The Wine Tasting Shop

I am not a wine aficionado by any stretch of the imagination, leaving the wine list and choices to others at every opportunity. When circumstances force me to make a decision alone I usually end up lost and bewildered in the supermarket wine aisle. I do have my own checklist of requirements, but it is one that would make a wine expert wince - white over red, but rose wins if it is sunny; never Chardonnay; screw-top preferable (I struggle with a corkscrew), a nice label/name is what usually swings the final decision, preferably coupled with a special offer or discount. I know there is a whole world of wine out there to be discovered, but I am aware of the fine line between being a wine buff and a wine bore and therefore relatively happy remaining blissfully ignorant. That was until I visited the first boutique 'try before you buy' wine shop in Balham, South London. The brainchild of Julia Michael an ex-British Airways hostess, The Wine Tasting Shop provides a platform for her to champion the boutique, natural and organic wine producer and change the average wine drinkers buying habits. While the formula of offering wine to sample before buying is tried and tested, no other wine shop offers the unique eclectic mix of personally chosen wines and champagnes from small producers around the world, some of which can only be found on the wine lists of the very top restaurants in the country.

The wines found at The Wine Tasting Shop provide an alternative to the boring/samey wines that are found at all the major supermarkets, aiming to offer an eclectic, interesting range, with the emphasis on small production, non-intervention in both the vineyard and winery. The majority of which are organic, bio-dynamic with a few being totally natural.

We think this is the perfect place to head for a few pre-dinner drinks, sample glasses of wines and champagne are available at 50p and £1 respectively. It really is the perfect excuse to try a few of the rarer wines that you can’t sample anywhere else and learn a bit about them, great for a wine novice like me to pick up some tips and start making better informed wine choices!

Check out the website here.

CrystalDock

Recently I’ve been confronted with the dreaded situation…‘What do you buy the friend who has everything?!” Normally I like to think I’m pretty nifty at finding the latest must-have makeup item, book, accessory or piece of jewellery however I’ve been racking my brain for days and can’t think of anything that my friend won’t  a. already have b. dismissed because ‘everyone has one.’  That was until I came across CalypsoCrystal’s CrystalDock. Handcrafted and handmade in Europe from pure lead crystal, the CrystalDock is undoubtedly the most luxurious and eye-catching way to recharge and synchronise your iPhone and iPod devices (not to mention most envied and admired office desk accessory). Each dock is manually cut and polished and fitted with specially designed dock connectors to perfectly fit your iPhone or iPod. The added lead makes the crystal docks remarkably heavy whilst the intricate cutting and polishing makes the crystal sparkle.

The CrystalDocks are available in four unique designs - from the classic, signature style of the “Aurora” (which is limited edition and hand-painted with Platinum!), to the stylish “Beau”, elegant “Celestia” and young and sporty “Dune.” For an added touch (or extra brownie points if your boss is the lucky recipient) you can also engrave onto the CrystalDock with a name or corporate logo.

CalypsoCrystal products are sold online via their website and selected department stores from £169.

This is not... from CalypsoCrystal on Vimeo.

The Wednesday Fayre

So finally, it looks as though us Londoners can enjoy some Summer weather now that August is here. I’m so ready to put on my jean shorts, brightly coloured vests and sandals and have some much needed girl time in the sun. If you find the city center too busy and suffocating in the heat (as the Amazing team do) then you will be pleased to know Greenwich Market has thought of just the thing.

The Wednesday Fayre kicks off tomorrow (3rd August) and will be open to the public every Wednesday for the duration of August. Besides the unique art shops, vintage fashion boutiques, antique stalls and famous pubs that Greenwich Market is known for, the Fayre will also provide a great variety of food stalls for foodie’s - especially those wanting to enjoy a traditional afternoon tea! Visitors to the Fayre can sit in Flowerhouse’s pop-up English garden and chat with friends, sample the delicious range of cream teas and assorted Summer treats from Ms Cupcake or indulge with Lhic’s luxury homemade ice creams whose ingredients are sourced from local Kentish farms... YUMM! If you want to get creative you can decorate cup cakes with Ms Cupcake or try your hand at some arts and crafts with beaded jewellery at the Beadoir workshops too.

Delish food and shopping...now I’m seriously thinking about taking a half day off next Wednesday!

Vintage 2011

It seems like everyone is opting out of the English ‘summer’ and jetting off at the moment and the thought of a colleague due to return from a sun-soaked Greek island - no doubt with a killer tan and possibly even an Adonis in tow - is not improving the mood in the Amazing PR office. So in preparation for the inevitable “so what have you guys been up to?” line of questioning (well, we need to make her feel that she has missed out on something while she has been away) we’re going to be getting our retro on this weekend at Vintage at the Southbank. Until Sunday the award winning concept, which has been showcased over the past two years at Goodwood, will transform the Southbank into a Vintage wonderland. The festival will celebrate musical, fashion, film, art, design and cultural lineages, from the 1920s to the 1980s, and offer a glimpse of where we go from here…deeeep. We will mainly be going for the fun fashion, fab food and creative cocktails…a couple of these and we may even throw a few retro shapes. All the wonderful clubs, bands, fashions, art, and design, film, shops, vintage retailers, dance lessons, makeovers, workshops that made Vintage 2010 so memorable will return along with some cool new Thames boat party surprises.

The Royal Festival Hall is at the centre of this vintage extravaganza and will be set dressed like never before. All six levels of the building will be transformed into a multi-venue playground where, lucky pass holders can ‘learn the dances’, enjoy a makeover, take in the live performances, exclusive DJ sets, catwalk shows, wonderfully conceived food and cocktails, the cream of the crop vintage retailers and surprises galore. Vintage favourites The Soul Casino, Let it Rock, The Torch Club, The Leisure Lounge and The Warehouse are amongst the ten nightclubs within Royal Festival Hall primed and ready to get you moving.

Additionally, Southbank Centre’s outside spaces host the enormous Vintage Marketplace, hair and makeup parlours, tea parties, creative workshops for all ages, themed bars and restaurants and a vintage funfair. Featuring vintage favourites such as The Chap Olympiad, 'Best In Show' parades and pop-up catwalk shows, prepare for retro eye candy, imaginatively dressed folk and great music, performance art and design.

London’s best cultural quarter to host Britain’s best new cultural event...the perfect fit. Throw on your best frock, pack your dancing shoes and join us for the annual celebration of British cool.

Get your tickets here

Fair Cake Workshops

The cupcake craze shows no sign of abating and much as we love finding any excuse to rush out to buy a box of buttercream-topped treats - birthdays, leaving parties, cheering-up treats, we have even been known to buy them to celebrate sticking to our healthy eating plan for the week (yes very illogical we know). Though, even with our slightly warped grip on finances, we know that that £3 cupcake is being sold with the most massive mark-up. Just imagining how many cupcakes we could make for the equivalent of a few bought ones has got us raring to roll up our sleeves and learn the art cupcake making and decorating.

Fair Cake are the original cupcake gurus and have been running successful cake making workshops in London for over three years, riding the crest of the home baking trend that has transformed British kitchens into cake-making havens. From Cupcake Basics classes for complete beginners, right through to the more artistic end of the spectrum where you can master ‘Vintage Chic’ and even wedding cupcakes (hmm not sure if our artistic talents will ever stretch that far…). The beauty of cupcakes is that they can be as simple or as extravagant as you like. For most of us a swirl of buttercream and a few adornments is about as far as it goes, but for those of you with a bit more artistic flair there is literally no limit to what you could create.

Fair Cake founder and cupcake maestro Shikhita Singh attributes the current boom in creative baking to a growing desire for individuality and personal expression – "I’m sure it's also got something to do with the fact that individual style and creativity has never flourished as much in the home, in the kitchen and on the catwalk…just look at Lady Gaga!". While we draw the line at the Lady Gaga style of self-expression we can see how some homemade and beautifully decorated cupcakes could impress at the next girly get-together.

The latest craze in baking, following on from cupcakes and whoopee pies, is cake pops. These fun little ‘cakes-on-a-stick’ have proved such a hit that a cake pop-making workshop has been added to the menu at Fair Cake's brand new Vanilla Workshop in Greenwich, London.

For more info on Fair Cake and the classes they offer visit the website.