Merry MUJI and Masala majesty

Even though I have been working this week I have still made the time to find some nice things to tell you about. What a trouper eh. So here is my recommendation for Christmas 2009 MUJI toys. An amazing array of very nice plain wooden toys and all very reasonably priced. Check out the wooden fruit you can 'cut' in half for £7.95. The website isn't very good unfortunately but you can see enough to get an idea.

After conducting my investigation we went into Masala Zone in Covent Garden for a very good curry. I had never realised that the puppets hanging from the ceiling were all part of a puppet royal wedding procession. Definitely worth going in to have a look if you are passing, they are stunning.

Decent basics

The credit crunch and loss of a permanent job has meant that certain economies have had to be made at Casa RB. Being a rather fussy eater I have managed to find a selection of really good quality food relatively cheaply that I thought I would share:

Meat
I buy most of our meat at The Ginger Pig in Borough Market but I stick to the cheapest cuts now. No more rib-eye steak for me . I usually get mince for meat balls/bolognaise, Toulouse sausages for a Nigel Slater recipe with lentils, pork belly, shoulder of pork for a delicious slow cooked recipe with milk and lemon, and more often than not some really good inspiration from the butchers there. Charlie the manager is marvellous as are the other blokes too. Nathan once boned out a whole leg of cow (?) to get me some shin of beef and then cut up the bone for me to use the marrow. That wasn't on a Saturday though. They are friendly and extremely helpful. Charlie has his own website if you fancy finding out how to skin a rabbit.

Poultry & Dairy
I get chicken from Abel and Cole as it is rather cheap and ethically reared. I get the drumsticks for the LO's dinner and the legs for us, they are really big and you really get the feeling they have had a long(ish) outdoor life.
Their milk is also very good quality and organic and they deliver it to your door which saves on carrying.

Other stuff
Maldon sea salt - so lovely I like to eat it from the dish

Children's books

Current faves in the RB house:
Down the back of the chair by Margaret Mahy and

Shoe Baby by Joyce Dunbar.

Both illustrated by the wonderful Polly Dunbar, see her cool website here and her blog here. You can even buy some of her work here

Cool book covers part 1

David Pearson designer for Penguin books

Lovely things at the Tate Britain

Looking round the Tate shop with a sleeping child meant that I got to have a good look at the stock today. Lovely things. Here are my favourites...


Here are a few favourites of ours if you are trying to avoid the usual children's cups and plates that are on the market:


Tate is also a lovely place for cards and wrapping paper, and I saw Rose Hip designs at the Tate today which I really liked. Couldn't see a price tag though so maybe a bit dear... check out their (trade only) website though for other lovely things:


That's it for today, hope you've enjoyed looking!
RB

My current two obsessions

Angulus red heart shoe - I love the colour and the shape, but not the £70 price tag!

ETS we tried these on last weekend and i am thrilled to say that they don't fit Rose. They were absolutely gorgeous but too narrow for her fat little foot high instep! Phew. No more scheming and searching for them.

And a beautiful Bobbi Brown lip sheer in Black Raspberry which I love but is unfortunately now discontinued - arrrgh!

Hello bloggreaders

Hi there,
just a short para of introduction, I am a forty-something mother to a two-year old living in London. My interests are children's clothes, shopping, exploring London, art, gardening, food and drink. I am going to use this as a place to post things I have seen that I love, feel free to post similar things you have seen and that you love too.
Will add more later