The Merchant ATL

The best kind of places are the merging of my two favorite things: coffee and stationery. Even better: Merchant ATL fulfills those things. Opening in Lower Greenville back in November, this Atlanta-based shop made its way into Dallas, providing a wide range of stationery goods from Rifle Paper cards to locally-sourced candles and gifts.

One can purchase a nice cup of coffee while you shop, or after the excursion. There’s both indoor and outdoor seating that provides both experiences of shopping and relaxing.
It is hard not trying to buy the entire store when it is lined with beautiful coffee table books and notebooks to write pretty things on.
Merchant is a great addition among a street of eclectic restaurants and shops, adding charm to the laid-back style that compliments nicely in Lower Greenville. I find myself coming back every time I am down here!

 

The Merchant ATL

1924 Greenville Ave

Dallas, TX 75206

Website

Photo Diaries: London, United Kingdom (Part 2)

A few of my favorite spots (aside from the ideal monumental sites ;)):

SkyGarden: This has probably one of the best views of London free of charge (unless you do decide to buy drinks). The best time to go is in the evening, but dress nicely when you go; they have a certain dress code they follow in order to enter.

Camden Market: London has a couple food markets throughout the city, but Camden’s eccentricity and diverse food selection made it to the top of my list! A Chin Chin Laboratories is located in this area, and they have great liquid nitrogen ice cream.

Crosstown Doughnuts: Shoreditch is secretly one of my favorite parts of London with a nice mix of grafitti walls and eccentric food places (it’s somewhat similar to Deep Ellum in Dallas). Crosstown is no exception. Their matcha donut was an absolute dream (the creme brulee is also great too!).

Columbia Flower Market: Literally flower heaven. It gets so busy, but you can’t help and smell the flowers! The market is filled with succulents, plants, and a colorful array of blooms to take with you. The surrounding area had cute boutiques to walk through and some food stands where I tried my first Scotch egg. It’s only open on Sundays, but it’s open year-round!

Regency Cafe: English breakfasts are the real deal, and Regency is one of the inexpensive top spots in London! An English breakfast comes with toast, eggs, sausages, tomatoes or beans, and a piping cup of English breakfast tea. A meal here keeps you very full, and the art-deco, retro-like setting is an added bonus to the eating experience.

St. Dunstan in the East: What was once originally a church, most of its structure was destroyed in World War II and eventually was turned into a public garden. Centrally located between the London Bridge and the Tower of London, it’s a little gem in a hustling and bustling city.

Tate Modern: As a fan of modern art, I was impressed with the different exhibits and collections at the Tate Modern. There is a balcony on the second floor of the museum that gives a great view of the St. Paul Cathedral and along the Thames River.

Victoria and Albert Museum: The biggest perk of going to London museums is that admission is free of charge. Victoria and Albert has a beautiful exhibit on Raphael and a great curation of artwork and sculptures located throughout the museum.

 

Stay tuned for my coffee visits in London! 🙂

Photo Diaries: London, United Kingdom (Part 1)

Hello my wonderful readers,

I am officially back in the US and starting to {slowly} catch up on blog posts. Currently, I’m reminiscing on the wonderful places I’ve visited and feeling truly grateful for the experience abroad meeting new faces, soaking in the views and sights, and, of course, eating all the great food and drinking coffee. Please bear with me as I power through editing and writing posts to share with you all! 🙂

Anywhooo, the main reason why you’re reading this lovely post:

London: The place where I live out my “Notting Hill” and “Parent Trap” dreams. Colorfully-lined homes and cute little mews/alleyways filled with the aroma of cherry blossoms and wisteria during the springtime was just icing on the cake! 
 I definitely had a huge fangirl moment stumbling across the “Parent Trap” house used in the 1998 version of the film. If only London real estate didn’t cost so much… 




What I loved about London is how colorfully different each part of the city is. In one part, there’s the historical and iconic sites like the Buckingham Palace or Trafalgar Square, and then there’s the down-to-earth food markets like Camden, or offbeat coffee and food stops in Shoreditch; London was the perfect blend of posh and hip.

Stay tuned for the other London photos and a few of my favorite spots 🙂

Photo Diaries: Aix-en-Provence

When I think of Aix (pronounced as “X”)-en-Provence, I think of lavenders blooming, giving off its aromatic scent. While I didn’t get the chance to go during this season, Aix-en-Provence gives of its type of charm with winding alleyways and a wide array of shops filled with lavender-scented products.
Every Sunday in Place Richelme, there is a food market lined with fruits, vegetables, and lavender-scented products. In the adjacent plaza over, there are stands lined with vibrant flowers and arrangements to take home. Despite it being a city, those little markets reminded me of a little village. Throughout the week, there are different ones that pop up throughout the city. 


Few of my favorite spots:

Patisserie Weibel: This was located right next to the market I visited. They had a great selection of petit fours and other viennoseries (croissants, pain aux chocolat, etc.)

Mana Espresso: If you haven’t caught up on the latest Coffee Roundup post, I write about one of my favorite shops in Aix here.

Cours Mirabeau: The biggest street in Aix lined with restaurants and shops. Aix-en-Provence is diverse city, so it’s easy to find a restaurant that fits your taste.

Parc Jourdan: Aix-en-Provence was once home to impressionist painter Paul Cézanne. Here, Parc Jourdan was one of the locations where Cézanne would plant himself and paint different variations of the park.

Musée Granet: Many of Cézanne’s paintings are exhibited here, but there are also sculptures of Giacometti and other collections of Provençal artwork. With the ticket you buy, you can also have access to their other collection a couple blocks over with Picasso paintings and more abstract works of art.

Bibliothèque Méjanes: When I went, the library was closed, as most places in France are closed on Sundays. However, the entrance to the Bibliotheque is very Pinterest/camera worthy. It houses local newspapers archives and medieval works dating back to the 12th century.

Forever dreaming of the South of France with colorful window shutters and quaint little alleyways.

Thanks for reading 🙂

Magnolia Silos

Here’s kind of a funny story: I was telling a friend of mine that we should go to Magnolia Market in Waco before she goes off to DC. A few weeks later, she suggests that we go. So, here we are venturing down with our friend to the widely talked about gem of Waco.

Located in the heart of Downtown Waco, Magnolia Markets was created by Joanna and Chip Gaines, known for their shiplap and modern farmhouse style on the HGTV show “Fixer Upper.” They are literally my inspiration for when I (hopefully) open my own business someday. It’s absolutely amazing the business that they’ve built on Magnolia.

Side tangent, but it was super packed when arriving upon the grounds. It’s especially busy on the weekends. I never got the chance to try out some baked treats from the Silos Baking Co. because the line literally went out the door! That visit will have to happen another time.

When entering Magnolia, there was so much hustle and bustle going on. It reminded me of a little village with the food trucks and lawn that children (and pets) could play on. There was a great lineup of food trucks from sandwiches and tacos to biscuits and crepes. My friend and I got biscuit sandwiches from Milo Provisions, and boy they didn’t disappoint!There’s an array of goods they sell from t-shirts and hats, to paint cans and rugs. The Silos inside is spacious to move around and see different products throughout the place. Everything they sold reflected their design aesthetic perfectly.   I love how everything was styled. Every corner had something different. I loved this particular corner with the various-sized pitchers and plates complemented by books of a similar color palette. My friends and I went shortly after Thanksgiving, so by then the holiday decorations were added. The greenery throughout the store was beautiful. 🙂 The Silos ground is huge, so it’s easy to roam around. It’s super kid (and pet) friendly with open green spaces and tables to sit and enjoy the food trucks on site. If you ever get the chance to visit, it’s definitely worth the drive. It makes you feel right at home and there’s a lot to see while you’re at the Silos.Whether you’re passing by on the way to Austin, or have an interest in home goods, this is your place!!

Magnolia Silos

601 Webster Ave.

Waco, TX 76706

Website