saturday in notting hill

i spent my saturday afternoon wandering the adorable streets of notting hill and kensington. the kensington homes are so grand and gorgeous, while notting hill's are quite colorful and quaint. i also did some shopping on my way. first, through the portobello street market, then some of the shops on westbourne grove. 

westbourne grove shops:

202 was my first stop, i've have been waiting months to see it! nicole farhi wanted to create a shopping and dining environment in one, which she has done here in notting hill and also in new york. the first floor is a cafe with outdoor seating and a great menu (especially the desserts). mannequins hold down the fort in the latest of her menswear and womenswear collections at the front of the store. downstairs is a small shop for menswear, womenswear, accessories, and home decor.

whistles is a great little store for classy casual wear. i picked up a black and white sheer animal spot shell and some olive trousers. they had a lot of winter sale items, but they did not have my correct size...

daylesford organic was one of my favorite stops on westbourne grove. it had a lovely selection of produce, baked goods, fresh cheeses, and meat. they also had homemade jams, fresh herbs and spices, and a coffee/tea bar. upstairs is a cafe full of all their fresh, organic ingredients. i picked up some yummy dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, and homemade vanilla fudge (it has adorable packaging). i wish i lived closer so i could have bought some fruit and veggies, too!

ted baker had an amazing sale going on for winter merchandise. i bought a lovely little pair of fingerless gloves with an adorable black embroidered accent. they are so dainty, i love them! i also bought a long grey pleated sweater, which i will be wearing to work this week.

les petites also had a great sale, where i picked up a long cream swing-y top.

florentine + baker is an awesome place for unique leather handbags and shoes. i did not buy anything, but it is a good place to have in mind for the future.

this little restaurant, beach street babylon, looked so cozy and cute. i will have to bring friends back to eat there soon..

i am excited to go back, there are a lot of places i missed!

fashion journalism with pesta

i am currently sitting in my fashion journalism class, which i love! my professor, pesta kaffens, is so right on and lovely at explaining the in's and out's and crazy bounds of the fashion industry. she is hilarious, but her statements are completely accurate. a few minutes ago she said, "diane vreeland is ugly, but it works for her... even though we would expect her to be beautiful."

here are some of her other quotes from today:

she just showed us a 1940s magazine cover and said, "this is scary, it's a nazi magazine...quite dirty."

we got to see marilyn monroe before her chin implant... "women's star magazine looking ghastly"

"cutsy-wootsy boyfriend magazine"

"seventeen...look at this outfit: heidi"

"brooke shields..JAILBAIT"

"they all love the sounds of their own writing" (cover lines taking over the cove)

"seventeen looking very odd, i actually thought her head was coming through the wall (of cover lines)"

"you can read that... but i don't want to"


i cannot wait for next week's class...

days in camden

although i get quite fed up with the tube journey to work, i really enjoy the walk through camden town every morning. the french connection offices and showrooms are located on the quiet camden street, just south of the crazy camden markets and the river. i've love seeing the sunny streets (yes, it has been quite sunny) in the morning and leaving the office after dark when the area comes alive.

camden street

french connection building

french connection

off mornington crescent tube station

my lunch spot, with lovely deli sandwiches

camden town

day one

at my first day interning at french connection, i was quite nervous. surprisingly, my anxiety had nothing to do with what i was wearing. i chose my outfit the day i bought that navy "coatigan" from topshop. i wore that with black high-waisted pleated pants, my black j.crew bandlier booties, and my favorite long necklace. i pilled on some gold bangles and my lulu frost bracelet. it was really simple, but street chic as well. however, i need to stock up on some french connection gear, when i find some time to shop! 

the work itself was quite fun! i learned the merchandising system for categorizing inventory, production, and suppliers. mostly i will be looking at supply orders and making sure they arrive in stores when they need to. i also got to rearrange some of the menswear to prepare for range show on thursday. that was quite fun, however; tomorrow might be long as i have to go through each piece and tag it. i'm quite excited for range day though! apparently on wednesday rob and i (he's my boss) will be going to the french connection store on oxford street to find me an outfit for thursday! i cannot wait!

the tower...

i am currently reading the tower, the zoo, and the tortoise by julia stuart which is set in the tower of london. last night i was able to get a glimpse of the tower on my way to our disco boat party down the thames. i think i will wait to actually visit the tower until after i have finished the novel.

it is a story of one of the beefeaters who guards the tower, or nowadays guides tourists around and answers repetitive questions concerning how many have been beheaded in the tower. his wife works at the lost property office of london, receiving the most obscure things from the london underground. they also own a 181-year-old tortoise named mrs. cook (one of my favorite additions to the novel). i am about a third through the book, but the queen has requested that all her animals be transfered to the tower from the london zoo. the beefeater will be overlooking the tower as it transitions into a historical zoo. mrs. cook will have many friends...

stuart did immense research on the tower and created a lovely story within. the novel has been reviewed as charming, quirky, whimsical, and humorous. it is "captivating" according to usa today. although the first half is generally about intertwining many stories in the tower, the second half is said to be quite uplifting and hilarious.

wandering and some costa

my first free day in london! old spitalfield's market is quite fun, it was a little empty today because it's a week day. i will definitely be back soon on saturday or sunday for some more browsing. we found a beautiful 1940's/1950's beige coat today, but it was too big for any of us. however, it's still on my mind... it had amazingly wide sleeves with a belted waist and went just below my knees, a perfect length. the shoulders and torso were way too wide and bunchy.

moving to a very different vibe on oxford streeet, i did find a great sweater at topshop! it actually has the same wide sleeves, which i bought because i was extremely inspired by the vintage coat. 

seventies style coatigan at topshop.com

i love the name almost as much as i love the sweater... i also found very chloe inspired silk shorts, however, they were out of my size. the bottoms are scalloped, which i adore.

stone scallop hem silk shorts

after shopping we stopped coincidently for afternoon tea at costa. the cherry almond muffin i had was to die for. i'm really loving this place.

       

bye chicago, hello turquoise bathrooms

i arrived in london a little too early for my liking this morning... 1am chicago time, 7am london time. both did not sound good to me. after a super winding taxi ride through london's crazy streets, i waited at campus for my room to be ready for about six hours. it was a wonderful start in england. as you might guess the picture of me above is before all the shenanigans of the day took place. however, in my six hours of wandering and sitting around i stumbled upon this particular spot on campus. the women's loo (hehe) is quite turquoise. which might make it one of my favorite places on campus...

even the sinks were labeled with something familiar from chicago.

travel in style

my london adventure begins! i am still in america, but i will be leaving shortly. packing for a six month stay was quite scary. packing for a stylish time is also quite scary. with a couch full of clothes, i managed to fit it all in two suitcases... only with the help of vacuum bags. they are the essential for traveling abroad or for a long trip. a foot and a half pile of sweaters shrunk to basically nothing! i had to watch my weight limit, but it wasn't so difficult to pack what i really needed.

there are 2 winter coats, a rain coat, leather jacket, all those dresses, sweaters, tees, jeans, and more things that i cannot even remember in these three bags...all of which fit in ONE suitcase!

see you in london.