I can barely believe that it is October. Time has been a strange thing for me these past few months. My mind still thinks it's August and I have no idea what has happened to make time speed ahead so quickly. My mother's passing is still fresh as it was the day it happened. Life has been a smudge... not really even a blur.
This has been a difficult year. Most of my life, I would have pushed through and said everything was no big deal, that I could handle it fine and that I was totally fine. This has been one of those rare times when I know for sure I am not fine, and that I am not "handling it" and that I am pushing through like I normally would. What is there to say about that? Not very much, I guess... apart from the fact that I am told that it won't always be this way.
It was somewhat of a shock to me to realize that a holiday we had booked earlier this year was upon us, that it was time to pack and get ready to get on yet another airplane and fly across the ocean yet again. As it approached, I sat down, looked ahead at where we were going, and tried to find things to get excited about. And I did: we were going to London, then flying to Frankfurt to board a five-day cruise on the Rhine, then flying back to England for a few days in the "Antient Towne" of Rye. I researched a few places I thought I'd like to visit and put them on my "want to visit" list on my Google Map.
I'll break this trip up into a few posts, as I have so many things to share!
We weren't in London for very long, only a few days to try to acclimatize and get through some of the jet lag. As such, we didn't visit as many of our regular haunts, but I was pleased to do a few new things we hadn't done before. One was to visit the Sherlock Holmes Museum, located at the actual 221b Baker Street.
Let's be real: someone realized that there was really a 221b Baker Street in London and decided, in true capitalist fashion, to make it into an attraction. It really was an old boarding house, and so it wasn't too much of a stretch to dress it à la Sherlock and allow you to suspend belief for a while. And yeah, it was actually pretty cool, even if I spent time deliberately ruining a Japanese tourist's selfies the entire time:
Did I get any souvenirs? Maaaaaybe one or two:
Another thing I really wanted to do was to have lunch at The Booking Office 1869 which is one of the restaurants within the St. Pancras Hotel, adjacent to St. Pancras/Kings Cross Station. It's meant to be a "reimagining" of the station's original 19th century ticket hall, but really, I was there for the old world charm and the gorgeous setting:
We ordered a few appetizers and I had a nice cocktail, and when I went to the bathroom, I stole some of their posh paper towels (you know what I mean: the ones that are so thick that you can't believe you're supposed to throw them away). We were wearing our regular street clothes, but I didn't feel at all like we weren't supposed to be there, as is often the case with these glamorous establishments. I'd been wanting to go there for a long time, and I feel really glad to finally have made the effort.
I had one day to myself whilst the hubby met with a client in Windsor, so I put my all into it and decided to go full craft-geek that day. What does that mean? Well...
I started off with a visit to L. Cornelissen & Son, an art supply store which has been standing since 1855. I've been before, but I longed to walk in onto the creaky floors and gaze at the shelves and drawers full of treasures:
These are the drawers behind the till. They're full of brushes... but you can open up the other drawers and find brushes, paints, markers, inks... so many lovely things:
I didn't have anything in particular I was after, but I always look for things that are unique to where I am visiting. I decided to take home a couple of these chalk pastel sets, made in England and in mini size to allow me to play with them without the pressure of having a full set. Optimistically, I bought myself a little mini sketch book to try them out (along with a couple of Micron pens, not pictured). I also got myself that brass pencil sharpener, which has a surprising heft to it. I am not in dire need of more pencil sharpeners, but I love things that are well-made and that have an enduring quality to them. And that little tube? It's a tube of watercolour paint in burnt umber because... well, I needed some burnt umber.
After that, I trekked up to a place I'd never visited before: a haberdashery called V.V. Rouleaux, just up the road from Sherlock's place on Marylebone Lane. It's one of these places I saw on Instagram (and if you don't think Instagram is a good way to promote places, I beg to differ). As soon as I found out about it, I knew I had to make the effort to visit:
In this modern age of disposable fashion, it amazes me that places like this exist. Will I ever need feathers for a hat? Maybe when I finally make it to Royal Ascot. But in the meantime, I will enjoy looking at all the bits and bobs that make my heart happy:
I did plan ahead and look at their online shop to see what was there, mostly so that I wouldn't feel overwhelmed by the choice when I got there. I think that helped, because I think I showed remarkable constraint when it came to the till. I have had a minor obsession with red floral corsages and hair pieces, and I was pleased to see quite a few affordable options there. I also knew I would not be able to walk away without buying some of their gorgeous ribbon. Do I have plans for them? No... but I've learned that these things are wonderful sources of inspirations for later projects, so I just trust my gut and take them home:
I chatted a bit with the girls behind the till when I was making my purchases. They asked me what my plans were for the ribbon, and I replied, "Oh, I don't know... I'm on holiday and I just wanted to enjoy myself and buy what I fancied!" They asked me where I was from, and I told them, and also explained that I lived in London just over twenty years ago. One of them asked me what the biggest change was, and I told them that it was probably that you don't have to worry about buying paper tickets for the train and Tube anymore, and that you can use your phone to navigate.
And then one of them said, "Oh yeah... I think they used to use those paper maps, right?" Oy. That felt... special.
Of course, I did have to make a stop a Liberty London. I wanted to visit their fabric section and get a couple of metres to take home. As usual, their displays did not disappoint:
You can order a lot of their items online from them, but I think nothing really takes the place of looking at them in person, just to be sure it's what you want. I saw these two prints online, and was quite sure I wanted them, but being able to see them in the bolt and pass your hand over the lovely Tana Lawn is always such a treat:
On the way back, I was using Google Maps on my phone to try to find my way to a bus (since I was a bit tired of descending and ascending escaltors in the Underground), but I got a bit lost (or rather, Google decided to change its mind about which way I should go... man, I miss paper maps). As I loped along, I spied this place. Who am I to challenge fate:
I'd never heard of MacCulloch & Wallis until I stumbled upon then that day, but I learned aftewards that it has been in London since 1905 and has been supplying fabrics and trimmings since then. This is not the original location, but the spirit of the trade is still there.
I loved the yarn displays, but I often find it hard to find unique yarns when I am in the UK, as many places seem to carry the same brands agan and again. I decided that it would be best to take home a souvenir skein of their undyed yarn, a DK weight alpaca chain-plied yarn with a little bit of merino and nylon. Its gorgeously soft, and I have visions of an entrelac cowl to snuggle into on a cold, wintery day:
So after that whirlwind visit, we made our way to City Airport and took a flight to Frankfurt to stay the night before beginning our cruise on the Rhine. I'll share that in the next post.
I hope you're doing well. Thanks for coming to visit me here.
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