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| The Dome, Edinburgh |
Season's Greetings! Last week I scampered up to Scotland for the long awaited Christmas holidays, the big city bright lights and possibilities made me a touch giddy with excitement. My first day in Edinburgh (my home city, much loved and often missed) was spent in fine style with a trip to the sumptuous surroundings of
The Dome, a George Street institution. Nowhere seems to outdo their lavish festive decorations. Passing the Georgian columns thickly garlanded with lights, inside you encounter the heady punch of cinnamon, a spice merchants fantasy of sticks embedded in rich traditional garlands festooning the impressive interior. An icicled doorway opens out onto the main dining room and bar with its red glowing spectacle of tall Christmas tree underneath dazzling glass dome. It all feels decadently luxurious. Mum & I headed up stairs to the tearoom (think this is a Christmas tearoom only, not all year round) where I'd been assured a wonderful afternoon tea awaited us. It didn't disappoint, providing a delicious selection of sandwiches, generously sized scones and mini pastries almost too pretty to eat (but we pushed ourselves). I think it's important to set the tone of the festivities at the outset, start as you mean to go on!
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| The Dome, Edinburgh |
Stoked with cakes and contentment, we pottered down to Broughton Street to explore the intriguing shops and galleries packed into this popular, quirky old street (there's lovely bars too but those stories are for another time). First stop was the
Union Gallery with it's amazing installation by
Samantha Boyes, a talented taxidermist with an admirable appreciation of fake food. Her careful fusion of both has produced 'High Tea', a collection of pieces beautifully arrayed on a large dining table. The pieces are for sale individually, seen together they create an striking exhibition, playful but also thought provoking. Hearteningly, in these times of presumed austerity, most of the pieces have already sold with some already whisked away by buyers eager to have them before Christmas. I'd love to find any of these in my Christmas stocking and although my artisan maker status makes it tricksy now, one day I'll aim to start a modest collection of Samantha's work (I'm hoping to start with the sparrow rising delicately from inside a butterfly cake). In addition, I know she's a very nice lady as I had the brilliant experience of skinning a mole ('Mabel', see earlier blog) at a 'Rodent Toast Workshop' back in August.
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| Curiouser & Curiouser window |
Next, we made a beeline for
Curiouser & Curiouser, a shop I already follow online but hadn't actually been to. Amused by their cheerful knitted foxy window, we found lots of tempting contemporary homely items and arty things. It's a vibrant shop with a flair and carefully chosen range that elevate it above many other quirky/gifty shops.
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| Detail from 'Boxing Day' by Charlotte Duffy, Concrete Wardrobe |
Across the road lies another gem, the intriguingly named
'Concrete Wardrobe' which states it's 'primarily dedicated to promoting Scottish based or
Scottish trained designer makers whose work is both high quality and
affordable. Work is manufactured and supplied as one off pieces or as
small batch production ranges', which seems like a very sound ethos. Its fab window display is a sculpted cardboard scene, 'Boxing Day' by artist Charlotte Duffy (Waste of Paint) packed full of inventive details. Lastly, we headed to Kathy's Knits, a friendly and helpful wool shop which sells unusual Shetland & North Ronaldsy wools with rich, unusual colours.
That was quite enough pottering for one day but later in the week I managed two enjoyable trips to one of my favourite Edinburgh cake stops,
Eteaket in Frederick Street. Tasty cakes, very pleasant staff and a cosy atmosphere make this an ideal place for catching up with friends and scone appreciation.
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| Vettriano exhibition poster |
On Christmas Eve with a storm threatening, we (me, Mum & brother) set off on a Cameron family outing to Glasgow to see the Jack Vettriano Retrospective at
The Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum. It's an impressive red stone neoclassical building which has been beautifully renovated allowing for a dashing mix of historical grandeur and accessible exhibits. Mildly excitingly, we took the very shoogly 'clockwork orange' (subway) from Queen Street station then endured a hailstone lashed but mercifully short walk to the gallery. Suitably restored by a light lunch in the cafe (tasty and good value) we took in the exhibition. I've always adored Vettriano's paintings, especially the late 90's ones with their louchness, 1940s-esque women and tantalising peeps into private scenes of seduction. The' erotic room'
was an enticing notion and while it has inevitably attracted some media comments about misogynistic voyeurism, it's nothing for less liberal types to panic about and there's a sensual pleasure in seeing these intense scenes (even on a rainy afternoon in the company of a parent and sibling). In contrast, the exhibition also includes luminous, sun kissed paintings and reflective self portraits, for me it was all essential viewing.
Braving the elements once more, we soggily stumbled along to The Shop of Interest further along Argyle Street, my newest stockist! (and one I'm really excited about). Defining itself as 'an art boutique and gallery filled with lots of interesting things. If
you're looking for something a bit different, here's where you'll find
it', it lives up to this statement. It's an inspiring and gorgeous shop (and has an online store too!).
Hope you all enjoyed lovely festive holiday activities and pottering about too.
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