At Christmas, my lovely sister in law gave my husband and me a voucher to use for The Shard, one of London’s most distinctive skyscrapers, and the tallest building in the EU. Situated along the South Bank, it was a great opportunity to go out and enjoy the sights – including gawping at the exterior of The Globe, an amazing sight for an English graduate!
Once inside The Shard, you’ll have a couple of stories of great views, plus some bars and a little digital sightseeing guide, which gives you some of the history of the views of London you can see. It was amazing to get the context of some of the buildings and areas you can see, and if you love London I’d definitely recommend visiting!
I paired my super comfy rose gold Ferragamo flats with my Lulu Guinness bag, and brought my lovely blue Ray-Ban aviators – the perfect sunglasses to shield your eyes and give you great views!
Of course, one of the best accessories was a G&T – Fever-Tree had a pop-up bar and I absolutely had to celebrate the sunny skies with a tasty tonic and London gin!
Everywhere you looked there was an incredible mixture of modern buildings and history – here’s a view taking in some of the newest and distinctive buildings in London, along with The Monument to the Great Fire of London, which you can just about make out poking from behind the white flower above. I actually climbed all the way to the top this year, and it had great views – although not as spectacular as The Shard!
If you’re heading to London, make this one of your first visits, so you can get a bird’s eye view of the city, and start to understand some of its rich and amazing history!
Before we trekked up the tower, we stopped at Brixton to try Baba G’s lamb burger – named as one of Timeout’s best burgers in London. It was definitely delicious – topped with an onion bhaji and filled with spice and flavour, and accompanied with spicy fries loaded with mango and mint sauce. Delicious!
As the weather starts to get slightly cooler, I’m digging out my cardigans and knits ready for autumn. I love adding big chunky brooches to them, and my Chanel brooch from my birthday last year is my favourite!
I also couldn’t resist adding a little more to my jewellery collection in the form of a new pair of Links of London earrings…
And, I even got some post through from Chanel, including this adorable little card!
I was also sent this amazing new lipshade C/O Charlotte Tilbury. The new Hot Lips range is incredible; a series of fantastic colours inspired by incredible women and pop culture icons. I plumped for Secret Salma, which is a rich pinky red.
Just like many of CT’s colours, I was initially worried it was a bit too strong for me, but when I applied it, the colour looked amazing (if I do say so myself!). Check out the whole range here (http://www.charlottetilbury.com/uk/new-hot-lips-lipstick) and let me know which one you would pick!
(Also featuring my Links of London earrings – the Hope Eggs! I snagged these with a discount, so it wasn’t quite as painful as it could have been…)
For our last end of summer holidays hurrah, the husband and I headed off the The Chilworth Arms for a Sunday roast of epic proportions. I’d never been there before but it was fabulous, and I’d definitely go there again, especially if it was for a special occasion.
I had a gorgeous chicken liver parfait – more crostini next time, though, please!
That was followed by a hefty helping of roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, with lashings of gravy and my own pot of horseradish sauce
Finally, as I was in full-on glutton mode, I went for the cheeseboard for afters. I’ve always wanted to have a cheeseboard instead of dessert, but every time I’m too full. This time I was still too full but I had most of it to go! The best touch here were the gorgeous mini-figs drenched in syrup. They went wonderfully with the cheese – a fantastic selection. Try it if you’re ever visiting! They have some great Christmas and New Year menus. https://www.chilwortharms.co.uk/.
Food, Fashion and Fitness 