Following a week of high drama and unexpected events at work I have had a lovely weekend.
It actually started with lunch on Friday as Paul and I popped out for a bite to eat to escape the chaos and to soak up some of the unusually warm weather. After making a comment about the viewing platform at One New Change we decided to pop up to the roof terrace once we had finished eating. The views from the top of the terrace are lovely and you get a great perspective of London and St Paul’s that you wouldn’t normally.
I hadn’t realised the exhibition was on as I have been before but thanks to another friend I found out about it before it ended today!
Pick Me Up contains a wealth of graphic and street design which is from well-known and up and coming artists and the main purpose is that you can but the art to take home with you. We didn’t buy anything but there was plenty to see and quite a bit to amuse us.
I am not sure if it was the relief of not being at work, the wine or the nature of the works on display but we seemed to laugh our way around the show.
If I had a bit more cash I would have purchased one work but decided against it. In fact over Easter Richard and I are decorating the main bathroom and will go to Lavenham to purchase a painting we saw there a couple of weeks ago as it will be perfect for the room.
Paul and I then headed back across London where we enjoyed a lovely al fresco meal in Spitalfields market. I think this was the perfect way to end the week in London. Both of us were much more relaxed at the end as a result!
Saturday Richard and I headed into London as we had booked to go to the Ideal Home Exhibition at Earls Court. Principally this is a large trade fair which focuses on homes, decorating, gardening and gadgets.
We got there early and managed to pop into at least one of the show homes before making our way around the hundreds of displays and stalls – selling things from fudge to floor cleaners!
The smell from the food court (and all the samples) were far too tempting so Richard and I visited the Greg Wallace Restaurant where we enjoyed a lovely cooked breakfast. Neither of us or really big fans of Greg Wallace but we had to eat humble pie when he popped by our table to say hello, shake or hands and have a quick chat!
We browsed a lot of the stalls and were pestered by many more people than I care to remember but it was an interesting day. It gave us lots to think about with regards to how we could decorate our house and what we could achieve… and the costs!
I must confess we did buy something at the show – a selection of cheeses from the Cheshire Cheese Company. The “BG Cheese” (cheddar with ginger beer) was polished off with cheese crackers on saturday evening and the “Black Bob” (very strong cheddar) was enjoyed with bagels this morning. We do have another one left which is cheddar with whisky and ginger (I forget the name of it).
From there we headed to Richoux in Piccadilly – one of our favourites spots in London and one that we have not visited in ages. As it was mid afternoon we stopped for High Tea but I must admit we were both beaten by the time we got to our luxury cakes (High Tea contains finger sandwiches, scones and cream and fruit cake!).
As if that wasn’t indulgent enough we then popped across the road to Fortnum and Mason where we had a browse around the shop.
Needless to say after all of this wonderful food I fell asleep on the train home.
Saturday evening was lovely as we curled up with Brandy cat and watch a couple of films (“The Birdcage” which we both love and “The Fluffer”).
Today has been spent in sunny Colchester where we have sorted the house out and popped out for a look around. A relaxing day and a nice end to this weekend.
Now we just have a four day week to get through before we can enjoy the wonderful four day break for Easter (and I (hopefully) get to enjoy my hot air balloon ride on Friday 🙂 )
Keith Tomlinson Photography 