butterflies in the evening light

bed

A bit of a mismatch of bedlinen and blankets, but I like the colours. We painted the bedroom at home a few months ago (in Farrow & Ball Oval Room Blue, if I remember correctly) - it looks quite striking with the dark wooden bed - a good match, I think. Spring light is finally beginning to trickle in through the windows.

evening ceremony

I have been a fan of Active Child (aka Pat Grossi), Los Angeles chamber-pop harp-yielder and electronic-meets-choral music magician, since his 2010 EP Curtis Lane. Listen to the first new Active Child material since his excellent 2011 full-length debut, You Are All I See, below. The new track, entitled Evening Ceremony, will be included on the soundtrack to the upcoming sci-fi film The Host, and is four-and-a-half minutes of sweeping melancholia, soaring vocals and cascading harp. Incredible.

wish list: burnt orange, midnight blue

Gant Rugger Canvas Chino Shorts.
Ami Raglan Sleeve Jacket.
Pierre Hardy Cube-print Pouch.
A.P.C. Logo Front T-shirt.
Bass Weejuns Larson Loafers.
Carven Contrast-collar Check Shirt.
Ami Bird-print Chino Trousers.
Christian Louboutin Maurice Shopper Bag.
A.P.C. Cotton Chino Trousers.
A. Sauvage Gainsborough Wool tie.
Valextra Logo Embroidered Holdall.
Black Fleece Diagonal-stripe Tie.

All from Matches. Image: Still Life with Lemon by Dawn Sidoli.

candy

Candy, played by French actress Léa Seydoux, is the character dreamt up by Prada as the face of its new fragrance, Candy L'Eau. She features in a series of three short films created by famed directors Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola. Quintessentially Wes and completely amazing, wouldn't you agree?

julian

A heavenly hymn from the Stockholm/Sydney dream pop duo Say Lou Lou.

the british museum (in the snow)

We escaped the snow (oh Lord! Will it ever end?) on Saturday afternoon and took a post-brunch jaunt around the British Museum. I do love an Elgin Marble.

modern vampires of the city

I've been waiting for Vampire Weekend's third album for a long time. Modern Vampires of the City will be released on May 6th, and if Step is anything to go by, we're in for a treat. Enjoy the beautiful monochrome lyrics video below. It makes me desperately pine after New York City...

toast marylebone

Toast celebrated the opening of their newest shop on London’s Marylebone High Street on Thursday evening with a good party. The Flower Appreciation Society did a fabulous job of decking the shop with fresh flowers and Gin & Tonics, served by Sipsmith, were decorated with peppery edible flowers from Greens of Devon. The flowers will be in bloom until Monday, so do pop by if you get the chance.

the crooked billet

The Crooked Billet in Henley-on-Thames - we had lunch here on Sunday. The rabbit stew and roaring fires were the perfect antidote to a chilly mid-March afternoon.

black velvet

We ate supper at London's oldest restaurant, Rules, on Friday evening (crab, steak and toffee pudding). I'd wanted to pay the place a visit for quite some time. Celebratory refreshment (what were we celebrating? I fail to remember. It being a Friday, perhaps...) came in the form of Black Velvet - a rich mix of champagne and Guinness, served in a silver tankard. It is, in fact, a mourner's drink. The cocktail was first created by the bartender of the Brooks's Club in 1861, to mourn the death of Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's Prince Consort. (It's supposed to symbolise the black or purple cloth armbands worn by mourners.) My verdict: strangely delicious.

magazine reading: the plant issue 03

Perfect magazine reading for a Saturday afternoon. Discover more here.

carven: part two

Sweater - located and pounced upon. Rejoice.

mozart square

We got up with the lark last Saturday morning and drove down to Chelsea for a spot of antique shopping (at the moment we're on the hunt for a sideboard for the living room and a mirror for the bathroom). Whilst in the neighbourhood, we dropped by the delightful famers' market on Pimlico Road. The market takes place in an area known locally as Orange or Mozart Square (although you won't find this address in any A-Z). All seemed perfect and right with the world for a few moments - we drank hot coffee and looked in shop windows at nice wallpaper and fresh flowers and the air had a freezing, optimistic sweetness about it. The sounds of market chatter and birdsong drifted about the place, whilst a cheerful looking man (he looked much more cheerful in real life, I promise) went about playing his bright red accordion, much to the delight of meandering market shoppers.

six working men

Toast's photographs for their new men’s collection are a (modest) homage to Irving Penn and his great Small Trades series – portraits, shot in 1950/51, of tradesmen in Paris, London, New York, dressed in their work clothes, carrying the tools of their trades. Neil Gavin took the pictures – portraits of six interesting men, including the very talented actor and musician Johnny Flynn (above). View the Toast spring/summer men's collection here, and the lookbook here.