These are our favourite things in the UAE right now…

Enjoying the sights and sounds of wedding bells in… Tuscany

This week I had the extraordinary privilege of attending the wedding of Alice (our Group Editor) and Josh (our de-facto roving reporter). In typically flamboyant, vino-centric style – they decided to tie the knot on an absolutely breathtaking wine estate in Tuscany. It was a magical ceremony, officiated by another ex What’s On legend (this brand is for life, not just for deadline day) – with the unreal backdrop of Tuscany’s chocolate box hills. But what made it truly special, as always, was the collection of people that came together to celebrate the beautiful couple. If you can judge a person by the company they keep, this was a five-star line-up, and easy entry to the top five in the 50 Best Weddings ever.

@visittuscany

Getting myself caffeinated for the return to work with… Encounter Coffee Roasters

Yeah, it was a rough landing – not into Terminal 3, but coming back into work after the red eye arrival from Italy. Fortunately, I came prepared. With a full pot of what I can only assume is significantly beyond the recommended daily limit of caffeine – the 9 to 5, and several hard deadlines flew by. It wasn’t just performance enhancing though, Encounter Coffee Roasters has some of the most aromatic blends I’ve tasted in Dubai. They’ve got a few stores across the city (including MOE and ICD Brookfield Place), but perhaps most excitingly for fans of oversized black Ts (essentially my entire wardrobe) – their recent fit collab with Akin Barbers (25h Hotel) is available to purchase in-store at the salon. Just my cup of tea. Or coffee rather. – Miles Buckeridge, Deputy Editor, What’s On Dubai

@encountercoffeeroasters

Upping my jewellery knowledge with… L’ÉCOLE, School of Jewelry Arts

I have zero knowledge about jewellery….ZERO. It’s not that I don’t care about it as such, it was just never something I wanted to know more about. However, the L’ÉCOLE, School of Jewelry Arts in Dubai Design District opened my eyes to a whole new world. I took the four-hour Entering the Van Cleef & Arpels Universe course, which shone a light on the history of the Maison including a synopsis of the love story between Estelle Arpels and Alfred Van Cleef, before diving into the growth of the business and the various factors that helped it become the luxury jewellery company it is today. It was a lot of information, but there are many interesting facts that I am sure to remember for a lifetime. – Aarti Saundalkar, Online Reporter, What’s On 
@lecolemiddleeast

Learning the skills of pasta making with… Sagra Italian Pastifico

Earlier this month, Shelby and I made our way to Sagra Italian Pastifico to try our hands at a pasta-making workshop. Having never made pasta before, I was excited, albeit, a little nervous about how my pasta would turn out. However, chef Tala Bani-Odeh was (very) patient showing us the ABCs of pasta making, answering our questions and even spending one-on-one time with us if we needed help. At the end of the two-hour masterclass, you can pack up the pasta and cook it at home just the way you like it. It was a fun evening out and one we will be trying out again. – Aarti Saundalkar, Online Reporter, What’s On 

@sagra.dubai

Finding my sofa unofficially at… Pan Home

 

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Welcome back to this week’s episode of “Did I mention I was moving out?” In this week’s episode, I would like to announce that I have found my dream couch, and my more realistic to fit into my apartment couch. The best part about this is that they are not mutually exclusive because the couch is modular. This means I can purchase sections of the couch so that the couch will fit into my tiny little apartment perfectly. I will be gatekeeping which couch I am buying, but picture it as a light beige cloud that is perfect for getting cosy before watching a really good film. – Shelby Gee, Junior Reporter

@panhomeuae

Celebrating my dad with… My dad

This weekend is South African Father’s Day and my parents are coincidentally making their way to Dubai from Saudi today before my dad jets off to the Americas on Sunday, so we’re celebrating an early Father’s Day on Saturday. I don’t often get to spend loads of time with the father, he works hard to provide my family with the life that we have and get to enjoy – so it feels nice to be able to dedicate a day to him to say thank you and spend quality time together. Love you father. (pictured above, father barbecuing marshmallows, annoying my mom by ruining a cute photo, and us)  – Shelby Gee, Junior Reporter

Failing to not fangirl around…Taha Shah

For my fellow Indian folks, you might be aware of the latest chocolate boy of Bollywood – Taha Shah, star of new smash hit TV series Heeramandi. I watched that show, and watched it again for him, and then came the barrage of Instagram reels, which I wasn’t complaining about. Imagine my disbelief when I woke up one Sunday morning and saw an email invite in my inbox for a press meet with him at Masti in The EDITION. There was no way I wasn’t going, so I went and I think I’m a bigger fan now. He’s charismatic, sugary sweet and offers hugs on demand which is so endearing. Safe to say I’ll be thinking about that moment for a while. – Manaal Fatimah, Junior Reporter 

@taahashah

Feeling expensive with…Nayirah

 

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You can never have too much jewellery, and as someone with multiple piercings, I’m always on the lookout for cute designs to mix things up. The market out there is scarce for us silver girls but it seems times are changing slowly. Last week, I secured two stunning pairs of statement silver earrings from demi-fine jewellery brand Nayirah, a woman-owned, woman-led small business full of heart and a passion for pretty things. They deal with all sorts of metals and jewels, and will bring your dream design to life for you. You’ll be getting compliments left, right and centre. – Manaal Fatimah, Junior Reporter 

@nayirahpret