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.

Chinese In The Wolds

Now, not everyday is an exploring the countryside, shop till you drop, dress up for dinner kind of day, particularly Friday evenings after a long week of work.

There is something so lovely about lighting some candles and putting a film on, no cooking, no washing up, just relax!

So for the ultimate lazy indulgence, Chinese take away it is, but there are so many to choose from, where do you start? Well we have had our fair share of the good, the bad and the ugly but today as with all of our posts, we are focusing on the BEST.

Bourton-on-the-Water, China Town Chinese Restaurant.

Now don't get me wrong, there is nothing that hits you in the face in terms of a unique selling point to this place. But they don't need one, because the beauty of  China Town is found in the two most important places, their food and their service. Unlike other places we have tried, China Town has distinctive flavours in all of their dishes and evidently use quality ingredients as dishes are not lacking in large slices of meat and big crunchy veg.

Sometimes we pre order, pick up and go or order there and have a beer, however tonight was a particularly sunny evening and so we decided to make an event out of our quick and easy take away jaunt.

We arrived at around 7pm to smiles and prawn crackers! We made our order and then headed over to the Kingsbridge for a drink whilst we waited. The Kingsbridge has a large beer garden and being situated right on the river it almost felt holiday like to be sat drinking a Gin & Tonic, watching the sun bounce off the water. Beautiful.

10 minutes after we picked up the order we were home, candles lit, film on ready to eat. Yum!

Our Favourite Recommendations:

• Crispy Seaweed
• Vermacelli Spicey Noodles
• Crispy Shredded Beef (It's fruity and spicey! Best one we've had.)
• Beef in Black Bean (there are actual black beans in it unlike other places!)
• Pork Szechuan (is lovely and light, almost sweet and sour with big slices of roasted pork.)
• Pork and Vegetable Spring Rolls
• Salted Calamari
• All the soups!

One last thing, don't forget you can "Eat In" at China Town. Their all you can eat menu is utterly scrumptious and excellent value for money at £13.80 (adult) and £7.80 (child) per head. You start with a choice of their delicious Soup's, then half an Aromatic Duck and then starters, followed by mains and sides. You get to choose from a still wide menu selection and if that's not enough, you can carry on ordering while you get stuck in. However, if you over order, you can't take away. 

Don't just take our word for it, try it!

1A Victoria St

Bourton-on-the-Water,

Cheltenham

Gloucestershire

GL54 2BU

01451 821818

Please note. China Town does not deliver, so get yourself down there and

enjoy a drink and some prawn crackers before taking away.

Where is your favourite Chinese take away?

Millie and Meg x

Sunny Sunday Lunch in Sapperton

This is our wonderful friend Sophie! Again, we've been friends since school, 14 years. Emily used to live with Soph when they first moved to Cheltenham and not long after, Meg & Harry followed and lived only 2 doors down. Soph now lives in beautiful Painswick with her boyfriend, Owen and her family and works for Cheltenham's leading independent estate agent, Peter Ball & Co, at their Charlton Kings Office. 

Take it away Soph! #TheGuestList 

This Sunday bought us gorgeous sunshine and how better to spend the day than in a beautiful pub garden in the middle of The Cotswolds!

Owen (my lovely man) and I met some friends for lunch at The Bell at Sapperton. We had visited the pub for dinner previously so expected good things and I really was not disappointed.

The Bell is situated in the sleepy cotswold village of Sapperton. The stone building is full of  character in keeping with its stunning rural surroundings boasting beams and huge log fires and also, a beautiful cottage garden so a perfect place to dine all year round.

We were lucky enough to find a table in the garden- we sat down ordered a round of gin and tonics and studied the menu. We were restricted to a Sunday menu but there was still pleanty of choice including 3 roast dinners!

The meal was absolutely fantastic! I chose a Smoked haddock fishcake with black pudding and curry mayo to start and a whole sea bass for my main which were both absolutly delicious- some of the best sea bass I've ever had.

Owen had roast beef for his main with a huge yorkshire pudding and lashings of gravy plus a bubbling bowl of cauliflower cheese on the side. He was in heaven! He said the meat was tender and there was plenty of it too… in fact we were all too full for dessert!

The service is friendly and casual but very attentive, the wine selction is varied and very well priced and there is a complete focus on homemade fresh food! I would go again and again and really can't recommend this pub highly enough- a real Cotswold gem!

Sophie x