Sluttery Travels: Castle Cottage, Sussex

This is the second amazing hotel I've featured from Petworth, are there any more little gems down there? Is it just a little village of unique little hotels just waiting for the Domestic Sluts to visit? Alright, alright, I get the hint. Castle Cottage B&B might just convince me to pay a visit for a few days.


Because I really really want to stay in a treehouse.

The treehouse room is just that, one double room, a perfect little haven of your own, to hide in the trees and have a perfectly peaceful weekend. Doesn't that sound fantastic? It's built in a huge chestnut tree, with swings for playing in the branches, and there's even an en suite. Because all of the best trees have en suites, obviously.


The cottage is in the grounds of the Gothic Coates Castle, so you've got a stunning area for weekend exploring. Mmmm, spooky castles for ghost story telling.


There's also a barn room, and a cottage to stay in, so even if you're not a fan of living in trees like happy little squirrels, you can enjoy this beautifully decorated B&B. It's cheap too, the treehouse room is £140 for two people most nights. Weirdly, they don't accept credit cards. But, that's a small inconvenience for living in a tree for the weekend.

Afternoon tea: TLSee at Temple Place

Mini sandwiches, scones and blah blah blah. Yes afternoon tea is yummy. But it's not very often someone does something different with it. Despite all of those lovely little tiers of treats, everything is very same old same old at the moment. But the TLSee afternoon tea at Temple Place (part of The Howard hotel) looks rather special.

There's all the usual stuff, the mini sandwiches (often my favourite bit), yummy clotted cream and even the odd macaron. But there's also a rather interesting layer of TLSee chocolates and shortbreads as well. All 3D and in the shape of London landmarks. How cute! I thought they were Biscuiteers biccies at first, but they're all made specially for Temple Place. I want some.

There's only 10 different teas to choose from, but as an English Breakfast girl, I can live with that. You can either buy the TLSee tea for £32, or you can go for the traditional tea at £25 an add a couple of biscuits and chocolates on. Even a glass of bubbly too. I like afternoon tea that lets you choose what you want. That much more fun than being traditional. I'll be popping here with a couple of the Domestic Sluts very soon.

You can find Temple Place and The Howard Hotel just off Victoria Embankment. You can come and share our chocolates if you like.

Tart at 40 Winks

We're pretty enamoured with 40 Winks hotel, probably one of the most beautiful buildings we've ever wandered about in. So when we were invited for a "Slut to Tart experience" held there, how could we say no?

Tart at 40 Winks is basically playtime for grown women (with added gin and lipstick). Hosted by David Carter (the owner of 40 Winks), Naomi Thompson from Vintage Secret and 40s fashion expert Fleur de Guerre, it's a fusion of all things fabulous. There's lots of lovely things to eat, drink, try on and do - you couldn't ask for a better way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

So, what exactly happens at Tart? Once you step through the doors of 40 Winks (and stop gawping at the incredible interiors) you'll have to take off your shoes and put on the slippers provided. No, they might not match your floral print tea dress but it stops the lovely carpets from getting mucky.

Next we go down to the kitchen, where sweet treats are provided by Vintage Patisserie. Thirsty? There's tea of course, and pitchers of gin punch which looked delicious. Having had one too many lemonades (*ahem*) the night before, I stuck to the elderflower cordial. I can also confirm that the salmon sandwiches are a fantastic snack for hungover tummies.

Next up: makeovers! Just like when you're 12 at a sleepover, except it's the lovely (and skilled) ladies from Benefit Cosmetics doing your face and not your best friend. Lipstick & Curls are also on hand to transform hair into styles worthy of any '50s movie star.

A whole rail of dresses and suitcase full of gloves are provided courtesy of Vintage Secret, just in case you fancy a change of outfit during the day. Sounds odd, but trust me - you'll want a new dress to match your hair and face.

At this point you'll be slightly tipsy and looking fabulous. In other words, the perfect mood for trying on expensive sparkles and pretty hats. Tart plays host to a number of up and coming fashion and jewellery boutiques like Ugly Lovely, who brought a selection of fascinators and felt hats for us to play with. I also oohed and aahed over reworked vintage jewellery from Seraglia:

It's not every day you get to pose with proper jewels. I tried on the big sparkly blue topaz modelled below. And I may have twirled my skirt too.

But Tart is more than just trying on gorgeous trinkets, fun as it is. We were given cocktail-making master-classes, whilst Fleur de Guerre told us exactly how to perfect the '40s fashion look using the conveniences of modern technology. See? Tart is practically an educational experience. And if all that isn't enough to keep you occupied, there's a fortune teller and masseuse on hand too.

I love that you leave Tart feeling (and looking) a million times better than when you entered. Despite the £80 per head cost, Tart events always sell out. So if you're lucky enough to get a ticket, dig out your prettiest dress and look forward to spending an entire afternoon being unashamedly girly.

The next Tart at 40 Winks is on 17th April. Email [email protected] for bookings and make sure you get on their mailing list for upcoming events.

The 40 Winks Hotel

If you haven't seen any pictures of 40 Winks, you may find it hard to understand why people are waxing lyrical about a two-bedroom boutique hotel in East London. But "the most beautiful small hotel in the world" (according to German Vogue) is breath-taking, and anyone with the faintest appreciation for interiors will fall in love with it. Sian and I were lucky enough to take a peek around the hotel and chat to owner and interior designer David Carter.

40 Winks is David's home, and was already in use as a unique location for fashion and celebrity shoots. But when he started getting requests from people wanting to stay overnight (and his interior design work took a hit thanks to the recession) he opened up his house as a hotel. Just under a year later, 40 Winks is receiving international guests and being booked up five months in advance. Impressive, especially when you consider that's almost entirely through word of mouth.

But the most surprising thing about 40 Winks is it's lack of exclusivity. Though most of the guests are in the creative and design industries, anyone is welcome to stay. And with rates starting from just £90 per night, they could afford to - though David could easily charge twice as much. "There's a pay cheque at the end of it, but I don't do it for the financial reward", David told us over cups of Earl Grey. "All these people keep the house alive".

And that's certainly true. Magical-looking and surreal as 40 Winks is, it still feels warm, cosy and lived-in. There's a small bar in the lounge, but no bartender - guests just make their own drinks and are trusted to pay for them honestly. There's no room service, but guests are welcome to make full use of the kitchen.

Staying at 40 Winks, I'd imagine it would feel like being the guest in someone's very large home - it just doesn't have the generic, and almost clinical, atmosphere that you get in most hotels. You wouldn't find this little guy in the Hilton:

I don't think I've gasped, oohed and aahed as much in any other building. There are so many highlights, but I fell in love with the dark and sexy bathroom:

And the attention to detail is just perfect, as is the balance between slightly shabby and designer luxury. Fornasetti porcelain and secondhand bits and bobs (yes, that is the technical term) are all part of the decor:


With quirky charm by the bucket-load, 40 Winks is the setting to some pretty amazing events - perfect if you want to visit the hotel but can't get your hands on a room. We especially like the look of Tart at 40 Winks, a vintage afternoon tea with a difference. And the Bedtime Story Nights are the only valid excuse you'll have to wear glamourous pyjamas and curl up with a teddy bear in public. These events book up hours after being announced, so get yourself on the mailing list if you're interested.

Minutes after leaving, I was already plotting my escape back to 40 Winks. So much prettiness, charm and magic in one small building.

For more information on events email [email protected] and for reservation enquiries (good luck!) email [email protected]. You can see more photos here.

Hotel Style: Wall Mounted Soap

I've only ever seen these wall mounted soaps in hotels, but not long ago we were asked if we could find some for their bathroom. This nifty soap from La Maison Bleue attaches to the wall so you don't get any gungy soap marks all over your sink. It's £31.50 and you can buy refills in sets of two for £12. It's about as close as my bathroom will get to looking like a swanky hotel.

Cocktails and Cupcakes at The Mayfair Hotel

Earlier this week, Alex and I got invited to try the new Cocktails and Cupcakes menu at the Mayfair Hotel. Cupcakes! And cocktails! At the same time! Yes please!

After a bit of a mix up (we found ourselves in the restaurant rather than the bar) we sat down and we were actually treated to some of the best bar service I've had in a longtime. And then our cakes arrived. And my goodness they looked pretty.


They were actually some of the prettiest cupcakes we've ever had. The chocolate cake had little jewels on it! (It was the first time we've ever had to undress a cake before eating it) and the vanilla cake had silver leaf on it, which was very special indeed. That's fancier than edible glitter.

As we wanted to try all of the cakes, we actually got more than we were meant to (hurrah!) The menu offers a cocktail and two cupcakes for £19.50. Worth it? We're not so sure.


Unfortunately, Alex and I weren't that impressed with the cakes. That's a picture of one of the cakes that we just couldn't eat. The topping was a horrible custard thing with a texture we couldn't fathom. One bite each and we were done. The others were better, but really not that great. Alex ate all of the raspberry cupcakes (I'll allergic) and whilst they were the best of the bunch, the icing wasn't great. And that was the problem with all of the cakes actually. Why did the vanilla cupcakes have cream on them instead of frosting? It didn't makes sense. Everything looked very pretty, but we weren't excited with any of them.


But then there was the cocktails. And these were so much better than the cupcakes. In the name of research, I tried the peppermint tea martini, something I wouldn't usually order. Instead of it tasting like tea, it was much stronger. If you don't like mint I'd stear clear. Alex had the espresso caramel martini and it was better, but the coffee flavour was very strong. Tasty though.


The best cocktail? The peach one. Which had no booze in it. Shame. If there was some vodka in it would have been fabulous. But it just missed the mark for us. Maybe because we're drunken lushes. I think that the whole menu needs tweaking. More cocktail choices would be brilliant, and whilst the cupcakes are all made in house, the frosting needs improving hugely (cream just doesn't cut it). Everything looks great, but first impressions soon go out of the window if something doesn't taste good. Although the more silver leaf on cakes the better.


I like The Mayfair Hotel. The service is fantastic (and so are the little dresses the bar staff wear) and it's a friendly place. It's also the official hotel for London Fashion Week and it's the perfect place for that. We also celeb spotted Lamar and I was tempted to pap him with my camera but managed to refrain. Just. Alex and I wouldn't go back for the Cocktails and Cupcakes menu. But we might pop back over to the restaurant and try the traditional afternoon tea.