Seeing Yourself.

(image by b.ferry)

This past sunday at Violet seemed to be the day the bloggers all descended on the shop. Two of my favorite london blogs b. ferry and this is naive came and captured incredibly stunning images of the shop and all of the glory of it's little details. It's funny seeing yourself, and the place you spend so much time, up on a website you frequently visit. It makes you feel removed, like you're looking at yourself in a fishbowl.

Yes Please.

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How Things Look.

Whoopie!

This week Violet played host to the book launch party for Claire Ptak's new cookbook all about Whoopie Pies! It was an amazing night full of champagne, and beautiful people and lots and lots of whoopie pies.

Autumn is here.

Autumn has officially arrived in london and trying to find leaves that turn color is a challenge. This is perhaps the thing i miss most about being at home at this time of year. On my walk from home to work i found a few trees that seemed to have changed just for me.

Proof.

Proof that some parts of the world really are still undiscovered, but just not where we imagined them to be.

Coming back to the real world.

Being away for a week in the magical place that is Cornwall isn't exactly easy when the welcoming arms of London equals ten hour work days and cold damp weather. For seven days i was transported to a place where i didn't have to carry around anything in my pockets save a deck of cards and a flashlight, most definitely not my phone since there is no hope of cell phone service. It's that kind of week that makes you ponder whether maybe the quiet life is the good life and maybe you should just spend your savings on a humble cottage and enjoy living by the sea not needing too much. These times that make you realize how wonderful candle light is and being able to see stars at night and only hear the sound of waves as you wonder back to your house.

What life has been looking like.

It's funny moving to a new place and learning how your day will start to look different. From waking up in a new room, to walking down your new street, to finding new routes to work, everything changes. And somehow it's all exciting, even if in this case it's actually just for a month. Here's what life has been looking like this past week.

Okay, okay, okay.

So, i've realized that something happens when you have a job... especially a job that you're at most days from 8:45 am until 7 pm and don't have a computer... and that's that all you can manage when you get home is eat and sleep. The basics. The last few weeks have been eating, sleeping and breathing Violet Cakes and it feels really nice to be busy again. Right now is a nervewracking in between time, visa applications, job hunts, house hunts, and the waiting game because nothing, nothing at all, can be done before the UK says i'm allowed to stay here for longer. Adventures will happen soon, adventures with pictures, and until then... i will leave you with this.

Home sweet home, week 1.

Week one of being back stateside has been one of those weeks that's go go go go go. In this span of a week i've had to divide my time between being a tour guide and relaxing in a major way. List form is what i think best illustrates what we've done. Bocce, lobster rolls and hoagies in Princeton with Tait. Butchers, farm stands and fresh vegetables from the garden. Booze and barbecues. First times for s'mores and american bagels. Phillies vs. Mets. A boathouse bar. Backyard football, brunches and weddings.

Supper Club.

A few nights ago there was a supper club at Violet Cakes. I had never been to one and wasn't quite sure what to expect, but was excited because everything about the shop is always so on point. This was no different. The place was transformed, the company was lively and the food was incredible. James Lowe of St. John Bread and Wine fame was the guest chef and served up seven courses that consisted of things like foraged wild pea and runner bean salad and a rib of beef that had been slow cooked for 3 hours. I was completely blown away, and to top it off, there was a wonderful band that played as we drank elderflower champagne and ate dessert. This was a night well spent in the company of the friendliest of strangers.