the one in which Tif and Debbie go to london...

we stepped out of the soho hotel with our little map of london clutched in our mittened paws and a pile of post-its containing scribbles of 'must see' shops...

first stop Heals...a lovely furniture store. our purpose was to test out all sofas and chairs, giving our personal opinion of what was and wasn't working for our derrieres. the sofa we were most anxious to see was of course thee LUSK sofa by orla kiely (i promise this week will be my last time of talking about 'our orla' for a while...i am beginning to sound a little 'orla nuts' these days. so next week i shall move on to chickens...yes that's right 'Tif the mad chicken lady' will be moving into the shed)

now back to the pressing issue of me and my pal's bottoms doing a 'goldilocks' around Heals...

well let me tell you, we were most impressed with the whole range...it just lifts the heart looking at it, but of course we needed to really test it out so that's what we did and yes dearest readers, it passed the test. i wouldn't say i could fit my whole family plus four legged friends upon it comfortably but i can say it was most lovely to look at and if i happened to be offered such a lovely seat for my mossy shed i would not pass it up...

quick smart, as time was not on our side and we had 'many a store' on our list...we legged it (yes, no wheels...just our wee aging pins) over to Saltwater

now here was a treat and a half for our diminishing eyesight to fall upon. quite honestly, we are now number one fans of this little boutique tucked down a side street that we only found because Debbie has retained a few of her marbles since school days and seems to possess an 'organized' streak that can out do most...

we totally fell in love with the oilcloth products...they have aprons, little bags and purses in the most wonderful designs. (unfortunately i can't find these on the website, i believe they are made from ends of line fabrics so only a few are available from the actual store).

this moment was when i wished i had a bigger 'baggage' allowance, but alas i needed to be selective and so i purchased an apron (i seem to have an abundance of aprons and yet can not appear to cook, they do nothing for my skills but at least when wearing them i feel like i look the part), a bag and a dress...nicely discounted that i would never had tried on but Debbie insisted and just like the 'undies' issues she was right.

we then skipped next door as the snow began to fall (it was just like one of those british movies, london cabs going by, people hustling and bustling home from work, snow falling, shop lights glistening, i half expected Colin Firth to appear at any moment...) and ended up in VV Rouleaux to check out all the trimmings etc...

by this time our aged pins weren't doing so well and the cold was setting in, so we took a cab to Monmouth Street...and there admist the busy london life was the gem we were looking for...

Orla Kiely's store.

(click on 'london' to see a wee peek of her store)

words cannot describe just how incredible the attention to detail is within these hallowed walls...everywhere you look, be it up, down or all around is her signature style...we spent a good happy hour just "ooohing" and "aaahing" at frosted window panes, the staircase rail, the ceiling panels ...everything covered in her trademark patterns. we could quite happily have moved in for good...in fact i would like to think heaven may happen to resemble the inside of an orla store...

eventually the sales girls needed to go home to sleep, (although if i were them i would have used the perfectly lovely bed from Orla's range, all set up with her bedding on...thus never having to leave...ever)

so we had to vacate the premises...sigh and head back to our hotel, which was quite honestly the poshest hotel we have ever set foot in. the day ended perfectly with us tucked up in our beds, a chick flick on, chocolate bars and crochet by our sides...after all we needed to be well rested for the day ahead...more sites to be taken in and more stores to discover...

part two tomorrow ~ Tif

footy note: dearly departed 'hat' (as seen in my orla kiely day out pic)...if you happen to be reading this please come home...i miss you and am sorry i left you behind last week, the snows have come again and i need you like i have never needed you before...our friendship has been for just a wee time, four weeks to be exact, but i know we were destined for great things together...please dearest hat come home to me...