With a selection of brunch and lunch items they even offer "filter" coffee which is virtually unheard of in NZ. When they say filter they mean drip coffee. Most cafes offer espresso based coffee and so on multiple occasions when Paul or Landy ordered coffee the server would ask, "What kind?". Espresso, cappuccino and any of the other varieties that, as someone who drinks coffee very seldom, I cannot keep straight. :)
After brunching we pushed back from the table the group split in two. I took Linda and Ange with me while Timmy took Landy, Paul and Josephine with him. The guys had wanted to revisit some of the motorcycle shops they had seen earlier in the week and so they set off. Before the family arrived I knew that I wanted to take a day or at least an afternoon and do a "design day" with Linda and Ange as they are both accomplished artists and designers (and Ange is also an incredible musician playing multiple string instruments). So we set off to our first stop just down the street from Prefab called Nood: New Objects Of Desire.
They showcase modern homeware and furnishings and we soon found several items we couldn't live without. :) After checking out we decided to walk the few blocks so they could see our apartment. Like the guys previously they were surprised at it's small size but liked the modern look. From there we headed up Cuba street where we stepped into a shop called Minerva. I'd only stopped in a couple other times but they have every kind of art and design book you can imagine from quilting, sewing and calligraphy to fashion design, architecture and traditional NZ artwork. We spent more than an hour paging through the piles of books set out on huge tables, picking out artsy greeting cards and taking in a small exhibit of quilts made by local quilters. Linda found a really interesting pair of earrings that were made from recycled fabric with retro prints. I'm thinking I need to go back for a pair myself. :)
Minds buzzing with ideas we were gathering ourselves up to leave for the next shop. I looked at Ange and said, "Hold onto your hat because the next place we're going is a music shop". Alistair's Music is just a few doors down from the Minerva and soon we were inside taking in the stringed instruments hanging on every surface.
This is the store where Tim bought me my ukulele - admittedly, I need to get to practicing! Anyway, we started checking out of the ukes and that's when Ange saw it. A ukulele painted to look like the green inside of a kiwifruit.
That was about the time that Alistair, the proprietor, started chatting with us. It wasn't long after that he was wrapping up the little uke in it's case for Ange. She and I were both tickled pink at the prospect of her finding a uke here in NZ. :)
After all the excitement we stopped at a nearby dairy and got something to drink. On Cuba Mall we found a park bench and spent some time people watching.
Then we revisited a shop we had stopped at the day we went to High Tea: Abstract Design.
Abstract Design is one of my favorite shops in all of Wellington with some of the most interesting art pieces I've ever seen. We have a couple of them at home and I regularly sport a pair of earrings from there. The three of us spent at least an hour in the shop looking at the pieces covering the shelves and walls with several light fixtures suspended from the ceiling.
In the end Linda ended up buying one of the light fixtures. You might be wondering, "How would you get a light fixture back to the US?". Abstract Design specializes in art pieces that are sold flat and you assemble the pieces into 3D shapes when you get them home. It sounds just like IKEA and it is. Just much cooler. :)
Laden with shopping bags we made our way to the bus top where we caught a bus that took us further into downtown. We disembarked at the railway station and started walking towards the last store on our design journey called ECC. They are a lighting showroom and they carry an Italian lighting brand called Artemide. When I was finishing undergrad at the U of M, Minneapolis, and living with mom she ran an Artemide Lighting showroom in a huge design warehouse called International Market Square. I spent a few hours each week working there. Nothing glamorous, mind you, I filed paperwork and cleaned the showroom once a month but it provided me with a little, desperately needed, cash. :) So as we're walking I'm double checking my Google Map to make sure I don't walk us past it. But you know what, after a few blocks I realized that, indeed, we walked past the place. What?! I was incredulous and felt really bad because we were all getting tired by the point and I had walked us several blocks out of the way. I apologized repeatedly as we back tracked and then I realized what had happened. The place was currently out of business as the building was undergoing major renovations. The facade was draped with scaffolding and I had just barely seen the iconic Artemide Tolomeo lamp silhouette on one dusty window. Sigh. Admittedly, I was disappointed that our day had to end on a low note but they were good sports about it. We bused back into the city and met up with the guys and Josephine. Discussing what to do for dinner we settled on Southern Cross where we sat down to dinner and drinks where everyone shared the adventures of the day. Admittedly, everyone was happy but tired. :)
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