Her objective has always been: ‘To create great food, innovate and educate and have fun along the way.’ Here, she tells us what makes for a life well-lived.
Where do you call home?
Nettlebed, south Oxfordshire, with my husband, several animals and three children.
When did you launch Nettled Creamery?
In January 2015, after a few years of diligent research, a planning application, the tracking down of specialist equipment in France and building a creamery.
You have an unexpected afternoon on your hands — what do you do with it?
An unexpected free afternoon? If it were term time, I would try to find a buddy and go out for a long horse ride. If it were the holidays, I would take the children and the dog out for a long walk and end up getting some food at a pub.
What is your most important parenting tip?
It is important to remember that it is a privilege to be a guest in someone else’s childhood; children like normalcy; being well-organised makes everyone’s lives easier; children like laughter, and they like to see their parents laugh; never underestimate the value of one-on-one time. Is five okay?!
Which excites you most: breakfast, lunch or supper?
Lunch – best meal of the day. Long lunch, on a beach, feet in the sand, wine in an ice bucket, children playing, great friends, good music. Perfect. And slope into bed not too late.
What is your favourite hotel in the world?
I really like L’Hotel in Paris and also Busta House in Shetland, shown below.
What is on your bedside table right now?
Children’s Nurofen, sweet peas, alarm clock, rose quartz face roller, Tweezerman tweezers and a pair of cheap reading glasses that my husband says makes me look like the receptionist in the original Ghostbusters film. Underneath there is a copy of Simon Armitage’s Pearl but there are shamefully few books on my bedside table.
Describe your favourite piece of jewellery.
I love rings because you get to see them the most. Especially if you spend a lot of your day typing. My husband gave me a very elegant, not-blingy, vintage Cartier ring that I wear almost every day on my wedding finger instead of my engagement ring. It’s wonderful.
To what or where would you book tickets tomorrow if you could?
Africa – I’m yearning to go on safari.
What is your most prized possession?
A small Paula Rego print that I bought when I was quite young. It was beyond budget, but it brings such pleasure every single time I look upon it. That or tweezers.
Date night in or date night out?
Out – someone else to wash up.
Which famous female do you most admire?
I recently had the following conversation with my eight-year-old daughter:
S: Mummy is a general election very important?
Me: Yes
S: Why?
Me: Because it determines the prime minister for the next five years.
S: But we’ve had loads of prime ministers recently.
Me: Yes, we have.
S: So, is it time to get Clare Balding (@clarebalding)?
I think she might have a point. Professional, reliable, sense of humour, lack of vanity, loves the outdoors, loves animals, you’d trust her with anything, quintessentially British… I’d vote for her.
