Top 5 Cotswolds villages within 1.5 hours of Winchester

Drink, Food, Shopping, Travel

The picture-perfect Cotswolds is a firm favourite in our household. It’s just close enough for a day trip, or an easy weekend away, and even in bad weather it’s still utterly charming.

Although it feels like a bit of a trek, the nearest stretches of the Cotswolds are just over an hour away from Winchester (and even closer if you’re based in north Hampshire). Pootle up the A34/M4 and you’ll hit Cirencester (the “Capital” of the Cotswolds) in an hour and fifteen.

So if you fancy a beautiful day trip for some stunning scenery and sublime pub lunches, jump in your car and try these villages.

1. Castle Combe

When I think of the Cotswolds, I think of Castle Combe. The beautiful sandstone cottages, sweeping streets, and the tranquil river running by are just exquisite.

Castle Combe is proclaimed as one of England’s prettiest villages, as well as rising to fame through being a film location for some big tv/film hits, most notably Steven Spielberg’s War Horse, Downton Abbey, and Stardust.

The White Hart pub serves a great range of easy pub classics, including jacket potatoes, stews, sandwiches and pies. If you’re after something special, The Manor House Hotel has become a firm Insta-favourite for its sweeping, ivy-covered façade, or otherwise try The Castle Inn (opposite the White Hart) which is the sister Inn to The Manor House Hotel.

And for any Harry Potter fans, nip over to neighbouring village, Lacock, to visit Hogwarts, the home where Professor Slughorn pretends to be an armchair, and one of the Godric’s Hollow filming locations.

2. Bibury

Another contender for “prettiest village in England”, much of Bibury is protected by The National Trust, and for good reason. Arlington Row, which is the most photographed row of cottages in Bibury, dates back to the 1300’s, and you can even stay in one of them.

Grab a bite to eat at The Swan Hotel, which sits on the River Coln and is another Cotswolds Insta-landmark, again for its ivy-covered façade.

3. Poulton & Meysey Hampton

Ok, so whilst these are technically juuust outside of the Cotswolds, they’re both right on the edge and so sweet that they deserve a spot on this list. I’ve grouped them together because they’re a stones throw from each other and an easy walk between. Lunch at the Masons Arms, which sits on Meysey Hampton’s beautiful green, surrounded by Cotswold cottages. The green even has the old horse mount steps from time-gone-by that you can walk up.

4. Biddestone & Slaughterford

Just a 35-minute cross-country walk between each other, Biddestone and Slaughterford sit just across the Cotswolds border, and both are equally charming in aesthetic.

Biddestone’s White Horse pub is well regarded, or why not try The White Hart in Ford, and walk in a loop between Biddestone, Slaughterford and Ford.

5. Burford

Slightly larger than the previous 4 places, Burford boasts a much larger food scene and a small high street to boot. If you like antiques and homeware, Burford is the one for you.

Walk along the River Windrush towards Swinbrook on this scenic 6.5km walk before circling back to Burford for a well-earned pub lunch.

Second Hand September

Shopping, Style, Sustainable, Uncategorized

Do you buy second hand?

According to Oxfam, around 13 million items of clothing get sent to landfill every week.

Let that sink in. 13. Million. Items.

I am no saint when it comes to my wardrobe, but I have been making a conscious effort in the last few years. If I don’t love it, or it’s short-term fashion, I won’t invest.

This article is going to be an aid-memoir for me, and maybe you too, during Second-Hand September so that I/you know where to go when I/you feel the pull of Fast Fashion…

Some second-hand shops to use

Charity shops
Vestiaire
Depop
eBay
Vinted
Instagram online shops – Second Stories Vintage, Jesse & Iris Vintage, Virtual Vintage Fair, Found & Curated Vintage, a Virtual Vintage Market, Retold Vintage, Darling and Vintage, the Pansy Garden, Peony Vintage, Sisters Love Vintage…

Some of the best items I’ve bought second-hand

Michael Kors tote bag
Somerset by Alice Temperley dresses x2
Mulberry purse
Sweaty Betty ski jacket
Buberry coat
Vintage gold jewellery (for my business, but still)

Wardrobe-rental shops

By Rotation
Hurr Clothing
On Loan
Rotaro

Some circular/upcycling/deadstock small clothing businesses to support

Made by SJP
With Love Evie
Grandpa’s Shirts
Agnes Ldn
Molby the Label
Leila Ray Vintage
Tula & Tye
Joanna Sands
Studio Minti
Megan Crosby
Grey Milk
Benjamin Fox
Sign of the Times
Public Footpath
Wild Folk Studio
Lola Alba Vintage

Some better larger fashion brands to support

Pink City Prints
Kitri Studio
Dilli Grey
Molby the Label
Joanna Sands
Selkie
Aspiga
Rae Feather

Mindsets and a mental checklist

Does it spark joy, Marie Kondo style?
Will I love it in a year’s time?
Do I want to invest in this at the expense of something else?
Who made it?
What is is made of?
Do I want to support the company selling it/the manufacturer?
Is it quality, or will it shrink/stretch and be unwearable after 1 wash?

Environmental and social facts and figures

If the above lists weren’t helpful enough, here are some shocking facts and figures that should put you off from clicking ‘Place Order’ from a fast-fashion retailer…

The fashion industry emits 10% of the entire planet’s carbon emissions (that is far, far more than any airline, for example)
The fashion industry is the second largest consumer of the world’s water supplies
One garbage truck full of clothing is dumped every second
Many clothes that are dumped contain polyester – this is a plastic and does not break down like cotton fibres. Washing polyester produces microplastics, which filter into our water systems and, eventually, our oceans.
Microplastic and plastic pollution from the fashion industry forms roughly a 1/3 of ocean plastic pollution
Cotton farming uses any incredibly high amount of water – both to grow the plant and to wash it and turn it into textile.
The environmental impact of cotton farming is clear to see in the Aral Sea disaster; https://matadornetwork.com/read/aral-sea-ecological-disaster/
The fashion industry could supply 110 million people, who are currently without, with water every year
Garment workers are often not protected by regulations, meaning there is no minimum wage protection, nor employment protection. When the pandemic first hit, millions of garment workers lost their jobs across the globe without any pay or compensation.

Facts from:

UK City Break: 3 days in York and beyond

Drink, Food, Shopping, Travel, Uncategorized

As a lover of history, York has always been on my list of UK places I’ve wanted to visit. When the pandemic meant that international holidays were out and UK staycations were in, I decided to jump on the opportunity to get up to York.

Some quick facts about York:

Population: around 210,000
Founded in: 71 AD by the Romans. After their fall, Anglo-Saxons lived there before being conquered by the Vikings who renamed it “Jorvik”, and so York got its name.
Top touristy spots: York Minster, The Shambles, Yorkshire Museum, Betty’s Tearooms, Jorvik Viking Museum, York Railway Museum, York City Walls
Excellent food/drink spots (there are so many but these are a few): Pairings Wine Bar, Partisan, Sapori, Brew & Brownie, Wheldrakes, Mannion & Co, The Dark Horse Espresso Bar, The Larder Club, Shambles Market
Great day trips: Whitby, Robin Hood’s Bay, Malton (food capital of Yorkshire), Harrogate, Yorkshire Moors, Yorkshire Dales, Haworth (birthplace of the Bronte sisters)
Tips:
- Book everything that needs tickets in advance!
- Check opening times – (e.g. the Bronte Parsonage Museum in Haworth is not open 7 days a week)
- Get the Ringo app – easiest way to pay for parking
- Get up early to experience York before the tourists – we arrived for 8am and got to have the Shambles, the Minster, and the City Walls all to ourselves!

Day 0.5: York

Coming from London, the drive to York took us about 5 hours (stops included), and could not have been easier . Just get yourself onto the M1 and drive.

Given how iconic it is to the city, we booked York Minster tickets for the afternoon. It is a beautiful building, and you can see the Doomstone there.

We then pulled up a chair at Sapori, which is a wine bar on the Shambles, and enjoyed wine and nibbles whilst watching the world go by.

Tip: If you get a lovely sunset, definitely go to York Minster. It is simply stunning.

Day 1: Day Trip to Malton, Robin Hood’s Bay & Whitby

I love a road trip. For me, there is nothing worse than coming away from a trip you’ve looked forward to for months, only to discover you missed half the good stuff!

Yorkshire is filled with gorgeous villages, towns and coastline. So if you don’t drive up, have a look at public transport or hire a car for the day and get out of the city.

We went for a loop from York to Malton to RHB to Whitby and back to York. We also chose the route that took us over the Yorkshire Dales (beautiful).

Malton – the food capital of Yorkshire, with a pretty centre. Lots of boutiques and antique shops, and some incredible food options. We ate at Lutt & Turner (incredible, highly recommend).

Robin Hood’s Bay – a picture-perfect coastal town. Gorgeous side-streets and idyllic houses, plus a long open beach and a coastal path.

Grab a drink from The Bay Hotel and listen to live performers, or go fossil hunting on RHB beach.

Whitby – a larger coastal town, Whitby is famous for its fish & chips and seaside activities and arcades. It is also overlooked by the eerily beautiful Whitby Abbey, an impressive ruin and English Heritage site.

Save your appetite for fish & chips (if only to fuel your Adventure Golf and arcade shenanigans on the pier), and then drive up to Whitby Abbey for views of Whitby and out to sea.

Day 2: York

Day 2 was a day focused on York’s food and history scenes. We got up early doors to see York without the hustle and bustle and tourists, grabbing a coffee and snack from Brew & Brownie to fuel us. It’s well worth it if you want some empty photos and prefer the quiet.

We grabbed an incredible breakfast at Partisan (book ahead, you won’t regret it), before walking the city walls and along the river, and just generally wandering and doing a bit of shopping.

Next food-stop was Betty’s Tea Room. Every time we had walked past Bettys, the queue was round the corner, so you definitely, definitely, definitely want to book this one in advance! Bettys is famous for afternoon tea, and has become an unconditional requirement of a trip to York.

Because we hadn’t booked ahead, we weren’t able to get tickets to Jorvik or the Yorkshire Museum on the day, but, keen to learn some of York’s history, we were able to buy tickets to the York Dungeons on the day. Fun and scary at the same time, it’s a lighter way to absorb the history of York.

We rounded off our foodie day with an evening at Pairings. We had intended to only be there for one quick glass, but ended up staying for 4 hours! If you love wine and charcuterie, then do not miss this one.

Day 3: Harrogate & Haworth

We planned our route home to go via Harrogate and Haworth.

Harrogate also has a Betty’s Tea Room, excellent shopping, and the gorgeous Valley Gardens.

Haworth is just lovely. A long cobbled high street with views across the valley and a fabulous mix of shops, Haworth shouldn’t be missed. If you are also a a literature-lover, then definitely visit the Bronte Parsonage Museum, and walk up to the Bronte Waterfall.

4 days in Hay-on-Wye

Drink, Food, Shopping, Travel, Uncategorized

I was recently spoilt with a very special trip to Hay-on-Wye, a town that sits on the Welsh border, just west of Hereford. It reminded me a lot of a Cotswold town, with pretty stone buildings and narrow streets.

We spent 4 days there, arriving via Cardiff and driving through the Brecon Beacons (which were incredibly beautiful), but you can also drive via the Cotswolds so if you had longer, I think the perfect trip would be a few days in both areas.

Hay-on-Wye is known as “the town of books” and if/when you go, you will see why. Every other shop is a bookshop, or sells books (new and second-hand). It’s magical. There is also a plethora of homeware and antiques shops, and the food and drink scene is excellent too.

Day 1: Cardiff and Hay-on-Wye

If you’ve not explored Cardiff before, then I would highly recommend driving through this way on your way to Hay. Cardiff is a fantastic city, with excellent shopping, history, and things to do. It also has oodles of old arcades which are filled with independent eateries and shops.

I recommend these food places especially:

Wallys Deli in the Royal Arcade
Coffee Barker in the Castle Arcade
New York Deli in the High Street Arcade
Madame Fromage, also in the Castle Arcade

Cardiff is also not that far, taking around 2.5 hours from Hampshire, so you could just about make it a day trip.

If you have longer, I would also explore the Cardiff Central Market, and Cardiff Castle (free entry to the grounds only). The Cardiff Bay area is also excellent, and an easy train ride from Cardiff Central.

Our drive from Cardiff to our accommodation, Cynefin Retreats, took us around 1.5 hours, with wonderful scenery to admire along the way.

Day 2: The Brecon Beacons & Pen Y Fan

Pen Y Fan is the highest point in the Brecon Beacons, and much of the surrounding area is owned by the National Trust. The car park for the trek is back towards Cardiff, and it fills up very quickly, so definitely get there early. The walk is circular and well sign-posted, but the best tip is to start from the car park (the one with the toilets, not the other one), and go straight up anti-clockwise, rather than clockwise (the clockwise route is a much, much steeper climb!).

The loop took us about 2.5 hours (including stops for photos, naturally), so all-in from Hay, it’ll take around 6 hours, leaving you the afternoon to explore Hay some more (or recover!).

Day 3: Hay-on-Wye

You really are spoilt for choice in this wonderful town. For the vintage and book lovers, you can get lost for hours in the high street shops and arcades. My favourite was the Hay Antique Market on Market Street, which I spent a lot of time in (much to my non-vintage loving fiancé’s delight!).

Even if antiques are not your thing, there are a lot of other shops to dip in and out of (like Goosey Gander), as well as lots of food spots.

Our favourites were The Old Electric Shop, Eves, and The Granary but we felt like we barely scratched the surface of Hay’s food scene!

As it was our final night, for dinner we booked Chapters, which is a small and intimidate restaurant serving only local and seasonal foods, most of which is grown by the owners.

Chapters is inside an old chapel on Lion Street and serves a tasting menu of about 7 courses. It’s a fab way to taste local and fresh food, and I would definitely recommend it.

Day 4: Hay-on-Wye and Home

I always find that the places I love the most are the ones that leave you wanting more, where you feel as though you have only just begun to get to know them as you have to leave. Hay is definitely one of those places, and I have no doubt that we will return soon.

Unmissable upcoming markets

Drink, Food, Shopping, Style, Travel

We visited Alresford last weekend, and had the luck of stumbling upon their bi-annual brocante and antiques market, hosted by ACVR events. Although we (and they) were nearly blown away in these uncustomary gale-force winds we’ve been having, there were some beautiful pieces and/or bargains (the joy of an antiques market is that the two are never mutually exclusive) for sale there.

I love having a mooch around a market, particularly when having a lazy weekend, so I thought I would make a list of some of the upcoming ones over the next few months.

Winchester

On the first Sunday of every month is the Antiques Market (it’s brilliant. You could spend a lot of time there).

On the second and fourth Sunday of every month is the Hampshire Farmer’s Market.

On the third Sunday of every month is the Art & Design Market.

I am biased, but Winchester is one of my favourite places. We are spoilt with inescapable history on every corner, independent shops and fantastic food options.

Southsea

Love Southsea Market hosts a fantastic market every two or so weeks. Stalls include street food, flowers, clothes and fashion, homewares and accessories, and jewellery.

You need to book tickets at the moment, due to Covid : About — Love Southsea Markets

Separately, there is also a farmers market on the third Sunday of every month.

Southsea is a lovely coastal town, east of Portsmouth (a little like Brighton & Hove twin together, so does Portsmouth & Southsea). It is full of cool eateries, coffee spots, and independent shops (and very lovely 4-storey townhouses looking out to sea).

Alresford/Alton/Petersfield

Alresford – Every Thursday, Alresford hosts their weekly market of local foods, ceramics and homewares. There’s lots to also explore around Alresford, including shops and walks, so it’s definitely worth a day-trip.

Alresford’s bi-annual vintage and brocante market that we stumbled upon last weekend is separately hosted by ACVR events. The next is on the 26 September. If you want to catch it sooner, head to Ringwood, Romsey or Bishops Waltham, or otherwise have a look here: Calendar of Events – Speciality Markets & Events (acvrevents.co.uk)

Alton – The pretty little market town of Alton hosts a weekly market on a Tuesday. The farmers’ market is also on, on 12 June, 17 July and 14 August, and the Hampshire farmers market on the second Saturday of each month. Alton is also a stone’s throw away from Chawton House, Jane Austen’s family home.

Petersfield – On every Wednesday and Saturday, the Petersfield market has a variety of stalls and is on between 8:30 and 3pm. The Hampshire farmer’s market is on there on the first Sunday of every month.

Ringwood

The Hampshire farmer’s market is held on the last Saturday of each month. There is also a weekly market every Wednesday selling local produce, crafts, clothes and plants.

On 3 July, 4 September, 6 November, and 4 December the ACVR vintage and antiques market we had the pleasure of visiting in Alresford today, will be at Ringwood.

Ringwood is another lovely Hampshire market town, close to beaches and the New Forest, with excellent eateries and independent shops.

Romsey

Romsey’s market is hosted every Tuesday, Friday and Saturday morning in The Cornmarket. Romsey has hosted a market for over 400 years, so although I have not visited this one, I imagine it would be a nice one to stroll through. Romsey is another town with some nice independent shops and cafes.

The Hampshire farmers market is also on, on the first Sunday of every month.

The ACVR brocante market is also here on 25 July, 17 October, and 28 November.

Bishops Waltham

The ACVR brocante market is also here on 18 July and 10 October. Bishops Waltham’s markets are sadly on hold at the moment, but is usually on Fridays.

I have not been to Bishops Waltham in a long time, but it’s on my list now that things are opening up. I have, however, heard that there is a Josie’s there and therefore I am convinced it will be a nice day trip. Bishops Waltham is nestled on the edge of the South Downs, en route to other towns and villages worth a visit, such as Wickham.