Thursday 25 April 2019

A very pink birthday in London


My birthday in February was a pink affair in London that I'm so excited to finally share! I spent the day with my boyfriend and parents as we celebrated in the prettiest pink hot-spots that London has to offer; a few of our traditional haunts amongst a few new gems added to the mix. The previous day I'd organised my outfit and we'd bought pink confetti balloons and a helium machine in preparation for lots of blog and insta photo opps. It's no secret that I have a major love/hate relationship with London, but last year after doing a pink tour of the capital I really conquered a lot of my anxiety when it comes to visiting the city, and since then I've been full-steam ahead in my enjoyment of all the cute cafes and colourful streets the capital vibrantly showcases. On the eve of my birthday Graham sweetly bought me a beautiful bunch of birthday blooms and we spent the day local to my mum and dad, visiting one of our favourite haunts and enjoying a Nando's (the one near my parents is the best!) My birthday started bright and early, the four of us getting on a train to Central London where our first stop was.... 

Peggy Porschen, balloons & Valentine spirit 

So my birthday breakfast started outside the Peggy Porschen parlour with confetti balloons in hand and a sequin/holographic outfit I'd painstakingly chosen for the event. Initially a little nervous about posing with balloons in a busy London street, I found myself getting into the spirit of things - soon firmly ensconced in a "f*ck it, it's my birthday" attitude. We settled down to a stylish "La Vie En Rose" cake date, Peggy Porschen's Valentine theme providing all the birthday joy. You can read more about my previous Peggy Porschen Valentine brunch date here. During our breakfast we saw a little girl admiring my birthday balloons and before we left Graham gave her one to take home with her. We got chatting to her dad and found out the family were visiting from France, which made the Parisian theme all the more perfect. Her dad told us she hadn't been feeling well, and that it was their last day in London before heading back home to France, which made the balloon seem even more symbolic.

Nail'd It! 
This gorgeous phone box is mostly meant for clients to use, but a lovely lady working there kindly took some photos of me after I explained how much I'd been admiring their floral phone box online. She noticed my balloons and urged me to include them in the photos, so of course I didn't need asking twice! I vowed to make a future appointment for a glittery manicure for the future which I'm determined to do. I still can't get over the fairytale fabulousness of it all! 





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The prettiest pink house 
I'd admired this pretty pink house for years online and my birthday seemed as good a day as any to visit it IRL. A couple of women walking by noticed us getting photos of my sparkly outfit and balloons in the street and as I moved out of the way so they could get a photo, one of them said "oh no, please stay in the picture, you make it even better!" which totally made my day. When strangers are this kind-hearted it really restores your faith in the human race. I was so cold by this point that we didn't stop long, but I was over the moon that we managed a few fun outfit snaps. As we walked through the streets my mum took hold of the balloons, cue a load of random strangers wishing her a happy birthday ☺︎



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EL&N Cafe (Belgravia branch) 
The newest EL&N cafe to open, I decided my birthday was THE opportune moment to go! The stunning floral wonderland booths looked both beautiful and alluring, and having visited both the Knightsbridge Elan cafe and the Hans Crescent one, I was excited to see what this newest feature was like. 

Both my dad and Graham were a little shell shocked by all the pink, but were soon tempted by beetroot lattes and leafy rainbow salads. To be honest this branch was my least favourite. Despite loving the downstairs decor the whole vibe seemed to be a little less welcoming than the other branches and I just didn't feel like it gave off as nice a feel.

Saying that I still adored every moment of our lunch-date; by some miracle we bagged a sought-after booth despite it being in the lunch-time rush and I had a flower tea whilst Graham smashed Instagram-husband potential by ordering the pinkest drink on the menu, the beetroot latte.
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Kalifornia Kitchen 

Allegedly the next insta hot-spot on the block, this pink vegan restaurant became mine and Graham's dinner date destination. Already full from Peggy Porschen cake and Elan's eateries, we opted for a rainbow salad and fries to share. The guy serving was friendly and when I complimented the pink decor he started telling us that some customers take Instagram divaish behaviour next level by sending their plates back and demanding more flowers on them for photos. Sorry, what?!?!

Gotta be honest here and say the restaurant was a little bit on the disappointing side, the food was nice but the place tiny and quite limited in terms of personal space. I'd wanted to take more photos of the pretty pink surroundings but kind of felt like some of the staff were a bit offish and people seemed to react a little weirdly when I took the select few photos on my camera that I did - which was a bit odd. Perhaps it's just the selfish millennial streak coursing through my veins but surely there's no point to an Insta worthy restaurant if you can't grab a few pics along the way? Ah well, at least I didn't demand more flower power on our rainbow plate (and I have zero photos of our food, so I guess we were too hungry at that point!) 


I had such a special birthday and truly cherished every moment. It was so much fun to enjoy some of our well-loved places whilst stumbling upon some new treasures. I hope you all enjoyed reading about our pink adventures in London, and I'm looking forward to exploring colourful fields afresh for lots of upcoming summer shoots, so stay posted! XO


Have you been to any of these pink locations? 

πŸŒΈπŸ’–πŸ’…πŸ‘›

20 comments:

  1. Ah glad you had a wonderful day and was treated to all the special things that you love <3

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  2. I haven't been London before. :( Very pinkish locations. :) Happy belated birthday then...

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  3. What a fabulous pink birthday post - love the descriptions of where you went & the gorgeous pics!����

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  4. Sounds like a fun way to celebrate your birthday. Glad you enjoyed your time in London exploring all the pink hotspots. Love all the images dear, stay fabulous!

    Tx. // Tajinder Kaur

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  5. Belatedly, happy birthday!!!!!! I hope all of your birthday wishes come true! I love the sequin/holographic outfit you were wearing - it's beautiful!!! I also really love pink (my favourite colour), so obviously I really love all of these photos. Being a vegetarian myself, I also love that your dinner destination was a pink vegan restaurant! I'm afraid I have never been to your side of the pond or ever had a passport (I'm from the U.S.), but those pink locations look fabulous. Belated happy birthday again xx :)

    https://full-brief-panties.blogspot.com/

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  6. This post is so fabulous! Happy Birthday to you!! xoxo

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  7. I love this post! Thank you for sharing all these pink spots. And you're right, its so lovely when strangers are supportive of pictures!

    www.sundaydahlias.com

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  8. Thanks for sharing your birthday experience with us and glad you had a great one. I'm not keen on London at all. I get so anxious when I come there. Too many people. Lol!! You look so good. I have to visit these pink places some day.

    https://www.missymayification.co.uk

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  9. What a fun birthday! it looks like a great day visiting so many petty places to take pictures and passing on a balloon to a little girl is such a sweet thing to do! :)

    Hope that you have been having a lovely weekend :)

    Away From The Blue

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  10. Wait??? What??? Did I read that correctly??? People sending plate back for lack of garnishing ALL FOR THE SAKE OF INSTA??? You've got to be kidding me?!! That has to be the most obnoxious and RUDE thing to do ever. Maybe these guys hadn't heard that urban legend/old "wives tales" of chefs spitting or doing good knows what to peoples plates who send them back! Hahaha! Not that this actually happens but those kind of stories instilled a certain fear in me that I'll never shake off and sending a plate back for lack of flowers seems like the kind of provoking that MAY induce a chef to participate in LOOOOOL! I'm so happy to see you had the loveliest of birthdays. You really deserved it. I love these photos and the balloons, WOW, what mesmerisingly beautiful shots. I think you need to (also) blow these images up and place them on your mantel, alongside angry cat with ears. Absolutely stunning. And definitely a day to remember for you, so much kindness and happiness. Things you deserve to encounter every single day my gorgeous friend. BTW I am so determined to get to London one day, we must do a pink crawl through London Town! <3

    Sxx
    daringcoco.com

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  11. Such a fantastic place and lovely pictures! You look stunningly beautiful dear!

    jointyicroissanty

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  12. Awesome pics and great place! You look fab. Happy birthday sweetie <3

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  13. You really have amazing pink birthday! I like your birthday outfit and all of places that you visit, but phone box is so gorgeous that I don't have words to describe it.

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  14. I'm so glad you had a lovely time celebrating your birthday Sophie - and while surrounded by tons and tons of pink! So many of these spots are on my hitlist to visit in London, especially as I have an ever-growing love for the colour pink haha. You look so lovely in this sequin-embellished outfit babe. I hope you're having a lovely week so far!!

    aglassofice.com x

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  15. Hi Sophie! You certainly had a pinkalicious bday celebration filled with so much love. I love the art of it all, the decor is fantastic at all these places and I so adore you outfit! You look so pretty in that gorgeous skirt and metallic top. Such a fun, and whimsical Birthday look. Are all these places walking distance from one another? I would love to visit London whenever I go to Europe! I'm happy for your beautiful birthday celebration because you did just what you wanted to do, which must have felt awesome. Wishing you a fabulous new Birthday year Sophie, I know you will rock it and continue inspiring us all!!

    xo,
    Tania
    https://inspiremyfancy.com/

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  16. Super cute look dear... happy belated birthday!
    https://sepatuholig.blogspot.com/
    ig @grace_njio
    other ig @wonky.pots

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  17. Happy Birthday again Pink Princess I am so sorry it took me this long to visit your magical blog posts that I love but here I am and I am so happy that you had an amazing day full of charming enchanting pink locations and beautiful balloons and even more amazing food. I want to try beetroot lattes and you find the most enchanting pink locations ever. When I lived in London 19 years ago these places did not exist and I must say they make London look so much prettier than already is. Flowers and colours everywhere and the food is a total different level. So happy you had an amazing time and giving the balloon to the little girl would have made her day you are so kind. Love your outfit fit for a princess with mermaid vibes and golden heart Have a wonderful weekend and I hope your weekend is full of love with your mom in this mothers day. xoxo Cris
    https://photosbycris.blogspot.com/2019/05/grayson-monae-because-looking-and.html

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  18. omg this place I need to go! it looks amazing! it looked like you had a great time! so many great photos!

    Jadieegosh   Instagram GIVEAWAY

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  19. it looks amazing to celebrate your birthday with helium balloons in London with pink theme. Glad you enjoyed your time.

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