A couple of weeks ago Allyn and I invited his sister Merion and brother-in-law Andrew over for a weekend of London exploring and a Cards Against Humanity championship (I didn’t win so obviously a rematch is on the cards).
We decided to venture over to Spitalfields Market, a treasured London collection of quirky goods and East London traders.
The market is split into two sections. On a Saturday, ‘Old Spits’ is home to a trove of vintage clothes and antiques. Next door is the more modern market where independent retailers sell their own goods (among the cheesy slogan t-shirts).
Walking through the ever-so-tempting independent jewellers and homemade candles, I came across Pureté Nature.
I was immediately attracted to the sign for a 100% shea butter cream, recommended for sensitive and dry skin. Having suffered from eczema in the past, I’ve found that the most natural creams have been the most nourishing and have helped to clear up any outbursts.
If anyone does suffer from eczema or dry skin and would like any recommendations, just drop me a comment below!
The stall trader was immediately friendly and very helpful, as I told him my story about always looking for a new natural moisturiser! He began to tell me all about the power of shea butter, a product I’m very much a fan of. He also showed me more products in the range, including a butter that included coconut oil and cocoa butter. I tried a sample of each, the dense rich texture was so smooth and felt like an intense drench of moisture for my skin. He explained that coconut oil is of course great for the skin, however has a lighter texture and therefore is less of a richer moisturiser.
After discussing the benefits of each ingredient with him, I was swayed to purchase a pot of the shea and cocoa butter, the smell was too tempting!
I’ve now been using the cream on any dry patches that crop up for the last couple of weeks and safe to say within a day or two they disappear, a wonderful result! If you are looking for an all natural, intensely moisturising product I highly recommend Pureté Nature. After reading their website I have discovered that their ingredients all originate from the owners’ home in Ghana, helping local people to earn from the land on which they live. I will definitely be going back for more!
As we continued to wonder, we ventured towards a stall for the four legged kind.
A canvas of doggy neckerchiefs, cushions and more caught our attention! As a foursome of doggy lovers, we couldn’t resist scanning over the amazing homemade products. Merion couldn’t say no to picking out a gorgeous chequered chief for her little pup Rodney… isn’t he a handsome chap?!
I’ll definitely be back to buy future treats for upcoming pup birthdays! The doggy treat bag and cushions were almost too tempting.
We soon ventured into a new part of the market, a pop-up of Italian treats and goodies called SicilyFest. Anyone who knows me will know how much I adore anything Italian… the food, the wine, the architecture… oh and the handbags.
Safe to say I was immediately drawn to a wine stall (where else?!). Recently on my travels I’ve been collected various wines, from a deep red in South Africa to the less traditional ice wine from Toronto. So I was very intrigued to try a Sicilian blend.
As I sipped on a small sample, I listened to the stall trader talk about the vineyard, which grows on the Northern side of Mount Etna, Europe’s highest active volcano. I loved that the grapes grew in such an unusual climate and are all harvested by hand.
I then had a small splash of red, a delicious rich fruity flavour that I could definitely imagine sipping with a dish of tomato pasta. The Etna Rosso, as it is named, was harvested in 2014, aged in wooden barrels for a year before being bottled.
I purchased a bottle at a very reasonable £15 and have assured Allyn that it will stay corked for at least another year!
I loved exploring Spitalfields Market and finding a number of delightful treats to bring home with me. What is your favourite place to find unique treasures in London?