Happy Friday


I’ve been feeling a bit under the weather recently so decided to give myself a day off last Friday and accompany D on a business trip (read record shopping) to Brighton. I thought a day out out of the rat race complete with some bracing sea air and a tasty fish-shaped lunch might cheer me up. And blow me, cheer me up it did! I didn’t really make much of a plan which I think was a good thing. I started off in Kensington Gardens where I went to the only shop I’d heard of, Snoopers Paradise, a kind of run-down vintage market that was actually mostly full of dusty tat with the odd gem – just how I like it! I found a wee cluster of geek badges, plenty of old telephones and typewriters, a caseful of crucifixes and a boxful of zips. Now if I were a Susie Bubble or a Kingdom of Style Michelle or Marie I would have snapped them up to fashion into some sort of choker/cuff/headpiece arrangement, but being lazy old me I just took a photo of them but bought the badges. I also spied some Margiela-tastic mens boots about 6 sizes too big for me. No matter, I still enjoyed the gentle pace of Brighton browsing with no pressure to buy. Following my market once-over I parked myself in a nearby caff for an hour to scarf a buttered teacake, catch up on some work and read Vogue. Bliss. After some light deckchair action on the seafront, I met up with D for a fab lunch of squid followed by lemon sole followed by a delicious oh- go-on-then posh rice pudding at Due South (‘the best seaside restaurant in Britain’ – Observer Food Monthly). To walk off the lunch the exploring/shopping/ambling continued and I came away with a Helmut Newton autobiography for £6 which I know is gonna be a top read, plus a 1920s mirrored tray that is going to go above the wash-basin in our bathroom. All in all, the perfect end to an imperfect week.