Style and Then Some

Workwear in a heatwave

I’ve always worked in creative industries and therefore I’ve never really had to commit to a ‘work wardrobe’. Increasingly it seems fewer and fewer people do as dress codes have relaxed and employees see the value of t-shirt wearing instead of a stuffy suit. There are limits however and I for one am always struggling with where they are. Can you wear open toes? Can you get your shoulders out?…

A city break in sunny Cardiff

Cardiff is said to be the wettest city in the UK. I was shown around for the first time over a weekend recently and discovered that rain or shine, it’s the perfect city break. We went Sunday to Tuesday over a bank holiday and luckily for us, Cardiff was experiencing a welcome heatwave. And when Cardiff basks in the sunshine, it glitters. The capital city of Wales has clearly had an injection of…

I wrote this post a few months ago when I had just left my job in social media and was feeling a bit cynical about the whole thing.  Now I work in a school and spend considerably less time scrolling and tweeting. However, when I get the chance, I love a good Insta-binge laughing at weirdos on @subwaycreatures or dribble over @onehungryjew’s feed.  I equally love following the comments on Twitter…

This year was time for a change. And so, to Bordeaux. And I can tell you exactly why… Cite du Vin. Yes that’s right… Wine City folks. A city, of wine.

Cite du Vin opened a couple of years ago. It was dubbed a wine theme park at the time and I imagined slides you could ride and tumble into a ball pit where all the balls looked like big purple grapes, and I thought it might have a wine bottle-shaped mini train that took you from St Emillion land to Medoc land while you supped on merlot. I can tell you it has none of these things but it’s one of the best museums I have ever experienced and if I didn’t have a hundred other reasons why I’d recommend a trip to Bordeaux, I think this would warrant a day trip regardless.

Wine cities aside, Bordeaux is really worth a long weekend… and longer if you have time.

Here’s why…

Wine

Bordeaux region is famous for its wine, but it’s not until you get there and take a trip out to the vineyards that you learn just how complex and intricate it is. We went with Winerist on an afternoon to explore St Emillion; it took in the ancient village as well as two beautiful chateaux, and of course, lots of wine tasting. The two vineyards we explored, Chateau Fombrauge and Chateau Siaruac, both had marvellously eccentric owners. The latter is related to the famous Rothschild family. The vines are two minutes drive from Chateau Petrus vineyard and bottles go for upwards of £10,000. Tours of both revealed the complexity of classifying wines and the myriad methods used to cultivate the grapes; the age of a vine to where it is in proximity to tree roots will affect the taste. It’s fascinating stuff.

And away from the vineyards, there are many many wine bars to appreciate the fruits of these fields. We liked:

Rue Saint Remi, Rue Parlement St Catherine and Rue Parlement St Pierre are worth wandering down – these streets, the squares in between and the surrounding winding roads are buzzing in the evening. The Bordelais spill out onto the street with glasses in hand. Have a drink at the small and quirky Contesse cocktail bar

A bit futher south and you’ll find the relaxed Place Fernand Lafargue and the Apollo bar (friendly bar staff, truly convivial crowd and watch out for the live music events) while round the corner down Rue Saint James you’ll find the cavernous wine bar, Wine More Time

And of course, Cite du Vin. Your entry includes a free glass of wine on the eighth floor wine bar, which has stunning views over the city.

Food

Most cafes will offer a ‘formule petit dejeuner’ that includes fresh orange juice, strong coffee and a croissant, which is plentiful and much cheaper than a buffet breakfast at the majority of hotels. Books and Coffee on Rue St James served its formule with a side pot of homemade apple compote  along with coffee that was thick and flavoursome. Another great breakfast spot is L’Ombriere in Place du Parlement – the square is bathed in sunshine during the morning. In fact many of the old squares are great spots for a leisurely petit dejeuner.

In Books and Coffee we picked up a delicate financier to share later as an afternoon snack, and would recommend doing that whenever you see something in a window that tickles your fancy… you’ll find endless chocolatiers with gloriously tempting windows and you must try the famous Bordeaux canele.

You can’t go wrong for lunch and dinner in Bordeaux. Honestly we didn’t have a bad meal. But in particular, we liked:

Plume (Rue Cheverus) is the essence of relaxed French style. 40 euros bought us a beautiful warm chicken and coconut salad, fresh pasta with pulled beef, two fresh ginger and apple juices plus two coffees. We resisted the homemade cakes… although for the life of me I can’t remember why.

The sun was out in force when we visited Cite du Vin so we had lunch on the terrace. For a museum we didn’t have high expectations but this was Bordeaux – the cheese and meats platter was incredible, as was the fresh salad with smoked salmon and asparagus spears.

We reserved dinner on the first evening at La Tupina (Rue Porte de la Monnaie). It was widely recommended before we travelled, particularly for its traditional Bordeaux fare. It was expensive, but the lamb shoulder with cassoulet was so full of flavour and the tender duck with seasonal veg and hand cut chips were cooked to perfection, so it was worth it. Portions were enormous and unless you’re really swayed by the dessert, they do give you little caneles to enjoy at the end of the meal.

Our hotel, Mama Shelter, is a great spot for dinner and has some interesting dishes. We shared a whole globe artichoke, lentil salad and a plate of confit tomatoes with burratta.

Saturday night needs booking if you want somewhere particular – Bordeaux gets busy. We had hoped to get into La Brasserie Bordelaise on Rue St Remi, but with an hour wait, we ended up in Le Bistrota few doors down – the food was fresh, modern and tasty.

Just like Londoners, it seems the Bordelais like queuing for good food. We spied enormous queues for Entrecote, which is said to have the best steak in Bordeaux, and for Guy & Sons, which admittedly was serving free burgers as part of its launch weekend, but seriously, the queue was at least 100–people deep and after seeing its menu of burgers with fillings like blue cheese with balsamic figs or porcini mushrooms with melted comte… I can imagine there’ll be queues whether the burgers are free or not!

And if you want posh nosh Place de la Comedie is where you’ll find upmarket restaurants like Le Pressoir d’Argent and Le Chapon Fin

Shopping

Given the sumptuous wine and food on offer in this city, Bordeaux is actually a shopping haven too. There are so many affordable and original boutiques that line the streets of the old town, you can pick up some really beautiful pieces – we particularly loved the bags, jewellery, kitchen items and local produce on offer. For designer junkies, you’ll find the usual luxury boutiques lining Cour de l’Intendence, while Galaries Lafayette is perfect for mainstream and unique French brands (the underwear section is stunning… they simply do lingerie better in France).

Essential tips for Bordeaux…

When you arrive at the airport, head to the information desk and ask for a city map – they don’t display them but they have a stash, trust me

Take the bus into town – it’s 1.50 euro (compared with a 30-40 euro taxi) and only takes about 45 minutes to get you to the centre

We stayed at Mama Shelter, which was really reasonably priced design hotel with a roof terrace, ping pong tables in the basement, super hero masks for you to play with in the rooms, and live music and DJs in the evenings. It’s centrally located with good access to the old district and buses

Take the tram to Cite du Vin but walk back to the town centre along the river – especially if it’s sunny. The riverbank has been recently renovated and the majority of the shops (some discounted outlets), bars and restaurants are now open

When you stumble on a mini supermarket (look out for Carrefour Cite or if you stay at Mama Shelter there’s a handy Monoprix opposite) go in and stock up! We found it impossible to find somewhere that sold a decent cheap bottle of water and an apple

A lot of Bordeaux is a UNESCO world heritage site. I have to admit, we didn’t have time for much art and historical culture but did do our fair share of exploring the old streets and the cathedral

If I went back to Bordeaux, I would take the hour-trip to the spectacular-looking sand dunes at Arcachon and treat myself to some local oysters. This can be done in a day or an afternoon in summertime

http://www.bordeaux-tourism.co.uk/Discover-Bordeaux/Must-See/Bordeaux-a-World-Heritage-Site

About three years ago, I had had enough of bemoaning an entire month so I decided to start planning ahead so that January would be bloody fantastic. Just as fantastic as December in fact. Here are my top five tips on how to win at January…

Book a holiday now

There is no reason not to have a sunny holiday in January. Put aside five days of your holiday allocation, book yourself a week away, and pay for it while you actually have money in the bank. I can assure you it’s one helluva warm and fuzzy feeling knowing that while Christmas is over it’s only a few weeks until you jet off somewhere exciting. I like a snow holiday so I hit the slopes in January, but if you’re a sun-bunny, there are plenty of destinations to take you away from the dark and dreary UK days. The Canary Islands, Morocco and Dubai are all doable in a week or less, or consider a lazy week a bit further afield (Florida, the Caribbean) or go all out for a sun-filled adventure (Goa, Gambia, Vietnam). Go on, do it now, ask your boss for those five days and start googling winter sun.

(Antigua: from The Telegraph‘s top picks for winter sun)

Plan a day out with the girls

For years my girlfriends and I used to plan a Christmas get-together in December. Then we all started moving house, moving further away from each other, then husbands and kids started arriving, and after that diaries just got impossible to align. If that sounds familiar, make sure you don’t lose your tradition, just plan for a girls’ get-together in January. This month, we’ve got a posh afternoon tea (which was paid for ages ago so it’s practically going to be free… ok it’s not, but, you know what I mean) and a trip to see La La Land afterwards. I can’t wait.

Book a night at the theatre

You could probably book loads of theatre nights, music concerts or comedy gigs as far in advance as you like. Dates for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child are already planned for January 2018 or you could treat yourself to a long-running classic like Les Miserables or The Mousetrap. Or try something a bit different; this month a friend and I went along to the immersive theatre production of Trainspotting at the Vaults in Waterloo – which we’d paid for about two months ago.

Embrace cheap and cheerful

Cheer yourself up with one cheap activity per week, and you’ll always have something to look forward to. Last week the Mr and I went bowling. This week a friend and I tried the new DUM Biryani in Soho (massively recommended by the way). Or host a Friday night picnic at yours with friends – everyone raids their fridge for leftovers, everyone buys a few bits from Sainsbury’s and everyone brings a bottle. A few tunes and some good conversation, you might as well be at the pub, but it’s probably going to be more fun.

And if all else fails…

Have a night in with a hottie. The fine figure of Tom Hardy graces Saturday nights in new series Taboo while the suave Benedict Cumberbatch continues in the new and brilliant Sherlock on Sundays.  And if you haven’t seen it yet, please share in my girl crush and start watching Crazy Ex-Girlfriend on Netflix. I haven’t LOL’d so much at a series in years; the wonderfully flawed, funny, feminist, intelligent and cringe-worthy character of Rebecca Bunch sings about period sex and makes nerdy jokes about Pi (as in, 3.14159) while her co-characters have some of the best lines on TV, ever.

Now January isn’t so bad after all…

Five of the best: Puffer Jackets

When I was at school, there were the ‘Barries’ and the ‘Shazzers’. This was our name for the intimidating, B+H Gold smoking, sexually active teenagers who would probably still terrify me now. I was (or thought I was) a bit of ‘Shazzer’ myself for a couple of years. The ‘Shazzers’ wore too much eye liner, scraped their hair back into pony tails and, wore puffer jackets. I had a ‘FCUK’ baseball…

Last Monday I went to Hip Hop Yoga – say what? Hip Hop Yoga at Hackney House in Old Street, is exactly what it sounds like –  yoga to a hip hop beat. I was downward dogg-ing to Snoop D- o – double G, (ahem, Snoop Down Dog I should say) and ‘doing the jiggy’ to a Tribe Called Quest. This was my second attempt to go to the session after, the previous week, Google maps took me to Hackney House in…

It’s 6 o’clock in… Flight Club

It seems it’s not enough just to go for a drink in London anymore. Us Londoners are addicted to trying something new and we’ve got an emerging wave of pubs and bars with a side of things like crazy golf, ball pits, ping pong, table football, board games, not to mention good old fashioned bowling. And now, there’s Flight Club. Call a pub ‘Flight Club’ and it usually makes people think they’ve…

For a couple of years, I’ve been hunting down boots that do more than keep your feet dry; boots that are as much part of the outfit as any other element, if anything clashing with the rest. Boots that assault the senses, if you will – and this season, the high street is on board.

Key features include tapestry patterns, glitter and sequins, patent and animal print; the higher up the leg, the better. Usually with a chunky four-inch heel, try a track sole if your style is more casual or sporty, working best with a patterned midi skirt and short jacket.

The best thing about ankle boots in general is that they go with everything; skinny, cropped, flare, mini to full length. Because of this versatility, you can get away with more extravagant colours and materials. So this season, put away your black Chelsea boots and jazz up your winter footwear collection with one of these beauties:

  Items shown:

Raya Sock Heeled Ankle Boots, Public Desire, £34.99

REMUS Leather Ankle Boots, ASOS, £60

Toe Cap Tie Back Heeled Ankle Boots, Daisy Street, £34.99

Embroidered Boot, Miss Selfridge, £85

Velvet High Ankle Boots, New Look, £29.99

Is there anything more autumn-winter than velvet? So festive, so warm, so jazzy. What makes it such an enduring look is that it spans eras; present in Poldark-era dresses, Victorian coronation ensembles and 1980s cocktail parties alike. You can make it a little bit Princess Di, or a little bit Morticia Addams as the occasion dictates. It’s not just for Christmas or a night out; casual it up by combining it with bardot styling, as championed by omnipresent It girls like Hadids plural and Kendall Jenner.

Here are our high street picks for velveting your life this season (warning, people may want to touch your clothes):

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Items shown: H&M Trousers, £29.99 Zara Boots, £45.99 Zara Blazer, £89.99 FoxieDox Dress £120.00 ASOS Skirt £38.00

5 of the best swimsuits

The despicable forced undressing of women wearing burkinis on the beaches of the French Riviera has triggered criticism far and wide. It seems so especially bizarre at this time, when, if anything, covering up has never been more prolific. The swimming costume is back, and we’re all slightly bored of seeing Kim Kardashian’s ass. Burkinis have sold out in M & S, and sales of swimsuits were through…

It’s 6 o’clock in… Boro Bistro

  There are so many reasons you need to go to Boro Bistro, not least of them, the loos… yes, the loos. I don’t normally make a habit of recommending somewhere for its facilities, but when a place gets the wine right, the food right, the ambience right, and tops it all off with an eccentric experience when you need a piddle, well, that’s the pinnacle of dining, right? Boro Bistro is tricky to come…

I was not sold until recently. I remember all too clearly the tailored khaki blazer I got from Tammy Girl circa 2004 and how I loved it then. By today’s standards it was heinous, and as much I can get on board with this slip-dress-clad 90s revival we’re all experiencing, I draw the line at that blazer. But then I saw this picture of Lily Aldridge totally nailing the camouflage thing and I thought to myself, it may be time to rethink khaki.

Like all good purchases, you have to mentally think through your wardrobe to make sure it works with a high enough proportion of your existing clothes. And then I realised that a camo jacket goes with every damn thing (almost). Pretty little white summer dresses, night-out fun dresses, jeans and t-shirts – everything! Just make it oversized (never tailored, hell), simple (none of your fancy badges, else you’re heading to Tammy Girl territory) and not too obvious (maybe don’t pair it with grungy army boots, for fear you may resemble an angsty teen).

Here’s my pick o’ the high street (you can nick from the menswear section too):

Topshop, £50

ASOS, £55

River Island, £48

Urban Outfitters, £45

  *Maybe not the hat.

Five of the Best: Raincoats

As if Brexit wasn’t enough reason to want to leave the country, the weather has turned unbearably crap. Now don’t get me wrong, I actually love thunderstorms. The lightning; proper rain (drizzle can do one), wellie boots, and wet winter walks. I’m a fan of them all. What I’m not a fan of is being unprepared for rainy conditions. I hate rubbish umbrellas, inappropriate footwear, and below par…

In the spirit of women supporting women, I think it’s time to congratulate B Lively on her sartorial game. Sure, she’ll have stylists aplenty and her L’Oreal team primping every last eyelash, but still, I think it’s refreshing to have an actress that likes cameras, likes fancy dresses, doesn’t choose conventional options and still kills it time and time again. That’s who I’d like to be too.

She really came into her own, bizarrely, when she was pregnant. If anything, her style became more adventurous to keep up with her changing body. Even the hounds that prowl the Daily Mail comments section could not fault her maternity style (or any style thereafter). Over the knee boots! Gowns with plunging necklines! Higher heels than I’ve ever worn in my life! She broke almost every maternity dressing convention, and even if you wouldn’t wear it yourself, she carried it off with such overwhelming confidence and pride you didn’t care. She knows that ultra-feminine looks work best for her; she isn’t waif-like or angular, nor does she pout or smoulder. She grins like she’s having a great time, and with baby number two apparently on the way, I’m looking forward to seeing her next trick.

Take a look at some greatest hits:

One of my best friends recently got into hiking through her love of walking and exploring London. She found a few Meet Up groups, and through trial and error, now has a few firm favourites and attends a day hike with them about once a month. I decided to join her a while ago, and after a wet, muddy February day, full of stunning views, bracingly fresh air and good belly laughs, I haven’t looked back.

So, more recently, I went along to a Meet Up group called Outdooraholics. The nine-mile hike that day was set in Surrey, where we would take in Box Hill (made famous by the Olympic cycle race in 2012, but for me, it’s all about Jane Austen’s Emma where our heroine flirts outrageously with the naughty Frank and falls out of grace with the dashing Mr Knightley for insulting poor Miss Bates) and we would end up at England’s largest – and award-winning – vineyard, Denbies Wine Estate.

We meet at Victoria station at 9am, and the £24 we’ve prepaid gets us the return train ticket, and an entire day of expert guided hiking with Graham, who runs Outdooraholics, and his assistant Callum… both of whom are incredibly tall and make walking look like slow motion.

There are about 45 hikers in our group, of all ages, genders and nationalities. For a cloudy, cold day and a chance of rain, they wear varying levels of specialist gear; a couple are head-to-toe in hiking paraphernalia complete with walking poles, while a few confidently stand about in jeans and what look like running trainers. Most are at least in hiking boots and waterproof overcoats. One lady has rocked up looking like she’s about to stroll through Hyde Park – leather knee-high boots with two-inch block heels, long-strap handbag and a tailored wool grey coat (I find myself looking out for her all day, convinced she’s going to realise she’s got the wrong group at some point).

Incidentally, I’m a firm believer that if you have the right gear, you can truly enjoy any activity, and it doesn’t always have to be expensive. For hiking, the most costly thing to get you started is probably going to be your boots – I went to Mountain Warehouse and got mine for about £50. They’re waterproof and light-weight, and will do the job nicely. If you’re going on your first hike, check out my list of recommended gear at the bottom of this blog post.

For the Box Hill hike, it’s recommended you have a good level of fitness. Total walking time is about three and a half hours, and it isn’t slow. There are about three good inclines that leave you out of breath, and a couple of slightly steep descents that are better handled by side-stepping on sturdy knees. Having said that, Graham makes sure we have plenty of water breaks. Check the difficulty levels on the Meet Up group pages, because hikes are often described in good detail and are rated from easy to difficult.

The scenery of – and from – Box Hill is stunning and varied. From long sweeping views over the English countryside and weaving woodland to quaint chocolate-box villages and the well-earned beer at the end of the day. Mostly though, I loved the brief escape from city life and a deskbound job. And with a group of so many, I found I could lose myself in thought and talk to no one, or I could share sweets with complete strangers and discuss the best Christmas movies.

The day ended with drinks at a lovely little pub by Box Hill & Westhumble station, called The Stepping Stones. We were back in Victoria for about 6.30pm where my friend and I managed a few more hundred steps to gobble down some tapas dishes at a newly opened Iberica. Props to the staff for being so gracious to two dishevelled women trailing specks of mud from our boots and smelling slightly sweaty (the result of a total of 30,000 bloody hard steps).

If you’re looking for something a bit different, something that is incredibly good value, gets you out to see new places, keeps you fit and allows you to meet interesting people, then I couldn’t recommend hiking highly enough. There are lots of Meet Up groups that head out on hikes from towns across the country, and even host long weekends and trips abroad. The ones I’ve been personally recommended are Outdooraholics, AAA and Trailblazers – all are London-based.

First time on a hike? Here’s what I recommend for different weathers:

Layer up – remember that if you’re climbing hills and it’s not summer, the wind chill will be strong. In colder months, I recommend a vest, a warm long-sleeve top, a zip-up hoodie and a waterproof jacket (get one of those pack-up macs). In very cold weather, you’ll need another layer, so perhaps go for a waterproof coat with proper lining.

Quick-dry or waterproof trousers – I tend to go for really thick leggings in winter, because they dry quickly and they’re warm. But I have been stung by nettles through the fabric. Just don’t wear jeans! They’re heavy and do not dry easily.

Hat and gloves – hiking gets you hot and sweaty, but in the rest moments, you’ll find your extremities will get chilly. In summer, a baseball hat will keep the sun off your face and out of your eyes.

Ankle boots – sometimes the terrain is a bit rocky and ankle boots help protect you from going over and getting sprains. Trainers, unless they’re trail trainers, just won’t have the grip you need (and neither, I thought, will leather boots, until I saw the woman on our trip who barely broke a sweat… and now I’m not so sure). Try also to make sure they’re waterproof – I once had to wade, feet entirely submerged, through water-logged fields in inadequate walking shoes, and suffered the rest of the day with ice-cold and wet toes… brrrr.

Waterproof rucksack – or at least a waterproof inner bag to keep your lunch and phone dry.

And a few packing ideas… water, snacks, sunscreen, sunglasses, lip salve, camera… oh, and blister plasters if you haven’t broken in your new boots.

It’s 6 o’clock in… the John Snow

No, not the ‘you know nothing Jon Snow’ Jon Snow. Nor the crazy tie-wearing, Channel 4 news anchor, John Snow. It’s the John Snow pub; an anonymous looking watering hole named after a doctor who traced the cholera outbreak in London. But name origins aside, me and the work colleagues are well and truly caught up in the world of Game of Thrones, and where better to make a weird Friday pilgrimage…