Georgina Does

September!

2026-10-06T00:57:50.460-07:00

After the excitement of the summer, September had the potential of being a bit slow - although I don't actually think that has been the case - I just took far fewer photos which always makes me feel like I haven't done anything exciting with my time. Weird.

I've also not been feeling my best so have been forward and backwards to the Dr's a fair few times and that's been keeping me busy, but as I keep reminding myself, my goal for this year was just to be happy - and a lot of that revolves around making sure I have a fun time (as well as learning to love and be kind to myself) so that has continued to be my priority.

Oyster Shucking Masterclass

I saw a sign for a Shucking & Shaking Class as the local pub, and bought a ticket there and then. I love oysters; although whilst it seems I am very good at eating them, I am extraordinarily bad at shucking them. Regardless, I was very happy to have the opportunity to try, and (obviously) had no issues with the cocktail making afterwards.

There were only 3 of us booked in for the first session so it was almost like a private class. The other two were girls my age, so after we were all done, we grabbed our cocktails and finished the evening out in the beer garden.

A weekend in the Cotswolds

The original plan started with tickets for Salon Prive and we decided to make a weekend of being in the Cotswolds by heading to Soho Farmhouse first. Of course.

Saturday afternoon was spent by the pool in the sun, followed by a Cowshed massage and dinner at Berenjek. The food there is just so good; plus there isn't a 3 month waiting list for a table out there.

The next morning, we then had an early booking at the lazy lake hot tubs before grabbing a smoothie and heading the Blenheim Palace where we were promptly told no dogs allowed so that was the end of that. Regardless, it was a wonderful weekend.

Well Crafted

Well Crafted have made it into almost all of my monthly updated this year. What started as a really important part of my self development - solo activity to build self reliance - turned into much much more.

This month, Alexandra took a trip to Poland to explore her heritage and asked me to cover one of her workshops whilst she was away. After an initial hesitation, I can proudly say I hosted my first Well Crafted event, solo, at Little House in Balham.

It was pipe cleaner crafts and it was a success. Yay

And all the other stuff:

- It felt like it had been a while since I had a good excuse to dress up do something fancy, but dinner at The Savoy fixed that!

- A couple of friends visited from the US and they always want to do boujie things so we had drinks at the Four Seasons on Park Lane and then dinner at Zuma.

- I went back to my beloved skating carpark with Paige, it was deserted which was both a little sad and a little scary but we had a great time.

- I went to the gym for the first time this year and impressed myself with my Stairmaster stamina, 35 minutes with no issues!

- Cocktails and the most beautiful, red sunset at JOIA, Battersea.

- Lunch at Riviera. Finally ticked that one off my restaurant list; and tried foie gras for the first time.

- Risked a massage at the local Thai place and was pleasantly surprised. A lovely, lazy sunday.

- A rare visit to Borough Market that felt like a European dream, the hustle and bustle of the market, a delicious whole fish and people drinking wine on the streets

- Walks in the sun. I don't know what it was about September, but I really enjoyed my park walks this month. Maybe the light, the last of the summer warmth, just appreciating the amazing area that I have so locally.

- Also big news - I changed my phone background! I had a screenshot from Netflix's Ed Gein: Monster as my backround since last year but this month, I finally changed it to a photo of Ronnie Radke from Falling in Reverse, my new hyperfixation band.

- Calligraphy Class with Paige. I wrote a whole post about that one if you're interested to hear more.

Mr Fogg’s Calligraphy Atelier

2026-09-29T07:01:28.552-07:00

If you've ever searched for fun bars in London, you will absolutely have already come across Mr Foggs.

"A collection of adventurous bars transporting you back to the Victorian era" based round Phileas J. Fogg and his expedition around the world. They're theatrical, unique, and dotted all over London. I've been a fan since they first opened in Mayfair, over a decade ago.

Now if you've been keeping up with me over the summer, you'll have seen that one of my favourite new activities is taking some craft or another to the pub with Paige, so this was perfect.

New! Mr Fogg’s Calligraphy Atelier: Every Wednesday - Friday | £39pp: Two-Hour Self-Guided Calligraphy Workshop with a Cocktail, Three Cards to Create & Take-Home Calligraphy Kit.

We arrived to an extremely busy pub on a Fitzrovia backstreet, to find Mr Fogg's botanical tavern. As the story goes, where he would keep careful record and sample of every seed and plant-cutting he’d ever collected on his travels.

The street outside was packed but as we headed up the winding staircase, the high ceilings, big windows and many plants gave it a calm, almost green house feel. We sat at a little table with mismatched armchairs, set up with pens, thick practice papers, and an array of colourful inks. It was a calm haven away from the hustle and bustle but still feeding off the atmosphere and energy downstairs.

We ordered a cocktail, and then, were left to our own devices with an online video tutorial and an excited impatience to get started. That fact that it was self guided was great because it meant we could take our time, relax and practice until we were satisfied that our wonky R's actually look like R's and not S's whilst we caught up on two weeks worth of gossip.

As a Brit, I learnt how to use a fountain pen at school so I assumed it was common knowledge but Paige, having grown up in America, thought it only something they did in Harry Potter (lol). Needless to say, the QR code, which supplied a step by step guide in the form of short videos came in very helpful when we finally took a moment to stop and actually look at them.

That being said, my skills left a lot to be desired. Two left handers, with a couple of cocktails, trying not to make a mess in a dimly lit room was a challenge in itself! Paige got better and better as the night progressed, whilst I started well and went downhill as it got later. That is very classic me.

Regardless, we had lots of fun and headed home, with ink stained fingers, and a sense of accomplishment, having tried something new!

If you're looking for a date night with a twist or a crafty evening catching up with a friend over cocktails, I cannot recommend Mr Fogg’s Calligraphy Atelier enough!

*Kindly gifted experience.

St Tropez & Monaco Road Trip

2026-09-09T05:32:50.765-07:00

After our trip to Champagne in July, we were hooked on the idea of another Ferrari road trip. Unsurprising.

This time, we left London with no idea where we were going.

There was a loose idea of going to Lake Como, but that was scrapped the minute we saw lightning on the weather forecast. So, naturally, we followed the sunshine and that too us to the French Riviera instead.

The first leg took us from London, to Folkstone, under the chanel and as far as Lyon which was as far as we could manage for the day. Ten hours later, we arrived, during a thunder storm to a cute little converted barn complex in the middle of a field; which I found from the passengers seat along the way.

We spent hardly any time there as we knew the sun was further south so from Lyon, we got up early and made our way to Monaco, taking a wrong turn and a very unnecessary detour through Paris.

There was a momentary consideration of staying there and heading to soho house but we were both desperate for some sunshine so Monaco prevailed.

Monaco was awesome, and so was the trip there. Twisting turning roads, carved into the side of the mountain, roof down, sun shining. Perfect.

We did a couple of laps of Monte Carlo to get a feel for the place, tick off all the necessary sights and try to work out which hotel we wanted to stay in. We settled on the Fairmont, and were lucky enough to get upgraded to a sea view room, so there was a brief moment of stillness whilst we just took in the views from the balcony but it wasn't long before we were ready to go again.

We grabbed a couple of rooftop cocktails and some dressed oysters at Amazonico and headed down to the harbour for yacht watching with champagne and a fresh seafood dinner.

Waking up to the sound of the ocean; again there was no real plan for the day so we decided to go hang out by the pool and work out what we were going to do.

Conveniently enough, the pool at the hotel was part of Nikki Beach, so what started as a quiet matcha on the roof turned into a day party so we ended up staying there. I'm not usually a fan of beach clubs, but on a city rooftop, it was much more my vibe! Our bed was set back from the pool so away from all that chaos and it was 5pm before we realised we should have left hours ago.

When the time finally came to leave (6 hours after we had imagined) we jumped back in the car and headed west towards St Tropez - catching golden hour along the coast as we arrived.

It was late and we didn't make a room reservation so we hoped for the best and got lucky. A very cute boutique hotel, with one ocean view garden room left.

We dumped the bags and headed straight to the hotel restaurant as the sun dipped down behind the mountains. The food, the views, and so it turned out, the hotel itself were all incredible - another very good find!

Refreshed and raring to go, the next morning started with a quick swim before heading out to explore St Tropez town. I didn't really have any expectations but what we found was a cute little cobbled old town, lined with designer shops and seafood restaurants.

We spend hours wandering around from shop to shop before finally stopping for a late lunch - a bowl of fresh mussels and a glass of champagne at one of the waterfront spots. It was a awesome day.

I'd been saving for a pair of designer flats all summer and the opportunity to buy them in St Tropez was not wasted on me. RE below: very pleased with my new shoes.

I had wanted to go to Club 55 but by the time we were bored with the old town, we'd been there all day and we're well and truly spent (lol) so we drove down to have a look but couldn't be bothered to get out of the car so skipped that and went back to the hotel.

I had another swim and then we had the most dreamy sunset cocktail situation by the pool during what felt like a never ending golden hour.

After such a wonderful meal the first night, we stuck to what we knew and had dinner in the same spot at the hotel, except tonight it was a huge steak and local red wine!

We were back by the pool early for a swim and a croissant. The pastry in France, as suspected, is next level! The playlist this morning was whimsical piano music which set the perfect scene for a peaceful morning. Again, we were very delayed leaving; I definitely could have spent a few more days there!

The drive back north was much longer than predicted because of traffic but by 8:30, we finally arrived (back) in the middle of nowhere at another very cute little chateau where I promptly fell asleep. The next morning we were woken up by natural daylight streaming in and the sound of songbirds which was quite nice.

It was our last day, and although we were slightly tight on time, I was able to make the most of the roll top bathtub that sat in the middle of the bathroom and have a lazy breakfast (and a croissant snuck into my bag) before we left.

Our journey home took a detour via Maison Moet to restock on that delicious imperial nectar we tried last time we were there, and the rest of the drive home was wonderful. No traffic meant long stretches of empty roads and not seeing another person as we drove through countryside. There were a couple of close calls with the petrol, arriving at the tunnel with about 5km left in the tank but it all worked out fine! The train got us back to the UK in 35 minutes which meant I was back at home and in bed by 9 o'clock.

And thus, another awesome road trip in the bag!

Birthday month

2026-09-04T03:01:49.678-07:00

August is my favourite month because it's birthday month yay! and 2026 did not disappoint! I can't believe it's come and gone already and I'm writing this as I watch the rain fall outside!

I actually did have a little dip at the start of the month because it felt like the best summer ever was coming to an end but that was quickly forgotten with the help of all the great people I have worked so hard to have in my life now - and of course the sunshine did continue for the most part so no need to be sad about it!

Girls Weekend at Oakley Court

Birthday month started strong, waking up extremely peacefully in the Windsor countryside with Alexandra. We had a lovely weekend away at Oakley Court.

Painting by numbers

I spent a lot of time at home with my arts and crafts during the dark winter nights, and in an attempt to bring our winter activity into the sun, Paige and I have spent the month taking Amazon specials to the pub to paint whilst we have our Friday afternoon drinks in the beer garden!

Skating

I managed to go skating a couple of times this month which was nice and something I really miss having access to! Paige decided she wanted to try quad skates so we had a fun afternoon picking them out at the shop and going straight to Hyde park from there.

Battersea Power Station also had a pop up rink so we checked that out too!

BBQ

I finally had my first BBQ of the year, and maybe my only by the looks of it now! At least I managed one before the summer was out. Being home also meant I got to hang out with my parents and Molly. Plus my mum did my nails for my birthday!

Well Crafted events

I helped Alexandra out at a few more events this month, and our first one in Chiswick! It was a paper flower crafts night at High Road house and the space was my favourite of all the events I've been to with her. We arrived early to set up and have some food (wine and steak tartare have become tradition). It was a small private room with a big table and with the windows open, it was bright and airy, overlooking the high street; a lovely place to spend a summers evening. Also, the pretty bunch of sunflowers she got for my birthday!

Pints of Knowledge

I have been wanting to go to one of these for months. The last one I bought a ticket for got moved to (scary) East London so when I saw it being repeated more locally, again in Chiswick, I got myself another ticket. It actually fell on the same day as the eclipse, which as timing allowed, I was able to watch before heading inside.

The talk was called "Kinks and Connection: A Scientific Guide to Sex and Relationships” by Dr. Ashley Brown and I feel like I learnt a whole lot about communication within a relationship. It very much did reinforce all the issues I have come up against in the past. If someone isn't willing to tell you how they feel or what they want, then you've got no hope.

Lots of swimming

August was hot and swimming was the only form of exercise I could manage so I made it my mission to seek out swimming pools wherever I could find! London, Windsor, Lyon, St Tropez & Monaco. Nice.

Afternoon tea

Birthday week started with afternoon tea at Raffles - one of my favourite hotels in London! I didn't take many photos, but I did drink a lot of very fancy champagne. The OWO has a crazy wine list and I was able to two two very expensive glasses. What a treat.

Yasmin

Birthday! Yay! I spent the afternoon on a sunny soho rooftop with my mum, brother and aunt. We're all big fans of middle eastern food so Yasmin was the perfect spot. We got there at midday and they didn't leave until almost 10pm!

Ekstedt at The Yard

At 6pm however, I left my family on the roof and headed to Old Scotland Yard for an incredible tasting menu at Ekstedt. Described as a Nordic fine dining, I didn't have a clue what to expect but it was all very unique and I learnt about some new cooking techniques. Stand outs were absolutely their signature flambadou oysters which we were invited into the kitchen see being made, and the Swedish candy at the end. I love a handmade jelly sweet.

South of France

Two days after my birthday, we were off on what turned out to be an incredible road trip around the South of France and Monaco. What a dreamy way to spend the my first week as a 33 year old.

Summer party

I haven't been to a house party in years but my friend decided to throw and end of summer party and it was a great send off for the sunshine! It rained all afternoon, but that didn't actually bother us all that much, we kept the vibes in the kitchen (with the snacks) and did manage to grab one group photo when the sun came out for a couple of minutes. It's been a long time since I've been in a room full of people that I don't know but I made some new friends and look forward to building on those going into the winter.

Notting Hill on Carnival Weekend

I didn't actually go to the carnival but I did visit a friend who lives in Notting Hill over the weekend and it was quite the spectacle.

Anyway, until next month!

A Girls trip to Oakley Court

2026-08-14T05:00:58.090-07:00

I've spent my last few years in London, creating and cultivating female friendships and last week, one of my new friends and I decided to go for a little weekend away.

I seem to have accidentally documented the transition (here, on the blog) from meeting Alexandra at one of her creative events, to becoming friends, so she's a familiar part of my world at the moment. I made such a big effort at the start of the year to fill my life with fun, new activates and love that in doing so, I made a new friend!

It was another warm Friday so I took the afternoon off and I headed out to Windsor early to make the most of the booking.

Oakley Court is a Victorian mansion, set on the banks of the river, in Windsor. It took less than an hour to get there from London, via a little stroll around the town.

The room wasn't ready when I arrived so after a wander around the grounds, I went straight to the wellness centre. I had visited the Soho house pop up there last summer, but didn't realise the hotel itself was so gothic and majestic. Very cool!

I went for a quick swim, which was wonderfully refreshing given the heatwave and then enjoyed an array of Cowshed products in the shower afterwards.

If you know anything about me, you'll know that the river is my happy place so I was very pleased to follow it further outside of London and see it surrounded by the English countryside, rather than, erm, Fulham haha.

I spent the next few hours on a comfy garden chair, under a tree watching the boats and the ducks go by. All very whimsy. All very content.

Alexandra arrived at about 4, which was perfect timing for a cocktail or two. I couldn't quite decide what I wanted so I tasked the barman with making me some kind of strawberry spritz and he did an excellent job. Sweet, fruity, and most importantly, cold.

When it was time to check in, we excitedly explored the room and all the freebies (plate of cookies, more Cowshed products and a picnic basket full of snacks) before dumping our bags and heading back out to the restaurant for dinner.

We both ordered crisp glass of white wine and the miso black cod, which happens to be my favourite dish ever - I always get excited when I see it on a menu! Our lazy afternoon, turned into a lazy evening as the sun slowly, set over the riverside.

Back in the room, we grabbed the hotel robes, raided the box of snacks and put on a film before I fell asleep at 9pm, which is pretty on brand for me. As far as I'm aware, Alexandra stayed up and had a bath.

The speckled rays of sun, shining through the leaves and into the room was a very gentle start the next morning. We woke up to the sound of nothing, which is an absolute treat when you live in Central London.

After a few hours of faffing around in the room it was breakfast time! A little buffet, set up in the back room, opening out into the courtyard. The staff were very attentive, I seem to make a habit of ordering annoying drinks, but they were happy to oblige and got it right first time when I ordered my go to - an iced, coconut milk, hot chocolate.

In typical Alexandra style, she had brought some arts and crafts supplies so after breakfast we took a few steps down to the river and got painting. It was so nice to really switch off for a few hours.

I had plans back in London that evening, so I dipped off for another swim and then caught the train home refreshed, and relaxed!

July

2026-08-03T04:17:27.102-07:00

I was a little bit apprehensive going into July this year, because last July was probably the hardest month of my life, both physically and mentally. This year however, was the total opposite, it was just one fun day after another and it was awesome. I think appreciated it all the more.

Aqua Kyoto Rooftop

I kicked off the month at an OG rooftop bar, Aqua Kyoto. It was very warm and very busy, but I was quite happy - as expected with a glass of champagne in one hand and a pair of chopsticks in the other!

White City house

I spent most of last summer at White City House but having moved back to Putney, its a lesser, and totally different style occurrence this year. I spent most of last year in the underground gym but this week, I had a wonderful Friday night, frolicking in the pool and with a pizza and an array of different frozen cocktails until the sun went down.

and a similar situation at 180 House!

Boat days

Boat days on the Thames are my favourite of all the summer activities and this month, it was actually warm enough that I got in for a dip on a few occasions! We also stopped off at The Anglers in Teddington on one trip, which meant another SW London pub ticked off my list!

Long Table with Mixtons

I first came across Mixtons at Taste (four years ago!!) and they have been on my radar ever since because their dragon mojo - an exotic take on the mojito became one of my favourites canned cocktails.

This month, they started a series of "long table" events across SW London and having missed the debut, I managed to get myself a spot on the second one which was very conveniently held in Battersea park.

Following the music that was coming from behind the shrubs, I found the most whimsical, picture perfect picnic hidden in the trees! The theme was orange, to celebrate the fact they had just launched in Sainsburys! Go Mixtons!

HYC

The Hurlingham Yatch Club is just a ten minute walk from me and after it blew up all over Tiktok, I had to go and check it out. Think old sports club bar, meets riverfront views. Basically the best cheap drink to good view ratio I have come across.

A Solo Retreat

As you can see, it was a busy month, so I decided to take myself away from the chaos for a couple of nights and head out to Surrey.

This weekend was about switching off. As soon as I fell asleep, for another two hours after breakfast, I knew the countryside was doing what I went there for it to do. I slept, I swam, I napped in the sun, and after a long hard day of being awake, I ordered room service and watched a film in bed.

Misc:

- There was a family day out with my mum and brother which consisted of drinks at the OXO tower and bringing them back to Wandsworth to see where I live my life.

- A calm, friday night in doing paint by number in Paige's garden

- Dinner at Chez Bruce! Decadence unlike anything else I've seen locally and a 7 minute uber home.

- Having an American friend this 4th July, meant I got homemade banana pudding which was so exciting! I haven't been able to find anything quite like it since my trip to the East coast!

- The sunshine inspired me to try something new with my toes this month so I went for fluorescent orange and I loved it! As ever though, it did not survive the jacuzzi.

Champagne Road Trip

A little road trip took us to the French countryside for a weekend of wine tasting and vineyard hopping. We ticked off four very well known champagne houses - Moet & Chandon, Dom Perignon, Ruinart and Veuve Clicquot. Starting strong by accidentally ordering six glasses of champagne because I didn't realise 12cl meant 120 ml. More photos here.

What a difference a year makes.

A weekend in Champagne.

2026-07-24T05:39:59.301-07:00

No plan.

Long drives.

Loud music.

French château.

Flaky Pastry.

Champagne flights.

Salted Butter.

Slurred words.

Imperial Nectar.

Summer dresses.

Lazy afternoons.

Early nights.

Joyful June

2026-07-02T02:46:53.391-07:00

June was awesome, and not just because it was full of exciting things. It was also really balanced, which is something I’ve struggled with in the past. There were rooftop cocktails, late nights and making the most of every warm evening, but also a few slow days, resting, listening to my body and embracing the quiet in between. That being said, looking back at everything I got up to, I'm not sure how I managed to squeeze any rest days in.

Gaucho Summer Terrace Launch

I love steak, and clearly I go to Gaucho often enough to be on their invite list for cute events like this. To celebrate the arrival of summer, Gaucho Richmond have created 4 new summer serves, which tasted even better enjoyed in the sunshine on their terrace. The Pink Hugo - with a hint of pomegranate molasses - was a clear favourite for me. As the mingling and live music died down, we grabbed one last cocktail, a table by the river & a couple of blankets and stayed until the sun went down.

The World Cup Begins
Apparently the World Cup started this month. Whilst I don't usually enjoy football, when England are doing well it completely changes the atmosphere in London and I am here for the vibes. I also got to try a new South West London spot, The Leather Bottle, which has a huge beer garden and was the perfect place to watch the match on a sunny Wednesday evening. The girls and I somehow found four chairs in front of the screen, grabbed a few jugs of Pimm's, and settled in for the evening. I may *or may not* have stayed for the whole game.

Tennis at Queens

Paige lives in West Kensington and since her road got shut down for the tournament, she got free tickets to the events. I know less about tennis than I do football, so again, I was just there for the vibes, but we had a great time eating ice cream and watching the early afternoon women's game.

A Battersea Staycation

In an impeccable turn of events, I ended up staying at a hotel with a rooftop swimming pool on one of the hottest days of the heatwave. And as a completely unrelated coincidence, I had booked the afternoon off, which meant come midday, I was laid on a sunbed in 34 degrees next to a rooftop pool in central London. I couldn't have timed it any better!

Having spent the afternoon solo, switching between swimming lengths and hiding under a towel in the blissful heat, when Alexandra finished work, she came to join me for a cocktail. Once the sun went down, it was a luxurious night's sleep in the air-conditioned room before doing the same again on Saturday.

Bucket List Tick

I have all sorts of things on my bucket list, but a disproportionate amount of them involve getting to experience certain types of transportation. A hot air balloon, a helicopter, a private jet, and this month, I was able to tick one off: a red ferrari, AKA super car. Tick.

A few other highlights

Drinks at Sonny's

- A rooftop, riverside (two of my favourite things) bar in Kingston with an amazing view of the river.

Sea Containers

- Dinner and drinks, followed by a stroll along the (eastern stretch, oo) of the river.

Terrarium Workshop

- Another creative class with Well Crafted

M&S picky bits

- Two M&S picky bits picnics! Both times opting for a house over the park because it was so hot that I was worried about access to toilets and drinking water hahaha.

Taste of London

- Regent's Park food festival! We didn't last too long because it was very hot.

Little house Balham

- Al Fresco dinner

Lilibets

And finally I also managed to tick off the newest addition to my restaurant list, Lilibet's. It's been ages since I've had a big night out (eating, not partying) in Mayfair, and considering it's one of my favourite things to do, I very much enjoyed it.

Starting the eve with a glass of champagne, the waitress seemingly underestimated us as is she was a bit unsure as we started reeling off dishes, as well as an emergency last minute order of oysters because we forgot, but alas, she was wrong. We got thought it all.

Lilibet's was standard Mayfair vibes. Very cool, very fancy and a very enjoyable evening! I didn't take any pictures whilst I was there, but what I do have is a picture of my outfit, and it would be a shame not to share that because I wore my favourite pair of shoes!

What I did in May

2026-06-03T07:03:41.648-07:00

May was pretty awesome. Here's what I've been up to:

Hampton and Beyond

I started the month in Hampton, and a magical day in the sun at that. I'd never been there but it's absolutely beautiful and hard to believe it still counts as London.

We started with a drink and an ice cream at The Mitre, the most picturesque hotel on the riverside.

Then walked around what we could see of the Hampton Court Palace without buying a ticket and then continued along the river and into Bushey park - where we sat in the shade of a tree for the rest of the afternoon.

It began what has become a love affair with that part of the river and sure enough, I spent a lot more time there in the following weeks.

Down Hall

Popping home to see my parents & Molly; my mum and I spent a very lazy Friday having a sun drenched lunch in the grounds of a countryside manor house.

Misc

On my journey of building a full and varied life, I attended another creative evening with Well crafted, which involved making paper flowers in the lead up to Chelsea flower show. Paige and I also went for another afternoon tea, which was nice. She's becoming well acquainted with those now. I had dinner with my high school friends, one of whom has just been proposed to (!!) and the last skating lesson of my course, which I very much enjoyed.

In a strange turn of events, I also started wearing my contact lenses again. For years, I only ever wore them when I wanted to impress someone but this month I started wearing them simply because I liked how it made me feel. I wanted to impress myself. That feels like personal development.

The Heatwave

A heatwave turns London into the most magical place on earth. I love it here as it is, but when it's warm, even the most ordinary evening feels like a holiday. That being said, I had very few ordinary evenings during the last ten days of the month. This could really fill a whole post on its own, but at a glance, there was:

- A champagne fuelled celebration dinner at Gaucho, and another at Scott's, both right on the river in Richmond.

- A sweltering day in the pool at Soho Farmhouse.

- Dinner out on the terrace, 14 floors up at Seabird.

- Picky bits, cocktails and dipping our feet in the rooftop pool at one of the London Soho Houses. I also spotted William Hanson, who you already know I'm a big fan of!

- Hopping around many of the SW London riverside pubs - and I ventured out to Crystal Palace for pizza and an afternoon of Hugo's in the sunshine.

- and two wonderfully long and lazy days out on the boat between Richmond and Hampton (see! I said I'd be back.)

All in, it was the best bank holiday weekend ever.

And whilst all of these things were amazing opportunities, it was the people I spent them with who really made the time special. Several new faces entered my life this month, and each brought something positive.

May reminded me of who I am. What makes me happy, what makes me feel alive and perhaps most importantly, how good I feel when I spend my time with the right people - those who bring out the best in me.

April. Yay

2026-05-11T06:46:00.000-07:00

April was a lovely time. There were multiple days of 20+ degree sunshine and with that, I felt the life come back into me. I had fun with my friends, met some cool new people and took every opportunity to be outside enjoying the sunshine. That meant warm afternoons at the park, dining by the river and touring SW London's many beer gardens, Yay!

Big Bank Holiday Weekend

This feels like a lifetime ago now but my early bank holiday weekend was totally packed. The Ned, the boat race, steak, family.. read all about it here

Soho Farmhouse

Early on Saturday morning, we packed up the car and headed out of London for some R&R. After lunch at Berenjak, (and a Jamie Laing sighting) we headed to the spa for a swim and sauna before finding the perfect spot in the courtyard for an afternoon of drinks and people watching.

Skating Lessons

Remembering how happy roller skating has made me over the years, I decided to invest in a course to learn some new skills. I had my first few group lessons this month with Roll Happy and learnt some cool new drills.

Spring Wreath Making

This was my second event with Well Crafted and I love how loosely guided they are. Rather than a controlled masterclass with instructions and processes, Alex's classes are pretty much self guided social events. Left to your own devices with all the props and crafts you need, I switch off from the world for a couple of hours and enjoyed some interesting conversations with the people around me.

Luke visited London

I've been friends with Luke for verging on ten years now (he's been featured here many times) and whilst he was back in London, we went for lunch at Fallow. I haven't seen him in six months so it was great to catch up over oysters and fish heads. (iykyk)

New jeans

This was an unexpectedly huge part of my month. After a lifetime of black, skinny jeans, I ordered a pair of loose fit, low rise, blue jeans and fear I may now have to rethink my entire identity.

Easter Bank Holiday Weekend 2026

2026-04-10T06:11:00.000-07:00

Aren't Bank holidays just one of life’s joys? And to add more excitement to the mix, this one just gone lined up with 5 days of sunshine. What a win.

My long weekend started after work on Thursday. I made the most of being in East London (from the office) by heading straight to The Ned at 3:30pm. The sun appeared out of nowhere and we spent a lazy afternoon by the pool with a passionfruit lemonade in hand and the warmth from the sun on our faces.

Another benefit of being in East London is that it's already halfway back to my parents, so I took the opportunity from there, to go home for a couple of nights. Friday consisted of a fresh gel manicure, a countryside dog walk, and an afternoon coffee and catchup with my mum - and dinner at the local Chinese once my dad got home from work. Very wholesome.

Saturday, I was back in Shoreditch to attend an Easter egg decoration class with LOTI & Well Crafted. It was set up a beautiful light, and airy space and just a great way to relax, unwind and be creative.

After a very zen start, I rushed across town to drop my egg back home and then went straight back out to watch the Oxford Cambridge boat race in Hammersmith, arriving just in time to see them speed past. We stayed for a jug of Pimm’s and then walked along the river, back home for a quite night in since Paige had a roller blading lesson in the morning.

I have been looking for friends to skate with since I started so it was the perfect opportunity to head to Hyde park and skate with her afterwards. A two hour lesson was pretty intense, so we first wandered into the cute back streets of Gloucester road, grabbed lunch and a coffee and then went back to the park to skate along the Serpentine in the sun. Bliss.

Monday, I didn’t have much planned so decided to go for my 2nd 5k run and somehow managed to shave 4 minutes from the first time. That came with a huge sense of satisfaction, and I enjoyed it very much.

The afternoon started with a couple of Huge spritz’s back by the water in Putney before heading further upstream to Richmond to continue our riverside afternoon at Gaucho. An extra large steak, a couple more cocktails and a very chocolaty dessert later, we were in an uber back home having enjoyed a wonderfully full bank holiday weekend.

March Highlights

2026-04-02T06:22:00.000-07:00

I cant believe it's April already, this year is flying by - it feels like yesterday I arrived back from Bali but that was four months ago now. March was an interesting month for me; big changes, new routines and I found it quite hard, but looking back on everything I did this month, it was actually quite a positive one. Funny how things feel better when you take a step back and look at the bigger picture.

Dim Sum Masterclass

Another LOTI excursion; I headed Tao Tao Ju in Chinatown to attempt to make my own dim sum. It started well, with very simple custard buns, which was a good start considering the staff couldn't speak English but it went downhill from there. As the techniques became more and more intricate, my initial confidence quickly faded.

That being said, I enjoyed the experience very much, and even if the result wasn't quite the prettiest basket of dumplings I've ever seen, they were just as delicious.

My first 5K run

With the sun shining, I decided it was time for my first outdoor run! I'd been toying with the idea for a couple of weeks and when I woke up on Sunday with no immediate plans, I decided to give it a go and ran by the river for 32 minutes to be precise! My legs were sore, but I'm excited to try again!

Eating Out

The sun came out for a few days at the start of the month and that was all the encouragement I needed to visit my favourite summer spot - Seabird! Apart from that, I ate at some awesome places this month. A visit to Annabel's, prompted a quick return for a repeat experience of one of the best steaks I've ever eaten. The Cadogan Arms on the King's road set the scene for one of the best roasts I've ever had - a sharing patter of lamb, beef and pork accompanied by copious glasses of champagne and a girls brunch meant I finally ticked off trying the croissant benedict at Fallow.

Al Fresco Wine!!

As well as the food, there was a lot of wine consumed through March. I enjoyed a return to The Ship - showing new friends, an old favourite spot (walking distance home is a definite plus.) A sunset glass on a pedestrianised street that felt like mid summer in Europe; and my first (and second) glass of wine from the mini golf hut at the park with my neighbour!

Help! I've sexted my boss Live

Jordan and William have become a big part of my day to day routine so I really enjoyed the opportunity to see them live at Wembley as they took Help! I've sexted my boss on tour!

Roller Skating at the Barbican

It's been months since I've been able to go out skating, mostly because of the weather, but this indoor event, meant I could practice rain or shine. I headed out east to skate inside the Barbican centre which was pretty cool. It was a small rink, but I got there very early so I was able to take advantage of the space before it got busy. It was great to see some of the marshalls from Flippers, where I used to skate, running the event and they were really helpful in giving me some tips for my spins - which improved exponentially as the day went on! Plus I made a couple of new skating friends along the way!

A very fun February

2026-03-06T06:49:00.000-08:00

At the start of this year, I decided that I wanted to expand my life a little. Things had gotten a bit samey, and I wanted to break the monotony; try new experiences, learn new things, and meet new people. My plan worked! Four weekends and four fun, new adventures. February was packed full of activity, and I had a great time - which would you try?

Afternoon Tea

Ok, this one wasn’t completely new for me, but it was for my (American) friend Paige who I took along with me! I love being able to introduce people to new experiences so I very much enjoyed this, whilst laughing at her trying to eat a scone like a sandwich.

What was new for me, was doing it drunk. Having not seen each other since our respective trips abroad over Christmas, we decided to go for the champagne option and spent the afternoon catching up on each other’s drama over tea and tiny sandwiches.

Lemon Meringue Pie Masterclass

This was such a unique event, I'm very glad I got to experience it. I spent the morning in Shoreditch constructing my very own version of Gloria's massive 8” lemon meringue pie at a class in their wine room. After handing out all but one slice to everyone who would take some, I’m three days in and it is still going strong! I really enjoyed the whole format of this LOTI class, so I’m hoping there’ll be some more that catch my eye over the next few months. (spoiler: I've already booked 3 more)

I wrote a full post on this if you’d like to read more about it.

Floating sound bath at The Mandarin Oriental

I've done the odd sound bath before. The first time I did it, was in Australia and I had a bit of a strange out of body experience so I've been interested in these types of experience since then, but always on solid floor until now.

Keen to try a floating sound bath, I booked one at the new Mandarin Oriental in Mayfair which included four hours of spa access after the session. It was a really wonderful experience, regardless of the crying it triggered, and I look forward to doing it again.

Matcha Masterclass

As someone who drinks matcha laced with milk and sugar, it was really interesting to do a matcha masterclass and get to experience it in its purest form - before lacing it with sugar and milk. I learnt a lot, met some great people and I got to try making my favourite drink from scratch.

Other February highlights include:

The sun finally came out so I spent a lot of time enjoying it by the river.

I got gifted a lava lamp which was very exciting.

Went to the Science museum.

Celebrated Chinese New Year with fancy dumplings

Visited 2 rooftop bars (it's been a long winter!!)

Got roses on Valentines Day

Tried sunset yoga

Matcha Masterclass with Tea PArlour

2026-02-23T07:24:00.000-08:00

I've been searching out my favourite foods and making it my business to learn more about how they're made, where they come from etc so this weeks solo adventure was a matcha masterclass.

Chat gpt suggested “your readers already know you’re a matcha girly” and matcha girly I am. I first became part of the cult in 2023, when I insisted that all of my un-foodie friends, came to Taste of London (the food festival) with me. We stopped at the Blank Street stand (little did we know) which was practically unknown at the time, but they were playing very loud EDM and we were there for an absolute age just vibing and chatting to the guys running the stand. I had quite a few mutual friends with one of them, who I later discovered one of the founders of PerfectTed, who are supplying most places (blank street included) with their matcha nowadays. Anyway, whilst we were there, they were handing out cups of this new drink and we were all hooked from that point on.

Fast forward three years and with the amount of matcha I now drink, I thought it'd be interesting to learn a bit more about it and try it in a purer, less sugar spiked form. After a quick google I found Tea Parlour, which according to their website, serve London’s best ceremonial-grade matcha, sourced from Uji, Kyoto. Seemed pretty specialist to me.

Just behind Leicester Square, they hold similar events in store every few weeks, an hour before opening.

This was a better class for people on their one than my last! The couples positioned themselves at one end of the table and at the other end, there were 5 of us on our own which was great and meant a lot more chatting and social interaction.

Yay, my plan worked!

We started by trying three different types of matcha, each with different characteristics as a results of where they were grown. Each were different grades which I was most interested to understand more about, turns out I couldn't tell the difference. I learnt 100% Japanese matcha is becoming less and less common as growers are having to mix it with Chinese grown to meet demand and clearly, most people, like me, don't notice the difference.

After inspecting their colours and tastes, we learnt about the best ratios of hot water to bring out the flavours and how to correctly use a chasen (the wooden whisk.)

Once whisked to perfection, we lined our plastic cups with whatever syrups we wanted. I went for strawberry, (although my usual order is vanilla,) filled it with ice, milk (coconut) and then carefully poured the matcha on top to get that very satisfying separation of colours.

It was a delicious matcha if ever I've tasted one, although it definitely wasn’t as sweet as I’m used to which showed me just how much syrup goes into my usual order.

Regardless, I left feeling a little bit more knowledgeable about something I consume daily, and having had a nice chat with some friendly strangers so it was a success if you ask me!

Lemon meringue pie masterclass at Gloria, Shoreditch

2026-02-18T06:12:00.000-08:00

I have decided this year is going to be more fun than last, particularly my alone time. I have been signing up for all sorts of new things and this weekend, I kicked it off with a lemon meringue pie masterclass. Fun!

Although this was not just any lemon meringue pie. It was Big Mamma’s very extra, lemon meringue pie.

Gloria was Big Mamma’s first London restaurant which opened in East London in 2019. After taking over the London restaurant scene with their theatrical Italian dining rooms and OTT dishes, there are now six spots scattered across the city, with the newest recently opening in Canary Wharf.

I first spotted their famous lemon meringue pies all over Instagram during lockdown. Gloria is in East London, so I was ecstatic when they finally opened a dark kitchen serving SW London. With pizza, pasta, and pie in my basket, I expected a toned down, transport friendly version to arrive so you can image my joy when the Napoli gang delivered our food, with a sheet of stickers, and a plastic pint glass with a perfectly preserved slice of their 8” pie inside.

I don’t go to east London very often but now that I can freely travel across London again, I was happy to oblige for this. The district line was doing its usual Sunday thing, so I caught a bus to Clapham and got in the northern line direct to Shoreditch. Surprisingly more convenient actually.

Starting with a cup of tea and one of their giant cocktails, (I went for alcohol free since I didn’t need to spend Sunday morning drinking alone) we took our seats (me, between two couples) in the wine room.

Chef took us through the processes for each stage from the dough to the curd and then the meringue. We were lucky to have a bit of a know it all in the group. He was asking some very detailed and complex questions, which means I know far more than the average person about the protein content of different types of flour.

Soon, the aroma of freshly baked dough filled the room, and we were each handed a pie crust as multiple vats of different mixtures appeared from the kitchen downstairs. It was time to get to work on constricting our own pies.

My favourite stage was definitely the meringue. Filling the base with zesty curd required smooth precision but when it came to the meringue, chef demonstrated, gabbing handfuls of it and pretty much dumping it on top and pressing it down to fill any air bubbles. With the texture of sticky, but slightly more stable shaving foam, I was grinning like a kid once I got stuck in.

A real glimmer of joy on a rainy Sunday morning; and that’s what we’re chasing.

Adamant that it wasn't going to be wonky, I did also enjoy taking off my gloves and returning to the world of adult, smoothing it out with the palette knife afterwards.

Once we were happy with the shape, we took to torching our pies, one at a time, in front of everyone. Probably more of a health and safety measure - giant cocktails, small room filled with wine etc! The biggest challenge of the day, however, was getting it home on the tube afterwards.

If the rest of my solo adventurers look like this, I’ll be very happy!

This class cost £25 which was amazing value for money and was an exclusive event for LOTI members. Highly recommend! I signed up a week ago and have already made very good use of it.

Bali Highlights

2026-01-12T07:11:00.000-08:00

And with that, another Bali trip comes to an end. I worked out that my recent Christmas visit was my 7th trip to Bali and I'm still not quite bored of it yet. Here were this times highlights:

The White Palm Boutique Hotel

Three of the four hotels I stayed at were amazing but the room at The White Palm particularly stands out as a favourite. It's a small boutique hotel with just a few rooms bordering a pool. The aesthetic was very black and white which is right p my street and the rooms themselves were super simple and very clean. I was upgraded to the suite which had a lot more space and added a lot to my overall enjoyment of the place! Sadly, there was construction next door so whilst the room was perfect for outside the hours of 9-5, spending time by there pool was a no go as not only way it loud, but it was very overlooked by the builders.

Lazy pool days

I didn't let that stop me enjoying my pool days however. I love to swim whilst I'm on holiday, and that was all I really wanted out of this trip so I spent most of my days lazing around the pool at the previous hotel I'd stayed at which was a 3 minute walk away.

It was more of a traditional, island resort type place with two pools and a restaurant so I picked my favourite of the two and set up on a shady sun lounger. Between swimming, sleeping, reading and drinking one iced tea after another, whole days disappeared.

Hiring a photographer

This was a case of serendipity I think, because usually I really enjoy taking my own photos on holiday, but this time around, I just couldn't be bothered.

The first hotel I stayed at offered a free photographer session and I was really happy with the outcome. A week later when I realised I hadn't taken any holiday photos, I reached out and asked if she'd come to my new location and take some photos for me.

The results was a fun afternoon activity, and some great, professional looking memories!

Spring Spa

I usually like to find new, niche salons and I did a couple this time around but often, I'm disappointed so I've realised that sometimes, it's best stick with what you know.

Spring Spa is a popular chain in both Bali and NZ and have never failed me before. They'd opened a new location in Bingin since my last visit so I got the benefit of trying somewhere new paired with the quality I have come to expect from them.

I booked in for a reflexology session on my penultimate day and it was great. I had a male therapist and his thumbs were so strong. After a bit of research, I now understand why I enjoy reflexology so much - it's all about nervous system regulation. Fine, makes sense. Anyway, it was so good that I went back the next day for another half hour on my feet and a wonderful facial just before I left for the airport. I'll definitely be doing that again next time.

Flight upgrade

I was adamant that I was going to fly business at some point on this trip and it was a definite highlight; of the year, not just the trip. I've flown upper classes before but I was so proud of myself for the first business class flight I had bought for myself.

Ice tea

I get hyper fixated on food in Bali. In the past it's been smoothie bowls, but this time around, it was iced tea. You never know what you're going to get when your order an ice tea in Indonesia, sometimes it'd get sugary, sweet milk tea, other times it was refreshing lemon iced tea and quite often it tasted like jasmine. I'm not quire sure what that one was but either way. I enjoy them very much.

Yoga Class

I did three yoga classes whilst I was away and I probably would have done a couple more if I felt like my back could handle it. My favourite class was Morning Light Yoga at Uluwatu surf villas. Their open air shala was overlooking the ocean and surrounded by palm trees which meant gentle stretching to the sound of the waves!

Jetlag

2026-01-12T05:12:00.000-08:00

I'm back from my trip to Bali and jetlag has been kicking my butt this week.

I always struggle with it, but this time was bad. Coming back to dark, snowy London probably didn't help and of course forgetting to eat (something I've been doing over and over) makes everything worse. That being said, going away for Christmas was one of the best ideas I've ever had so I won't let it put me off.

With all the Christmas and New Year holidays, it worked out that I had five days to recover before life officially started again in 2026 but we're almost two weeks down and I'm only just starting to feel normal again.

My biggest learning is this: upon return, I was completely out of whack on my day to day routines. Working from bed, afternoon naps and random headaches; but I'm taking this self awareness as a good thing. Before my trip, I was understanding more and more how important my routines are so this experience has simply reinforced that. With this knowledge, I've been making an effort to listen to my body and do all the little things I know will help.

I did a big food shop yesterday and have been making sure to eat breakfast before 10am. I took a couple of mornings off of work which really helped and have made sure to get out of the house at least once a day, even if its cold. Yoga on Sundays, Volunteering on Wednesday and Therapy on Thursdays. Slowly but surely, I feel like I'm coming back to life!

Volunteering with Age UK

2025-12-01T07:09:00.000-08:00

In an effort to expand my life and do something good, I decided to sign up for some volunteering.

"Age UK offers a Telephone Friendship service that connects older individuals with volunteers for regular phone calls, helping to combat loneliness and social isolation."

I'm only four calls in but I've just put down the phone for this weeks call and felt a genuine glimmer of happiness. I signed up to do something good for someone else, but it's been really good for me too - more than I'd have ever expected.

A lot of the old structure of my life has fallen away recently and whilst spending a lot of time soul searching, I’ve realised that connection is at the centre of who I am. Meeting new people, listening to their stories, understanding their feelings and their emotions; it's all I want out of life at the moment, and in doing this, I've gained a very wholesome, new connection.

The application process was very simple. Just a few questions and some online training. I was a little bit nervous before our first call and had written a list of conversations starters but I needn't have bothered. Steve and I got paired up because we have a lot in common so the conversation flows easily. We have already bonded over our love of food, plus he is full of useful advice for me.

This tiny routine with someone I’ve never met has given me a little anchor to base my week around. It's one of few things that allows me to escape from my day. Particularly as my phone is at my ear so I can't mindlessly scroll. Instead I’m fully in the moment, invested in someone else’s world for half an hour.

I don’t know how long we’ll be telephone friends for, but while it lasts, I’m enjoying every call.

Pottery Painting at Phresh, Battersea

2025-09-08T04:03:00.000-07:00

Having made it my mission to expand all areas of my life, I've been researching wholesome, fun things to do with my time.

I realised I get a lot of relief from just being creative at home, scrap booking, knitting, whatever it is so my search started with looking for local creative hubs; and I quickly came across pHresh.

Run by friendly mother and daughter duo, the cafe itself is a peaceful, healthy haven on Lavender Hill in Battersea. I assumed was just a juice bar at first glance but it seems they now have a creative arm next door in the form of a very cute little pottery cafe.

Offering everything from candle holders to plates, the pottery room is full of natural light which is perfect for painting. They'd just had a delivery of new ceramic pieces and had a lot of things I'd not seen before which was fun, we took a long time to decide what we wanted to paint. I went for a classic bowl in the end but it seems the cute little honey pot is their most popular piece at the moment. Someone else picked one up whilst we were there!

My mum used to take me to these pottery cafes all the time as a child so not only was it peaceful and quite therapeutic but also very nostalgic.

I also loved that they had stencils, stamps and other tools dotted around so there were lots of options. Mimi went with one of the stencils whilst I took a risk and went freehand with a pencil, a paintbrush - and many screenshots of inspiration I'd found online.

By the time we'd looked up to take a breath, we had been there for two and a half hours! It was such a lovely way to spend a Saturday morning and I was both please and incredibly surprised that it came out looking how I'd have hoped.

Now just to wait for them to glaze and fire it before I get to see the end result!

Learning how to be alone

2025-08-27T06:02:00.000-07:00

Bank holidays have always terrified me, it’s sad but it’s true. I remember being in a relationship when I was much younger and crying every time one came around because we never did anything fun, it would just be another boring day. Worse than that, being single altogether on a bank holiday - the thought was just terrifying. I had that ahead of me last week. My first single bank holiday in over a year.

I've put a lot of mental work into this breakup. Analysing what went wrong and why, seeing multiple therapists and journalling every day but this time, I've also started to focus on putting effort into rebuilding myself - which is the step I always miss. Having had a wonderful bank holiday weekend, just flitting around, doing normal life, I think it’s actually been working.

Friday night I was a little worried. I know I’m worst in the mornings and have realised if I don’t have something to get up for, I’ll lay in bed and just get more and more depressed as the hours pass so the night before, I found a yoga class and decided I’d have to go to that, even though I really didn’t want to, at least it'd get me out of bed. But then I thought a little harder about what would really make me happy.

I realised I haven’t had a pedicure since leaving because I would never even have thought to treat myself to something like that. I went from monthly pedicures courtesy of my boyfriend to breaking up and reluctantly painting my own toes because I didn’t think I was worth spending £15 on. Well, I decided that I was, in fact worth spending £15 on. I booked myself in the next morning and spent the rest of the weekend absolutely elated that my toes looked so pretty. What a mindset shift!

This weekend really reminded me how much I love where I live and how pleased I am for dragging myself through hell and back to be here. On one of the days, I popped to the park, the riverside and home three or four times and thought nothing of it because it was only a couple of minutes walking each time. The big supermarket is five minutes away, there are places to skate everywhere and Wandsworth Park has been my happy place since I first visited it.

I went for a walk along the river one afternoon, skated at my favourite spot on another and made the effort to join a Facebook girls group for drinks one evening. I wasn’t really in the mood for it but I know how important finding a new group of friends is for me at the moment, so I made the effort to join.

I bought myself a bunch of flowers at the supermarket, although this is something I've been doing now since I've moved out and it really lifts my mood. I didn’t realise just how little I thought of myself until the last couple of months. It really has been a revelation and goes quite a long way in explaining why I feel so low so often.

One other thing I saw a huge improvement on was how I dealt with plans changing. Often I have a total meltdown if plans change, particularly if it was something like this time when it was a whole day activity and I had nothing to fall back on - but it was one of my favourite days. When my afternoon plan got changed, I grabbed a blanket, my headphones, and a book (trying - and failing - to get into reading. First step - take book with you) and headed back to the park. Within a couple of minutes, I’d bumped into my friend walking his dog. We ended up getting some takeaway wine from the mini golf hut and spent the whole afternoon drinking in the sunshine. It was awesome.

Choosing myself again and again is hard, especially when I didn’t even know I hadn't been doing it for the last 32 years. But a whole weekend of self-aware choices added up and seems to have made an impact. This bank holiday felt like a milestone. I’m slowly building something I should have started working on years ago, and this weekend is proof, maybe, that I can create happiness for myself in ways I never used to believe I could.

South Coast Staycation

2025-08-26T02:00:00.000-07:00

With the weather hitting late teens back in March, we wasted no time in deciding to head down to the coast. After a well remembered overnight charge for the car, at 9 am on Saturday morning, we hopped in and headed south.

It was still a little overcast when we arrived, but warm enough to sit out and enjoy breakfast on the seafront. Breakfast breakfasts and tea for two cost less than £20 - one of the few benefits of leaving London. Being at the seaside is so peaceful, I really enjoyed just slowing down a little bit.

As the clouds cleared and the sun peeked through, we wandered down to the beach and made our way to the pier.

My penny machine skills are yet to fail me, I won 3 key rings and spent the rest of my change on an ice cream. A must by the seaside; always mint choc chip with a flake.

After that it was just about time to check in & we seemed to have booked the nicest hotel room in Eastbourne, the studio apartment at The Port hotel.

Dan went off to his car race that evening so once he left, I took myself for a walk to find some food - I was very tempted by the local Chinese but decided I probably wouldn't thank myself in the morning so instead went to the supermarket in search of girl dinner.

I spent a good hour or two by the big bay windows in the room, eating, journalling and watching the sun go down over the sea before making full use of the massive freestanding bath (with bubbles, obviously).

The next morning we did a little section of the Seven Sisters hike along the cliffs in search of a red and white striped lighthouse. Success.

ad then headed home via Brighton, spending the afternoon lazing by the Soho house pool.

Four SW London Spas for a rainy day

2025-08-20T04:22:00.000-07:00

For a long time, I could never justify going to a spa in London. Possibly for a special occasion; a birthday, an anniversary, but it’s expensive and somehow it made more sense to wait for my twice yearly trips to Bali.

More recently though, things have changed. Or maybe I’ve changed. I've started to understand the importance of self care; not just in terms of the act of a massage, but more the fact of me, being 'worth it.' Worth the time, worth the money, worth the effort to make my life easier, happier, whatever it is.

If I pay for a gym for my body, and therapy for my mind, then why shouldn’t I invest in something that soothes the soul every now and then too?

We’ve had a good run of sunshine lately, but when a rainy Saturday rolled around, I found myself heading to a spa. It was the perfect way to spend the day and the rain makes it all the more Bali reminiscent!

So I thought I’d share a few places I’ve discovered recently. Here are four spas in South West London that are perfect for a rainy day, a tough week, or a much-needed moment of peace.

Spa and Massage - Various Locations

If you're looking for a consistently good massages in London, then Spa & Massage have spots all over - I've been to a couple now.

They all seem to be just another store on the high street, somewhere you'd walk past a hundred times but as soon as stepped foot inside, even just the reception area, I was transported away from the hustle and bustle on the street and into the serenity that was to follow with incense sticks, calming music and warm tea from the get go.

I've been to both Chiswick and Bayswater now and you are able to book by therapist which is great if you have a favourite; although each new person I've encountered have all been very good. My most recent session, was a deep tissue massage with Roxy at the Bayswater branch, which I booked in as a per birthday treat (guilty) and it was the perfect start to my relaxing weekend.

They always have amazing deals, so I'd recommend signing up for their newsletter and keeping an eye out for promotions.

Silver Moon - Various Locations

I am hugely into reflexology and spend a lot of time having my feet rubbed, cracked and pressure pointed when I am in Bali. I find you don't quite get the same intensity from reflexology in the UK and often it's just a foot massage by another name - but I've actually found two very good places recently.

The first one is called Silver Moon Therapies.

Louise works out of Clapham & Chelsea and I visited her at Reflexions on the Kings Road. I arrived mid breakdown (other people have public meltdowns sometimes too right?) and the staff there were so lovely. They took me into a private room, which I had not booked or paid for, and calmed me down before my very relaxing treatment started. I felt at ease right away and got the deep reflexology session I was after. What I also really enjoyed about this was the explanation afterwards, Louise talked about what she could tell from the way my feet interacted with her. Fascinating.

Chanle - Nine Elms

This is the second reflexology place I mentioned. It's just opened on the ground floor of one of the high rises in Nine Elms and the facilities are spotless.

They sat me down in a big armchair with a built-in foot bath which was filled with petals and Chinese medicinal herbs.

It's not often I get a male therapist but I am always so impressed when I do. This guy in particular had such a firm hand. I wanted deep pressure points and stronger thumbs - and he did not disappoint.

Yue Float - Wandsworth

Sensory depreciation pods. They sound terrifying but actually it's one of the most peaceful and serene experiences I've ever had.

Just off of Wandsworth roundabout you'll find Yue float, and independent wellness centre that does saunas, massages and the pods.

They have two pods, each in a private room with a shower, complete with products and waterproof earplugs. You lock the door, turn off the lights and lower yourself into the salty, body temperature water, closing the lid if you're brave enough. Once you're settled, the lights go off, the music goes off and you spend the next 50 minutes, floating in silence.

As someone who spends a lot of time scrolling and often fills every moment with activity, I really enjoyed this time to think, properly, and totally undisturbed for an hour. Leaving afterwards, I felt at ease, slow and peaceful. And my hair was super soft from the salt. If you're looking for something different to try, it's definitely worth a go.

Five problems we encountered on the road

2025-06-19T01:44:00.000-07:00

Road trips, I think like a backpacking trip, have so many moving parts that there is way more opportunity to encounter problems than on a traditional, beach hotel holiday.

Solving them however, is all part of the fun!

Here are five problems we encountered on our latest road trip:

Road Closures

Whilst we were in California, both the Tioga Pass and Big Sur were closed due to ‘seasonal conditions’ and landslides. These are two iconic tourist routes so they were both on our original plan. Luckily, we had done our research so were able to substitute Yosemite with Lake Tahoe and still make it work but this could have been disastrous if not. Some areas of California are so remote that a single road closure can add hours to your drive.

Car issues

Our car was really great but since Turo cars are personal vehicles, they aren’t always freshly serviced like standard rental cars. We quickly realised that one of the tires had some kind of puncture which was affecting the air pressure. Most days, we were able to easily pump it up at a gas station but there was one morning, in Mammoth, where we went from one gas station to another and all of their air pumps were out of order. The tire was getting flatter and flatter as we were driving around searching and in the end, we had to take it into a garage. Dan was getting very stressed.

When we got to LA, our Turo host very quickly sent someone to properly fix the problem.

Restaurants shutting early

We really enjoyed the driving days so often, they were quite long. We’d usually arrive at our accommodation for the evening at around 6pm, get settled, shower and then head out. In the bigger cities, this was fine but in more often than not, in the smaller, local towns, we struggled to find restaurants that stayed open past 8:30. It was really quite odd and left us with very little choice when it came to dinner. In the end we would drive to the restaurant with all our stuff still in the car before checking in and just eat earlier.

Mobile Connection

Large stretches of the Mojave Desert, Route 66, and Death Valley had little to no phone reception. At first, I thought this was an awesome opportunity to be fully present, with only my favourite downloaded songs to listen to but actually, having google maps is quite helpful when you are driving 6 hours though a dessert without another person in sight. To get around this, we set off on our route whilst we had wifi, and just had to hope that the map got us to where we needed to go without any changes or updates.

Driving Times

This seemed to happen last year too but we’d plan our route, Google would say it took 4 hours and somehow it took us 6. I guess when you plot a route, you don’t take into account all the photo stops, wrong turns, toilet breaks and the gas refills. This wasn’t a problem for us, as we were quite casual with bookings but it did mean that we often arrived much later than planned so that is definitely something to keep in mind.

These things all made our trip what it was, so they weren’t necessarily bad, just things to look out for!

My recommendation is to just go with the flow and don’t stress, it’s all part of the adventure!

And usually nothing a little snack wont fix.

USA West Coast Road Trip 2025

2025-06-12T02:38:00.000-07:00

"I hopped off the plane at LAX with a dream and my cardigan."

Sorry, Miley worked her way onto my playlist; much to Dan's disdain, but as a millennial, in Cali, in charge of the music, it kinda just felt right.

I had such a magical time last year that I was eager to get back in the passengers seat. This years road trip was totally different to the East coast however, the wild West had sprawling desserts, worldly wonders and iconic Route 66.

Here's how it went:

Day one - Arriving in America

We arrived at LAX at about 6 pm and after a gruelling customs queue, we were quickly in our Turo and on the way to Barstow.

Our Turo, by the way, was a shiny blue convertible Corvette. Super cool - and very affordable. The app made it so much easier than traditional car rentals. I’ll definitely write a post about our experience with it.

Barstow had no relevance to our trip but it was about as far out of LA in the right direction as we could get after a ten hour flight; although we might have pushed it too far. Arriving just before midnight, and greeted by a cockroach in the bathtub, we were both past caring by that point and just happy to see a bed.

Day Two - Vegas

Things started to get fun the next morning as we started our journey towards Route 66. We packed up and headed to our first American diner, as always, keeping a lookout for checked floors and sticky stools. We found Penny's along the way and I was ecstatic to rediscover an old favourite from the last trip - the sausage patty. It just gets me every time, it’s so American.

After that we were on our way to Vegas, via the Mojave desert.

The only place on Earth where Joshua Trees grow natively, this road was expansive, sandy and barren - and took us for miles without seeing another car. ChatGPT said it’s that classic “middle of nowhere” look and I cant agree more; and it was hot, the kind of heat that makes the road shimmer.

I wanted to go to Vegas, but was already pretty sure that I wasn’t going to be a huge fan, so in an effort to see it, but not spend a whole day, we booked a late afternoon show (The blue man group – great by the way and something Dan had been talking about for ages) which gave us a great excuse to have a drive along the strip, stop for a cocktail and leave after the performance.

Vegas reminded me of Magaluf for grown ups. As suspected, I was overwhelmed by the big streets and the excess of it all. That being said, I’m very pleased to have been able to see it for myself.

We didn’t want to go too far in the wrong direction so our accommodation for the night was a Hipcamp booking. A cute, baby blue caravan, pretty much in the middle of nowhere (somewhere called Jean) but actually, the location was just half an hour away from the strip. It felt like a much more authentic experience than staying in one of the huge hotels.

Day Three - Route 66

Today was a big day. There was no civilisation for hours as we left the camper on our way to the Grand Canyon, only one lonely, dessert Starbucks, which we were very pleased to see. We finally arrived in Kingman, at a colourful but sticky diner for our scheduled sausage patty and scrapbooking session before driving on to the Grand Canyon. There were some much more experienced hiking routes but we walked around the top of the south rim which was super easy and an amazing view.

Leaving the canyon, I’d just found a new American road trip playlist and listening to that whilst the sun set behind the mountains on the way out was quite special.

Route 66 is a bit confusing, because it technically doesn't exist anymore. There were signs everywhere saying we were on Route 66, but Google said we were driving along Interstate 40. It turns out that in 1985, much of it was replaced by Interstate 40, which follows a similar path and was built over sections of the original road.

Arriving in Seligman (the birthplace of the historic route 66) I thought it looked familiar and I was right. Many towns along the original route were devastated because they relied on the traffic and tourism Route 66 brought and that, is the story that inspired Pixar’s Cars. Seligman, was one of the main inspirations for Radiator Springs and being there made my inner child happy. I had recognised it from a cartoon.

We stayed at a classic Route 66 themed motel complete with a big retro sign.

Day Four - Death Valley

We had a particularly nice start to the morning, opening the motel door to 37 degrees and amazing views off the bat. I was also feeling deep about Seligman and Cars, the whole thing made me really happy.

We were backtracking a little bit today. So, on our way back towards Vegas, our first stop was Kingman for another breakfast spot. Sweet tea finally secured; we were then on the way to the hottest recorded place on earth - Death Valley - once hitting 56.7°C (134°F) at Furnace Creek. Toasty.

I was feeling very grateful for my boyfriend today. I think, sat in the car with the roof down and the sun shining, I realised how much I now love a road trip and it dawned on me, I wouldn’t have had this experience without him. I also realised I really like America. I had misconceptions because you see so much of the US from the news, but what I love is not the parts you see on the TV; or the big cities but real, country, natural America.

Anyway, first stop of today's checklist was Red Rock Canyon. A scenic drive around a natural conservation area just outside Vegas.

Then, with the roof down and the big open road ahead of us, on to Death Valley - which true to reputation, hit 105 degree whilst we were there. I was very glad to have stopped off for snacks and water beforehand.

There were lots of points of interest to see in the dessert but with our drive already quite long, we just stopped off on the ones that were on our way - Zebraski point, a surreal viewpoint of unique rock formation, and then Rhyolite, a haunting, little ghost town.

Leaving the dessert a few hours later, we joined an amazing twisty, whimsy road that lead us through a lush mountain valley. We stopped off at a Texas BBQ restaurant and caught up on our scrapbooking before heading to a Motel 6 for a well earned sleep. It was a long, but very fulfilling day.

Day Five – Lake Tahoe

Day five started slowly. Dan had a work call and we spent the morning running around Mammoth looking for somewhere to refill the tyre air. The views had gone from dusty dessert roads to green, mountain resorts overnight. All of a sudden we were driving through forests of lush evergreen trees with beaufitul lake views up into the mountains.

Admittedly, I was the one who wanted to go to Lake Tahoe and I hadn’t done much research but our day turned out to be everything I wanted. Lake Tahoe is an awesome place. It reminded me all the American films set at lake side summer camps! A real parent trap vibe.

We drove to a Google maps recommended viewpoint (Emerald Bay) which was lovely but from there, we could hear water. Hidden off to the side, we spotted a small waterfall that we’d driven over to get to the viewpoint in the first place.

Flowing water is my favourite part of nature, I find it so peaceful and mesmerising, finding this was a very happy accident. It was less waterfall, and more a flowing creek, with big stones, crystal clear water and sunlight flickering through the leaves. Babbling, like a storybook. Funnily enough, our day by the creek last time was one of my favourite and it was the same for this trip.

I accidentally fell in which I was very pleased about, it was a non traumatic fall and meant I got to get in the water guilt free since there was absolutely no good reason for my to soak my one pair of trainers.

After frolicking in the creek, we had another couple of hours to drive before arriving in San Francisco. Not only had we booked a real hotel for the first time but it also happened to have ocean front views. We dropped our stuff off and quickly got changed before strolling down to the pier for a seafood feast at Scomas.

Day Six - San Francisco

Waking up in San Francisco felt like anything was possible, it was the first big city of our trip so we took advantage and ordered uber eats acai bowls to eat on the balcony to start a very busy day.

Our first stop was Alcatraz, this was super interesting and a very easy experience. It’s an all in one ticket and we timed it perfectly so no faffing around, We walked to the pier, bought tickets and hopped on the ferry. Everyone warned me about the weather before we arrive in San Fran but it turned out to be a lovely, sunny day.

The audio tour was really interesting, I found it and the personal stories from inmates fascinating & really could have done another couple hours. Alas, we finished up 40 minutes later, in the gift shop, making sure to pick up a sticker for the scrapbook.

The ferry back, of course was included in the ticket and from there, we walked along the seafront to pick up a couple of e-bikes - refuelling with a street hot dog along the way.

The e-bikes were amazing. They were pretty much skinny motor bikes so I didn’t actually do any cycling but I enjoyed it all the same. Our route took us from the seafront along to Fisherman’s Wharf, across the Golden Gate Bridge and down to the Sausalito on the other side.

It's not the easiest cycle - the bridge particularly is high above the water, and it’s windy but I’d still recommend doing it. It was quite an experience and the views were incredible.

On the other side (Sausalito) we rewarded ourselves with a cocktail and a chower bread bowl at Scoma’s other branch, set on stilts in the water.

The most popular option is to bike into Sausalito, then take the ferry home so that’s exactly what we did afterwards.

Back on the mainland we had to try the cable car - a SF icon. After riding the Powell-Hyde Line end to end, we had time for one last adventure; a Waymo - in simple terms, a self driving car. We’d seen them driving all over the city and were intrigued. The whole process is like grabbing and uber, except the drivers seat is empty. What a cool experience, and yes, I felt safe throughout.

We checked out, hopped back in the car and headed to Half Moon Bay for the night.

Day Seven - Coastal Drive

This was a much slower day. We had a nice slow breakfast, did some scrapbooking and hopped in the car and drove to Cambria. Along the way we stopped at a lighthouse, (and saw a seal!) Carmel beach and Davenport strawberry farm.

Day Eight - Malibu

Day Eight was exciting because we were now on our way to Los Angeles. The route took us along the coast and the ocean views were very special. By lunchtime, we were in Malibu so pulled over for lunch on the pier at Malibu farm. What a dreamy menu, we were finally getting to health conscious America and ordered fresh fish tacos, with avocado, citrus spiked red cabbage and a homemade slaw.

We had booked our next three nights at Soho warehouse in LA, but we arrived to be told that they vacate the pool area every three hours which was a bit of an issue. We had planned to spend the whole of the next day by the pool so ended up booking a new hotel on a whim ad then rushing back to the car to make our way to Paramount Theatre; a drive in movie spot!

Day Nine - Lazy Day

We had finally made it to our lazy day. We woke up at our new hotel, laid in late, had breakfast by the pool and stayed there all day. Keen to explore that evening, I’d booked an early dinner on Venice beach, I knew we were going the next afternoon but I wanted to see the night time vibes. We ate Polynesian food with pina coladas at Belles Beach House before wandering around the souvenir shops and watching the skateboarders on the famous bowl as the late evening sun went down. Since it wasn’t too late, we took a detour through sunset Boulevard to have a little look on the way back.

Day Ten - Los Angeles Beaches

Considering it was our last full day; we had a busy one! We woke up early and headed into residential LA to meet up with Luke, a friend I met at a hostel in Bangkok years ago (who’s probably featured on the blog a few times since!) He was saying ricotta toast is all the rage in L.A so we went for breakfast and caught up for an hour or so.

We then picked up more e-bikes at Hermosa beach and cycled along the coast from there, to Santa Monica and back. It was a long cycle, way too long for me and I could barely string a sentence together by the end of it. We stopped off for a matcha afterwards which helped but proper calibration came from getting back to the hotel and catching up on our favourite TV show in the bath. A couple of highlights however, were seeing the amazing beach houses and also stopping for a lobster roll at one of the beachfront hotels. The bikes themselves were also great; $70 for five hours and I didn’t actually do much cycling because you can just push the throttle and go if you want.

Dinner that evening was exactly how I’d have liked to the end the trip. We found ourselves a big, anonymous seafood restaurant, snuggled up in a dark booth and ordered a couple of strawberry mojitos before recounting our favourite memories from the trip. The waiter recommended halibut, which we ordered with a whole load of sides and it was a lovely meal, followed by a cocktail and dessert on the rooftop of our hotel and an early night.

Day Eleven - Home

With a midday flight, we were able to have a slow breakfast at the hotel, using up the last of our free credit, before heading to the airport. The car drop off was super easy, we just parked it in the TURO specified bay at the short stay car park and hopped on the bus as we would’ve done with our own car, and soon enough, we were back in London.

All round, a big adventure. Another American road trip in the bag

Five Not so basic London Rooftop Terraces to try This Summer

2025-05-15T08:24:00.000-07:00

After a week of long, sunny evenings, spritz weather is officially upon us - and with it, the usual start of summer panic. Every year, it sneaks up on me. The sun comes out, and I realise I've forgotten how to do summer. I had no clue what to wear, what to eat, or where I wanted to go. I just knew I wanted to be outside.

I quickly rectified my wardrobe issues by ordering an ungodly amount of new clothes and turning the house into a catwalk for a couple of weeks. So, I thought I'd get to work on solving my second problem by doing some research and putting together a list: Five Luxe London Rooftop Terraces to Book This Summer.

I have a whole heap of pubs, bars, and cheaper places in mind as well, but I'm going to start with a list of not-so-basic, fancy rooftop restaurants. I've been rooftop crazed for a few years now, and whilst the old classics are always a safe bet, I'm a little bored. So here are some that I'm actually excited about this year.

Seabird at The Hoxton - Southwark

Okay, you got me - this one isn't new, but it's a long standing favourite. Perched on the 14th floor of The Hoxton in Southwark, I was still going to Seabird through the winter. I think that's what makes it even more exciting, the possibility of seeing my favourite place, with its scalloped tables and palm trees, thriving again in the sunshine.

Oysters and champagne on the terrace, fruity cocktails in the sun, flavourful rice dishes, whole wood-fired sea bass and of course Torrija - a strange Spanish dessert I came across the first time I was here here and now look out for every time I visit.

SACHI at Pantechnicon - Belgravia

Since we're based in West London, Pantechnicon is our closest central London rooftop. Housed in a very impressive looking building on Motcomb Street, Pantechnicon consists of multiple spaces. SACHI has recently moved from the lower floor to take over their roof terrace space.

The space is beautiful, but I never really liked the menu when it was Eldr, so with the menu now in the hands of Head Chef Collin Hudston, (aka Zuma and Roka) I am extremely excited to go back now try all of the raw fish, tempura, and robata-grilled dishes.

Flute at The Broadwick - Soho

We booked dinner at Dear Jackie, (which is underneath the new Broadwick Hotel) a few weeks ago whilst we were on the barge, and as the day rolled around, it happened to be a lovely sunny evening. We decided to take full advantage by showing up an hour early and trying for a pre-dinner drink on the rooftop bar.

I'm often wary about turning up to somewhere with no online availability, particularly anywhere a little bit nicer, but Dan rightly reminded me: we have a dinner booking with them, of course they'll accommodate us - and sure enough, they did.

The service was very slow (turns out they forgot our order), but we were kept happy with complimentary snacks and a particularly large glass of champagne once they'd sorted everything out.

Scotts - Richmond

I've done Scott's a few times, but only recently did I learn that their Richmond branch has an upstairs outdoor terrace, right on the river! We went on Sunday when it was 26 degrees, and you'd never know you were in bustling Richmond because, whilst the whole riverbank was packed with what seemed like most of West London, up on the second floor, it was serene and peaceful, with views of the river

We both ordered the cod - white fish is just my favourite thing to eat on a hot day - with a glass of champagne (definitely back in my champagne era), some cocktails, and a selection of side dishes. It was perfect.

Yasmin at 1 Warwick - Soho

I stumbled across Yasmin by accident and gasped when I realised what I'd found: a fancy Middle Eastern restaurant, in Soho, on a rooftop! Why has no one been talking about this?! I booked a table immediately, but sadly my friend had to cancel, so I haven’t made it over there just yet, but it’s firmly at the top of my hit list.

Headed up by Chef Tom Cenci the menu looks awesome. I cant wait to try the whipped sheep’s cheese with hot honey and the duck skewers with orange & saffron mayo. Yum

Where’s your go-to rooftop spot? Let me know if there’s a secret gem I need to add to the summer hit list!

For more mouthwatering insights into Britain’s most exciting chefs and restaurant scene, pop over to Square Meal website - it’s a treasure trove of culinary inspiration.