I’m very excited to go on a tour of the UK with you, to meet three inspiring and creative women in London, Hampshire and Swansea respectively! The thing these ladies have in common… well they each have a blog or website in which they showcase their writing, photos and in Clara’s case her illustrations! Each…
Defrost this springtime!
Having three kids age seven, five and three means I watch a lot of Disney films. A lot. And the princesses are getting more and more courageous (but that’s for another post). Today I want to look at the two flagship songs from Frozen and Frozen II, both sung by icy blonde haired Elsa. I…
Ten fantastic facts about Yeovil
If you’re from Yeovil or know Yeovil a bit here are some facts that may surprise you! How many of them did you know about? And if you don’t know Yeovil (you haven’t lived 😂) but please read on to find out a little more about this sparkling gem of a town in South Somerset!…
What is a Smurfette?
“So what is a Smurfette? Noone wanted an answer more than Smurfette herself.” This is the opening line to the 2017 film, Smurfs the Lost Village. This is an immense film and does more for feminism than the recently unveiled Mary Wollstonecraft statue (although that isn’t hard!). The film strives to tell the story of…
Holly talks craft kits!
In this interview I talk to Holly, who was inspired to create craft kits that are good quality keepsakes that children treasure and don’t result in lots of clearing up for the parents: a win win situation! Bee and Pea’s Craft Kits is such a fabulous name for such a fabulous venture, and we all…
Somerset Shines is 1!
It’s a year since I launched my blog Somerset Shines and I wanted to share some of the things I’ve learnt along the way. I started the blog to share my joy in moving back to Somerset with my family just over two years ago. So here are a few tips on starting a blog…
Cupcakes and rainbows
Poppy and Branch are two characters from the Trolls movie. This movie offers so much insight into human nature that I just love watching it with my kids. In one exchange, Branch says to Poppy “The world isn’t all cupcakes and rainbows” Poppy replies “Hey I know it’s not all cupcakes and rainbows but I’d…
Ali talks mamas!
If you take a look at Ali’s website, you’ll be reassured that she is as qualified as can be to talk on this topic. However, it’s clear that Ali brings more to the table as a coach and counsellor, with the empathy and insight that comes from lived experience. Interviewing Ali was brilliant, as the…
Sutton Bingham
Sutton Bingham sounds like a rather refined character from a Jane Austen novel. In fact, it’s the site of a reservoir in South Somerset, just beyond the village of East Coker. According to ancestory.com ‘Sut’ is from the Old English word for South and ‘ton’ means enclosure or settlement. ‘Bing’ means hollow and ‘ham’ homestead….
A trip back to East Coker
I borrowed the book “Footsteps from East Coker”, written by journalist David Foot, from Yeovil Library. David was born in 1929 and grew up in Verandah Cottage, opposite the Helyar Arms (then the New Inn). East Coker is a small village in Somerset, close to the Dorset border so I imagine the following reflections of…
Word therapy
Is there such a thing as word therapy? Can arranging letters in a certain order be powerful enough to soothe our past, present and perception of the future? I believe that the answer to this is yes. Words can soothe, direct and heal us. In the current world climate it has to be OK to…
The story of Ninesprings
How many towns do you know that have a country park right at their heart? Yeovil Country Park is 127 acres, it has five main areas, with Ninesprings being the most popular and accessible part. Ninesprings includes a woodland hillside, grassy area and water. Within Ninesprings there is a large Victorian pleasure gardens (according to…
SomersetShines 