The List: April
Bank holiday season is upon us and if the weather stays this warm, you'll find me sitting in the park with my book and finding any excuses to have ice cream.
We’ve had a lot of false starts this spring. When the weather warmed up around Easter weekend, you could almost hear the collective sigh (and feel the high) of everyone. It’s the kind of bliss that comes with long weekends and any hint of sunshine. Aware that we still can’t plan any real holidays, we are making the best of our days off and taking little trips near London. Having nice weather makes such a big difference that really all one needs is a bit of sun beating down from a cloudless sky to feel renewed.
Sight
The opening look at Kent&Curwen’s 100th Anniversary show is the one I covet (apart from the shoes). The location—Westminster School within Westminster Abbey was perfect for this heritage British brand. After all, they made a name for themselves supplying ties to Oxford University and Cambridge University. With Daniel Kearns as their Creative Director, the collections are wearable—preppy but not dated at all. His experience in tailoring makes the outerwear downright delicious. It was novel to see a show outside of fashion month and to take in each look without being distracted by other work demands (one eye on the catwalk, another on your phone). I thought the styling by Pau Avia was exceptional.
Sound
Piper Durabo’s aka Maraschino has a monthly show on NTS called Kiss Cafe that I love listening to. I’ve had her March show on when I’ve worked from home. The slow dancefloor jams is catered for her “candy perfume gurlz”. On a day when the skies are blue, the balearic house and synth pop is the right kind of hyperdelic for me. I listen with the windows wide open, and the volume up. There is something about the heat that makes me want to fill the air with music and because it is rare that it is this warm, I do it.
Smell
The scent of citrus flowers is comparable to the smell of jasmine flowers. I learned this when I walked into The Conservatory at the Oxford Botanic Garden & Arboretum. The air was so heavily perfumed with that familiar floral scent that I looked around for the jasmine.
Instead, I followed my nose to some potted bitter orange trees that had flowered—Citrus x aurantium. The smell: sweet and floral, and a little musky reminded me of melur (or jasmine) a flower that grows prolifically in Malaysia.
Citrus plants have been grown in the Botanic Garden since the 1600s. The heady smell of these flowers have been filling The Conservatory every spring since. How lucky am I to have visited it when the flowers were in bloom perfuming the air.
Some of you will know that I am a big fan of this funny species of fruits. Read more about it here to learn more:
Taste
I have a sweet tooth but not when it comes to drinks. I prefer to have my liquids plain, unsweetened and sometimes slightly bitter. This can of pine forest soda was part of the complimentary refreshments in our room. I was intrigued, of course—a drink infused with Douglas fir and Scots pine suggesting a green taste. I love the smell of pine and although sweetened, this carbonated soda has only a whisper of sweetness. Using sustainably foraged fir and pine, I hope that discovering this does not become my gateway drug to soft drinks.
Touch
As I write this, it is 24 degrees and it feels like 24 degrees! The clear blue skies and sunny days that followed after the Easter bank holiday were a balm to the soul. When the sun hits the skin and warms it, literally nothing matters anymore. On days like these, we like to sit and read in Stationers’ Park—our closest park which is thankfully a Green Flag park. In the heat, the sounds of the birds chirping, and the children calling out to each other is amplified. Somehow it doesn’t bother us. Is everything simply more tolerable because I can feel the sun radiating on my skin? I take my socks and shoes off and feel the heat on more of my body. My feet freed, I continue reading aware of how heavy-lidded I am becoming. But I don’t mind as I’m sure an ice-cream will perk me up.
I'm reading this and looking out wondering: red or rosé?
A definite chill in the air despite the sunshine.