WMN on Sunday - West Magazine 18 January

18.01.15

She’s one

of us Carey Mulligan at home in Devon

PLUS: + HOW I LOST 10 STONE + GORGEOUS GILETS

INSIDE: + INVENTIVE

INTERIORS

DON’T MISS: + SISTERS IN

BUSINESS

+ HEALTHY

DOUGHNUTS

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Coastal offer a tailor made service for your individual window needs.

We know that every home requires different styles and different colours so we offer a wide range of windows for you to choose from starting with our highest quality uPVC to our conventional timber frames the choice is yours.

Check out our new range of Solidor Composite doors. Choose from large range of styles and colours and materials using our interactive tool on our website.

Every Coastal product is tailored specifically for every customer and our products are made to measure. We have nine installation teams and three building teams. All of our employees are trained to the highest degree and have regular training to keep them up to date with the industry standards. All of our installers are friendly and more than happy to answer any questions you may have as your installation progresses. They are clean and tidy and will leave your property in exactly the same way they found it. We pride ourselves on our excellent customer service.

“

Mrs Stubbe – Cullompton Just a few lines to let you know how pleased I was with the workmanship of your employee.

He arrived at 8.30am and set to work straight away. So precise, clean and tidy all on his own too. It was all completed by 12.30pm and not a speck of dirt anywhere. I am nearly 88 so can’t do much so you can tell how pleased I was, please pass on my thanks to him.

“

call us free today 0800 085 4301 www.coastal-windows.co.uk Unit 8 Silverhills Units Decoy Industrial Estate Newton Abbot Devon TQ12 5LZ Untitled-1 4

14/01/2015 14:50:08

‘The ski holiday cost £22k a week. A week?

What were they using for skis, gold ingots?’

Gillian Molesworth has an opinion, p9

8 36

THE HOTLIST Great days out this week

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ONE OF US Carey Mulligan, Exeter girl

MY WESTCOUNTRY A food guru spills the beans

[contents[ Inside this week...

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THE WISHLIST The loveliest things to buy this week

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THE HOTLIST

10

WEST IN PICTURES

Great days out across the Westcountry Vikings, proposals and school dinners

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ONE OF US Carey Mulligan, Exeter girl

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‘I LOST TEN STONE’ An Ivybridge woman’s slimming journey

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22

Give your interiors the Wild West look for spring

32

Fashion’s finest winter pastels

YEE-HAH!

SMART INVENTIONS Meet the sisters-in-law who dreamed up a succesful new product - and win some!

22

INTERIORS

28

BEAUTY

Get the Wild West look in north Cornwall Reviews, treats and more

34

COSY STYLE The fashion choices you’ll adore

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MY WESTCOUNTRY Food guru Jo Rees spills the beans

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EATING OUT

41

THE BEER EXPERT

Has the Michelin Guide got it right here?

Drink up with our expert Darren Norbury

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GADGETS Great ways to boost your broadband

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MAN & BOY It’s party time, for the kids at least...

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CAKE OF THE WEEK Healthy(ish) doughnuts

PALE PERFECTION

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36

[

[

MY WESTCOUNTRY Food guru Jo Rees tells all

[ welcome [ We’re loving 2015 so far...

This week’s issue of West is packed with good things - rather like life here in the Westcountry.

If you’re struggling at all your New Year resolutions (and I’ll admit, that daily 20 minute lunchtime walk is wavering somewhat) we’ve got a great interview with Ivybridge solicitor Rebecca Wood (page 12) who has lost an astonishing ten stone through a combination of long walks and a clever diet. She’s gone from being refused as a customer at a riding stables on cruelty grounds, to pounding the pavements at a trim size 12.

Right, where are my trainers?

Another pair of women who have transformed their lives utterly just recently are south Devon sisters-in-law Nicky Rajska and Louise Old-

[

Tweet

of the week @beertoday Talking about traditional brown bitters in my @WMNSunday @WMNWest mag column today. And don’t forget #tryanuary

ridge who have invented a very clever - and ecofriendly - way of wrapping presents that reduces waste. And you don’t need scissors or sticky tape, either! Read how they set up their go-ahead new business on page 16 today and you can even win some of their wares too. Now, if you entered our fabulous Christmas quiz a few week’s back you’ll be wondering a) what the answers were and b) who won all the goodies, including £500 worth of Rayburn cookware from Rangemoors.

Turn to page 44-45 today to find out all this and more. Finally, check out Phil Goodwin’s hilarious back-page column on being a first-time dad today, theme: birthday parties. It made me laugh, a lot.

Check out Phil Goodwin’s column on life as a first-time dad. It made me laugh, a lot

CONTACT: westmag@westernmorningnews.co.uk Tel: 01392 442250 Twitter @wmnwest

[

Becky Sheaves, Editor

CAREY MULLIGAN IMAGES: Ian West/PA Photos

MEET THE TEAM Becky Sheaves, Editor

Sarah Pitt

Kathryn Clarke-McLeod

Catherine Barnes

Phil Goodwin

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If you buy one thing this week...

Bring some sunshine into your life with this Provencal jug, handmade by Festin Coquin, a husband and wife ceramics business near Avignon in Provence, France. Use it as a vessel for your red wine, or fill it with flowers.

Dishwasher safe, it costs ÂŁ42.50 from www.boutiqueprovencale.co.uk.

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Cut a dash with this ship’s decanter, £48.95, www.annabeljames. clo.uk

Ahoy Turn a handle, and these fishing boats sail the waves and haul in their fish, £9.95 each, from www. redlily.co.uk

The wish List West’s top picks for spending your time and money this week

Smart Stylish metal bay tree card holder, £37.50, from Dupere Interior Design in Modbury, www.duperedesign.com

Store we adore Dupere Interiors, Modbury This interior design shop is full of lots of lovely and useful things to add finishing touches to your home, whether that’s a ceramic door knob or glass storage jars for the bathroom. Owner Rebecca Dupere, who runs her own interior design service, also stocks fabrics, flooring, paints, paper, soft furnishings and lighting. There are lots of smaller gift ideas too – we particularly like the useful and beautiful fish recipe notelets.

Visit Dupere Interiors, 3 Broad Street, Modbury PL21 0PS or www.duperedesign.co.uk

BAGSY Dreamboat tote bag, £19.50, www.berryred. co.uk

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Wishlist Cute One lump?

Whose eyes are these on this teapot from Italian decorative arts company Fornasetti, £234, www.amara.com

Perk yourself up with a hot drink in this otter mug by Magpie, £10.50, www.andshine.co.uk

Oven gloves from Newlyn, £15, www.bettyboyns.co.uk

Cavallini & Co vintage travel paper tape, £10.95 for five rolls, from www. hamptonblue.co.uk

doo wa

doo

You can have polka dots on everything, even a DAB radio, £44.99, from Sainsbury’s stores 7

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Events

The hotlist: There’s plenty to do right now here in the Westcountry, from wassailing to art shows

2. Go racing

#1

Exeter, Jan 19 It’s Afternoon Race Day tomorrow at Exeter Race Course on Haldon Hill, with admission from £7.50 and a free bus from Exeter.

First race 1.50pm (tbc), for details and tickets visit www. thejockeyclub.co.uk or call 01392 832599.

3. Cornish hurling St Ives, Feb 9 Watch the mad 1,000-year-old Cornish sport of hurling the silver ball on Porthmeor Beach to mark St Ives Feast this year.

The fun starts with a parade to bless St Ia’s well and the hurling is all morning: the winner takes the ball to the Guildhall by 12 noon.

#4 Treasure Island Great Torrington, January 22 Robert Louis Stevenson’s story of murder, money and mutiny is brought to life in a thrilling new stage adaptation, broadcast live to The Plough Arts Centre from the National Theatre in London.

Suitable for 10 years +, tickets from £12 visit www.theploughartscentre. org.uk or call 01805 622552

#3 4. Seal-y cute Gweek, all Jan/Feb It’s pup season at Cornwall’s Seal Sanctuary and the centre on the Helford River rescues about 60 a year. Pop along to see how sweet they are, tickets from £10 call 01326 221361 or visit www. sealsanctuary.co.uk.

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My life

Gillian Molesworth

moleywest

Having fun Skiiing? No: I’m repainting the house, thank you Wish I was there so wish I had someof the house. The guest room is thing exciting to tell piled high with girly clobber in teeyou about. Imagine: tering stacks of boxes and laundry I could be off to the baskets. On the landing, a wardrobe African veld or, at the nearly blocks access to the upstairs very least, skiing in the Alps. I could rooms, but not quite – you can make tell you how the fresh wind whisked it if you turn sideways and suck past my ears as I hurtled down the your tummy in. The bathroom is slopes, and how the tall slim pines an obstacle course of dresser, bedlooked as if they had been sprinkled side table, and a heap of outgrown with icing sugar. clothes awaiting a spare storage bin I read that Prince Andrew broke (currently all in the guest room). off his skiing holiday to deal with Then of course there’s all the the scandal facing him at home. painting gear: trays, rollers, brushThe place he es, sponges, sugar was staying soap, dust sheets, (claimed the mixing sticks, white article) cost spirit, and a stencil £22,000 a kit I found under a The junk is week. A week! shelf. migrating (from What were they I do love redecousing for skis, rating, though. The room to room) gold ingots? Unbebest part is when like those sliding lievable. the walls are done puzzles with one Mind you, they and you can set evedidn’t say what or rything up just the empty square how many people way you like it. I’ve were included told Sophie to only in that sum – it put back in what she could have been absolutely wants a chalet package inclusive or needs, nothing else. Very Zen. of security guards or some- We all have far too much clobber thing. Not that journalists anyway, I think, as I stare at the Arever present facts to lead mageddon in our hall. the reader to jump to concluI find you can only do one room sions. That never happens. at a time, however frustrated you No, the most exciting thing are with the whole lot. That way, I can offer is the fact that we the junk can migrate from room to are re-painting 11-year-old room, like one of those sliding puzSophie’s room. And this is exzles with one empty square. citing! No more pink, emphatiSomehow, I feel like this is a dically outgrown. Linen white. lemma that Prince Andrew and We promised we’d do it over the his ilk do not have to address very holiday, and on Sunday, Jan 4 often. (not that we left it till the last Although who knows – the Royals minute, perish the thought) must get a lot of state gifts that have the effort began. to get stored, and somewhere accesThis overdue project sible enough that they can be trothas significantly alted out when that head of state next tered the topography visits. Bit like the ugly and unfath-

I

moleywest

My dog Pirate

moleywest

Painting out the pink

omably expensive piece of porcelain sculpture that your aunt and uncle gave you as a wedding present. Only more so.

What would you do with £22 grand to be spent in one week? An extravagant skiing holiday? Or maybe an archivist to help with storage… and some decorators. Hey ho. Pass the roller…

Gillian Molesworth grew up in the USA and moved to north Cornwall when she met her husband. Follow her on Instagram on @moleywest 9

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Spring! Gwen Renfree of Dannett Farm in Quethiock has two new arrivals from her Zwartble ewe

Star: Builder Barry Lewis of Weston Super Mare is the face of Sainsbury’s Love Your Freezer campaign after teaching himself to cook on YouTube

in pictures

Soup’s up: Bampton school school dinner lady Bridget Midgley has written a cookbook

I do: Dominic Smith of Looe asks girlfriend Sara Comber to marry him by carving his proposal in the sand.

She says yes!

Arrgghh: The Vikings are coming to the National Maritime Museum in Falmouth - for a major exhibition in March

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talking points Ancient

Upcycle

ONE OF US Famous faces who live here in the Westcountry

10 ideas for up-cycling a CD from homemadeideas.com

1 Coasters 2 Garden markers

This week:

Carey Mulligan

3 Light switch plate Stone circles and where to find them

1 The Hurlers Bodmin Moor

4 Mosaic mirror 5 Bird scarer 6 Decorative letters

2 Grey Wethers (Dartmoor)

7 Disco ball

3 Merrivale (Dartmoor)

8 Earring holders

4 The Merry Maidens

9 iPhone dock

(near Penzance)

5 Rempstone (Dorset)

10 Studded shirt collar

6 Stanton Drew (Somerset) 7 Fernworthy (Dartmoor) 8 Lanyon Quoit (near St

The happy list

Ives)

9 Nine Maidens (near Wadebridge)

10 Withypool (Exmoor)

Eeek!

10 things to make you smile this week 1 Daffodils shoots spotted 2 Call The Midwife today at 8pm on BBC1: yes yes yes!

3 YouTube tutorials makeup, cooking, crafts: sorted

4 French manicures Where are they hiding? 10 common British spiders

1 Brown recluse 2 Yellow sac 3 Common house 4 Wolf 5 Harvestman 6 Lace web 7 Cardinal 8 Money 9 False widow 10 Zebra

instant everyday chic

5 Wicked! proper West End musical at Theatre Royal Plymouth from Jan 20 - Feb 14

6 Soul Sensation the fab Falmouth band playing Acorn Arts, Penzance on Jan 24

7 Uptown Funk the song (and video): just so good

8 Freedom of speech we’ve got it, and we value it

9 Seville oranges chop chop, it’s marmalade time

10 Burns night hoots!

Carey Mulligan, 29, and her husband, Mumford & Sons frontman Marcus Mumford, bought their farmhouse near Exeter in 2013.

Early years Born in London, Carey winning Great Gatsby, plays Bathshewas raised in Germany between the ba Everdene in a film adaptation of ages of three and eight, before her Thomas Hardy’s classic Westcountry family moved to Surrey. Her husband, novel far From The Madding Crowd, Marcus (27) was also born overseas: due for release in May. Sherborne in in California to British parents who Dorset was among the locations. moved back to the UK when he was Good works: The actress, six months old. whose grandmother has DID YOU KNOW? dementia, is an ambasWhy Devon? sador for the Alzheimer’s Carey never Carey is said to Society. In October she played a have fallen in love joined over 1,700 in lead role in a with the area, Swansea taking part in the school play, after Mumford & charity’s Memory Walk.

Sons spent time in but she sang Devon, recordOld time music: Her husin the choir. ing 2012 album band Marcus once bought Babel at keyboard a harmonium from The player Ben Lovett’s Vintage Trading Company, parents’ barn. on Exeter’s Marsh Barton industrial estate.

Low key: Despite her high profile career, Carey enjoys life out and Did you know? Carey wrote to about in the Westcountry, without Downton Abbey screenwriter Julian being pestered by fans: “I’m very Fellowes for advice, telling him rarely recognised in public. I go about she wanted to act. They met and, pretty happy,” says Carey. impressed by her determination, he recommended her to a casting agent, Big break Carey’s first film role was leading to her breakthrough Pride in 2005 as Kitty Bennet in Pride and and Prejudice audition.

Prejudice. Keira Knightley played older sister Elizabeth.

Fundraisers: She and Marcus rallied celebrity friends for their Winter Working close to home: Carey, 29, Wassail held in London in November, who co-starred as Daisy Buchanan which raised more than £300,000 for with Leonardo Dicaprio in the Oscarcharity War Child.

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Rebecca was a finalist in the national Slimming World awards, hosted

by TV’s Will Mellor

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Interview

[

REBECCA WOOD

How I lost ten stone

[

On a New Year diet? Catherine Barnes meets one Westcountry woman whose weight loss has been nothing short of inspirational

ith a husband who adored her curves and a successful law career, finding out that she had a baby on the way was the icing on the cake for Rebecca Wood.

But a miscarriage scare 12 weeks into her pregnancy prompted her to embark upon a weight loss journey. Along the way, she’s discover a new-found confidence she didn’t realise she’d been lacking - until she lost weight.

In the past two years, Rebecca has lost an incredible ten and a half stone. She is now enjoying a new-found zest for life and outdoor activities with her daughter Charlotte. But for Rebecca, 31, it was undergoing the trauma of nearly losing her baby girl in pregnancy that proved the wake up-call she needed.

She was 22 stone 4lb when she began slimming in January 2013 and speaks frankly about the terrifying experience that led her to diet. “I had heavy blood loss, stayed in overnight in hospital and was told I’d probably had a miscarriage. Everyone said it was due to my weight and I thought, I’ll never do this again.

“It turned out it hadn’t been a miscarriage, but after that weekend, I blamed myself a lot. I could have lost my baby and it was all down to being so very overweight.

“My midwife was quite old school and said there was no other explanation for the scare. I had to have consultant-led care in pregnancy so extra scans and appointments. The midwife couldn’t feel Charlotte properly at the ‘normal’ appointments due to my excess fatty tissue.”

Rebecca, who is now size 10-12 and a healthy 11 stone 6lb for her 5’ 6” frame, was also referred to a dietician and monitored throughout her pregnancy. Finally, she had to have a Caesareansection. “I heard a nurse shouting down the corridor: ‘We’ll need one of the extra big beds!’ I was mortified!” she laughs.

W

A health scare finally prompted Rebecca to diet

“I’d never even told my husband how much I weighed. I didn’t enjoy being pregnant at all.

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Interview I’m very grateful for the care that I received we’d eat a lot of takeaways together, although during my pregnancy and I am a full supporter that’s no excuse. And it didn’t happen overnight of the NHS, but I just sometimes felt a complete - I’d always over-eaten and it was also about porburden. ” tion control for me.”

Up until her health scare, ReWhen Jonathan, 34, was sent becca had never felt the need to on a four-month work placement diet, despite once turning up at overseas, Rebecca decided to use a riding stables and being told: the time to tackle her weight ‘My weight “None of our horses can carry head-on. Then living in Torbay, you” and also being refused for she signed up to Slimming World had spiralled a balloon ride due to her weight. meetings in Babbacombe, along out of control, “I just always tried to laugh it with her mum Susan who aimed partly due to off,” she remembers. for - and lost - two stone.

Happily, Charlotte was born “I never contemplated a gasignorance... we’d in September 2012 weighing tric band. Having had a C-section eat a lot of takea healthy 7lb 12oz. Rebecca with Charlotte, I knew how danvowed: “If I ever got pregnant gerous surgery could be,” says aways ‘ again I’ll never put my family Rebecca. through that again. It was so “I decided to see how much I selfish, really. could lose while Jonathan was “My weight had spiralled out away and I shed three stone. He’s of control, partly due to ignorance. I’m not dea man of few words, so I felt his reaction more fending myself, but I thought I weighed less than than he expressed it - he could put his arms I did. My husband Jonathan had never known around me and hug me much better.” me as anything but big; we married in 2011 and Rebecca also began to focus upon improvI’d known him eight years. He’s very athletic and ing her fitness: “I started by walking with mum

[[

Newly slim and active too: Rebecca and daughter Charlotte are outdoorsy girls

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to the village shops and back, a distance of around four miles,” she explains.

“Gradually I got into running and began with NHS Choice’s ‘Couch to 5k’ training programme, downloaded as an app. I have a backpack for Charlotte and I do a lot of walking with her.’” Although she has since moved to Ivybridge, Rececca continues to attend her

Babbacombe slimming group.

“It sounds like a cliche, but the weight could go back on, I’m sure,” she says. “They keep an eye on me. I’d tried diets before, but a lot of my success has been down to their support.”

In September, Rebecca was among the national finalists in Slimming World’s Woman of the Year 2014 competition. She wore a figure-hugging sleeveless dress for the occasion. Since losing so much weight, she’s able to indulge in a new-found passion for shopping and experience the thrill of picking out a dress from boutiques she’d previously never dared to enter.

“I’d never shopped in normal shops before,” she says. “I even ended up ordering my wedding dress online and wore a size 26/28.

“You think you are happy enough, but when you look back you think, maybe not.

As a solicitor, I even ‘perform’ in court differently now. I think I fell into the trap of being that jolly, confident big person. I had a bit of that swagger, but looking back, I realise just how differently I was treated.”

Best of all, Rebecca’s now expecting her second baby, which is due in June. This time, she is enjoying a happy and healthy pregnancy.

“Things seem so different already,” she says. “I could even opt for a home birth - a big no-no before. In so many ways, I have so many more choices and options now.”

this page: Steve Haywood

Joy: Rebecca’s now pregnant again

Inspired by Rebecca’s success? For more details call Slimming World Babbacombe’s Maria Mason on 07769 297 000 or visit www.slimmingworld.com 15

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Photography: Steve Haywood

Sisters-in-law Nicky Rajska (left) and Louise Oldridge

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People

All

wrapped up

Devon sisters-in-law Nicky and Louise have devised a rather clever way to wrap presents and also be eco-friendly. Here’s the remarkable story of two women and one very special invention...

Âť 17

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By Becky Sheaves

our years ago, at Christmastime, the families of sisters-in-law Louise Oldridge and Nicky Rajska joined forces to celebrate. Between them, the families had five children all under the age of ten.

That day was to prove a major turning point in both Nick and Louise’s lives, although they did not guess so at the time. “All the kids were small but that age group of children tend to get really big presents, in large boxes,” remembers Nicky.

“Neither of us is particularly eco-friendly or green-minded but we sat amid the piles of ripped wrapping paper and thought – this is madness.

“Paper that we had carefully wrapped around our gifts just a short while before was now in scrumpled heaps on the floor. Louise and I were both really struck by this and how wrong it seemed. So we got to wondering if there could be an alternative.”

Much discussion later, the pair came up with a plan to make a re-usable gift wrap out of fabric.

Today, their company - called Wrag Wrap - has just come through its third Christmas of trading, is stocked in Selfridges and gaining a growing, and highly appreciative, following.

“When we were looking into what the alternatives were, we thought about how clothes are reused – we quite naturally wash our clothes and wear them again and again,” explains Nicky,

F

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People

44, who lives in Littlehempston, near Totnes in south Devon. “Both of us wondered if we could possibly achieve that sort of longevity for a gift wrap product.”

They didn’t want the solution to be worthy or unglamorous: the whole point of wrapping a gift is to make it look special and exciting, says Nicky: “But the vast amount of paper that is wasted, especially at Christmas, just seemed to both of us to be such a shame.”

After a good deal of research, including discovering the ancient Japanese tradition of wrapping gifts in cloth, their company, called Wrag Wrap, was born. It now sells online and in shops a set of clever giftwraps that are pretty, inexpensive and yet can be used again and again. There are flat pieces of fabric that do up with an elastic fastener and a button, costing as little as £3.45, and wraps for awkwardly shaped items that are ruched and elasticated so that they can cope with the oddest contours.

There are also pretty bottle wraps with handles, making them easy to carry, costing £3.45.

Nicky emphasises that all the Wrag Wrap products are designed to be attractive and covetable items (which they certainly are) and a world away from the sackcloth-and-ashes side of the eco-product world. “Of course, we could recycle by wrapping presents in newspaper, but that’s not a realistic idea for mainstream consumers.

[

Neither Louise nor I would describe ourselves as environmental crusaders,” she says. “We’re just normal people who do our recycling every week and want to reduce landfill, as most people do.”

The pair had a lot of help in this from a lecturer at Goldsmiths College in London who is an expert in textiles. Called Karen Fletcher, she has worked with Marks & Spencer on their environmental policies.

With her advice, the Wrag Wrap products are made from a fabric with the best possible eco-credentials, recycled polyester. “Our fabric is made from crushed up plastic milk bottles, pop bottles and water bottles,” explains Nicky. “We have been out to the Far East where it is made and checked out their working practices. All our fabric accredited by an American company to ensure it is genuinely recycled.”

Before the pair launched the new company, Louise was working as a busy consultant anaesthetist and Nicky was training as a solicitor.

“Both of us were mixing motherhood of young children with a very demanding career – it wasn’t easy and we were both looking for a way to create a better work-life balance,” says Nicky.

Today, Nicky is mum to Leala, eight and Otto, ten, while Louise has three children, Olly, 13, Molly, 12 and George 10. “We do still work hard, of course, and because it is our own company it tends to spill over into home life. But we are

‘That Christmas, we sat amid piles of ripped wrapping paper and thought - this is madness’

[

Festival Recycling

Nicky and Louise have a quirky sideline in making a special gift wrap from the polyester from abandoned tents left behind at music festivals.

“You would not believe how many tents are left behind after every large festival,” says Nicky. “The past two summers we have helped with the clear-up after the Glastonbury and Latitude festivals and we have collected almost 1,000 abandoned tents.

“This fabric, once it is washed and dyed, makes a great gift wrap. And otherwise it would go into landfill, which would be such a waste.” The product, called Festiwrap, starts from £4.75 (www.wragwrap.com) 19

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People Nicky (left) and Louise enjoy working together

definitely able to spend a lot more time at home and with our families, which is wonderful.”

And the pair of sisters-in-law (who are married to brothers Simon and Nick Oldridge) are still the best of friends, as well as workmates and business partners. “When I think back to how we went into this with no experience of fabrics, textiles or retail, I can’t believe how well it has all turned out,” says Nicky. “I’m so lucky to have Louise as a business partner. I know how hard she works and there is so much at stake – not just our company’s future but family relationships too. It has been lovely to have someone who I really respect and trust to do this with. It’s been a real adventure.”

Indeed, these days Nicky’s husband Nick also works with Wrag Wrap, doing all the marketing, artwork and social media for the company. Simon, Louise’s husband, is an accountant: “He has been very helpful for the business, as he oversees our finances” says Nicky.

The company is still in its early days but is growing strongly and has just had a good Christmas of trading. “We’re asking a lot of our customers, as this product is a gamechanger. We are asking people to alter habits and do things differently, but we try to make it as easy and fun for them as possible,” says Nicky. “In fact one of the unexpected bonuses of our products is that they are so much quicker than using traditional paper – and you don’t have to find sticky tape or scissors either!

“It’s wonderful when, so often, people come up to us and say: this is brilliant, why didn’t anyone think of it before?”

For details visit www.wragwrap.com

Win! Win a set of Wrag Wrap products worth £35 We have a set of six Wrag Wrap products including Stretch Wraps for awkwardshaped presents, altogether worth £35 to give away.

To win, send your name, address and a daytime contact number to wmnwest@westernmorningnews.co.uk Add the words Wrag Wrap in the subject file of the email, to arrive by February 6 2015. Normal terms apply.

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gardens

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fashion

style

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eat out

30

wellbeing 21

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INTERIORS

Yee hah! Sarah Pitt is blown away by a holiday getaway on a Cowboys and Indians theme not far from Watergate Bay on the north Cornwall coast he phrase ‘getting away from it all’ takes on a new meaning in a converted shepherd’s hut close to the north Cornwall coast. Shepherd’s huts were traditionally built as temporary accommodation during the lambing season. This one, though, has been turned into an unusual bolthole for holidays a deux, in a hamlet close to the wide sands of Watergate Bay, rented out through holiday company Unique Home Stays.

T

Named Sundance, the shepherd’s hut decorated on a Cowboys and Indians theme was initially discovered in the corner of a Cornish farmyard by the holiday company’s director Sarah Stanley. Then three years ago she bought it from the owner and had it towed a few miles through the lanes from Withiel near Bodmin to its new home in the hamlet of Trebudannon, nearer to the coast.

Its transformation into the kind of getaway that is the stuff of a Wild West fan’s wildest

dreams has been a collaboration between three people; Sarah, her other half Andy Davy, her partner and, she says, her ‘right-hand man’ in the construction side of the business, and interior designer Jess Clark. The results are stunning, a compact vision of comfort and style.

Sarah, whose natural instinct for interiors is fed by her passion for reclamation yards, sourced the materials for structural elements of the building. These include limed timber from a local sawmills and an elegant vintage sink and

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Interiors

STYLE TIP: Hang lampshades from long

lightcords resembling a cowboy’s lasso on rusty pegs from a reclamation store and power shower (with modern-rustic metro tiles and luxury shower fittings), with which the property is also equipped.

Structurally, Sarah and Andy had a standing start because the former owner had already fitted a kitchen and installed the woodburner.

“We just had to buy two new windows and put in the French doors at the back which lead onto the deck,” she says. “We built the deck on, obviously, and it is more of an American-style veranda to fit in with the style.

“Andy is so good. If you say to him ‘I would really like to do this’ and it is an unusual idea, he won’t say no. He’ll have a think about it and if he can come up with a way of doing something, he will.”

To add to the Wild West feel Sarah has also planted a garden, which when established, will give a feel of blowing prairies around the house.

“I just really love this rustic American style,”

says Sarah.

Inside the hut, there’s very much an Americana vibe, too, from the boards which decorate the walls to the folksy red cushions on the iron bedspread. A white painted vintage chest of drawers with artistic knot-work, and the frames on the walls with sepia-tinted pictures all contribute.

Jess used her ingenuity with the scheme, which she says is all about knowing when to splash the cash and when it is possible to improvise with less expensive materials. The two bedside lights in the bedroom, for instance, involved more expensive metal shades from trendy interiors label Rockett St George with light cords resembling lassos, looped around rusty pegs sourced from a local reclamation yard.

The bright red and white textured and patterned cushions on the bed look expensive

taps. Andy, meanwhile, has built the extension to the shepherd’s hut, which houses the bedroom and bathroom. And Jess has had perhaps the best job of all, tracking down the bits and pieces that create the interior, down to the real vintage arrows, imported from America, which decorate the bedroom wall.

With its woodburning stove and wooden panelling inside, and stable doors leading onto a desk where guests can relax outside in rocking chairs, there is something of the cosy covered wagon or log cabin about Sundance. It is fair to say, though, that those settlers of yesteryear did not have the dishwasher, central heating 23

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Interiors

[[

but in fact are not. “They come from stores like Matalan, The Range, Dunelm Mill, what I ‘As a holiday call the affordable high let, it has to be street,” says Jess. “Little comfortable but bits and bobs I often get from Sainsbury’s, which it can also be a has a good selection of bit more daring homewares.”

Occasionally, she’ll than someone’s spend a bit more – among full time home’ the online retailers she favours are Graham & Green and Cox & Cox. “If I fall in love with something I might persuade the owner to go with it and spend a bit less elsewhere.”

She will sometimes buy vintage furniture, sourced from reclamation yards and online from eBay. “There can sometimes be a slight aroma that comes with an old piece, so you do need to check the inside of things.”

On the other hand, says Sarah, older pieces can be worth trying, because they are often better made. “It would cost a fortune to commission a piece like the chest of drawers we have put in the bedroom because of all the detailing on it.”

It has been freshened up with a creamy paint by the Little Greene paint company.

Jess, who has worked with Sarah on the interiors of many of the Unique Home Stays holiday lets, says she really relishes the freedom it gives her to use her imagination.

“As a holiday let, it has to be comfortable and the rest of it but it can also be a bit daring,” she says. “If this was somebody’s home, we wouldn’t do such a set theme. Here though, we really want people to be inspired by what they see.

We want them to be saying ‘where did they get that from?’ and ‘how did they do that?’ It is meant to be fun.”

Sundance near Newquay is available to rent for short breaks and holidays from www.uniquehomestays.com , 01637 881183

The original shepherd’s hut now has a balcony, a bathroom and fun Wild West vibe

STYLE TIP: Places like Matalan, The

Range and Dunelm Mill all stock a good range of soft furnishings these days 24

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Shopping

GET THE

Molly check double oven glove £18.95, kitchenbuddies.co.uk

LOOK

For the folksy Americana look think checks, brass and quilts, all with a homespun vibe

Antler two tier chandelier £326, www.sweetpeaandwillow.com Sass & Belle set of four measuring heart spoons £14.99, www.mollieandfred.co.uk

Hattie quilt £95, www.aspace.co.uk

Panna Spray recycled glass jar light fitting £29.95, www. onebrowncow

Mary Ann bedstead £495, BHS stores

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14/01/2015 11:58:42

Gardens

ANNE SWITHINBANK

Signs of spring Devon’s Anne Swithinbank, panellist on Radio 4’s Gardeners’ Question Time, is searching out snowdrops in her garden right now s soon as we gardeners settle into the year while they are in growth, yet soils won’t the New Year, our thoughts turn to become waterlogged during summer when the snowdrops. As you walk, ride or oth- bulbs are resting. In gardens short of banks and erwise navigate your locality, you copses, a slightly raised woodland-style bed is will notice rumps both broad and ideal. Dormant bulbs in open borders are somenarrow, male and female, jeans, tweed or cord- times forgotten and liable to be dug up, so tuck clad poised expectantly under trees, or alongside them in around shrubs and towards the outer borders. We are looking for the pointed tips of our edges of hellebore clumps. snowdrop clumps poking above the soil (or even Snowdrops are easiest to establish while in snow), their flower buds mere flashes of white. growth, whether lifted ‘in the green’ (usually Eagerly awaited, they won’t just after flowering) for transreach their full glory until planting or from pots. They February, when flowers nod can take a few years to settle and dangle prettily on their down and begin to flower narrow stalks, opening almost well but within three or four A quick peek horizontally in the sun until years, you should have a good at on-line sales they seem to hover. little clump forming. What Other, lesser known we really want are generous shows rare common names of Galanthus patches or carpets of snowsingle snowdrop nivalis include snow piercer, drops so lift your clump, split bulbs costing dingle dangle and February it down into groups of two or fairmaids and they are such three bulbs and replant these hundreds of a welcome sight in gardens, out to spread the colony. pounds damp woods and hedge banks.

You might remember setYet the snowdrop is a mysteriting original bulbs 10cm/4in ous plant and nobody seems or so down in the soil but they sure whether it counts as a have a habit of tugging themBritish native. In my garden, I selves deeper as they multihave common snowdrops and ply, so you need to be really a double variety called ‘Dionysus’ given to me careful when forking them up, going deeper than many years ago during a visit to a garden called you’d think to get under the roots.

Little Cumbre in Exeter (and open under the NaIncluding our common G.nivalis, there are 20 tional Gardens Scheme on selected dates during species of snowdrops native to Europe and the February).

Middle East. Accounts of cultivar numbers vary In the main, these are undemanding plants but there are at least 700 and possibly as many but it pays to imagine them flourishing under as 2000, all with faintly different markings. This and around deciduous trees and shrubs. Here, makes snowdrops eminently collectable and light and rain can penetrate efficiently early in while most of us are content to admire their gen-

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[[

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This week’s gardening tips Anne’s advice for your garden

eral effect and maybe grow early and late flowering varieties to extend the season, a growing band known as Galanthophiles are more obsessive. Walking in the footsteps of eminent gardeners such as Margery Fish and Primrose Warburg, they attend snowdrop lunches and like all collectors, are drawn to the rare and new. A quick peek at on-line sales of single snowdrop bulbs is a revelation, as they can change hands for hundreds of pounds.

Fortunately for those in possession of a new or expensive cultivar, most good-sized, mature bulbs are easily multiplied by a process known

as chipping. Bulbs are sliced transversely into equal sections, each containing its share of the basal plate. Some propagators will manage to create 16 sections but eight might be more sensible. These are dusted with sulphur, set in a bag of just-moist vermiculite and set to produce roots and small bulbs in a warm place such as an airing cupboard. They are then potted and grown on, though they’ll take a few years to reach flowering size.

Every garden should have some snowdrops and if you’re looking for a fascinating hobby, Galanthomania could be for you.

Question time with Anne

• Send your mower for a service.

Lawns might be far from your mind now but when everybody starts their mowers in spring, the defects show up and they all end up in the repair shops While you wait for the queue to go down, your grass grows unmowably long.

• Sow carrots into a 30cm/12in pot under unheated glass. Thin them down later to one every 5cm/2in and you’ll end up with some good

early pickings.

• Renovate overgrown hedges, especially of yew and privet by cutting them to within 15cm/6in of their main stems. With beech and hornbeam, cut into the main stems themselves.

New growth will appear, to be trimmed regularly. Only mete out this hard pruning to one side a year.

• Sow calabrese, spinach and beetroot into modules under glass.

West reader queries answered by Anne Swithinbank

Q

We’ve recently moved into a garden with little in it. We can’t spare much money for landscaping or plants, so how can we fill it

cheaply?

Covering bare soil is important, before weeds move in. If you have clumps of common things like bergenias (elephant’s ears), you’ll find you can dig and cut chunks away from the main part, to replant in a different spot. Make friends with neighbours whose gardens are well stocked and beg sections of ground-covering plants from them too. Many gardening magazines give away free seeds, so keep a look out. Village fairs and fetes are great places for stalls where donated plants are sold cheaply, especially towards the end of the day. Don’t be afraid to plant everything in, as you can learn what they do and move them about later.

I sowed sweet peas back in the autumn, leaving them in an unheated greenhouse.

They’ve almost done too well. Should I plant them out now?

Q

Although sweet peas are tough and we live in a mild part of the UK, the winter is by no means over yet and severely cold weather could still take its toll. My sweet peas are quite large too, despite being pinched back. I sowed them singly into deep modules and now I’m going to pot them on into 10cm/4in pots, so their roots can expand into some new compost. I’ll harden them off towards the end of February to plant out in March.

I love them so much I’m sowing even more under glass now.

Send your questions to Anne at westmag@westernmorningnews.co.uk

Cut away the older foliage of Lenten hellebores to smarten them up for new leaves and flower buds to emerge. Destroy any spotted leaves (affected by fungal leaf spot). So-called Black Death is a virus causing black streaks on leaves and flowers.

Destroy affected plants. If you suspect infection, don’t use the same secateurs on healthy plants.

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Beauty

Tried

& tested

We present the beauty treats and cheats of the week, all trialled by West magazine’s Catherine Barnes, with help from daughter Tilly, 17.

LOTUS LOVELINESS This fizzing bath bomb infuses the water with jasmine and ylang ylang and a rainbow of different colours! £3.50 from www.lush.co.uk

Pin up perfect Lip service

Look out for Bare Minerals new pin-up girl peachy range, Modern Pop, next month.

Prices range from £16 for a lip glaze, through to £29 for its eyeshadow palette. Find at Boots and www. bareminerals. co.uk.

Flint + Flint’s Lip Hero’s mission is to protect, rehydrate and soothe - a perfect foil for winter weather. £12 at www. flintplusflint.com

OLD SCHOOL This vintage-inspired Vitamin E skin cream is new to the Imperial War Museum Shop and made by John Gosnell & Co, the oldest cosmetic manufacturer in Britain. £10 at www.iwmshop.org.uk 28

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the review This week we try

Nioxin Scalp Renew Dermabrasion Treatment

A January skin detox is practically de rigueur these days, but what about your hair? Kate Whiting goes in search of a squeaky clean scalp... e spend so much of our lives washing our hair, but do we ever think about our scalp, and give that a good scrub too? Most of Nioxin’s range is aimed at people with thinning hair but its Scalp Renew Dermabrasion Treatment is like a facial for your scalp, cleansing it and your hair follicles of all the build-up of shampoo, conditioner and other products you use, which can leave hair looking dull and lifeless.

I had mine applied by a professional hairdresser at my local salon. He carefully lifted sections of my hair and squeezed the contents of the treatment tube onto my scalp before massaging it in. As my hair’s quite dry, he also applied the Nioxin Deep Repair Hair Masque, and smoothed it through to the ends. The dermabrasion treatment tingled a little, but not in an unpleasant way, and the scalp massage was very relaxing, soothing away my headache.

It’s left on for 15 minutes and then washed off, leaving my scalp feeling the freshest it ever has. As soon as it’s dry - and for days afterwards - my hair is so soft, I can’t stop touching it. It feels renewed, thicker and full of life.

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Smooth This serum’s magic! It seals in moisture for soft, de-frizzed locks with sparkly shine.

We love. Pop&Lock by Color Wow, £14 from colorwowhair.com

LOCAL! Cornish brand Organic Trevarno has relaunched its range of caring balms, which harness the natural healing power of plants. £10 (30ml) or £16.50 (60ml) at www. trevarnoskincare. co.uk

[[ ‘It’s like a facial for your scalp, cleansing all the product buildup which can leave hair dull and lifeless’

Nioxin Scalp Renew Dermabrasion Treatment, from £15 (www.nioxin.com)

Want a review? Send your request to westmag@westernmorningnews.co.uk 29

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Wellbeing

Fast fixes Increasing numbers of us are exploring rejuvenating fixes, especially ‘little and often’ treatments - but who to trust?

Harley Street clinic says that increasing numbers of us are considering rejuvenating fixes, with a surge in demand for ‘little and often’ treatments.

CosmeDocs says that non-surgical treatments now account for more than 80% of the patients they see, saying clients are attracted by procedures that have no need for general anaesthetic or time off work, and which also cost significantly less than going under the knife.

Meanwhile, their enquiries for ‘fat jabs’ such as CoolSculpting have increased 79% in the past year, compared to 49% for liposuction, which can take up to three hours of surgery.

CosmeDocs says the biggest increase in interest has been for radiofrequency skin tightening, which patients are seeking as an alternative to a full arm-lift.

Enquiries about non-surgical nose jobs have also increased, this time by 140%. This procedure takes around half an hour and uses fillers injected into the nose. Although the treatment isn’t permanent, patients will pay £332 on average, compared to around £4000 for rhinoplasty (nose surgery).

According to the clinic comparison website, WhatClinic. com, enquiries about so-called ‘thread lifts’ surged by 1165% in

2014. This facial uplifter involves a soluble thread inserted through the skin with a fine needle, to tighten the skin and smooth wrinkles – costing around £570. Platelet-rich plasma facials, also known as ‘the vampire facial’ also saw enquiries shoot up by 223%, says WhatClinic. The treatment was made famous by TV’s Kim Kardashian and involves re-injecting platelets from your own blood into the face, neck or hands.

Injectable fillers to iron out wrinkles were the most popular treatment in terms of number of WhatClinic enquiries in 2014, while mole removal, lip-plumping augmentation, spider vein treatment and tattoo removal were also in the top five most popular treatments.

But WhatClinic’s Emily Ross warns that non-surgical interventions such as laser treatment, fat reduction injections and fillers still all carry serious risks. She says: “We recommend researching your practitioner to ensure they are not only experienced and qualified, but have adequate insurance. Fillers, both temporary and permanent, carry many risks. Make sure you are fully informed before you make your final decision, and don’t be swayed by special offers or time-sensitive pricing. A sensible question to ask is how many patients they have performed a treatment on, and how many they do per week, as practice really does make perfect.”

DODGER

A

THE SOFA

THE KEEP FIT COLUMN WHERE ONE WOMAN TRIES EVERYTHING:

this week: Clubbercise Wanna-be fitness fanatic Sam Taylor, 35, lives in Cardinham near Bodmin and runs the Sofa Dodger website (www.sofadodger.co.uk). This week she tries: Clubbercise Twin sisters Laura and Sarah and sister-in-law Claire from Plymouth founded dance fitness class Clubbercise just over a year ago and it’s now growing nationwide. I was handed glow sticks as I entered the hall at Hele’s School in Plympton to begin my taster session. I hid at the back, alongside the other newbies and looked a bit like I was waving in a landing aircraft, while the people in

front seemed to already know all the moves and were giving it large. When “Rhythm is a Dancer”

by Snap came on, I really busted my moves to that tune. They weren’t actually co-ordinated with the moves everybody else was doing but I couldn’t help myself. It was quite a sight to behold as the glow sticks waved in unison and the lights danced around. Lots of fun.

GET INVOLVED: Try something new or tell the world about your own keep fit class for free at www.sofadodger.co.uk 30

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Enjoy

A WEEKEND IN...

Fowey his historic port at the mouth of the River Fowey is popular with people who love sailing and enthusiasts for the novels of Daphne du Maurier.The author lived nearby at stately home Menabilly, the inspiration for her famous novel Rebecca. While the town is busiest in the summer, with gig-racing, sailing and its annual regatta, it is arguably just as attractive out of season.

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With its pretty steep cobbled streets leading down to the water, Fowey is packed with interesting shops, galleries and eateries. Sit and watch the boats go by beside the town quay, from which the foot ferry departs for Polruan across the estuary throughout the winter.

Stay: The

Old Quay House (www.theoldquayhouse.com, 01726 833302) which overlooks the estuary, is very swish and wins rave reviews for its food. For bed and breakfast, Trevanion Guesthouse in Lostwithiel Street has pretty bedrooms, off-road parking for guests, and welcomes cyclists and walkers (www.trevanionguesthouse.co.uk, 01726 832602). Visit www.fowey.co.uk for a full list of B&Bs and self-catering accommodation.

Shop: Fowey has lots of

gift shops and galleries which, not surprisingly, do a brisk trade in all things related to boats and the sea. Worth a browse is the Fowey River Gallery on Fore Street, which sells oil paintings of the estuary

by Cornish artist John Brenton among work by many others. Brocante, on the opposite side of the street, has stylish ideas for gifts. Bookshop Bookends in South Street specialises in books about Cornwall and Cornish writers, particularly Daphne du Maurier, with an impressive range of second-hand books on the shelves.

Eat (and drink): Sam’s is a Fowey institution (www.samsfowey.co.uk) for tempting platefuls of food hearty enough to satisfy gig-rowers and sailors in a fun bistro-like atmosphere. Also attracting rave reviews for its food, accommodation and welcome is The King of Prussia, the

distinctive pink hostelry which overlooks the town quay.

What to do: While the season may be over for boat trips on the river, the stunning estuary can still be enjoyed on foot. Worth the steep climbs for the fantastic scenery is the Hall Walk, a fourmile circular route involving crossing the river twice, from Fowey to Bodinnick and Polruan to Fowey in a route taking in Pont Pill creek (buy the National Trust guide No 21 online for the full route, ÂŁ1.50 from www.fowey.co.uk). You might even want to pack your wetsuit for an out-of-season swim at small and sandy Readymoney Cove, just around Gribbin Head heading west.

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Fashion

9 shades palette, Superdrug £9.99

Pastels Think pale - but very interesting...

ight, let’s get dressed for midwinter: opaque tights, dark skirt, gloomy coat, black leather shoes. It’s all too easy to get a little, well, gothic in your style choices in the short days of Jan and Feb, isn’t it?

But it doesn’t have to be that way, as these pictures show. Winter pastels are a real trend this year. they’re a great way to add some colour without scaring the horses until the clocks go forward and we can get properly summery in our dress.

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Believe it or not, this cute outfit of cosy baby blue sweater and cream fit -n-flare skirt is from Damart, a company once famed solely for its warm thermal vests. Marks & Spencer, too, are working the pastels trend with this pretty textured skirt and coat.

Shoes and boots can be light and fantastic too, as these pictures show. Finishing touches? Try sugary nail varnishes, frosted shades of jewellery and some candy eyeshadow. Perfect for brightening up those dark winter days.

Coast Necklace £35

Damart Blue sweater £25 perfect fit skirt £35 and white blouse £19

Morgan Taylor Nail varnish in Hocus Pocus, SallyExpress. com £10.99

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Very lace skater dress £59

M&S coat £65, top £25, skirt £39.50, shoes £25

SimplyBe Peach duster coat £65

Topshop Cropped peg leg trousers £40

Very Enamel cuff bangle £12

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Fashion

The edit

Your straight line to cosy style: Boots, jumper and a luxurious gilet, sorted

+

La Redoute £35

+ Next £18

+

Crew clothing £60

fave!

+

Dom Goor Shearling Gilet Suede £736 www.domgoorshop.com

Ravel £120

+

Celtic & Co Toscana gilet £345 www.celticandco.co.uk

Dune ‘Trish’ boots £149

+

L K Bennett Aspen Sheepskin Gilet £650

SimplyBe £89

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14/01/2015 12:03:24

Bake

Kate Shirazi bakes:

Jammy doughnuts I do not own a deep-fat fryer. If I did, I would want to fry absolutely everything, so it really is better if I don’t have one to start with. The thought of having an open pan of boiling fat on the stove terrifies me. I would knock it over, or set the place on fire – and my hair would smell. So that’s not happening. But I do love doughnuts. What to do, what to do?

Bake them, that’s what. These really taste like doughnuts and are almost good for you because they are baked not fried.

Hurrah!

Makes 12

You will need: 200 g/7 oz strong white bread flour 1⁄4 tsp salt 245 g/8 1⁄2 oz caster sugar 25 g/3⁄4 oz/1 1⁄2 tbsp butter 7 g/1⁄4 oz easy blend yeast 5 tbsp milk

1 large free-range egg, beaten 4 tbsp strawberry jam (or jam of your choice) 50 g/1 3⁄4 oz icing sugar

Method: 1.

2.

Put the flour and salt and 45 g/1 1⁄2 oz of the sugar into a big bowl and rub in the butter until it looks like fine breadcrumbs, then stir in the yeast. Heat the milk until it is warm – so you can easily leave your finger in it without shrieking. Mix the milk and the egg into the flour mixture until it forms a dough.

Flour a worktop (I like to have a pile of extra flour to one side, too) and tip the dough onto the worktop. Knead the dough until it stops being sticky (keep flouring your hands and adding a smidgen to the worktop) and keep going until the dough changes from being a bit rough under your fingers to beautifully

smooth and elastic. Believe me, you’ll know when you get there.

3.

4.

Put the dough back in the bowl and cover it with a tea towel. Leave in a warm place for about 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Take the dough out and give it another knead for a couple of minutes, then cut it into 12 equal pieces. Roll each ball out to a circle of about 10 cm/4 in and put a smallish teaspoon of jam right in the middle. Gather up the edges of the circle around the jam and pinch it all together to make a seal. Place the filled doughnut seal-side down on a baking

tray and repeat the process, leaving lots of space between each one. Cover again with the tea towel and leave to prove once more for about 45 minutes.

5.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas mark 4 and bake the doughnuts for about 10 minutes or until beautifully golden. Cool them for a minute or so while you make the glaze. Mix the icing sugar with enough water to make a thin, runny, icing and brush each doughnut with it. Put the caster sugar in a deep dish and roll the wet doughnuts in it. Lovely.

Kate Shirazi runs Cakeadoodledo shop and cafe on Exeter’s Cathedral Green (www.cakedoodledo.co.uk) and bakes cakes of all kinds to order and send by post. Look out for Kate’s beautiful books Baking Magic and Cake Magic (both £11.99, Pavilion Books) 35

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14/01/2015 12:05:48

Jo Rees

Strong Adolfo’s

My Secret Westcountry Jo Rees After working at the BBC for a number of years, Jo and her husband Nick relocated to North Devon and started Salt Media.

Launching the South West’s first ever food magazine, Food, 12 years ago, Jo manages a team of 13 who also publish the Trencherman’s Guide and The South West Independent Coffee Guide. She and Nick also run www.food-mag. co.uk website and create food and hospitality marketing campaigns.

They have two children, Fred, nine, and Bill, seven.

Jo Rees with Michael Caines

My favourite...

Walk: On Saturday mornings my girl friends and I sometimes run from Woolacombe to Putsborough and then back along the beach to Woolacombe. This last bit usually involves a bit of walking! It’s stunning, and on a bright morning always reminds me of the northern beaches of Sydney, where I lived for a while Venue: RAMM in Exeter is lovely and I go to The Queens’s Theatre in Barnstaple a lot. It has some unusual things on - Nick and I went to a jazz night there recently and discovered this stunning young jazz group called the Roller Trio which had won a Mercury Music Prize but were playing to about 40 in the gallery. Nick plays the drums and was mesmerized by the incredible drummer.

Pub: My fave local is The Kings Arms in Georgeham, North Devon. With hearty, home cooked food, good wines, a crackling fire and a friendly vibe, it ticks all the boxes. I also recently tried The Fox at Broughton Gifford near Bath, which won Best Newcomer to our Trencherman’s Guide this year - a new favourite.

Restaurant: It’s difficult to choose a single Barricane Beach

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People Darts Farm butcher place, but if you were to ask me where I’ve had my favourite dinner in the Westcountry, it would be the tasting menu with wine flight at Gidleigh Park. Nick and I could only grin with delight, it was joyful.

Shop: Darts Farm near Topsham for everything really, but especially its amazing butchery counter.

Treat: Since Nick and I lived in Sydney, I’ve loved good coffee, but creating the South West Independent Coffee Guide this year introduced me to speciality coffee and now I go out of my way to hunt it out. Strong Adolfo’s on the Atlantic Highway near Wadebridge is a regular stop off when driving through Cornwall.

Day out: I love a blast of urban cool that comes with a trip to Bristol. I go quite often for work and my fave spots are Small Street Espresso, lunch at Harvey Nicks, a wander around the harbour, and - if the kids are in tow - @Bristol.

Hidden haven: Barricane Beach in North Devon - a tiny shell beach which has a little cafe that’s open in summer. There’s nothing better on a sunny Sunday morning.

Jo Rees and husband Nick run Salt Media, visit www.saltmedia.co.uk for details

Harvey Nichols restaurant, Bristol

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REVIEW

The Old Spot

By Sarah Pitt

armers’ market day in the cathedral city of Wells in Somerset was sharply cold, crisp and sunny, the first such day after a long mild spell. After wandering around the stalls, where my sister Emily was persuaded to buy a whole smelly local cheese, we were about ready for lunch. The Old Spot is on the national foodie radar, as proprietor Ian Bates learned his craft with the acclaimed chef and food writer Simon Hopkinson at the Bibendum restaurant in London. We’ve been a few times to The Old Spot in the past, and it has always been spot on. Emily, who has her finger on the gastronomic pulse, suggested we try another, newer fashionable joint in her neck of the woods instead. I dug my heels in, though, because I was really hankering for a return visit. I wanted to see if it was as good as the last time.

A mid-week lunch – this was a Wednesday – is a good time to sample a posh restaurant, because the menus tend to be brilliant value. Our party of two ladies who lunch were joined by an unofficial third, my three-month-old niece Flora, asleep in her pushchair, on her first outing of this nature.

The maitre d’ turned not a hair when we arrived with our small companion in tow, and told us to take our pick of the tables. We plumped for a table with comfy window seats in one of the bay windows. The restaurant was practically empty, apart from one solitary man enjoying a glass of wine while perusing his emails (“There are worse places to do it,” he remarked when two companions came into join him for lunch).

The interior of the restaurant is extremely elegant, with the feel of a French eatery in the mirrors and wooden tables, although with quirky touches that have more of the bucolic humour of the English eccentric about them. There’s a portly Old Spot Pig perched on the stylish bar top made

F

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4 of the best

PHOTOGRAPHY: STEVE ROBERTS

with a Bib Gourmand

of mosaics, and a cheerful-looking pig, too, on the sign which hangs above the door. The name is apt, for the restaurant makes a point of using local produce, including succulent rare breed pork, which I’ve eaten here before.

We ordered drinks, a glass of white Burgundy for Emily and a Luscombe hot ginger beer (my non-alcoholic drink of choice, with a bit of a kick to it) for myself. These were promptly served with Parisian elan by maitre d’ Thierry who also offered us some excellent homemade bread, which we munched while reading the set menu, which was £18.50 for three courses.

For starters, Emily ordered the gnocchi with beurre noisette (butter that’s slightly caught, a

culinary delicacy, not a mistake) and pine nuts. I opted for the onion soup with rosemary, as I was chilled down to my toes after our turn around the market.

Both of these dishes were first class. Gnocchi can easily be too heavy, but Emily pronounced hers to be light as a feather. My onion soup, meanwhile, warmed me right through. It was a creamy soup, but with more of the finesse of a French onion soup than a hearty English one, although I think it probably contained some potato. Like all the best recipes, it was more than the sum of its parts, which left me wondering how they made it.

We probably should have gone for different main courses to give a fair judge of the menu, but in the end neither of us could resist the roast chicken. It was perfectly roasted with crispy skin, surrounded by an impeccably seasoned cream sauce, and the vegetables adding colour and balance were also expertly cooked and tastily seasoned.

But we did our duty and went for different puddings. My treacle tart looked pretty on the plate and oozed golden syrup. Emily had a frangipane and pear tart, also delicious. I read later that The Old Spot has a Bib Gourmand from the Michelin Guide inspectors. It is well deserved. The Old Spot Restaurant, 12 Sadler

Street, Wells, 01749 689099

How they scored...

Food



Atmosphere



Service



Price

Lunch for two was £48.50

1 Kota, Porthleven

Kota is Maori for shellfish, and its New Zealander chef proprietor Jude Kereama, who is half Maori, quarter Chinese and quarter Malaysian, specialises in seafood with a light Asian twist.

Dish of the day: Roast hake with red chilli and coriander glaze, lemongrass and lime leaf sauce Price: Mains from £13.95-£21 Contact: 01326 562467 www. kotarestaurant.co.uk

2 Jack in the Green, Rockbeare

Matt Mason is the long-standing chef at this popular and friendly dining pub near Exeter. He makes the best use of local delicacies including Lyme Bay crab and pork from Kenniford Farm down the road.

Dish of the day: Roast breast of pheasant and confit leg with a whisky cream sauce Price: Three-course Celebration of Devon lunch £25 Contact: 01404 822240 www. jackinthegreen.uk.com

3 The Black Rock, St Ives

The quality of the food here is a local byword. David Symons is a whizz in the kitchen while his wife Emma runs front of house. Currently closed for winter, reopens at the start of March.

Dish of the day: Local mussels cooked in Cornish cider and plenty of herds Price: Mains from £12.50-£20 Contact: 01736 791911, www. theblackrockstives.co.uk

4 Tolcarne Inn, Newlyn

Ben Tunnicliffe won a Michelin star for his cooking at his former restaurant The Abbey in Penzance.

This pub is just a short walk from the fish market at Newlyn and his menu makes full use of the fish that is landed here.

Dish of the day: Monkfish tail, grilled polenta and violet artichokes Price: Mains from £9.50-£15-50 Contact: 01736 363074 www. tolcarneinn.co.uk

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Ingredient of the Week

Swede

with Tim Maddams t’s hard to think of a veg with a less keeps well too, so it’s a great bargain. When you glamorous image than swede. It’s a consider weight and flavour, it delivers better root vegetable that we tend to use than any other seasonal veg out there, right as an addition to soups, stews and now. other dishes that need a little bulkSo what’s it good for? Well, peeled and roasting out. It never seems to get ed, swede is a great topping for star treatment on menus, even pizza believe it or not, while in my own kitchen. swede soup is a winner every And I think that’s a shame, time - especially when it’s laced It really is because it really is a versatile with roasted garlic. This vegand useful ingredient in its own etable takes a little less time a versatile right, with a flavour all of its to cook than most people think and useful own. Its proper name is actuand will become a little bitter ingredient in its ally Rutatabuga and I suspect when overcooked, as do all the name swede was created by plants in the brassica family to own right, with a food writers in the early days of which it belongs. So keep an eye flavour all of its the qwerty keyboard! on it when you’re cooking!

Swede is brilliantly good for Swede’s also quite tasty raw own you; low GI, high in fibre and and a winter slaw of it comfull of slow release energy. The bined with cabbage, apple and perfect alternative to potatoes, beetroot dressed in a little it can be cooked in much the yoghurt, chilli powder and a same way. One thing is for sure, swede is a sepinch of turmeric makes an excellent sandwich rious bargain as at this time of year. With the filling, or accompaniment to a mid-week supper. growing season well underway and the Christmas rush over, it’s currently abundant, plus it @TimGreenSauce

I

[[

Swede-ish pasta

Get hold of a rutabaga with the tops on and try my favourite swede dish.

First, clean and peel the root and wash and chop the leaves. Slice the stem end of the leaves thinly so they’ll cook quickly, but leave the greener tips a little thicker so they’ll retain a little freshness when cooked.

Use a pan large enough so that when the swede and greens are added, it will only be quarter of the way full.

Now, peel and chop a chilli, two cloves of garlic and half an onion and sweat then in the pan.

Dice the root into cubes of around a centimetre and sweat them off with the garlic, onions and chilli. Season and turn the heat up a little until the chunks colour up a little, then cover with a lid (removing occasionally to stir) cooking for around 15 minutes until the swede is tender. Meanwhile, prepare some pasta and stir it into the cooked swede along with the greens, a little olive oil and cook for just one minute more. Serve with grated cheddar sprinkled on the top.

Tim Maddams is a Devon chef and writer who often appears on the River Cottage TV series 40

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14/01/2015 16:06:47

Drink Guy Newell, Butcombe Brewery

Darren Norbury

talks beer ith beer such big business as well as taking advantage of Butin the UK now, I was ancombe’s excellent relations with superticipating a few changes markets and other beer-selling stores. It in 2015 as firms jostle for is an acquisition rather than a merger, so position on the bars and do it remains to be seen how Butcombe will deals to increase profare under the deal, but duction and efficiency.

I suspect the firm will be Two pieces of news in keeping to its traditional my inbox at the time ales, rather than veering Peace has broken of writing will have imoff into craft territory. out between plications for the WestMeanwhile, peace has country beer map. broken out between DartDartmoor Firstly, Butcombe moor Brewery and St Brewery and St Brewery of Wrington, Austell Brewery over the Austell Brewery in Somerset has been use of the ‘Dartmoor’ beer acquired by Channel name. It think it’s safe to over the use of the Islands-based pubs and say that Dartmoor Brew‘Dartmoor’ beer brewery group Liberaery was never happy that name tion, with both sides St Austell acquired the saying the move is what Dartmoor Best brand in they need. Liberation 1993, when former owner also gets Butcombe’s Carlsberg Tetley closed its wholly-owned cider subsidiary, Long brewery in Plympton. Even though it was Ashton Cider Company. clearly St Austell branded, there were This will make Butcombe a much confused punters, too, who assumed that more important player in the Westcoun- the beer was Devon-brewed still. try pubs and beer scene. It means we’ll The tide started turning when St see Liberation beers in mainland pubs, Austell did a deal with Dartmoor last summer to become sole wholesale distributor of Dartmoor’s popular Jail Ale best bitter, as well as Dartmoor IPA and Legend. This, clearly, was the spark for the agreement which now sees the Dartmoor Best name return to Devon – with a new recipe – and the St Austell Beer Driftwood Spars Hotel and Brewery, named Cornish Best. at Trevaunance Cove, St Agnes, has The question remains that with big revealed the dates of its two annual breweries doing big deals, how will the small brewers survive? I remain conspring beer festivals. Leave March vinced that we can’t sustain an ever-in13-15 and May 1-4 free in your diary. creasing number of breweries… but I’ll I’m sure there will be tours of the new be delighted to be proved wrong.

W

[[

Beer of the week It’s from Wiltshire, but don’t hold that against it. And brewer Tom Gee has a west Cornwall family connection. Hop Kettle’s Dubbel Entendre weighs in at a mighty 8.3% ABV so deserves to be treated with some respect and it was on top form when I tried it. It’s an interpretation of a Belgian dubbel with Trappist yeast in the recipe for authenticity. The more I drank, the more flavours I came across: roasted malt, hints of dark cherry, some Demerara sugar, even almond notes. An exceptional winter warmer.

Make a date

brewery available.

Darren Norbury runs the expert website www.beertoday.co.uk @beertoday

STATS INTERESTING According to industry analyst Mintel, 34 per cent of drinkers would be prepared to pay a premium for ‘craft’ beers even though 36 per cent of drinkers are actually unsure what the term ‘craft’ beer means.

Mintel is estimating that total beer sales will have risen in 2014, after five years of decline.

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14/01/2015 15:50:05

Living

[ Alison Beverstock, left and Gill Hines

PARENTING

Time to grow up

[

Can’t live with them, they can’t live without you: increasing numbers of adult children just won’t leave home. But the author of a new parenting guide tells Lisa Salmon why it’s best to let them go record 3.3 million young adults still live at home with their parents, presenting a whole new raft of challenges for mums and dads who can no longer rely on sanctions like the naughty step to ensure family harmony.

In a bid to help mums and dads tackle this thorny issue, parenting consultant Gill Hines and Alison Baverstock, an associate professor of publishing and mother of four adult children, have written Later! A Guide to Parenting a Young Adult.

“An awful lot of parents moan about their kids, but at the same time they don’t want the kids to leave and so they create a co-dependency,” explains Gill Hines.

“The parents think they have to treat them like children while they’re living there, and the kids think they can’t leave until they can afford a home as good as the one they’ve come from.”

She says parents perpetuate this co-dependency by giving their kids things like lifts and money, and warns: “It’s ridiculous, and it’s not good for either of them. The parent needs to move on as well as the child.”

A recent survey of young adults who still live at home, and their parents, found 84% of the parents still did their children’s laundry ‘It should be for them, and a doting quarter made absolutely even tidied their bedrooms. clear to them And contrary to popular belief, the expense of moving out wasn’t how much it the only reason for young adults costs to run the remaining in the family home. house: they’re The thinkmoney.co.uk research found that one in six young adults not stupid’ still live with their parents simply because it makes their life easier.

Indeed, almost half admitted

A

42

TodaysWorldJan18.indd 42

[[

14/01/2015 16:00:20

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18 January 2015

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Extra they did no food shopping, and the same proportion paid no rent.

“Young people say ‘Why would I move?’

They’ve got everything on a plate, which is great for them, but it isn’t actually how life’s supposed to be,” says Hines.

She points out that too many young adults these days can’t perform basic household tasks like simple cooking, or doing the laundry.

“In your early twenties, it’s time to start living your life independently,” she says. “It really worries me how few young people know how to cope in the real world.”

Parents might choose to make it a house rule that adult children do their own laundry or change their own bedlinen - but if they don’t do it, there’s no point nagging, warns Hines.

Instead, parents need to negotiate with young adults to get things done. “If they don’t keep to their share of the bargain, then don’t keep to your share, which might be buying food, mending things or doing the laundry.

“It needs to be made absolutely clear to them how much it costs to run the house,” she says.

“They’re not stupid - they know they’re getting a good deal by living there.”

By the time they’re 18, they should have an understanding that nothing comes for free. Hines also points out that the ‘non-parent you’ has been in the shade for many years and now that older and less familiar you needs to be nurtured and encouraged in much the same way as your child.

“Things can become very quiet and a little staid when children leave home, and parents sometimes feel truly middle-aged, and miss the energy. A lot of parents want to be needed, but they need to see it’s better for kids to move on with their lives.”

Later! A Guide to Parenting a Young Adult, by Gill Hines and Alison Baverstock, Piatkus £14.99

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Widen the net Plug one part of this into your internet source and a power socket: the wifi signal is sent over your power line to things plugged in other sockets BT Home Hotspot 500 Kit £59.98 shop.bt.com

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43

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14/01/2015 16:00:46

Enjoy

[

It’s answer time!

If you took part in our fabulous Christmas quiz (West, December 14) here are the answers - and the winners!

Books

Brands

Celebs

1.

Belinda Bauer

1.

Jack Wills

1.

Mick Fleetwood (Fleetwood Mac)

2.

Wesley Peterson

2.

Buckfast Tonic Wine

2.

Miranda Hart

3.

The Silver Blaze

3.

Clotted cream

3.

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley

4.

The Carnegie Medal/Wirral Paperback of the year

4.

Popcorn

4.

Kristin Scott Thomas

5.

5.

Perfume

5.

Luke Newberry

Rebecca

6.

6.

Ambrosia

6.

Lily Cole

An egg

7.

7.

Sutton’s Seeds

7.

James Purefoy

Medieval

8.

8.

Callington

8.

Lily Laight

The Sittaford Mystery

9.

9.

Surfing

9.

Chris Martin (Coldplay)

Rosamunde Pilcher

10.

10.

Mattresses/divans/beds

10.

Sarah Parish

Poldark

[

Winners: Congratulations to all our lucky (and brainy) winners: FIRST PRIZE

SECOND PRIZE

THIRD PRIZE

Kathryn Hamlet, Teignmouth £500 Rayburn cookware from Rangemoors

Laura Bond, Tiverton £230 River Cottage cooking course

Debbie Christopher, Penzance £200 Crealy annual pass

FOURTH PRIZE

Shelagh Duffy, Plymouth £150 Princesshay Exeter gift card

44

QuizAnswers_Jan18.indd 44

14/01/2015 16:02:19

Collective Noun

News

1.

b- herd

1.

Her long-lost engagement ring

2.

b - army

2.

Roman coins

3.

a - bevy

3.

A gold nugget

4.

b- side

4.

Shoes

5.

c - family

5.

Jamaica Inn

6.

a- pity

6.

Read the news

7.

a - charm

7.

Flambards

8.

c- goring

8.

Mr Turner

9.

a- drift

9.

Peter Cook

10.

b- slant

10.

Lord of the Flies

Panto

Songs

Where

1.

Only Fools and Horses

1.

Eight

1.

St Ives

2.

Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

2.

The holly

2.

Princetown

3.

Maleficent

3.

One Direction

3.

Buckfastleigh

4.

Nottingham

4.

Paul Young

4.

Ilfracombe

5.

Neighbours

5.

David Bowie

5.

Bodmin

6.

JM Barrie

6.

Skyscraper

6.

Helston

7.

A rose

7.

The Snowman

7.

Saltash

8.

A ring

8.

Coal

8.

Tiverton

9.

Prince Charming

9.

Figgy

9.

Lynton and Lynmouth

10.

The Arabian Nights

10.

Jingle Bells

10.

Rock

FIFTH PRIZE

J Youngs, Bideford £59 Celtic & Co sheepskin slippers

SIXTH PRIZE

SEVENTH PRIZE

Colin Swains, Fremington National Trust day pass for 4

Janice Bailey, Gunnislake National Trust day pass for 4

EIGHTH PRIZE

John Noble, Truro £50 Cornwall Farmers voucher 45

QuizAnswers_Jan18.indd 45

14/01/2015 16:02:52

My life

[

man and boy

It’s party time

[

Phil Goodwin is father of James, aged four... and nearly five hristmas may be over but the birthday party season is in full swing. Each new fixture starts the same way, with a little envelope in the school bag that contains the invitation. This is followed by the trip to town to buy a card and present. And before you know it, you find yourself standing in a scout hut or community centre, nibbling on crisps and cocktail sausages amid the tears and euphoria of a fierce game of Pass The Parcel. So far we have avoided hosting such a party but now young James in is Reception Class we just can’t get away with it anymore.

I don’t recall them being so popular when I was at infant school. Then again, maybe they were just as big then but I wasn’t invited.

Better not to think about that one too much. In any case, it seems everybody does it these days and it would be rude not to return the favour after already having been to quite a few.

Now the guests may be small, relatively unsophisticated and fairly easily pleased. But as with any social event, a certain degree of hosting skills, along with food, a venue and some form of entertainment are required. In addition, dietary needs and even medical conditions must be considered. For example, one of the lad’s girlfriends has a nut allergy which can result in a reaction so severe that an intervention by way of hypodermic is needed. I was left in charge of the little girl recently and endured a slightly nervous half hour hoping I would not have to repeat the syringe plunging scene with Uma Thurman from the movie Pulp Fiction. I exaggerate but you never know what can happen.

Another factor is of course the style and shape of previous celebrations.

First you think: let’s just go kids disco and a few parlour games. Then

C

you remember the howling fight and cries of injustice when two tiny girls were led away after being knocked out of the Musical Chairs contest.

Mmm. Too competitive, perhaps? So you think perhaps just party food and a bouncy castle. But then you recall how your son came flying off the last one in the split second you looked away and ended up with an egg-sized lump on his forehead.

Yep, too dangerous.

After witnessing a brilliant performance in the

[

[

Before you know it you find yourself standing in a scout hut nibbling crisps amid tears, euphoria and Pass the Parcel

summer at Castle Drogo, I toyed with the idea of renting a Punch and Judy show until, that is, I found out they cost £100 for half an hour. That is definitely not the way to do it. And anyway, you don’t want to look like you’re showing off, you know… Tiger Parents. Anyway, so far, most of the parties we have been to have been pretty simple affairs, which is as it should be.

Except for the couple who took about ten of us to the local climbing wall in Exeter for a superb party, which must have hard on the pocket.

That literally set the bar pretty high, if you will excuse the joke.

In the end we settled on recruiting a local crafty type called Sparkly Sonia, who is a dab hand getting kids to channel their creativity.

All we needed was a theme. Hello. Another problem. Either I find something that would be of equal interest to both sexes or risk alienating someone. When I asked the boy what he would like to make he said ‘dinosaurs’. I inquired whether his girl friends would be excited about designing and building extinct giant killer lizards, and was informed that they were more interested in ‘beautiful things’. ‘So what do boys like?’ I ask. ‘Ugly things,’ he replies. Of course. As I write, I remain on the horns of this dilemma. Beauty and the Beast theme? I know, terrible idea. I don’t think this party planning is really for me.

46

ManandBoy_Jan18.indd 46

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