in amongst the confetti

A few weeks back we headed back home to visit my parents. Mum was working on the Saturday so The American and I headed to the Confetti Fields, a small plot of farmland a 10 minute drive away from home. Rather cleverly a farmer has tapped into a market; the wedding market for couples looking to keep thing sustainable and local and the Instagram market, for those keen to add another snap to their grid that’s sure to get attention. The Confetti Fields is a plot of prime flower growing land, growing only delphiniums in a spectrum of colours which are grown especially for wedding confetti. The fields reach peak bloom for one week of the year and during that week they are open to the general public, seeing teams of people travelling from all over to get a snap of the place. I’d seen the fields last summer and with Dad knowing all the farmers in the area, he’d also heard about this spectacle.

We drove down the winding farm track in the blazing sunshine, not quite sure of what to expect. It really is something that should be seen in person as I just don’t think I can do it justice through words. Nonetheless I will give it a try. The parameter of the field had been planted with different colours – deep purple, white, fuchsia, the palest of blues and a sweet strawberry ice cream tone too. Mixed together they are quite the picture and you can get a really good sense of what a mixed bag of confetti would look like. If you delve deep into the field you see the colours break down into blocks. Curiously they don’t smell much and despite the heat we saw very few bees, I guess it was too late in the season for them now, seeing as the delphiniums were just about to be harvested a week later.

Hard to choose but I think my favourite colour was the pale blue, it’s so delicate and has the slightest hint of blush running through it. Though I did also rather like it when a rogue delphinium of another colour had broken free – vive la résistance! We loved roaming the fields, despite the heaving crowds – honestly, I think every parent with anew born thought the confetti fields were the perfect place to have a free family photoshoot and the amount of people posing for Instagrams was actually laughable (myself included, though admittedly less pouty and more “here I am in a field of flowers having forgotten to brush my hair”).

Having picked up a full bunch of cut delphiniums for mum we climbed up high into the Cotswolds for lunch in Broadway before driving on to Snowshill to finish off our flower-filled day at the lavender farm.

More to follow…

L. 

cherry picking

One of my favourite places to visit in Maryland is Baugher’s, a fruit and vegetable farm in rural Westminster. It must be the farm girl in me but I can’t get enough of the place; from trawling through all the jars of interesting condiments to ordering pie and ice cream in the cute diner. This year we arrived in prime fruit picking season and we just knew we’d have to get a piece of the pie (pun intended). Sweet cherries were in seasons so we headed over early one morning before the searing heat got too searing.

We took the tractor and trailer out into the orchards which sprawl across the hills. It’s funny, even though a tractor is very much the norm for me I still got excited! Some things will never change. Arriving at our destination we were handed some old metal buckets and told we could climb the ladders to pick the ripest fruits. Each tree was heaving with deep plum-coloured cherries and it took all my will power not to nibble a few.

With a basket heavy with ripe fruit we escaped the heat and waited under the trees for our lift back to the farm shop. It’s safe to say the cherries did not last long- the perfect snack to enjoy in the rising temperatures!

L. 

old westminster winery

We arrived in Westminster to searing heat so naturally our first port of call after our 4 hour drive was to Old Westminster Winery, located a stone’s throw away from our home. I had already sussed the place out on Instagram so knew what to expect – The American on the other hand was blown away by what quiet Westminster now had to offer, all these years after he left his hometown.

Nestled amongst the vines we found the tasting rooms and each tried a flight of wine before settling on a bottle. Our flights each contained one white, three roses and a red. The white was fruity yet refreshing (our favourite), the roses a curious take on French roses we are used to (very dark, and almost tasted like a crisp red) and the red was as expected; oaky and smooth. Seeing as the weather was reaching 32 degrees we decided a chilled bottle of the white would best quench our thirst.

We settled on the comfy sofas outside, perfect for taking in the views and indulged in a little people watching. Everyone from dating couples to a hen party was there, enjoying a Saturday afternoon in the sun. We mulled over our plans for the week ahead which would include another visit with friends later on!

With the temperatures seemingly rising by the second we made a beeline for home but not before a quick photo shoot amongst the vines – it would have been rude not to! Apparently they plant roses at the end of each row as a way of telling whether the vines are healthy or not. The roses will wither and die if the vines are struggling – news to me so I was pleased to see the roses coping just fine in the sun.

Later in the week we returned with friends, only by now the weather had turned so we stayed in the barn and enjoyed a long overdue catch-up and the same fruity white (plus a few more bottles..). Old Westminster Winery, you were one of the highlights of our trip and we will be making a beeline for you again on our return!

L.