June 2016 Archives

At the end of May, the annual street art festival "Meeting of the Styles" took place on Pedley Street off of Brick Lane. I've yet to post any of the brilliant work that has come from this festival, but I have decided to start with this large-scale piece by Louis Masai and Fanakapan. The piece is entitled 'Freedom?' and features an orca, dolphins, and sharks in a plastic bag (or small aquarium) filled with water.

Louis Masai's work typically features endangered species and animals. This spring, he was one of the lead artists for Endangered13's street art paint-up in Mile End. He painted his patch-work sea creatures in the piece.

Fanakapan's style has changed a little over the past few years, and one of his recent pieces at the start of the year was chrome mask, sunglasses, and spray paint can. Last year, he created the silver foil balloon style. This style returned again this year. Previous styles included balloon animals and sweets. Fanakapan made the return to the balloon silver foil style by painting a mixture of silver foil balloon dolphins.

Prior to painting at the "Meeting of the Styles" street art festival, Fanakapan also painted the silver skeleton riding on a balloon horse on Rivington Street. 

His tag was also painted on off of Brick Lane.

This is a brilliant collaboration and I hope that we have more to come.

Birchbox is a beauty and skin-care subscription box that arrives each month. This month, the theme is "Paradise Found" and features boxes designed with pineapple or palm trees to get us in the mood for summer. I received four sample-sized products and one full-size product in the box this month. Unfortunately, I've tried three of the five products already.

James Reed overnight tan sleep mask: This is a mask to put on your face before bed to allow you to wake up with a tan. I've previously used this product but I am not a fan because it is too dark for my skin tone and always leaves my skin looking blotchy. I have to wash it down in the morning. The tan does not get on the sheets, but I never wake up with an even tone. It claims to work with every skin tone, but it does not suit me.

Percy & Reed Firm Session Hold Hairspray: This is a strong hold hairspray that is humidity-resistant. I've tried this product before and tend to get on well with this brand. 

Whish Coconut Milk CC Body Cream: This product promises to nourish and bronze skin. I've used Whish body lotion before and really enjoyed the lavender hand and body cream that I received in a past box. I was not keen on the scent, but I liked the results of using this product as it left my skin shimmery.

Jelly Pong Pong Paradise Pigments in 'Cake Pop': The full product this month is a lip and cheek pigment pot. All subscribers received one in a bright pink-red shade (pictured below) or a pink-purple shade. The pigment is very bright, but it is subtle when applied. I love the brand's packaging.

Benefit Cosmetics Air Patrol BB Cream Eyelid Primer: This product acts as a primer and a BB cream in one formula to protect against the sun and pollution. This is a useful product and I noticed that it tended to keep my eyeshadow on for longer.

What is my verdict this month? I thought that we were able to try some good products, but I've previously tried some of these already. I felt that there was a good mix of the type of products this month.

After visiting Ludgershall Castle and Old Sarum for my birthday, we headed further south to visit Christchurch Castle and Norman House. Despite living in the south of England for many years and working/studying in Bournemouth and the New Forest, I had never been to Christchurch until that day. Our first stop was to walk to Christchurch Castle from where we had parked (near the picturesque Christchurch church and rose gardens).

We walked around the church (Christchurch Priory) to get to the castle. The building would have been constructed in the late 1000s.

The castle (actually, it is the tower and primary form of defense) is built upon a mound of earth, which would have been surrounded by a water-filled moat. All that is left is the ruins of a couple of walls. The castle would have originally been constructed of timber around 1100, and the stone structure would have probably been constructed in the 12th century.

We climbed the stone stairs in order to get a better view of the castle and its surroundings.

Next to the castle is another field and then the main road with hotels and pubs on the other side. We saw people in this field who were having a wedding. On the far side of the field is the ruins of Norman House, a house dating from the time of the castle. Beyond the ruins of Norman House are the two canals.

This area looked pleasant with potential good walks, but we could not explore it for too long. The two canals gave the place a name 'Twynham', which means "place between rivers". The area changed its name to Christchurch because of the important priory here.

The pigeons seemed to love the house, and we saw a dead one on the floor of the house and a lot of live ones hanging around the stonework.

The lord would have lived in this house, and these formed his apartments and the Great Hall. Stables, kitches, and other buildings would have existed in the fields that we crossed near the foot of the castle (and on the other side of the filled moat).

This is a rare example of a house from this time as many would have been constructed of timber instead of stone. The chimney has survived, and its survival is a rare feature. Kings would have come here to dine.

Overlooking Norman House is the priory, and this large field would have held the other buildings to help with the running of the castle.

After exploring both structures, we walked down the High Street. We had ice cream from a little cafe, and we looked in a couple of shops. Christchurch has the standard town/village High Street with the shops.

Overall, we had a pleasant evening. Have you ever been to Christchurch?

After 'Hello Kitty' Afternoon Tea, we celebrated my birthday at Junkyard Golf, London. Junkyard Golf in London is located on Brick Lane and is a pop-up. The company Junkyard Golf have courses in Manchester, but this is their first in London. All items used in the course are manufactured from junk or finds from charity shops and boot/yard sales.

There are three courses in London: Pedro (Polluted paradise), Frank (Putt up or shut up), and Helga (In da house). Each course has nine holes. Cocktails and street food can be enjoyed between courses. During the day, the courses were not so busy, but this place is pretty busy in the evenings and after work.

Course: Frank:

This was the first course we played. The first hole was a shot with a mobility scooter. We then walked up a ramp and across a bridge for the second hole, which was potted around a creepy clown in a jacuzzi. The third hole was a little bit of a treat, and the first shot was putting the ball down a wooden slide, which when then had to slide down ourselves to finish the shot.

Hole four was entitled "who let the dogs out" and featured tacky plastic dogs and a dog house; the hole was up a ramp into the dog house and dropped out on the other side of the dog house. The fifth hole was also a bit different with the ball needing to go up a ramp and over a laid-out table and underneath a plastic crocodile where the hole was.

Hole six was very interesting. We came to a moving treadmill. Our shot was to get the ball over the moving treadmill to the opposite side where the hole was. It looked harder than it was, though. The seventh hole was a little bit of a gamble. The starting point was on top of a pool table, and depending on which pocket that the ball was put into, a different course through a series of pipes was made, with some pipes putting the ball at a better position to the hole than other ones.

Hole eight was a long strip with wigs and hair dryers on both ends. The ninth was like an old pin ball machine where the ball had to be shot up a very steep ramp. Depending on its course, it was pocketed into one of six holes with a different number on it. The directions told us to take three shots and take the lowest score from those three. 

After completing Frank, we went to the bar "The Bunker" and had a cocktail before starting the next course. I had a cocktail named "Who's your Caddy". This was made of gin, strawberry, lemon and cranberry. It was very refreshing and fruity. The bloke had the "Golf Lundgren", which was rum, ginger beer, lime and apple.

Course: Helga:

This was the most adult-themed of the courses, and it may have been my favourite or a close second to Frank. The course started out very well with a hilarious motorboat occupied by three manequins dressed like street ladies. Oh, and the motorboat is being devoured by a Jaws-like shark. The course was played on/around the boat.

The second hole was a baleric wendy house, filled with plastic dolls in various poses (or states of unconsciousness) while a doorman keeps guard to ensure only invited ones can enter. This is a little like something out of a nightmare.

Keeping up with the theme of photographic designs for the holes, we moved to the third hole. It contained a large plastic cow with a sign "do not mount the cow". The hole had to be played underneath the cow and between its legs.

The fourth hole was accompanied by a video and had to be completed within 21 seconds or points would be deducted. (We just played the hole as normal, though.) The fifth was constructed with parts of a car, including the tyre that formed part of the course. The sixth hole also had the car theme and contained two working traffic lights.

After finishing those holes, we went into the final room, which was darker. The light shone onto flourescent paint of the last three holes. This little room isn't too large for three courses with larger teams. 

After we completed the course, we decided to play the final one, which I did not book in advance. The course was located back at the front.

Course: Pedro

The first hole was the most challenging out of all of them. It went underneath a straw hut with masks and a plastic parrot on top. Luckily, the other holes were better. The second hole featured the back bumper and license plate of a car on a graffiti-wall, and the hole was played through a series of bricks. After this, the fourth hole was not too complex and featured a couple of Easter-Island-esque small statues. 

The fourth hole brought us to disused washing machines, and the holes went on a ramp and up through one of the machines and out the other side to where the hole was.

The fifth featured limbs and limbo, and it encouraged players to limbo over a bamboo stick in order to play the hole up a ramp. The sixth hole, known as 'Steven Seagull', had an element of humour. The hole is played over the top of oil drums that are on top of seagulls via a long bridge. The ball must be played straight over the narrow bridge and through "Steve Seagull's" mouth.

The seventh hole was another standard course accommpanied with graffiti, and the eight featured one of those boards that you often see on the beach where you can poke your head through and get a photograph. This one featured "The Girl from Chipanema" and had a drawing of two larger women on it. The final hole was interesting in that it was a ramp leading up to a metal 'volcano' with the hole on one side. After we finished playing the hole, we both tried to get the ball to go into the volcano, but it was at the wrong angle. We determined it must be a fluke if the ball finds its way into the volcano instead of down one of the sides of the course.

Have you played at Junkyard Golf in London yet?

One street artist that I discovered last year when I went to Bristol's Upfest was French artist and photographer Olivier Roubieu. (His work impressed me so much that I made his portraits of a woman the cover image for the blog post about Upfest 2015.) The artist has also come to London and painted a bit now, and I photographed and posted some of his work toward the end of last year. I was unable to get a photograph of all of his work due to the ever-changing nature of street art.

I was impressed to see the artist has created more pieces around London this summer. The pieces appear to work as a series where the artist has left out the detail of the faces and focused on the form of the bodies, often demonstrating with light and shadow in the structure of the body and drapery.

The above piece features a girl (painted in black and white) reclining sideways on a chair, her legs lifted over the arm rest. Attemtion to her cut-off denim shorts and plaid shirt are given as well as the dimples in her leg and the shadow around her arm and her hair.

The second features a female with attention to shade, colour, and pose of the model.

Last, but not least, is a study of a female torso standing. Attention is given to how the light and shade appears on her body from her hands to her shoulders and her overall bones/texture. Also, important to note is the drapery of the cut-off denim shorts that she wears.

These are brilliant works, and I wish I could draw the human form half as well as this.

Italian street artist Mr. Thoms painted the Village Underground wall this month. This is one of London's highest profile street art walls, and it was some time before the wall was refreshed with new work. Mr. Thoms hails from Rome and has painted large-scale murals across the world featuring his often-comical sketches and illustrations. Instead of a large single piece, he transformed this wall into several smaller pieces accompanied with text.

I caught the artist finishing up the wall earlier this month.

The artist claims to change his style into something new, but the sketches and wit remains. For more information, the artist's Facebook page with additional images can be seen here: https://www.facebook.com/MrTHOMS-133580520060657

Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her official 90th birthday last weekend (covered here); her actual birthday is at the end of April, but the weekend in June is a public celebration in hopes that the weather is actually better. Sunday was the day of many of the festivities, and between rain showers, I found may way at Lamb & Conduit Street near Russel Square. A street party was happening here with a dog show. Thornback & Peel, a printing company, offered screen printing workshops. I signed up.

Thornback & Peel started in 2003 when the owners created screen printed clutches. This has now been expanded to pieces for the home and includes kitchen towels, artwork, hankerchiefs, aprons, placemats, and oven gloves. Their designs are based on wood engravings, Victorian illustrations, and other imagery to create a unique style.

We were shown how to screen print. We were given a design of a corgi and Union Jack flag to screen print onto a cotton hankerchief to take home with us. We were given a demonstration first. The corgi was printed with purple ink, and the flag was printed with dark blue ink.

First, the cotton was laid out flat on the table. The print screen was taped to a wooden frame to hold it in place and to enable us to line it up appropriately on the table. 

Ink was placed onto the screen, and a scraper was used at a 45 degree angle to sweep down to the end of the frame without placing too hard.

When finished, the wooden frame was lifted to reveal the printed cotton underneath. These were hung up to dry for approximately thirty minutes. 

We were told to return in thirty minutes, and our hankerchiefs were rolled up into a box to take away. We also received a small paper notebook with a printed Union Jack on the front cover.

Have you ever screen-printed before?

The London street art scene this year has been a pretty busy one after it got off to a pretty slow start. I've been too busy to keep too much up-to-date and post regularly about it, but here's several works below from the ever-changing street art scene in east London from earlier this year. I have a lot more to come, so keep returning.

Himbad

First up, Himbad painted a large-scale piece on the side of the building on Sclater Street. This whole street is undergoing rennovations at the moment, and the car park at the Brick Lane end where we have seen so much great street art over the years has been converted into a block of expensive flats. This is such a striking piece in a popular area. (I covered a collaboration with the artist that took place ohis same street last year.)

Himbad

Next up, street artist Neoh has been busy this year painting his ballerina girls. (I've covered his work previously here.)

Earlier this year, I captured this mermaid-esque woman wearing a tribal mask. The artwork was created by Frida Stiil Vium, an artist from Denmark.

Hunto's colourful abstract images of people engaging and communicating with each other area always a popular find in London. I've covered his work many times. The artist hails from Italy and is inspired by modern abstract art.

Street artist Beastie, who is from Gloucester in England, created this cat stencil on Brick Lane, and the cat looks as if it has walked through wet paint. I've seen work by this artist in London before but I've never posted about it.

Ben Eine, who specialises in typography street art, has recently been in London this year after having a bit of a break. He updated one of his walls on Ebor Street earlier this year, and I covered that here. However, he also created a mural on Sclater Street around the same time, but I was never able to get a decent photograph of it due to the market and cars parked along the street. The piece reads "Rebel Rebel" for a new motorbike business that has been set up there, where an antique and odds-and-ends shop used to be.

I've not covered Endless' work in detail on my blog before, but the London-based artist creates paste-ups and stencils. These contain brand references. The below piece was created on the popular wall at Pedlety Street and features a brand of perfume. It isn't often that the artist completes a specific piece designed for a wall as most of his work tends to be smaller images and paste-ups.

The below pieces were completed as an advertisement, and I thought they were done well.

The Doodle Man created a few doodles in London earlier this year, and I saw three different walls that were designed. This was the largest-scale piece on Great Eastern Street. This scaffolding tunnel was transformed into thousands of doodles over a few weeks. I also caught the artist in action.

SpZero76 is a regular to the London street art scene and often paints with collective Lost Souls. (I've covered his work here previously.) I enjoyed this witty doughnut-gone-rogue while a cop shaped like a pistol chases him with hearts -- because cops love doughnuts.

Autone1 created the colourful pattern below in a collaboration with Itaewon. I've seen Autone1's work in London before but have never covered it in detail.

Graffiti Life painted a happy snowman character from "The Snowman" for Christmas last year.

Andy Council is an artist from Bristol, and I've covered his work in both cities a few times, including earlier this sprint for Endangered13. His abstract works feature abstract cityscapes that take on an organic feeling and can create a new image. The below cityscape appears to also become a dragon when looked at from a distance.

Love Pusher and El Jerrino collaborated on the below piece.

Airbourne Mark, a regular to London's street art scene and covered here, created several new works around east London. The titles of the pieces were called "Origami Riots" and featured items, usually smiles, that appear to have been drawn on paper and folded. I caught the artist at work in one piece. It's a little different than his usual style, but I've seen him paint in London previously.

I loved the quotation by PlasticJesus, but it's one I've heard before. This stencil artist often pokes fun at popular culture. This newest piece by the artist is "Stop making stupid people famous." It also features two children holding "Need work" sign.

Chinagirl, an artist from Germany who creates plaster and ceramic street art and installations, has been to London recently a couple of times now, and I've previously posted her work here. The most recent additions to London's street art scene were the rabbits holding grenades, and I discovered them in a couple of different areas.

Itaewon and Joey Baker created the colourful fantasy scene below.

Elno, a Spanish street artist, paints detailed portraits. She's been quite busy in London so far this year, and I have most recently covered her work in Leake Street. 

Kaes (Jay Caes) painted this colourful blend of wolves. Kaes' work is common to London's street art scene.

Brazlian artist Decolife painted a new wall in London earlier this year in a hidden spot not far from Brick Lane. I originally covered Decolife's work here.

I am not sure who painted the artwork below in Star Yard, off Brick Lane, but I liked it.

Also in Star Yard, the work evolved along with the above piece.

Saki & Bitches, a Japanese artist who has created much work in the city, has also created a new  puzzle game where people who pass by can interact with the piece to match up the different portions of the artwork. I enjoy seeing her work, and I most recently covered her last spring when she collaborated with other artists.

I've not covered Syd's artwork in detail, but his work is common in the city. His works are stencil-based and often small-scale pieces. However, this piece appeared on a wall with the message "welcome to the machine".

Pang, a London-based artist, came into the street art scene only a few years ago. Since then, she's been making a real name for herself and more recently collaborated with Nagel on a large scale piece off Brick Lane. She typically creates black and white illustrations of ash trays and the cowboy character.

Mutiny's (also known as Janie Laurie) artwork often portrays endangered wildlife. I've previously covered some of her work here. This was created at the beginning of the year and features colourful 'golden shouldered parrots', which are endangered.

French street artist Annabelle Tattu created many paste-ups across London earlier this year. Her work always features her characters in different situations, and there is often an element of wit involved in the detailed illustrations. I enjoyed the piece below, which seems to feature a lady with a hat and glass of wine and the television character "Mr. Bean".

Japanese street artist Masagon creates his work using a geometric style, and he painted the following bright geometric shapes on Sclater Street.

I'll try to post street art more regularly. I've been very busy with work over the last few months and I've not been able to dedicate a lot of time to my blog and other personal projects.

A few weeks ago, I popped into one of the Lush shops and noticed a new Father's Day collection. I've seen Lush have products for Mother's Day, but I have never noticed them create products specifically for Father's Day until this year. I think this is great, because I am sure there are a lot of men out there too who love to take baths and like smelly soap products. Bath time and taking care of oneself is not just a feminine treat. 

First up is the bath bomb "Superdad" which smells of wood notes on top of the relaxing rose scent. This one turns the bath water a beautiful blue colour.

Another eye-catching piece is the "Modfather" bubble bar, which is meant to look like the Mod symbol of the 1950s-1960s. It has a citrus scent.

The last eye-catching piece that I photographed is the bright yellow and orange soap with the letters 'dad', arranged like wooden blocks. The soap is called "Thanks Dad" and and is made of Brazilian orange oil and smells refreshing, like orange juice.

There's also a "Smuggle's Soul" shampoo bar up for grabs, and it is described as a lemongrass with woody fragrance. 

Or, these items can be purchased in a special Father's Day gift box.

Old Sarum is an ancient town that pre-dated its neighbour Salisbury. The town of Old Sarum was once thriving, and the market town of Salisbury was constructed nearby so that funds could be generated to build an even larger cathedral. The land that occupies Salisbury was owned by the bishop, so the new town was constructed along with the cathedral in the early 1200s. Eventually, the cathedral at Salisbury and Salisbury itself pulled more people in and Old Sarum lost its influence and was abandoned. The town and fortress was one of the most important in England. A model of the town in its heydey exists in Salisbury Cathedral.

I have driven past this monument so many times after working in Salisbury for awhile, but I never visited Old Sarum. I decided to plan a visit for my birthday.

The town is built on an ancient site with an Iron Age hill and Norman town/fortress and is not far from Stonehenge. Previously, it was a Neolithic settlement (3000BC) that suggests it was used for seasonal gatherings until 1500BC. Because of its proximity to Stonehenge, it probably served an important function. The mounds around the area were for burials, so the area probably held some significance. Later, it was a fortress due to unrest in the area with other tribes. William the Conquerer inherited the town and its castle in the mid-1000s and used it for his army. 

The entrance to the castle is across a footbridge over the raised banks of earth, and this was the main entrance. Inside is the inner courtyard where various buildings would have stood. In front is the Great Hall. It was built for King John in early 1200 and may have been used as a courthouse and entertaining since the kitchen was nearby. It was never maintained and the roof needed repaired in in the middle of the century and fell in about 100 years after it was constructed.

Upon entering the inner courtyard, we found a bouquet of flowers alone on a table. A note read for us to take them and give them a home. I'd come to Old Sarum for my birthday so I was very happy for the gift of flowers to brighten my day as I felt a little down. I'll post more about these in another post.

The royal palace also occupied this area of the inner courtyard and was built for King Henry I in the early 1100s. There was a view over the cathedral here, and we could see where the apartments, chapel, and latrines were. The latrines were expansive holes in the ground, and they were cleaned by someone lowered down into them. I don't think that would have been a nice job, and the hole is so deep that it would have frightened me too much to even access the room.

The great tower's basement is photographed below. 

The views over Wiltshire were stunning, even though the day was an overcast one.

The inner courtyard (below) would have been a bustling place, like a city. It would have contained many buildings. By the 16th century, all of the buildings were demolished.

The image below is all that remains of the great tower. In the foreground is the well, which was the centre of gossip for the servants. The well is probably about 70 metres deep. 

I had a walk along the edge of the inner courtyard where the bank is raised. Below is the moat and outer courtyard.

The next stop was to walk around the moat to the remains of the cathedral.

I took in amazing views of Salisbury Cathedral, which is one of my favourite cathedrals.

On the southwest side of Old Sarum is the remains of the cathedral. The nave is the only area that ordinary people could access, and there were no seats in those days. The cathedral was used as a meeting place and for other non-religious functions as well.

The cathedral was built in the mid-1000s and was damaged in a storm a few days after it was completed. By the mid-1200s, the palace and cathedral had both been demolished.

The final stop was the toilets, which are built into the hill of the outer embankment.

I enjoyed my walk around Old Sarum. There's not too much to see, but the views are amazing and it is an important historical site. It must have taken a long time for the site to have been constructed over the thousands of years, and I find this fascinating. 

Last weekend was a celebration of birthdays. It was my birthday, and Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her official 90th birthday. Her actual birthday is at the end of April, but it's celebrated in June due to better weather. Unfortunately, the better weather was not to be on the 12th of June as we had a lot of showers. Forunately, I could celebrate inside a dry room with afternoon tea at St. Ermin's hotel near St. James' Park.

The afternoon tea would have taken place in the courtyard in street party style had the weather been nice. It was moved inside to St. Ermin's ballroom instead, where the centrepiece of the room is a stunning chandelier. A live brass band performed above, and the room was decorated with patriotic bunting. The venue also promised to show the events of the day unfolding not far away live on television. There wasn't any sound, but we could see Kate and William greeting guests and the queen and her husband riding in an open-top vehicle while waving to people and then step outside for a speech.

The events unfolding took place on the Mall, the long drive from Buckingham Palace. The Mall was lined with tables for thousands of lucky people who were patrons of charities. This was dubbed "The Patron's Lunch".

I received my 'welcome drink', which was champagne mixed with blackberry or raspberry liquer and a red raspberry on top.

The sandwiches were lobster, salmon, ham, and cucumber.

After I had finished them, the warm scones came out in a basket with clotted cream and strawberry jam. They were different flavours, apparently, but I had smoothered them with clotted cream and jam so I could not taste an individual flavour.

The pastries were all royal-themed, and I will describe them below.

Espresso Choux Bun with crust and decedent decort chocolat: I am glad that this did not taste of coffee, but it had a subtle creamy-caramel taste.

Chocolate and Scottish raspberry opera grand torte with chocolate ganache, raspberry and dark chocolate glaze and decort chocolat: This did taste delicious with a creamy chocolate mousse texture. A red raspberry, flower petal, and meringue kiss sealed the deal.

Tongan vanilla custard with poached Yorkshire rhubarb and meringue: Decorated like a crown, this pot of custard was tart and sweet, but I was not a fan of it. I do typically like rhubarb, but the texture of it put me off.

Last (but not least), the dark green pastry almost matched the colour of the Queen's dress the previous day.

Scottish Shortbread with pistachio, lemon lime curd dome with bejewelled glaze: This had a jelly-like texture and was a mix of lemon and shortbread primarily.

How did you celebrate?

Last weekend, I celebrated my own birthday as well as Queen Elizabeth II's official 90th birthday. Her actual birthday is in April, but June weather is meant to be nicer, so the public celebrate it in June. London (and the whole of the UK) was buzzing with street parties over the weekend. I decided to see what was happening on the Sunday, which was the big day for the Queen's "The Patron Lunch" and the main day for street parties.

I ended up in Lamb Conduit Street near Russel Square first. When I arrived, I wish I had arrived earlier as they were just finishing up the dog show. There were prizes based on the size of the dog, waggiest tail, most handsome, prettiest, best sit, and best trick. I saw all types of dogs, but someone said the daschund won the top prize.

The dogs and their owners stayed in the area for awhile as there were food and drinks to consume (I tried a champagne made in Hampshire), a competition for the best crown, temporary tattoos, and other prizes.

One of the shop fronts had a display dedicated to the queen. Many shops had some patriotic display.

And of course, there were Morris dancers....

Bunting hung from the trees and in between lamp posts. Red, white, and blue balloons were floating.

The crown-making competition looked fascinating with different styles of crown on display. My favourite was the red and gold one, which was made from painted coffee beans.

After wandering around, I walked through Holborn, through Covent Garden, across Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus before walking all the way down to Green Park. Well, before Green Park I took a peek inside the cordoned off area to watch a band playing the "Star Wars" theme down the Mall and a glimpse of those soaked people sitting around the tables at "The Patron's Lunch".

Green Park had a television broadcasting the events unfolding at the end of the park. Flags were being given away, and there were plenty of places to buy food and drink.

I did not stay for long.

London itself was decorated with Union Jack flags on many streets. Many of the shop windows also had birthday messages and imagery.

I believe that more people would have been out had the weather been nicer. The continuous intermittent showers seemed to keep people away, but it was certainly one of the most memorable events of the year. I only wish my street would have had a street party.

The weekend before last, I had a day in Birmingham. I was meant to stay longer than a day, but my time was cut short because I had a toothache. However, I made the most of my time and had a wander around the city in search for street art, sight-seeing, and shopping. Birmingham is the UK's second largest city, so there is a lot to see and do. In a day, I think I did get a good feel for the city. I've been to Birmingham before a couple of times several years ago, but I've never really explored it; I remember a trip to the Bull Ring shopping centre, but that was about it.

Th Custard Factory is in the 'trendy' and 'hipster' area of Birmingham. This area is the equivelant to London's Shoreditch. I discovered so much street art here. It's a pity this was my first stop of the day and the shops must open later on a Saturday as not much was open. There's a lot of night life in this area as well as warehouses.

On the way to The Custard Factory, I walked up Frazeley Street and caught the above view. I also discovered some old pubs, such as the one below.

After a wander around, I headed back toward the city centre and came across the wholesale market. It was buzzing on the Saturday and I noticed a real mix of people and a random assortment of items for sale from meat to fish to clothing to textiles to trinkets and a lot more.

Further on my way, I noticed and loved this green post box. I've never seen one like it.

Also, bright and early on the way from the market was this guy with his mates. I can't believe they were starting so early for their 'stag do'. I assume that is what they were doing, but I don't know how they would have made it to the afternoon as it was before lunch at this point.

I liked the signs in the middle of the centre with the street name.

I was told by my colleague who went to university in Birmingham that I should go to the canal area. So, I found myself wandering along this busy area with nice restaurants, pubs, and a nice canal walkway with a lot of canal boats. There are also museums here.

I spent a while walking up the canal.

I saw canal boat trips advertised, and I happened to arrive a couple of minutes before one of the boats was going to depart, so I hopped on. My feet needed a rest by this time anyway. The boat trip was just over an hour and it started near Gas Street and went south to where the university is located before turning around again.

I learned a short history of the canals in Birmingham and how they were constructed to ship items from this industrial area. The railroad also runs along the side of the canal, so we were told about it.

After the canal boat trip, I went and had some lunch on the other side of this rainbow bridge over the canal.

'Pickled Pig' is the name of the restaurant, and it had good reviews even though it was more expensive. It was coming up to 1:30 now, so I decided to give it a try. I had the drink and a vegetarian gnochi meal. Unfortunately, this was about the time that I really started to feel unwell with pain in my tooth. It had been bothering me all morning, but it got worse after lunch as I'd accidentally bit down the wrong way when I was chewing. 

The food was very good and tasted fresh, and I loved the pudding.

I walked back into the centre of Birmingham after my wander around the canal.

A lot of redevelopment is taking place in Birmingham at the moment, and all of this is happening right in between the monuments, smack in the centre of the city.

Victoria Square is the name of the large square with a lot of sculptures and beautiful buildings around it. Anthony Gormley designed the sculpture below.

This is a sculpture of Queen Victoria.

I spent an hour walking around the Bull Ring shopping mall, but it was a little too crowded. While I waited awhile for the people in front to finishing their photo-taking with the famous bull in front of the mall, a guy decided to turn up and butt in with his kids just as everyone else disappeared, leaving me no time to quickly get a photo sans people. I waited and hoped he would be quick, but the kids didn't want their photo taken but continued to occupy the spot and climb on top of the sculpture, so I just got them in it and eventually told him he was rude after I was waiting patiently for so long for others to finish and he ran up and butted in. He continued to try to photograph his disinterested kids and then more people decided to queue up and kids run in front of and on the bull, so I had enough and headed to the train station. I was waiting for this guy for over eight minutes (yes, I did look at my watch and count), and this is the best photograph I could get, with the guy's disinterested children and wife climbing around the bull. 

The constant photo-taking because everyone had a phone or device with a camera is annoying once again, but I do wish people would stop and look who else is there before seeing a 'free' opportunity and running up before someone else. There may be someone there who is waiting to get a photograph of the monument without anyone in it. Not all of is like to take 'selfies' or may be with anyone to get 'selfies' of. I was on my own, but I am not invisible and it doesn't mean I am not sight-seeing if I am on my own. Just be polite, please. I really only needed a few seconds to get a photograph, compared to your several minutes.

I hope the next time I visit that I can enjoy it more without a toothache.

Ludgershall Castle (located in Wiltshire, south England) was built in the late 1100s as a fortress surrounded by two rings of earthwork ditches. The location was used earlier for other forts, but the castle itself was constructed primarily of stone and consisted of a great hall, kitchen, apartments, and stables. King John updated the castle in the early 1200s to bring it up to date to use as a hunting lodge. The land around was used for hunting and games, and a viewing platform in front of the castle looked onto the fields. The castle is built inside the rings of earthworks, and a small farm and house is located next to the castle today. Although there is a road to walk up to the castle from the small parking area, we opted to walk through the earthworks.

A path has been mown into the grasses, so walking and finding our way to the castle was easy. The site is maintained by English Heritage. We started on the left side where the path was located in the ditch.

We had rain overnight, so the grass was still a little damp. We saw several snails and slugs climbing around.

Nearer to the castle we had the choice to use the path in the ditch or on top of the earthworks. We opted for the high ground. Soo, the castle was in front of us.

We stood in the location where the viewpoint over the fields was located. The information boards suggested that the land was not extensive enough for proper hunting, but rabbits could be hunted here and deer could also be kept. The land passed between different royal families. By the 1540s, the buildings were levelled so that the nearby house could have a garden with the romantic castle tower ruin kept as a feature point of the garden.

In the 1960s and 1970s, the ruins were escavated to dertermine their use and possible appearance. Maps on the information boards marked out the kitchen, chapels, rooms, great hall and latrines and the approximate years that these buildings were constructed.

We had a wander around the tower, although there's not a lot to see. Children from the house next door were playing around the ruins when we were visiting. Having a castle in your own garden/land growing up must be amazing. Other than the children, we had the castle to ourselves.

After we had looked around the castle, we found the path through the earthworks in the opposite direction that we came from. This is the shorter route, and we noticed a lot of animal poo on the path, and I noticed that the wet grass had been trampled recently. As we were trying to guess the animal (I thought it was goat because the poo looked too 'big' for sheep), a load of rams came into view.

Our visit to Ludgershall Castle was a quick one. I believe we spent about fifteen to thirty minutes here. The castle is free to visit and open during reasonable daylight hours.

Friday (the 10th of June) was my birthday. To celebrate, the bloke and I took the day off work and made plans to do a couple of things in London that I have been wanting to do. The first was have the "Hello Kitty Afternoon Tea" hosted by Cutter & Squidge. It is the first official European tea authorised by the owners of the "Hello Kitty" brand, Sanrio. Because work has been extremely busy, I forgot to reserve the afternoon tea until a couple of days after the reservations were open, but all of the weekend slots were gone by that time. However, I managed to secure my birthday day instead. I was very excited to go because last spring, I went to Cutter & Squidge when it was a pop-up shop and a few doors down from its current location and I loved it. They use pure ingredients for healthier food, and I loved the iced drink I had.

Of course, I informed them of my dietary requirements and my birthday when I made the booking, so I received a "Happy birthday" chocolate and candle.

Upon entering their shop, I noticed "Hello Kitty" merchandise everywhere and the Cutter & Squidge trademark biscies (two cream-filled cookie sandwiches) and cakes in the "Hello Kitty" theme. I later had the apple flavour one (on the right) to take away. The other one is an ice cream sundae flavour.

After arriving, we were taken down into "Hello Kitty's" secret garden in the basement of the shop. Plastic flowers and "Hello Kitty" wallpaper greeted us.

First up is the pink lemonade (Mimmy's Pink Lemonade), which is refilled if desired. The lemonade was tart but nice and not sickening sweet and full of sugar, so it was a 'win' for me.

We also had a choice of four teas including standard Englush breakfast and Earl Grey. The bloke and I opted for something different. I had the "Limited Edition Apple Pie Tea", which was made with spices and apple chunks. The bloke had the "Lychee Peach Tea", which I nearly got because I love peach and I'm more of a peach-person than an apple-person. I actually preferred his tea to my tea, but I was not told that I could change it when I needed to top up so was stuck with it. 

I noticed that the dishes were not the cleanest with my cup being dirty and having a hair on it. And I was not too impressed with the plastic flowers which just made me think of "cheap and tacky" which is a far cry from what I felt when I was in the shop upstairs with the bright natural light. I felt that the afternoon tea was aimed a little more at children based on the decor, but there are many adult "Hello Kitty" fans too, and I expected a little more style for £40.00 a person.

This is where it all went even worse. After we were seated, I reminded the waiter about the special requirements for the sandwiches and he noted it down. We then had to wait over twenty minutes for the order. We were then informed that the sandwiches were incorrect in our order, so it was sent away again. Twenty minutes later, they arrived again but were still incorrect. They were sent away again. They were not completely correct on the third attempt, but I gave up then. By then, it was too long and we'd waited much too long. Also, I had to ask them to refill my tea and then remind them twice before anything was done about it. They also did not check back with us, and I had to shout for another refill later on. 

Our afternoon tea was brought to us in stackable Japanese-style bento boxes. Our sandwiches were okay, but I have had much better. By this time, we had to rush through the food or risk missing our next activity.

The cheese scones were served with cream cheese and tomato salsa. The cheese scones were actually very delicious. Served with them were two "Hello Kitty" crackers with tomato salsa.

I've included photographs of the desserts received, which we had to rush down and then take some of them away due to the mix-up.

Strawberry Milkshake Biskie - This is what Cutter & Squidge do best. We received one with a heart and one with a strawberry, and they tasted delcious with a vanilla cookie base sandwiched with strawberry-flavoured cream.

Vanilla Cookie - The Kitty-shaped pink cookies did taste delicious.

The last item above appeared to be a chocolate brownie, but the only item on the menu that it could be was "White's Ice Kream", but this was not ice cream at all. The brownie did not taste nice at all and was left. It was also not presented as well as the other items.

And in the photograph below:

"Mimmy's Pink Lemonade Marshmalllow" - The marshmallows were melt-in-your-mouth delicious with a fizzy lemonade taste. 

Cake Truffle - The exterior of the truffle is pink with chunks of biscuit and tasted like lemonade or strawberry. Inside was a chocolate cake truffle. 

Chocolate-dipped strawberries - The chocolate was a bit too thin to dip and stay on the berry, and most of it actually went onto my shirt instead of on the berry or in my mouth. We left the remainder or the thin chocolate.

"Mimmy's Very Berry Jelly Kiss" - This is a fruit jelly in the shape of the kitty. If you enjoy this sort of thing, this is for you. I'm not a fan and did not care for the taste, so I left it.

In the photograph at the top, I had the following:

- Kitty's Chocolate Mud Pie - I ended up leaving most of this because I just did not enjoy the taste and found it a little too dry.

"Mama's Apple Pie Mousse" - This was the winner of the desserts. The mousse tasted delicious and just like apple pie. I could have had more of this.

The moment of truth for recommendations is here. Unfortunately, I cannot actively recommend the "Hello Kitty" afternoon tea. It's such a pity because I believed it would be a lot better, particularly as I enjoyed my last visit to Cutter & Squidge. The staff did not seem to know what they are doing, and the food took much too long to arrive. We waited fourty-five minutes before we received our food, which is way too long. Then we had to rush through it. This is not acceptable when it costs £40.00 per person, which is on the steep end of afternoon tea in London. Many of the hotels (not cafes) charge around this amount per person. I'd expect a cafe to charge less. 

While some of the food was delicious, the majority was bland with the brownie and cake being complete let-downs. I think too much choice is offered, and I would have liked to have had less choice and more biskie options instead. The brownie and chocolate-covered strawberries should be removed, and I'd consider removing the jelly too.

The stars of the show were the apple pie mousse, cheese scones, vanilla biscuits, marshmallow, and the biskie.

(I visited Cutter & Squidge for the afternoon tea and the review is my own. I was not asked to review or be a guest reviewer.)

I visited Brick Lane the weekend before last and noticed that the huge wall at the end of Hanbury Street was painted and getting ready for a new piece after the previous Nagel and Pang piece remained for some time. Today, I went to Brick Lane and was happy to see a huge mural by one of my favourite street artists, Dan Kitchener (DANK). This artist often creates street scapes with a light or rain effect as well as portraits of (mainly) Japanese ladies.

This work is titled 'London Rush' and features the artist's "Liquid Light" style of painting. According to the artist on his Facebook page (1), it took 1.5 days to paint and was sketched out in free-hand and spray-painted. It's the largest piece by the artist that I have seen so far, and it really made me feel almost like a part of the image or that I could step through and be in another dimension.

Next to the piece is a separate shutter, and it also features a city street scene by the artist.

Recently, a portrait of a Japanese lady appeared in Shoreditch too, and the artist's work has appeared on this wall many times and is often refreshed. The piece is titled "Butterfly" and it was painted for the artist's recent solo show "Queen of Neon". 

Although I have not been to Croydon to see it in person, Dan Kitchener has also been extremely busy painting there. The below photograph shows some of his work, and the one above is only a small section of a 36-panel wall. The below section is a separate area in Croydon.

Prior to this work, I captured additional pieces by Dan Kitcher at the start of the year, and you can see this post here.

1) https://www.facebook.com/DanKitchenerART/

Beauty brand 'So Susan' have a beauty subscription box called 'Lip Love', and this contains four or five items. I subscribed over three months, but I've got a lot of make-up to use, so I will not be re-subscribing. However, I loved most of the products that I have received so far. June's subscription bag contains a quotation from Ann Hood: "I have learned that there is more in a good strong hug than in a thousand meaningful words."

The following items were received:

Trifle Cosmetics 'Candied Apple' lip and cheek stain: This is a muted pink colour and is not as bright as it immediately looks in the packaging. I think this colour would suit most tones, and the colour and longevity of the product is excellent. The downside is that it is very sticky, just like a candied apple.

So Susan 'Primal Instinct' primer: This primer smooths out skin and provides a canvas for make-up to be applied. This is a pretty standard product that does what it says.

Trifle Cosmetics 'Raspberry Ripple' blush palette: This blush palette comes in three shades of pink/brown. The left and middle shades add illumination while the right shade helps to add colour.

Jelly Pong Pong Blush and Contour: This duo of shades promises a more natural look for blush.

I do enjoy receiving these subscription boxes, but I felt a little under-whelmed this month based on the previous months.

I received May's Birchbox (monthly beauty and skin-care subscription box) toward the end of the month last month, so my review is slightly late so that I could have time to try out the products. This month, the theme of the Birchbox is "For the Dreamers." The box that the products came in this month was scratch-off. A lucky subscriber could see if they won a trip abroad. Unforunately, it was not me, and that is a pity because I really could use a trip abroad.

On to the reviews:

Spectrum Collections Unicorn Tears Wonder Sponge: This is a blending brush that helps apply foundation flawlessly. It works with cream-based or liquid foundations, and the pointed in is good for hard-to-blend areas around the eye and nose. This is similar to other products that I've previously tried and comes in a plastic bag for travel. Subscribers could choose between a pink or a purple one, but I did not choose and randomly received a pink one.

Eyeko Black Magic Mascara: This mascara comes in a little tube and has a shaped wand so that all of the eyelashes get covered. The product leaves a more subtle effect, and I needed at least two coats, so it has not won me over.

Philip Kingsley PK Prep Polishing Balm: This is a hair serum that promises smooth and conditioned hair. The product is applied through damp hair after washing and towel-drying hair. I did not see a difference in hair condition, but the product did make my hair smell good.

Olehenriksen cleansing cloths: These wet wipes are perfect for removing make-up during travel or music festivals. I enjoyed this product and would purchase it or a similar project in the future because they are great for on-the-go.

Puriskin Resurfacing Cream: This cream promises to nourish skin and covers a variety of skin issues from blemishes to dry skin. It contains chamomile to help hydrate and repair skin. I did enjoy using this product because it was absorbed into the skin and it seemed to make a difference in the way my skin felt after using it.

The extra product this time was a small bottle of perfume. A lot of people do not seem to enjoy perfume samples, but I don't mind it, even if I do drench myself in different perfumes every time I go through the duty free areas at the airport.

Givenchy 'Live Irresistible' fragrance: This fragrance is a floral one but also smells mature. I would wear it our to dinner in the evening. I would purchase this as it is a scent that I like to wear.

What did you think about May's Birchbox?

Last weekend, I visited Birmingham (England). My first stop was a walk around different areas where I expected to locate street art. I started by walking to Moor Street train station in Birmingham before walking down Fazeley Street and Floodgate Street, Heath Mill Street, and some of the other areas. I discovered The Custard Factory, a location for the creatives with several shops and a gallery. There's quite a few great pieces of street art here. The city also hosts its own street art festival, City of Colours. It takes place later this month, so be sure to catch it. The event takes place over the 18th and 19th of June. For more information, visit the official website here: http://www.cityofcolours.co.uk. It looks like there's a lot of brilliant artists lined up this year.

N4T4

N4T4

First up is a stunning portrait of a young female by N4T4. N4T4 has been painting with spray paint since 1985 and tends to paint portraits of females mainly, and he is inspired by aboriginal influences and uses patterns. The above piece is brilliant because the artist actually uses the building material to create the piece. The female appears to be wearing an earring and holding other jewels, and these are actually a part of the building itself and painted and used in the piece. 

Mr. Penfold and Tempo 33

Mr. Penfold is from Cambridge, and I've originally covered his work in London on a previous post (Malarky, Mr. Penfold, Billy & Lucas). He paints characters in bright colours. Tempo33 is a Birmingham-based street artist and often pastes up black and white faces. In this example, he's used colour to create one of the faces. More of Tempo 33's work is below, and he's also pasted up many pieces in London, but I've never covered his work before.

Tempo33

Tempo33 and Toasters

In another collaboration, Tempo 33 painted with Toasters. I have previously covered their work in London here.

Unknown and g-anders

This whole building on Frazeley Street is covered in street art. The portrait of the lady is unknown, but the monochrome piece is by g-anders and is an optical illusion.

Unknown

N4T4

Unknown street art robots

Unknown street art magnifying glass; corpse; Golden Boy

Newso and Gent48

The above piece was only just finished in February this year and celebrates 40 years of The Body Shop and its "enrich, not exploit" campaign. The artists have both been around the street art scene for awhile. Newso has been creating work all over the UK for the past eight years and has done mainly community work. Gent 48 studied art at Birmingham and has painted around Europe.

Philth

Philth (Phil Blake) is a graphic designer and illustrator who often paints female forms. 

N4T4

Unknown

Amara Por Dios

Amara Por Dios hails from Sweden but is a regular visitor to London, and I have covered her work many times (Street Art: Amara Por Dios).

Unknown

Dscreet

Dscreet (covered here) is a regular to east London's street art scene. 

Unknown

Masai

Masai is a popular artist in the street art scene and often paints endangered species or animals. The giant fly is on a wall near The Custard Factory. I've recently covered his work at Mile End for Endangered13.

Inkie

Another high profile street artist is Inkie, who often created vintage-inspired 'advertisement' pieces. I last saw the artist's work last year at Bristol Upfest.

Jim Vision

Jim Vision is a London-based street artist, and he's created hundreds of pieces there. I last covered his work here. In this piece, titled 'High Rise' shows a burning building.

Dank 

Dank (Dan Kitchener) is another London-based street artist who creates portraits of Japanese women and street scenes. This stunning piece reminds me of a busy Tokyo street. Some of the artist's work is covered here.

MYL

coLor, Eugene Bloom, Corpse

Newso

Lost Souls Crew, Spzero, Squirl, Kaptain Kris

The Lost Souls Crew are also regular street artists in London, and I've covered them here.

Andy Council

Andy Council is a Bristol-based street artist, and I like this piece with ice cream and ice cream cones. He often creates illustrations showing different perspectives and architecture. He also painted at Endangered13 in London.

Philth

Rainbow Christ

Liskbot

Liskbot paints robots and often pastes up robot characters.

Senna

I've covered Senna's work when he went to London a few years ago. Senna hails from Brazil.

MEF and Gnasher

I've covered Gnasher's work at Bristol Upfest.

Jim Vision

Gent48

Gent48

PST

Annatomix - David Bowie

Annatomix creates work with different planes or dimensions, and many of her work is monochrome. Her tribute to David Bowie must have been painted at the beginning of the year. I've previously covered her work here.

Newso and Gent48

Have you been to Birmingham to explore the street art, or can you tell me who created the pieces in the 'unknown' ones in my collection above?

There's a new little hide-away in the City of London serving wonderful cocktails in a beautiful Victorian bath house with private booths. 'Victorian Bath House' opened their doors 'By Appointment Only' at the end of March this year. Booking is available two weeks in advance, and visitors feel like they are part of an exclusive event. The venue is also open to events and private parties, and they were getting ready for one when I visited. 

The bath house was constructed as a Turkish Bath in 1895 and was inspired by Middle Eastern decor. I was told that many of the tiles are original, but the company that originally produced the tiles is still in operation and has re-made additional ones that were needed. Many exclusive areas are scattered around with two main bar areas, and curtains can be closed for privacy.

I was informed that the mixing of drinks started when they had an abundance of plums after an event, and the plums were put into a jar of gin. These were put into alcohol to give it a flavour, and this maintains most of the alcoholic content. Some of these are on display in the back cabinets.

One private area, which could be curtained across, had a selection of bottles available that could be filled with spirit. There are several 'flavours' of London Dry Gin to suit any taste (pear and sage, plum, quine and blue cheese, camomile meadow, and rosemary and lavender). Decanters can also be purchased with the different drinks.

A bath tub at the back of the venue is filled with ice and alcohol. This is filled prior to events. 

Upon arriving, I received a welcome drink. This consisted of a red wine with other flavours, and these were explained to me at the time. 

I was then treated to a buttery whiskey. Butter is used to add the flavouring, which takes the edge off of it. Sea Salt and Caramel is the flavour, and it went well with the figs. It was easy to drink.

Classic Shambles was the next drink I had, and it was described as an apple pie. It had a subtle apple and vanilla taste and was topped off with champagne and a floating slice of apple. 

I had the Rhubard Punch next. The first drink I had, after the welcome drink, was the first photograph in this post. This was the Rhubard Flip. It tasted like rhubarb and custard and was such an easy-going drink. I loved it, and it was my favourite drink of the evening.

The bloke arrived later as well as he got stuck at work. When he arrived, he tried the Blue & Blue Velvet, which is Guinness topped with champagne and blueberries.

Before we left, we had one last drink to try - a buttery rum drink. I wish I had taken some notes to write properly about the different drinks, without giving much away.

All good things must end, so our time was up and we had to make our way home. I took a photograph of the outside of the Victorian Bath House. Do not be fooled by its appearance. It is like a Tardis inside. Actually, the main rooms are underground. 

Would I recommend this venue? Yes, I would. The cocktails and drinks are beautifully made, mixed well, and have a lot of flavour without feeling like you're drinking too much alcohol. Of course, this could be bad because it's so easy to have too many. The venue is also special from a historical London point of view. To avoid disappointment, get yourself over to the Victorian Bath House located near Liverpool Street station at Bishopsgate. It's located in the church yard.

Boneyard is an American-themed restaurant that opened a few months ago on Shoreditch High Street, transforming the disused petrol station and empty lot. Other street vendors set up shop there as well at about the same time as I stopped frequenting Shoreditch as often, so I have not had the chance to try any. However, I was in the area recently and needed a lunch stop, so I decided to pop in.

The cafe itself is on the edge where the station used to be, and it advertises its chicken and burgers. The building also appears to have been picked up from the USA and transplanted in Shoreditch. It has the bar-restaurant style, but it's actually more of a restaurant than a bar. In fact, alcohol cannot be consumed inside the building due to regulations, but there's an area right outside to drink.

Inside, the bar-restaurant theme continues with the industrial style and lighting. The tables were high ones with stools and could accommodate a lot of people.

The restaurant serves deep-fried food, such as chicken with buttermilk, pork ribs, bone marrow burger, slaw, tater tots, crinkle chips, onion fries, chicken burgers, and a vegetarian option. Milkshakes are also on offer.

I opted for the chicken burger and the crinkle chips. The chips and burger were delicious and had a good flavour. The chicken burger was also moist and not dry, so I found it very tasty.

I would return to Boneyard to try their buttermilk chicken and some of their other sides. Have you been, and which dishes do you recommend?