The time portal at 18 Folgate St

A fire is crackling in the hearth, the smell of burning wood faintly tickling my nose and memory. A walnut lays half eaten on the table among pieces of its cracked shell, a bit of tea is left in a dainty teacup. Its quiet, so silent I can hear the clock on the mantelpiece ticking, creaking floorboards and faint noises coming from the other other rooms.

I go deeper into the house, creep up the stairs softly and find myself in another room. The lady of the house peers at me from her picture over the mantelpieces, but where is she? Where is everyone? I stand by the softly burning embers and look around the room. A tea set is laid out on  the table in front of me. The candles flicker in their holders casting dancing light across all the colours of the richly decorate room, the green walls, crimson drapes, blue chairs and red armchair.

I continue my search through time for the family of silk weavers only to find I've just missed them, yet again. They've left in such a rush that the bed is unmade, the thick black coffee hasn't been drunk, yet the shoes and socks are there, lying in disarray. How odd.

I climb further but there is only poverty, laundry hung in the staircase, dirty sunken beds, cobwebs and dust, crumbling ceilings and flaking walls. The King has died and I can hear the gun salute echoing through the flimsy walls. It looks like time has not been kind to the Jervis family.

Back down through the rooms, there is a letter there, an upturned chair, a spilled bottle, a filled pipe, there are smells and sounds and really, "you either see it, or you don't".

If the thought of walking up to an ordinary door, ringing the bell and then stepping through time thrills you, then you need to check out this unusual house in Shoreditch. Its part painting, part still life, part museum, part sensory experience created by artist Dennis Severs. I really haven't experienced anything like it. It was odd. At times I felt like I was really nosing around someones house. And that house had fallen through a time warp - I could look out onto modern buildings from one of the rooms while being very aware that I was 'living' in a different time.

If you could travel in time, which era would you visit?

Read More

Paper and Cup - Cafe review

If you happen to be poking around Shoreditch and fancy a quiet hideaway then Paper and Cup is the perfect answer. I came across it after visiting Lady Dinah's Cat Emporium on the weekend. Already full of tea and scones from Lady Dinah's, I still couldn’t resist the call of coffee.

It’s a cute little place just off Shoreditch High Street. Its fronted by large windows, bright blue and white signage and a couple of tables and chairs out front (best for the warmer months I think!). Inside is a small but cosy space filled with the smell of Union coffee. There is a  large coffee bar with all sorts of tempting treats, a bookshelf lining the wall on the left with a couple of tables in front of it, bar seating at the windows, and, tucked away towards the back is a small room suited for a larger group. Naturally I made straight for the coffee then perched on a bar stool at the large windows for a bit of a read.

Being off the high street, the cafe is quiet and overlooks church grounds which is a nice change from the usual bricks and mortar. The vibe is chilled, the staff don’t rush you and there are water bottles and glasses on the tables which I think is a really nice touch. Even better, if you forget to bring a book, you can buy one for a pound from their bookshelf! Why other coffee shops don’t do that, I'll never know!

Actually, the best bit, as I found out later, is that Paper and Cup is a not-for-profit café created by the Spitalfields Crypt Trust, which means all proceeds go to a good cause. The café helps...

"Provide a supportive training ground for those in the later stages of recovery and rehabilitation… trainees learn how to become baristas, serve customers, work in a team and manage a small cafe." 

So you can have your coffee and a treat and feel good that your money is going to help people get back on their feet. Brilliant!

The only drawback as far as I could see is that if there are more than two of you, you might not easily find a spot to sit. But that wasn’t really an issue for me.

So, if you do find yourself in the area, definitely stop by and check it out.

Have you stumbled across a cool not-for-profit store?

Read More