My new happy place is Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park. It’s an architectural dreamscape, where Austrian clichés meet Christmas kitsch. Amusements include mulled wine, blizzards of fake snow, roasted chestnuts, animatronic moose heads, the carousel bar, reindeer races, fairy floss, pretzels, talking trees, ice-skating, krugs of beer, fun fair tokens, and of course, a visit to Santa.
It’s absolute madness and I love it.
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Last Saturday I was a tourist in my own city. Which is quite easy to do in London. While I am beginning to know the East End well, the West is a whole ‘nother story. So I decided to get myself lost! I caught the tube to Kensington, then spent a few hours at the Victoria & Albert Museum, gazing at all the art. After a few inspiring hours, I walked through Hyde Park, around the Serpentine, making friends with a few birds.
Yep, I has wonderful time wandering in London; just people watching, stretching my legs, and admiring nature. Best of all, it was FREE. I spent about a quid on my whole adventure. (I really like saying the word quid in private, but not actually to anyone.) Which to brings to mind a saying I like (source unknown) that rather inspired my move here: “If you’re going to be poor, you may as well be poor in one of the greatest cities on Earth”.
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Twisted, Nicholas Kennedy’s photography | But Does It Float
Best of Breed, 102 champion dogs photographed at the Westminster Dog Show | NY Times
F.lux and Ommwriter, 2 programs to increase the aesthetics of productivity. I have been playing with them both and they are an excellent alternative to the Word.doc of death | Cellar Door
Miranda July Q&A, from Stylist’s clever masterclass series. I had a Q and MJ gave me an A! | Stylist Magazine
And even more inspiration from MJ – on Strangers | The School of Life
Codeacademy – an interactive way to learn programming by actually coding!
Rose & Clover and other colour schemes | Apartment Therapy
The arc of drama, explained by Kurt Vonngeut | Sivers
Kaleidomaniac, an image blogging experiment. Below: Tsukiji Fish Markets by Rory Hyde | Jarred Bishop
Starbucks’ augmented reality app makes your cup come to life! Naturally, I like the fox | Mashable
Also of note:
Vintage cameras in London, an alternative shopping experience | Last Minute
Lapday, a definition to consider | Dictonary of Obscure Sorrows
A wedding in the woods | Jody Rogac
What’s on the mind of Laura Ford | STW Nextness
Anita Calero: Curated Chelsea Home, I want to live here | LoftLife
And:
… I leave you with a Steven King quote that I enjoyed this week:
“Look, writing a novel is like paddling from Boston to London in a bathtub,
Sometimes the damn tub sinks. It’s a wonder that most of them don’t.”
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October.
The changing leaves.
Finding the perfect snood.
Expired film.
Drinking wine with Hemi and Thom.
Carving my mini pumpkin.
Exploring my neighbourhood. (Discovering Vietnamese food!)
Cask ales and candlelight.
Bike rides on crisp mornings.
I have always wondered why some people are utterly in love with Autumn but it all makes sense in a colder climate.
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On Saturday Liss, Thom & I headed to Stoke Newington to check out the weekly car-boot sale at the Princess May. It was my first time in Dalston and I loved it! We picked up some breakfast at the street market – hot naan bread wrapped in newspaper, priced at 2 for a pound, then coffee at a Turkish cafe. Then it was off to the school yard to do some serious fossicking.
We came home with some good booty – a 35mm camera of Russian origin for £10 , a Patricia Highsmith book for £1, that bold red bird-printed dress for £5, and a set of mint-condition fondue forks for £5. The forks were a most fortuitous find because next week I’m holding a little fondue get-together to celebrate my birthday.
Perfect!
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My new dress, bought at a car-boot sale for a fiver. I never ever used to wear red, but this year it seems to have crept into my wardrobe more and more. Maybe it’s a reaction to my darkening environment (British Summer Time ended today). The print reminds me of these beautiful photos of birds in flight by Sarah McLean.
From what I can tell it’s a Japanese brand – DELICE by DOLCAS Tokyo Style Co. Searching doesn’t reveal much but I’d like to know more!
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As far back as 1014, and probably much earlier, London Bridge attracted traders selling grain, fish, vegetables and livestock. In the 13th century traders were relocated to what is now Borough High Street and a market has existed there ever since.
![sweet[s] stall](http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6031/6288416178_15eab01271_z.jpg)
The other day we went to Borough Market. Alongside cheese, breads, cakes and all those good things, it has the widest choice of fruit and vegetables that I have ever seen.
The atmosphere was incredible too; imagine crowds of happy people trading, supping on aromatic mulled wine, popping truffles in their mouths, pressing juices, ordering coffee, carrying armfuls of bread, commiserating on the weather… All the while trains rumbled across the viaducts overhead. I want to go back again and again.
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London – September/October 2011. Roll number 3 with the Diana Mini captured the last of the summer light. I love shooting film, but I’m not sure how committed I am to the Diana Mini. It might be time to pull out the Canon AE-1, and get a sturdier satchel (I have my eye on a Cambridge batchel) to carry all my crapola round with me.
A majestic building in Bloomsbury.
An alternate view of Marble Arch. (I always get the sublime Jeff Buckley in my head when I hear those words.)
A flat white at Flat White, Soho. Good coffee is hard to come by in this city (country?). All the best places are run by Aussies & Kiwis, which is not that surprising.
A day trip to Oxford feat. The Queen.
I adore Hyde Park’s deck chairs in the summer… But goodbye to all of that for now!
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East London, walking to the DLR train in the morning. Every day it’s getting darker and colder. To beat the gloom I’ve planned my first mini jaunt to the continent. 2 nights in Brussels, in a couple of weeks. I’m looking forward to the famous chocolate and beer!
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My gorgeous friend Laura reminded me of this ad from Telecom New Zealand – Keep In Touch. (L. why do you not have a blog already?)
The beach featured is Cheltenham, and in fact I grew up on this little slice of paradise! Way to make me all weepy. Maybe it’s time to boot up the rasterbator…
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London – August/September 2011. My second roll of film shot with the Diana yielded significantly better results! This time the camera was turned to East London. I really love Brick Lane (haha, in case you hadn’t picked that up yet). The diversity and noise reminds me of my beloved K Road; but the markets are way better, and the vintage is pricier!
Glorious Shoreditch wisdom by ESPO.
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Making do with scraps and scrims to decorate my new hole in the world. I came over here with 30kg of luggage, but seriously, when I look at my worldly possessions (I put nothing in storage except books) – I think, what on earth did I bring? Where is my good stuff? I think most of my luggage allowance went towards bringing my hairdryer and shearling jacket. Two items which are not in short supply in England.
The second picture is of our kitchen and the wonderful collage my flatmate Ryan made from old Christie’s catalogues. The green bird was a goodbye gift from my cousin; a little reminder of home…
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Earlier in this week I posted about my new Bobbin bike and their wonderful illustrations.
And today I have something even better to share with you! It’s the new Bobbin Bicycles film, directed by the talented Miles Langley. I was so excited when Miles emailed me to give me a sneak peek – it’s stunning. I hope you enjoy it:
Bobbin Bicycles – Style Film from Miles Langley on Vimeo.
For the first time Bobbin Bicycles are now available to buy from a global network of dealers. Visit Bobbin Bicycles to see where you can pick yours up from.
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When I first visited Brick Lane in 2009, and drunkenly chowed down on a cream cheese beigel, I never could have imagined that 2 years later I’d live within walking distance. Now the Beigel Shop is a familiar landmark, a fluorescent neighbourhood beacon glowing at all hours of the day.
This Beigel Bake print by Jo Peel really captures the spirit of the place; a bit unruly, a bit unloved, but certainly part of the East London fabric – for now and forever.
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Hello! My name is Amber Parkin. I'm a New Zealander living in London. I'm a writer obsessed with fondue, chesterfield sofas, vintage dresses, foxes, and 35mm.
Here I like to talk about fashion, design, food, travel, writing & books, and culture. Everything else (including my photography) goes into my digital notebook.
If you'd like to email me the address is amber@codeforsomething.com
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