Blog
Taking Time to Live Well
Stitch this simple badge to help you wear your heart on your sleeve.
If you want to get started on the heart-on-you-sleeve-badge project from our May issue, you’ll need some templates before you start stitching. You can click to download and print them here. Then just pick up a copy of the May ‘Folk’ issue to find the rest of the instructions. The magazine is sold in all good shops and supermarkets and you can also order it from our online store at thesimplethings.com.
We have Seasalt Cornwall gift cards up for grabs to put towards some new summer staples (or, knowing the UK weather, a really good rain coat)
Summer is nearly here and if you want to welcome it properly, you have to dress the part, which is a wonderful excuse for a wardrobe refresh. Strolling around the enticing shops is one of the real pleasures of a day in Falmouth, and we can never resist a browse in Seasalt Cornwall. Although the much-loved fashion brand can now be found all over the country, its heart remains in its maritime home.
Creating clothes since 1981, Seasalt started out selling workwear to local farmers, fishermen and artists. The brand still focuses on quality natural and durable fabrics; however, you’re just as likely to find a party-ready jumpsuit as utility-inspired denim in today’s shops.
This year’s summer collection pays homage to folk arts and country crafts, embracing new embroidered styles and a sun-baked palette – just the thing for those halcyon summer days. Look out for soft organic cottons and breathable linen for a cool and effortless summer feel, along with classic pieces you’ll love, year after year.
If you’re feeling inspired to add a few new items to your summer wardrobe, then The Simple Things has teamed up with Seasalt Cornwall to make your summer even brighter. We’re giving you the chance to win one of three gift cards, worth either £500, £150 or £50 to spend online or in your nearest Seasalt shop. (Of course, we don’t have favourites, but we definitely have a soft spot for that inviting Falmouth store…)
For more information and inspiration, visit seasaltcornwall.com or follow on Instagram at seasaltcornwall
For your chance to win one of three Seasalt Cornwall gift cards, worth either £500, £150 or £50, click the button below and answer the following question by 12 June 2024:
Q: Where is Seasalt’s current HQ based?
Terms and conditions: The competition closes at 11.59pm on 12 June 2024 and is open to UK residents only. Three winners will be selected at random from all correct entries received and notified soon after. Subject to availability. The winners cannot transfer their prizes or swap for cash. Details of our full terms and conditions are on p125 and online at: icebergpress.co.uk/comprules.
For Seasalt Cornwall’s T&Cs, visit: seasaltcornwall.com/need-help/terms.
Photography by Kirstie Young
Chickpeas are no modern invention. In fact, Apicius, ancient Rome’s famous culinary writer, wrote a recipe for roasted chickpeas baked in olive oil and served with white wine, anchovy paste and pepper. Do feel free to try his version as well, but here’s our crunchy version. They’re great snacks to have with drinks, or add a few to your lunchbox.
Makes 1 jar
2 x 400g cans of chickpeas
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp za’atar
1 tsp sumac
1 Drain the chickpeas and make sure they’re absolutely dry (a clean tea towel works well for this and it’s essential if you want the chickpeas to be really crispy). If you have time, leave them in a sieve for 30 mins to release any excess moisture.
2 Preheat the oven to 200C/ Fan 180C/Gas 6. Toss the dried chickpeas in the olive oil and sea salt and tip onto a baking tray in a single layer. Place in the centre of the oven for 20-30 mins, shaking every 10 mins, until they’re brown and crispy.
3 Once roasted, sprinkle with the spices to fully coat, turn the oven off, then put the tray of chickpeas back in the oven to cool. This dehydrates them and results in a super crispy chickpea. When they’re completely cold, store in a sealed jar and eat within 3 days.
Cook’s Note: You can play around with other spice combinations. For a sweet and spicy version, combine ¼ tsp each of garlic salt, chilli powder, cumin, salt and black pepper, plus 1 tbsp brown sugar.
The recipe and photography above are from our feature Magic Beans by Kirstie Young, which is all about the not-so-humble chickpea. You can find the rest of the recipes in our April issue. They include Farinata with Fennel, Chicory & Walnuts, Falafel Burgers with Quick Pickles, Chana Masala with Nigella & Herby Rice, and Aquafaba Meringues with Hibiscus Pears.
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Illustrations by Kitty O’Rourke
Having a mind that’s more open to new ideas and differing opinions to your own can have a positive effect on your wellbeing. Here are a few ways to open your mind a little more
Whether it’s our political leanings, religious beliefs, views on animal rights or vaccinations, most of us have strong opinions on what we consider right or wrong, important or not. And while it’s good to have your own views and live a life that’s true to your values, what are your feelings towards those who don’t have the same opinion? Would you listen and respect their viewpoint or be more inclined to disregard them because they’re not like you?
To really understand someone else’s views, try repeating them as if they were your own and see what it feels like.
Reflect on your own opinions and views – where did they originate? When you peel back the layers, what’s at the root?
Practise looking at the world through the eyes of others. Try to imagine yourself physically in the other person’s position, looking at you. Or imagine someone looking at both of you. This makes it easier to step out of your own mental world and consider a different stance.
Model kind, empathetic behaviour and you will encourage others to do so, too.
Try not to group people. We all carry prejudices, often without realising – when you notice yourself doing it, pause and question your assumptions.
The extract above is from our feature ‘To Be Fair…’ by Rebecca Frank in our April issue. You can read more about how being curious-minded can improve your wellbeing from page 54.
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The Simple Things has teamed up with Suma Wholefoods to give away three hampers
Suma’s not your average company. They’re a wholefoods co-operative owned and run by their workers and a 100% veggie business. Based in the heart of West Yorkshire, they’ve been championing the healthy wholefoods lifestyle since 1977 – that’s nearly half a century of goodness!
Suma isn't just jumping on the plant-based, organic, wholefoods bandwagon, they're driving it. With more than 800 top-notch products carefully curated and sourced, they've got everything from your kitchen staples like herbs and spices, to exciting treats like Kombucha and vegan Mac 'n Cheeze. Let's not forget about their amazing ALTER/NATIVE range for hair and body – all cruelty-free and made from natural ingredients. And then there’s their Ecoleaf range of products, which is all about harnessing the power of plants for a cleaner, greener home. Suma's commitment to sustainability and ethics shines through in everything they do. They're approved by the Leaping Bunny programme, the Soil Association and The Vegan Society, too.
We have three hampers from Suma, pictured above, for The Simple Things readers to win. There’s a small hamper, large hamper and an Italian hamper up for grabs. All you need to do is click the button and answer the question below by 22 May 2024.
Q: What year did Suma Wholefoods start trading?
You can find Suma online, at your local wholefoods or zero waste shop, or get together with family, friends and neighbours and ask about setting up a Food Buying Group. Plus, if you sign up for Suma's newsletter, you'll get the inside scoop on all their latest stories, products, and special offers!
The competition closes at 11.59pm on 22nd May 2024. Three winners will be selected at random from all correct entries received and notified soon after. The prize consists of 1 x small hamper worth £45, a hamper Italy worth £80 and a large hamper worth £125. The winners cannot transfer the prize or swap it for cash. Details of our full terms and conditions are on p125 and online at at icebergpress.co.uk/comprules.
Much foraged greenery comes under the bracket of ‘edible, in that it won’t kill you, but not really worth the bother.’ So many are just a bit bland, but not nettles, which have irony, peppery brightness to their flavour making them unique and great fun to cook with. Not fun to pick though. Wear gloves, avoid patches at dog-wee height, and wash them thoroughly, using only the young leaves at the growing tips.
Makes 4 slices
400ml whole milk
2 bay leaves
6 black peppercorns
30g butter
30g plain flour
200g cheddar cheese, grated, plus extra for topping
100g nettle leaves, washed
4 thick slices of crusty farmhouse bread or sourdough
1 Warm the milk in a large pan with the bay and peppercorns. Pour into a jug and set aside to infuse.
2 Melt the butter in the empty milk pan over a low heat, then add the flour and cook for 2 mins, stirring all the while. Pour in the infused milk (having removed the bay and peppercorns), a little at a time, whisking it into the flour mixture before adding the next glug. Keep whisking so it doesn’t go lumpy. When the sauce is the consistency of thick double cream, stop adding the milk and leave to bubble for 2 mins, stirring regularly so it thickens further. You can now remove the thick, smooth sauce from the heat. Fold in the cheddar and season generously with salt and pepper.
3 In another saucepan set over a low heat, wilt the nettle leaves in a tablespoon of boiling water for 2-3 mins. Tip them into a colander and squeeze out the excess water, then roughly chop and stir into the cheese sauce.
4 Set your grill to medium. Arrange the slices of bread on a baking tray and toast on one side. Turn the slices over and spread the cheesy nettle sauce on the untoasted side. Top with a little more cheddar, then return to the grill for 5-8 mins, or until bubbling. Serve immediately.
This recipe is taken from our April issue’s Veg Patch Pantry pages by Kathy Slack, with photography by Kirstie Young. The pages also contain recipes for Shichimi Togarashi Radish Spring Rolls, Purple Sprouting Broccoli with Anchovies, Almonds and Chilli and Wild Garlic Pesto Pasta.
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ALSO is the award-winning festival where ideas run wild. Hailed by Condé Nast Traveller as one of the best festivals in the world, Grazia as one of the hottest in the UK and ES as one of the coolest, picked by the Guardian, Times, Sunday Times and Telegraph for their ‘best of the fests’ lists, ALSO returns resplendent for its eleventh edition with the theme Heavenly Bodies on 12-14th July and promises to be nothing short of celestial.
Set in a Capability Brown landscape in Warwickshire, the UK’s most inspirational summer festival combines ideas, music and comedy alongside adventures in food, nature and wellness.
ALSO24 features transformative ideas from Sunday Times bestselling psychotherapist Philippa Perry (her only UK festival appearance this summer), rock-star classicist Natalie Haynes, bringing nuance to Greek Myth and banker–turned–journalist Nels Abbey showing how hip-hop rewrote the rules of business.
There are genre-busting live performances from experimental musician Jessica Winter (‘The new face of outsider pop’ - Line of Best Fit), indie-folk sonic adventurers Stornoway and Latin brass collective The Fontanas, bringing the party to Saturday night.
ALSO24 headlines comedy performances from BAFTA-winning, best-selling writer and comedian Adam Kay, acclaimed comedian and best-selling writer Sara Pascoe (QI, Taskmaster, Live at the Apollo) and gallic misanthrope (and TikTok sensation) Marcel Lucont presenting his cult hit Cabaret Fantastique.
What to expect? Eccentric, playful, thought-provoking programming across 15 venues designed to get ideas into your head. From life-enhancing talks and big bands to long table dinners, tastings and demos. Creative masterclasses and inspirational workshops by day, comedy and eclectic electronica by night. Enjoy a rum and a dance at the Rum Shack, or take to the water for a sunset swim and lakeside sauna. Curate your own adventure.
Two lucky readers can win either a family weekend ticket or a pair of adult weekend tickets
each worth £300.
For your chance to win a family weekend ticket or a pair of adult weekend tickets to ALSO24, click below and answer the following question before 8 May 2024.
Q. How many venues are at ALSO?
Terms and Conditions
By entering the competition, you agree for the organisers to contact you about the event and competition results. You may unsubscribe from these emails at any time by following the link in the email footer. The competition closes at 11.59pm on 8 May 2024. The winners will be selected at random from all correct entries received and notified soon after. Subject to availability. The winners cannot transfer their prizes or swap for cash. Details of our full terms and conditions are on p125 and online at icebergpress.co.uk/comprules.
Pictured: The Bookshop, Hebden Bridge by Sarah Soltanowicz
Independent bookshops are always a joy but here we’ve rounded up some real specialists in their field. Whether your love is crime or cookery, there’s a bookshop somewhere dedicated to the genre…
Crime fiction
Murder & Mayhem, 5, Lion Street, Hay-on-Wye, Hereford
This bijou store in Britain’s bookshop capital specialises in the Golden Age of crime fiction as well as ghost stories, Sherlock Holmes and ‘cosy crime’. Don’t miss the chalk outline of a corpse on a floor or the amazingly detailed miniature reproduction of the shop itself in the window.
Children’s books
Octavia’s, 24, Black Jack Street, Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Whether you’re shopping with children or simply ‘for’ children, a trip to Octavia’s is always a treat. Colourful interiors and comfy seats make it an oasis on this bustling high street, and staff are excellent at giving targeted recommendations.
Travel Fiction
Daunt Books, Marylebone High Street, London
Inside this magical Edwardian building sit rows of books on polished oak galleried shelves. Its outstanding collection of travel books is arranged by country, which makes for a really pleasant afternoon’s browsing and the choice is unbeatable. Daunt now has several stores and even its own publishing arm but the MHS store is the first and the best.
Gay and LGBT interest
Gay’s The Word, 66, Marchmont Street, London
Established in 1979, Gay’s the Word has always been much more than ‘just’ a gay bookshop; it’s a community and social hub where everyone is welcome with a thriving events programme as well as a beautifully curated selection of books.
Natural History
Pemberley Books, 18, Bathurst Walk, Iver, Buckinghamshire
Books on every topic of natural history from agriculture to zoology, passing through everything from entomology to lepidoptera. Good antiquarian stock, also.
Geography
Stanfords Books, London and Bristol
Stocking huge arrays of maps, atlases and globes since 1853. If you can find your way to one of the two branches of Stanfords you’ll be able to find your way to anywhere in the world.
Poetry
The Poetry Bookshop, The Pavement, Lion Street, Hay-on-Wye
If poetry is what you’re after,
This airy shop is packed to the rafters
With shelves and shelves of poetry
‘Pon which they’re quite an authority.
Cookery
Books for Cooks, 4, Blenheim Crescent, London
Cookery and food books from all over the world jostle for space in this amazing book store in Notting Hill, given over entirely to the art of cookery. Feel like you can almost smell the delicious dishes wafting off the page? That’ll be the test kitchen at the back where they try out the recipes they want to champion most.
Science Fiction
Durdles Books, 51, Cole Bank Road, Birmingham
Specialising in Sci Fi and Fantasy - for both adults and children and incorporating both fiction and non-fiction, Durdles is a geek’s Aladdin’s cave of treasures.
This bookshops round-up was inspired by our new series called My Living. The first feature in the series looks at people who run their own bookshops and it’s in the April issue, which is out now.
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Photography: Kristin Perers
Gather some gorse while out on a walk to create a zesty cocktail that tastes of the coast
These royally good cocktails were served to the Queen on a visit to the Eden Project in 2021 – this is Cornwall in a glass. Makes 1 glass
For the syrup:
200g caster sugar
2 handfuls of gorse flowers
2 drops of natural coconut flavouring
For the cocktail:
50ml Wrecking Coast Clotted Cream gin (or your favourite gin)
12.5ml coconut rum
1½ tbsp lemon juice
1½ tbsp gorse flower syrup
Ice cubes
Soda water
1 lemon twist (or slice)
Edible flowers (we used borage), to garnish
1 First, make the gorse flower syrup. In a saucepan, heat the sugar, gorse flowers, coconut flavouring and 100ml of water over a very low heat for about 30 mins, or until the sugar’s dissolved, the flowers have wilted and the syrup has turned a gentle yellow colour.
2 Remove from the heat and leave to infuse and cool for at least 6 hrs, or ideally overnight. Strain then decant into a sterilised jar.
3 To make the cocktail, shake all the ingredients, except for the soda water and garnish, together in an ice-filled cocktail shaker until super cold.
4 Strain over ice and top up with soda water. Garnish with a lemon twist and a borage flower to serve.
Bartender’s note: When picking gorse flowers, always wear gloves and check thoroughly for bugs. Only pick open buds.
Taken from Time & Tide by Emily Scott (Hardie Grant). Photography: Kristin Perers
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JANOME sewing machines are synonymous with innovation, quality, and ease of use. This Spring JANOME have a great all-round sewing machine for one lucky reader to win.
Whether you are sewing for thrift, sustainability or simply pleasure, the Janome 230DC computerised sewing machine (pictured below) is the perfect companion. With a few easy steps you will be up and sewing in no time.
The model 230DC has lots of easy-to-use features which make sewing a pleasure, it is ideal the machine to grow with your skills and is suitable both for beginners and more experienced sewing fans. It’s fully computerised with stitches and settings at the touch of a button, has no-fuss threading with the auto-needle threader (pictured below), top loading bobbin and a hard cover for storage.
There are 30 stitch choices and a variety of buttonhole styles, making this machine ideal for beginners and more advanced stitchers alike. The new JANOME Spring 2024 ‘Sewing with Style’ brochure can be downloaded from janome.co.uk/special-offers Visit your local Janome retailer to see the JANOME range.
The competition closes at 11.59pm on 31 May 2024. One winner will be selected at random from all correct entries received and notified soon after. The winner cannot transfer the prize or swap it for cash. Details of our full terms and conditions are on p125 of the magazine and online at at icebergpress.co.uk/comprules.
To enter, simply click on the button below and answer the following question:
Q: How many stitch choices does the Janome 230DC computerised model have?
Photography by Stocksy
As a nation that ‘enjoys’ its fair share of the rain, at least we’ve embraced April showers with various terms for the many and varying types of rain, and some rather specific regional words, too. Here are just a few of our favourites from across the country.
Bange (East Anglia) - dampness in the air
Damping (Midlands) - generally pretty wet
Bouncing off the ground (Lancashire) - raining so hard it’s bouncing back
Degging (Northumberland) - sprinkling or moistening
Dibble (Shropshire) - slow rain drops
Dringey (Norfolk) - light rainfall
Hadder (Cumbria) - from ‘heather’, a feathery, light rain
Harle (Lincolnshire) - drizzle from the sea
Hi’n brwr hen wraegedd affyn (Wales) - meaning ‘it’s raining old women and sticks’
Letty (Somerset) - enough rain to make outdoor work hard. From the old English let, meaning to disallow
Mizzle (Devon and Cornwall) - might sound like a portmanteau of misty and drizzle and it does mean ‘a misty drizzle’ but likely derives from the Dutch miezelen
Picking (Wales) - from pigan meaning ‘starting to rain’
Pleasure and pain (Cockney) - rhyming slang
Plodging through the clart (Northumberland) - so wet you’re wading through mud
Raining forks tiyunsdown’ards (Lincolnshire) - very hard, painful rain, raining like pitchforks
Smirr (Scotland) - a drifting, fine rain
Smithering (Suffolk) - drizzling
Wet rain (Northern Ireland) - that soft, sheeting rain that gets into everything
Our dialect words for rain were inspired by our feature, All Weather Friend from our April issue, which is an extract from In All Weathers: A Journey Through Rain, Fog, Wind, Ice And Everything In Between by Matt Gaw (Elliott & Thompson).
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Photography by Emma Croman
Pretty as you please cheesecake, with fresh fruit and flowers doing decorative duty
You will need
170g digestive biscuits
100g unsalted butter, melted
300ml double cream
100g icing sugar
250g cream cheese
1½ lemons, zested and juiced
A handful of fresh berries (we used raspberries and blueberries), a sprig of thyme and edible flowers
To make
1 Line the base of an 18cm springform cake tin with baking paper. Blitz the biscuits in a food processor until they resemble breadcrumbs. Combine with the melted butter then press evenly into the base of the tin with the back of a spoon. Cover and put in the fridge while you prepare the filling.
2 Whip the double cream in a fresh bowl until it forms soft peaks. Sift in the icing sugar and add the cream cheese, lemon juice and zest. Fold the mixture until thoroughly combined.
3 Remove the cheesecake base from the fridge and spoon on the cream mixture, smoothing the top with the back of the spoon. Cover and return to the fridge for 2 hrs 30 mins, or until fully set. When ready, gently remove the cheesecake from the tin and decorate with fresh berries, thyme sprigs and edible flowers.
This is just one of the recipes from our Gathering feature in our April issue, which we’ve called ‘Dinner For Good’. The menu is for a charity supper club and also includes ideas for Smoked Salmon Rostis, Herb Focaccia, Courgette, Mint and Ricotta Polpette and more. Recipes are by Louise Gorrod and photography by Emma Croman.
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This Easter decoration is simple to make and is an easy way to bring a little spring indoors
Osterbaums have a long history in Germany. Sometimes trees outside are decorated for Easter, but more often, branches are brought into the home. Blossoming boughs – perhaps cherry or blackthorn – are particularly pretty, or those with catkins such as pussy willow or hazel. It’s traditional to adorn them with painted or dyed eggs, though you could also use feathers or ribbons – anything colourful that captures that feeling of spring.
Photography by Sussie Bell. Styling by Selina Lake/Living4Media
This idea is from the March issue of The Simple Things, which you can still buy from our online store and includes lots of ideas for celebrating the season.
Diagrams: Nick Robinson
The Japanese art of folding paper into shapes and figures is a rather pleasant and mindful way to spend an afternoon. Here’s how to get started.
Before you begin, it’s a good idea to learn a few of the basic folds. Once you have these under your belt there’s actually quite a lot you can do, so it’s satisfyingly quick to get to the stage where you can make small paper shapes. Buy yourself a cheap pack of origami paper (it just needs to be square, basically) and start with some folds. Engaging in such activities not only sparks creativity but also opens up opportunities for craft work at home, allowing you to turn a simple hobby into a productive and enjoyable way to spend your time
Mountain folds
Nearly all origami folds are either mountain folds or valley folds (see below). A mountain fold is any fold where the crease is pointing up and the paper is bending downwards - like a mountain. Take a square or paper, fold it in half any way you like and then place the paper, mountain style, with the two edges on the table and the pointy bit at the top.
Valley folds
These are simply the opposite of a mountain fold. The edges of the paper are pointing upwards and the crease is at the bottom on the table, resembling a valley. It’s the same as a mountain fold, just upside down. You can see some examples of valley folds in the top line of the folds diagram above.
Squash folds
This gives 3D shape to a piece of origami. You slightly prise open a fold, crease it in the opposite direction, and then flatten it again.
Reverse folds
You can have inside reverse folds or outside reverse folds; they just go different ways. They’re most famously used to make origami cranes* but are also regularly used to make heads and tails for lots of animals. In an inside reverse fold, a small fold is made on an already folded piece of paper and then unfolded before being pushed inside out into the main fold. With an outside reverse fold, the small fold sticks outwards of the paper rather than inside. You can see an inside reverse fold in the bottom row of the diagrams above.
* Cranes are a classic origami make. Japanese folklore says that if you fold a thousand cranes, the Gods will bring you good fortune.
To see diagrams and step-by-step instructions for all these folds, visit http://www.origami-instructions.com/, which also has instructions for lots of other folds and basic origami patterns. In our March issue we learned to fold origami blossom from the book Blossom Origami by Clover Robin (Nosy Crow). Find the instructions on page 42.
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Image: istock
DJ: Frances Ambler
Never let rain stop play. Our latest playlist celebrates all kinds of weather, whether sunshine or showers.
Take a listen on Spotify here.
As Part of its Fusion Brace hut, Blackdown Shepherd Huts has created the ultimate bedroom retreat to switch off and fully recharge. Can someone dim the lights please?
There are times in life when the busyness of the everyday builds and builds and the only remedy is to retreat to the sanctuary of a serene bedroom, with a good mag (The Simple Things, of course) and a warming mug of tea.
Better still, instead of collapsing, exhausted, into a weary sleep, imagine if you could properly unwind and recharge, perhaps with a long, leisurely bath before curling up under to covers to drift into a dreamy slumber.
If this sounds completely idyllic, then Blackdown Shepherd Huts may just have created the dreamiest of bedrooms thanks to its Fusion Brace hut – its most innovative shepherd hut to date with two huts joined together perpendicularly by Blackdown’s signature glass walkway.
Fusion’s full-height, rich velvet headboard, against which you can arrange a mountain of pillows to sink into, is sumptuously paired with a handcrafted Naturalmat king-sized mattress, both are made for pure relaxation. Alongside the Tom Raffield bedside lamps, which add a warm and cosy glow.
The curved stargazer roof window guarantees the best seat in the house for nature’s light show – lie in bed and watch the stars, and once sleepiness sets in, simply pull the blind for a restful night’s sleep. Come the morning, you’ll wake, fully refreshed. Open the blind and let the sun’s rays wash over you, gently warming your skin. In fact, dragging yourself out of bed will likely be the day’s biggest challenge.
Designed to be screen free, the Fusion bedroom is slower living at its finest. Instead, immerse yourself in a great book or put pen to paper and journal your thoughts away in a beautiful notebook, always, of course, with a good mug of tea close to hand.
Whether it’s at home or away, a night in Blackdown Shepherd Hut’s Fusion bedroom is sure to leave you feeling ready to tackle life’s busyness once again, and will certainly inspire future sweet dreams.
For more information and inspiration, visit blackdownshepherdhuts.co.uk or follow on Instagram: @blackdownshepherdhuts
We have five Lazy Susan vouchers to be won, so you can create a fuss-free outdoor space
to relax in this Spring
Spring is here and with it, the prospect of getting outdoors and enjoying fresh air, sunshine, and all that your outdoor space has to offer. For many, the arrival of spring often means laborious chores maintaining garden furniture ready for the year ahead. However, if you’d prefer to be sowing and potting rather than sanding and treating, then Lazy Susan garden furniture may be the answer.
After years of struggling to maintain his teak garden table, it became clear to Michael Scott that the long-term solution was not fighting a losing battle with wood, but using cast aluminium instead. After much searching, product testing and deliberation, Lazy Susan was born, back in 2007, and now features timeless designs that are maintenance-free, rust-proof and can be left outside all year round.
There’s also a range of finishing touches, such as cushions, parasols and accessories, which are crafted with durability in mind. If this sounds like your cup of tea, then The Simple Things has teamed up with Lazy Susan to offer five lucky readers the chance to win a Lazy Susan voucher, worth £200 each. So, whether you’re looking to furnish a garden, patio or balcony area, Lazy Susan has sets suitable for all spaces, in a variety of sizes, which are powder-coated for resilience – all you need to create equally long-lasting outdoor memories this spring and summer.
For more information, visit lazysusan.co.uk or call 01243 684873.
For your chance to win £200 to spend at Lazy Susan, enter by clicking the button below and answering the following question by the closing date of 14 May 2024.
Q: What is Lazy Susan furniture made from?
The competition closes at 11.59pm on 14 May 2024. Five winners will be selected at random from all correct entries received and notified soon after. Subject to availability. The winners cannot transfer their prizes or swap for cash. Details of our full terms and conditions are on p125 and online at icebergpress.co.uk/comprules.
“We’re just a bunch of ordinary people trying to do the right thing”
Leading the way in the wholefoods market, we chat to Suma co-operative member Sophie Ziegler-Jones to find out how the co-op is going from strength to strength
Hi Sophie, tell us a little bit about Suma
We’re a vegetarian wholefoods wholesaler and we also sell directly to customers via our online shop. I think most people will know us for our Suma food, Ecoleaf household and ALTER/NATIVE bodycare ranges. We were set-up as a worker co-op where everyone is paid the same wage and has an equal say in how we’re run.
How did Suma come about?
It started in Leeds, in the 1970s, when our founder, Reg, spotted a gap for bulk vegetarian provisions. Back then, people thought wholefoods were just for hippies! He set up a collective and would deliver after hours from the back of his van – I guess you could call it an early zero-waste store! Since then, we haven’t looked back.
Ingenious! How have things changed since then?
Well, the wholefoods market has gone from strength to strength; vegetarianism has become mainstream, closely followed by veganism. Sustainability and environmental impact – which we’ve championed from the off – are now the urgent issues of the day. Suma is still run on the same principles as day one: cruelty-free, sustainable, ethical, fair trade, organic and co-operative.
You must have racked up some serious eco-credentials over the years
Where to start? We’re certified by the Soil Association, the Vegetarian Society and the Vegan Society. We’ve been cruelty-free since day one and all our Ecoleaf and ALTER/NATIVE products are approved under the Leaping Bunny programme. We’re Fair Tax certified and proud members of Business Declares, too, a network of businesses acknowledging the climate emergency.
We can tell that you’re passionate about the industry
It’s hard not to get excited. We regularly win awards – in fact last year, we were chuffed to make it to the top of Ethical Consumer’s Best Ethical Supermarket listing, which is no mean feat given their stringent criteria. I think our new and ambitious sustainability strategy played a big part in this.
Oh yes?
Our aim is to be Net Zero by 2030. We already do a lot to support the environment, like reducing waste and carbon emissions, supporting local suppliers and organic agriculture, while promoting fair trade, co-ops and B-Corps. We plant trees every year to help prevent flooding in our local area and are continuing the switch to electric and bio-gas fuel vehicles powered by food waste. We’re also working towards being a ‘zero waste to landfill’ business and are already really close to that.
That’s incredible!
Thanks. It’s going to be hard work, but we know it’s the right thing to do and that’s what we’re about – we’re just a bunch of ordinary people trying to do the right thing.Suma is clearly setting the bar for the competition. All of our members live and breathe wholefoods. We’ve always been a trailblazer for vegetarian, vegan, and sustainably-sourced wholefoods and aim to support innovative, independent suppliers who aren’t stocked by the big supermarkets. We offer a huge range of products from storecupboard essentials, such as cereals, soups, sauces and baking ingredients, plus everything to keep your cleaning cupboard and bathroom cabinet well stocked, too. New product development is really important to us and we often bring to market UK firsts. One product that we’re excited about is our new gluten-free oat pasta. The future is very exciting, indeed.
For more information, to find your nearest stockist and to shop online, please visit suma.coop
Illustration by Claire Harrup
There are plenty of lessons we can learn from nature, but one of the most important is that nature is never in a rush
There’s a valuable lesson for most of us here as we hurry around from one task to another, rarely taking time to pause and reflect. We’re increasingly impatient, seeking instant gratification. We’ve lost the ability to be bored, to idle away an afternoon feels wasteful and indulgent.
Yet this downtime is part of our cycle just as it is in the natural world. We too need time to germinate, grow and produce, followed by fallow periods of rest and rejuvenation. Often the expectation is that we spend most or all our time in the productive stage, but if we don’t take time to find new inspiration and let our minds wander, we soon end up burnt out or stuck in a creative rut.
Neuroscientists now understand what happens in our brain when we stop and do nothing and have found that this is when creative and intuitive thinking happens. Rather than filling your time with more stuff to do and rushing to finish so you can move on to the next thing, allow yourself some time to do nothing and let your mind wander. Often you’ll find that your best ideas or solutions spring into your conscious mind when daydreaming.
Lie down on a rug and look at the sky for a while and see what thoughts arise. Try to be patient and let events in your life take their natural course as they do in nature. Plant some seeds and observe how with daily watering and sunlight they slowly grow into seedlings and plants producing fruit, vegetables or flowers. Slow down and observe, listen, reflect, and ponder. In the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, ‘Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.’
The words above are an extract from our wellbeing editor’s new book Just Add Nature by
Rebecca Frank (National Trust Books, out 11 April).
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When the sun shows its face, let optimism win over the actual temperature and lure friends outside with something tasty… Or maybe just throw open the back door and tuck in indoors
This recipe for crab bruschetta will bring some spring zing to the lunch table and the promise of many more outdoor meals to come. Serve on crusty bread with big wedges of lime.
Serves 6
200g fresh crab meat
Zest and juice of ½ small unwaxed lemon
½ small red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
50g mayonnaise
1 handful of finely chopped fresh parsley
6 slices of fresh crusty bread (such as sourdough or baguette)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small garlic clove, peeled and cut in half
6 large radishes, finely sliced
2 small limes, cut into large wedges
1 In a large mixing bowl, mix together the crab meat, lemon juice, chopped chilli, mayonnaise and half the chopped parsley.
2 Brush the slices of bread with the olive oil and rub them with the raw garlic clove, then toast on both sides under the grill.
3 Top each slice with the crab mix, then sprinkle with the remaining parsley and lemon zest. Top with the finely-sliced radish pieces and add a twist of freshly ground black pepper to each slice. Serve immediately with the lime wedges.
This recipe is from the gathering feature in our March issue, which is a ‘Plant Party’. Get together with friends to swap houseplants, seedlings, cuttings and seeds and when you’ve finished swapping, sit down to a seasonal lunch of crab bruschetta, halloumi, basil and beetroot skewers, ricotta and spinach dumplings and spring mixed pea salad with mint and pistachios. Finish with a homemade lemon and blueberry tart. The recipes and styling are by Kay Prestney and the photography is by Rebecca Lewis.
We celebrate slowing down, enjoying what you have, making the most of where you live, enjoying the company of of friends and family, and feeding them well. We like to grow some of our own vegetables, visit local markets, rummage for vintage finds, and decorate our home with the plunder. We love being outdoors and enjoy the satisfaction that comes with a job well done.
