Portobello Market in Notting Hill, UK
Hey y’all! I’m baaaccckkkk! Did you miss me? Probably not, because I pre-scheduled a month’s worth of posts for you while we hopped across the pond for a European vacation! It was the chance of a lifetime, the boys and I toured London, Keswick and Scotland while P. Handsome Guy worked in his company’s London office. I’ll be sharing some of my journeys with you in the coming weeks. In the meantime you can check out some of my sneak peek photos on Instagram or Facebook.
But, now I want to take you with me to Portobello Market in Notting Hill, England. OH MY GOODNESS! When Pretty Handsome Guy said I’d love the Portobello Market, he knew my tastes to a “T” or should I say “Tea”. 😉 In fact, once we arrived, it was evident that I wanted to absorb and photograph as much as I possibly could!
We took the London Underground (the tube) to the Notting Hill station on a Saturday morning (the only day the street vendors are set up.) Upon our ascent above ground, it was evident that we had entered the ritzier suburb of London made famous by the movie, Notting Hill.
Doors are painted cheerful colors, the front stoops were adorned with patterns of tile, and container gardens are abundant.
The architecture of these grande estates is beautiful and dripping with detail.
Unfortunately we had two tired, jet-lagged boys tagging along. So, Handsome Guy did what he does best, he gave me the afternoon to peruse at my own speed and took the boys to Hyde Park to play some soccer (or should I say Football for the British crowd.) Each vendor had their specialty: Antique lamps, silverware, leather sporting goods, books, old printing blocks and much much more. Instead of jabbering away, I’ll just let you browse for yourself.
In one section of the market are the food vendors. This happened to be very entertaining to watch. The woman below sings out her menu in an operatic volume voice.
Then she turns around a split second later and stirs the gigantic pot of paella (at least I think that’s what the dish is.)
 I found myself seeking a quieter spot to eat and wandered into a little bakery to get away from the crowds and grab a quick bite to eat.
The rustic shelving is exactly what I am craving for our kitchen (minus the plumbing pipes.)
Back outside the market was in full force as far as the eye could see.
Just a warning that apparently some vendors do not like having pictures taken of their wares. One vendor reacted like Sean Penn by getting in my face trying to tell me that photography was akin to stealing. He went on to explain it was like wearing shoes around and not buying them and that it was the same in the States. I looked at him in sheer bewilderment and said, “Nope, not the same.” This is the picture I “stole” of his antique books.
So, be forewarned some vendors can get their trousers in a bunch if you take pictures. On the opposite end of the spectrum was sweet Alison who owns the shop Jensen & Ballantine. If you are in Notting Hill please look up her shop, pop in and say “Hi!” Tell her I sent you. 😉
She has the most fabulous antiques, furniture and home décor! I was so busy snapping pictures that I overlooked those gorgeous blue glasses. Now I’m kicking myself for not buying them!
The rest of the photos are from the Jensen and Ballantine shop. Enjoy!
If you find yourself in London on a Saturday, head over to Notting Hill for the Portobello Market. It’s a must see! And if you can’t make it on a Saturday, the shops in the area are open the rest of the week as well (with the exception of the street vendors.)
Cheerio!
Loved the photos! I would love to go to England. In the meantime, I’ll live vicariously through my favorite blogger 😉 Thanks for sharing! Looking forward to more!
Thanks for sharing your trip! I liked the weathered bakery shelves too, but I actually liked the plumbing pipes on them. (My daughter made a lamp using electrical conduit so maybe I have a bias towards things like that?) And I bet you could have those blue glasses shipped over! 🙂
Loved the picture of the old flag with only 48 stars. That’s what it looked like when I first learned to say the pledge of allegiance (also before “under God” was added). Enjoyed ALL the travel pics! 🙂
Love all of the photos! Beautiful.
Love all the pictures. Total eye candy and really gets the DIY wheels turning. Your comment about taking pictures cracked me up. I had a lady in a bakery in Germany start screaming at me (in English!!!) telling me I couldn’t take pictures. I was so stunned I didn’t know what to do (and it was on my iphone, not my dslr), so I froze and totally pretended I didn’t speak English either. My husband and I still laugh about it!
What wonderful eye candy! Lots of great stuff & sorry the book seller was so stuffy. I bet you were able to take a lot of inspiration from these pictures. My husband and I incorporate some color scheme, item or bauble from each vacation into our home, it’s the best way to hold onto those vacation memories permanently.
Glad you’re back, I bet Pretty Handy Dog wins the award for being the happiest of us all!
AMAZing pictures! Thank you for sharing. My fingers just twitched and twitched because I wanted to grab so many things! Like the silverware. How fun would it be to have all those beautiful, mis-matched pieces for special dinners? I’d be lugging so many things home in my suitcase it would be ridiculous.
And as for that book vendor? Foolish man. You are giving him free advertising! Now if you opened the book and started taking pictures of each page, then you are stealing from him. But showing the gorgeous books he has is just going to draw people in. He isn’t the brightest bulb in the chandelier, is he?
Can’t wait to see more of your trip pictures! What a great adventure for the kidlets. I think travel is essential for kids to mature and learn about the world outside the US.
Thank you for your comment Laurie and I’m so glad you enjoyed the tour ;-).
That’s what I was thinking about Book-man, I Love Books and was actually “shopping” looking at PHG’s photo. I suppose he doesn’t understand the Internet?
oh my goodness, how did you not just buy *everything*? or maybe you did…in which case you done good girl. gorgeous photos Brittany!
LOL,it was definitely difficult, but I had to make sure it was small so I could fit it in my suitcase. I bought three old rusty keys and one wood block used for stamping designs on furniture before they carve it out.
I get to go every year for work to London and always stay over. Your photos are great and capture the essense of the market and really brought me back. My favorite is the guy and his Dad with printers blocks. Spitalfields Market has a guy who also has some, much cheaper. Thanks for sharing.
Peggy, thanks for your comment. Oh I was in love with the printing blocks! If I do go back I’m going to follow your suggestion!
PHG… wonderful trip you took! Jealous. And that chair… OMG.
Now what did you bring back?
Cherie, thanks for the comment! You just can’t find that much cool old stuff here in the US can you? I brought back a few rusty keys and a floral printing block.
Those pics were super fun to look through. You must have had so much fun.
P.S. Pfft on comment #1. You shared so much that hits us DIY’ers right in the heart! Loved your post!
Thanks Linda, I thought other DIYers would enjoy the inspiration in these photos. Glad you enjoyed them ;-).
Ohhhhh HELLO heaven on Earth!!!!
I know, right?!!!
Fabulous pictures! Thank you so much for sharing…I will probably never make it to England, so I’m looking forward to all the pictures from your trip.
Carolyn, thanks for taking the time to comment. I’m glad I could give you a taste of England. I’ll have more to share in the coming weeks.
Brilliant! gorgeous! Fantastic!!! Thanks for sharing!! So much inspiration in those pics!
Thanks Gina! Totally inspiring for home décor. I wish I had an unlimited budget. LOL.
How nice for you, but what does this have to do with a DIY blog?
Diane, thanks for your comment. If you look back at my older posts occasionally I stray from tutorials and take you on a journey to a destination I’ve been to.
Thanks for the pics. If people like you never posted
pictures, people like me would never see the world. Thanks so much
How nice for Brittany to share with us! They are amazing photos and quite inspirational!
It’s a DIY vacation! I’m betting an agent didn’t book it for her. 🙂 Thanks for sharing Brittany! I enjoyed it. Been years since I’ve been over there.