A Christmas blog excursion

Last week I was invited by jewellery designer Emma Cassi to watch her and her friend Kate {they met through their blogs} paint the Christmas windows of one of my favourite tea shops, Orange Pekoe in Barnes. What a treat! I've always loved Emma's intricate work and blog so I was very excited to meet her. You can read Holly Becker gushing about a visit to her home this year here, but her descriptions are very apt.

{Some of Emma's lovely wish bracelets.}

{You can just see the Pandora Bell nougat, beautifully packaged.}

{Stocking up for Christmas.}

12 years ago, when I first lived in London, there was a shop in Wimbledon called Estillo, which I loved. They sold paintings made with gold leaf, which I adored, but could not afford, so I bought a large canvas and gold leaf and tried to recreate something similar myself. It was not totally successful, but as I'd spent so much money on the gold leaf, it hung in my living room for several years. Recently, through reading her blog and looking at her paintings online, I suspected that Kate was actually the artist of the original painting, and she confirmed it was true! Kate used to be a buyer for Estillo - what a small world.

{Tea caddies in the background.}

Kate has some more photos of the windows here. Thanks for inviting me along, Emma and Kate, it was lovely to meet you both. If you're in the Barnes area, you can see the windows for yourself - and stop for tea and cake at Orange Pekoe. I'm still drooling over an orange whisky cake I had there last year which was delicious.

{PS, Emma will have a stall at the Selvedge Christmas Fair this Saturday. If you meet her, you will understand why I left wondering if it's too late in life to become more French and elegant...}