Sussex Style Magazine November 2014

Su s se x st y l e ultimate christmas gift guide

nov 2014

+ how to be a

be inspired

successful sussex Gentleman

date night

hot looks to sparkle in

Falling in love with Hastings, fashion, food and interiors for every home, plus Kate Mosse’s hidden Sussex

Sussex Life_OS_OCTOBER_2014.indd All Pages

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AT HOME...

Our Henley kitchen looks strikingly contemporary with cutout handles, Sheldrake dining and Salt painted walls Neptune Hailsham, BN27 1DQ, 01323 849 483, info@neptunehailsham.com

08/10/2014 12:27:47

astOr & Marc

Carpets/Flooring • Beds • Sofas • Curtains/Blinds • Chairs •

Bedroom/Dining/Occasional Furniture • Linens • Accessories Tel: 01342 325033 87-89 London Road, East Grinstead, RH19 1EJ Shop on-line at: Rusdens.co.uk

contents 39 a selection from the november issue

One of these nights Perfect looks for glam November nights out

P53 P75

41

Autumn accessories The ankle boot is a hot little trend this season — here’s our pick of seven of the best

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P14

contents

20 32

76

Christmas gift the main guide title goes Get your shopping done early here

Kate Mosse’s Sussex The best-selling author reveals how the county has influenced her

with our inspirational edit for Other text could be here all the family

P37

34

indulgent chocolate recipes Resistance is futile with these ideas from Montezuma’s

regulars

News p10 Food and drink p31 Interiors notebook p54 Book club p75 social p88

features

paul burston interview p16 christmas gifts p20 get out of a fitness rut p48 Are we living our lives online? p68 a detox with a difference p78

november 2014 | sussexsty le .c o m | 9

S u s ss tey lxe

Get in touch We’d love to hear comments, views and suggestions: info@sandr publishing.co.uk

Editor-in-Chief Karen Spinner deputy Editor dan raven art Director beth Donson Food & Drink Editor Sam Bilton Health & fitness editor Matt Guy Wright Head of Finance Richard Judd Publishing Director Seán Kane advertising Director simone doe Commercial Manager Jacqueline Nicholson Contributors sarah drew jones Alex hopkins melody bridges Laura Lockington Neil linnert arnie wilson Rosie scott Published by S and R Publishing Ltd Sussex Style™ Copyright 2014-09 ISSN 2049-6036

Welcome...

Motivation. Finding it can be hard enough at any time, let alone during long November nights and short, cold days. But you don’t have to slow down just because the clocks have gone back. This month we’ve put together an issue packed with reading to motivate, inspire and entertain.

Did you know muscles become immune to exercise within just six weeks? Gulp.

But fear not, our health and fitness guru Matt Guy Wright has put together an easy-to-follow plan to get you out of your fitness rut. Just a few simple changes can make a huge difference.

As we near the end of the year many of us feel low on energy. With this in mind, and ahead of the impending party season, editor-in-chief Karen Spinner visits renowned West Sussex detox retreat Simply Healing. Find out how she fared after five food-free days (hint: prepare to be amazed).

We catch up with Chichester resident and bestselling author Kate Mosse to find out how Sussex has shaped her life since childhood, plus journalist and LGBT activist Paul Burston reveals why he’s falling in love with the county. And beat the rush this festive season with our ultimate Christmas gift guide — there’s plenty to inspire for all the family.

Sussex Style team

Summerhill House Hythe Road, Kent, TN24 0NE T: 01273 358850 sussexstyle.com facebook.com/SussexStyleMagazine twitter.com/SussexStyleMag

All rights reserved. except for normal review purposes, no part of this magazine may be reproduced without written permission of the publishers.

No artwork or editorial content may be used in any other form or publication without the publisher’s consent. Every care is taken in the preparation of this magazine, but the contents are only meant as a guide to the readers. The proprietors of this publication ARE publishers, not agents or sub agents of those who advertise therein. They cannot be held liable for any loss suffered as a result of information gained from the publication. Copyright 2014 S and R Publishing Ltd - Sussex StyleTM

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SU S SE X ST Y L E ULTIMATE CHRISTMAS GIFT GUIDE

NOV 2014

+

BE INSPIRED

HOW TO BE A SUCCESSFUL SUSSEX GENTLEMAN

cover sponsored by eurotiles

date night

HOT LOOKS TO SPARKLE IN

Falling in love with Hastings, fashion, food and interiors for every home, plus Kate Mosse’s hidden Sussex

SS_NOV-OFC final.indd 1

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NEWS Sussex news round-up Remembrance events

With the centenary of World War One, this will year’s Remembrance Sunday (9 November) will be particularly poignant. Visit britishlegion.org.uk for details of events.

Ahead of Remembrance Sunday, a wreathlaying ceremony was held to commemorate Indian soldiers who were treated at hospitals in Brighton during the Great War. The ceremony was held at the India Gate at the Royal Pavilion, one of several buildings, including the Dome and Corn Exchange, which became military hospitals during the 1914-1918 war.

Curry near miss

Brighton has taken second spot in the Curry Capital of Britain awards.

It was an admirable finish, beating Birmingham into third and only being pipped to the post by Bradford, Britain’s curry capital and four-times winner of the award.

£100k for skate park

A Peacehaven skate park proposed and designed by local youngsters has being awarded a £100,000 grant.

As a result work is now underway at the Zero Degrees skate park, with the hope that the facility will be open and ready for use by the end of the year.

A group of 15 local youngsters came up with the idea for the skate park, which is part of the Big Parks Project, a community initiative designed to improve recreation facilities in Peacehaven.

Council’s sticky problem

Brighton & Hove City council has been widely criticised for wasting taxpayers’ money after buying a piece of an expensive piece of cleaning kit that was never used.

The GMB union led the chorus of criticism after it was revealed that the council spent £123,000 on a machine to clean chewing gum from the street.

Despite stating that the purchase of the machine would slash the council’s £25,000 annual gum cleaning bill, the machine was hardly used and sold for just £13,971 at an auction earlier this year.

A council spokesman confirmed the sale, but wouldn’t comment further.

1 2 | s u s s e x st y l e . c om | n ov em ber 2014

Sussex Style’s news team look at the stories affecting you this month

Bonfire night Good month for…

South Lodge Hotel The Horsham hotel’s Michelin-starred The Pass restaurant has been named in The Sunday Times’ list of top 100 restaurants, coming in an impressive twelfth place.

•

Nicholas Soames The long-time Mid Sussex MP was knighted for his political service. The grandson of Sir Winston Churchill told reporters that The Queen “was very nice to him”.

•

Commuters Plans have been revealed for an extra six peak-time trains to run on the Brighton to London main line per hour. A final decision will be made in 2015.

Remember, remember… that bonfire is a serious business in Sussex.

There will be events throughout the county in November, from the mighty Lewes (5 November), where more than 80,000 are expected to attend, to a plethora of smaller village events.

These include: Cuckfield (1 November); Lindfield (5 November); Chailey (8 November) and Barcombe (22 November).

Do check travel restrictions before attending the bigger events such as Lewes — getting around can be problematic.

And remember that some of the bonfire events are unsuitable for small children.

Find out more at: lewesbonfirecouncil.org.uk

Bad month for…

Anti-fracking protesters Despite presenting a petition with more than 3,500 signatures to a meeting of West Sussex council, the councillors overwhelmingly voted not to make West Sussex a ‘frack-free zone’.

•

Drivers on the A272 Speed sign along the road between the Birch Hotel and Scaynes Hill show a 30mph limit… while road markings state the limit is 40mph.

•

Cuckfield residents The Ship Inn, one of the village’s best-loved pubs, is being threatened with closure after supermarket chain the Co-op revealed plans to take it over.

New line for shoppers at Walk In Wardrobe

Award-winning independent boutique Walk In Wardrobe has a new concession.

The popular Hove shop, which is renowned for its special occasion dresses, is the new home to Lace, which has made the move from its former East Street base.

Lace, which is owned by celebrity stylist Carol Ives, is unusual in that it stocks only a few of each item — meaning embarrassing fashion clashes are a thing of the past.

Visit walk-in-wardrobe.co.uk to find out more about Lace and other concessions

3 of the best… winter warmers

hat Faux fur occasional hat in truffle, £45, Cuckooland.com

gloves Paul Smith red leather gloves, £140, houseoffraser.co.uk

gilet Louella gilet, £79, monsoon.co.uk

newsstyle

Brighton nominated for high street honours

Brighton has made it on to the shortlist for the Great British High Street Awards.

The London Road area of the city has been nominated in the local parade category.

Once known for its empty shops, notoriously bad reputation, high levels of crime and an association with drink and drug misuse, London Road is now a thriving and wellvisited area of the town.

The area has been the focus of a number of major projects and strategies, including the Open Market site, which involved replacing the former market space with a new covered market. The former Co-op is being redeveloped into student accommodation and the historic park has been restored, reclaiming an area used by street drinkers.

Vacancy rates have gone down from 17% in 2012 to 8% in 2014, plus there has been an overall reduction in crime of 9% and a fall of

November

From bonfires to Christmas markets, Santa runs to herring fairs, there’s plenty going on for the whole family this month...

anti-social behaviour of 18% compared to the same period as the year before.

The competition has been designed to highlight new and innovative ways to boost British high streets.

The winners will be announced in early November. Find out more at thegreatbritishhighstreet.co.uk

November’s little helper

Getting out of bed can be hard at this time of year. If duvet days are not an option, check out the range of wake-up lights from Lumie.

Starting at £59.95, the lights wake gradually and gently with increasing natural light.

There’s even a fading sunset setting to help you wind down for bed.

Check out the range at lumie.com

Palin at Petworth

Hardings is once again running the ‘pop up’ bar and kitchen at the Royal Pavilion ice rink (opening 8 November). The rink is a great venue for Christmas parties, with packages starting from just £26.50.

Michael Palin will be the star attraction at this month’s Petworth Festival’s literary weekend (13-16 November).

The actor, comedian, playwright and novelist will discuss Travelling to Work, the third volume of his widely acclaimed diaries, before taking part in a Q&A session.

Although only in its fourth year, the literary weekend has been well received, attracting big names and large crowds.

Other speakers this year include Charles Spencer, David Owen and potter Emma Bridgewater, who will be discussing her book Toast, Marmalade and Other Stories.

Please call 01273 675756 or email ice@ hardingscatering.co.uk for further details.

Find out more and book tickets at petworthliteraryfestival.org

brighton on ice

whats on

1-2 November: Hastings herring fair, hastingsfestivals.com 1 November: Giants of Brede operating day, bredesteamgiants.co.uk 1 November: Battle Bonfire, battelbonfire.co.uk 1 November: Herstmonceux Observatory open evening, the-observatory.org 2 November: London to Brighton veteran car run, veterancarrun.com 3 November: National Hunt racing at Plumpton, plumptonracecourse.co.uk 4-5 November: Ardingly antiques fair, iacf. co.uk/ardingly 5 November: Lewes bonfire, lewesbonfirecouncil.org.uk 8 November: Rye Fawkes, ryebonfire.co.uk 13-16 November: Petworth Festival’s literary weekend, petworthfestival.org.uk 14 November: Herstmonceux Observatory open evening, the-observatory.org 15 November: Brighton Christmas gift fair spectacular, brightonchristmasfair.co.uk 15-16 November: Michelham Priory Christmas fair, sussexpast.co.uk 15-16 November: Weald and Downland Museum Christmas market, wealddown.co.uk/ Events-Information/Christmas-Market 16 November: Horsham Santa run, stch.org.uk/ howYouCanHelp/JoinanEvent/SantaRun.asp 17 November: National Hunt racing at Plumpton, plumptonracecourse.co.uk 20 November-7 December: Cinecity, the Brighton film festival, cine-city.co.uk/cinecity12th-brighton-film-festival-2014 20-22 November: Bedgebury Pinetum midwinter fair, wealdentimes.co.uk/events/ midwinter/2014/index.asp 21-23 November: Brighton craft fair, brightonmade.co.uk 21-25 November: Wilmington Priory open days, landmarktrust.org.uk 22 November: Dickensian evening at Alfriston, alfriston-village.co.uk 29 November: Herstmonceux Observatory open evening, the-observatory.org 29 November-4 January: Winter wonderland illuminations, Drusillas, drusillas.co.uk/events 30 November: Great British Christmas market, Horsham, horsham.gov.uk/events 30 November: Sussex Family Christmas fair, Worthing, sussexfamilychristmasfair.co.uk APOLOGIES In October we printed the incorrect telephone number for Four Candles boutique — it should be 01273 757258.

november 2014 | sussexst yle .c o m | 1 3

columni

gentlemen

Sussex

New st!

What is it that makes the Sussex

gentleman so unique, the

embodiment of success that others look upon with envy? In the first of an exclusive new series for Sussex Style Alex Hopkins examines the essential

rules of engagement for every dynamic Sussex gentleman

Appearance

A gentleman’s clothes sum up his character.

He knows exactly what to wear for every occasion. Elegance and understatement are his watchwords. Showing off is a cardinal sin. Everything will be effortless and he instinctively knows what works.

Slavishly following fashion is boring and restrictive. A real gentleman is aware of trends, but sets the pace. He takes calculated risks and naturally exudes style. Simplicity is key: tailoring is impeccable, but never fussy.

He respects tradition, but is always looking at the future of design. He stands out in the crowd in immaculately polished shoes, a crisp, beautifully cut jacket and a flawless tie.

Grooming routines are uncomplicated but thorough. A gentleman puts his skin’s health first. He knows it’s pointless just to dump

14 | s us se x st y l e . c om | n ov em ber 2014

gunk on his face: pores need to be opened before repairing serums are applied. Pride in his appearance is paramount — and his confidence is infectious.

Dress the part: Simon Carter’s classic range of smart, unpretentious suits and chic accessories will give you the cutting edge every time. Simoncarter.net.

Grooming treats: Lab’s unique skincare solutions combine the latest in science and technology to give you the lustre of success.

Labseries.co.uk. For added luxury indulge yourself with the Elemis range. Elemis.co.uk.

Business

Historically, the English gentleman never worked. Now a gentleman can do almost anything for a living — it’s how he conducts himself that matters.

The Sussex gentleman enjoys the best of both worlds: the sedate pace of the country and the frenetic excitement of the city. After a peaceful weekend he’s ready to commute to London, invigorated with new ideas and ready to leave an indelible mark on his industry.

But a gentleman is never aggressive in his approach to business. Modesty is coupled with composure, charisma and an unwavering assurance that he is the best in his field. He never rests on his laurels and always aspires to be better. He not only leads, but inspires and shapes tomorrow. He’s always the first to embrace new technology.

Business panache: Montblanc’s Extreme collection, launched by Hugh Jackman in July, includes a collection of high quality, scratch resistant leather products: briefcases,

gentlemen style

Right: charcoal herring bone overcoat, £120, black cotton cashmere/ half zip, £55, white shirt, £45, all by Dunnes This page: Paul Costelloe Living Red Merino v-neck, £55, Bbue Oxford penny collar, £45, navy sartorial tie, £17, dark brown boxed casual belt (just seen), £30, dark brown brogue, £75 Right: Paul Costelloe Living Grey Fair Isle knit, £55, rust check shirt, £45 All images supplied

by Dunnes Stores, dunnesstores.com

messenger bags and iPad and tablet holders.

The perfect blend of heritage and innovation for the urban traveller. www.montblanc.com.

Leisure

A gentleman knows how to unwind. He finds space to relax but the high standards that apply to his work life are carried over into his down time. Competitiveness is everything — whether he’s playing cricket, off-road sports or shooting.

Choosing the right country and outdoor clothing comes easy to him. Functionality is vital. A gentleman never sacrifices comfort for fashion, but his attire remains stylish.

Kit yourself out in style: from fine knitwear to must-have coats and jackets by the world’s leading brands, visit outdoorinternational. co.uk and countryattire.com.

Home and Family

A Sussex gentleman’s home is as much his domain as his office. It’s where he retreats to enjoy the fruits of his labour.

Interiors blend the traditional with the modern. He has an eye for exquisite detail and favours sleek, functional surfaces.

Comfort is vital and he embraces the latest technology — from the kitchen to his study.

Entertaining is an integral part of his life — and, as with everything else, it comes to the Sussex gentleman naturally. He is the consummate host, serving the finest wines and liquor with fresh, carefully selected local produce. He delights in surprising his guests, and invitations to his beautiful home are to be treasured.

Top interiors: Rusdens (rusdens.co.uk) for luxury home furnishings.

Integrity

A gentleman’s word is his bond. He never compromises his principles and practises honesty and sincerity at all times. His convictions and opinions are strong, but he knows how to get his way without being discourteous.

George Bernard Shaw said “A gentleman is one who puts more into the world than he takes out.” An interest in other people means that a gentleman learns from them. He is infinitely engaging and charming and is a master of conversation.

But above all, the Sussex gentleman is an individual. He’s an adventurer and pioneer who both gives and commands respect.

Following a tribe is anathema to him; he revels in striking out on his own and, in doing so, reaps the rewards.

november 2014 | sussexstyle .c o m | 1 5

16 | s us se x st y l e . c om | n ov em ber 2014

falling for

I

’m constantly dissatisfied. I’m not somebody who feels comfortable resting on my laurels and I’m always looking for the next move.” So says Paul Burston as we sit in his central London apartment.

I’ve known Paul, 49, for over five years now and during this time he’s never failed to turn this restlessness into positive energy. Not only did he edit Time Out’s LGBT section for 20 years, but he’s also written four novels, including 2009’s bestselling The Gay Divorcee.

And as if that wasn’t enough he’s the brains and ebullient host behind the country’s foremost LGBT literary event, Polari.

Polari — named after a form of cant slang used in gay subculture at a time when homosexuality was illegal –— provides an invaluable platform for new and established LGBT authors to showcase their work. From its humble beginnings in a Soho bar in 2007, it’s grown to become one of the Southbank Centre’s most popular monthly fixtures.

“Polari’s success has been overwhelming,” explains Paul.

“We were coming up for our sixth birthday this year and we’d been at the Southbank Centre for four years. It had reached a point where it had plateaued in a way. I no longer had to market it as fiercely. Every month we sold out. And that freaked me out; where was I going to go next?”

Typically proactive, Paul reached a solution: he acquired Arts Council England funding and threw himself into a Polari national tour. With its vibrant gay community Brighton was the obvious starting point and the first date played to a capacity audience at the Marlborough Theatre

Leading author and journalist Paul Burston has lived in London for 30 years.

He always considered himself a city boy — until he visited Hastings.

Alex Hopkins finds out why

in September, featuring the critically acclaimed writers Neil Bartlett, VA Fearon, Jill Gardiner, Stonewall-nominated author VG (Val) Lee and winner of the 2012 Polari First Book Prize, poet John McCullough.

It’s not just in his professional life that Burston is being drawn to Sussex. For the last year he’s been visiting his friend VG Lee, who lives in Hastings. It was the beginning of a love affair with the quirky but often overlooked seaside town that has culminated in the purchase of a second home.

“I’ve always had an affinity with seaside places because I grew up close to the sea in Wales,” he explains. “In my head I thought that at some point in my life I’d move out of London to somewhere on the coast. For a long time the assumption was that it would be Brighton. That was in the days when you could sell your two-bed apartment in London and buy a house in Brighton for the same money, which of course isn’t the case any more.”

When Time Out closed the vital LGBT section — in a wave of cost-cutting that also axed the cabaret, classical and dance sections — in December 2013, Paul was made redundant. He combined his payoff with his civil partner Paulo’s savings and decided to invest in property. Paul already had his heart set on Hastings, but Paulo favoured a flat in his native Rio de Janeiro.

“Something clicked in Paulo’s head on one of our Hastings trips. Like me, he fell in love with the place. Val lives in the old town, on the West Hill, and she took us on a

november 2014 | sussexstyle .c o m | 1 7

“There’s a wonderful energy to Hastings. It feels like somewhere that’s on the cusp of something. And I’d love to do a Polari event in Hastings, so watch this space”

in Hastings, a number of other prominent London-based writers and journalists have confided in him that they’re also looking to relocate to the seaside town. He predicts a significant migration in the next few years.

The laid-back, creative ambience is, he says, naturally attractive to artists. The old town in particular, with its little boutiquey shops wouldn’t look out of place in trendier parts of London and is an instant draw for writers.

“There’s going to be a lot of regeneration and I’d like to be a part of that,” he enthuses. “I’d love to do a Polari event in Hastings. I didn’t make it part of the tour for the simple reason that we already had Brighton and the aim was to cover as wide an area as possible. But I do think it’s interesting and it possibly needs to be addressed that Hastings doesn’t have its own literature festival — so watch this space…”

Paul’s Hastings highlights

The old pier They’re currently refurbishing it and I love just sitting there looking at it. There’s a romance about old piers. I love the interaction of this incredible human-built structure with the ferocious ocean.

The Flower Makers’ Museum We came across this wonderful shop purely by accident and it had all these amazing hats in the window. I love hats. I have about 20!

(58a High Street, Hastings, TN34 3EN, tel: 01424 427793) The White Rock Hotel Everyone has breakfast/brunch there. It’s very much part of our routine when we visit.

Lovely view and they do a great lunch. You can sit outside, overlooking the sea. (thewhiterockhotel.com) Rock House My dear friend Sam Taylor’s house is so special.

It was once owned by Elizabeth Blackwell, who was the first woman physician. It was derelict for years and Sam is renovating it in a very particular way, using materials that would have been used at the time it was built. It looks stunning and is going to be a tourist attraction.

Suit obsession

Paul says: “Dressing up has become an integral part of Polari, but before I got married in 2007 I didn’t own a suit.

My wedding suit was a Pal Zileri, from Harvey Nichols. That same year I launched Polari and wore it on stage, but I quickly realised I needed more suits. It was the start of a wonderful new obsession…

“Zegna is my favourite. Pal Zileri: I have two of these, including my wedding suit. Again, great tailoring. Hugo Boss: I own three of these. They tend to be flashier.

“I now have so many suits that I’ve taken over my husband’s side of the wardrobe. It’s ludicrous.”

18 | s us se x st y l e . c om | n ov em ber 2014

Photography by Krystyna FitzGerald-Morris

tour. Before we knew it we’d booked three viewings.”

Paul saw flats in Cornwallis Gardens, a picturesque Victorian square close to the town centre and a short stroll from the seafront. The first property had a poorly disguised damp problem and the second violently sloping ceilings that would have made furnishing problematic. He plumped for the third, which was at the top of an elegant villa, complete with a beautiful balcony offering stunning views.

The flat is near the old town with its heady mix of galleries, idiosyncratic shops and eclectic restaurants, but also close to the station and university — meaning that it will be easy to rent out. But Paul is looking forward to living there first.

The location, he feels, will undoubtedly fuel his writing.

“I can’t speak for all writers but for me being in a different environment brings out different things,” he muses. “It’s a cliché, but I do think the sea air is good for you. I don’t believe it’s a coincidence that so many writers in history have lived by the sea.

“Hastings has a very exciting vibe at the moment. Perhaps it’s me and not London, but it feels to me as if London is quite jaded now. I’ve been here for 30 years and the feel of the city has changed: it’s become far less bohemian and cultural and much more about commercialism, money and conspicuous consumption. The heart has gone out of it.

“There’s a wonderful energy to Hastings. Curious oddities and eccentric people are around every corner. Going there invigorates and relaxes me. It feels like somewhere that’s on the cusp of something. Suddenly it’s on everyone’s radar.”

Since Paul announced on Facebook that he was buying

Be inspired by Eastbourne’s premier collection of branded watches and jewellery for him and for her. One great shop - infinite possibilities!

Arndale Centre, Eastbourne, BN21 3NW | t: 01323 410264 | e: info@inspiredbybrufords.com | www.inspiredbybrufords.com | Follow us on:

gift guide

Make Christmas shopping a joy with our inspirational edit of ideas for all the family

Create a beautiful Christmas centrepiece with this Jacquard-woven linen and cotton Hungarica tablecloth, ÂŁ123, by English Abode at englishabode.com Also available in cranberry and white and gold and white november 2014 | sussexstyle .c o m | 2 1

for her Editore’s choic

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1. Icone necklace, £525, Lalique, lalique.com 2. Sophia Webster angel wing shoes, £395, Selfridges, selfridges.com 3. Watch, £99, Guess, guesswatches.com 4. Tom Dixon Eclectic Orientalist scented candle, £55, John Lewis, johnlewis.com 5. Black leather clutch and cuff, £595, Aspinal of London at House of Fraser, houseoffraser.co.uk 6. Earrings, £195, Links of London, linksoflondon.com 7. Icone ring, £139, Lalique, lalique.com 8. Clinique Aromatic Elixir Essentials gift set, £48, clinique.co.uk 9. Grey stripe tote bag, £39, englishabode.com 22 | s u s se x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

for him

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1. Leather iPad case, £80, englishabode.com 2. Dover crystal decanter, £116, englishabode.com 3. Ted Baker leather holdall, £280, House of Fraser and tedbaker.com 4. Xin shan shi cufflinks £2,898, mydiamondrop.com 5. Black Peppercorn fragrance gift set, £60, Molton Brown, moltonbrown.co.uk 6. Sheepskin slippers in navy, £35, Boden, boden.co.uk 7. National Geographic Around the World in 125 Years, £349, englishabode.com 8. Givenchy adjustable watch, £640, Harvey Nichols, harveynichols.com 9. Leather wine bottle trunk, £330, englishabode.com november 2014 | sussexstyle .c o m | 2 3

for kids

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1. Scoot ride-on, £55, Great Little Trading Co, gltc.co.uk 2. Blue bird necklace, £35, Tate, tate.org.uk 3. Cuddly reindeer, £10, Debenhams, debenhams.com 4.

Penny gold skateboard, £170, Selfridges, selfridges.com 5. Illuminated canvas, from £55.95, illuminatedcanvas.co.uk 6. Ride-in sports car, £169.99, Maplin, maplin.com 7. VW Campervan play tent, £54.99, The Monster factory, themonsterfactory.com 8. Fur booties, £45, UGG Australia at House of Fraser, houseoffraser.co.uk 9. Cafe drinks machine, £26, Great Little Trading Co, gltc.co.uk 24 | s u s se x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

for home

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1. Silver Buddha, £75, tradingboundaries.com 2.Large turquoise vase, £103, englishabode.com 3. Silver table lamp with grey oval shade, £135, rusdens.co.uk 4. Pine pear book ends, £40, englishabode.com 5. Tortoiseshell photograph frame, £59.50, englishabode.com 6. Rayons bowl in gold lustre crystal, £1,790, lalique.com 7. Louvre decanter, £990, Lalique, lalique.com 8. Nina Campbell set of six wine glasses, £149, englishabode.com 9. Hiver candle, £45, diptyqueparis.co.uk november 2014 | sussexstyle .c o m | 2 5

for luxury

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Stockirng fille

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1. Silver-plated wine cooler and flutes, £199.95, Adventino, adventino.co.uk 2.Tonino Lamborghini, TL-66 rose gold smartphone, Selfridges, selfridges. com 3. Gold tote bag, £165, Lauren Ralph Lauren, ralphlauren.co.uk at House of Fraser 4. Crème de la Mer the Discovery Collection, £230, House of Fraser, houseoffraser.co.uk 5. Backgammon Masque de Femme, £7,900, Lalique, lalique.com 6. BeoPlay A8 wireless speakers, £949, bang-olufsen.com 7. Sony X1 lens style camera, £249, sony.co.uk 8. Humido cigar cabinet, £2,200, myliebherr.co.uk 26 | s u s se x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

for foodies

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Stockirng fille

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1. Indulgence hamper, £100, BHS, bhs.co.uk 2. Coffee syphon, £95, Whittard, whittard.co.uk 3. Ferrero Rocher golden gallery, £14.99, various supermarkets 4. Pandoro, £17.95, sous-chef.co.uk 5. Disaronno Versace limited edition, various supermarkets 6. The Christmas Wreath, £40, Hotel Chocolat, hotelchocolat.com 7. Armchair gift set from Champagne Charles Heidsieck, £75, Fortnum and Mason, fortnumandmason.com 8. Heston Blumenthal Precision orb electronic scale, £39.99, amazon.co.uk 9. Bespoke hamper of Godiva Chocolates, from £125, godivachocolates.co.uk november 2014 | sussexstyle .c o m | 2 7

Gifts for him

Our Christmas shop is now open in the Courtyard,

Gifts for her

for decorations, beautiful gifts, trees and wreaths

WEDDINGS / RESTAURANT / BEDROOMS / MEETINGS

Dining at Pelham House ~ Delicious and seasonal Pelham House focuses on simple and delicious food, using good quality seasonal and locally sourced produce. We offer a variety of regularly changing menus.

The restaurant is the perfect setting for a special lunch or dinner. We also have several additional dining rooms which seat between 4 and 120 guests private dining.

Pelham House has a carefully selected list of wines and cocktails to complement our menus.

Diners can choose the historic Panelled Room, the charming Garden End Room or to dine alfresco on the stunning south facing Terrace.

Our Gallery menu is available from 10:00 until 22:00 for brunch, bar snacks, light meals and pre-dinner drinks and afternoon tea between 3pm and 5pm.

The Restaurant is open daily from 12:00 for lunch, and 18:00 for dinner.

To Book, or for any enquires please contact Pelham House: p: 01273 488600 e: reception @pelhamhouse.com

Food drink

&

Pears: making the most of the prince of autumn fruits

Latest Sussex food news and inspiration, including a new charity beer The best wines for chocolate Divine chocolate recipes from Brightonbased chocolatier Montezuma’s

FOOD NEWS Award for Street Diner vendor Sussex street food business Little Blue Smokehouse was voted People’s Choice at the British Street Food Awards in September.

“This award means everything to us,” says Martyn Cotton of Little Blue Smokehouse, which serves meltingly tender pulled pork and pastrami at Brighton’s Street Diner most Fridays.

“We are a small street food business and we hope this award will help raise our profile.”

The awards are designed to showcase the very best street food talent from across the European continent. Little Blue Smokehouse won the southern regional final this summer to compete against other vendors from across the country, and as far afield as Finland.

The People’s Choice award was voted for by visitors to the final, which was held in Leeds.

Find out more: facebook.com/ TheLittleBlueSmokehouse

Sussex Style’s bon viveur Sam Bilton on this month’s tastes and treats

Coffee Break of the Month

The Loft, Arundel

Festive inspiration If you need some early inspiration for foodie treats this Christmas then don’t miss the Festive Food and Drink Fayre at the South of England Showground, Ardingly, 6-7 December.

There will be a variety of regional foods, gifts and stocking fillers on offer from farmhouse cheeses to kitchen equipment, plus a chance to order Kelly Bronze turkeys for Christmas.

On-site parking is free.

Full details at seas.org.uk

New look for Ridgeview Ridgeview, one of the country’s leading sparkling wine producers, has unveiled a stateof-the-art new tasting room at its Ditchling Common base.

Author and founder of the International Wine Challenge Charles Metcalfe opened the new room, which offers stunning views of the South Downs over the vineyard. The design, by Brighton-based Yelo Architects, is an interpretation of the room’s view, using angular walls to manipulate light, just as the vines and leaves change in colour as the light and seasons change. It was built by Nutshell Construction from Sompting, so the entire project was local.

3 2 | s u ssex style . com | novembe r 2014

“We are extremely proud of our new tasting room, which we feel reflects the professionalism of our brand and aids us in growing the hospitality side of our business,” explains sales and marketing manager Mardi Roberts. The tasting room is also available for hospitality events, holding up to 40 guests at any one time.

Ridgeview produces 250,000 bottles of sparkling wine each year, including the award-winning Bloomsbury. The tasting room is open Monday-Saturday from 11am-4pm.

General tours of the vineyard can be booked on selected weekends throughout the year.

Find out more at ridgeview.co.uk

Some people are ramblers, but others (like myself) are rummagers. One of the best places in Sussex to do a spot of rummaging is Arundel, particularly with the festive season approaching. There are quirky shops selling books and antiques, funky independent boutiques, delicious foodie havens and plenty of coffee shops to visit for a restorative cuppa.

Sparks Yard is always on my list of places to visit in Arundel for a good old rummage.

It stocks a wonderful array of cookware and so much more. I always manage to find some gadget or other that I don’t already possess (much to my husband’s dismay). As an added bonus there was a small cafe in the shop, which was upgraded this summer to a fullyfledged restaurant on the top floor of this former Victorian warehouse.

The Loft is a light, contemporary space serving a healthy take on American diner cuisine. Brunch is an appetising proposition with everything from pancakes served with fruit compote or bacon and maple syrup, to corn fritters with avocado salsa, poached egg and lime creme fraîche to choose from.

Lunch could consist of a homemade burger, salad or mac ’n’ cheese souped up with jalapeños and tomatoes.

For younger diners there is a pick and mix menu from which they can select four items (a godsend for parents of finicky eaters). And naturally they also serve a great cup of Joe, courtesy of Italian coffee roasters Kimbo.

The Loft @ Sparks Yard General Store 18 Tarrant Street, Arundel West Sussex BN18 9DJ 01903 885588 the-loft.squarespace.com

taste style

Local teacher creates new wine blend

chocolate corner

A teacher from Ardingly has seen a wine she co-created go on sale in 400 Morrisons stores across the UK. Harriet Conner-Earl was one of five lucky finalists who won a competition on morrisonscellar.com in August 2013 to attend an exclusive blending workshop with Rosemount Estate chief winemaker Matt Koch.

Under the supervision of Koch the finalists set about finding their favourite flavour combination from a set of single varietal Rosemount wines, described by flavour rather than grape.

The ultimate chocolate tour

Chocoholics rejoice! Chocolate Ecstasy Tours is now offering a three-hour, choco-fuelled jaunt in Brighton to explore some of the city’s most interesting and innovative chocolate boutiques.

The tours run on selected Saturdays and tickets, priced at £33 per person, include hot chocolate, in-store sampling and some transport during the day.

Harriet’s Shiraz Grenache Tempranillo, which she named ‘Chat’, was declared the overall winner.

“I never thought I would get the chance to create my own blend, let alone have it go on sale,” Harriet says.

Her winning wine is a smooth blend with lush berry flavours, a bit of spice and a savoury finish. It’s a perfect partner for tomato-based pastas, pizzas and homemade burgers.

Rosemount Estate Shiraz Grenache Tempranillo 75cl blend, £7.99 at Morrisons.

For further information on tour dates, visit chocolateecstasytours.com

What wines go best with chocolate?

Chocolate and wine may seem like unlikely bedfellows, but they can be successfully paired with fantastic results.

Castello de Poggio Brachetto, Italy £12.99 This is a treat! Known as the lovers’ wine, it’s a great match for dark chocolate. It is a sparkling, 7% ABV and bursting with ripe summer fruits and rose petals. Drink this chilled and enjoy it!

butlers-winecellar.co.uk Campbells Rutherglen Topaque, Australia £13.99 Toffee, honey and tea aromas dominate in this deep, golden wine, which is surprisingly light and refreshing compared to some dessert wines.

quaffwine.com Rudera Chenin Blanc, South Africa £14.50 Made from 40-year-old vines, this wine has a sweet-sour freshness perfectly balanced with honeyed pear and a hint of vanilla creaminess.

A very elegant wine, which should go well with white chocolate, especially if flavoured with candied fruits.

butlers-winecellar.co.uk Fernando de Castilla Antique Pedro Ximenez 50cl, Spain £28.50 This wine is at least 20 years old and contains a mammoth 500g of natural sugar per litre — so that’s 250g in each bottle. The palate reads a bit like an unusual shopping list: coffee, liquorice, sweet tobacco, prunes, figs, raisins, tea and a handful of other fleeting scents.

Perfect served slightly chilled.

henningswine.co.uk

win!

in season

Pears

Although you are unlikely to be picking pears in November, if stored correctly they will still be eminently edible from their harvesting earlier in the autumn.

The pear is the prince of the autumn fruits.

When perfectly ripe they are sweet, juicy and versatile. Delicious stuffed with salty blue cheese, like Roquefort or Stilton, whipped with a little creme fraîche or perhaps tossed into a chicory salad interspersed with walnuts.

Pears are a fine complement to game meats such as venison or duck. Even slightly under-ripe specimens will take on a butter-like tenderness when poached in wine aromatised with the classic mulling spices of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves, or pickled in a spicy vinegar solution (another great accompaniment to strong cheese).

When choosing pears it is best to buy them when they are hard, allowing them to ripen at home. Once they are ripe, eat them as soon as possible or, as food writer Jane Grigson advises, store them in the bottom of the fridge wrapped

in newspaper.

For seasonal recipes visit my blog comfortablyhungry.com

A Montezuma’s hamper To go with the fabulous chocolate recipes on p34, Sussex Style has a Montezuma’s Candy Cane hamper to give away to one lucky reader. Email comps@sussexstyle.co.uk with the subject title ‘Montezuma’s hamper’ to be in with a chance of winning.

Charity beer on sale Drink beer to help the businesses affected by the Eastbourne pier fire. That’s the message from Alfriston’s Long Man Brewery.

The company has teamed up with the Eastbourne-based Curious Beer Club to produce a new beer that’s being sold to raise funds for seafront businesses in the town.

Craft Pier is described as a light-coloured, hoppy ale and is available in pubs across Sussex. Profits from the charity beer have raised in the region of £1,000 to date.

“It’s been really popular,” says Graeme Moores of the Long Man Brewery. “We’re hoping beer drinkers and publicans will continue to support this cause to help us reach our target of £10,000.”

For more details on Craft Pier and where it is available visit curiousbeerclub.co.uk or longmanbrewery.com. november 2014 | sussexstyle .com | 3 3

chocolate It’s beginning to feel a lot like Gear up for some festive indulgence with these moreish recipes from Sussex chocolatier Montezuma’s new cookbook

34 | s u sse x style . com | novembe r 2014

taste style

Panforte

This keeps really well in an airtight box and would make a great Christmas gift.

Preparation time: 40 minutes Baking time: 40 minutes Serves: 8–16 You’ll need • 130g hazelnuts • 50g Brazil nuts • 130g whole almonds, blanched • zest of 1 lemon, finely grated • 130g candied fruits, roughly chopped (use cherry, orange or lemon) • 130g dried figs or dates, quartered • 75g plain flour • 2 tbsp cocoa powder • ½ tsp cinnamon • ½ tsp ground nutmeg • ¼ tsp ground cardamom •¼ tsp ground cloves • 310g honey • 110g caster sugar • 60g butter, plus extra for greasing • icing sugar, to dust Special equipment • blender or food processor • 22cm springform tin What to do Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Place the hazelnuts and Brazil nuts on a baking tray and toast until golden. Reduce the oven temperature to 150°C/gas mark 2.

Use a blender or food processor to coarsely chop the toasted nuts and whole almonds before combining them in a large bowl with the zest, candied fruits, figs or dates, flour, cocoa and all the spices. Grease a 22cm springform tin and line it with parchment paper. Very gently heat the honey, sugar and butter in a pan, stirring constantly until it reaches a soft ball stage. Pour into the bowl with the nuts and other ingredients and stir.

While the mixture is still warm, spoon it into the tin and bake for 35–40 minutes. When you remove the panforte from the oven it will appear uncooked, but it hardens as it cools on a rack. Dust with icing sugar before cutting.

win!

Montezuma’s Chocolate Cookbook (£16.99) is packed with melt-inthe-mouth recipes. Buy it now at montezumas.co.uk. And for your chance to win a delicious Montezuma’s hamper, turn to p33.

Classic double chocolate roulade

White chocolate cream makes this classic roulade even a little better than before! There are loads of variations you could try, including adding chilli and lime.

Preparation time: 30 minutes Cooking time: 20 minutes, plus 18 hours chilling Serves: 8 You’ll need • 120g good quality dark chocolate • 4 eggs, separated • 110g golden caster sugar • 1 tsp coffee granules, dissolved in water (optional) • icing sugar and cocoa powder, for decoration For the filling • 250ml whipping cream • 120g good quality white chocolate, grated • 3 tbsp Tia Maria

Special equipment • 23x33cm Swiss roll tin • Bain-marie or heatproof bowl What to do Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Line the tin with parchment paper.

Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie or heatproof bowl over a pan of water that boiled five minutes earlier and is now off the heat.

Once melted, set aside to cool.

Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl until they are pale and mousse-like. Fold in the cooling chocolate and coffee, if using.

Whisk the egg whites in another bowl until stiff peaks start to form. Fold the whites into the chocolate mix. Pour this mixture into the tin and bake for about 15–20 minutes until firm. Remove from the oven, cover with a clean, damp tea towel and leave to rest for eight hours. november 2014 | sussexstyle.com | 3 5

Book a styling appointment at 2 Victoria Street Brighton BN1 3FP Tel: 01273 757 258 Maudbysophiecorbett.com

&

Fashion beauty

Put your best foot forward in this season’s gorgeous new ankle boots

thomas sabo

Beauty update: now’s the time to embrace jewel tones and plumped, perfect skin Sleep easy with our simple steps to your best night’s rest ever Matt Guy Wright’s expert advice on how to get out of a fitness rut

THIS PAGE: Sequin collar top, £89, super skinny jeans, £49, slingbacks £110 OPPOSITE PAGE: Embellished jumper, £99, velvet trousers, £69, clutch, £79.

38 | s u s se x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

fashion style

date night You don’t have to try hard to look terrific.

Fashion’s new mood of understated glamour with a rock-chick edge is perfect for November nights out. All by Boden at boden.co.uk

november 2014 | sussexstyle .c o m | 3 9

Mohair mix biker jacket, £129, super skinny jeans, £49, Soho ankle boot, £129, slouchy leather bag £149, sparkle tee, £69

40 | s u s se x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

DIESEL BLACK GOLD

Katya Zol

Topshop UNIQUE

Custo Barcelona

ankle boots Retro, cute and comfortable: AW14’s most wearable micro-trend walked the runways at Stella McCartney, Missoni, Burberry and more

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Blue, £39, Dorothy Perkins

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1. Suede, £69.99, H&M 2. Murcia, £109.95, Moda in Pelle 3. Cream, £50, Miss Selfridge

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4. Limited Edition snake boot, £35, Marks & Spencer 5. Grey suede, £115, Bertie 6. Cahoot, £80, Office

november 2014 | sussexstyle .c o m | 4 1

beauty notebook Star style, fabulous fragrance and the best serum of the year — it’s all here

WE LOVE Perfect autumn shades in The Body Shop’s new Colour Crush nail polish, just £5 each: Gorgeous Grey, Crimson Kiss and Crazy for Blue.

FAST FIX

ROSEBUD Channel Kate Beckinsale’s pretty rose pout with the ultra-kissable Laura Mercier lip glacé in Desire, £19.50 (House of Fraser, John Lewis and Space NK).

With cooling cucumber extract and red algae, Ole Henriksen Ultimate Lift Eye Gel, £39, instantly de-puffs even the most sleep-deprived eyes.

Stock up now for the party season at Harvey Nichols, QVC and lookfantastic.com

“Once I discovered microdermabrasion there was no holding me back. There’s no real downtime and the effects are fantastic” Paul Burston feature p16 SO CHIC

INVESTMENT BUY

Carven Le Parfum bursts with notes of mandarin blossom and ylang ylang, making it a refreshingly elegant alternative to spicy autumn fragrances.

From £38, department stores.

GREAT GIFT

Started your Christmas shopping yet? Us neither. But the Deluxe Lip & Eye palette, £59 from Bobbi Brown, is already on our wish list for Santa.

4 2 | s u s s e x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

Shiseido spent 20 years perfecting its new serum Ultimune. A brand new idea in beauty, it strengthens Langerhans cells, which act as the skin’s immune system fighting environmental threats. Result? Healthier, younger-looking skin. Not cheap at £60 (Boots), but your face will thank you for it.

If you are passionate about flowers you will love what we do at Flowers of Eastbourne, the Enterprise Shopping Centre’s exciting new florist.

Just drop by or phone us on:

01323 738147 Experts in all aspects of floral design, indoor and outdoor... plants and gifts.

Open Monday to Saturday 9am until 5pm The Enterprise Shopping Centre, Station Parade, Eastbourne BN21 1PD

Next to Eastbourne Station www.enterprise-centre.org

info@flowersofeastbourne.co.uk www.flowersofeastbourne.co.uk

health notebook now THAT the clocks have gone back, Prep for a cosy, calm winter with these wellbeing wonders

MUSCLE MAGIC

STRESS BUSTER

The meditative effect of candlelight is a proven stress-killer, helping to increase focus, encourage mindfulness and aid sleep. NEOM Organics’ new Comforting candle is scented with cedarwood, vetiver and star anise — all soothing, autumnal fragrances (£45, neomorganics.com).

Hungary Mud boasts incredibly high levels of natural minerals, and is prescribed by doctors across Europe to treat bone and muscle disorders and sports injuries. Now it’s landed in the UK, at victoriahealth. com, from £20. Try it in your bathwater or as a soothing rub after exercising.

“Hungary Mud boasts high levels of natural minerals. Try it as a soothing rub after exercise” SLEEP WELL RESCUE GWYNNIE Given that she’s a lover of all things homeopathic, it’s no surprise to learn that Gwyneth Paltrow’s a devotee of Bach Rescue Remedy. The Bach Rescue Liquid Melts, £6.65 from Boots, can be kept in your bag for those days when everything tests your patience…

4 4 | s u s s e x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

BEST BUY

Comfort cold feet with a soft feltcovered hot water bottle. We love this chic one, £25 from Mint Velvet, mintvelvet.co.uk

Change your pillows, mattress protector and duvet for anti-allergy versions ahead of winter and you can keep dust mites, mould, mildew and bacteria at bay all through hibernation season. The Hotel AntiAllergy 13.5 Tog White Goose Feather and Down Duvet, from £55.99 at Dunelm, is a great place to start.

StyliSh independent ladieS Boutique Designer Clothing labels from italy, Paris & the UK tel: 01903 882 642 f: envy-arUnDel

Switch it up!

Is your exercise routine more predictable than rain on a bank holiday? Matt Guy Wright reveals why — and how — this is the month to make a change.

A

re you stuck in a fitness rut? If your routine, or lack of one, has become a needle stuck in a groove now is the time to shake things up. It’s this simple: if your exercise doesn’t change, your body won’t either.

Now the days are short and the nights are long it’s very easy to want to skip the gym and shuffle off home to the comfort of the sofa and TV. Big mistake! With the party season and Christmas holidays fast approaching, this time of year is hard on our waistlines. If you want to avoid an uphill struggle in January it’s crucial not to let your fitness slide now.

I often see people rock up to the gym like clockwork, only to sit on the bike reading a magazine for thirty minutes, or do the same old routine in the weights area day in, day out. They’re not getting the results they strive for because they have become stagnant. They have plateaued into their comfort zone. Does this sound familiar?

Then use my tips below to transform your comfort zone into your challenge zone.

Avoiding muscle immunity

Ladies, if you use the same machines each time you’re at the gym, be brave and take a leap of faith into the free weights area. Free weights are more effective for toning and sculpting muscles than machines and I promise you will see results. Men love to concentrate on the chest and shoulders predominantly, so fellas, work more on your lower body, lower back, core and glutes for a change.

Ask the fitness instructors at your gym to devise a fresh programme for you that includes new goals, new methods and actual timelines — the last of these is crucial in making sure you have something to aim for. If you have a big event coming up, use that date as your motivation to get into the best condition. Without goals and new skills to learn, you will only drift and become a fitness robot.

We looked at why a Swiss ball is so good for you earlier in the year (Sussex Style, September) — it really is an essential piece of kit.

Learn as many different tricks as possible with the Swiss ball. It will give you something different to focus on and it will work wonders 48 | s u s se x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

to strengthen and tone you up from head to toe. If you use weights on a bench, switch them for the ball. Resting only your head and shoulders on the ball, with your feet flat on the ground and your body flat like a table, you will be working your legs, back and abs while doing a chest press. This is what’s called a compound exercise — engaging more than one muscle group at the same time.

Muscles have memory so if you keep doing the same thing they get bored and stop reacting to the exercise. To see results you must shock your muscles into having to react and adapt to new ways of working out. Your muscles start becoming immune to repetitive moves after approximately six weeks, so work towards changing your routine that often. You will start to see more definition and better tone quite quickly if you keep doing this.

Importance of building up strength

If you are unsure what parts of your physique to target in a new routine, imagine you are doing a nude photo shoot eight weeks from now. Scared? Most of us would be! Look in a full-length mirror naked — what needs firming up? What could do with a lift? What bits would make you feel insecure if you were in your birthday suit in front of a camera crew?

Work on those parts in the gym — and work on them hard. If your butt is migrating south, ask your gym for five different exercises to build muscle on the glutes. Many guys spend so much time building up strong pecs, they often neglect to train their back. A big, rippling chest with a flat-as-a-pancake back not only looks weird from the side, it can lead to a weak spine that will cost you dearly in pain, not to mention osteopath’s bills. If you are floating along on a plateau, it is highly likely you are neglecting certain areas of your body.

Women tend to loathe press-ups with a passion. They’d rather tell everyone about their cellulite than get down on the floor and press, press, press. Yet my female clients are always surprised at how many variations there are of the simple, boring press-up and, more importantly, of the results that can be achieved by them.

By placing your feet on a bench, ball or seat with your hands on

life style

the ground, this declined, compound version of the press-up suddenly works your stomach, legs, arms and shoulders — in one hit. Position your hands on the ground, directly beneath your chest with only your forefingers and thumb tips touching each other, forming a diamond shape. This will now work your triceps hard. It’s a fact of fitness life that every girl needs to keep the backs of her arms firm to avoid those unsightly bingo wings, so do the diamond press-up often and in as many different angles as possible.

If you want to do a quick strength test, girls, do 15 declined pressups on the floor. Guys, do 10 pull-ups on a bar. If you don’t complete the set you need to work on building your strength up in order to propel yourself to the next level of your fitness, and the next level after that. An under-performing body will hold you back from looking better than you do today. Start using whatever piece of equipment fills you with horror and ask your gym’s fitness professionals to walk you through it until you feel confident enough to know what you’re doing on your own.

If you prefer to work out with someone many gyms have buddy systems where they can pair you up with a gym goer who has similar fitness levels and similar goals as you do. If you have someone else who is relying on you to turn up and put the effort in with them, you’re much more likely to commit yourself, get on with it and make progress.

“Start using whatever piece of gym equipment fills you with horror.

Transform your comfort zone into your challenge zone”

Protein pointers

It’s important to give your eating habits a wake-up call too. Before we enter the season of overindulgence, streamline your nutrition.

As you work your muscles into a tougher regime, they’ll need more fuel. So increase your protein intake considerably. And remember it’s not just what you eat, but when you eat it. Set your energy levels up in the morning with a highprotein breakfast. Steak and omelette, poached eggs on dry toast or a fruit smoothie with Greek yoghurt and whey protein powder are all great.

If you find you often have a snack attack by late morning or mid-afternoon, eat a banana with a handful of almonds and sunflower seeds.

Bananas are rich in potassium and give your body slow-release energy, meaning your blood sugar levels won’t drop and the sugar and carbcraving wolf will be kept at bay.

Lunch can be 50/50 carbs and protein as you will burn the carbs throughout the day and your metabolism will convert the carbs into an energy fuel, especially when it’s on a workout day. Replace processed carbs such as bread and pasta with raw, natural carbs like wild brown rice and jacket potatoes. Dinner should be mainly protein — tuna, salmon, chicken, turkey or tofu — plus a small portion of good carbs like runner beans, cauliflower and broccoli.

If you always use...

Switch it up with...

Dumbbells Barbells Benches Cable tower Exercise machines Free weights/TRX/Swiss ball Bike Rower/cross trainer

If you need a bigger gearshift than that I’d recommend joining a fitness class. I teach my own classes where people do more in an hour than they do in four hours of working out alone. Classes are a lot of fun and a good teacher will keep you moving so fast you won’t have time to think.

If high-octane workouts are your idea of hell then opt for something more gentle. I have tried my hand at Tai Chi and, while it may be relaxing, it works the body surprisingly hard in a different way than you will be used to. My clients who do yoga have better posture, better skin and better flexibility than those who don’t.

If you prefer the open road to the gym and like to run, give your joints a rest from pounding the pavement and start swimming or cycling instead. If running really is your thing, find a new route that incorporates steps, hills and new scenery.

Be sure to have a playlist of your favourite music on your MP3 player — study after study proves that people run an average of 35% longer distances when listening to music they like.

Matt’s meal of the month One of my favourite protein-packed meals that can be made for any time of the day (although I prefer it for breakfast) is my vegetarian avocado, tomato and egg feast. Yum! Soft boil an egg and spread low-fat cream cheese on gluten-free rye toast. Spread lightly mashed avocado on top and add a generous helping

6 weeks

The amount of time it takes your muscles to become immune to repetitive exercise 50 | s u s se x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

of chopped fresh tomatoes that have been marinated in a dish for five minutes with olive oil and chopped flat-leaf parsley. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle chia seeds on top.

Peel the soft-boiled egg, split it in half and place on the top. Enjoy!

Looking for something special this Christmas?

D I S C OVE R G R E E N P EO P LE’S N EW LI M ITE D E D ITI O N C O LLECTI O N Divine organic body lotions and washes, perfect for a little festive indulgence Our new Limited Edition bath and body collection brings a exciting twist to our bestselling body care range. All the skin benefits you love and the organic credentials you expect wrapped up in a new, deliciously fresh and natural aroma.

Choose from 3 beautifully scented gifts with Red Mandarin, Ho Wood, Ginger and Lemongrass to enliven, lift and invigorate the senses.

O F F E R : Save ÂŁ5.00* on Limited Edition gifts.

Only available at www.greenpeople.co.uk/sussexgifts and 01403 740350. Quote SUSSEXSTYLE *Valid to 12/12/14.

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25% off all selected tile ranges with this voucher code SU14

Biggest stockist in the area | Free local delivery | Lots of parking Eurotiles & Bathrooms Brighton: Unit 6c, Freshfields Business Park, Brighton BN2 0DF Email: brighton@eurotilesandbathrooms.com Phone: 01273 605445 Eurotiles & Bathrooms Rustington: Unit F, Brookside Ave., Brookside Ind. Estate, Rustington BN16 3LF Email: rustington@eurotilesandbathrooms.com Phone: 01903 785226 www.eurotilesandbathrooms.com

&

home garden Six exciting interior trends to transform your home this autumn

Designer decor: the fabric houses collaborating with couturiers

image by MARKS & SPENCER

New ideas and fresh inspiration for every room

6

of the best

These key interiors trends are all you need to transform your home this autumn. Find the one that works for you!

1. MERCURY GLASS

Metallic touches always add glamour around the home but there’s something extra special about vintage-style mercury glass. Create a display on a side table or mantelpiece with aged glass bon-bon jars, apothecary bottles, mirrors, trinket boxes and photo frames: mix with fresh flowers in julep cups and bud vases for added style.

Mercury glass objets, from ÂŁ25 at Marks & Spencer.

54 | s u sse x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

Interior style

2. STATEMENT LIGHTING

2

The concept of lighting as statement art is back with a vengeance this season. A bold and unusual lamp will change the look of a room, especially when used in pairs or groups.

Or why not add a patio heater and take the party outside?

This floor lamp is £110 by Modelight, modelight.co.uk

3. LUXE BATHROOM

Just as the garden becomes your living space in summer, the bathroom doubles up as a special retreat on cold winter nights and long, lazy Sunday mornings. Now is the time to add deluxe and decadent touches to your en suite or family bathroom: splash out on new towels, scented candles (we love Jo Malone, The White Company and NEOM), and indulgent bath and body goodies. Why not fit that claw-footed bath, faux fireplace and extra storage you’ve always dreamed about?

Bath, purebathroomcollection.co.uk

3 4

4. FORMAL DINING

Let’s celebrate the renaissance of the dinner party! Possibly the best way to spend a winter Saturday, the formal dinner party is back on the style agenda and the perfect excuse to make over the dining room and show off your good china and crystal.

Whether it’s fun fondue or a five-course feast, the supper party calls for chic velvet chairs and a table that extends to seat all the family and friends you can pack in. This season’s colour palette?

Elegant mink, winter white, accents of silver, teal and purple.

Frost eight-seater dining table, £550 and Moritz dining chairs, £299 each, both John Lewis.

5. BOLD COLOUR

Winter calls for more confident use of colour in the living room but who wants to decorate when the temperature’s dipping and daylight is fleeting? Find a solution with a bold pop of colour on key pieces: a style-led, sexy shade of sofa will be a talking point. Keep the rest of the room minimalist and muted to let the sofa shine.

The velvet Chesterfield Aurora, £1,995, Sweetpea & Willow, sweetpeaandwillow.com

6. BOUDOIR SANCTUARY

5 6

Turn the focus on your bedroom as the nights draw in and winter looms. If budgets are limited, this is where an investment will really make a difference to your life: splash out on a super-padded mattress booster pad with high-thread count bed linen for softness, and pile the bed with richly patterned and textured throws and blankets.

Selection shown here from House of Fraser. november 2014 | suss exstyle .c o m | 5 5

interiorstyle

Designer days

H

aving moved house a couple of months ago I was forced to empty The Drawer. We all have one. It’s the place that we put anything and everything because we haven’t got the foggiest idea where else to put it.

Some of us have them in the kitchen, some a bedside table, but mine was under the bed.

They are fantastic places. If you ever can’t find anything you know it will be in The Drawer. If you need a screwdriver just have a look in The Drawer. Sellotape — in The Drawer. Husband’s spare car keys and a money-off voucher for Waitrose — in The Drawer. I used to keep so much in my drawer in the kitchen that it spilt out into the cupboard below as everything slipped over the back of it. I could be heard saying to friends that the drawer must have been magic as you could just keep piling things in. Until I found it among my saucepans.

The drawer under my bed was a bit different though. It was for those items that you knew you didn’t need but refused to throw away despite desperate nagging from your other half. For me it was the Mecca for unused but thoroughly adored handbags.

They are the last remnants from my life BC (Before Children). I used to buy them when I had a ‘proper’ job and money in the bank and, most importantly, when I had somewhere to go to use them.

There was a Gucci one in there, a couple from Mulberry and even a Marc Jacobs one. My husband was horrified. In our seven years together he had never seen them and compared their value to a small family car.

I have brought them all to our new house even though I know they will never see the light of day. I sadly reminisce about the days when I could afford to have lovely things without the risk of chocolate being smeared all over them and the need for a bag big enough for nappies, 56 | s u sse x st y l e . c om | nov em ber 2014

a change of clothes and snacks at four-hour intervals.

But the fabric houses have come to my rescue. I may not be able to have designer handbags anymore but I can now have designer interiors. That little bit of luxury in my own home. Over the past couple of years collaborations between fashion designers and fabric houses have increased and now Osborne & Little have collections by Matthew Williamson and Kravat with Diane Von Furstenberg. At Designers Guild you have the choice of Ralph Lauren or Christian Lacroix. John Paul Gaultier and Sonia Rykiel have done, and continue to do, ranges at Lelievre, while Julian Macdonald has dipped his toe into the world of wallpaper at Graham Brown. It reads like a shopping list at Harrods — and one that is accessible and affordable.

Just like the drawer under my bed no home would be complete without Mulberry Home. The latest collection is simply beautiful and features award winning designs. There are wool checks, vibrant velvets and stunning prints. It even features the fabric used to line the company’s handbags, so rather than keeping beauty well hidden I can now show it off and enjoy it at home. The new Mulberry Home collection is the epitome of chic Sussex Style, classic yet contemporary, and whether you simply treat yourself to a cushion or upholster a chair you will certainly feel a smile coming to your face as you walk by.

I am a little worried that by the time I finish it may have been cheaper to have bought the latest designer bag. But at least this way I get to keep storage space under my bed and enjoy that designer lifestyle every day.

• For more inspiration visit: gpandjbaker.com/mulberryhome, osborneandlittle.com, grahambrown.com/uk, lelievre.eu, designersguild.com

photograph by Mulberry home

More fabric houses are teaming up with top fashion designers. The result? Interiors that are stylish and affordable, as Laura Jandac finds out

top: Haiti Dark Grey 75x75cm glazed porcelain range. left: loft Perla and natural 60x60cm matt porcelain range. right: orient oak bath with 40.5x61cm classic Premium Honed travertine with White tumbled 5x10cm travertine mosaics on the walls, and 61x61cm classic Premium Honed travertine on the floor. top right: cordoba Grey 45x45cm ceramic floor tiles (also seen on the front cover)

58 | su ss e x st y l e . c o m | nov em ber 2014

InterIor style

The perfect finish for every room

Whatever style, size and price of tile you are looking for, make eurotiles & bathrooms in brighton and rustington your first stop

I

f you’re revamping your bathroom or need tiles for your kitchen or conservatory floor, look no further: Eurotiles & Bathrooms is the one place that you ought to visit.

The showrooms have a huge selection of tiles of all sorts. They range in style from large size porcelain tiles, which are perfect for a modern bathroom or for tiling kitchen, lounge and even patio floors, through mosaics to the more traditional 10x10cm tiles for kitchens, plus marble and stoneeffect for bathrooms.

Wood effect tiles are very popular at the moment. The latest technology means that they are virtually indistinguishable from the real thing and they can be used in areas that are prone to damp where real wood would not be suitable.

Eurotiles & Bathrooms has lots of choice, including in different styles and colours of wood. It is the biggest Original Style stockists in the south east, with extensive displays of their design-led kitchen and bathroom tiles. The Brighton branch is

the exclusive stockist of Ca’ Pietra stone in Sussex.

There is also a full range of bathroom products on display, including furniture, sanitary ware, showers, taps and accessories including mirrors and heated towel rails.

Ege sanitary ware, which comes with a 10-year warranty, is exclusive to Eurotiles & Bathrooms in the UK and the company also stocks other stylish brands, such as Burlington Bathrooms and Huppe showers.

Most of the range is in stock so you don’t need to plan weeks in advance. You can just come in, choose your products and take them away. Or why not arrange free local delivery?

The Brighton showroom is based on the Freshfields Business Park, near to Screwfix and Plumbworld, while the Rustington showroom is on the Brookside Estate.

Both showrooms have free parking so you can pull up outside and knowledgeable, friendly staff to help you decide on the best products for your project.

www.eurotilesandbathrooms.com Brighton email: brighton@eurotilesandbathrooms.com, tel: 01273 605445 Rustington rustington@eurotilesandbathrooms.com, tel: 01903 785226

november 2014 | sussexstyl e .c o m | 5 9

advertising feature

before

after

before

after

Sell with style

B

Improve & Move is a home staging, styling and removals business set up by Cuckfield residents Pip Bucksey and Helen Laben

oth have a long-term passion for interior design and home

“By choosing different wall colours, decluttering, improving furniture

improvement. Having transformed several homes of their own

placement and using your accessories in a clever way your house can be

over the years, Pip and Helen decided it was time to turn a hobby

transformed for minimal cost, providing that invaluable first impression to

into a business and launched Improve & Move earlier this year.

your potential buyer,” adds Helen.

Improve & Move offers a service that is value for money and flexible

enough to meet all home improvement dilemmas, however big or small.

“We don’t want anyone to feel that getting help with their interiors will cost

“Often people don’t feel they have the time, energy or money to invest in a property they are leaving. That’s where we can help.”

Improve & Move also offers moving in services, which is a great way to ensure your move is hassle-free. Pip and Helen unpack your belongings and

the earth,” says Pip. “Everyone is conscious of getting value for money in the current climate.

Our aim is to find the best value for each product we source and to avoid people making costly mistakes with colours and fabrics.”

If you’re familiar with TV shows like House Doctor or Phil Spencer’s Secret Agent then you’ll appreciate the importance of preparing your home for sale.

arrange your furniture in your new home, allowing you to simply move in and relax!

What they say…

“I didn’t know where to start with my living room and found it uninviting.

This is known as home staging and it’s important to get it right. No longer

Pip and Helen knew just how to rearrange my existing furniture to open up

are a few tricks like making sure your home smells of fresh bread and coffee

the room. The colours and fabrics they suggested have transformed it into a

enough to sell your house.

beautiful, welcoming and calm space” — Amanda, Horsham

Invest to impress — don’t give anyone the excuse to offer less for your property than you deserve.

For a free initial consultation call Helen, tel: 01444 443271/07944 749174, Pip, tel: 01444 413001/07714 203165 View our photo gallery online at www.improveandmove.co.uk

before

after

before

after

life style

&

‘It’s ruining everything’: the women regaining control from a life lived online Top author Kate Mosse reveals how Sussex has influenced her life and writing

The secret West Sussex detox retreat that’s turning lives around Travel: France and an awe-inspiring trek along the Great Wall of China

MUM on the run L

This month Laura Jandac is dealing with that most awkward of moments — the early discovery of Christmas presents

ook what I just found Mummy,’ my son screamed as he ran into the house. He was so pleased with himself as I looked down to see just what had made him so happy.

Christmas presents. Christmas presents that I had thought long and hard about where to hide had now been found within 24 hours of being hidden. He confessed he had found them in a compartment in the boot of my car. I really need to remember that my son is clearly a detective in the making and I must be more ingenious if I am going to keep anything a secret until December. I had tried to be a smarty pants and it had backfired.

Tired of leaving Christmas shopping until the last minute every year, I had made the decision to be a changed woman and graze through my shopping, thus not racking up the almighty bill for express deliveries that I normally do.

My son Archie (and most of his friends) are

already at bursting point with the thought of Christmas, or more importantly presents.

By August Archie had written a letter to Santa, which he insisted we post there and then. I caved and walked to the post office in the rain only to have the letter returned to sender a month later (a secret that will go with me to my grave). He has since embarked on volume two and the list is growing daily. I must take some responsibility for this though as, since the summer, every time he has asked for anything I have told him to ask Santa!

It’s Santa speaking

My sister-in-law uses the love of Christmas to her advantage.

If her children won’t tow the line she calls Father Christmas to tell him. This normally evokes screaming and tears — but also good behaviour. She has been known to have Father Christmas on the phone as early as April, but by October my nieces are the most immaculately behaved children you will ever

meet. Maybe I’m missing a trick.

I am not the only one who suffers from nosey-child syndrome. Last year a friend’s daughter unpacked her stocking and asked her mother why Santa had been keeping her presents under the spare bed. ‘They have been there for ages,’ she laughed. Mortified my friend had to explain that Santa had called her and asked if he could bring them early as there were so many and he was worried they wouldn’t fit into his sleigh. Phew! The things we have to lie about (all white lies, of course).

All the television advertising for Christmas presents during the summer holidays and shop window displays starting in September do detract from the festive time of year. It’s more of an all-year round event these days, and as a mother it makes it difficult to always have to say no.

I do remind myself, though, that the great man himself did return my son’s letter, so maybe even Santa wishes we’d all have a rest from time to time.

“If my sister-in-law’s children won’t tow the line she calls Father Christmas. She’s been known to have him on the phone as early as April”

64 | s u sse x sty l e . c om | nov ember 2014

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?

Too much information

We’re obsessed with sharing our lives online. From clothes to food, exercise routines to pictures of our children, the desire to document what we’re up to, with whom and when can be allconsuming. But is it healthy? Melody Bridges investigates

T

he internet is no longer simply a tool to research exotic places, unknown languages or homework answers. It’s now a space we turn to for sharing both the joys and woes of our lives. But when does sharing our personal information get too much?

Where is that fine line between keeping our friends up to date and oversharing every aspect of our lives?

“I’m constantly online,” admits Worthing-based blogger and social media expert Sarah Lewis. “It’s basically ruining my life.

“Because I work for crowdsourcing platform the Trillion Fund — and because my friends are on there too — it’s hard to draw a line between work and non-work.”

And Sarah’s not alone in that struggle. Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter allow us to share the intimate details of our lives in easier ways than ever before.

There’s a world out there just waiting for you to update — where’s the harm in that? But what happens when these things become out of control? When does checking our email and posting a few pictures

68 | s u sse x sty l e . c om | nov ember 2014

online become a dangerous obsession?

As early as 1995 — a lifetime ago in the digital world — health experts started talking about internet addiction as a serious phenomenon. Yes, really. Consumer research shows that the average person checks their phones as many as 110 times a day and it’s known that overuse of phones and computers can lead to medical problems.

If you’re concerned about your own overuse there is even an internet addiction test. Of course, you have to take it online.

Eat or tweet?

But don’t the advantages outweigh the problems? If you want to lose weight there are endless apps, many of them free, that will help you count calories. There are websites where a supportive community of users will share the ups and downs of your dieting journey.

Foodsharing apps such as Foodspotting, Platter and SnapDish allow users to share every meal they eat. Can this lead to eating problems or at the very least a lack of enjoyment from food?

Hayley Netser of Always Nutrition refutes this idea: “Most of the

illustration by rosie scott at rosiescott.co.uk

life style

time when people share photos of their food online it’s because they’ve made something so healthy and colourful. I don’t see people sharing photos of bad food — even though we all know that we eat it!”

Does taking a picture of what you’re eating ruin an evening out, or are you contributing to a society of consumers who want to know where and how to get the best of everything?

“When I see someone sharing photos of good food, I want to know where they were and what they ordered,” Hayley adds.

Certainly the passion for archiving what we eat online — which is particularly popular for those following super-healthy ‘clean’ diets — has made it hard to distinguish between when we should and shouldn’t be documenting our lives.

But social media experts say the biggest challenge for many of us now is learning the difference between using the internet for work and mindlessly wandering off into distant corners of the web. We’ve all experienced the lure of reading one article or blog after another and never getting any actual work done. Another term for this is ‘click-bait’ or, incredibly, ‘falling into a click hole’.

“I have to set my phone’s alarm every 20 minutes so that I stop what I’m doing and actually try to get some proper work done,” admits Sarah Lewis.

Brighton social media expert Katie Fewings adds: “I try to separate the social media I do for fun from the social media I do for work — but usually unsuccessfully.

“I have a work laptop but I nearly always

take it home with me and would readily admit that the boundaries between my work space and personal space are very blurred.”

Mum-of two Katie admits to worrying about the number of pictures she’s posted online of her two young children.

“I probably post more photos than I should,” she says. “And there’s definitely a concern that the photos could somehow get out there, especially with the recent photo hacking scandal.”

Concerns about photo security led to the UK Government introducing a new law last month to penalise the distributors of ‘revenge porn’, with a maximum sentence of two years in jail.

Life envy

When you see on Facebook that a friend’s child has succeeded in potty training, do you instantly ‘like’ the post and feel delighted for them?

Or can there be jealousy, bitterness even, for those who feel that life has short-changed them while giving others so much joy?

A controversial experiment carried out

by Facebook in 2012 found that users’ emotions are, not surprisingly, affected by the amount of positive and negative stories they view on the social media site.

Sarah Lewis decided to take a week off Facebook recently.

“I felt fantastic,” she says. “It’s only when you take time off you realise that when you hear a million other thoughts and feelings, it can affect your ability to have your own coherent thoughts.”

“Does taking a picture of what you’re eating ruin a meal — or are you contributing to a society of consumers who want the best of everything?”

“When you take time off social media you realise that when you hear a million other thoughts and feelings, it can affect your ability to have your own coherent thoughts” For parents a term has been coined for the kind of oversharing that some mums and dads indulge in. ‘Shar-enting’ — a combination of sharing and parenting — describes the need to update your friends on what your child has been up to minute by minute.

But surely there’s something deeper going on here? To share so many personal and emotional elements of our lives must be a way of reaching out. And with children moving far away from their parents when they grow up, with the traditional fabric of society changing all the time, isn’t it understandable that we feel this immense need to reach out?

Perhaps the greatest irony is that we know that checking the internet is not good for us, yet we do it anyway. Behavioural psychologists have proven that constant checking of social media updates is linked to depression. We see edited highlights of everybody’s lives — and boy, aren’t they fabulous? Covet what they’re wearing, admire how good they are at yoga and, my, what beautiful children. And look what a fabulous time they are having at weddings and parties we haven’t been invited to.

“There’s an element of keeping up with the Joneses online,” admits Sarah Lewis. “Everyone’s lives seem so wonderful.”

And even though we know this can’t be true, it can diminish our sense of self and pride. The internet has changed our lives forever. And in many ways, it’s been a hugely positive change. Few of us would want to live a life without the internet now (although social media may be a different matter for some). But there are still concerns about online photo sharing, the privacy of personal information and how to keep children protected in such an open space.

We can safely assume that the internet isn’t going away. But as it only recently passed beyond its teenage years, maybe it’s safe to say it hasn’t figured out yet what it wants to be when it grows up.

70 | s u sse x sty l e . c om | nov ember 2014

5

top tips for keeping sane (and safe) online

1 Check your privacy settings on all social media websites.

2 When downloading an app, make sure it doesn’t automatically link in with other sites that you may already be using such as Twitter and Facebook.

3 Consider just how many photos of your children should be online.

Remember, you can’t ever really delete anything from the internet — they will be there forever.

4 If you cannot control your own internet use and need to make sure you concentrate on work, set your phone alarm to go off at 20-minute intervals.

5 Check your computer software is virus-free and up to date. You want to keep your own private information just that — private.

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BOOKS style

The

Book Club

November is a wonderful time for reading. Dark evenings, wood fires and maybe a hot chocolate to sip. This month, literary editor Laura Lockington selects three books for you to enjoy that will have you puzzling over them long after you’ve finished reading

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell (Published by Sceptre) Longlisted for this year’s Man Booker Prize this is a fantastical, sweeping epic of a book that shakes and stirs the reader into a world unknown. Usually anything that smacks of magic realism has me running for the hills, or at the very least hurling the book across the room, but this had me hooked from the very beginning.

The book tells the story of Holly Sykes’ life. As a teenager she ran away from home and a small kindness from a woman offering her green tea when she was thirsty in return for a promise of ‘asylum’ at a later date is the start of a journey that will leave you spinning.

Decades pass before the debt has to be paid. This book completely dazzled me. The rips in the fabric of ordinary time and lives are a masterpiece of invention, and done so subtly and cleverly that it had me gasping with admiration.

The time jumps in the book made me nervous for our future —I had to remind myself again and again that this was a work of fiction. A truly great read.

Before The Fall by Juliet West (Pan) So often we read about the trenches, the bombs and the bloody fields of Flanders that made up the horrors of the supposed war to end all wars. But this book concentrates on the people left behind, struggling with day-to-day living while their loved ones are away.

Hannah Loxwood lives in London’s East End and is trying to keep everything together while her husband is away fighting. When she takes a job (unheard of at the time) in a cafe she has glimpses of a new way of life. Hannah feels she has sacrificed her happiness to a husband who may never come back from the conflict, and that her ideas of ‘duty’ have come at a terrible price.

And when she meets Daniel — thoughtful, intelligent, captivating — Hannah finds herself faced with the most dangerous of temptations.

This book gives a real sense of how hard life was for women whose husbands were away at war. Through Hannah it feels like we are there, living her life day by day. This is a compelling read and one that will haunt you for some time to come.

Do you have a suggestion for our Book Club?

Email editorial@ sandrpublishing.co.uk

74 | s usse x sty l e . c om | nov ember 2014

The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters (Virago) This book is set in the 1920s, and all of society is feeling the pinch. Frances, who lives with her mother in a crumbling beast of a house in a genteel part of London, comes to the unhappy conclusion that they must take in paying guests (so much nicer than “lodgers”), and so enter Lillian and Leonard.

It makes for an uncomfortable living arrangement: the mother moves bedrooms to the ground floor and there are awkward moments in the shared outside WC. Lillian (soon to become Lily) and her husband are of “clerk class” and Frances finds herself drawn into a friendship with Lily that has quite disastrous results.

The devil is in the details here and the sexual tension and bloody aftermath build to a crescendo that will leave you reeling. I became entranced with Lily and yearned for Frances (who is a capable, independent woman) to break free of the ghastly trappings of middle-class life in Britain at this time.

win

a luxury 2-night getaway IN beautiful BURGHLEY

T

he William Cecil hotel in Stamford is delighted to offer a twonight getaway for two for a lucky Sussex Style reader! The hotel lies within the magnificent Burghley Estate, the centrepiece of which is Burghley House, one of the foremost country estates in the UK. Add to this the beauty of Stamford, which topped The Sunday Times 2013 list of the best places to live in Britain, and The William Cecil must be one of the best-located hotels in the country.

For more information visit thewilliamcecil.co.uk.

To enter email comps@sussexstyle.co.uk, answering this question: what county is Stamford in?

Competition terms and conditions:

The competition is only open to UK residents. You have to be aged over 18 to enter. There is no entry fee or purchase necessary. The prize consists of a complimentary luxury two-night stay at The William Cecil hotel, Stamford, for two to include breakfast. Bar bill excluded.

Prize subject to availability. The William Cecil hotel will accommodate the winner’s choice of dates, valid only on Sunday through to Thursday. The competition closes on Monday 24 November 2014. Only entries received before the closing date will be included in the free prize draw. The winner will be notified in writing after Friday 31 November 2014.

The reservation must be booked and taken before March 1 2015 and excludes 24-26 and 30-31 December 2014, 1 January 2015 and 13-15 February 2015. The competition is not open to employees of Hillbrooke Hotels or S and R Publishing Ltd.

Sussex my

Best-selling author Kate Mosse tells Karen Spinner how Sussex has shaped her life, family and writing

sussex style

Clockwise from far left: Kate aged 15 in 1976; on a boat in Dell Quay, Chichester; with mother Barbara in 1962; cover of latest book The Taxidermist’s Daughter

Photograph by Mark Rusher

I

don’t think any child really thinks about their childhood while they are living it, but I know I was very happy.

I grew up Fishbourne in the 1960s and 70s. I went to the village school, belonged to the local Brownies and Guides groups and enjoyed walking in Fishbourne Marshes with my parents. I lived a local life and my family was very much part of the community.

Chichester has always had an important place in my heart. It was here I had my first experience of the theatre — aged six, to see the wonderful Italian Straw Hat — where I went to school and where, aged 15, I met my future husband Greg.

Looking back I realise I’ve been able to make the most of opportunities, in part, because I grew up in Chichester. It’s a place where the ‘big society’ works. Sussex has always been a creative county, but the wonderful thing about Chichester is that it is a place built on the arts.

At 18 I went up to Oxford and I didn’t live in Sussex again for more than 20 years. Of course the link never goes away and there were lots of trips back to see family and friends.

When I returned to Sussex — I was offered the post of executive director of the Chichester Festival Theatre in 1998 — it felt like I was coming home. I had been very happy living in London, but Sussex is a place that gets its hooks into you.

There are so many things I love about the county. It always make me smile when I’m being picked up for an appearance or to be driven to the airport and the driver says to me ‘oh, I didn’t realise just how lovely it is here’.

There is something about the land in Sussex, a landscape that has remained unchanged for thousands of years. I love walking up on the Downs and in particular along The Trundle, which was a favourite family walk from my childhood.

From a young age I was drawn to the wild shorelines of Sussex. Not for me the golden sands of the Witterings — give me the stony beaches and gothic atmosphere of Fishbourne Marshes, Kingley Vale, Church Norton and Apuldrum.

What many people forget about Sussex is that it was, until the 1880s, an isolated county. Separated from the rest of the world by the Downs it was a county quite unto itself.

Essentially life continued as it had done for years.

As a result of this communities in Sussex are far less transient than in other parts of the country. This struck me when I was researching The Taxidermist’s Daughter, which is set over four days in Fishbourne in 1912. Many of the surnames that cropped up while I was looking at records are still in use in the village today. I love that continuing narrative of Sussex.

The Taxidermist’s Daughter is the first historical novel of mine based in Sussex. All of my previous writing has been set in Carcassonne, France, where we have a holiday home and where I learnt to be a writer. In Sussex, I was always someone else — someone’s friend, someone’s mother, someone’s wife — before being a writer. In Carcassonne I could be a writer first.

But for years an idea kept going around in my mind that refused to go away. It was inspired by childhood visits to Walter Potter’s museum of taxidermy in Arundel, which was a favourite weekend activity of mine in the 1970s. I was fascinated by the little cases and by what I saw as essentially a different way of telling a story — I never thought it was weird or macabre.

When I started writing the story came together rapidly. It was the quickest book I’ve ever written, taking less than a year, and I found the process of writing it liberating, joyous even. It’s certainly been the most exciting book to write since Labyrinth [Kate’s 2005 multi-million best seller] and has received the best reviews. It’s been an incredible experience. I felt completely driven by the story and immersed in the environment.

It has certainly made me think about writing another story based in Sussex. But for now I’m enjoying promoting the book before planning Christmas. My mother and mother-in-law live with us [Kate’s father died in 2011] and my children will come down from London, so it will be a real family occasion. Then a big deep breath and time to make new plans in the new year.

But not too soon — only a fool starts something on 1 January!

Meet Kate

Kate will be at the literary dinner in aid of the St Peter Project on Friday 21 November at The Old Greenhouse, 82 Fishbourne Road, Chichester, West Sussex PO19 3JL. Visit stpeterproject.org

november 2014 | suss exstyle .c o m | 7 7

Simply perfect

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Can a detox really change your life? Karen Spinner finds out during a stay at a West Sussex retreat with a devoted following

dmiration, intrigue, ridicule. The reaction from family and friends when I announce I’m taking myself off for five food-free days in rural West Sussex. I will, I tell them, be bravely surviving on juice, broth and willpower alone.

Detox is big business in the UK. And over the past two years there has been a proliferation of raw juice companies — many of them run by entrepreneurial young women — desperate to get in on the act.

But detoxing is also a controversial business. Many experts believe that, while you can’t argue with the logic of drinking and eating more fruit and vegetables (especially the latter), there is no need to spend time — and cash — detoxing. Humans have been around for 30,000 years. Our bodies have, by now, perfected the art of detox.

I’ve always been on the fence about this one. I adhere to a healthy lifestyle as much as possible (if we just sidestep the caffeine and chocolate), have been vegetarian for all but the first eight years of my life and make 78 | s u sse x sty l e . c om | nov ember 2014

weekly (wallet-emptying) trips to Whole Foods. So I’m all for anything that can improve my health. But is five days of a juiceonly diet necessary? And is it actually healthy?

This curiosity (and the thought of the impending party season) led me to Rudgwick retreat Simply Healing. Yes, I’d never heard of it either, but there’s a reason — Simply Healing is the insider’s secret. Much loved by beauty editors, celebrities, mums, city workers and, although no one at Simply Healing would ever be so indiscreet as to mention it, royalty, this is the place those in the know head to when they need a boost.

Named best detox retreat in the UK by Vogue, Simply Healing offers a range of detox plans, each of which includes divine-sounding treatments. As well as targeting weight loss, there are special programmes to boost fertility (which have achieved cult status among those trying for a baby) and for women struggling with the menopause.

Feeling in need of a general overhaul (and a touch on the plump side after the summer), I book myself on to the popular five-day weight-loss plan. After a last breakfast (the

five-day plan begins on a Thursday morning) comprising green tea, kiwi fruit and a toasted crumpet, I pack my bag, reassuring my husband in the process that I’m unlikely to pass out on the drive down.

The place

If ever a spot was suited to a detox retreat, this is it. Nestled in countryside six miles to the west of Horsham, you would be hard pushed to find a more tranquil place. The feeling of peace envelops you as you arrive.

Alliblasters House (no typo) is home to Simply Healing’s inspirational founder Vivien Kay and the site of the retreat. Living, and detoxing, in someone else’s home is unusual but, as I discover, hugely helpful and comforting. The house is beautiful but it’s not swanky or modern. Rather think cosiness and a feeling of complete peace with your surroundings. This is a secure and nurturing place to detox. Within hours of arriving I find myself padding around in my slippers and dressing gown, chatting happily to people who were complete strangers that morning.

My bedroom overlooks the front lawn and

life style

Far left: Alliblasters House in the tranquil West Sussex countryside. Top left: one of the treatment rooms. Treatments are holisitic and wide ranging and the therapists some of the best I’ve ever encountered. Bottom left: the communal lounge. Right: all juices are freshly prepared and cleverly concocted

has rolling views towards the South Downs. I spend a lot of time in here over the next five days reading, napping and watching the odd bit of TV. On my first night I have probably the best night’s sleep of my life in the most ridiculously comfortable bed. On the final day, I do something I’ve never done before and peel back the sheets to write down the name of the mattress.

The plan

Okay, this is it. After a health consultation with nurse Kate (one of those rare people everyone instantly takes to), the plan begins.

In its simplest form it comprises a juice every two hours, interspersed with cleansing supplements, treatments, detox soup and potassium broth in the evening. And lots of water — we are all given bottles with our names on and urged to fill them during the day. There is no solid food at all until a divine fruit salad on the penultimate day.

Each morning begins with an optional 40-minute walk. Kate tells me that, for the best results, I should do at least a couple of

walks during my stay, which I obediently stick to. As the days go on I find it surprising how much energy I have during the walks.

I love juice and gobble down (er, that should be “drink slowly”) every one. We start the day with a fruit juice, have a green juice two hours later and then a mixture of fruit and vegetable juices throughout the day.

Vivien sources all the produce herself and every juice is freshly made.

Each juice is at a set time and we’re told we must stick to “mealtimes” for the best results.

A key part of the plan’s success is taking in something every two hours, thus avoiding blood sugar spikes.

Throughout the day we have our different treatments, which are holistic and tailored for the plan with the option of adding more on as you wish. The treatments are fabulous, the therapists wonderful and the list of what you can have done is endless. Colonic hydrotherapy is a key part of the detox and, unless you have a health reason not to have it done, you are urged to have at least one session.

As well as juice you take psyllium husk, bentonite clay and cleansing herbs several

times a day, which is important for digestive health. It’s not the best thing ever, resembling a glass of wallpaper paste with a distinct whiff of concrete, but it’s okay. I drink it dutifully every day until the final day, when I reach husk-fatigue point.

It’s amazing how much there is to keep us busy. With a “meal” every few hours, plus treatments, the day passes quickly. There are also power plates to use and the chi machine, a passive exercise device that rocks your body while you are lying down. I become a little bit addicted to it.

The guests

There are never more than nine people on a detox at any one time. In my group there are six of us for the five days, with another three arriving for a mini detox at the weekend.

Although most guests are female, Vivien tells me they do get lots of men staying, often with girlfriends or wives. I find the detox quite an insular process — and I mean that in a good way — one that I wouldn’t want to embark on with my husband. How often do you get five days just to focus on yourself, november 2014 | suss exstyle .c o m | 7 9

Left: one of the bedrooms. Each is designed differently, but all are calm and extremely comfortable.

Right: looking towards the South Downs from the lawn

your thoughts and your body? There is one male in our group and we all agree how much we are relishing this rare time to ourselves.

My fellow detoxers range in age from late twenties to early sixties and are a mix of mums, city workers and retirees. We spend time talking about why we are here and how work, family issues and the stresses of everyday life have ground us down.

There’s lots of chat, inevitably, about food. It’s interesting to hear that the one diet demon we all have in common is caffeine.

Privacy and time alone are very much respected at Simply Healing, but we end up spending a lot of time together at “mealtimes”, plus on the optional walks and group meditation sessions. I learn that a detox is a bonding experience and sharing it with people certainly makes it easier.

We are all very different, but I like and feel comfortable with everyone in my group.

We get on brilliantly, share lots of laughs and swap emails at the end.

How you will feel

I want to believe I can go without food for five days. Day one is fine. The novelty gets me through. Day two is the hardest — I am exhausted and can’t even face reading. But I then seem to turn a corner and the remaining days are, well, okay.

Being honest, I am constantly hungry, but it’s a low-level, manageable hunger. When you know you can’t eat, when you know there isn’t any food around, you just accept it. I feel proud that I’m soldiering through. None of my fellow guests complain about hunger and I think about how I react to hunger in everyday life.

After day two I start to feel more energetic and alive. Although most of the group experience headaches and pain in the lower back (where the kidneys are detoxifying), I am blessed and don’t experience any aching.

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On the penultimate evening I start craving solid food but, surprisingly, the next morning I don’t feel that bothered about food at all, or going home and eating ‘normally’ again.

The verdict

I leave Simply Healing nine pounds lighter and having lost 8.5 inches from my body.

Within our group we lose four stone in weight — yes, that’s from six people — and one of my fellow detoxers lost 28 inches.

“This place has turned my life around,” she told me.

Each of us has undergone a big transformation, both physically and mentally.

Two people visibly shrank, while everyone had brighter eyes and clearer skin by day five.

Was this maintained? Six weeks on and I’ve lost a few more pounds. I ate well before, but my diet is healthier now. I have six small meals a day, including two juices. Weirdly/ wonderfully I never feel hungry. Of course I still have treats — and one coffee a day — but I seem to have lost the desire to eat rubbish. I’m also using fewer products on my skin, with the result that it’s looking better than it has done in years.

But even though my goal was to lose weight, there are two aspects of the detox that I potentially found more interesting.

First of all, I feel much calmer and more content since my stay at Simply Healing. I feel more at peace with the world and less prone to stress, worry and impatience.

Secondly, I have a lot more energy. I did a spin class the day after returning home and it was probably the easiest workout I’ve ever done. Six weeks later, the effects are still there.

Simply Healing isn’t cheap, but there’s a reason for that. Like my fellow detoxers, I’ll be returning in the new year.

• The five-day weight-loss plan starts at £1,710.

Find out more at simplyhealingcentre.com

What to take Travel light. You will be spending most of your time in a dressing gown (provided for you) and you won’t even think about make-up. But do pack: • Books, audiobooks, magazines • Slippers • Loose t-shirts/long-sleeved tops • A pair of comfy trousers • Snug nightwear and one warm jumper (detoxing can make the body cold) • Walking boots/shoes you are happy to walk in (although these are provided if you forget)

Treatments… and colonic The treatments I had at Simply Healing were some of the best of my life. In particular I recommend: • The lymphatic massage — book in with Florence if you can • Any massage/Thai foot treatment with therapist Aor, who has the most amazing touch • Shamanic healing with Vivien. Okay, you might not think this is for you — I didn’t either. But you have to experience it. A life changer • Colonic hydrotherapy. I was the only member of the group who had just one colonic. Therapist Carolyn is amazing, but I didn’t really enjoy the experience. It’s not painful, embarrassing (honest) or unpleasant — it just wasn’t for me. Having said that, would I have it done again? At Simply Healing, yes.

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the land of giant

appetites The Nord-Pas de Calais region is often overlooked by visitors. But the area is having something of a renaissance. Neil Linnert falls for its many charms (not to mention cuisine) on a recent trip

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and ahoy! The golden beaches of the ‘Opal Coast’ appear on the horizon. No, not some exotic South Pacific paradise, but the Nord-Pas de Calais region of France, so often eclipsed by its more celebrated relatives of Paris in the South and Bruges to the East.

The region is used more as a transit cut through than a destination in its own right, a tradition started back in Roman times. It’s been trampled over during numerous battles, including two World Wars. This is the land where John McCrae wrote In Flanders Fields in 1915, bringing about the symbolism of the poppy.

My Ferry Link runs 16 crossings a day to the region’s shores, each yo-yoing its way between Dover and Calais. No sooner have you waved farewell to Blighty than the French coast appears.

For the uninitiated French Flanders is a hard one to pin down. It’s a locale with blurred influences. Beer is favoured over wine — and what is traditional Flemish gastronomy?

Most arrivals screech off in toutes directions as soon as their wheels touch the tarmac, seemingly anxious to put a considerable distance between them and the belching chimneys of Calais.

Travelling from Dover it’s nearly as far to London as it is to the hilltop town of Cassel. Just an hour’s drive from Calais, Cassel is built on the only hill on an otherwise typically flat plain, hence its sobriquet the ‘Everest of Flanders’. Little matter that it’s 8,672 metres short of Everest’s lofty altitude. But that’s nothing compared with the tall stories associated with Cassel’s origins.

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This is an area steeped in folklore. There are legends of exhausted giants dropping their loads of earth on their way to fill a ravine and locals luring a rampaging ogre with barrels of beer, burying him in the process, so that in his slumbers he made Mont Cassel dance.

The most revered giants, Reuze Papa and Reuze Maman, are UNESCO listed and in the Musée de Flandre. Given their delicate wicker structures, Reuze Papa looks dashing in his Roman style apparel complete with ripped abs and bloated ‘Pob’ face. Yet it’s their dopplegängers that get an airing in the town’s annual carnival each Easter Monday. Up to nine metres tall and weighing in at over 300kg, they are paraded through the packed town on the backs of men dizzy with carnival euphoria. It’s also rumoured that Cassel is the ‘Hill’ in The Grand Old Duke of York.

But it’s when you arrive at the Jardin de la Ferme du Mont des Récollects that you really start to appreciate French Flanders. Manu Quillacq inherited it from his grandfather 20 years ago and has meticulously created 17 ‘rooms’ in the garden, each with its own personality. It may look as though Edward Scissorhands has been given carte blanche, but the rooms draw their inspiration from the renaissance, classical and contemporary eras, juxtaposed with softer, natural elements that Quillacq admits he would like to incorporate more of. It’s no surprise that it’s been voted garden of the year twice.

The French Flanders landscape floods in through intermittent frames cut into the side of the hedges.

“This is how the Flemish painters would have seen it,” says Manu, a

tr avel style

Opposite page: grilled scorpion fish with cucumber at Steven Ramon’s restaurant Rouge Barre; the Lille chamber of commerce with its impressive 76-metre high belfry tower. This page (clockwise from top left): interior of Chez Meert tearoom; the bar at the Jardin de la Ferme du Mont des Recollects; the author assembling tarte au citron during a cookery lesson at the L’Atelier des Chefs; rows of delicacies at Chez Meert

humble chap whose personality is endearing. The variety is staggering and the ‘rooms’ are knitted together by hallways of cobbles. Incredibly, Manu maintains the garden with just one helper.

Inside the house itself is a quaint bar. As you enter, the perfumed wood is the first thing that hits you and there are pumpkins piled high on the table. Vivaldi plays in the background and traditional wooden games fill a second table. The ceiling is festooned with dried hops.

A cozy lean-to conservatory is the ideal place to breathe it all in.

Had I been here two weeks ago I’d have been rubbing shoulders with French screen legend, Catherine Deneuve. Instead I’m content with a glass of La Choulette bière with Tarte aux Spéculoos and rose ice cream melting in my mouth, peering out over Manu’s stepped garden to French Flanders beyond.

Further into Cassel, up a narrow cobbled street flanked by neat terraced houses, suddenly appears the Châtellerie du Schoebeque, a four-star hotel, famed for such previous guests as George V and First World War veteran, Maréchal Foch.

The other twist to the Schoebeque is the themed rooms, tastefully theatrical and ranging in style from oriental and boudoir to Moroccan and maritime. Mine has an African theme — there literally is an elephant in the room (albeit a wooden one).

In the town Quillacq also has his own estaminet, a traditional Flemish inn. Het Kasteel Hof clings to the edge of the road and has a strong Celtic feel. Families sit enjoying beer and playing traditional games as the proprietors peel apples on a table in the corner.

In the peak months, Quillacq animatedly regales visitors with fables of giants as his guests tuck into traditional Flemish cuisine such as Rillettes à la bière — a beer pâté — and Coeur Cassellois: apple and onion bacon tart.

You can wash it all down with a framboise beer and eat a chicorée crème brûlée. All the produce is grown back at the Jardin de la Ferme.

Photography by Neil Linnert

“Two weeks ago I would have been rubbing shoulders with Catherine Deneuve, but I’m content with a glass of La Choulette bière” Citroens and cuisine

Half an hour away from Cassel is Lille, 2004 capital of culture.

Despite this accolade I half expect to see Lowry-style characters lachrymosely dragging their way through an industrial gloom. This feeling quickly dissipates. You can navigate easily to a Novotel on the edge of the city and stride into the Place du Général de Gaulle in around 10 minutes. There’s a driverless metro and the main train station has services that run to Paris in 60 minutes.

The best way to see Lille is by a tour in the iconic Citroen 2CV. Rattling through Lille’s narrow cobbled streets, past the theatres, november 2014 | suss exstyle .c o m | 8 3

Clockwise from top left: sculpted yew trees and pumpkins piled high at the Jardin de la Ferme du Mont des Recollects; the Châtellierie du Schoebeque in Cassel; scallops and mushrooms at Steven Ramon’s Rouge Barre; street crepes, Lille

boulangeries and galleries, 30km/h suddenly feels supersonic, although I’m unsure what barrier we’ll break first!

There’s definitely a charm to the fug of exhaust wafting up your nostrils as you’re sloshed around in the back seat. And it’s clear by the nostalgic looks of the locals that the 2CV is part of the town’s renaissance. Lille means ‘the islands’ and this part of town used to be the poorest. But today it hosts many of the city’s most exclusive shops and restaurants, mixed with traditional estaminets and lots of boutiques.

After a whirlwind tour of Lille, what could be more relaxing than handling guillotine-sharp knives in a cookery lesson at L’Atelier des Chefs? It’s a group lesson and we start with a mushroom and spring onion soup with carbonara-style siphoned foam, which turns out to be surprisingly difficult to administer and leads to raucous laughter from a few of the school’s students. It seemed more as though we were putting out a fire than delicately swirling a light whip of foam on top of their creations.

Chez Meert, built in 1761, is a must. It’s not hard to find, with throngs of people swarming like flies around a neon light, practically licking the windows as they admire the rows of delicacies. It’s a place with so high a sugar content that your teeth almost melt on the way in — the perfect place for a pick-me-up cuppa when you start to lag.

Famed not only for the ‘Meert’ waffle — a deceptively simple waferthin treat — it has a super sweet vanilla centre. The tearoom, which was a firm favourite of Général de Gaulle and the bourgeoisie, books up fast. With its high ceilings (presumably for those local giants), gilt 84 | s u sse x sty l e . c om | nov ember 2014

decorations and guilty pleasures, be mindful of your pinky finger (petit doigt) jutting out ceremoniously as you sip on your gunpowder tea.

Sunday is for markets, which are dotted around the city. There is a month-long Christmas market that starts 19 November.

Another hidden gem in Nord-Pas de Calais region is the LouvreLens museum. The main attraction is the Time gallery, which walks you through pre-history all the way up to the mid-nineteenth century.

Be sure to pay a visit to the restaurant in the museum’s park where Michelin-starred chef Marc Meurin serves up edible art.

Steven Ramon’s Rouge Barre is definitely flavour of the month.

The dashing runner-up in Top Chef — France’s Masterchef equivalent — served up a medley of brave cuisine including scorpion fish and a memorable white chocolate mousse with mango sorbet, and fresh mango in a marmalade syrup, which was just like licking a rainbow.

Food porn at its best.

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I

t gets to the stage where life is all about work. You need to head out and see the world.” So says Katie Wilson, owner of popular Hove fashion boutique Walk In Wardrobe, when explaining the motivation behind her trip to China in September.

“My friend [fashion stylist] Carol Ives and I were chatting earlier in the year about doing a charity trek. We both like to support various charities and we thought a walk was a different way of raising money,” Katie explains.

“We did lots of research before settling on China. Although Carol is well travelled neither of us had been there before, so we thought it would be a real experience. When we found out you could organise treks along the Great Wall, we were sold — if we were going to do it, we might as well do it properly!”

The 40-something duo picked two Brighton good causes to support — Rockinghorse Children’s charity and the Martlets Hospice — and began training in earnest.

“We would be walking 64km [40 miles] over five days, so we knew training was important,” explains Katie. “We both live in Shoreham, so we’d meet up at least once a week for a long training walk over the Downs and do shorter walks individually throughout the week. We started training six months before setting off.”

But despite sticking rigorously to their schedule, disaster struck just days before the

pair was due to depart for Beijing.

“We’d done a long walk to the Seven Sisters in awful conditions,” says Katie. “It was such hard work — it finished me off.

“A few days later I was in terrible pain. I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with plantar fascilitis [inflammation of the underside of the foot and heel] and told that under no circumstances should I go to China.”

But after six months of training and almost £2,000 raised in donations, there was no holding Katie back.

“I found a doctor who was happy to give me a cortisone injection, which I had five days before we left. During the trek my foot was extremely painful. I had to take painkillers every four hours and lie with my feet raised.

“But it was worth it,” she laughs.

Out of this world

Katie and Carol walked a section of the Great Wall that loops around Beijing. The experience started as soon as they landed in China’s capital city, home to a staggering 22 million people.

“There were people everywhere,” Katie says.

“Times Square looks deserted in comparison.

You can’t imagine how so many people can live in one place.”

Within hours of landing Katie and Carol had met their tour guide and faced the Wall for the first time.

“You can’t prepare properly for the Great

Wall,” she admits. “It is absolutely staggering, just thousands and thousands of steps. The enormity of it took our breath away.

“We were walking in a group with 24 others and after we first saw the Wall we were in shock,” she says. “We said to each other, ‘what on earth have we done?’ Even though we were strangers we bonded over the fear!”

Each day comprised of five to eight hours walking, with the itinerary being carried out with military precision. Accommodation was in lodges — “basic but adequate” — dotted along the Wall’s path.

“Our lead guide was like a sergeant major and very strict with us,” laughs Katie. “It was a bit like boot camp.”

Each morning the group would stretch before walking, make packed lunches — typically consisting of Marmite and peanut butter sandwiches, processed cheese, a piece of fruit and a small cake — and be reminded of the importance of staying hydrated.

“Although the temperature varies wildly in the hills round Beijing, staying hydrated was crucial, so our guides drummed this into us as well as the importance of regular-high protein snacks and carb gels. I ended up living on the latter,” Katie explains.

And that first experience of the Wall?

“It was like nothing you could imagine,” says Katie. “The sheer number of steps, some small, some huge, some narrow, some you have to clamber up and some so steep the only way

Great escape When Sussex fashionistas Katie Wilson and Carol Ives walked part of the Great Wall of China for charity, they had the experience of a lifetime, as Karen Spinner discovers

86 | s u sse x sty l e . c om | nov ember 2014

tr avel style

you can get down is on your bottom — it was nothing like we imagined it would be.

“You never walk more than 10 strides on the flat before climbing or descending part of the Wall. And some sections of the Wall are missing, so you have to scramble around the side of the mountain.”

And there were other surprises in store here.

Katherine explains: “Snakes and spiders all make their home along the wall so you’d be on your [walking] sticks trying to navigate something and the guides would shout ‘look out, snake!”

But the payoff was worth it.

“The view from the Wall is absolutely breathtaking, nothing can prepare you for it. It was just like being on top of the world in some sort of mystical, magical world,” she says.

During their long days walking it was normal for the group to go for hours without seeing another person.

“Apart from a few locals and farmers there was no one at all,” says Katherine. “The locals were lovely, very friendly, but they know tourists have money so be prepared to pay them for their help.”

This included carrying bags and fanning the exhausted walkers during breaks.

“It was amazing seeing what light work the locals made of the Wall,” adds Katherine. “We were kitted out in our walking gear and they were strolling along in plimsolls!”

Each night the group would descend en

masse to their lodge to eat, freshen up and recharge for the next day.

“We would have dinner and then just collapse,” laughs Katie. “Sleeping wasn’t easy as the Chinese like super-hard beds; it was just like sleeping on a step with no give whatsoever.

“And although you feel physically shattered, the experience is so incredible that your brain is wired, processing everything you have been through during the day.”

‘A mind-blowing experience’ After five days Katie and Carol successfully completed their 40-mile trip.

“It was such an incredible feeling of achievement,” says Katie. “Although it was far more challenging than we imagined, we loved every minute of it.”

The duo spent a few days in Beijing before venturing outside the capital.

“Beijing is an experience,” says Katie.

“Everywhere you go you are watched, documented and monitored. You have to show your passports to officials and get out your paperwork. It is an extremely strange feeling.”

For this part of the trip Katie and Carol had two Chinese tourists guides with them, something Katie strongly recommends.

“I don’t think it would be possible to get around safely without hiring guides,” she says.

Following Beijing the girls took an overnight train to Xi’an, home of the famous Terracotta

Army, before flying down to Cheungdu, site of China’s most famous panda reserve.

“It’s always been a dream of mine to see the pandas,” says Katie, “and it was a mindblowing experience. The Chinese treat their pandas like we do our Crown Jewels.

“They are such adorable animals and it was wonderful to see them and how they are looked after. I was fortunate to be able to hold a 14-month-old cub called Sa, the only survivor of triplets.”

After 12 incredible days in China, Katie and Carol have been reflecting on what the trip meant to them.

“Raising the money was very important to both of us, but the trip had a bigger affect,” admits Katie. “It’s helped me open up my mind to new ideas and brought me back to what really matters in life.”

Katie’s highs and lows

Highs • The scenery • Realising other — often very different — worlds are out there • The comradeship between our group.

We were all very different, but we got on fantastically Lows • The sheer physicality of the Wall. It’s something you can’t prepare for until you are there

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november 2014 | suss exstyle .c o m | 8 7

The Dame Vera Lynn Trust for Children with Cerebral Palsy Presents

S pring B all Swing into Spring

Saturday 21st March 2015

F E AT U R I N

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AR JOES THE REGUL IVE BAND DJ SWING AN c by Musi e Sweethearts The Swingtim Samuelson & Katherine y Magic b David Stewart

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LAst word

The land of make believe

M

Euro Disney has designs on Christmas. But, asks columnist Dan Raven, is the magic kingdom losing its lustre?

agic begins the moment you tell them’ — remember – because they’ve just announced that, as a special treat for all their that one? It was the slogan of a 2011 TV ad for guests, they’re going to start celebrating Christmas on 9 November!

I know, right? A whole extra month of having to listen to rubbish Disney’s theme parks that featured apparently genuine home movie footage of various saucer-eyed Christmas songs, eating food you would never have chosen to eat sprogs reacting with unhinged euphoria to the news at any other time of year and being nagged senseless by your kids that their parents were planning to take them to a Disney theme park. about tiny plastic objects that cost the earth yet seem to have no real But of course this was a joint campaign on behalf of both meaning while trying to pretend that you’re having the time of your Walt Disney World in Florida and Disneyland Paris, so it’s a pretty bloody life. Who wouldn’t that, eh?

Well, call me a big old Scrooge McDuck but I’ve got a funny feeling safe bet that a moment after half of those video cameras were turned off, the excited child turned to their parents and said, ‘I can’t believe that Euro Disney will still be in trouble when Christmas is finally we’re going to America!’ At which point the parents would be forced over (on 7 January, apparently), and that before too long its parent to sheepishly admit, ‘Er... no. It’s Euro Disney, actually.’ How quickly corporation will have to bail it out again. You have to wonder why those squeals of childish delight must have turned into howls of Disney don’t just cut their losses and give the land back to the cows?

Because they believe that, as a corporation, they are too big to fail embittered rage!

Because it’s not the same — everyone knows it’s not the same. They – or at least, too big to be seen to fail. When you think about how they’ve spent the last few years buying up virtually every can call it ‘Disneyland Paris’ all they like, but we all know other owner of profitable licensed characters in the it’s still just crappy old Euro Disney. So much smaller, world (Pixar, Marvel Comics, Lucasfilm, even the rainier and moodier than its American cousins that bloody Muppets Studio...), it’s hard not to conclude it seems faintly hilarious now to think that so that their ultimate goal is to possess some sort of many arty Frenchmen took the trouble to get so Euro Disney is so much global monopoly on childish dreams. upset when it first opened. smaller, moodier and rainier And once they have that, of course, they’ll It’s often struggled to hit attendance targets than its American cousins. finally be in a position to kick back and relax; during its 22-year history but the last two years have, by all accounts, been its worst ever, with The past two years have those new Star Wars films are going to end up looking like Ed Wood’s notorious Plan 9 From Outer visitor numbers dropping by more than half. And last been its worst ever Space, with wobbling flying saucers on visible nylon month owner Walt Disney announced it would inject strings bumping into polystyrene planets, simply because it up to €1bn into Euro Disney to cut the theme park operator’s debt and free up money for investment. That’s the third bailout wouldn’t have been worth Disney’s while to try any harder... and we’ll all go and see them anyway, because they’ll still be the best things on! since 1994.

And what about poor old ‘Uncle Walt’? He must be turning in his grave — or whatever it is that people in cryogenic chambers do when The park’s top brass have realised the needed to pull something pretty something gets their goat (hiss?)... major out of the bag in order to turn things around, something that • Do you agree with Dan? Email editorial@sandrpublishing.co.uk to let literally couldn’t fail to appeal to any living, breathing, human being us know.

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Too big to fail?

90 | s u sse x sty l e . c om | nov ember 2014

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