Top 10 Tearooms of London

Being the tea and cake loving girl I am I decided to do a post on the top tearooms in London. London is famous for most things, including its variety of culture and the food that this provides. However, sometimes home comforts are best enjoyed with a spot of British tradition on the side, and what could be more traditional than a cup of tea and a scone in the heart of London. 

These are my top 10 tearooms with a few pictures to help entice. 

10: Peggy Porschen

116 Elbury Street, SW1W 9QQ

Peggy Porschen, situated in Belgravia, has a celeb status within the world of baking, with costumers like Elton John and Stella McCartney visiting often. The cakes boast quality and perfection, and of course great taste, but its at number 10 for me as it is a bit pricey, especially for a student like myself.

9: COCOMAYA

12 Connaught Street/3 Porchester Place, W2 2AF

Cocomaya provides a vast array of loose leaf teas and an even wider selection of large portion hearty tray-bakes and cakes. Both shops are particularly fashionable, which may be owed to their founder, Serena Rees, also the founder of Agent Provocateur.I especially recommend the Cinnamon Buns <3

8: Ms Cupcake

408 Coldharbour Lane, SW9 8LF

Ms Cupcake is a 1950's inspired bakery with an owner who is more than fit for the part! Everything in the bakery is 100% vegan, but unlike some vegan baking, these cakes are rammed full of flavour, and drowned in icing.

7: Maison Bertaux 

28 Greek Street, W1D 5DQ

Maison Bertaux is full to the brim with personality, local love and heart. Opened in 1871, the french bakery provides family recipes baked with quality in mind. Think Patisserie Valerie on a smaller scale!

6: The Sanderson

50 Berners Street, W1T 3NG

I said to myself that this post was not going to include the big names and traditional London guide tearooms such as the Ritz and Claridge's, however I have to slip this one in! (Sorry) I recently took my Mum to The Sanderson for the 'Mad Hatter's Afternoon Tea Party' and it was frankly pretty perfect. It was completely imaginative, from the mint chocolate tea to the marshmallow toadstools. The whole thing is an experience, and it is much more than just tea and cake in a cafe!

5: Towpath

Regents Canal Towpath, Hoxton, between Whitmore Bridge and Kingsland Road Bridge, N1 5SB

Towpath is stumbled upon by many a Londoner, especially during the summer months, when The Regents Canal opens its towpath to the public. Its unique positioning provides a canal-side resting spot for couples and families enjoying the tranquility of the canal amidst the busy surroundings of Hoxton.  

4: Sanctum Soho

20 Warwick Street, W1B 5NF

Sanctum Soho provides afternoon tea lovers with something completely different! Yes, the picture doesn't lie...this male orientated, meat based, carb-overloading afternoon tea is all based around the savoury, not the sweet. This is the perfect present for a hungry boyfriend or a Dad who likes something a bit different! 

3: The Hummingbird Bakery

133 Portobello Road, W11 2DY

The Hummingbird Bakery needs little in the means of an introduction.  Opening in 2004 on Portobello Road, the bakery has grown and grown into multiple other smaller stores, all providing Londoners with a taste of American baking - most famously the Red Velvet Cupcake and the Whoopie Pie. In terms of flavour, the Hummingbird Bakery really takes the biscuit (hehe).

2: Cafe At Foyles

113-119 Charing Cross Road, WC2H 0EB

Cafe At Foyles is situated in its flagship bookstore and is not what many would call traditional when it comes to tea and cake. Although the cafe has been recently opened up, it was originally very small and crammed full of vinyls and books. Now the music has moved upstairs, but it is still the perfect place to enjoy tea and cake whilst being in hearing distance of live jazz music.

1: Cake Hole, At Vintage Heaven

82 Columbia Road, E2 7QB

Cake Hole takes pole position due to its sublimely homely feel and proper farmhouse baking style. Sat bang in the middle of Columbia Road, the cafe is a haven for thirsty vintage enthusiasts, and this is clearly shown through the fabulous vintage interior and china patterns. Its bestseller is the owners Coffee & Walnut Cake, so keep an eye out!

Cake Hole is shabby chic to a T(ea) but I strongly recommend avoiding it on a Sunday as it tends to become overly busy with flower market tourists.  

My big summer 'YES' and 'NO'

YES YES YES to metallic eyeshadow. Magazine after magazine has produced double page spreads this summer of our favourite celebrities and catwalk models rocking the metallic eye. I personally always wear a shimmer eyeshadow, just to brighten up any tired eyes, but this trend is bang on for everyone! 100% yes to gold and bronze shades for green eyed girlies and silver or copper for blue eyed beauties. Brown eyed girls are lucky enough to have the whole pallette to choose from, a metallic colour like pink or blue is especially flattering and a bit more out there, and a shimmery green is perfect for darker skin tones. 

NO to stick on gold tattoos! Each to their own on this one, but in my opinion they are pretty awful. I have been surrounded by girls at festivals this summer who are covered bindi to anklet in these Aztec stickers. In my opinion, the last time it was okay for anyone to wear a temporary tattoo was when we were 8 and it was of Hello Kitty at a school fair, or a skull and cross bones from a bubblegum wrapper in the local sweet shop. Not only do they look cheap, if one does not have a deep mahogany tan, they cease to stand out. I understand the Grecian godess look that is being sought after, but I strongly suggest Acessorise, Asos or Primark for some cheap golden bangles instead. 

To achieve an effortlessly cool festival look I do suggest these golden stickers be left for greetings cards only. 

Why Buffalo Trainers rock!

Throwing it right back to the 90's with these chunky Buffalo Trainers! I've seen them on singers like FKA Twigs, Rita Ora and Zoe Kravitz and decided despite my lack of celeb status I'd buy a pair and my god they rock! 

Not only do they add a good 2 inches to your height, making me a solid 5'9, they are also great for all outfits. They make casual clothing look a bit more funky and they make smart clothing look a bit for chilled. I've bought them mainly for festivals, as their easy to clean material and the comfy sturdy walking boot like style makes them pretty great for the mud. 

Most importantly they were made famous by the Spice Girls, and frankly that says it all. 

Buy yourself some Buffalos ladies! 

SCUBA SUMMER TREND

The biggest trend this summer is undeniably that of the 'scuba bikini'...it may sound bizarre but yes, neoprene is very much in right now. The sales figures of swimwear line Triangl have rocketed in the past year as women across the world have decided to embrace the strong and sporty look. 

Originally fashioned in the 80s by Elle Macpherson for Sports Illustrated the trend has been very much revived this summer by Triangl. Like everything else in fashion, there are now multiple replicas on the majority of online sites, including ASOS, Missguided, and Depop. I myself have ended up managing to buy two scuba style bikinis(off Depop)and can happily say they are some of the most flattering bikinis I have ever owned. Not only do they come in a huge array of colours to suit all skin colours, they also come in a variety of styles fit for all body types. 

The idea of a swimsuit that is based on the idea of a divers wetsuit doesn't exactly scream sexy but Cosmo's recent photo-shoot with model, Olivia Greenfield, is enough to silence any doubts. The look is very much sporty and adventurous and the bikinis are extremely comfortable and robust (even for £8 on Depop). They retail on Triangl for between £50-£60...which isn't bad, but as a student the replicas will have to make do. 

Pictured here are my two bikinis and of course a much more impressive photograph of Olivia Greenfield for Cosmopolitan. 

Smile!

Been pondering over the idea of a smiley piercing for a while now and after speaking it over with some misunderstood unhappy parents I decided to get one! (Sorry Mum and Dad) 

A smiley piercing is a piercing through your frenulum (the bit of skin between your lip and your gum at the top of your mouth), and is only really visible when you smile. Hence the name. 

I've been intrigued by them for a year or two, but never thought I'd get one, due to my parents conservative ideas and strict principles. However, following a couple of tattoos and some pretty big 'debates' over the matter, I was told 'it's my body so I guess I can do what I want'. So like anyone else I went and got it ASAP! And I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT! 

Not only is it discrete, pretty, sexy and painless, it is very temporary and also quite unusual, which I like. I got a plain silver ring which just hangs below the edge of my gums. Although the response has been largely mixed, I do definitely think this is a piercing that's going to become increasingly popular. Like the trendy septum piercing this is fairly unique. 

I wanted to get this piercing as it is one of the only ones you can get that won't leave a permanent mark. I like eyebrow, nose and ear piercings but I'm not too keen on being left with little holes! I highly highly recommend this piercing for anyone who fancies something a bit different, and absolutely zero fuss. 

Here's a highly edited picture of my piercing (got to love a good Instagram filter)

Gillian Wearing inspired shoot in Trafalgar Square

What they don't tell you about dyeing your hair blue...

What they don't tell you about dyeing your hair turquoise is that its a right bloody mess. 

I've experimented with hair colours before, which have included pink, purple and silver, but I decided about 4 months ago that I fancied something a bit different. I had seen a few bloggers with green and blue hair and absolutely loved it! The chance of looking like a mermaid for even a day is one that could not be passed up, so I decided to have a browse.

I completely and utterly blame Bleach London for drawing me in with their colourful Instagram pictures of hipster models with golden tans and long pastel hair! Nonetheless I went on to buy 'Washed Up Mermaid' by Bleach London and ended up applying two bottles worth to my already tired looking bleach blonde hair. 

30 minutes later I was bright turquoise, and I absolutely loved it! I was full on colourful, it wasn't just a tint or a tone, this dye had really worked some magic, even lifting the darker tones of blonde to a 'dolphiny' blue. I proceeded to have turquoise hair for weeks to come and fully embraced it by all means. Some people loved it, others (my mum) not so much. Regardless I felt fun and unique, and every outfit was completed by my aqua locks. 

What the bottle doesn't tell you, however, is that this is your life now. There's no going back. This stuff doesn't fade...this stuff clings on like hell! The '2-8 washes' on the bottle was absolute bull**** Not only did it stay for 2-8 washes...it stayed for 16 weeks! The pinks and purples had faded in a few weeks and done so in a beautiful delicate manner that had left me with dreamlike pastel shades. This was a whole different ballgame, and when I say I tried everything, I really do mean it.

I tried: 

Bleach London Colour Fader...about 20 times...(didn't work) 

Vitamin C hair masks X3...(worked a little bit but I smelt like an orange for weeks)

Colour B4 Hair Colour Stripper from Boots...(didn't work and smelt of sewage)

Salon Stripper...(didn't work and would never recommend...left my hair feeling like straw and looking even worse)

The only thing that eventually worked...was dyeing it dark dark brown. 

So the moral of this story is as fantastic as it is to look like a mermaid it is by far the worst colour in the whole spectrum of hair dyes to try and get out.