The Women's Room | Daily Life and Style Inspiration

Health & HappinessMay 9, 2013

Fancy coming to our Twitter party? For Boots Make It Happen campaign

By Amanda

Exciting news….we’ve been invited to a Twitter Party for the Boots Make it Happen campaign. It’ll be our first social network party and we hope you’ll all come as you can have a Twitter party while doing a million other… Read More

Food, We Are ReadingMay 8, 2013

Sugar & Spice by Gaitri Pagrach-Chandra

By Amanda

I am indebted to The Foodie Bugle for pointing out Gaitri Pagrach-Chandra’s wonderfully written, cultural mash-up baking books. Born in India, brought up in Guyana, educated in the US, now married to a Dutchman and living in Holland, Gaitri is… Read More

Fashion & BeautyMay 8, 2013

Last time I looked, trainers were white: neon trainers from Nike and New Balance

By Amanda

One of the more horrid aspects of increased age is the impact on health. Once robust and invincible friends have started to crumble with age-related illnesses, so in order to get a teeny bit fitter and healthier, I’ve started to… Read More

Out & AboutMay 7, 2013

Simple Pleasures: The British seaside

By Jane

Sunshine, friends, children and dogs and a huge sandy beach are just about all you need for the perfect weekend. Throw in a few portable BBQ’s, a beach hut, ice cream and fish and chips and I could stay forever!… Read More

Art & CultureMay 6, 2013

JR Art: celebrating age with giant-size wrinkles.

By Amanda

We’re loving these giant sized wall images from French graffiti artist JR, whose global project Wrinkles in the City has attempted to counter the eternally youthful advertising images seen on bill boards and giant screens around urban areas with celebratory… Read More

Middle Aged MumMay 3, 2013

Middleagedmum.com: pencil cases and other things of neatness

By Jane

When Amanda asked me to send her a picture of my pencil case for her post last week, I have to admit I was a bit thrown. What pencil case, was my initial reaction. She said it so matter of… Read More

Novels & Biogs, We Are ReadingMay 2, 2013

The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris by Jenny Colgan

By Amanda

Blimey, what is it with writers and stationery?. No sooner had we put up author Jill Mansell’s post on her stationery loves, when Jenny Colgan asked us on Twitter if she could let us see her stationery too…..how could we… Read More

Home & GardenMay 2, 2013

Susannah Hunter’s Chelsea Flower Show garden, with weather-proof leather flowers

By Amanda

Chelsea Flower Show Gardeners are normally in a bit of a spin around now, complaining that temperatures are either too hot/cold/wet/dry to ensure the perfect show garden. Handbag designer Susannah Hunter’s garden will bloom beautifully whatever the weather, because most… Read More

Fashion & BeautyMay 1, 2013

It’s all about the cat eye!

By Jane

So it’s time to start thinking about sunglasses as the sun seems to be shining at last. Here in London, sunglasses appear to have taken on a whole new level of importance for stylish folk, as we have adopted the… Read More

Art & CultureApril 30, 2013

Go See This: Claire Aho at the Photographers’ Gallery

By Amanda

It’s becoming quite clear Jane and I are going to have to become Scandinavian, we fall in love with almost everything the area throws at us (recent love = wellies). I have a new Skandi-girl-crush on photographer Claire Aho, whose… Read More

Things We LoveApril 29, 2013

Peter and Paul cake stand from Ginger & Mora

By Amanda

We love this cake stand from new lifestyle website Ginger & Mora. Glass cake stands are everywhere now, so ever keen to stay ahead of the trend we’re looking for something a bit different and this one, called the Peter… Read More

Fashion & Beauty, Out & AboutApril 29, 2013

The Vogue Festival

By Jane

This weekend I spent some time at the Vogue festival on the Southbank. It promised to be an interesting two days with an impressive line up of speakers from the media and fashion industry. The founder of Net-a-Porter Natalie Massenet… Read More

Novels & Biogs, We Are ReadingApril 29, 2013

Don’t Want To Miss A Thing by Jill Mansell

By Amanda

The recent post on pencil cases attracted the attention of TWR readers and super-successful writer Jill Mansell, who explained writers often are obsessed with stationery too…she is, so we couldn’t resist asking her to tell us more…. So Jill, what’s… Read More

Novels & Biogs, We Are ReadingApril 26, 2013

Let’s Explore Diabetes With Owls, by David Sedaris

By Amanda

Anyone who adores Davis Sedaris as much as me will only need to know that there is a new book out. You can buy it here. I am reading it and it is as hilarious as usual.… Read More

Home & GardenApril 26, 2013

National Stationery Week: what’s in your pencil case?

By Amanda

You know how we (Ok, I) am about stationery and all things related, we couldn’t let National Stationery Week go by without celebrating. So we’re taking the opportunity to look into the pencil cases of some of our favourite stationery… Read More

Out & AboutApril 25, 2013

Ruby’s and Black Pig with White Pearls

By Jane

Over the last couple of years, Dalston has transformed from interestingly creative and slightly down at heel to an achingly hip, centre of cool. Just a few yards from my house, new underground bars, quirky cafes and interesting restaurants pop… Read More

Home & Garden, We Are ReadingApril 24, 2013

The Set Table by Hannah Shuckburgh

By Amanda

If you are free on Thursday 25th April and you love a beautifully set table, can we suggest you nip along to Anthropologie in The King’s Road Chelsea, where Hannah Shuckburgh is celebrating the launch of her pretty new book … Read More

Out & AboutApril 24, 2013

Back to the 70s with Kaffe Fassett

By Amanda

There’s something fabulously old-school hippy about the textile artist Kaffe Fassett and his quilting,needlepoint and knitting style. Maybe it’s his upbringing on the Californian Big Sur coastline where his parents ran a restaurant popular with artists, or his move to… Read More

Fashion & BeautyApril 23, 2013

Julia Lundsten for Nokian – nice wellies!

By Jane

It may be a strange time to be talking about wellies, but anyone who owns a dog knows we are not quite out of the mud yet when it comes to appropriate footwear for a walk in the park/marshes/hills. Over… Read More

Fashion & BeautyApril 22, 2013

The best perfumes for teenage boys

By Amanda

Last of the perfume blogs for a bit, I promise, but I was asked by a couple of readers about first fragrances for teenage boys, so I rounded up some opinions from both experts (my perfume friend Andrew Tucker) and… Read More

Things We LoveApril 19, 2013

The Foodie Bugle magazine

By Amanda

Is it us or are beautifully presented niche magazines having a bit of a moment? Print is definitely in decline apparently, yet there are some lovely new magazines around, including this charming tome The Foodie Bugle, the first printed version… Read More

Home & GardenApril 19, 2013

Fragranced clothes: perfume is finding new places to go…

By Amanda

Fragrance houses are starting to make eyes at your clothes…you thought they were perfectly OK with regular washing and a dash of Comfort in the rinse to make ’em smell a bit less ‘laundry’, but they have other ideas. Home… Read More

Health & Happiness, We Are ReadingApril 19, 2013

Lost Lanes by Jack Thurston

By Amanda

This a glorious book, a total treat for anyone who cycles or who dreams of packing up a picnic lunch and heading out into the countryside for an adventure. It details 36 bike rides around Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire, the… Read More

Home & GardenApril 18, 2013

Hanging vases

By Jane

I love these hanging vases as a way of decorating outside for a special occasion. If the weather every gets sunny, I will be trying this look out in my tiny back garden. It’ll drive the cats and MAD insane,… Read More

Art & CultureApril 17, 2013

Face to face with David Bowie at the V&A

By Amanda

The Bowie exhibition at the V&A is terrific and you must see it if like us, you grew up playing his albums over and over while enduring your parents confused musings on wether he was a boy or a girl… Read More

Home & GardenApril 16, 2013

Trend alert: house plants

By Jane

The English love for indoor plants caught on in Victorian times, when the fashion for indoor plants meant conservatories became popular as places to take tea and grow the delicate and rare plants, popular at the time. Growing up in… Read More

Food, We Are ReadingApril 15, 2013

Nutmeg & Custard by Marcus Wareing

By Amanda

Like the look of this book by Marcus Wareing, which his lovely PR lady Natasha, who we met last week, says is full of great recipes you can really do at home. Also, we love the title, Nutmeg and… Read More

Out & AboutApril 15, 2013

We loved: So Dior at Harrods

By Amanda

I’m afraid to say we dropped the ball on this wonderful exhibition So Dior, of Dior clothes, perfume and accessories at Harrods, which finished yesterday, by not mentioning it when it first opened. If I hadn’t read Disneyrollergirl’s fabulous post… Read More

Fashion & BeautyApril 12, 2013

Hasbeens pop up (it’s time to start thinking about sandals)

By Jane

WIth the weather rumoured to be nice at the weekend (we’ll believe it when we see it TBH), it might be time to start thinking about summer sandals. We just can’t get enough of our Hasbeens and have I worn… Read More

Things We LoveApril 11, 2013

Perfume review: Muguet by Guerlain

By Amanda

Lily of the Valley is mighty tricky to turn into perfume nowadays, because the European Union, bless its cotton socks, is busy banning all the ingredients that make it smell good. I love the flower because as well as its… Read More