Tag Archives: London

Cover Up: My Perfect iPhone Cases

I finally upgraded to an iPhone 4GS recently because I was waiting until my contract was up on my old iPhone. In my quest to treat my new phone better than my old 3GS, I searched for protective, yet stylish covers. Coincidentally as I was looking for one on eBay, I ended up with two. Soon after, I was given one by the wonderful folks at Iconemesis. Each of my new covers are prefect for who I am, and my needs.

I wanted the rubber audio cassette tape cover because we all know I’m an 80’s gal, and it matches my wallet (seen here). I bought the wallet case at the same time I bought the cassette tape cover on eBay. I really like the wallet case because it’s perfect for putting in a couple of business cards, an ID, a debit card and some money for a quick grab and go. Oh yeah, it has a Union Jack on it as well. When I was asked by Iconemesis to take a look at their phone covers, who knew I would find one that spoke to me and my Anglophile heart. It’s called “London Village” by Sophie Henson, an illustrator and designer living in London. Each time I look at the illustration, it reminds me the sights, sounds, and even the tastes of one of my favorite cities.

Check out other great phone cases by fantastic independent artists on the Iconemesis official site, and stay connected with them through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Partial outfit in photo 1: Talbots hooded cape (full cape seen here); London Underground cuff c/o Designhype; London City Map ring by Suki Bijoux; Co-Bolt Blue nail polish by Sally Hansen; “London Village” iPhone 4S cover c/o Iconemesis

FTC Disclosure: I received free product and was asked to review the product in return. Although I did receive free product, the opinions in this post are strictly my own.

European Vacation Days 7 & 8: Say Hello, Wave Goodbye

August 22 was our last night in London, and part of the morning was spent returning back to London from Paris. After a quick trip back to our hotel room back at Wembley Park, we quickly went back to Knightsbridge because Janice had a couple of returns and VAT items to take care of at Harrods and Topshop. We then headed towards Piccadilly Circus to see the famous illuminated signs and we grabbed some lunch at a pub called Tom Cribb. From the official website: “The pub is named after British champion bare-knuckle boxer Tom Cribb who, in the 1800s, retired from the ring and later became a publican, at the Union Arms. The pub changed its name to honour his career.” I had a sandwich named after him and Janice had bangers & mash for the first time (both were very tasty). I wanted to try a truly British beer, so I had half a pint of Spitfire to wash it all down.

After walking around a bit, we stopped by Cool Britannia, one of the coolest souvenir shops in London. Unfortunately, I was quite bogged down with packages and it was way too busy in the store to take any proper pictures. I wish I had because it really is quite a fantastic souvenir shop.

Elliot making my first drink of the evening: The Westerners’ Erofeitch. Doesn’t he look like a naughty mad scientist? Note the water and food close by…we knew it would be that kind of night.

My next two drinks: The Perfect Lady (very sweet & creamy) and The Mandalay (slightly bitter with Campari).

To celebrate our last hurrah in London, we went back to Callooh Callay (see my first post here). The above drinks were all delicious and very mildly named. Things already became fuzzy for me after two drinks, so I very thankful that we had been eating and drinking water throughout the night. As the evening got later, the names of the drinks got raunchier. I’m sure Elliot has seen crazier patrons than Janice and myself, but I thank him for putting up with me, especially after four drinks (Janice can hold her drink much better and went three drinks deeper than I did). India, another lovely and incredibly understanding waitress, was also very sweet, keeping up with our silliness throughout the evening.

This was the last of the respectfully named drinks: this is the P-p-p-poppy. I think the stuttering comes from having the three drinks prior.

A very nice picture of Elliot and Janice. My eyes always narrow the more drink I consume, so I opted for no pictures of myself for the evening. I’m surprised I was even able to hold the camera steady for this shot.

Janice with a new friend she met whilst I was in the ladies room. The bluriness of the shot indicates why I couldn’t remember her name…sorry dear!

One of these drinks is called the Spagliato and the other is called Ahhh, Sh!t, It Tastes Like Christmas (as you can tell, I can’t remember which is which). The last drink of the night was what did Janice in, which is probably why it’s not pictured. It was a drink we used to have when we were clubbing. Elliot’s version is called “I F@#!ed the Red Headed Slut”. And so ended the night…

I’m not sure how we did it, but we filled out applications and turned them in before we left, with the hopes of obtaining membership to The Jubjub Bar. I’ll let you know if we actually got our memberships approved (*crossing fingers*). As Bridget Jones would say it was a “v. good night and blurry good fun!”

(Please note that as of September 5, our Jubjub Membership requests were approved! Now, does that mean that we should schedule another trip out there to collect our key? Hmm…)

The Metropolitan line. Our hotel was directly in front of the Wembly Park stop (Zone 4).

These last pictures in London are a bit silly. One is of the Tube line that we took regularly, which was the Metropolitan. The second picture I took because I’ve read that Alan Wilder (Recoil/Depeche Mode) grew up in Acton, which is in West London. On our way to Heathrow, the one of the stops was Acton Town. Is it the same area? I don’t know, but I had to take a picture of it (although I know he now lives in Sussex). I also have to say that I’m very sad that I missed the Spirit of Talk Talk launch party, which happened September 6 (Alan Wilder was rumoured to have been there). Even if I had known about it, I’m not sure I could have made it work anyway as it would have been just too long to be away from home and work. Oh well!

I took a couple of final pictures on the plane ride home of our route on British Airways. I love the individual video screens that are available on these long flights because it allows me to watch several movies I would never have otherwise watched. I watched The Five-Year Engagement and The Hunger Games on the way home (I can’t remember what I watched on the way to London because I was fighting a cold that I caught on the way). I also took a picture of our dinner that night because I also love meals on long flights. I particularly liked the dessert, and our nice gentleman flight attendant gave me another one after my meal (it was a cream passion fruit custard, with chocolate shavings on top, SO good).

I had such a great time with Janice and I’m glad we got the chance to get away and spend some time together. I’m also glad I was able to be there for her first European trip, showing her places I had been and discovering new places. I think there may be another European trip in the future (we’re shooting for Germany), but it will be with my husband and son. Cheers and thanks for reading!

Please note that most photos were taken with my iPhone unless otherwise noted. Photos 1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9 and 10 were by Janice Gutana (photo collages are counted as one photo).

European Vacation Day 4: Be Kind & Rewind!

Sunday August 19th was the Rewind Festival at Henley-On-Thames, which was the catalyst that spurred this whirlwind trip to London and Paris into action. This was my first ever festival, and I thought my first festival would be Coachella or Lollapalooza, but I’m actually glad to say that my first festival was in a different country. Although we would have loved to have gone to both days of the festival (especially to see Rick Astley and Jimmy Somerville on Saturday August 18th), both Janice and I don’t really camp in America, so camping in another country 5,000 miles away from home was most likely out of the question.

I bought these for the train ride to Henley. Oh. My. SO. Good.

Premium Pear Cider, mmmm!

The line up for both days. The running order for the Sunday show remained true to the list above.

We discovered that Henley-on-Thames is not as close to London as we had perceived it to be. A few weeks prior to our vacation, I decided to finally check out how we would route our trip to Henley. I was glad that I did because I would have never perceived that it would be approximately 35 miles from London, in Oxfordshire. Being that we don’t have licenses to drive in Great Britain, I furiously looked for transportation from London, and I found that we would need to take the National Railway. This would mean that while we could get there with no issues and start our concert festivities early, we knew we would miss the last act because we would need to get back to the station in time to return back to our hotel. In hindsight, we maybe could have just gotten a hotel in Henley and then taken an early train to St. Pancras to just simply connect to our train to Paris. Don’t they say hindsight is always 20/20?

Concert goers on a mission! These were actually the folks who initially helped us navigate our way around Henley. After that, we met quite a few other nice people who helped answer questions as we needed.

The water taxi we took back to the train station after the concert.

Henley is a beautiful, picturesque town. Janice caught some great pictures of our walk along the river to the festival area. The venue itself was on Temple Island Meadows, which has been the home of the Rewind Festival for the past few years. The festival itself was larger than anything I had been to previously. It felt like the San Diego County Fair combined with a food truck event, but with way better music and bands (in my humble opinion, of course). I will say that the acts that I wanted see played everything I wanted to hear: Adam Ant, Midge Ure, Marc Almond and Tony Hadley. My only regret was not being able to catch OMD, but that’s only because of the aforementioned time constraints. In fact, we nearly missed Tony Hadley! But we got to stay through his set because our friendly neighborhood concert goers explained that our train tickets were good for the night because the trains departed every 30 minutes. My favorite concert moments:

Dancing around like a lunatic during Adam Ant’s set.
When Midge Ure played “Vienna” and “Dancing With Tears In My Eyes”, I practically cried.
Surprised that Roland Gift actually played “She Drives Me Crazy”, and loved that he played “Good Thing”.
Completely not expecting to hear “Tears Run Rings” by Marc Almond. I had read previous set lists from his shows, and I don’t recall seeing that song on there.
Every. Single. Song. By. Tony Hadley.

Rather than continue to describe all of the events, I just made selections from both sets of photos by Janice and myself to just illustrate the awesome time we had. Next post: A quick two-day jaunt to Paris!

Adam Ant fans, no?

Some of the booths at the festival, which included vintage clothing! Janice got some totally bitchin’ leg warmers there.

Ohmigod, Janice! That side ponytail and those leg warmers are in full effect. Totally.

Our pile o’stuff. I think we were the least prepared to be there. Next time, we need to at least bring a throw blanket, mat or towel!

Originally, I brought the umbrella in case it rained. It turned out to be useful to keep cool! And yes, that is yet another Joy Division shirt that I’ve added to my collection.

This lighthouse/windmill looking building was actually a giant slide! At first, it was mostly kids coming down the slide with their parents. Later into the night, alcohol fuelled everyone’s inner child to take a ride.

Adam Ant and The Good, The Mad and The Lovely Posse

There was karaoke for the crowd between sets. Duran Duran anyone?

Everybody Wang Chung tonight!

Carol Decker of T’Pau putting in some heart and soul into her hit song of the same name.

Midge Ure looking and sounding wonderful after the mini-fiasco of the first song (his mic was completely shut off for an entire song).

Marc Almond not only sang “Tears Run Rings” but also “Tainted Love” and “Say Hello, Wave Goodbye”.

We were excited to know we could stay for Tony Hadley!

Tony Hadley sounded so amazing live. Although I know the favorite was “Gold”, my highlight was “Only When You Leave”.

My iPhone lighter for when Tony sang “True”…

This group of concert-goers sat behind us. They were so awesome and answered many of our questions. They also ave us glow sticks to carry our celebration into the night.

Janice spotted some interesting characters in neon. I don’t think I have seen that much neon collectively in one place, except at a mall back in the actual 80’s.

Teen Wolf attacked me on the way out of the festival (or was it the werewolf from “Thriller”?). Either way, I survived!

European Vacation Day 3: Take Me to the River (Thames)

On our third day in London, we decided to take the advice of one of our cabbies and start off at The Houses of Parliament and just walk all the way down to the Tower Bridge. But first, we grabbed a bit of breakfast, so I thought I’d share what I had. We went to a place that was walking distance from our hotel called the Moulin Grill. I absolutely love bacon in any form, and British bacon is more like ham than what we are used to in America. Either way, it was a tasty and inexpensive way to have my traditional English breakfast (no beans, but with grilled tomatoes).

We hopped on the tube on the Jubilee line and headed towards Westminster. This dropped us off right in front of Houses of Parliament and The Clock Tower, otherwise known as Big Ben. We took a walk along the Westminster Bridge to where the London Eye is located, which is the tallest Ferris wheel in Europe. It was quite crowded (I’m sure due to the fact that it was a Saturday), so we choose not to ride it. Instead, we snapped pictures of ourselves with the attraction in the background (only my picture is shown). After we passed the London Eye, we noticed that we were on a trail called The Jubilee Greenway, which is 60 kilometers long and each kilometer marks one year of the Queen’s reign. We then passed through the Soutbank, went into Southwark Cathedral and saw many other fantastic sites on the way to Tower Bridge.

My new studded Topshop shoes with my Rebecca Minkoff schoolboy.

Janice took this great picture of a sign on a bench.

Random shots around Southbank.

There was poetry posted all along the rails of a pier on the Southbank. I loved this poem.

Millennium Bridge and Shakespeare’s Globe

The sign above explains pretty much everything we saw on the approach to Tower Bridge.

Clink Prison Museum, Tate Modern, Southwark Bridge

Southwark Cathedral

I just really liked the lines and the way the angles looked in these pictures.

Sights of the Olympics were alive and well while we were in town, and we realized that we were actually between Olympic events: The Summer Olympics games ended on August 12, but the Paralympics games began on August 29th. Everywhere we went, we could see the Olympics’ mascots Wenlock and Mandeville. At one point, Janice and I gave in and posed with one of them as we approached Tower Bridge.

Tower of London

After having lunch at a cute little place called Noodle Noodle, our last stop was Buckingham Palace. There wasn’t a guard ceremony that day, so we just walked around, taking in the enormity of the grounds. In the picture below, we are standing on The Victoria Memorial with Buckingham Palace in the background (Janice is pictured on the right). Below that is a great picture of The Mall, which is a ceremonial route to Buckingham Palace. The last pictures are of the gateway to the Queen’s Gardens, the Queen’s Gallery (we only went to the gift shop), and a marker for Princess Diana’s memorial walkway.

Gateway to the Gardens at Buckingham Palace

The Queen’s Gallery and a marker for Princess Diana’s Memorial Walkway.

It was amazing how long of a walk we actually took from Westminster Bridge all the way over to Buckingham Palace! But is was a fantastic walk, and I want to thank our cabbie for suggesting it to us. It was quite a lovely day for a long stroll, and it did take us the bulk of the day to do it. Next post: The Rewind Fesitval at Henley-on-Thames on Temple Island.

Please note that most photos were taken with my iPhone unless otherwise noted. Photos 4, 6, 7, 17, 20, 21, 22, and 23 were by Janice Gutana (photo collages are counted as one photo).

European Vacation Day 1: O Frabjous Day at Callooh Callay!

Our fabulous European vacation began on August 15th, 2012, but really started on August 16th when we landed in London. We lost a day travelling and I felt that I actually lost a little more with the lack of sleep and sadly due to a cold that I caught while on the plane. Despite my slightly weakened system and need of sleep, I made sure that I was there and present for Janice’s first official day in Europe.

After checking into our hotel, the Premier Inn at their London-Wembley location (where I have stayed all three times I’ve been to London), we looked around locally for a place to eat lunch. I like the Wembley Park location because it is literally a 10 minute walk to Wembley Stadium, and it’s just a quick hop on the Metropolitan or Jubilee Line into the city. After a swift walk around, we settled on a pub called The Crock of Gold. Janice was determined to experience fish and chips while officially in London, so we each had that with a couple of pints of beer. Although our lunch was quite delicious and the beers were refreshing, we were still lacking sleep so we headed back to our hotel to take a quick nap.

After our nap, we got ready because we needed to head over to an establishment called Callooh Callay in the Shoreditch area of London’s East End. I found out about it from the Travel Channel on a show called London Revealed. Intrigued by the exclusivity of the Jubjub Members Bar, I made a reservation in hopes of trying to get a key (as the website states, they only give this special privilege to “discerning drinkers only”). We relied heavily on my sense of direction because I was the more experienced London traveller. But because I am unfamiliar with East London, we arrived famously late for our reservations. Despite our late arrival, we were eagerly and pleasantly greeted because I had mentioned when previously making our reservations that we were travelling all the way from San Diego.

Callooh Callay is a gem of a place, hidden in the streets of Shoreditch on Rivington. From the responsiveness of the reservations team to the awesome bartender, everything was fun, casual, cool and exclusive feeling. First , we were led through the front called The Bar, which was a very laid back space. I loved the use of cassette tapes for part of the decor and drink menu. With all of the whimsy of Through The Looking Glass, we were then brought to a mirrored door that resembled a wardrobe. Behind the door was The Lounge, and then passed some velvet curtains was the stairs leading to The Jubjub Bar where the elusive key would be used if we were members.

The Jubjub Bar is a fantastic little cocktail lounge with stuffed flamingos popping out of picture frames, animal pattered walls, fluffy pillows and chairs in various sizes. I felt it was very comfy, like a dimly lit boudoir. Janice immediately noticed the handsome gentleman behind the bar, and it was only later that we realized he was the creator of their August drink menu. The bar itself was chock full of libations, interesting bottles and fresh herbs, which made me feel like we were peaking into an antique apothecary cabinet.

The drink menu was just as eclectic as the bar itself with names like The Westerners Erofeitch and the Paracelsus’ American Laudanum (both pictured above). The Westerners was very refreshing because of its citrus base (fresh lemon juice, lemongrass and vodka), which was Janice’s first drink. When I ordered the Paracelsus’ as my first drink, our waitress asked, “Are you sure? It’s quite strong…” That only piqued my curiosity, and she was quite right. Even though I could probably have drank it quite quickly because it was so good, I nursed that drink the entire night with a glass of water because I could tell it was very strong. Since I’ve become a mum, I’m no longer used to nights out drinking, and I think it was the bourbon and vermouth combination that did me in. We dined on mini hot dogs and mini burgers, all of which were tasty.

The most unconventional moment of the night was when Janice decided to try The Hyper-Ventilator. Our lovely waitress said that she loved this drink because it felt like you were doing something a bit naughty (I think it’s all the sniffing). Elliot Davies, the esteemed bartender of the month of August, came over and explained the secrets behind this cocktail experience. He said that he was at a herbalist and the person in the store was purposely wafting licorice dust at him and he really enjoyed the feeling it gave in the back of his throat, so he wanted to try out different drinks after inhaling the licorice dust. Eventually, he came up with The Hyper-Ventilator, which is a bitter cocktail that is offset by inhaling the licorice dust. Janice said that the bitterness softened more and more as she inhaled more licorice dust.

That was probably one of the most unusual and unique drink experiences I have ever had, and both Janice and I had an amazing time at Callooh Callay. We had such a good time that we made reservations again for our last night in London because Elliot said that he would make us drinks that were “off the menu”. I thought about including that night here in this post, but I think that night deserves its own post because each of our drinks were distinct and delicious, with a great story behind each one. My next vacation post will be about our first experience at afternoon tea. Cheers!

Please note that most photos were taken with my iPhone unless otherwise noted. Photos 4, 8, 9 and 10 were by Janice Gutana (photo collages are counted as one photo).

This is England!

Just a quick hello that this post is going up while Janice and I are in jolly old England. Anything that I want to post in relation to our trip seems to be about The Clash, so I’ll just go with that theme and give into another of their songs as the title of this post. Here’s where we have been so far:

Drinks & starters at Callooh Callay
Afternoon tea & shopping at Harrods
More shopping at Topshop, Cool Britannia & many various souvenir shops
Parliament Buildings
Westminster Abby
Tower Bridge
Tower of London
Buckingham Palace
Rewind Festival at Henley on Thames

As this posts today, we are in route to Paris for two short days, then it’s back to London, then back to San Diego. I’m having loads of fun, but I definitely miss my hubby and son. I know they miss me, too, but l bought them some trinkets that I hope will make up for my absence.

I won’t be able to post the rest of the week, but I’ll be back up and running next Monday. Please remember to enter the Jamberry Nail Shields contest that I posted about last Monday and I’ll see you all next week, cheers!

Across the Pond: Our London Trip is Confirmed!

Picadilly Circus, London, 2008 – Photo by Cyrillynn

I know I have been talking about this for sometime, but everything is confirmed and set for our trip to London! As mentioned, I’m going to travel across the pond with my best friend, Janice on August 15th of this year. Because of wonderful service we received and the fantastic price, we’ll be staying at the same Premier Inn that my husband and I stayed at the last two trips to England, which is literally five minutes from Wembley Stadium. Also, we are flying British Airways because they now fly directly out of San Diego. Since Janice has never been to Europe before, in addition to hitting all of the London tourist spots, we are also planning to take a little side trip to Paris (*fingers crossed*). Janice has been sending me texts with a countdown, which prompted me to add a cute little countdown to this post and to my sidebar.

Keeping true to my fashionista inner goddess, I’ve also started thinking about what I’m going to wear, because I know we’ll be doing quite a bit of walking. I’ve mostly got flats slated for our trip, but I’ve got a pair of low-heeled ankle boots and a pair of flatforms that I’m going to be sporting as well. I definitely plan on shopping, posting outfits and documenting everything right here on the blog!

I just checked the Rewind Festival site for updates and I am beyond excited because they made an addition that I was not expecting to the show we’re attending on August 19th. Here is the line up to date:

OMD (see my posts here and here for previously attended shows)
Lightening Seeds (“Pure” was one of their more popular songs)
Adam Ant and The Good, The Mad & The Lovely Posse
Roland Gift (Fine Young Cannibals)
Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet, newly added!)
The Straits (Formerly Dire Straits)
Wang Chung
Marc Almond (Soft Cell)
John Parr (of “St. Elmo’s Fire” fame)
Midge Ure (Ultravox)
The Christians (Not too familiar with their music, although I have heard of them)
T’Pau (“Heart & Soul”)

My only nervous moments are thinking about being away from Dominic so long while he’s in his toddler phase, because he’s so attached to me right now (I think my husband will be fine). I know Deon will plan lots of outings with Dominic (most likely golf related), so I’m hoping that will keep him occupied. Despite that little bit of anxiety, the excitement just keeps building and building! Look out for more updates as the date gets closer. Cheers!

Releasing My Inner Sporty Spice

With the start of football season just around the corner and our first pre-season game out of the way, I’m anxious to get out and see a game again. As I put on one of my favorite vintage sports tees, I thought about what I see all the time at sporting events: women wearing crazy stiletto heels, barely there clothing in all of their team’s glory and purses so large they need their own seat. With nose-bleed seats that can be nearly 100 feet up and no elevator to help with the climb, I wonder why women dress like they’re going to a night club rather than like they are watching a (plug-in appropriate sport) game.

I think it’s best to channel Mel C (Sporty Spice) by looking smart, sporty and comfy because so many crazy things can happen at any given sporting event. Back in 2008, my husband and I went two football games outside of San Diego: The International Series game with the San Diego Chargers vs the New Orleans Saints, and then to a Pittsburgh Steelers home game because they were playing also my Chargers. I was pregnant at the time for both games.

At the Pittsburgh game, we were in the 5th to the last row near the top of the stadium. Heinz Field is an open stadium and the game was in November, so you can imagine how cold it was! I was in lots of layers and my wellies to ensure warmth and dry feet. About an hour into the game, angry words were exchanged between two fans, and a scuffle happened right behind me. My husband swept me up and we quickly shifted seats a few rows down until things calmed down. Security came over and ended the argument. Later we found out that it was over spilt beer.

Although both were cold weather games and more than likely everyone was wearing something comfortable and warm, I can’t say the same for the games out here in sunny San Diego. At a recent Padres game, I overheard an older woman complain about how much her feet hurt, asking her husband to slow down. When I turned around, she was wearing 3-inch spiked heels, a printed capri pant suit and hauling a beautiful (but incredibly large) designer purse. Her husband wasn’t too sympathetic to her situation.

Here is how I wear my favorite sports gear to show support for my team. I changed my shoes a bit to show how I wear it to the office, and how I wear it when I go to an actual game or even a sports bar.

1. A lightweight jacket or sweater – Games that go from the afternoon into the night can turn cold in a heartbeat. It’s better to be safe than sorry.

2. A piece of clothing that represents your favorite team – I like to do so in the form of a shirt or hat. Usually when it’s a shirt, it’s either a jersey or vintage tee. The one pictured above is one I bought on eBay. It’s my favorite.

3. Shorts, jeans or pants – It is very difficult to sit lady-like in a seat at a sports arena or stadium, unless you are in a suite or press box. If you sit in the regular seats with the regular folk like me, it’s best to wear some kind of pants or shorts because of all of the standing, sitting and climbing that can occur throughout the game. Wear skirts at your own risk (think about the trip UP when climbing stairs).

4. A flat shoe or a wedge – To me, heels and sports events do not mix. I will almost always wear flats, usually some kind of sneaker. But if I do wear a heel, it will be a wedge.

5. A cross-body bag – No matter how pretty or modern the stadium or arena, accidents will happen at a sporting event. You take the life of your purse into your own hands by placing it under your seat or in the seat next to you. It’s best to take just your essentials and wear a purse that can be easily slung across your body. This will free up your hands to carry your child, food and a couple of drinks if needed.

6. Sunglasses & sunblock – Unless your event is strictly indoors, take a pair of sunglasses for sporting events that happen during the day. It’s tough to be outside for that long, and your eyes can take a beating. Also remember sunblock. The back of your neck will thank you for it!

Top picture – London 2008, Wembley Stadium

Middle picture – Pittsburgh, PA 2008, Heinz Field

Outfit pictures – Cotton On sweater; vintage San Diego Chargers shirt from eBay; Hudson jeans; cross-body bag from Rome, Italy; Pierre Hardy for Gap wedges; Marc Jacobs red patent leather wedge espadrille sneakers; Alexander McQueen for Puma trainers

Confessions of an Anglophile

I have always had a love affair with all things British. When I was a teen in the 80’s, I wore “badges” not pins and spelled “colour” instead of “color” and said “Zed” not “Zee” when reciting the alphabet. Currently, I have read any and all Bridget Jones books and articles (yes, even the ones from The Telegraph) and adore the “Confessions of a Shopaholic” series. A few of my favorite online shops are Topshop, ASOS, Plumo and Caro London. I follow soccer (“football”, thank you), drink tea with cream and sugar, and enjoy a proper English breakfast when I get a chance to. I even subscribe to the British Delights website so that I can get tasty treats that are only available in the UK. My boss, who hails from England, has officially named me an honorary Brit.

Ever since I was in my teens, my dream trip was to go to London. I dreamed of where I would go and what I would see, knowing I would be enveloped in the sound of English accents everywhere I went. I had even planned to go to London with a classmate at the end of our senior year of high school. He went, but I couldn’t afford to go. I remember he told me about the record shops he went to and returned with loads of fantastic music, things I could only hope to own and now he did. Jealousy consumed me, and I vowed that someday I would get there.

As far as fulfilling those dreams of London travel, I’ve been over there twice now. When I got married, my husband promised me that we would go to London as part of our honeymoon trip. When we rode in the Chunnel from Paris to London, he just let me to sit with my iPod, taking in the moment while listening to everything from Depeche Mode to New Order, and finally putting on “London Calling” by The Clash as we pulled into the station. I recall the rush as the train stopped and the happy anxiousness as I heard the porter cussing under his breath in his British accent at the previous passengers on my approach to give my passport. I didn’t care, I was in London!

The first trip was a whirlwind of activity because we tried to fit so much into just 2 and a half days, including seeing “The Phantom of the Opera” at Her Majesty’s Theatre, my husband’s all time favorite movie and musical. Plus, the exchange rate was at its highest in years, so shopping was done within reason because we were basically paying double for everything. Even with the high exchange rate, I still made it a point to shop at Miss Selfridge and Topshop.

For our second trip, I was 5 months pregnant and we went to see the San Diego Chargers play the New Orleans Saints. We had more time in London, so we slowed the pace down and got the chance to walk up and down Oxford Circus. My shopping was only limited by my pregnancy, but that didn’t stop me from making a few purchases, including one of my favorite coats.

I think the adoration began with my love for the music coming out at the time in the 80’s and just developed from there. To me, there is just something so very rock-n-roll about the English and their style. It’s preppy and irreverent all at the same time. I remember when I bought my first spiked belt, which I still wear to this day along with a belt buckle of the Union Jack. I remember when a limited edition line from Miss Selfridge came to JC Penney. I wore the t-shirt with pride because I knew it was distinctly something British. When I got my first full-time job, I remember buying my first pair of Doc Martens and how excited I was because it made me feel a little punk.

I also adored the mod scene borne out of the late 50’s and early-to-mid 60’s. The clean lines of the color block shift dresses, swing coats, go-go boots and mini-skirts had a different vibe than they did in America. When I was 5, my favorite outfit was my white patent leather go-go boots and red furry coat with matching white-collar. I think even then, I had some sort of innate British love already brewing.

No matter what the reasons are (and there are many more), the love affair has never stopped. In fact, now that I’ve been there twice and have met Alan Wilder formerly of Depeche Mode and now of Recoil (see the post here), the desire to return grows each year. Since my husband is quite saturated with trips to London (he’s been one more additional time than I have), I will have to find other people to travel with. My mother-in-law even suggested getting a flat there since we all love travelling to Europe anyway. So friends and family, look out because I’ll be hitting you up to take a trip across the pond to one of my favorite places on earth!