Alex and Claire's Spring Wedding

I am afraid that due to a technical hitch, I am only just now posting the blog for our first wonderful wedding this year. Sorry Alex and Claire! 

So it all took place on the weekend of the 9th May. Spring was in the air, the Wisteria was in bloom across the front of the house and the woods were teeming with wild flowers and Bluebells.

Wonderful wild flowers were a distinct theme. Alex and Claire's families arrived with car boots full of flowers from hedgerows and their gardens. Below is Alex's mum and Auntie (who had just arrived from Australia) flower arranging in the sunshine. There is something rather special and wonderful that comes through doing lots of the wedding preparations together as a family. It sets the tone of the weekend as everyone works together laughing and chatting.

The house was filled with their gorgeous creations.

I do love that time of year where the garden springs into life. An abundance of colour and glory was brought into the house.

Alex and Claire really wanted to create a warm and wonderful welcome for their guests. It started with the notes on the door...

then continued with these super breakfast baskets.

Not to mention Alex's mum's homemade marmalade, what a treat!!

Whilst Alex's mum had been busily making the marmalade, Alex's dad had been foraging for driftwood and making these fabulous candle holders and wood slices. What a talented bunch!!

The talent continued with Claire's family. Claire's sister, Laura, is a very accomplished cake maker. Enlisting the help of her partner John, the cake took shape (Poor John's back, it was a wonder he could walk after this!).

They painstakingly put on each of these handmade flowers...

with wonderful effect!

With all the preparations done it was time to relax and let the wedding weekend truly begin. Friday night kicked off with a seaside treat, fish and chips from a local company 'The Whiddon Fryer'. Delicious I hear!

Saturday morning, the wedding began. Claire looked stunning as her lovely dad escorted her down the stairs.

 Although they would have loved an outside wedding the weather was not quite up to it. So they opted for the intimacy and gorgeousness of the ballroom. There was not a dry eye in the house as Alex and Claire made their promises to one another.

After a welcome 'Pimms' to celebrate, canapes were followed by the speeches. There is a brilliant atmosphere whenever speeches take place on the stairs. Guests are both on the gallery above and below the speaker, which gives a really good dynamic - just right for plenty of guest participation! Both of the dad's did a speech, here Alex's dad is toasting the happy couple.

Next it was the turn for Claire's dad.

Find your seat, dinner is served!

Claire lived in Italy as part of her studies, which has inspired an affection for its culture and cuisine. Alex and Claire were therefore keen to treat their guests to the food they love. They also wanted a relaxed sharing feel to their meal, with guests chatting and helping themselves. Their delicious menu was antipasti, followed by lasagna, melanzane parmigiana and green salad with gelato to finish. More of Alex and Claire's food photos can be seen on Lee and Kristina's Facebook page 'Guess who's coming to dinner'.

Lee and Kristina make all of our wedding day food by hand, including their wonderful ice creams. They set up this gorgeous vintage seaside stand and service began.

The flavours were to die for.....I love salted caramel!

Lee even makes his own waffle cones, it really does make a difference to the taste (and the crunch)!

Claire very much enjoyed her gelato with a stick of Devon fudge!

With candles lit around the hall, the evening celebrations began.

Twinkling fairy lights were all around. Even the bar had some sparkle.

A romantic first dance kicked off the evening. John DJ'd from a play list put together from requests the guests made in their invitation replies. Such a brilliant idea as everyone enjoyed something they loved. 

It even gave the opportunity for the uncles to prepare a special something beforehand.....

Alex and Claire, we loved hosting your wedding here! We hope you have a wonderful time travelling for your honeymoon (all 3 months of it!) and wish you every happiness in your journey through life together! 

You can see more wonderful photos of Alex and Claire's wedding day from Georgina, their photographer, on her Facebook site 'Panache photography'. They really are lovely!

Vintage afternoon tea and as the sun shone on Rosie and Tom

Joel and Kat - a family affair x

My nephew Joel married the gorgeous Katrina at the weekend. They started as a school romance and now we welcome the 5th 'Mrs Baker' into our family.

Joel is a graphic designer and fab DJ, and Kat is a nurse, and really creative too, with an amazing eye for detail. The grey, yellow and white colour theme came into every aspect of their celebration. 

This is the 'save the date' card.

The day before the wedding, Joel was found spray - painting these boxes in yellow. They were taken around to all our apartments and thoughtful breakfast items were displayed in them.

These were placed on everyone's bedroom door so guests knew they were in the right place! 

Joel and Kat were getting married in Georgeham Church so we were able to lay up on Friday. They had handmade every one of these boxes (which contained home-made fudge by Kat's aunty Bev) and the place names.

Simple and gorgeous. 

Joel's Nana made these amazing flower arrangements, which fitted the theme perfectly.

Sunflowers could not be more perfect in the middle of this heat-wave!

 Kat's Grandmother Jean made this cake. The bottom 2 layers are fruit and the rest is a sponge made by Kat. Kat then decorated the whole thing herself - even doing a couple of finishing touches on her wedding day morning. 

To the Church! 

Kat comes from the Watson Clan in Scotland, so there were many a kilt on display (and many a question of what's underneath from certain members of the family!)

We were handed these luggage labels by the Ushers,

a pen,

and these gorgeous order of service books.

At the front of the Church my two old suitcases were displayed on a table.

Joel looked nervous, but not as nervous as Simon, the best man (take note of the trendy 'Shoreditch' beard, possibly the most bushy of all the guests but there was stiff competition).

Jen (Joel's Mum) gave the talk. My choice line was.. "This wedding is not a destination; it's a beautiful pause on the journey where Joel and Kat have forever changed the way they travel"...

Jonny (Joel's Dad) took the next bit. We were invited to write a prayer on the back of the luggage labels and pop them into the suitcases. 

Joel's brother Harry (aka 'World Champ Slam Poet') performed a poem he had written for them. My choice line from this was.."As we gather here to see these partners partnered. Part nurse. Part nerd"......and at the end...."Instead of watching Harry Potter, let's get JK Rolling".. Brilliant.

Introducing... Mr and Mrs Baker!

The young and beautiful ones, are Kat and Joel's friends from school days. They have all kept in touch and still love each-other even after all this time.

The even younger beautiful ones are Zac, Liza and two of their cousins. 

Zac and his cousin Jed, get the giggles every time they see one another, ever-since they were born. They got up to pure mischief all day.

It started with picking up all the used confetti from the ground..

and throwing it on all the guests from a high window. Later they heckled speeches, tried to down a glass of Pimms and asked the caterer's for extra crackling. *Note to prospective brides, adult-only invites work really well!

 

With the service over, confetti thrown and a need for a drink,

Jonny grabbed the suitcases, 

and we all headed back to Pickwell.

Yes, it's that way Harry - lead the way! (It did amuse all day that the button-holes were on upside down, but I noticed too late to change it - still they all looked lovely)

Back at home, The Grandmothers looked gorgeous as they posed for pics.

Just before we came into the Ballroom, I snuck in to have a look. 

The sparkly lights and the candles looked amazing, and just added to the yellow theme.

Joel and Kat opted for a long top-table.

Kelly from Offshore Blooms made the bouquet's and the buttonholes, and they looked amazing!

We stood to clap and cheer, and welcome in Mr and Mrs Baker to the Wedding Breakfast. 

(Wedding dress by Vera Wang - gorgeous layer upon layer of fabric, as seen here)

We settled down to a scrumptious meal, and then....

Speeches! First off - Kat's Dad. He had us all in hysterics as he handed Joel a gift of a pair of braces (Joel has had a long-held fashion statement of wearing his trousers, err, very low on his hips/thighs). It was the perfect gift!

Joel's Aunty, Nana and Grandma were all ears, as Kat then got up to speak - YES - I love it when a bride gives a speech. As her, now mother-in-law, recently wrote a book called Equals, she knew she had to do it.

Then Jonny spoke. Joel asked his Dad to speak as he has no sisters, and wanted Jonny to get the chance to speak at his wedding. For Harry and his cousin Sam, as well as the rest of us, it was a very emotional speech, but funny too!

Next it was the Groom's turn. It was a beautiful speech and again highly moving.

These three lovely women have known Joel, and been an important part of his life, since birth. They were in bits (so sorry Julia, I had to post this)!

Then Simon, the best man. So it turns out that on Joel's stag do, he was enrolled into a life-drawing class as the model. He had no idea, but apparently styled it out amazingly. It was two classes over ninety minutes. Half the room were strangers and the other half friends/family. Simon presented Joel with the final book of drawings as a gift. It did feel a bit odd passing it around afterwards, I have to say. Poor Joel!

After coffee on the Terrace, the room was turned around, the DJ (a great friend of the family, Heather) set up and we were ready to go!

The cutting of the cake. I heard Kat saying afterwards... "Well, that was weird!" It is a bit odd if you stop to think about it, but it's an old tradition and many do love what it symbolises!

Ahhh, the first dance.

Quickly rescued by Simon and Fiona, the Matron-of-honour.

The weather stayed brilliantly sunny, so there was nothing else for it than a Sunday morning game of footie on Putsborough beach.

I dont know how the boys managed it after the shots they were consuming the night before. Must be youth on their side.

The more elderly amongst us (except for you Georgia) just lay in the sun and read books. 

As they are currently lounging around in the Maldives, at the beginning of their new journey together, I want to praise them for this brave step of faith. It isn't easy these days to be willing to commit all that you are, and all that you have, to someone else. But they have done it, and we are all behind them.

Go well Mr and Mrs Baker. We love you x

The Great Croyde Duck Race

Once a year, at May half term, there is the Croyde Duck Race. It runs for the whole weekend (in the stream that runs through the village of Croyde, Devon) and is great fun. 

It is a fund-raiser for our local Croyde Surf Lifesaving club. Surf lifesaving is primarily a sport but it has the added benefit of teaching adults and children about safety and confidence in the sea.

There are five key programmes that our club at Croyde can provide, and that is: swimming; board paddling; beach challenges; surf rescue boat (see below); and Ski (a long, thin board suitable for an older youth to ride) training. 

Being keen members of the club (even keener now Steve is the Chair) us Pickwellians went down to help out. I'm sorry Steve, but I just had to include the photo of you winning a gold in the relay competition last Summer. It was such a shame that the kit person accidentally brought down the 'Nippers' vests and not the adult sizes. I'm pleased to say that the Croyde club also likes a good laugh ;)

Our Liza was excited about being in the stream, in the role of 'stuck duck freer'. 

 Armed with a net, a wetsuit and her mates, she was good to go. 

Even our London friends came dressed up in 'duck themed' clothing for the event.

The scene was set, the kids were excited, the crowd waited in anticipation for the first race. For weeks, the teams of volunteers have gone around the local pubs selling ducks to locals and visitors. It is £1/duck, you choose the number and colour of your duck (out of 400 eligible ducks), and if your duck comes in first, you win £100. Simples.

The finishing line was at the bridge and the team were ready to scoop up the winning duck.

Richard Windsor, stalwart member of the Croyde Surf lifesaving club, announces the first race is about to start.

Ben and his team of wonderful helpers, walk down the stream to the starting line.

They get ready for the grand tip, off the bridge.

'The Helpers' can't help but try to identify their own duck (but rest assured people they were under strict parental surveillance and the film cuts out just at the point where I said 'DO NOT TOUCH THAT DUCK')

When will they emerge from the bridge?

Families wait on the next bridge, for the first sign...

There is the first duck!

Can you sense this lady's excitement, as she spots her duck,

and cheers it on as it races down the stream.

The crowd at the finish line have no idea of the events further up the stream.

The 'stuck duck freer's' are hard at work, sometimes getting themselves stuck, (under low bridges) in the process.

As the ducks fight their way to the front,

the team eagerly await the first sighting. 

Don't be fooled by the tiny orange juice receptacle in the right corner, this isn't an Usborne book, and that isn't a duck.  

AND HERE THEY COME!

Lynn bends to scoop up the winning duck,

holds it aloft, and announces it is...

the gorgeous....drum roll... black, NUMBER SIXTY-THREE.

Here he is, looking rather smug, and a little tired.

As black number sixty-three takes a rest, all his friends are scooped up in a slightly, err, less sensitive way.

Then all the ducks get sorted into their colours, ready again for the next race. They get a 20 minute rest, then those poor ducks head out again for the next one. Don't worry chaps, only 14 more races to go.

 As the rain started to take hold, and the duck races came to an end, we all went home to warm baths, some with achy backs (Liza), but the knowledge that we have been a small part of a big team in helping to raise around £2,000 for the next year of our wonderful club!

 In case you were worried... 

*No children or ducks were harmed in the process.

Lovely Local Food - Going East

We have been struck since we moved to North Devon by the array of good quality local food shops that surround us. So we thought it might be nice to give you a whistle stop tour of some of our favourites in case it inspires you to make a visit and try them out. There are so many wonderful local places to shop, I am going to split the post into two parts....'Going East' covers Barnstaple and Braunton and 'Going West' will cover Ilfracombe and the surrounding area.

South Molton is a lovely little market town about 30 minutes drive from us (or you will pass it on the A361 from the M5). It is well worth a visit as it has some lovely little shops including antiques, interiors and clothes boutiques.

Some of my favourite food shops are the old-fashioned sweet/ chocolate shops; the delicatessen specialising in cheese; Griffin's Yard (photographed above) which is a health food cafe and shop selling lots of great local produce; and last but not least, the Thursday morning market, selling all sorts including local meats such as Exmoor venison.

Now to Barnstaple, our closest market town. Butchers Row is one of Barnstaple's treasures. This historic row of little shops can pretty much sort all your culinary needs in one sweep, with everything from local game to Devon wines; locally caught crab to Devon grown chillies.

Then our much loved bakery 'East and West'. Everything they do is delicious, our current favourites are their low GI bread and a loaf called 'Pantique'. They are both delicious wholemeal loaves with lots of seeds and yumminess. Graham and Claire, who run East and West, are delightful and they supply all of our scones for the cream teas we host for our guests in the school summer holidays. They have recently won the prize of 'Best West Country Baker'. Well done guys, it is well deserved!

If you are a cheese lover, like me, you will think you have died and gone to heaven when you enter this shop. Wall to wall deliciousness! Debbie Priestley the owner has a passion for West Country cheeses, why not go in and try some!

They have a deli, as well as cheese, and a fabulous website where you can pre-order or have a local cheese selection sent to you.

'Passmores' is a great fish shop with a wide range of locally caught fish most of which is landed from small boats at Ilfracombe and Bideford. In season they sell Lundy crab and lobster as well as mackerel, turbot, brill, gurnard, sea bass, mullet, cod and haddock. They have a 'wet fish van' that visits the village car park at Croyde on Thursdays at 11am (ish). They also do home delivery in our area on Thursdays, ring 01271 343677 to make an order.

Opposite Butchers row in Barnstaple is the 'Pannier Market', a magnificent indoor hall dating back to 1827. On Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays there is a mixture of stalls including fruit and vegetables;  Wednesdays has largely antiques; and Fridays has most of the local food suppliers.  Keep a look out for the 'Food Festivals' they hold which are a wonderful showcase of local produce. Their website lists up and coming events.

So a little closer to home is Braunton. Above are the boys from Reed's Butchers who as well as meat do the most yummy homemade pies.

'Cawthorne's' is a small family run private supermarket who sell a great range of products including local food, organic and health foods. I am always surprised at how much I can source for an obscure recipe from here. 

'Devon Made' specialises in local nibbles. There is a super range of local preserves, oils, chocolate, bread (from East and West Bakery) and much more. Why not pop in and have a coffee and cake whilst you take a look around.

Just outside the main village of Braunton is 'The Great Field' a source of much of our very local veg. It is treasured as one of the only two surviving medieval open strip field systems in England and is believed to date way back to the 1200's.

Local Farm Box is an online shop and box scheme that sources from 'The Great Field'. We have weekly deliveries as families and also stock up on dairy products, meat, preserves, bakery items and eggs from them from time to time. A veg box delivery is ideal if you are coming to Devon on holiday. Pre-order and it will be here for your arrival.

Last but not least is our 'Georgeham Stores'. Tracey and Paul, the owners, are really helpful and friendly. They have a good selection of provisions including local bread, meat, cheese and milk. If you are coming on holiday and would like to pre-order a shop to be delivered as you arrive, then please ring 01271890534 (they can email you a list of produce on request).

So why is it helpful to shop locally? I love this list produced by the 'Crystal Palace Transition Group' outlining 10 great reasons........enough said!!:

1.       More money stays in the community: When you spend £100 at an independent business, £68 returns to the local community, compared with £43 if you buy from a national chain

2.       More jobs are created for local people, including architects, designers, sign-makers, accountants etc.

3.       Local businesses offer a greater diversity of products and there is more scope for innovation

4.       Local businesses are more likely to get involved in community action and to offer financial support for community initiatives

5.       Local shops help maintain the area’s distinctive character and flavour

6.       Local businesses are more likely to source from the local area (including edible gardens)

7.       The more people that are employed locally, the fewer need to commute, saving on energy consumption

8.       Fewer people will use their cars

9.       Local traders are more likely to chat to their customers to find out what their interests are and to respond to their needs and their values

10.   We can build up a relationship with local businesses that will help support them in a transition towards sourcing more locally, sustainably and fairly

Happy shopping!!

Hercules and Big Wave Surfing

This Winter we experienced some of the biggest swells we have had since we have lived here in North Devon. There have been some amazing waves reaching the shores of the Western Atlantic from North Africa to Scotland.

In January a big storm swell from Hercules, combined with a series of very high tides, to bring unprecedented waves crashing on to our local beaches, causing quite a bit of flooding and leaving some destruction in their wake.

We are used to big waves of 12 - 20 feet in this area in big storms, but you don't see many surfers in conditions over  6 - 8 ft as the beach break can be ferocious, and the rips dangerous.

We are lucky to have a famous big wave surfer based here in Croyde, Andrew Cotton, who became famous for this huge wave he caught in Nazaré, Western Portugal, in October. It was one of the biggest waves ever ridden.

We had a local film night where we watched the story of his journey with fellow big wave surfers and there was a Q and A session with Andrew as part of the event – it was a fantastic evening held in the Thatch and organised by Museum of British Surfing.

http://www.epictv.com/media/podcast/andrew-cotton-redefines-the-ridden-realm-of-surfing-%7C-behind-the-lines-teaser/272042

Catching big waves has inherent dangers which won't surprise you. The gravest one being the power of the waves, and particularly the hold down period one experiences; this is where you are held under water by the power of the wave, if it breaks on you or you fall off, when riding down the face of the wave.

The big wave hot spots in Western Europe are in Ireland, Portugal and France. 

This is Belharra in France

where the waves get seriously big.

And this is Mullaghmore in the west of Ireland during Hercules.

The photos were taken by another local film maker and friend, Mikey Corker.

Hercules was unusual in that the size of the area of depression (low pressure) affected such a huge area.

The black area is the heart of the depression - heading straight for the south west of England.

In North Devon we experienced one of the biggest tides ever at our local beaches of Saunton, Woolacombe and Putsborough. The high tides combined with 20 feet plus waves which literally came 15 ft up the dunes between Putsborough and Woolacombe. The base of the surf life saving hut was washed away.

The waves came within a few feet of the cafe at Putsborough, and the café floor was rumoured to have dropped by 6 inches in the peak of the storm at high tide. In Ilfracombe the waves were crashing over the wall at Cheyne Walk.

In Lynmouth the waves flooded shops down by the quay.

There were some stunning waves along the coastline and whilst the most exposed beaches were too big and dangerous to contemplate surfing, other 'secret spots', even normally unsurfable spots (due to a lack of a wave), started working in ways never seen before. This is Lynmouth.

Our good friend and local photographer and videographer Pete Cox made the following stunning film of Hercules..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kA0aZW0nw8A

After the storms there was a lot of mess left on the beaches, so the community got out for some well coordinated beach cleans.

We went to the Croyde beach clean organised by Croyde Surf Club, Parkdean (Ruda Holiday park) and Croyde Surf Life Saving Club. About 200 people turned out and got stuck in.

It felt like the tip of the iceberg, but it was good to try to make a small difference together. Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) are organising a special series of post-Hercules beach cleans, please get involved at a beach near you…

Click here to find out how