Orkestra del Sol

Do go and see this if they are ever in your area. We saw them at The Lemon Tree, Aberdeen. Orkestra del Sol are a polka/brass/calypso band. The highlights of it for me were the huge brass tuba thing (sousaphone) taking out part of the ceiling, the 'Reverend' playing the ukulele while singing a very suggestive calypso song and the whole audience doing a conga around the venue! http://www.orkestradelsol.co.uk/

Two retro discoveries

Please forgive the odd pairing of the sublime and the ridiculous. The sublime is a classic movie I have inexplicably never seen before, Sunset Boulevard. I don't know why I missed it, I had some idea it was going to be really dull and worthy. In fact it is a fantastic, dark, gothic thriller in a rather Hitchcockian vein, starring the amazing Gloria Swanson, herself of course, a great old Hollywood star. Most of all I loved her crumbling mansion and enigmatic manservant played by Erich von Stroheim. And of course, her spectacular car! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043014/

The ridiculous is a tin of Zam-buk ointment, which I bought purely because I loved the classic packaging. When I worked in museums we had some tins of this and I swear it is practically unchanged for a century. I didn't expect it to be a virulent green though. It has an interesting herbal smell. Zam-buk originated in South Africa in the Boer War and has been in mainstream production since 1903. It is an antiseptic pain reliever and was famed for its use in sport. Available in Boots and just about everywhere.

So Bad It's Good

During my Apartment Therapy sessions, I have found, worryingly, that I am more and more drawn to bad taste things. In a world of samey neutral tastefulness in decor, why not embrace some kitsch, colour and scary patterns? Atom Age, Tiki, Space Age, you name it.

Here are some great bad taste books to get you started.....

'Dictator's Homes'. If you didn't laugh you'd cry. Leopard skin, marble, swastika throw cushions? http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dictators-Homes-Lifestyles-Colourful-Despots/dp/184354430X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276947103&sr=1-1

'Turned On, Decorative Lamps of the Fifties'. Hula girls, panthers, poodles. Beyond tasteless and fills you with that collecting urge. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Turned-American-Decorative-Lamps-Recollectibles/dp/0896599167/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1276947282&sr=1-1-fkmr0

'Inspiring Interiors from Armstrong'. 1950s conversion horrors by Armstrong, the lino people. There's a lot of lino featured, along with hideous colour combos, formica and decorative Spanish style metalwork. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Inspiring-Interiors-1950s-C-Eugene-Moore/dp/0764304585/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276947421&sr=1-1

And just for fun one of my favourite fashion books 'Off the Wall, Fashion from the DDR'. Soviet Bloc fashions from the 60s actually look surprisingly fresh and fun these days. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Off-Wall-Fashion-GDR-Humour/dp/0747581142/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276947563&sr=1-2

Scary tidy

Following my endless grousing about the chaos of our flat, a friend lent me this excellent book http://www.amazon.co.uk/Apartment-Therapy-Eight-Step-Home/dp/0553383124/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1275752925&sr=8-1

a sort of self-help book for the interior. I am following-ish (cos I'm not a great one for structured programmes) the programme of tidying, redecorating and er 'energising' the home. So far I have purged three loads of stuff to Oxfam, including my technologically defunct VHS and audio tape collections. I have bought three new cushions, a plant pot, PC speakers and have ordered a coat hook for the hall (pictured). I have found out where to dispose of old paint tins too. I even bought flowers which is a sign of 'care for your home' and although that sounds a bit drippy they are actually very nice...sweet williams. I am still trying not to think about our study which is really heaving with stuff, if not up to the standards of some guy I saw on TV who had fifty old bikes in his living room. I will update on how I am progressing, if at all...

Rhubarb rhubarb

I was really chuffed today when someone I work with, apropos of nothing in particular, gave me a bag of homegrown rhubarb. I think rhubarb is a love/hate thing, but I really like it. I even like seeing it growing with its huge, exotic, poisonous leaves. Incidentally, if the leaves are poisonous, how come you can eat the stems? In the winter I like rhubarb crumble but that is a bit unseasonal with the nice weather we are miraculously enjoying. So I thought I would try something from my fab new cookbook The Delicious Miss Dahl (by Sophie Dahl, ex supermodel) http://www.amazon.co.uk/Miss-Dahls-Voluptuous-Delights-Sophie/dp/0007261179 which actually has lots of interesting, healthy and simple recipes as well as the chosen Rhubarb Eton Mess with Rosewater. Eton mess sounds weirdly upper crust and school dinnery but is actually just any fruit mixed with meringue bits and whipped cream. Hmm think I might have a relaxing cooking weekend this weekend. And drink beer in the promised sunshine. And wear suncream cos I am burned again from sitting outside the castle eating my packed lunch.

Americans call it thrifting

Certainly thrifting sounds more glamourous, but I'd call it charity shop shopping. Yes, I can afford to buy new stuff but I like the thrill of the chase and not wearing what everyone else is. In 'The Glass of Fashion' by Cecil Beaton (top book btw, full of inspiring anecdotes about great fashion eccentrics from the 1900s to 1960s.) there is a great story of two ladies who turned up at a party in identical black dresses trimmed with ostrich feathers. One, in an act of very expensive panache, nipped into the toilet with some scissors and came out waving the fathers like a fan. Anyway, my latest buy was a 60s style shift dress in bright pink silk by LK Bennett for £15. Only problem is, I always buy dresses and coats cos they are the only things that usually aren't totally trashed by the time people give them away. I must admit, I am a bit leery of buying second hand shoes, hats and night/underwear for hygiene reasons. Who buys second hand underwear, really?

Wandering around

On my way back from paying in a cheque (is it just me who finds banks stressful and frustrating) the sun was shining so I thought I would randomly wander. I popped into an interesting shop I am always passing where I found a girl making handbags (http://www.tyttipeltoniemi.com/). The shop sold many gorgeous things, all fiendlishly expensive. It was fascinating to watch her cutting the leather etc though. Then I wandered through the Victorian Nellfield Graveyard, very peaceful in the middle of the city bettp://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/nescotland/graveyards/grnellfd.htm. I nipped into a small gift shop on my way back where I bought a bizzarre necklace with my birthday money (http://www.onebuttonuk.com/). It looks like blobs of coloured plasticine in glass beads if that makes any sense.