all you need in life: art, flowers and bathtubs...Part III musings from London
While speeding through Blogtour 2011 during the London Design Festival, I stole away a few luxurious hours with Tim and Veronika (blogtour creators over at modenus.com) On a sunny London morning we strolled through local, flower market on Columbia Road
a leisurely Sunday spent at the Columbia Road Flower District in London
After attending many stylized shows with state of the art cutting-edge designs from Tent London, Origins, 100 percent Design and Decorex it was refreshing to sneak away for a couple hours to the Columbia Road Flower Mart and experience a typical Sunday morning activity in London. Behind the row of flower stands, there are many small clothing, art and antique shops dotting the cobblestone streets.
In typical English style Londoners enjoy a perfect balance of high end style with relaxed elegance.
Cobble stone streets, ancient architecture, all mingle together flawlessly.
Almost too good to be true (and no I didn't hire these two and they are not actors for this photograph -- they just magically appeared before me with flowers in hand) and were enroute to teach a local flower arranging class!
Thank you Tim and Veronika for this fun morning!
Later, we headed over to a hip and young neighborhood for a fun-filled dinner and look what we found hanging on the restaurant's entrance?
We think this is an original Banksy?!
and after we popped into a cozy outdoor restaurant (seems funny with the ominous weather In London, right?) for dinner. Can you believe hanging on the wall entering this restaurant was an original Banksy graffitti art? I had never seen a Banksy in person but my other blogger friends were quick to spot this beauty. It was huge and took up an entire wall, which of course was covered in plexi-glass since Banksy art prices are now going through the roof. In case you do not know about Banksy he is a well known graffiti artist in London who has never been seen. This phantom artist appears at all hours to create his masterpieces, which seem to capture hypocrisy in life between comfort, luxury and dire situations. They are quite moving. Here are a few of his famous designs:
other outdoor art pieces by Banksy
The next day,
two of our generous sponsors hosted us in their showrooms over at the infamous
We sipped champagne and nibbled on treats at the Samuel Heath and Victoria + Albert showrooms set just across the row from each other in London's Design Center. Samuel Heath is an English staple for bath fixtures and accessories and the company dates back to 1852. We oogled their products displayed throughout the showroom. Victoria + Albert offers an array of bath products that seem to combine the aesthetics of traditional english baths with modern twists. The two companies have paired up to create some unique, luxurious and quite comfortable bathtubs (as you will see I gave the Toulouse a spin) which combines both modern and traditional sensibilities.
So here I am ending a fun week in London
in a bathub with champagne -
not too shabby, huh?!
Speaking of art, I was completely taken with the stylized and fashionable art used in the Samuel Heath advertising campaign. The images capture the essence of the company's motto of manufacturing high-end quality products but with a luxuriously, modern approach:
Stop back next week for Part 4:
Musings from London and the end of this fun series. I'll take you behind the scenes of a London interior and furniture designer plus peek into the the
Victoria & Albert Museum.
thanks for reading art, flowers and bathtubs -- the fun stuff in life that feeds our souls!
