Carry Me Away... To London’s Coolest Hangouts

From new bars to old markets, London has no shortage of great places to visit on a girly weekend away… Here are a few of our faves.

The Little Yellow Door 

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London's charming Notting Hill is home to an eclectic mix of bars, from the historic Portobello Star to the more recently opened The Little Yellow Door. The latter is like a house party where guests can indulge in top-notch food, games, and great drinks and be rest assured they'll leave with a bundle of fun memories. 

Vico

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There's a new restaurant in town from the people behind Bocca di Lupo and Gelupo, offering low-priced Italian dishes, a pay-by-weight rule, plastic stools, and an ordering system so unconventional it has to be explained to first-timers. Confused? Challenge whole-heartedly accepted, especially when there's pizza involved. 

Book Club

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It doesn’t sound like a place for an exciting night out, but behind the sedate name is one of the most consistently creative bars in London. As well as great drinks and food, visit for the packed timetable of events, which includes bands, DJs, lunchtime discos, film dance-a-longs, alternative dating nights, ping-pong tournaments, informative talks, life drawing and classic video game nights. 

We'd love to hear your suggestions too, so why not tweet us @Nica_Handbags?

Nica at LFW SS16

London Fashion Week is one of our favourite events of the year, not only do we love discovering the fresh catwalk trends but we also love seeing who’s been carrying one of our stylish bags to the events. 

Treating to you a sneak peek of the Nica Style Edit to come, the lovely @bonnierakhit opted for a monochrome clutch that she matched to a monochrome ensemble and a cool distressed leather jacket. 

The stylish fashion blogger @polishingcolours also opted for monochrome with the Amanda chain shoulder but created a statement with her striking print shirt dress. 

Next up was one of our favourite fashion bloggers @beth__norton who chose to carry our sleek Belita clutch in oxblood, teaming it perfectly with some statement suede boots. 

We were also really excited to see Look magazine’s Editor @missalihall sharing her LFW essential, her snake mix Belita clutch which she described as ‘perfect for day to night dressing’. 

Feeling inspired by all of the Fashion Week styling? Why not share how you’re styling up your own Nica bags with #CarriedByNica? We always re-share our faves. 

#NicaInspires: Go Behind the Scenes on our First Ever Insta-Walk

We decided to make the most of the summer sunshine and invite a few of our favourite fashion bloggers along to London’s colourful Notting Hill to evoke upon our first ever Insta-Walk. 

Designer Nica Kim was joined by bloggers @rockonholly @beth_norton @tigerlilyblog and @chloeplumstead for a spot of brunch at the trendy Australian inspired FarmGirl Café. 

Situated just off of Portobello road, it’s a hidden gem for anybody wanting to tuck into some healthy yet hearty food, and its quirky décor is right up Nica’s street! 

Notting Hill is one of Nica Kim’s favourite shops in London, so after finishing our delicious brunch and devouring a few coffees for an extra energy boost, she took us on a little tour around her favourite places. 

From gushing over the area’s brightly coloured buildings to taking that compulsory Selfie where the film Notting Hill was shot, it was a fun filled afternoon in the sunshine. 

Each of the bloggers evoked upon the trip with their favourite pieces from our new trendy Style Edit collection, with items such as the monochrome snake mix Tarybackpack and cool Belita clutch. 

We loved discovering some of Nica Kim’s favourite places in Notting Hill but it was definitely thirsty work in the boiling hot sunshine. So, Nica twisted our arm into ending the walk with a drink at one of her favourite Notting Hill watering holes.

In typical Nica style, the traditional pub was filled with quirky twists and even features mini Alice in Wonderland style mini doors separating each of its rooms around the bar. 

You can still follow our day around Notting Hill on #NicaInspires, and shop our new Style Edit collection here. We hope you enjoy our little social tour, and we’d love to hear where your favourite place to spend a Saturday afternoon is? Simply drop us a comment below. 

@ChloePlumstead's is our First #NicaTakeover Star

This week saw the arrival of the first ever #NicaTakeover on our Instagram channel @nicahandbags, courtesy of the lovely blogger @ChloePlumstead who styled up our new season Olivia crossbody in pink croc.

We were treated to some #ootd inspiration as she paired our Olivia crossbody with blue denim and a crisp white oversized shirt. The look definitely nailed this season’s leading Seventies’ trend. How would you style up your own Olivia bag? 

The inspiration didn't stop there either as she also curated a mini mani edit of dreamy pink pastel hues that complement the bag perfectly. Do you ever match your manis to your handbags?

@ChloePlumstead proves just how versatile the Olivia is too as she pops out for a coffee with the stylish crossbody. So, not only can you style it up for a special occasion but it’s also a really practical choice for when a tote is just that tad too much to carry. 

Which was your favourite image from the Insta-Takeover? Drop us a comment below as we’d love to hear your thoughts. Plus, if you enjoyed seeing @ChloePlumstead’s takeover, you’ll be pleased to know that we’ve got plenty more blogger take-overs lined up for you. Watch this space! 

#CarryMeAway... to the Best Festivals

If the early summer festival line up passed you by without so much as a sniff of a live act, don’t despair as we think that the best is yet to come! Here's our round-up of the best high summer festivals. 

Wilderness August 6-9 Cornbury Park Oxfordshire

Not just a music festival, Wilderness is more holistic than just watching bands, with contemporary arts, theatre, food and wellbeing getting in the mix. The music’s definitely not to be missed either with Björk, Ben Howard, Shamir and Róisin Murphy taking centre stage.

Rewind 7-9 August (Cheshire), 21-23 August (Henley-on-Thames) 

If you love bopping to 80s tunes, then Rewind is the festival for you. With the likes of Human League and Belinda Carlisle you’ll be time-warped straight back to the 80's. 

Reading & Leeds Festival 28-30 August Richfield Avenue, Reading / Braham Park, Leeds


Where teenie boppers and hairy bikers stand side by side
to watch Mumford & Sons, Metallica, The Libertines, Royal Blood, All Time Low, Jamie T and Years & Years.

Creamfields 28-30 August Cheshire 

Channelling the spirit of Madchester, The Chemical Brothers, Steve Angello, Avicii, Fatboy Slim and Annie Mac head to Daresbury in Cheshire for this iconic dance music festival. Best of all, Creamfields takes place over the Bank Holiday weekend.

Festival No.6 3-6
September Portmeirion, Wales

Set in the charming Welsh village of Portmeirion, No 6 is one of the UK’s most exciting and unique music and arts festivals featuring top dance acts alongside cutting edge talent including Mark Ronson and Metronomy.  

Bestival 10-13
September Robin Hill, Isle of Wight

Rob Da Bank’s festival is so much fun it has a designated fancy dress theme each year. This time around it’s ‘Summer of Love’, so get prepping your best hippie outfits. Headliners include Chemical Brothers and Duran Duran. 

So, which festival tickles your summer time fancy? Drop us a comment below as we'd love to hear.