Alcoholic Architecture

As we all know, BuzzFeed is full of awesome stuff, useless information and dream locations to drink/eat/holiday. Nearly all of which you will never ever go to.

But last Saturday, on a whim, my sister, her boyfriend (kind of) and myself headed off to a new bar that I had seen in an article (see here).

The bar is called Alcoholic Architecture and BuzzFeed told me you could breath in alcohol instead of drinking it. I was sold.

After a little research, I found out it was in a basement right next to the site of an old Gothic monastery and thus all drinks were themed around monks. And you could drink out of real human skulls. Morbid? Yes. Was I excited? Hell yes.

Due to health reasons, you're only allowed in the bar for 50 minutes and so you have to book your slot. Late on Friday night when we decided to go, we looked online and the only time we could book was 12 - 1. Fine.

We booked it. 

The next day, after a number of sigh-worthy events, we eventually made it to the bar. We were 10 minutes late, which sucked, but the guy on the door was so lovely - and wearing a rather dashing white cape - rushed us right through.

We descended narrow, winding stairs in almost complete darkness. Organ music played.

At the bottom of the stairs is a room kind of like a school changing room with pegs for your belongings. Here, you have to put on a rather flattering plastic poncho to make sure you don't absorb too much alcohol through your skin and eyeballs. (Note: The ponchos aren't flattering. I lied). 

Once in the main bar, we ordered some drinks which were absolutely delicious and incredible strong. Alas, there were no human skulls left because people kept on stealing them - damn people - but it didn't matter. They played pretty damn good music in the main room, too. Old tunes that make you want to dance but unfortunately, there was nobody one the dance floor. They were all too busy breathing in the drinks! Plus, the fact it was midday might have had something to do with it but I can't say for sure.

So we headed over to 'The Cloud' which is the room where you can do the alcohol breathing. There's a window from the main bar where you can see the ghostly silhouettes of those inside The Cloud. It's very strange and made me wish I had more time stand and take photos of the weird sight but there was no time for that. We had drinks to be consumed and gin and tonic to breath.  I did manage to get some photos of my sister inside, though.

Inside The Cloud, the air was completely thick with alcohol vapour I mean, you couldn't see a foot in front of you. The air itself made me cough slightly at first but you soon get used to it. It's a very strange thing to be standing in a cloud box with a whole load of people you don't know and can't really see. There is no music in here, except the dampened thump of the music being played into the main room and some more of the ghoulish monk music being played as we came down the stairs. Later, this was swapped for thunder noises, the lights flashing on and off to recreate lightening. It was strange and I kind of loved it. 

Soon enough the barmaid came in and told us our time was up. We had to leave. Our hair was damp with alcohol and my make up smudged (of course. We were standing in liquid for quite a while But somehow I didn't see this coming). We threw our ponchos in the bin, gathered our bags and were ushered out the door. The guy on the door (the one with the cape, remember?) bid us farewell and a lovely day. 

A lovely day was, in fact, had. We wandered around Borough Market for a long time. If you're ever in the area, Borough Market is not to be missed. It's fabulous. 

I can't say the alcohol had much of an effect on me which is a shame. We stood in the cloud for way over the 15 minutes they advise but I still didn't even have that happy tipsy feeling that comes after a couple of glasses. But the fact everyone was cheery and happy definitely made it a fun place to be. And how often does one go to somewhere like that? Not very bloody often. 

I don't know if I would say you should definitely go to Alcoholic Architecture. The drinks are delicious and there is definitely a good atmosphere. The guys on the door are delightful and the building itself has a really interesting history.

Am I glad I went? 

Yes. Definitely. 

Would I go again? 

Probably not. 

In summary I would say if you're in the area, definitely pop in. It would probably be a great place to pop by when you're on your way out for the evening or really looking for something different to do. But should you go out of your way to go there? 

I don't know....

Alcoholic Architecture closes early 2016. 

M x

 

Shiny, Shiny Hair.

Recently my hair has had enough and well and truly given up the ghost. After having it cut, I couldn't believe how lovely it felt and how soft and healthy. Ooft. It was amazing. At that time I was dying it from my natural blonde to brown so I knew that I would be redying every 6 weeks or so. And then I got bored of brown and wanted to go ginger. So off to Tesco I went and brought me some ginger dye and ... it didn't work. The brown was too dark and the colour just didn't take. Way to waste money, Megan. But the next day my friend and I had the brilliant idea of bleaching it to make it dip dyed! Yay. Smart move. Only the ends of my hair turned, what, the blonde that I now wanted? Nope. The ginger that I had wanted the previous day. But I looked like some kind of ginger/brunette crossbreed which was not attractive. So with the rest of the bleach that we had, we dyed the top half of my hair and, although effectively turned it ginger, managed to kill it. My newly alive hair wasn't so alive anymore. Weep. Sob. 

So I've been using different products in an attempt to revive my hair but alas, to no avail. 

(This is where I get to the point of this blog post. I'm just setting the scene. Megan. Dead hair. Got it? Good) 

Wandering around my local little (and I mean tiny) pharmacy the other day, I was on the hunt for a hair mask or treatment of some kind and came across V05 Hot Oil Give Me Moisture. I had a vague memory of my mum using it in the past and so at £3.50 for four treatments, I brought it.

 Each treatment comes in an individual soft plastic tube with a twist top. Before opening, you just drop it in some warm water for a couple of minutes (or you can drop it in the bath with you or run it under your shower water) and then take the top off and whack it one your hair. The instructions say to only leave it on for one minute because it's strong and can cause damage if used for longer. I'm not too sure about that because companies say all kinds of things to cover their own backs if anything goes wrong, but I left it on for a minute none-the-less and then washed it off. I have to say, my hair didn't feel much different at that time but  you know, you have to give these things a chance. I've read a couple of people saying that the smell is a bit too strong for them but I could barely smell it at all. You then wash your hair with shampoo and conditioner as usual. 

When I blow dried my hair with my usual heat defense, I noticed immediately that it felt softer. It almost feels how it did before I bleached it which, let me tell you, was bloody unexpected. It also look so shiny! Yay! The stray hairs that were sticking up all over the place and really grinding my gears before stayed down and in place which, with my current bob, is an absolute must. Random hair sticking out really doesn't look good but this oil seemed to help tame my hair a little. I'm absolutely thrilled. 

For the price, this is a must have product. It says that you should use it once weekly or more if necessary and seeing as that would only be £3.50 a month, I'll definitely be investing. My hair looks and feels so much healthier and it's surprising how much better you feel about yourself when your hair is in good condition. 

 

I would highly recommend this product to anyone in need of a hair boost and seeing as the pharmacist I got it in was a very small town one, I'm sure that you can pick it up in any Boots, Superdrug or drugstore. 

What're you waiting for?! 

M x 

Bring on the Classy Lipstick...

So I've not been wearing lipsticks long because to be honest, I always found them a bit intimidating. I've always thought that it can look really cheap and trashy when teenyboppers wear lipsticks and I really didn't want to put myself in that bracket, despite being desperate to be the kind of person who is never seen without her lipstick on. Well I'm most certainly not that type of woman (yet! Mission is still well and truly under way) but I am getting more and more lipsticks under my belt. 

The one that I have always really wanted is the perfect red. There is something about bold red lips that I simply adore but when done wrong, it can be the perfect shade of whore. Not a good look. You need to find one that has the exact right tones ("Surely red is red?" asks my younger self. Wrong, child. You know nothing) that compliment your skin tone or you really do look like you've been feeding on blood. 

So anyway. I chanced upon this little beauty when a friend lent it to me on a night out and I absolutely fell in love and brought one of my own the next day. 

Barry M Lip Paint in 121 Pillar Box Red  ~ £4.00

So this is a really bold red that applies really smoothly and has a beautiful matte finish. The packaging is really sleek with a simple black soft touch cover that makes the red of the lipstick pop even more and catches peoples eye even before you've applied it. Its staying power is quite good and I've found that it fades evenly, so no nasty blotchy lippy. Ew. 

Excuse the weird faces in these photos!!

I really love this lipstick and it's perfect for a night out or in the day if I'm feeling particularly daring ;)  I've tried a couple in the past and because I have a really pale skin tone, they've always been pretty overwhelming. I think it may have been because the red has just been too deep. 

For £4, it's an absolute bargain and I'd highly recommend it to my fellow pale skinned gals!

What do you think? And what's your favourite lipstick? Pop of colour or keep it neutral?? Lemme know!

M x