Tea and Shopping at Fortnum & Mason

Our first day in London, so, we decided to ease into it with some tea and shopping at Fortnum & Mason. What a beautiful day it was! London, you did good on the weather! Just gorgeous! The Fulham Broadway tube stop was super close to our flat, so we used it, A LOT. (Kind of crazy when you didn't know there was going to be a Chelsea game, and you are trying to walk against a sea of 3,000 crazy fans, but whatever, when in Rome)

Coming up from the tube into Piccadilly Circus, my heart skipped a beat - we were really here! We meandered along to Fortnum's, were we had a 12:30 reservation for tea in the Diamond Jubilee Tea Room. After much distraction looking at the yummy food and getting into the wrong lift, we made our way to the correct lift and up we went. And stepped into a gorgeous, calm oasis in the heart of the City. It was a sea of blue and white, with subtle hints of gold and silver. It's really hard not to become completely relaxed, and totally into the experience. The choice of teas was overwhelming - as are the choices for food, but we settled on afternoon tea, and it was the perfect amount. With our waistbands near their bursting points, we made our way down, floor by floor, taking in all the trinkets that this truly unique store has to offer. My favourite floor, aside from the macaroons located on the first floor (I brake for macaroons), was the perfumery. Gorgeous glass bottles were on display everywhere, it was like stepping back in time. I can see why this store holds a Royal Warrant!

It took us the better part of the day - so many things to see! This has become a must stop for when I visit, and I can't wait to go back!

 

The spiral stairs went on forever!

Delicious Macaroons!

The Perfumery!

Loose leaf tea

Those biscuits the Duchess of Cambridge made famous.

The Royal Warrant

Shopped too much? Feet hurt? Have a cocktail!

We've arrived!!

We left early this morning, and I do mean early! After a late arrival/gossip session (we haven't seen each other in almost a year!), we got two hours of sleep before getting up at 3 am for our flight to London from JFK. Our plane from JFK was Virgin Atlantic's The Golden Girl. After boarding, the BFF and I enjoyed our complimentary mimosa and settled in for our flight! I've always enjoyed Virgin Atlantic (probably because BA has a habit of loosing my luggage every time I fly with them). After flying through immigration, we were met by our driver, Dave, who took us off to our apartment! Totally adorable, and I'm so glad we decided to go the apartment route this time around, and not a hotel. I really felt like we were coming home every night! I love how everything in England seems miniature compared to the US, for instance, the tiny washing machine, and the tiny stove, it really makes it so endearing. We popped out for groceries down the street from our flat at Sainsburys. Super convenient. It always feels like I'm grocery shopping for the first time when I go to a store in another country! I loved that the eggs were in a normal aisle, and not refrigerated like here in the US. Or that you can buy goat's milk, or something called tuna mayo spread.

We settled on a pizza, due to the late hour and both of us not being in the mood to cook. Popping a bottle of wine, we settled in for some rest.

Xoxo
Q&C

PS, in case you were wondering, we rented from Homefromhome.co.uk - and they were fantastic! Responsive, easy to use, reliable, available, thorough, and we will be using them again in the future!

Our plane as the sun begins to rise at JFK.

Our adorable bedroom.

The lovely lounge.

Our kitchen - totally adorable.

Our itty-bitty stove, and our pizza cooking :-)

The wet room/loo

Words

I came across this quote from Sense and Sensibility which I think sums it up best ..." I am  excessively fond of a cottage, there is always so much comfort, so much elegance about them. And I protest, if I had any money to spare, I should by a little land and build one myself, within a short distance of London, where I might drive myself down at any time and collect a few friends about me and be happy".


Q&C
xoxo

This Week in Instagram

This was such a great week! The BFF and I are really starting to get excited about the trip to England, and I'm still enjoying the beautiful weather and fun treats that arrived at my door this week. How was your week? Here's to another fab one!

Q&C xoxo

A Five Year Affair

I saw this cute little journal at the store the other day, and I must admit, I am totally down for the idea. A line or two a day for five years, and you'd have something really fun to look back on -  not to mention each journal page features a memorable quote from the iconic author, Jane Austen, which provides a bit of writing inspiration. What a cute way to have a mini time capsule of your thoughts!

Mr. Selfridges is coming!!

While in London over the past Christmas holiday, I kept seeing adverts for Mr. Selfridges, with Jeremy Piven as the star. The show is a period series about Harry Gordon Selfridges, an American-born British retail magnate, and his London department store, Selfridges. Anyone visiting London will have seen those iconic yellow bags floating around. Reviews of it looked fab, and it's being touted as Downton Abbey with Tills. Sounds perfect, don't you think? It premieres here in the US on March 31st on PBS - can't wait!