Meg got hitched - Batsford Arboretum

Batsford Arboretum 

30th July 2016

I am so sorry this blog post is so late! I can't quite get my head around the fact we're now in November. Millie has celebrated her first wedding anniversary & our best friend Sophie gets married in 4 weeks time. In the 4 months since our wedding so much has happened in a short period of time and although this is very overdue, I still wanted to celebrate our wedding photos with you, thank all our fabulous supplier & share a little of our day! 

The Annie Sloan Conference with The Applestore

Harry and I are extremely lucky to spend lots of time at beautiful Batsford; weekends, Christmas, Autumn days and long Summer nights. We just love it there! Harry's Mum is married to Stuart, the Director and top dog (well he likes to think so!) at Batsford Arboretum and Garden Centre. He's been there 28 years now. Heather opened her gorgeous shop, The Applestore, 3 years ago after the Garden Centre had a face lift and made room for Heather to move in to the old Applestore, hence the name, where the tea rooms used to be. If you haven't visited The Applesotre at Batsford Arboretum, you must. It is a beautiful, eclectic shop full of vintage pieces, unique Swedish items, gift ideas and up cycled furniture, all lovingly hand painted and given a new lease of life by Heather using Annie Sloan decorative Chalk Paint™. Which by the way, The Applestore is a proud stockist of. Read our full blog post all about The Applestore here.

Our Week #3

This week Meg got a stunning view from 120ft high swinging from a crane at Batsford Arboretum. Just a normal day in The Cotswolds, hey? A sad day at Batsford though, one of their Giant Red Woods grew rot at the base so needed to be taken down for safety reasons. After local tree surgeons had finished what they do best, they offered me a little tour. How could I resist!? Such beautiful views of Moreton, the Arboretum and beyond. 

Harry and I made some time in our busy weeks to take a morning off together and go for a long walk while the Autumn sunshine was in full force. How lucky are we to still have this glorious, summer like weather at the end of September? It's too good to waste. So, we headed to Bibury for a walk and a pint. Blog post to follow soon. 

This week has been manic. Work is incredibly busy but James and I have been enjoying the rest of the Autumn sunshine and the wonders our favourite season has to offer! We've been to ANOTHER food festival in Shipston and met The Wild Oven to do a taste test for a certain celebration next year. We also went to meet the Reverand who will be marrying us, which has made things very real. Talking about weddings we went to our friends engagement party and I drank far too much wine. We have had cosy fires on the cooler nights, sat outside on the sunnier nights and popped into my parents for a classic roast dinner! We also found time for a Latte at Huxley's, our new favourite place in Chipping Campden. Told you it was a busy week! 

We loved having the dogs this weekend which meant long walks and blackberry picking! We also did some apple picking ready for our guest blogger to take to Painswick Apple Festival, blog to follow! And finally... Happy Birthday to my gorgeous Nephew who was 2 this week! 

Our Week #2

As you saw on last weeks post meg has an exciting new project coming up. This week we happily revealed via the wonderful world of social media that Meg is opening her own Gift & lifestyle boutique, Meggie's, at her family's pub, The Falcon Inn, in beautiful Painswick. The official date is still to be announced but she will be trading as of October. Get the latest news and updates on Meggie's Facebook page, Twitter and Instagram account.

Meg also started work at Batsford Arboretum this week. Working every Tuesday to edit their website and run their social media outlets. Such a beautiful place to be based one day a week! Like Batsford on Facebook and follow on Twitter.

Emily has spent a family and friends oriented week mainly eating, standard! 

Soph who you will have seen on #theguestlist comes to spend a night in cosy cottage, along with James' cousin Sam, regulary and we fill the evening with food. This week a big free range roast chicken complete with Yorkies, not bad for a Wednesday eve! I met up with my Mum for a scrummy goats cheese salad at Huxley's restaurant in Chipping Campden, blog to follow. James made a naughty pavlova mid week and then pancakes with homegrown raspberries for breakfast on Saturday! Not to mention a day of eating at Broadway Food Festival. 

I'm also so proud of my family this week with my gorgeous niece, another star of #theguestlist starting school and my Brother doing his country proud by leading  team GB on at the opening ceremony to the Invictus Games on Wednesday. James also won gold along with his collegues at Cheltenham in Bloom.  

Next week we really want to go blackberry picking AND we are planning on going to the Painswick Apple Harvest.

Millie and Meg x

The Applestore at Batsford

Where to start with The Applestore at Batsford Aboretum. Heather the owner, wife of, Stuart, the Managing Direct of Batsford Aboretum has a really good thing going here. The Applestore which was actually the old applestore at the Arboretum and is a beautiful red brick building situated at the end of the trail once you've strolled around the stunning Arboretum.

We may be a little bias here as Heather is actually Meg's boyfriend's, Mother so we spend a lot of time at Bastford Arboretum but The Applestore is so unique and completely worth a visit, so we just had to mention it on Millie and Meg.

As you approach The Applestore, you are welcomed by rustic garden goodies; planted crates, outdoor pots, vintage garden furniture and a great view across the site. The Applestore also sells the coolest pizza ovens handmade by a local company The Real Pizza Oven Company, perfect for alfresco dining all year round.

Inside is a treasure trove of old and new, there is so much to look at, to smell and take in, it really is a "shopping experience" from the second you walk through the door and you can easily spend a lot of time admiring the prettiness.

The gorgeous smell of the local handmade candles hit you as you walk in and as a candle lover, I was sold. The pretty natural soywax candles are handmade in Bourton-on-the-Water, are £6.50 which is a steal for a long burning handmade candle and there is 10 different scents to pick from.

Heather sources a lot of her stock and inspiration from Sweden where she used to own a house with her husband. This is where The Applestore was born. She now drives (!!!!) to Sweden twice or three times a year to buy new and unique stock and thats exactly what it is, totally unique. One of a kind pieces which are lovingly handmade in Sweden, hand painted in the most gorgeous bright colours with beautiful florals. There is nowhere else I know selling these types of pieces.

Heather is also a proud stockist and user of Annie Sloan decorative Chalk Paint, waxes, brushes and testers. Annie Sloan chalk paint needs no faff, no sanding, no priming and can be used on pretty much anything, inside or outside. Heather upcycles all her shabby chic furniture in this heavenly paint and you can see how much love goes into every stroke on every piece Heather works on. She is single handedly bringing these old pieces back to life!

There is much much more to the The Applestore than just Sweden and Annie Sloan, Heather also sells a mix of new gifts and vintage delights. I love the vintage tea sets which you can mix and match to create a unique gift box and the wide range of hanging hearts which are quickly filling my whole house (to the delight of my boyfriend).

What I love most about The Applestore is that every time I visit, there is always  new stock. This is partly down to how popular the shop has become and the very reasonable prices - I don't think I have ever left empty handed.

Follow The Applestore on Facebook & Twitter to see what's new, what Heather's working on and you'll be inspired to add some shabby chic to your own homestyle.