Up until now, it has only been available to health addicts, and those who have the money to afford it – most places that sell matcha have raised the price to extortionate levels. However James wanted it to be available to everyone, in a convenient way. Vivid Drinks was born. Thanks to his expertise in the tea industry, and time travelling in China, he’s the perfect candidate.
So why do I love matcha (green tea powder) so much? 
Not only is it super delicious, but it is full of amazing benefits. It contains a lot less caffeine (only 0.01mg) than coffee, and regular tea. That means it’s a lot better for your body, but don’t fret because it does also give you a healthy boost. I can’t drink highly caffeinated drinks like coffee or coca cola, so this is a great way for me to enjoy it. More importantly though, it is full of antioxidants (130x more than regular green tea), which are wonderfully good for you. Vivid Drinks have managed to keep all of those amazing benefits inside their drinks, whilst adding some healthy tasty flavours to the matcha. Matcha is quite bitter by itself, so pairing it with something sweet, like honey or pear is a really good idea. My personal favourite from the collection is the Lime, Ginger & Honey. In fact it was also the first one I tried when I ordered it at a tea room on Church Street. I didn’t know what to expect, but left with a happy tummy and my matcha craving satisfied. I make sure to drink a matcha a day, why don’t you try doing the same?
You can purchase Vivid Drinks in stores such as WH Smith, Waitrose, Selfridges & Whole Foods for £1.85 each. You may also find them in your local cafe, so keep an eye out, and visit Vivid for more information.