Mouse at the Victoria & Albert Museum.
Posted: Wed Feb 11, 2026 11:16 pm
So Barleymower and I decided to meet for a quiet after work chat in a London pub. My plan was to tack this on to a working day in London. However, the plans of mice and men do not always pan out and days before, I agreed with my client for various reasons that it would be better to do the work on his site, after his holiday. So still wanting to meet up with my friend and having enjoyed my cultured day in London galleries with Satindea viewtopic.php?p=275192#p275192 I thought I would have another free dressing day in London.
I also had a new geometric mesh overlay skirt to try out in London from Roman https://www.roman.co.uk/geometric-mesh- ... t-17071308. With this I went with a blue theme, with blue leotard, tights, shoes and handbag. Mrs Mouse said that there was rain forecast and boots would be better, but due to the length of the skirt and my only blue boots having 7" heels, I stuck with the shoes. I could have changed to black boots, but again I liked the blue and decided that style was going to win over practicality. I did however go with a water proof puffy jacket.
I was not so crazy though, because I knew I was heading for the Victoria and Albert Museum. I have clients that are near the Albert Hall and to get to them I use the South Kensington tube station and this tunnel, that takes you up under Exhibition road. Halfway up the tunnel is a secret underground entrance to the V & A and I have always passed it thinking it would be fun to visit. So you see, once I got on the train at Cockfosters, the rain would not trouble my blue shoes!!
So to the V & A,
I thought a the Mouse style would work well in a "world of creativity" and in my humble opinion it did.
Here in the Furniture section on the fourth floor, there was a multi chair where you were invited to sit and become part of the exhibit.
The collections are vast and the pottery was no exception. The whole place is so elegant and such a resource for ideas.
The most impressive rooms are the cast rooms where plaster casts of many interesting pieces of architecture from around the world are displayed. This dates from a time where people could not travel easily, so the V&A brought the world to London to be viewed.
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O102 ... -damascus/ It is also possible to go inside the base of the column and contemplate the history. The actual V&A museum building is just as impressive as the collections it houses. But the two together are magical and so impressive.
I spent five and a half hours in the museum, but you could spend a lifetime there and still not see everything. However I think the way I think of my day is soaking up history and ambience in such a beautiful place with so many objects of art. If you are in London, it is well worth your time to visit. Cost is £0 to get in, but you can donate and special exhibitions are charged for.
The fashion section of the museum is closed at the moment for redevelopment, opening in 2027. I plan to make a return visit in 2027.
So after my visit I traveled to Paddington where I met Barleymower and we retired to a convivial Spoons for a couple of pints, food and chat.
As I left the pub I was stopped by a guy who jumped up from his table to speak to me. He said he had been watching me all night and he just wanted to tell me how much he loved my style. His two mates at the table then chipped in their agreement. He continued on, how he hopes to be as stylish as me, when he got to my age and that his own father, at 58, had let things go with a large belly. He then told me his name was Oscar and I thanked him and his mates for their compliments. You may be tempted to think they were drunk and having fun at my expense. But I think not, from the interaction I had with them.
So another great day in London. I plan to do more of these days, since my work is slow at the moment and London is full of things I have not been to. So if you fancy tagging along, on a skirting day out in London, let me know and we can explore together.
So the shoes. I had never been in London with shoes with such thin soles and almost no heel. Almost like walking around in bare feet. Also my feet felt very dainty and very light. I get why our female friends sometimes go for their ballet shoes. I thank you all for suggesting various shoes to me and converting a boot lover, into a boot and shoe lover. I am now thinking of adding a black pair to give me more choice with other outfits.
I also had a new geometric mesh overlay skirt to try out in London from Roman https://www.roman.co.uk/geometric-mesh- ... t-17071308. With this I went with a blue theme, with blue leotard, tights, shoes and handbag. Mrs Mouse said that there was rain forecast and boots would be better, but due to the length of the skirt and my only blue boots having 7" heels, I stuck with the shoes. I could have changed to black boots, but again I liked the blue and decided that style was going to win over practicality. I did however go with a water proof puffy jacket.
I was not so crazy though, because I knew I was heading for the Victoria and Albert Museum. I have clients that are near the Albert Hall and to get to them I use the South Kensington tube station and this tunnel, that takes you up under Exhibition road. Halfway up the tunnel is a secret underground entrance to the V & A and I have always passed it thinking it would be fun to visit. So you see, once I got on the train at Cockfosters, the rain would not trouble my blue shoes!!
So to the V & A,
https://www.vam.ac.uk/south-kensingtonWelcome to V&A South Kensington, a world of creativity in the heart of London. From unmissable exhibitions to extraordinary collections, there is something for everyone at the global destination for art, design and performance.
South Kensington, London
I thought a the Mouse style would work well in a "world of creativity" and in my humble opinion it did.
Here in the Furniture section on the fourth floor, there was a multi chair where you were invited to sit and become part of the exhibit.
The collections are vast and the pottery was no exception. The whole place is so elegant and such a resource for ideas.
The most impressive rooms are the cast rooms where plaster casts of many interesting pieces of architecture from around the world are displayed. This dates from a time where people could not travel easily, so the V&A brought the world to London to be viewed.
The Cast Courts are dominated by this massive reproduction of Trajan's Column in two parts. The Roman Emperor Trajan commissioned the original monumental structure to commemorate his conquest of Dacia, now Romania. The column took seven years to complete and has stood in Rome ever since, surviving for nearly 2000 years.
In the early 1860s, Napoleon III ordered a mould to be made of the column. A metal copy, or electrotype, was made in pieces from this mould, and then sets of plaster cast copies were produced from the electrotype. In 1864, the South Kensington Museum (now the V&A) bought one of these sets.
Measuring 35 metres high, the column copy was too tall to be constructed at full height within the Museum building at the time. So in 1873, the Museum built the Architectural Courts to house its growing collection of monumental copies. These are the galleries in which you are standing today. The height of the Courts was determined by Trajan's Column, but even then they could only be built high enough to display the column in two sections, assembled around inner brick chimneys. V&A REPRO.1864-128
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O102 ... -damascus/ It is also possible to go inside the base of the column and contemplate the history. The actual V&A museum building is just as impressive as the collections it houses. But the two together are magical and so impressive.
I spent five and a half hours in the museum, but you could spend a lifetime there and still not see everything. However I think the way I think of my day is soaking up history and ambience in such a beautiful place with so many objects of art. If you are in London, it is well worth your time to visit. Cost is £0 to get in, but you can donate and special exhibitions are charged for.
The fashion section of the museum is closed at the moment for redevelopment, opening in 2027. I plan to make a return visit in 2027.
So after my visit I traveled to Paddington where I met Barleymower and we retired to a convivial Spoons for a couple of pints, food and chat.
As I left the pub I was stopped by a guy who jumped up from his table to speak to me. He said he had been watching me all night and he just wanted to tell me how much he loved my style. His two mates at the table then chipped in their agreement. He continued on, how he hopes to be as stylish as me, when he got to my age and that his own father, at 58, had let things go with a large belly. He then told me his name was Oscar and I thanked him and his mates for their compliments. You may be tempted to think they were drunk and having fun at my expense. But I think not, from the interaction I had with them.
So another great day in London. I plan to do more of these days, since my work is slow at the moment and London is full of things I have not been to. So if you fancy tagging along, on a skirting day out in London, let me know and we can explore together.
So the shoes. I had never been in London with shoes with such thin soles and almost no heel. Almost like walking around in bare feet. Also my feet felt very dainty and very light. I get why our female friends sometimes go for their ballet shoes. I thank you all for suggesting various shoes to me and converting a boot lover, into a boot and shoe lover. I am now thinking of adding a black pair to give me more choice with other outfits.
