ALL THE FUN OF THE FAIR

Earlier this week we made our annual pilgrimage to the International Antiques and Collectors Fair at the Ardingly showground in Sussex. If like us you love nothing more than spending hours looking at all sorts of weird and wonderful bits and pieces then you will find this fair heaven. We took quite a few pictures so we've decided to split our post into two parts, firstly sharing with you some of the curiosities that caught our eye. Followed with a second post to share our new purchases.






 

THE TASTE OF SUMMER

 

The weather has been amazingly good here for the past few weeks, it really has begun to feel like summer. And what better way to indulge in this glorious season than with food. With some extra strawberries floating around in my fridge I thought I would treat friends to Eton Mess, possibly the simplest dessert you can make as it really can't go wrong yet super tasty - as one friend said "this actually tastes like summer!"


All you need is chopped strawberries. Couldn't help but fall in love with the striped pattern inside of them, something I've never noticed before. 

Take some meringue and crush it into bit size pieces. Whip some double cream until it thickens then mix in the crushed meringue.


I decided to serve my Eton Mess in individual portions, I had to cycle to meet my friends and wanted something that would travel easily and still look pretty when I got there! Here I've used old jam jars and spooned the meringue/cream mixture into the bottom, added a layer of strawberries and a dollop of white chocolate.


Finished with a little Clementine & Bloom ribbon and hey presto a lovely summery treat for all to enjoy!


KEEP ON RUNNING


On one of the hottest days of the year so far one half of this duo (the younger half) participated in her first organised race for charity. The British 10k London Run took place on 14th July and our chosen charity was Cancer Research UK. Sophie beat her personal best time and needless to say we are all really proud of her!

WEDDING BELLES


On the hottest day of the year our family headed to The Sculpture Gallery at Woburn Abbey for a much anticipated wedding. Having only been at the Mehndi last week we were excited to see how it could top such a riot of colour and pattern.

Firstly the setting was stunning, then there were the colours of the flowers and decorations used for the reception and last but not least
there was the bride. Dressed in the most beautiful embroidered red dress, all the gold work, crystals and jewellery weighed so much but nothing (even the heat) could dampen what was a lovely family wedding.

MEHNDI

 
This weekend we were treated to a riot of colour and pattern. A member of our family is getting married next weekend and whilst the boys had a typical lads night out for their stag party, the girls were treated to the delights of a traditional Indian hen party or mehndi hosted by the bride's family.


Seizing the opportunity to embrace something new, a few of us decided to wear sari's (thank goodness for you-tube!) and draped in our metres upon metres of patterned fabrics we headed off to the party...
 

This was the surprise that awaited us when we arrived. It was held in the most magnificent marquee decorated on the inside with lavishly colourful textiles.


The main tradition of a mehndi is the application of henna to the bride's hands and feet; whilst hers was going to take 5 hours to complete we were all treated to a little henna of our own.



One of us did go slightly overboard and kept going back to get more done, but then what do you expect from ladies who love pattern? 


After such a wonderfully decadent pre-wedding celebration we can't wait to see what the big day holds. It is going to be a fusion of English and Indian traditions set in the beautiful English countryside and we'll be sure to take lots of photos. So now we're just keeping our exquisitely decorated fingers crossed for good weather!