Englandlifestylephoto diary
The House of MinaLima, a real-life Diagon Alley store in London.
14.6.16
A new and most beautiful exhibition of original Harry Potter artwork and paraphernalia.
What is greater than a weekend indulgence of good food and an enchanting stroll through a new Harry Potter exhibition? Let me tell you in one short but meaningful word: nothing.
After eating all the food at Seoul Bakery – I’ll save this for another day! – Cherie and I took a stroll through the ever-crowded streets of Soho through to Greek Street where the House of MinaLima resides. Miraphora Mina and Eduardo Lima are the wizards behind the design work of many Harry Potter props, from the Hogwarts Express tickets to Harry’s acceptance letter, Pygmy Puff advertisements to the posters hung up in baby Harry’s bedroom. Housed in fittingly pink and magical building with a striking store front, narrow staircases and wonky walls that wouldn’t look a hair out of place in Diagon Alley, we tiptoed through the doors and were met with walls upon walls of bright, demure, foiled and unique Harry Potter artwork.
These pre-doodled exercise book notebooks come in a set of three, one for each of the trio. I was besotted by those pages and the satisfying paperweight. Pack of 3, £49.50.
Floor 1 is home to a gallery of prints inspired by collective nouns.
I’m obsessed with collective nouns – it was one of my weekly research topics! – so I spent a long ol’ time checking out each print.
On Floor 2, you’ll find some prints that aren’t so widely known and seen. It’s pretty darn magical to see the finer details up close; every prop makes such a huge difference to the end result.
Notable highlights include Quidditch World Cup paraphernalia and the artwork for the products from Weasleys’ Wizarding Wheezes.
There’s also a glass case full of original props on loan from Warner Bros. Those memory vials though! Pass me my Pensieve.
Floor 3 is home to two rooms: the Library and the Print Room.
The Library features premium prints of the library books (duh), textbooks and other literature-inspired props from the films.
Just look at the set-ups!
The History of Magic: Second Edition has truly stolen my heart.
Over in the Print Room are a selection of oh so detailed Daily Prophet covers and fun advertisement listings. I’d really recommend hovering here and reading them, heh! You’ll never be able to pause the film at the perfect time to read an article!
A huge range of prints are available to buy in both standard and premium variations, with limited runs for each piece making them almost completely unique and oh so rare. I’m currently weighing up my options before heading back to add a piece to my collection!
The House of MinaLima runs until Saturday 4th February 2017 and is open daily. If you’re going to see The Cursed Child, it’s literally just around the corner from the theatre!
House of MinaLima, 26 Greek Street, Soho, W1D 5DE.
