December around the corner

and we started decorating the house a bit. We will never achieve anything like this but I do love the concept and ideas behind these photos

found via

found via

found via

DIY Weekend

Just in case you are like me and want to hide under the blanket by 5pm because it is just so dark outside - Get inspired by Joel's lovely holiday gift tags and let the kids create their own designs

found here

It's Friday

Here are some inspirations for the weekend


After a successful Tweedrun in New York recently, it is London's turn again this Saturday. Raid your Grannie's cupboard if you happen to not be quite on trend yet and on your bike - and the weather should be fine.

found here

Stay within the tweedy theme and visit a lovely little Tea shop in Barnes - the Orange Pekoe, close to the river. Super cosy and very good afternoon tea with scones and cucumber sandwiches. They also do breakfast.

It will get full at weekends, but the friendly staff will try to accommodate. Nice to warm up after a walk along the Thames.

via

Have a lovely weekend!

Cookies ...

greyorgreen

Yep, it's time to start baking - a pastime during Advent (or before for those you cannot wait!) in German speaking countries. Families will come back to old favorites and family receipts. We have friends who easily bake around 10 different types and give them away as presents (if the kids don't raid the larder, that is). We started baking last weekend, but then again, pre Christmas activities are in full flow. The first Bazaar took place today, one more to go and then there will be 3 Christmas carol concerts, two nativity plays, , Slava's Snow Show (very poetic, dreamlike and white ) and hopefully some mulled wine.

P.S. Here is the receipt for the above cookies. With the dark and light dough you can invent all sorts of shapes and forms .... great for kids!

Schwarz Weiss Gebaeck

375 g flour

175 g sugar

1 Ts Vanilla essence

250 g butter, soft

knead it all together

divide the dough in two

add 2 Tbls cacao 

2 Tbls sugar 

1 Tsp milk

knead

and put both parts in the fridge for at least 30 min

Then you can roll out the two parts, lay them on top of each other, roll to make a sausage and cut into 5mm thick pieces, or go and be inventive! (a chessboard maybe, for Grandpa?). In the oven at 200C, ca. 8-10 min. Enjoy!

Slava's Snow Show

Hail a Cab

found here

I know, it's New York, but hey, they seem to have similar problems over there

With the party season starting, finding a cab is getting more and more difficult. So I was very happy to stumble upon a new App - Hailo - that seems to work (according to comments) like a dream. Download from I tunes and it calculates your position when you hale a cab, cabbies nearby are alerted and someone will accept and get in touch to let you know when he will arrive. Sounds brilliant! 

Payment is equally simple, either by card or cash, and they will email you a receipt. Whether they will make it south of the river is another question, though. I will give it a go.

(For more London Apps see here)

Keeping warm

Cameron and Merkel will meet later today to discuss the Euro crisis. I am sure their motto should be: 

Lets keep warm!

found here

But among all the doom and gloom there is pleasure to be found, and if only in a warm cup of tea or hot cocoa! Have a lovely weekend, it looks like it will be a sunny one!

Wildlife Photography of the Year

Wildlife Photography at the National History Museum ( till 11 March 2012) - stunning!

winner in the category 'creative visions of nature'

Stefano Unterthiner

And somehow, looking at these pictures, I suddenly remember that the Ice Rink is open outside the museum (till 8th January 2012) ...

The Knife Maker

Made by Hand / No 2 The Knife Maker from Made by Hand on Vimeo.


Very powerful and inspiring - just the right accompaniment for V&A's exhibition "The Power of Making"
(See here and here, found via SwissMiss)

For your diary

I had a snoop around the more off beaten events coming up soon and found some very promising stuff indeed:

Cerberus Theatre present Max Frisch's Count Oederland at the White Bear Theatre in Lambeth. Check out the review here  and hurry, last show is on the 19th November.

See Dance at the Jerwood Space:  Rough Cuts with Darren Ellis on the 2 December.

Or go and check out London's newest Exhibition space: Two Temple Space and its inaugural show about William Morris (till 29th January 2012) I found out about it on Jane's blog. Thanks!

found here

Visual Note - old and new

greyorgreen

katya chu

Tower und The Shard.

The Shard (of Glass) designed by Renzo Piano, will be, when finished in 2012, the highest skyscraper in the EU with 310 m. Standing on Tower Bridge you get this lovely view of new and old - the Tower of London is nearly 1000 years! 

It's Friday

We will be checking out Tom Dixon's shop in Ladbroke Grove this weekend. It's so far away that we will definitely have to stay for lunch, meeting some friends. The shop is all about design and design related art. (Tom Dixon is an industrial designer, who was head of design for Habitat and Artek among others)

found here

The Dock Kitchen was formerly a pop up restaurant gone permanent.

greyorgreen

The setting looks promising, we will keep you posted.

Have a lovely weekend!

Visual Note - it's ok

quote: unknown

photo: greyorgreen

So romantic

found here

The Nash Ensemble is in residence at the Wigmore Hall with "Echoes of Romanticism", till March '12. The series follows the Romantic spirit from Mozart to Schoenberg and Strauss. 

Apart from their normal evening concerts starting at 7.30 pm they also offer early evening recitals at 6 pm  and coffee concerts in the morning. These programmes are shorter and might be just the right length and early enough to take the kids. We will go to the one that features Clara and Robert Schumann as well as Fanny Mendelssohn. I like that it is not a specific kids programme, but they will have the chance to experience a real concert nevertheless without falling off their chairs and never wanting to come back!

After Halloween and Bonfire Night ...

found here

Christmas decorations go up in Covent Garden, Oxford Street Christmas lights are on already ... and shops have started selling mince pies next to Halloween treats over the last few weeks ... all a bit early for me but I must admit, I am looking forward to this:

found here via

Lush

Stumbled across Lush Design  at tea for joy recently and happy to have found that besides a new shop in Greenwich they also have one online ( since I have sadly to admit I very rarely manage to go that far east). Really love their elegant but dreamy designs on lampshades, cushions, napkins etc..

These cats are just perfect for our daughter's room, and I wouldn't mind some of these on the sofa:

The Kids should see that!

Have you ever watched something amazing on TV or found on the web, like a fantastic explanation to why the clouds are white, or why a violin is made out of wood, or the rediscovery of your  favorite TV show when you were a child or simply a room full of dandelions or how a whale decomposes (trust me, it's amazing) and would love to share with your kids? One mother had the same idea and is collecting all the flabbergasting science, art, technology and other good stuff on her blog. The Mantra being: don't underestimate kids! The kids should see that

found here via

Pub Lunch

found here

We recently went for a lovely autumn walk in Richmond Park and parked at Sheen Gate. Since the above picknick option looks tempting but is obviously hardly feasible in real life, we opted for the next best thing and went to the Victoria pub, which is a 10 min stroll away from the gate through quiet streets, situated in the original part of Sheen (church, school and pub all on one street - as it should be!).

found here

The atmosphere is nice and relaxed, the food is good. On weekends you have to book well in advance for lunch and dinner since it seems that most of Sheen can be found there enjoying their roast. It's not cheap, but I think well worth a trip. 

A real bookshop!

found here

Daunt Books is an Edwardian Bookshop at 83 Marylebone Highstreet with galleries and creaky floors, where you can browse by continent and country. Do not enter if you are short of time like I did the other day. Need to go back soon, and take a day off for that!