Of Blowing The Cobwebs Away

I am writing this snuggled up under a blanket with a nice cup of tea, warming myself up, as I have just got in from a blustery afternoon's walk. A friend and I decided to brave the weather and so, boots on, umbrellas in hand, we set off towards Iffley lock, which you can see in rather nicer weather here (annoyingly I forgot to take my camera today):

We met outside Christ Church Meadows, and cut across those to Folly Bridge, before striking out along the Thames towpath, surrounded by fields on one side and college boats full of rowers out training on the other... Luckily the latter petered out as we got deeper into the countryside!

Iffley itself is a pretty village just on the outskirts of Oxford, and we were able to catch a glimpse of its beautiful church, St Mary's (built in 1170), across the water.

Someday I'll have to wander round the village itself, and have a look inside the church. Today, however, we were being rather less high-minded, as our destination was a yummy pub lunch at the Isis Farmhouse:

Although it had stopped raining, we were still glad to get inside the pub, which I had never been to before. My friend had warned me that it was a little unusual, and he was right, in as much as there were only three things on the menu (plus the gourmet baked beans on toast and homemade cakes and scones they always serve!), but luckily the choices of soup, lentil stew, or Moroccan style chicken casserole all sounded lovely. We both plumped for the chicken casserole, which was indeed delicious: a generous serving of couscous and chicken, mixed together with olives, lemon, various spices and served with still-warm bread to dip into the juices. Mmm! Coupled with a glass of wine, it was perfect for a pick-me-up before going back outside. Fortified by our meal, we decided to carry on walking for a little longer, passing the two pretty bridges next to the lock, the second of which is based on the famous Mathematical Bridge at Queen's College, Cambridge:

We almost made it to Sandford, the next village along the Thames, but decided we'd better turn back before the winter evening drew in. Next summer, perhaps!

This afternoon's trip was just what I needed to blow away a few cobwebs, and it was fun to discover somewhere new in Oxford, and to feel so countrified so short a distance from town (it took us about 45 minutes to walk to the pub from the town centre). I'll definitely be doing more of this in the future; who knows, perhaps even The Walking Boots will come into their own once again...! Only, of course, if there's a nice pub to warm oneself up in at the end of the trip. On which subject, I leave you today with the charming opening sentence of Sir W's 1600 essay 'Of Alehouses':

'I Write this in an Alehouse, into which I am driuen by night, which would not giue me leaue to finde out an honester harbour. I am without any Company but Inke and Paper, and them I vse in stead of talking to my selfe'.

Of Wallpaper and Caravans

I recently read this interesting interview on Yell Softly with Lisa Borgnes Giramonti of the entrancing blog A Bloomsbury Life. The entire interview has sent me scurrying to various parts of the internet: to find out more about the books Lisa recommends, or check out particular designers. But I was particularly intrigued to find out more about the 'Genuine Fake Bookcase' wallpaper by Deborah Bowness which Lisa has in her dining room. I'd rather line my walls with real books, but I still couldn't resist a closer look at this, so I hurried off to the Bowness site immediately:

This then sparked another journey, as I clicked to find out where one can buy the wallpaper in the UK (ok, so I haven't got a house to decorate, and won't have for some considerable time, but that doesn't stop my domestic fantasies), and was delighted to find that her London distributer is the quaintly named Caravan, a shop in London's Shoreditch. The reason for my delight was that I had actually stumbled across the shop itself whilst wandering around in East London some time ago, had loved its range of eccentric, lovely homeware and gift ideas, and had then promptly forgotten about. So to be reminded of its existence was a boon indeed, especially as Christmas is coming up and they have an online shop...

The Bowness wallpaper -- both the bookcases and other designs -- they have on offer is beautiful indeed, but at £150 a strip, even if I did have a place of my own, I might have to reign in my temptations...

Happily, though, there are plenty of other, rather more affordable but equally tempting bits and pieces on offer in their online store, so I thought I'd share a few of my favourites here.

As I've mentioned on other occasions, I love a nice cup of tea, and when that tea is of the loose leaf variety, I think this would be a particularly pretty tea strainer to use:

Rose tea strainer, £12.50

To accompany my morning pot of tea, I might decide to have a boiled egg, complete, of course, with soldiers to dip into it, in which case this would a perfect addition to my table:

Egg and soldiers set, £18

Always an accessories girl, my eye was naturally caught by these cute little handbags, which could hold photos or equally function as name settings at a dinner party:

Handbag card holders, £18

Finally, I always love to have candles around, so these angel wing decorations would be a great festive twist for any candlelit meal:

Candle wings, £4.95 - £8.95

These would all, I think, make rather nice Christmas gifts. Once again, however, now I must leave these frivolities behind and betake myself back to the library. I have a wine tasting this evening and some friends and I are meeting for sushi first (yum!), so I must stop thinking of Christmas presents and give Sir W & Co. my full attention for the time being. For as Sir W rather somberly pointed out in his 1600 essay 'Of Behaviour', compared to the purchase of trinkets, however lovely,

'The gifts of the minde are not so easily obtained, these you must purchase with paine, and difficulty; and great reason, for it were pitty such preciousnesse might be had for the taking'.

Of Giselle

Last night I went to the ballet for the first time in many years, and was swept up into a different, magical world. A friend and I went to see the English National Ballet's production of Giselle at the New Theatre in Oxford, and were both completely blown away. I've been wanting to go to the ballet for ages, and have particularly hankered after seeing Giselle, probably partly due to the influence of the dreams of Lorna Hill's heroines in her Sadlers Wells books, for whom either Giselle or Odette/Odile (Swan Lake) is the ultimate ambition.

I think I was particularly fortunate in that my reintroduction to the world of ballet was with such a good company, and such an excellent production. The evening began with a 'curtain raiser' by some of the men of the company, in a new piece called Men Y Men, which was performed to music by Rachmaninov. The eight male dancers were topless, with black tights, and against a dark backdrop at times it seemed that only their torsos were visible, weaving and leaping through the air in a mesmerising series of moves. It was exciting, and an excellent prelude to whet our appetites for what was to come.

Giselle was first performed in 1841, but it has lost none of its power to move and entrance its audience. The sets and costumes here were incredible, both in the first act based around Giselle's cottage:

and in the second act, in which the eerie chill of the woods around Giselle's grave was conjured up brilliantly through mysterious lighting and billowing mists, a perfect backdrop for the bewitching gauziness of the beautiful and deadly Wilis:

The effect was utterly captivating. The dancer playing Giselle alternates, and last night it was the Japanese dancer Erina Takahashi,

who was superb: as the shy, then love-struck Giselle of the beginning, courted by Albrecht (an excellent Dmitri Gruzdyev)...

... then convincingly and heart-breakingly driven into madness by his betrayal, before finally emerging as the etherial wraith of the second act, moving so lightly across the stage that it seemed as if she could truly be a ghost, as she strove to save her lover from his intended fate at the hands of the Wilis -- the unquiet spirits of jilted brides who take revenge by forcing men to dance unto the death.

My friend and I emerged from the theatre on a real high, having been completely enchanted by the beauty and emotion we had witnessed. I for one intend to make this the first of many more balletic experiences!

It was a truly magical evening, and was indeed, to use Sir W's phrase from his 1601 essay 'Of Conceit':

'a fancie well disposed'.

Of A Lovely Weekend

My friend's party at the weekend was a lot of fun. We enjoyed some pre-dinner drinks at her house, where we were greeted by an unexpected guest, with whom, as you can see, I rather fell in love:

Doesn't he look real?! Unfortunately he was a bit to big for me to slip into my handbag and steal off with... We followed this with an excellent meal at Jaipur on the Cowley Road. This was a new discovery for me, and one I'm very pleased to have made. The staff were friendly, the ambiance warm and welcoming, and the food both delicious and beautifully presented:

They even brought my friend a little extra something when they found out it was her birthday:

I can particularly recommend the Mixed Starter and the Chicken Shaslick, while the spinach rice is also well worth trying. I've found out that they offer free home delivery on orders within six miles of the restaurant, so I think I'll be trying that out one evening when cooking seems like too much effort!

After the meal, we made our way down the Cowley Road to Cafe Coco. I'd been here for brunch and lunch before (both lovely. The full English breakfast is truly excellent, and is one of the few places I've found in Oxford where it includes black pudding, which gets it a definite thumbs up from me). I'd never tried it in the evening, however, so I was particularly pleased to be able to test out their cocktail range, especially as certain cocktails are only £3.95 between 10pm and closing (at 1am).

Cafe Coco is owned by the same people as one of my very favourite Oxford haunts, The Grand Cafe, which also offers cheap cocktails every evening, so I was pleased to find that the ones at Cafe Coco were just as good. It's a fun place with a lively atmosphere, not to mention some rather interesting pieces of art:

When I came to Cafe Coco for brunch with a friend last year, I was sitting in a chair facing away from the clown in the bath, when suddenly my friend went a little pale and told me to turn around. I did so, only to see a rush of ice cubes pour out of the little gold pipe above the clown, *into the bath*. Apparently it's where they keep their ice. I was quite happy to finish my cup of tea, but my friend had a slightly harder job enjoying his iced water after that ... he said he couldn't quite enjoy it after thinking of it swimming around next to a naked clown mannequin. Fair enough, I suppose, but the bizarre sculptures certainly add to the atmosphere!

Sunday dawned bright and (not so) early, and we indulged ourselves with a reviving meal at the wonderful Edamame -- another absolute favourite which will some day merit a post to itself. After I'd waved goodbye to my friends, I then went on a Mission. And this time, I succeeded: I have New Boots!

I was *very* happy to find these at Marks & Spencer, exceedingly well priced (I fell in love with a pair at Sassi the other day, but they were £300, and my love has limits...) and also extraordinarily comfortable. The heel is sturdy enough to stand a good chance against the cobbles, whilst also looking nice with a skirt. They may not be perfect, but they are certainly a welcome addition to my wardrobe.

I pottered round the shops a little more in the afternoon, and was pleased to find a great new dress for the end of term Christmas dinner and party at College, which is coming up in early December. I wanted something a bit different, and I think this dress from French Connection fits the bill:

It is a little more risque perhaps than my usual choices, with the sheer front and carefully placed sequins (!), but it's fun and frivolous and perfect for getting into the Christmas spirit. And sometimes it's good to have a change. To tone it down a little, I'm going to pair it with black tights and a pair of black patent high heels like these...

... and look forward to dancing the night away. I'll make sure to tell you all about it!

For now, I'm off to get myself some lunch, and then I must stop thinking of frivolous matters for the time being and get back to the library. Or, as Sir W put it in his 1600 essay 'Of Fame':

'I will from henceforth follow Vertue silently in my study'.

Of A Welsh Retreat

I spent last weekend staying with my aunt and her partner in South Wales, a wonderful wintry break. Much as I adore Oxford, it can become a (very pretty) claustrophobic bubble at times, and getting out into the Welsh countryside was a welcome retreat. My aunt has three dogs, who all require a lot of exercise, so I muffled up in layers upon layers and ventured outside to enjoy the autumnal scenery with them, which was lovely even in the rain which stereotypically poured down throughout most of my visit. The walks were a lot of fun, and I almost regretted not taking The Walking Boots with me so they could have another little outing. Almost. Sadly I forgot to take my camera, so I can't share the beautiful vistas, the fallen red leaves, the fern-lined streams, and the panting dogs and woolly wet sheep. Nor the rumbling log fire, glowing candles, cosy cushion-filled window seats, and delicious warming food, which all seemed so much more luxurious thanks to the rain-lashed windows and cold winds blowing outside our little nest.

My aunt's cottage is up the side of a hill, reached by a twisting lane which seems a lot longer, let me tell you, when you have to walk up it in the snow, because the car can't make it ... such journeys are one of the abiding memories of my childhood. Also clambering over the fence into the field which borders my aunt's garden, picking my way over to the cows' water trough, smashing the ice and scooping out a pail of water to take back to the house, so that we could actually flush the toilet when the cold weather had frozen all the pipes. This is also the aunt who used to take me camping as a child, so you can see it is really to her and her partner that I owed my ability to wow my fellow chaletites with my nonchalant (well, more nonchalant than they were expecting, anyway...) response to the Chalet's own basic conditions this summer. As I said, at least there I had a proper bed, rather than a tent floor!

I've been spending a busy week since returning from my trip, with lots of work and lots of socialising, which has been fun if a little exhausting, and has unfortunately left little time for blogging -- hence the late description of my Welsh break. I am summoning up the remains of my energy today however for a friend's birthday party tonight, which should be a lot of fun. Some old undergraduate friends are coming up for it, so I'm looking forward to seeing everyone and catching up on all their news. My friend lives in East Oxford too, so we're going to be exploring some of the restaurants and bars on this side of town -- I can't wait to get to know more about my new area! Talking of which, I must go and prepare for everyone's arrival: washing up, tidying, all those sorts of joyous activities. Thank goodness some frivolity will be returning this evening with the advent of a few cocktails and some good company! But although I am very excited about seeing my friends tonight, after such a busy week I've also been glad of a quiet morning today. I love spending time with other people, but I also need some time alone to recharge and refresh myself. This morning -- even with its chores -- is a good opportunity for that, meaning that today looks to be a perfect combination of reflection and revellry. For, as Sir W said in his 1601 essay 'Of Solitarinesse and Company':

'The vse of things makes things worth the vse, and company by the vse is an excellent instructour, and solitarines moderatly taken, makes vs fit for company'.

Of Boots (2)

Regular readers may remember my despair earlier in the year when I had to purchase The Walking Boots in preparation for my trip to the chalet. Although I must admit that they did me proud as I wandered across the alpine slopes, I am still not overly fond of them. I am not ashamed to admit that I am a heels girl through and through, and The Walking Boots form something of an aberration in my wardrobe.

I was thrilled then, to be able to return today to my more usual boot shopping habits. All of my shoes seem to have died at once, worn down into despair by the Oxford cobbles and autumnal rain. My final pair of flats gave up the ghost a little while ago, and although, as I've said, I love my heels, I am also aware of the need for some rather less vertiginous footwear once in a while. I was therefore very pleased to buy a particularly cute pair of ballet pumps in Jones Bootmaker. I am a sucker for anything with a bow, so these fitted the bill nicely:

After this happy purchase, I continued my quest for The Perfect Boots. This is a long and arduous journey, as it seems to me that the knee length boot trends are not particularly inspiring this season. Sadly, I am yet to meet my ideal match, but I was successful in finding a new pair of, well, I suppose they come under the 'shoe-boot' category, to replace my pair from last winter which are now falling apart through over-use. I found them in the lovely Sassi Shoes on Oxford's High Street, a small shop with a relatively small, but extremely well chosen range of stock:

I often admire the shoes in their window displays, and so I was extremely happy when I tried these on and found them to be comfortable as well as attractive:

I think they'll look especially nice with a couple of cute little skirts I have in my wardrobe, and they'll be good for showing off some of my winter tights. The chunkier heel also appealed, as it's hopefully going to be rather more practical on the Oxford pavements than the spindly kind I favoured last year!

For now, The Perfect Boots might have eluded me, but I am very pleased with these latest -- essential! -- additions to my cupboard. At least I now have something that doesn't leak and which still has its complete heel to wear whilst tramping about searching for my ideal knee-highs.

As Sir W said in his 1600 essay 'Of Complements', and as indeed he might say again if only he could see me tripping about town in my new purchases (well, a girl can dream):

'happy shall I be to haue had the impression of your footesteps'.

Of Keeping Cosy

The rain is lashing down outside, and I am snuggled up under the blankets with a lovely hot cup of tea, thanking the stars for wireless internet and laptops. I waved goodbye to my friend this morning as she caught her bus back to Cambridge (rather her than me -- the damn thing takes THREE AND A HALF HOURS, including the thirty minutes it apparently takes to change drivers in Bedford. Oh, and the hour it seems to take to drive around Milton Keynes' interminable roundabouts). Now, I'm relaxing at home for a while before braving the weather once more to strike out into town and go for a late lunch at The Royal Oak on St Gile's: a cosy pub which serves up an excellent Sunday roast.

Meanwhile, I have been amusing myself by perusing Etsy from beneath the comforting warmth of my duvet. In order to drive away the air of gloom which is threatening to pervade my room thanks to the menacing gusts of wind driving the rain onto my window, I've been considering a few of the bits and pieces that might cheer up a cold, rainy day such as this.

Although I'm not sure how well it would cope in the wet, I really like this unusual coat from Little Houses Clothing. I adore the huge collar with its lace trim, and it looks lovely and warm, as well as being pretty. And even the name is apt considering my period of study:

Shakespeare's Sister Coat, $395

I've also fallen in love with these cute cashmere leg warmers (no, I never thought I'd be writing those words either, but these are special) from Adventures of Jessica Rose. The colours are stunning, and with the little bows at the top, I think they'd look great peeping out above a pair of long boots too:

Cashmere Legwarmers in Lavender and Raisin, $85

Before venturing outside, I think I might want to slather on some protective lip balm to counteract the vicious weather November has brought, and this delicious offering from the lovely Marie Antoinette's Patisserie Collection at Vintage Bella might be just the ticket:

Pink Cake Lip Balm, $3

A little pampering of the rest of me with this Lap of Luxury Soap (ah yes, always a phrase I like to hear -- and not just with soap at the end of it) from the wonderful range at Seattle Sundries wouldn't go amiss either:

Lap of Luxury Soap, $9.50

I must admit, however, that on a day like this, part of me is quite happy just to stay indoors, curled up with a hot drink, a few biscuits, and a good book (I'm happy to report that so far, Stone's Fall is definitely meeting the demands of that last category!). But that's no reason not to look stylish, as the 'loungerie' (love it!) offered by plumprettysugar makes clear, with stay-at-home wear bright enough to cheer up the most dismal day:

Kimono Style Robe, $124

And if I were always to drink tea out of cups as lovely as this one from House of Harriet, I would be a happy girl indeed. Combining cats and tea, the entire Amsterdam Cats colletion can hardly fail to charm me:

Amsterdam Cats Big Hand-painted Mug, $60

For now, however, I will return to my current cup (which is itself rather pretty, even if it doesn't have a cat on it), and get a few more chapters in before I have to get up and pull out my umbrella. Although, as I've been writing, I could kid myself that the sun has started to peer through the clouds, and although the wind is still buffeting the walls, it's not howling quite so loudly as before. But I think I'll pack my umbrella anyway, just in case.

Sir W too bewails the weather upon occasion, although, as this excerpt from his 1600 essay 'Of Fame' makes clear, his concerns are rather more lofty than any I might have about the rain spoiling my clothes...:

'History hath added to my naturall desire of louing fame: I was there set afire with conuersing with braue spirits. I like deeds well, but they were not within my reache, and so I sought to buy what my stock would reach to: though I cannot clime so well as Caesar, yet I shoulde thinke my selfe happy if I could but get vp his Stile. But he was a Romane borne, and borne vnder a climate of more wit: we are so colde, and so dull, that we thinke of nothing beyond the compasse of our inheritance, iust like the Swissers we will lose no ground; leaue vs in durt, and finde vs in durt. The Graecians and the Romanes were Monarches of the world, not by sitting still, and keeping themselues warme, but Industry and Aduenture were the wings that made them fly high. We will aduenture vpon noting except it be on a surfit, and sixe pence at Tables'.