Matching stuff

And so, the indignities continue. It has now got to the stage whereby I am unable, due to the size of my stomach, to trim my own toenails. For one forced into a life of independence from an early age, this is a most humiliating experience. I'm sure its not much fun for The Wig either. Luckily I wont need my claws trimmed too often, however, not being able to bend over has created another problem which rears its head on a daily basis. I am unable to put on my shoes or tie my laces. Since most of my shoes are in the style of 'Regulation Issue Victorian Workhouse Lace Ups' this is a most unwelcome development. Up until yesterday, I was relying on the dear old Wig to put my shoes on for me but alas this morning he has gone to Edinburgh for 2 days. I think it's something to do with work but it could be his only way to esacpe from his foot duties for a while.

Thinking ahead, as I am prone to do, I thought I better purchase myself a nice pair of sensible, flat, slip on shoes for while he is away. I would never have made it into work in barefeet. I ended up with a pair in the most impractical colour imaginable but my god are they comfy for the cankles.

And after I purchased them, a miracle occurred. I stuck my nose into Gap as they had a Sale on and ended up with this bag (£14.99 from £24.99).

A bag is one of the few things I really don't need another of however, look at the colours! Its an almost perfect match to the shoes! I know matching shoes and bags are meant to be a bit of a no no but I don't care. I've got bigger things to worry about at the moment ie my own body.

Sutton House, Homerton High Street, E2

If you want to go and see 'A Mans Story' at the cinema on a Saturday night, just go and see it.

A Man's story trailer

Don't get talked into seeing this:

The Raven trailer

The Raven is, in my humble opinion, a big fat disappointment. It thinks it's Sherlock Holmes (the ones with Robert Downey Jnr in), its not. The end titles think they are the Bourne Identity, they aren't. It has a poor script, some poor performances and a plot so patchy it doesn't make sense. Basically a waste of time and money. Don't even wait for it to come out on DVD. Watch something else instead, maybe some paint drying. Or a kettle that you have just put on to boil.

However, if you want to go to a National Trust property in Hackney, go to Sutton House. You'll have a much more successful trip out. We went there on Sunday as they were holding  a Wedding Fair.

Sutton House website

Sutton House is a bit of a hidden gem in Hackney and is just off Homerton High Street. It's run by the National Trust and is the only surviving Tudor House in the East End. Built in 1535 by a prominent Courtier of Henry VIII, its a nice place to have a quick mooch about and a cup of tea. Its very small, you could have looked around the whole place in 20 minutes, but they often have events on which might be worth visiting. They had a great Antiques fair a few years ago at Christmas and I purchased some lovely old cutlery that had apparently come from a Stately Home. This silver cutlery only gets used for special occasions so if you come for tea and only get the Ikea knives and forks you know what we really think of you.

Anyway, back to the Wedding Fair. Just because our wedding is currently on hold until next year, it doesn't mean we have forgotten about it completely. Also, some friends of ours are having their wedding this December and talking about their plans made me feel a bit emotional about our wedding.  It was hard being so far down the line with it (venue booked, dress chosen and deposit paid, Stationary designed, table dressing etc bought) and having to pull the plug. I suppose though when the day does finally come it will be all the nicer having our little baby with us. Anyway, I am convinced that the bride of this other wedding is going to have the same dress as mine and I am getting a bit panicky about it. I have no evidence to say this is the case at all but I have a weird feeling about it. I'll let you know in December if my weird feeling was correct or just heartburn.

So, knowing how I feel about our wedding, The Wig thought it would be nice to pop along to the Wedding Fair which we did on Sunday. As Sutton House is so small, there really wasn't too much too look at but all the people we met were very nice so we picked up some cards to add to the collection.

Laura McClusky Photography

Vipressed Letterpress

Frenchmade Cakes + Bakes

Joyce Connor Bridal Make Up + Hair Design

Alexa Loy Photography

I obviously can't vouch for any of these people to say if they are any good, but like I say, everyone we spoke to was lovely.

Sadly though, all these card's are destined to be glued into my Wedding scrapbook which has been packed away until further notice because of the baby that stole my wedding. I don't mind really.

The English Pig, Aldersgate Street, EC1A

Last year when I went to visit the Museum of London I walked past this board:

It was advertising a restaurant near to the Barbican and I thought that it looked quite fun. Just because of the name. I won't make that mistake again.

A year and a half ago when we got engaged, our friends took us to dinner as a congratulatory treat, so when they got engaged this Christmas it seemed the polite thing to do to return the favour. So what better occasion than to go to The English Pig, I thought, than for a betrothal supper. The restaurant had a fairly decent website and good reviews, what could possibly go wrong? I'll tell you. First of all, we got very lost finding it despite Aldersgate Street being approximately 8 minutes walk away from Liverpool Street Station. Considering the Wig and I are very familiar with the area and he had been given the title of 'Head of Maps' for the evening, this was a most heinous crime. Armed with a printed out map and a SatNav thing on his phone as back up, we still got lost. He will never be 'Head of Maps' again.

Then when we actually found the place, my heart sank. It looked a bit like a Wetherspoon's from the outside and you could clearly see that it was empty inside aside from one table of 4. Mortificado. Whoever designed the website was clearly very smart at choosing only the most favorable photos to post up. The other thing that was upsetting was that I had really been looking forward to going out to dinner as we haven't done so for ages. So the only thing to do was to drink. Alcohol. And I am ashamed to admit that I had my first (small) glass of wine since last August. It was delicious. Sorry bump.

The sad thing for The English Pig, is that the food was actually very nice and the waiter was really friendly. I had a beetroot salad starter, its signature dish for a main (21 hour slow roasted Pork Belly on mustard mash and savoy cabbage), dark chocolate tart and vanilla ice cream for dessert and we all shared a cheese platter. It just had zero atmosphere and a curious feeling that it didn't know what it was. Is it  a pub or is it a restaurant? I'm buggered if I know. I think the online reviews for the place must be from people that work in the city and go there for lunch and not for evening sittings. Its great to have good food and attentive staff but you do need the atmosphere too, otherwise you might as well have your tea at home.

Anyway, this picture on the wall above our table sums things up pretty nicely:

http://www.theenglishpig.co.uk/

Today, however, has been a whole other kettle of fish. Today has been brilliant so far. First of all, I didn't go to the Pregnancy Yoga class. I've been thinking about the whole yoga thing for the last week and I'm not entirely sure what is being achieved by attending the class. There doesn't seem to be much structure to the lessons, with people dropping in and out and the teacher not always being the same person.  It seems like a good idea in theory but maybe this one isn't the best one to go to. So, I decided I would do 2 hours of gardening instead. That seemed like a fair swap to me and also meant the only blow off's I had the potential to encounter would be my own.

Secondly, after our morning hot drink and paper read at Chase + Sorensen, we spied yet another new business opening less than 1 minutes waddle from the flat. I don't want to say too much until its properly opened and I can (hopefully) get some nice pictures of it, but, to me, this is the most exciting development in the vicinity since the  Hackney Picture House  opened a few months ago. The Wig and I were looking through the windows of this new place place and got invited in by the people that run it who spilled the beans on what it's going to be. I was so happy I actually burst into tears. I don't know what is wrong with me at the moment, I keep crying over the most odd things. It's so brilliant that after living here for the last 5 years and feeling somewhat trapped by having to sort the freehold out before I could move, it's all now happening right on the doorstep. It feels like a lovely reward for the 2 years my life has been on hold. Anyway, all I will say is, if you are local, watch this space and I shall be back to report on the juicy new place as soon as I can.

Then thirdly, these got delivered to me:

They were sent from the Agency that were working on the job this week that got pulled at the last minute. They were a Thank you for my help. How nice is that? Very nice I think, and a lovely treat for a Saturday afternoon.  It actually ttranspired that I wont be completely destitute after all as the day after this job went away, I got confirmed on another one so it all worked ok in the end. To coin a phrase things usually work out ok in the end, and if it's not ok, its not the end.

Happy weekends everyone!

Niels Eilersen Danish Rocking Chair

For some reason I got it into my head that I needed to own a rocking chair. I must have seen on a website somewhere that it would be useful for when the bowling ball / baby is born. So, for the past few weeks I've been sniffing around eBay on the prowl for one. Since I am quite particular there were a few boxes it needed to tick. It had to be white, wooden, not too wide and not too tall. I chose to ignore the small matter that we don't actually have room for one as I began my pursuit. This was a minor detail as far as I was concerned.

Anyway, last Sunday I struck gold and found a lovely white, wooden, not too wide and not too tall one on eBay. So without much thought and the excited high that eBay gives me, I bought it. And at 6:55am this morning, it arrived. Talk about a speedy turnaround! I did have a slight pang of guilt when it turned up as we still haven't actually bought the pram yet and I really shouldn't be buying chairs I probably don't need when we still have essential baby things to purchase, but too late now. I think I've been pretty restrained these last few months, not going to any antique fares, not really buying anything much for myself, so I hope the baby wont begrudge me this one purchase. Particularly since we can both make use of it. I can rock backwards and forwards in it like Norman Bates' mother and the baby can vomit on me. I'd say that'll be 2 happy customers right there!

Best eBay wrapping ever. 

Ta dah! The lovely chair, which is also surprisingly comfy. I didn't think I would be too keen on the upholstery of the fabric but its actually not too bad. Also, it's the original fabric so I think I should leave it alone and not attempt any DIY on it. It would only end in disaster.

Maybe it looks better with this cushion on it...?

Interestingly, I have since found out that its quite a well known design of chair called a Ladderback Rocking Chair, made in the 1950s' by a Danish Furniture Company set up by a chap called Niels Eilersen. The company began in 1895 as a coach building factory but in 1934 it burned down. After that the company re-opened as a furniture makers focusing on high quality upholstered items. Its now being run by the 4th generation of Eilersens still making wooden furniture. God bless the Scandinavians.

Coffee @ Ridleys, Dalston Lane, E8 / Kedgeree

Today could have ended up being one big, fat disappointment. A possible job that I have been working on for the last 3 days had the rug pulled from under it this afternoon which was rather frustrating. However, I think the day was saved by the following 3 things:

1. Nature.
Isn't it amazing. I love seeing flowers in the city and I love Silver Birch trees. For our (now postponed) wedding I wanted to get a Silver Birch log chopped into thin slivers to make drinks mats for everyone. Oh well, it was the thought that counted.

Silver Birch Tree.

Pink thing.

Daffodil.

2. Yet another new Coffee shop.
I can't quite believe it but its true. I officially live in the epicentre of Coffee shops in E8. I've been sucked into a sort of Coffee Bermuda Triangle. After finally hearing about the job that died a slow and painful death, and then releasing all my pencils on crew, studios and gear I realised it was 3pm and I hadn't had any lunch. I know, unbelievable.  So my small heavy friend and I lugged ourselves up the road to Coffee @ Ridleys on Dalston Lane.

Now, I have to admit that it doesn't look like much from the outside and you could easily go past it without noticing it, BUT it really is much more interesting inside.

Fancy Ceiling lights.

Display of various random stuff. I love random stuff as much as I love nature.

Exceedingly comfy sofa although not ideal for a pregnant customer. I struggled somewhat getting up out of this chair when it was time to leave. I think I'll sit on one of the stools next time. Or make sure I go with someone else so they can pull me up.

Coffee machine and large selection of CRISPS.

Once again I have to apologies for the poor standard of photography which really doesn't do this sandwich any favours at all. Not only do Coffee @ Ridleys do hot drinks, fresh orange juice, and a small selection of cakes, they also do quite a wide range of made to order toasties. I opted for the mozzarella, pesto and sun dried tomato one and I don't know if it was because I was so hungry but I can honestly say it was one of the best toasties I've ever had in my life. Ever. Seriously. It was delicious.

So all in all this was a trip out worth taking even though it took me a long time to walk there. Not only was it an interesting place to sit and spend 40 minutes, and the food was delicious, the man that worked in there was an absolute delight. I think when living in London you can get a bit used to mardy shop/cafe staff who all think they are too 'groovy' to make eye contact with you let alone actually serve the customers with any sort of civility (Cat + Mutton, can you hear me?!), but this was a refreshing change. The young man was friendly, polite, smiley, made a delicious hot chocolate AND brought me over a drink of water, without me even asking for one! What service. So, young man in Coffee @ Ridleys, give yourself a big old pat on the back, you are an asset to your employer. With all this in mind I would rate Coffee @ Ridleys a high 8 mozzarella balls out of a possible 10.

3. The Wig made Kedgeree for tea. 

I know this is probably some people's idea of the worst dish ever (fish and egg) but I really like it and its always feels like a fairly healthy meal. It beats Findus Crispy pancakes anyway.

Kedgeree for 2/3 people

Shopping List:

2 x Eggs

2 x Portions of Basmati rice.

1/2 pint Milk

1 x Bay Leaf

Salt + Pepper

Handful of Black Peppercorns.

Various smoked fish. We used a smoked mackeral and a piece of cod but smoked haddock would have been better as that's what you really need to give it the smoky flavour and also slight yellow tinge.

Teaspoon of Cumin.

Teaspoon of chopped Dill.

A knob (whatever that means) of butter.

A small onion, chopped.

A chopped clove of Garlic.

A handful of frozen peas.

A sprinkle of curry powder.

Lemon juice optional.

* Hard boil the eggs for 10 minutes. Once boiled, cool, shell, slice into quarters and set aside.

* Prepare the rice as per the instructions. Once cooked, rinse and set aside.

* Meanwhile prepare the fish by placing it in a pan with the milk, bay leaf, peppercorns, cumin and dill. Bring to a simmer, cover and leave for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. I'm aware it don't look too tasty at this stage... Its not my camera, it really does look like that I'm afraid.

* Once the fish is cooked and starting to fall apart, remove from the heat, drain and remove any skin, the bay leaves and the peppercorns if you want to. Set aside keeping the milk and herb liquid in a jug.

* In another pan melt the butter and and soften the onion and garlic.

* Once the onion is softened, add to this the fish pieces, the rice, the peas and some of the milk liquid. Heat through adding more milk if necessary.

* When all the ingredients are heated though and thoroughly mixed, serve adding the egg on top and sprinkling with the curry powder. Add a squeeze of lemon if desired.

Delicious! (if you like fish and /or eggs).