Velvet Brown - Home Accessories

We took part in the Wendover Church Flower Festival in early June, which had the theme of ‘Wendover In Flower’. Exhibits were either created by local Wendover groups, schools or organisations or individual arrangements could be themed around Wendover landmarks or history.  Wendover is a pretty Chiltern village in Buckinghamshire and holds great affection with us, especially as our late grandparents lived in the village and owned the village dairy for many years.

We chose to base our exhibit on Wendover Woods, a well-known area of woodland to the north of Wendover which is owned by the Forestry Commission.  Covering approx 800 acres Wendover Woods drawns visitors from all around for its walks, trails, mountain biking, superb views and a stunning display of bluebells in late Spring.

We were allocated the entrance porch of Wendover church for our display and set about creating a woodland-entrance to welcome the flower festival visitors.  The photos below show the results.  All in all it was a thoroughly enjoyable event and the summer sunshine attracted hundreds of visitors.  With numerous stunning floral displays throughout the church, lunches and teas on the church lawn, an art exhibition and a church treasure-hunt it was a huge success.

The Forestry Commission logo in flowers:

Wendover Church porch themed as Wendover Woods:

Picnic time in Wendover Woods:

The Marquee

Last weekend saw the first Great Haseley Mad Hatters Plant Swap.  With the allotments in the village becoming so popular (I believe there is now a waiting list) the Horticultural society thought they would try a plant swap.  Kay gallantly took on the roll as chief organiser and put posters around the village and advertised the event in the local parish magazine.  She borrowed the “pumpkin auction” marquee and made delicious cakes and jam tarts and set about organising teas and signs to help the swap run smoothly.

    Roger setting up the teas.  Fairy Cakes for the Plant Swap

At 2pm and right on cue as the event started the heavens opened but in true British Style the thirsty gardeners and bystanders turned up with their plants to swap.  As villagers discussed gardening tips and secrets they happily munched on cakes and sipped tea whilst deciding which plants to take in place of what they had bought.  Great Haseley should have an excellent crop of tomatoes this year as they seemed the most popular plants whilst Dave Pickett made sure that everyone had a pumpkin plant to ensure their will be some good entries for this years Pumpkin auction.

 

    Not many plants left at the end of the day

So many of our customers have asked how we make our Christmas Door Wreaths, so here’s a little insight. 

All our fresh wreaths are made in a time-honoured traditional floristry way.  This involves making a base of blue-pine foliage onto a wire frame with a fresh moss backing.  This ensures freshness throughout the festive season.  Some of today’s widely available wreaths are made either into a foam base or on a modern clip-frame, however nothing beats a moss base for ensuring freshness and providing a stable, firm base onto which fruits, cones, cinnamon can be added.  We also add extra foliage, including ivy, laurel, bay or skimmia.

We’ve been making door wreaths for many, many years - they’re a labour of love however we never tire of making them.  No two are identical and every one made includes a little bit of us too.

We love to receive photos of our wreaths hanging on doors, if you’ve taken a photo of your wreath do please email a copy to us for our collection.

To cope with our expanding range and growing stock we have just got keys to our new workshop and storage unit.  We’re well and truly ‘out in the sticks’ in rural countryside, down on the farm.   

With cows and sheep for neighbours, going to work could not be more pleasureable.  We’ll never tire from the view from the workshop window.

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Read about the home of Velvet Brown in the March 2009 edition of Country Homes & Interiors magazine.  We were excited to be approached by a journalist several months ago about featuring Hazel’s home in Country Homes & Interiors.  Following a visit by a superb photographer and an excellent written article about the house, its interior and Velvet Brown, the finished article has been pubished in the March 2009 edition of Country Homes & Interiors and although we say it ourselves - it makes great reading!

I like to think I’m easy to please.  I don’t particularly like expensive foreign holidays, I don’t wear designer clothes nor carry designer handbags and I don’t crave the latest Ipod. (Truth is I don’t actually own an Ipod and I don’t think I’d use it a great deal if i did.)

For me it’s the simple things in life that give the most pleasure. Last Sunday we had one of the most perfect late summer days I think it is possible to have.  The morning was a little bit misty but was soon burnt off by warm sunshine. The sky was clear blue throughout the day and then it was all finished off by a gorgeous chilly evening .

Having got up late and breakfasted outside on the patio we went for a lovely country ramble from the door.  We had no specific plans of where we were heading but just followed our noses.  I think they must have sniffed out the blackberries.   I don’t think I’ve seen such a fruit laden hedgerow! The area we were in is not heavily walked, so the bush was hardly touched but these few dry days have done wonders for ripening some of the hedgerow fruits.  We could have picked all day but ran out of bags to carry them home in.  (It was only fluke we had some bags in our pockets!) We picked for ages whilst Lottie (our Jack Russell) checked out all the rabbit burrows in the hedge. We didn’t see a soul all the time we were out.

As well as lots of juicy blackberries I picked lots of ivy and rosehips and made a beautiful autumn wreath when I got home. I’ve hung it on my gate to welcome visitors. 

There is something very satisfying about hedgerow finds. Having got home and pottered around in the garden all afternoon (the weather has not only been good for blackberries - the weeds have loved it too!) we lit a lovely log fire and I cooked a big roast dinner with runner beans and fennel from the garden followed by a delicious blackberry and apple crumble served with generous dollops of Creme Fraiche. It all got washed down with a glass or 2 or red wine .

For me - a perfect day. Told you I was easy to please.

In a little corner of the Home Counties, quintessential village tradition is alive and well - we know because we were there! Velvet Brown spent a very pleasant May Day in the sunny Hertfordshire countryside at the Aldbury village May Day Fair. This was very much a village affair on a grand scale and fantastically organised by the residents of the village.

Complete with a traditional Maypole, very beautifully weaved around by local children, the village was bedecked with colourful bunting.  The May Queen was duly crowned, proudly sitting on her floral throne and flanked by her proud attendants.  School children who weren’t involved with the Maypole dancing were invited to attend in fancy dress with a prize for the best one. 

Other areas of the village had the Aldbury Morris Men dancing (I’ll never quite understand why I find them so fascinating but I always enjoy their antics), cake stalls, barbecues, bouncy castles, farm animals, ‘human table football’ (hilarious!) and a charming selection of  small independent traders (including Velvet Brown!).  A local Brass Band kept everyone entertained, along with a traditional coconut shy, small fairground rides for all ages and a choice of traditional sideshows from a tombola to a tin-can alley.  The local church was open, with a bell-ringing exhibition and folk musicians playing pleasant background music as visitors wandered around this beautiful village church.  

It was a stunning early summer day with warm sunshine and clear blue skies which attracted a large crowd.  To all the villagers who helped to organise this event ‘well done!’ - you all clearly worked very hard and deserve every penny raised from the Fair for your schools and village. Thank you for keeping such a super tradition alive and kicking.  A good time was indeed had by all - we’ll be back next year.

The picturesque village of Aldbury lies 3 miles east of Tring, at the foot of a Chiltern ridge, and is almost surrounded by the Ashridge estate which is owned by the National Trust.

I’ve just come back from an unusual short holiday in Wales. Unusual because of the accommodation.  We stayed in a Romany Caravan in a quiet and private spot in the Ceredigion Valley.  The Caravan or “vardo” as is should more correctly be known, was purchased in 2004 by Holiday Company www.underthethatch.co.uk and set into an idyllic setting in the corner of a field on the edge of the village of Rhyd Lewis. Along with the Vardo, there is also a hut for day to day living with running water, shower, flushing toilet, fridge and hob - so not exactly roughing it. The Vardo and the Verandah on the hut both have extremely efficient pot-belly stoves . So efficient in fact the Vardo soon turns into a sauna if one gets over zealous with the coal,  as we and many previous visitors, according to the visitors book, experienced.  There are many mentions of visitors sitting outside in the frost in only their underwear trying to cool off!

 There is nothing quite like a cooked breakfast in the open air to get the day off to a good start and lots of beautiful places to visit very close by.  The coast of the area is like North Cornwall without the crowds and Welsh Cakes with butter  instead of Scones with jam and clotted cream.  

 Wildlife abounds - many visitors claimed to have seen up to 30 species of birds from the hut alone. It was also mentioned several times that otters had been seen, though they proved to be somewhat elusive during our stay.

It’s a great place to stay for a romantic break - whatever the weather - but is booked up for months in advance so be patient as all good things come to those who wait.

…..Delia that is.  It’s good to have her back on our screens.  I don’t entirely agree with her new ‘cheating’ at cooking methods but at least you know her recipes are guaranteed to be successful and will be packed with flavour.  I’m not sure I can bring myself to put frozen mashed potato in my shopping trolley just yet, besides I enjoy peeling a few spuds and making mashed potato but perhaps if I’m really tired one evening I’ll be very glad of that tin of minced beef in the store cupboard and that bag of cheese that somebody else has grated for me.  Now Delia says it’s OK to use convenience foods, I no longer need to feel guilty if I haven’t stood there chopping, kneading rubbing in or creaming!

 We’ll still have her delicious roasted tomatoes with garlic on a regular basis and I’ll still make her caramelised orange trifle for special occasions but perhaps I could add her hot smoked salmon pie to the repertoire and not feel guilty that it mostly came out of a packet?

Welcome to our blog! We’re not natural bloggers but thought it would be nice to share a few homely thoughts about life in rural Oxfordshire and all things that make a house a home.

Don’t know about you but I can’t wait to take the Christmas decorations down. As soon as New Year’s Eve is over, I long to de-clutter and take down the Christmas decorations, the cards and undecorate the Christmas Tree (although I usually do the tree last!)

That’s the only bit I’ll miss -coming downstairs on a dark morning, turning on the tree lights and gazing at the Christmas tree over a hot mug of tea. My only other dilemma was what to do with my beautiful Christmas door wreath - still looking as fresh as the day I hung it up - so I’ve placed it on the garden bench like a plump cushion to enjoy for a few more days. Having then given everywhere a good clean and tidy, updated the new calendar and found homes for all the new Christmas presents, I feel ready to face the new year.

There’s nothing like a good walk to blow away the cobwebs and a brisk walk with the dog around the village today was inspiring - if a bit muddy! Mother Nature is so clever - the first shoots of spring bulbs are peeping through the ground and the hedgerows are sprouting tiny new buds - I’m sure they weren’t there a few days ago? So no more blues for me in January - with Spring looming there’s everything to look forward to.

As a special treat, and to replace the gap left by the missing Christmas tree, I’ve been out and bought an enormous bunch of early daffodils. Can’t wait to come down in the morning to gaze at them over a cup of tea!

Happy January,

Heather