Jewellery brand of the month: Erstwilder

Jewellery brand time again, and this month I’ve chosen:

ERSTWILDER

Erstwilder are a brand I’ve loved for a while, and as they recently celebrated their 5th birthday, I thought it was the perfect time to feature them. They are an Australian brand, but are increasingly growing in popularity here in the UK.

The first Erstwilder brooch I bought wasn’t actually for me: a friend who loves red pandas was celebrating a special birthday and I wanted to get her something nice. I trawled the Internet and discovered Radbert the Red Panda, though at the time I wasn’t really aware of Erstwilder as a brand, or how many awesome designs they had.

Radbert the Red Panda Brooch
Radbert the Red Panda Brooch

This yummy-looking Just One Slice Brooch was released as part of the 5th birthday celebrations.

Just One Slice Brooch
Just One Slice Brooch

I adore penguins, so this adorable Happy Feet Brooch is next on my list. The design is of the Little, or Fairy, Penguin, which is native to Australia and so this brooch is part of the constantly-updated “Australiana” collection, which also features native wildlife such as the platypus, the kangaroo and the koala.

Happy Feet Brooch
Happy Feet Brooch

“Fairy bread” is also an Australian treat, apparently, and it’s represented in this Hundreds and Thousands Brooch. Personally I don’t think it sounds very nice – hundreds and thousands sprinkled onto buttered bread – but it certainly looks lovely, and the brooch is beautiful.

Hundreds and Thousands Brooch
Hundreds and Thousands Brooch

The new Halloween range has just been released and there are several beautiful designs. My favourite is probably this Toil and Trouble Brooch.

Toil and Trouble Brooch
Toil and Trouble Brooch

They make earrings too: these beautiful Star Studded Earrings are part of the Galactic range.

Star Studded Earrings
Star Studded Earrings

Erstwilder products can be found in various places in-store and online: the website has a helpful list of stockists including those based in the UK. Check out more designs at the following links:

Website: erstwilder.com

Instagram: instagram.com/erstwilderofficial

Facebook: facebook.com/erstwilder

Twitter: twitter.com/Erstwilder_

St Pancras Chambers – Open House London

St Pancras Chambers
St Pancras Chambers

My next Open House London tour was of St Pancras Chambers – the building above St Pancras Station. The station, originally constructed in 1868, was refurbished between 2001 and 2007, the threat of demolition narrowly averted thanks to the efforts of a passionate group of people including the poet John Betjeman.

Station entrance (former goods entrance)
Station entrance (former goods entrance)

At the time of original construction, the East Midlands Railway wanted to surpass the recently built King’s Cross Station, so commissioned George Gilbert Scott to create the beautiful, opulent Gothic Revival style building. The money ran out partway through construction, leaving no money for the planned extra storey or for the statues supposed to be dotted around the building – the empty niches are still visible.

Wyvern
Wyvern

On the tour we saw some fascinating details: the theme of the wyvern (a mythical creature) runs through all of the architecture, and the materials used in the building come from the various towns and cities served by the East Midlands Railway, such as Sheffield steel and stone from Nottingham.

Former station entrance (now hotel entrance)
Former station entrance (now hotel entrance)

The original entrances to the station still exist but are now more commonly used as the entrances to the apartments and hotel. The Hansom Hall is the current name for the hotel lounge, as it was originally where travellers were dropped off outside the ticket hall.

'Spice Girls' staircase
‘Spice Girls’ staircase

We then got to go inside the building. The most exciting part for me, I must admit, was seeing the very staircase that featured in the Spice Girls’ video for “Wannabe”.

Stairwell
Stairwell

We got to go all the way up to the top floor: this part of the building has been converted into flats. You can see from the staircase that originally, the more prestigious rooms were on the lower floors: the design becomes less ornate as you go up the building. Nowadays, of course, the best flats are at the top, where it’s still possible to see the former servants’ quarters above your head (the original floor has been removed. My tour was given by the man who actually lives in one of the apartments – the one with the bell tower – so we got to look in there too – a fascinating experience.

In the corridor
In the corridor
Former servants' quarters
Former servants’ quarters
Inside the bell tower
Inside the bell tower

55 Broadway – Open House London

55 Broadway
55 Broadway

I always make a habit of visiting some interesting buildings when Open House London comes around. This year I was lucky enough to visit 55 Broadway, the former headquarters of London Underground, near St James. The Underground Group was formed from a group including the Tube railways, London General Bus company, tram operators and electrical supply companies, and in 1927 when they decided they wanted their new headquarters to reflect its bold vision of the future, they hired architects Adams, Holden and Pearson for the job.

55 Broadway
55 Broadway

It was a challenging job from the start. With its irregular shape and depth (St James’s Park station sitting just 7.3 metres below the site) Adams, Holden and Pearson’s job was a difficult one. They managed to get around it, however, by incorporating the cruciform layout into their design.

Epstein's controversial sculpture
Epstein’s controversial sculpture

Charles Holden, later known for his work on the Northern and Piccadilly Line extensions, used Portland stone and added bronze features to the building. Carvings by Eric Gill, Henry Moore and Jacob Epstein (who’s “Night and Day” caused controversy) adorn the outside of the building, which is now Grade 1 listed.

Visitor pass
Visitor pass

We started off outside, where we were introduced to the history of the building and got to see the original foundation stone.

Foundation stone
Foundation stone

The tour took us up several floors, including the seventh floor with its original management rooms, outside to see the roof gardens, and right up to the flagpole.

Map in the foyer
Map in the foyer
Lord Ashfield plaque
Lord Ashfield plaque
Roundel design in the building
Roundel design in the building
Early tube map
Early tube map
Inside the building
Inside the building
Management rooms
Management rooms
Management rooms
Management rooms
In the garden
In the garden
View from the roof
View from the roof
View from the roof
View from the roof
55 Broadway
55 Broadway

Georgiana Houghton: Spirit Drawings – Courtauld Gallery

The most recent exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery was Georgiana Houghton: Spirit Drawings. Georgiana Houghton (1814-1884) was a Spiritualist medium who, in the 1860s and 70s, produced a series of abstract watercolours. She claimed that her hand had been guided by various spirits and angelic beings, including some Renaissance artists such as Titian. The abstract works are highly unusual, but have not been shown in the UK for nearly 50 years. Many are held by Monash University Museum of Art in Melbourne, Australia, with whom the exhibition is organised in collaboration.

Georgiana Houghton
Georgiana Houghton

Houghton’s works are watercolours, bold and complex, technically accomplished and surely unlike anything else produced in the Victorian art world. Perhaps a nineteenth century audience just wasn’t ready, for the 1871 exhibition she held in Bond Street was a commercial failure and nearly bankrupted her.

Catalogues from Houghton's first exhibition
Catalogues from Houghton’s first exhibition

I’m no art expert, but I loved these works: whether Houghton’s hand was guided or they were produced by her own consciousness, they are extraordinary.

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Stirling

A couple of years ago, my mam and I went to Glasgow for a holiday, but unfortunately didn’t make it to Stirling for a day out. This year, we decided to spend a few days in Stirling itself, exploring the town and the nearby sights. We left my dad at home (he really doesn’t like Scotland, for some reason) and made our separate ways to Stirling at the end of August.

My mam took the train up from Newcastle; I, having to come up from London and baulking at the ridiculous train prices, took a chance on the overnight Megabus Gold from Victoria coach station. I was actually impressed with this: it wasn’t full of drunken celebrants as I’d feared, but there were plenty of older people and families among the passengers. During the night it was very quiet, apart from the soothing sound of the bus zooming up the motorway. I probably shouldn’t have chosen a top bunk (I did have a little bit of trouble getting into it), but otherwise it wasn’t a bad journey at all.

Ruari the Reindeer
Ruari the Reindeer, my trusty travelling companion, at Stirling station

The bus terminated at Glasgow, so I had to catch the train to Stirling, but that didn’t take long at all, and mam and I were quickly able to check in to our hotel and head out to explore.

Stirling Old Town Jail
Stirling Old Town Jail

We soon discovered that Stirling is hilly. Very hilly. Walking up towards the castle, we resolved that we would be taking the bus up the next day. We broke our journey at the Old Town Jail, which was pretty entertaining.

View from the jail
View from the jail

The next day as promised we got the tour bus to Stirling Castle. This kept us busy for most of the day, as there was so much to see. We also checked out Argyll’s Lodging just down the road, also included in the price of a ticket.

Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle
Ruari enjoying the castle
Ruari enjoying the castle

Stirling Castle

Steep drop

Inside the castle

Inside the castle

Argyll's Lodging
Argyll’s Lodging

Argyll's Lodging

The following day we decided to go a bit further afield, catching the tour bus this time to the Wallace Monument. I decided to climb it, despite my chronic laziness, but my mam elected to stay at the bottom and have a cup of tea. Our next stop was the Smith Art Gallery and Museum, and we also decided to head to the Battle of Bannockburn Experience. The actual experience was so expensive that we decided not to bother, and just had a quick look at the battle site instead, before warming up with a cup of tea.

Wallace Monument
Wallace Monument

View from the Wallace Monument

View from the Wallace Monument

Smith Art Gallery and Museum
Smith Art Gallery and Museum
Battle of Bannockburn Experience
Battle of Bannockburn Experience
Battle site
Battle site
Commemorative monument
Commemorative monument

On our final full day we went out even further, visiting Doune Castle. This castle has appeared in a number of films and TV shows, most notably Monty Python and the Holy Grail. In fact, the audio guide is narrated by Terry Jones, and as well as pointing out all the significant historical features of the castle, he tells you about filming the movie and where important scenes were shot.

Doune Castle
Doune Castle

Doune Castle

Doune Castle

Doune Castle

The series Outlander, based on the books by Diana Gabaldon, were also filmed here and extra bits have been added to the audio guide, narrated by Sam Heughan who plays Jamie Fraser. My mam and I are big fans so this was another plus point in the castle’s favour. Our final stop for the day was the village of Callander, where we enjoyed a nice little wander around.

Callander
Callander

The next day we caught the train to Edinburgh, where we had a few hours to kill before catching the train back to Newcastle. We couldn’t go far because of our luggage, but ended up in the National Library of Scotland, where there was an exhibition about the publisher John Murray. He happened to be Byron’s publisher, which is quite exciting.

National Library of Scotland
National Library of Scotland

I spent a few days in Newcastle relaxing before heading back down to London. I enjoyed my trip to Stirling – it’s definitely worth a visit.

Sicily: Culture and Conquest – British Museum (Google Cultural Institute)

I was all set to go to the Sicily: Culture and Conquest exhibition at the British Museum, but I was too late. I tried to buy a ticket but it was sold out.

I was gutted, but then I found an online version of the exhibition on Google Arts & Culture. Of course, it’s not the same as the real thing, but it’s better than nothing.

The exhibition was about 4,000 years of Sicily’s history, an island that has been shaped by Phoenican, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Arab and Norman invaders and settlers. Prosperous and diverse, culture and art flourished.

Through the website I was able to read about the history of Sicily and look at some of the amazing artefacts that were visible in the exhibition. I would recommend that anyone unable to visit an exhibition for real check the Google site out – it’s a wonderful resource.