The Women's Room | Daily Life and Style Inspiration

Out & AboutJuly 22, 2016

Guest Blog: Elena Bowes visits Creel & Gow

By Amanda

Another post from our roving New York reporter Elena, who has found another local gem worth putting on your to-visit list if you are visiting soon. If you’re in Manhattan’s Upper East Side on the lookout for something eye-catching, unusual… Read More

Middle Aged MumJuly 21, 2016

Middleagedmum.com: Digital Detox

By Jane

I blame Brexit – for everything tbh, but that’s another story – as the last few weeks my social media intake has reached another level. It’s not just me, as everyone I speak to says the same – Facebook became… Read More

Out & AboutJuly 20, 2016

What the Heck is Pokémon Go?

By Amanda

After Jane’s successful post on explaining Snapchat to us all, I thought I’d fill you in on the latest phone-based phenomenon, Pokémon GO, mostly because 1) Pokémon were a huge thing for twentysomethingsons when they were young – remember the… Read More

Fashion & BeautyJuly 19, 2016

Sicilian summer dressing

By Jane

So the sun is shining at last and the shops are starting to fill up with Autumn clothes (don’t get me started) but as most people are only just starting to think about going on their summer holidays – here… Read More

UncategorizedJuly 18, 2016

Summer Style Inspiration With Sandra Semburg and Amanda Brookes

By Amanda

A very quick post this morning, as other deadlines loom with the day job, but now the weather looks like it might actually be summer, I thought I’d share my new favourite Street Style blogger, Sandra Semburg. There are so… Read More

Fashion & BeautyJuly 15, 2016

Summer Beauty Buys

By Jane

Balance Me have sent me lots of lovely products over the last few months and I am fast becoming a fan of this natural skin care brand. The real test of a product for me, is if after testing I … Read More

Fashion & BeautyJuly 14, 2016

Amazon Hair with Rahua

By Amanda

One of the great things about reporting on fashion and beauty is the (occasionally) fascinating people we get to meet. So it was with Fabian Lliguin, renowned New York hair stylist and passionate environmentalist, who founded the all natural Rahua… Read More

Art & CultureJuly 13, 2016

How Not to Design a Logo

By Jane

When this image of Angela Eagle’s launch event popped up on my social media feed, I was initially amused as the headline read “Is Angela Eagle launching a political career – or a perfume?” But the more I read and… Read More

Home & GardenJuly 12, 2016

Neptune Home Furnishings – Who Knew?

By Amanda

Last week I discovered a very good range of home ware I didn’t even know existed. Neptune has been going for 20 years and is like the love child of The White Company and Marks & Spencer. Although clever home… Read More

Fashion & BeautyJuly 11, 2016

Maye Musk for James Perse

By Jane

The new ad campaign for Californian brand James Perse‘s A/W 16/17 collection features 68-year-old model Maye Musk. A spokesperson for the 20-year-old brand says they are “trying to change customers’ expectations from the young beach set to underscore it has… Read More

Fashion & BeautyJuly 8, 2016

Friday Athleisure Shoe Lust at ASOS

By Amanda

Athleisure isn’t just influencing clothes, shoes are also morphing into a mix of sporty comfort and smartness as new trainer hybrids appear to tempt us. I spotted these Lost Ink Terissa flatform plimsoles on a very stylish beauty editor this… Read More

Home & GardenJuly 6, 2016

The Calming Values of Japanese Incense

By Amanda

Last week ended for me in the most calming way imaginable, at a traditional Japanese incense ceremony. After a week of hurling verbal abuse at the radio as yet another politician did something unbelievable, it couldn’t have come at a… Read More

Home & GardenJuly 5, 2016

We Have A Winner! The Secret Linen Store Competition

By Amanda

So, we have a winner for our recent Secret Linen Store competition, lucky old Eleanor O’ Neill and her idea of adding corner mittens to her duvet so her hands wouldn’t get cold when she whacked her alarm clock in… Read More

Home & GardenJuly 5, 2016

Brassica Restaurant and Mercantile

By Jane

Sometimes London can be very overwhelming and while most of us who live here, love the hectic, intense pace of life, there can be times when one longs to give it all up and move to the country. I regularly… Read More

Food, We Are ReadingJuly 4, 2016

A Bird In The Hand by Diana Henry

By Amanda

While helping M.A.D with his vinyl pop up, I checked out the local charity stores – East Sheen has a staggering number for a small place -and discovered this fabulous cookery book in one of them. The joy of the… Read More

Fashion & BeautyJuly 4, 2016

Georgia O’Keeffe at Jigsaw

By Amanda

Georgia O’Keeffe’s new exhibition opens this week people…Regular readers will remember I’ve been practicing dressing like Georgia since here and never before have I been more hopeful that some great art will lift my spirits. Much like with the Barbara… Read More

Home & Garden, Out & AboutJuly 1, 2016

Guest Blog: Elena Bowes visits John Derian

By Amanda

In this next post from our New York Like A Local series, Elena Bowes visits one of my all time favourite NYC stores, John Derian, tucked away down on East Second Street, an inspirational place for anyone who likes making… Read More

Home & GardenJune 30, 2016

Fabulous things made in Japan, from Niwaki

By Amanda

The Japanese make stuff really well, so when another of our roving reporters (thanks Tamara) tipped us off about a Japanese brand she’s seen at Grow London, I was keen to research it. The brand is Niwake, which means garden… Read More

Art & CultureJune 28, 2016

Keep Calm and Carry on…..

By Jane

Like everyone else in the country I have been glued to social media since the heartbreaking news that Britain has voted leave the EU. As a Scot who spent her teenage years in Yorkshire and ended up in London, I… Read More

Fashion & BeautyJune 28, 2016

Pimp My Espadrilles (if we’re still allowed to wear them)

By Amanda

What happened to the humble espadrille? Walking through Selfridges shoe department, I was dazzled- nearly blinded, if I’m honest- by the rope-and-canvas bling that now fills this shoe category. Remember the days when espadrilles came bundled together with an elastic… Read More

Art & CultureJune 27, 2016

Wise words from Bill Cunningham….

By Jane

Art, Culture & Craft, We Are ReadingJune 24, 2016

Vinyl, The Art Of Making Records by Mike Evans

By Amanda

In connection with our post on Middleagedad’s pop up vinyl record store, music fans might like to know about Mike Evan’s definitive book on the history and recent resurgence of vinyl. Written by the husband of our fabulous French-based, roving… Read More

Things We LoveJune 24, 2016

Cold Brew Tea -It’s Definitely ‘A Thing’

By Amanda

Since my post on the Rare Tea Lady my inbox has filled up with people wanting to draw my attention to their tea brands….and cold brew tea is clearly the tea story of the summer if the PR releases are… Read More

Art & Culture, Out & AboutJune 24, 2016

Record Shops, How We’ve Missed You (say middleagedads everywhere)

By Amanda

For the next couple of weeks, Middleagedad has moved into retail, specifically a pop up vinyl record shop, as part of his ongoing Resonate Generate art project (regular readers may remember it from the Selfridges Bright Old Things window). The… Read More

Out & AboutJune 23, 2016

The older women of the East End

By Jane

There’s something about older women in London – they have an attitude and confidence which enables them to stand out from the crowd and take control. They get seats on buses, bring people together to chat in public places and… Read More

Fashion & BeautyJune 22, 2016

The Life of Pitti Peacocks, For Those of You Who Are All ‘Fashed-Out’

By Amanda

The Life Of Pitti Peacocks – Pitti Uomo Mockumentary from Aaron Christian on Vimeo. I loved this charming tongue in cheek look at the Pitti menswear show, by Aaron Christian and pointed out to us by our roving reporter Julia… Read More

Food, We Are ReadingJune 21, 2016

Savage Salads by Davide Del Gatto & Kristina Gustafsson

By Amanda

Savage Salads is a neat title and the team behind the book are already food-truck stars, seen daily at Berwick Street in Soho. The book is less vegetable-drama and more a list of interesting combinations you can play with and… Read More

Fashion & BeautyJune 21, 2016

Modern Rarity: Another Reason to Love John Lewis?

By Jane

We have talked for a while about the concept of “Peak Stuff” and our desire to move away from disposable, fast fashion, to buying less but better. Always on the money when it comes to tapping into the cultural zeitgeist,… Read More

Home & GardenJune 19, 2016

The Women Behind The Secret Linen Store and a Fabulous Give-Away

By Amanda

After the success of our recent Protected Species rain mac competition, we are pleased to bring you another fabulous chance to win something lovely. We’ve written about The Secret Linen Store previously and many of you have their beautiful and… Read More

Art & Culture, Out & AboutJune 16, 2016

See This: Switch House at The New Tate Modern

By Amanda

I’d like to make a prediction that soonish, the new Switch House extension of the Tate Modern will become the place all of us go to get the best view of London. On the tenth floor (ten floors!) there is… Read More