Mom told me about two shops that I might want to visit while I'm here. She has come across their names several times in decorating or cloth magazines. One was Tobias and the Angel and the other, Cabbages and Roses. I checked out their web site and both of them seemed like fun. Both had the SW zip code/area finder and that made travel convenient.
I got myself out of the hotel around 9:00. I took the tube, riding the Piccadilly line to the Hammersmith stop. That station is also a major bus hub. I picked up bus #209 and rode it to the White Hart stop. The shop was only a few blocks down the street. It wasn't what I expected, exactly. I had hoped that they would have small pieces of fabric to buy. But they didn't. When I looked at the prices of small lingerie bags or fabric bags, the prices started at 45 pounds. Whoa! The fabric is hand-block printed, but still. There was a small business card holder type of wallet and that was 75 pounds. Way out of my league. I really liked these heart pin cushions / decorative objects made out of vintage Persian scarves. They were about 3 inches wide and 5 inches long -- 55 pounds. If one had the money to have a slip cover or drapes made from their fabric, that would be really awesome. Or a lamp with their blockprinted shades...but that is not me. I'm glad I went and I did not walk out empty handed. Seeing the fabric and the possibilities of block printing patterns was very inspirational.
So, onward! I retraced my steps, making one detour down a side road just to see what the houses looked like. The flowers did not disappoint. I thought of my dad when I saw exuberant sweet peas, overflowing out of their front yard.
Back at Hammersmith, I changed buses and got on #211 and rode that past the Chelsea football stadium to Eden Grove. There I walked south a few blocks and turned left on King's Road. Just a block or two later, I found Langton Street and the other shop. What a difference in price range and ambiance! I had a hard time limiting my purchases. They were high, but not prohibitive. The two sales ladies were helpful and fun. They let me take pictures in the shop and were so friendly. I didn't realize that by virtue of the big mirror, I ended up in the photo as well.
Since I was on King's Road, I walked east for quite a while. I stopped in to my favorite clothing store, East, and walked away disappointed. Last year, this shop had a great sales area and lots of earrings. Not this year. I went into an Indian antique store that had these bowls of knobs. I was entranced. If I could have figured out how I would use them, I would have bought a few. But I was too tired to think, but not so tired that I spent blindly.
At Sloane Square, I hopped on another bus and rode up to Hyde Park Corner. I walked down to Harrods and browsed in the food hall. I picked up some lunch from the Middle Eastern counter and augmented it with a few pieces of my favorite veggie sushi from Wasabi -- and took it all to Hyde Park.
It felt great to stretch out in the grass. I sat by the playground and enjoyed watching the kids shriek with delight as they played on the equipment. I can't wait until I can take my Lovey Lamb to the Durham playground or the UNH pool and listen to his laughter.
Tonight will be a bit of a late one as I got tickets to see Les Miserables at the Queens Theatre. I had wanted to get tickets to Billy Elliott, but they were not discounting their evening performance and I did not want to pay full price for that, when I could see another show for less. If I felt that I could have made the 2:30 matinee, then I would have bought those tickets at a discount.
Oh, and dessert, a berry crumble.
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