This week I am leaving for London – a trip that I can credit to having this blog (and the good graces of Veronika Miller at Modenus). I thought it would be interesting to pull the curtain back a bit and show you what happens on a trip like this one. Since this is my personal blog, in order to attend, I have to take vacation time from work I get invited on more of these sorts of trips than I can attend but anytime it involves a trip as huge as traveling to London with such obvious benefit to my knowledge base, I’m going to try and make it happen.
I leave for the airport at the end of the business day this coming Wednesday, arriving in London 10:45am local time where there will be a person waiting for me at the airport holding a sing that reads “BlogTour”. I am now officially “working” at this point – learning new things and acquiring new skills that will benefit my clients and my projects. Below is a rough agenda that I will be following for the next 4 days.
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Arrival day
Thursday September 22
Transport to hotel or directly to Victoria & Albert Museum from airport. We expect you to arrive in the city 2-2 ½ hours after flight arrival. Day one is tough so we kept the schedule to a minimum and have some flexibility. V&A is a great starting point as it is the hub for London Design Festival but we know that you may arrive late or be too tired.
2:30pm Afternoon tea at Victoria & Albert Museum with welcome by William Knight, director of the London Design Festival.
6:00pm Opening dinner – sponsored by Modenus and MMPI at Casa Brindisia (Tapas). It’s an early and casual dinner
Day One
Friday September 23
Poggenpohl, Tent London and Origin Craft Fair, Dinner at Conran headquarters, Pecha Kucha at Design Junction
8:ooam Morning walk along Southbank – we ordered perfect weather but in worst case, we can call a cab.
9:00am Breakfast at Poggenpohl’s amazing Waterloo showroom.
11:00am Late morning at Brick Lane, home of some of the best vintage shops in London and visit to TENT London followed by a walk over to Origin Contemporary Craft Fair.
5:00pm Invitation only dinner at Conran headquarters at Terence Conran’s Penthouse
8:00pm Pecha Kucha hosted by Design Junction.
Day Two
Saturday September 24
100% Design visit with color trends seminar and guided trends tour by Mix Magazine, Podium discussion hosted by mydeco.com
10:30am – 1:45pm Seminar and curated tour of 100% Design by Mix Magazine with focus on color trends for 2012 and beyond.
3:00pm Podium discussion at Design Junction’s Victoria House in Bloomsbury – Topic: “Across the pond – design trends in US and UK”, hosted by mydeco.com.
5:30pm Evening cocktails and tour of Designer’s Block in Clerkenwell. The rest of evening will be free for our bloggers to explore London.
Day Three
Sunday September 25
A morning to explore and an afternoon at Design Centre Chelsea Harbour with great design, tea and a seminar and book signing with Holly Becker from Decor8 Blog
Morning free to tour London, visit local places of interest such as St Paul’s Cathedral, the Tate Modern, or to see more of London Design Festival’s smaller but interesting exhibits.
1:30pm Afternoon at Design Centre Chelsea Harbour to see some of the design world’s greatest showrooms, including Samuel Heath and Victoria + Albert Baths.
2:30pm Seminar and book signing by Holly Becker from Decor8 Blog.
3:30pm Afternoon tea hosted by Design Centre Chelsea Harbour with welcome by Becky Metcalf.
4:30pm Holly Becker on ‘Blogging it Your Way’ followed by Book signing.
6:00pm Invitation only dinner sponsored by Samuel Heath, Victoria + Albert Baths and Achica Living.
Day Four
Monday September 26
A very exciting day at Decorex followed by Goodbye dinner at Wright Brothers Soho Oyster house
12:00pm Oh, what a day we have in store for you at Decorex, Royal Hospital, Chelsea. Great design and so much more. We won’t tell you yet, but let’s just say have your camera ready.
4:00pm Invitation only Tweet Up at Decorex’ restaurant with UK and US Bloggers.
7:00pm A fabulous dinner at Wright Brothers Soho Oyster house with champagne, oysters and seafood hosted by Modenus and mydeco.com.
Day Five
Tuesday September 27
Departure Day
Transport to Airport according to individual schedules.
Sponsors
Blogtour has only been possible thanks to the contributions of a number of sponsors.
Follow on Twitter@designlondon
Follow on Twitter @ACHICA_Tweeta
Follow on Twitter @blancoamerica
Follow on Twitter @Decorex2011
Follow on Twitter @_designjunction
Follow on Twitter @DuVerreHardware
Follow on Twitter @MixPublications
Follow on Twitter @troynyc
Follow on Twitter @modenus
Follow on Twitter @mydeco
Follow on Twitter @Poggenpohl_UK
Follow on Twitter @Samuel_Heath
Society of British Interior Designers
Follow on Twitter @TheSBID
Follow on Twitter @SpiritOfSports
Follow on Twitter @tent_london
Follow on Twitter @L_D_F
Follow on Twitter @jonathanvanda
Follow on Twitter @wallunica
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Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a “sponsored post.” The companies who sponsored it compensated me something of value to write it. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I may use or will use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”