After finishing up the first semester of my second year, I popped over to London for a long weekend to spend time with my sister.
Fueled on hot chocolate and many half hour power naps in various coffee shops around Oxford/Carnaby/Regent street, the retail therapy did me good.
I spent most of my time around Carnaby street. I often stick around this area as It's full of really unconventional and independent stores you wouldn't normally find on the high street, and especially not in Ireland. It does however remind me of Dublin's Temple Bar which likewise features some pretty eccentric graffiti work and art pieces.
I've listed a few of my favourite stores from my trip, I often look at their stock online, but of course, viewing it all in the flesh was far more exciting than zooming into photos and wondering if the real deal will look as good on arrival.
Oliver Bonas
Home of copper goods and quirky gifts. Oliver Bonas is my #1 store to fulfill my copper & marble needs. I always browse through their online store, but flicking through their funny books and checking out the humorous greetings cards. It's the perfect store to find the finishing touches for your mantel piece of your new apartment, or just to pop into on your lunch break for a quick look around and a good laugh.
The Kooples
Every time I go to London I'm drawn to this shop like a magnet. I don't really know why seeing as everything literally costs a bomb and I will probably never afford to shop here. I think I just love the way they sell both cute vintagey style dresses but hardcore leather jackets and embellished shoes. They've got a good style going on.
Brandy Melville
On my trip to Amsterdam last summer, I made sure we visited Brandy Melville, little did I know just off on a tiny street next to Liberty, was home to London's Brandy Melville store.
The weird thing is that I never actually buy much when I go here. I love pretty much everything but only end up coming out with a necklace or two. I think it's the whole experience I'm there for too, the interior is pretty great.
Liberty
I couldn't pass up a visit to Liberty. There is no reason for any human being to dislike this place. The architecture is freaking amazing and they just sell the most wonderful and adorable stuff. It's the kind of place you'd go Christmas shopping and find a present for everyone you know. And their trademark print is just beautiful.
Selfridges
Selfridges is a frigging huge department store (they recently bought out Arnotts actually) so I'm not going to talk about the whole shop. I just wanted to mention the magical rooftop restaurant there. They've lined the entrance walkway with small branchy trees laced with fairy lights, to which I overheard about 402750428 girls exclaim "THIS IS WHAT I WANT MY WEDDING TO BE LIKE". Same.
During my stay, my sister and I went to see the Lumiere London exhibition. Lumiere London is a light festival held across the whole city. We only stayed around the Soho area, but we still managed to visit quite a few of the exhibitions. And although we froze our pants off, it was a wonderful attraction which brought a load of Londoners into the city and gave me a reason to appreciate the dark evenings.
- February 09, 2016
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