Good morning! I thought I’d share a few behind the scenes shots from my weekend photo shoot at the Four Seasons. The team at the Four Seasons loved our Styled in Ireland / Afternoon Tea feature and they asked us (Julie and I) back to help feature a few more spots around the space. We got to play around in the spa, the lobby, the dining room and their Ice Bar. Michael even joined me for a few shots!

Is it weird that I have a favorite bathroom at the Four Seasons? This one has mirrors for days and is quite possibly bigger than my whole house. Brenda Wall worked absolute magic with my hair and makeup – that updo was beyond amazing!

Clearly we had to think really hard about what to order for lunch. Everything looked so yummy! We ended up with quiche and the yummiest cheese board full of Sheridan’s cheeses.

This is the face I make when I’m zoning out for a minute between shots. It’s not that attractive, but it recharges me well!

And then I found possibly the most flattering mirror on the planet in the elevator and had to capture it with a blurry dark photo because when I got to the lobby and had to get off the elevator, I had to not trip over those huge heels all the way across the lobby. This photo was just to document the pre-teetering-through-fancy-lobby-in-bright-dress moment.

I’ll be sharing more of the real photographs and process in the coming weeks!

The Rolling Donut shop that will be opening on Capel Street/Camden Street. It’s apparently an extension of the little donut hut on O’Connell Street that looks a little iffy but everyone says is amazing. Count me in.

These guys driving up and down the streets of Dublin. What do we think they were doing? Ghost busters?

This car rolled through Temple Bar while I was giving a tour last week. Can you catch the little man catching a ride?

I found the street art mecca just off Francis Street. It needs a whole post but here’s a preview.

The skin exhibit in the Royal Hibernian Academy was quite icky. This was the only piece I was willing to take a photo of. The rest were just too vivid.

And that is all I’ve got for you on this Thursday, friends. Happy almost weekend!

{Artwork for the hotel was commissioned from Irish artists. Those blocks on the

canadian viagra

left were done by artist David Quinn.}

Last week, I stopped by the Morrison Hotel on Ormond Quay (hurrah North side!) for a few drinks and a little tour of the hotel’s recent renovation. It’s so fun to see the inside of Dublin hotels since we rarely stay in them. But I get a lot of emails asking for recommendations, so I like to know what the options are

{Above photos by Julie Matkin}

You might not notice the Morrison Hotel from the outside – it’s very understated. In fact, you might not even realize it’s a hotel! But the newly renovated inside is chic and bright, and feels very cosmopolitan. We were there on early on a Wednesday evening and the place was buzzing with a set of very cool customers.

We got a little tour of some of the rooms. The hotel has a music theme, so the rooms each reflect that – artwork that looks like sound clouds, white lantern lamps with bass clef cut-outs (above left), and even lyrics from Irish artists on the wall in each room. The theme was subtle but kind of lovely once you knew to look for it!

{Me, Alex, Rincy and Julie. Photo by me, obviously, and edited by Rincy!}

We also got a peek into their art gallery, which they use for functions (including weddings!). There was a huge mirror on the wall. Apparently it was the only thing that stayed during the original renovation of the space. I wouldn’t have wanted to move it either! And then we had cocktails. They were delicious and pretty. Each week a member of the bar staff gets to come up with a new cocktail of the week – with a little friendly voting on Facebook to keep the bartenders on their toes!

If you make it to the Morrison, you have to order their deep fried olives. I’m not usually a fan of deep fried things, but they’re delicious green olives stuffed with cheese and lightly fried. But if you’re not an olive person (Michael, I’m looking at you), try the smoked salmon on house baked treacle bread – made with the chef’s granny’s recipe!

Morrison Hotel, Ormond Quay, Dublin 1

A few weeks ago, I was featured in the Design*Sponge newsletter ahead of St. Patrick’s Day (and on the heels of the new Design*Sponge Dublin City Guide). I got to share some of my favorite Irish artists, what my perfect day in Dublin would include, and the best spots to people watch in the city. I thought it would be fun to share a few more details with all of you. People watching is so much fun in a city – and Dublin certainly has some characters and I especially like looking at what

everyone is wearing!

Bewley’s Cafe (and even Starbuck’s on the second floor of BT2) both have good views of Grafton Street. I like to grab a window seat in the morning when the shops are just opening before the crowds descend.

Kylemore Cafe in Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre gives you a perfect perch to watch the buskers perform. A few months ago, a friend introduced me to this spot – it looks down on the very top of Grafton Street, and we watched a whole performance, including straight jackets and unicycles. Everyone outside looked

chilly, but we were cosy and warm! (I should warn you, though, the coffee is not great. I’d stick with the tea!)

Clement & Pekoe‘s front porch is perfect for watching the city’s creatives and hipster students walk by. It also gets afternoon sunshine if you happen to have a sunny afternoon!

The Milennium Spire is the meeting spot for locals on the north side and it is fantastic people watching. If it’s warm enough (can you tell we’re having a chilly spell here?!), grab a bench and watch people come and go. I like watching teenage couples meet, so perfectly uncomfortable!

Moore Street is the north side’s market street, with lots of fruit and veg stands – my favorite is when the ladies yell out “Two for a Euro” every few minutes – somehow everything is always two for a euro!

Know of any other great Dublin people watching spots? What’s your favorite, Dubliners?

Last week, in the span of about ten minutes, I happened upon both of these great videos about Dublin. The first is about how the Pratt family came to buy the Avoca Mill and build the Avoca brand that’s now iconic in Ireland. The second is about the

Dublin street art scene. The contrast of the two videos makes

me smile – I love that I happened upon one sweet and one edgy video from such talented people while procrastinating and hanging around on Twitter!

See the Avoca video here.

See the street art video here.  (I loved this illustration above – from the video!)