The Sneaky Magpie

It was time for M’s haircut in Spitalfields (who is now sporting a positively Orwellian look) so Diana and I decided to have tea and cake at Market Coffee House.

Banana, chocolate and pecan cake and gun powder tea accompanied by D.V. was a delightful hour.

Afterward we headed to Shoreditch High Street via Brick Lane popping to pick up some chai latte on route.

Visiting new places continues and this weekend it was Geffrye Museum which I enjoyed a lot.

The museum is housed in 18th century almshouse, it shows domestic interiors of English middle class in London through various periods starting with 17th century dining room and ending in a modern 90s apartment.

All the interiors are very well described, there are timelines of the crucial events that influenced design among other things. There are also notes on the domestic customs like doing the accounts in the afternoon and visiting Carnaby Street for fruit and veg in the morning.

Lovely wallpaper.

I live in Art Deco building so it was very exciting to see how our apartment should really look like.

This beautiful chair would really work well in our place.

My favorite period in interior design the 50s-60s. Pete and Trudie Campbell would feel here at home. I love the briefcase left next to the table, father is home, get the old fashioned ready!

Woolworth’s Homemaker cup and saucer.

Beautiful Art Deco coffee set from Shelley Potteries.

Art Nouveau vase from Royal Doulton…

…and ‘The Book of the Home’.

Funky TV and coffee set.

Great place, I highly recommend it. I will be back later this year to visit the garden.

Feeling hungry we decided it was time for lunch, off to Pizza East for portobello mushroom and egg ….

…and Margarita.

The day got rather nippy so I was glad to head back home, curl up on the sofa and immerse myself in more wisdom of D.V.

I am a creature of habits, every morning is the same: shower, breakfast, dress, makeup and go to arrive at the office just before 9.00. Even when I try to be late I usually fail.

Another thing I do is wait for hubby in a cafe when he is getting his haircut. His hairdresser is in Spitalfields and I always tag along and spend a blissful hour on my own at the Market Coffee House having tea and reading. I love this cafe so much, it reminds me of brown cafes in Amsterdam where I was able to spend hours drinking coffee verkeerd, eating appeltaart and chatting to my friends. The cafe serves yummy cakes, sandwiches, soups and pretty good hot chocolate.

Afterward we usually stroll around the area popping to various galleries and getting a bite to eat.

Yesterday we popped to Whitechapel Gallery to see Sophie Calle’s latest exhibit but didn’t stay long, the gallery was full and there is a lot of reading to do! However we did find a new gallery based in an old stonemason’s shop which had some amazing art, the clever people left the space untouched so the floor is marked with old grave stones, the walls and signs are also left as they were. The gallery is called Simon Oldfield Contemporary Art and the artist exhibiting at the moment is Ben Ashton, catch it at First Thursdays on 5th of November, I will unfortunately miss it again, somehow I always shoot at the beginning of the month.

East London is always changing, every time I go I find new places, old places grow, bad places go away.

The Story Deli moved next door to much bigger space.

I wish these were all over town and working.

And I wish one day to break my habit and go to Verde & Co instead of the Coffee House which is next door, looks so inviting and they have Pierre Marcolini chocolates…and an open fire for cold days.

Searching for lunch we went up Commercial Road and came across Pizza East – after getting a table and ordering it didn’t take long to realise that it is part of the Soho House empire especially as it’s based in The Tea Building, the home to Shoreditch House. The pizza was delicious especially when accompanied by a bottle of Montepulciano.

Today is Sunday and I have a whole week off ahead of me!