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.

Mangle & Wringer

Until The Applestore at Batsford Arboretum (see our blog about this lovely Aladdin's cave here) became a proud stockist of Mangle & Wringer cleaning products, we had never heard of the locally made, non-toxic, all natural range from The Cotswolds. 

What makes Mangle & Wringer cleaning products so special, you ask? Where do we start.

ALL of Mangle & Wringer cleaning products are made using old fashioned, home made recipes, using all natural ingredients which are therefore, all recognisable and easy to understand. You can 100% trust what is written on the labels. Vanessa Willes founded Mangle & Wringer in 2012 after adopting her housekeepers, Bette Smith's passion for non-toxic cleaning products which are not harmful to the environment or to use. Bette Smith, a housekeeper since she was 14 years old, a successful laundry owner and a local Gloucestershire lady taught Vanessa Willes and her team everything they now know about making beautiful, affective and non-toxic cleaning products. So do you see what is special about this Cotswold company now?

What first attracted us to pick up a bottle of Mangle & Wringer and learn more about Vanessa Willes's company was the sleek and chic packaging. Something you very rarely... actually, almost never see when it comes to cleaning products. Lets face it, cleaning is not the most glamorous of tasks and definitely is not top of our 'favourite things to do' list. Especially when you live in a little country cottage with messy boys and a old cocker spaniel. 

The Mangle & Wringer range is so attractive that Vanessa practically put marigolds on us herself and sent us home skipping to spring clean.

We purchased a bottle of 'Good for Glass' spray from The Applestore and loved it. No streaks, amazing!

Then Vanessa kindly sent us a goody box full of her products, a bag of 'Natural Bleach' and bag of 'Pure Laundry', a spray bottle of 'Spray and Go', a tub of 'Bathroom Balm' and a tub of 'Kitchen Cleanser'.

After testing the whole range, carefully following directions and gushing at all the lovely packaging we must say we are really impressed. 

The 'Spray and Go' spray was our favourite. We used it ALL over the house, on side tables, kitchen work surfaced, skirting boards and window sills. It smelt very vinegary with a hint of lemon zest but that didn't bother us, in fact we actually liked it. There is nothing worse than using a cleaning product that then hits the back of your throat and makes you cough for the next 15 minutes. 'Spray and Go' made everything sparkle, smell clean and look fresh. We loved it! 

Now, I think we can all agree there is nothing better than crawling into bed and slipping under freshly cleaned sheets. So when we unwrapped the handmade 'Pure Laundry' powder that was the first job on our list. Very simply, we added a large scoop of the laundry power and a smaller scoop of the 'Natural Bleach' powder in to the washing machine. Luckily, it was also a lovely sunny day so they the sheets got to air dry outside which is another one of life's little luxuries. When dried, they smelt and felt beautifully clean. They didn't smell of artificial chemicals, overly sweet and sickly like you get with so many branded products and the softness made for a comfy night sleep. Bliss!

As you might be able to tell, we are sold! We love the products, the packaging, the values of the company and most importantly.. they work! Try them out for yourself by visiting Mangle & Wringer online shop or if you live in Gloucestershire, The Applestore might be your closest stockist.

Follow Mangle & Wringer on Twitter  and Facebook and make sure you visit Vanessa's beautiful websites for lots more information on the whole range,  to shop any of the products we've spoken about and please please please read about Bette Smith and how she inspired Vanessa to continue her passion for non-toxic cleaning products. It is such a heart warming, touching story.

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.