A Very English Afternoon

Well I haven't been able to keep quiet about the fact that I had the chance to go out for a spin in a 1935 Aston Martin Ulster. We were lucky enough to be able to borrow this fabulous vintage car from the Aston Martin Heritage Trust and we actually drove it straight out of the Aston Martin Heritage Museum!

I can tell you a little about this lovely model, created from the race car which had much success in Goodwood and the Ulster TT (where it gained the name) there was interest in creating a road version and 21 were made (all of which are still running!). Of course as was very much done in the good old days, many road cars were entered into races & this model was apparently very successful. We managed about 60 mph which was pretty exhilarating & the race drivers of the time must have had more guts than me achieving speeds of over 100mph!

If you have been kind enough to be viewing my blog, you will recognise this fabulous early 1960's dress that I wore for the occasion. It has a matching cropped jacket which had to come off due to the lovely weather that was not forecast - someone was smiling on us!

I should apologise for the flattened & windswept hair, I should have taken more photos before we went out. Plus I had a (vintage of course) headscarf tightly tied under my chin to avoid the birds nest look - ok so I failed but at least I could still comb my hair that evening!!

You may be able to guess how silly I felt having my photo taken (I really don't like it) but I had promised a few friends that I would do so.

I had looked much more authentic earlier - honest but I did feel that effort had to be made to pop out in such a gorgeous car.

Now you would think that this would be the perfect opportunity to go for lunch or afternoon tea somewhere .... by the time we had stopped driving everywhere & though about food, everywhere was closed ha ha.

We did find this lovely looking pub which suited the occasion and so we popped back for dinner that evening. The Nelson was perfect, excellent food & service in a lovely setting.

Anyway if you happen to be in the Benson / Wallingford area of Oxfordshire & you love vintage cars then you should pop down to the Aston Martin Heritage trust Museum, it's really interesting & the people there are so friendly & helpful with loads of great stories and ideas of where to pop to for lunch afterwards!

Anyway it was sooo much fun & we giggled around the countryside waving and parping at everyone like Toad in Wind in the Willows ha ha. Definitely a day to remember!

Little Miracle in Malvern

Well I don’t know about you but this weekend I just happened to discover possibly the best boutique B&B!

This year has been full of unusual events and this weekend I returned to the Malvern Hills for the second time in as many months. Not bad for somewhere I couldn’t have located on a map previously (yes I admit Geography is not my strongest subject!).

I had been to a wedding in Eastnor Castle the last time, where we drank (maybe a little too much) champagne whilst the firework display lit up the lake & forest below the stunning castle. Quite a decedent event & a fabulous wedding. The next day was not quite so fabulous as we were feeling a little second hand to say the least! We considered a brisk walk in the beautiful countryside & chose a nice drive & several pints of sugary soft drinks in a pub garden instead!!!

Anyway, this weekend was just as opulent (quite a contrast from my DIY & car boot purchasing weekends!). I was invited to an Aston martin DB7 weekend in Wales. It clashed with various vintage fairs and amazingly I was torn (I do love my Vintage). The decision was swung when I was told that I could drive the DB7 some of the journey!! The roar of the V12 engine does make me giggle like a small child offered the keys to a sweet shop. What a beautiful car & when there were 25 variations in one place it was definitely a little piece of eye candy heaven!!

On the way over I decided a stop off at the Malvern’s would break up the cross country trip & what a break it was! Treherne House was our destination – a boutique B&B & possibly the nicest, friendliest place I have ever stayed.

Relaxing, sumptuous, spoilt rotten, delicious cuisine ….. The décor was fabulous, attention to detail was incredible and the friendly & helpful warm welcome from the owners Mark & Alex made for perfection. We spent much of dinner chatting with the other (very lovely) guests, who were gushing with compliments about the place & wonderful owners. We felt like we were staying with friends. I was really sad to leave even though I had the rest of the weekend ahead – and a sexy car to drive too!

I could ramble on for ages about this place, it was so sweet & I’m definitely going back. I would have taken photos of the décor and detailing but silly me forgot to charge the camera battery! There was an antique wardrobe I would like to have taken with me – sadly the Aston didn’t have a tow bar & a trailer would probably spoil the streamlining ha ha. The room was filled with all sorts of useful goodies like a Cath Kidson knitted cover hot water bottle, we had (very nice indeed) wine in our room on arrival (always a winner with me) and a great selection of nice herbal teas & coffees (I think this is missing at many hotels and I like to have a cup of tea in my PJ’s!).

Anyway I had a fabulous weekend and I got to wear lots of sun dresses in the daytime & party frocks in the evening. We had a walk up one of the Malvern Hills in silly slippy leather shoes and unsuitable attire (floor length sun dress & clutch bag!!) much to the amusement of the hiking boot & trainer wearing visitors. Luckily the weather held out too, what a lucky girl I was. It’s very grey & wet in Norfolk today, but I’m indoors & I don’t really mind!!