So I bought myself some perfume.
So there.
elixir
10 Friday Dec 2010
Posted in christmas, home, life stuff, retail therapy
Category Archives: retail therapy
save the feeling
29 Wednesday Sep 2010
Posted in friends, life stuff, retail therapy, travel
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A while ago I talked about longing for some Diana Porter Jewellery and it did cross my mind that I might drop into her shop in Bristol while I was there, but what I hadn’t imagined was that it would be a fast very last minute in-and-out visit and that I would actually end up buying something! (I blame Lizzie) What happened was that we were hanging out in Lizzie’s charming Folk House Café when she suggested I might want to take a walk along Park Street before we went to the train station. It turned out that Diana Porter’s shop was right across the street and so…
bristol sunday
27 Monday Sep 2010
Posted in food & drink, friends, restaurants, retail therapy
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Had a lovely Sunday in Bristol with Lizzie. We got up quite late and then enjoyed some coffee before heading out to The Maul and M&S where I stocked up on the basics. Then we took a nice car tour through town and I got to see my old hood and lots of familiar places, and ended up at the waterfront to have lunch and – I was assured – the very best chips in Bristol, at the River Station. And they truly were amazing. Later on we took a walk over to the Avon Gorge Hotel hoping to see the sun set behind the Clifton Bridge, but clouds rolled in and so we headed home for cava and snacks.
This morning I am off to pick up a prezzie for Nog and to visit Lizzie’s Folk House Cafe (can’t wait!), before packing up and getting on the train to Paddington, and then making my way to Heathrow to fly home again. I’ve had a wonderful time – especially meeting with friends old and new – and I hope you’ve enjoyed me sharing my trip with you.
trueque
19 Sunday Sep 2010
Posted in friends, retail therapy, travel
It occurred to me yesterday that my old Dockers handbag, which has served me well these past 5-6 years, was not only looking a bit shabby but was also probably not quite big enough to “do London” with…meaning that I’ll have to be carrying a few extra things with me while I am out and about next week. And then I remembered that I saw a nice line of bags in my friend Maria’s shop, so yesterday morning I stopped by to try a couple on. Turned out this bag by Nava Design was a good size and was also quite nicely stylish enough – but goodness knows I’ve never had a “designer type bag” before and was shocked when Maria told me the price! Of course she then said I’d be able to get it at cost, to which I replied, “hey, would you like some linen?” And she laughed and said “oh! un trueque!”
Trueque means barter in Spanish. And although I was initially joking with Maria about swapping some of my linen clothing for this snazzy new bag, she is actually quite keen on coming over and seeing what I have in stock. Cool, eh? So we’ll do that before I leave on Wednesday. I’ve given up on finding a decent pair of walking shoes and have decided to super-glue the soles of my trusty old red Campers in the hope that they won’t leak if it rains.
But this new bag is seriously the shizz.
shopping!
31 Sunday Jan 2010
Posted in change, retail therapy, sevilla, spain
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Construction is almost finished at the new azahar sevilla store and so yesterday I went “shopping”. Met with a fabric painter who designs beautiful silk fans & shawls, and also spoke with a local artist who does very pretty watercolours of Sevilla, and both have expressed an interest in putting some of their stock in my store on a consignment basis. I mean, why not? It won’t cost them anything and it’s extra exposure for them. At least, I hope that’s how the various artists and artisans I plan on visiting will see it. So I’ll be quite busy next week shopping for merchandise.
I’m also going to meet with the owner of Puracepa to talk prices and arrange a date for them to teach me about wines for my tapas & wine tasting evenings there. Oh, and I got my first request for tapas tour info yesterday! That was pretty exciting. They haven’t booked a tour (yet) but sending them the info email suddenly made all this feel REAL. It also lit a fire under my butt to get back to work on the tapas guide e-book.
Meanwhile, I am helping Nog to help himself by reorganising the Restaurant & Hotel English class idea I had last summer. This is going to be his baby but I’ll be in charge of promotion, which is fine by me. So he’s been busy creating 3-month courses for three levels, sourcing materials, etc. And I am redesigning the brochure and will hit a few places next week that I think might be interested. Many will already have a teacher via one of the English schools, but I’ll be able to offer better prices and will stress that we *are* the company, so they won’t just be getting any old ESL teacher.
So it’s all busy, busy, busy … and who knows?
I may end up with something resembling an income yet!
casa azahar 