Hansom Cab Garages, Queens Park

Our final project of the Diploma is to convert a 19th century Hansom Cab garage into a space of our choice. I have decided to create a ceramics studio and one bedroom flat. The building that we are working with is across the road from our school, but the entire street is made up of these former garages. It makes it a unique place in London as the street is privately owned and filled with semi-industrial companies mixed in with bars, cafes, offices, and our school. We visited three different offices, all of which used the space in very different ways - and I've also found a photo of the garage during the hay-day of Hansom Cab's in London. 

World's Ugliest Sofa.

For my final project I'm sourcing as much furniture as possible from Ebay, and I stumbled across this gem. Listed as ART DECO 3 PIECE SUITE BEEN FULLY RESTORED AND UPHOLSTERED and all for the bargain price of £495. If there were a contest for world's ugliest sofa these would win. 

The Biltmore, Coral Gables

While in Florida we ventured out to The Biltmore in Coral Gables for a look around. The pool there is amazing and all of the grounds were gorgeous. There is an interior courtyard that is surrounded by the most beautiful tiling, as you can see above. 

Feed the Tarpon

In all of the marinas in the Keys there are Tarpon - this crazy-huge dock fish that are described as being a bit like giant herring. We made a stop at Robbie's Marina which is basically the the Florida Key's version of Wall Drug (the iconic I-80 South Dakota tourist trap, best doughnut I've ever had) and fed the Tarpon.

Lucian Freud Portraits

Girl In Bed, 1952 Private Collection © The Lucian Freud Archive.

Photo: Courtesy Lucian Freud Archive

Today I had brunch with a friend at the huge Whole Foods on High Street Kensington (which, by the way, does not carry Kombucha, what's the point of whole foods without kombucha?), and then because it was a sunny-with-the-imminent-threat-of-thunderstorms type day I decided to boris bike trough Hyde Park where on the other end I was meeting a friend to go to the National Portrait Gallery.

There is a huge Lucian Freud retrospective on, with more than 100 of his portraits. I really enjoyed the exhibition, and we made it just before the rains. 

Reflection (Self-portrait), 1985 Private Collection, Ireland © The Lucian Freud Archive. 

Photo: Courtesy Lucian Freud Archive

Art Deco, South Beach

Conch Key

While in the Florida Keys we rented a house on Conch Key. It was a traditional Pine Key house that was built in the 1940s and had withstood numerous Hurricanes. The decoration was amazing.