A Girly Afternoon in Marlborough
My lovely mum, forever my favourite travel buddy.
She was so proud of me when I moved out of wales to be an area manager at Bobbi Brown.
At the time, I’d never really driven on the motorway (I know…) and probably had only visited a handful of Britains beautiful counties. Suddenly here I was living in the sweetest Buckinghamshire village, driving to a different city every day.
She lived vicariously through my stories of the country I was exploring. My new found love of bicycle-lined Cambridge streets, the endless road to sunny Norwich, the pace of Manchester and the heartbeat of Dublin. It sounds so silly, but we had always holidayed abroad, I think the UK just felt so vast and average to me before I went to discover it. In my new role, suddenly the UK and Ireland felt an awful lot smaller and more exciting.
I always thought that once mum retired, I would spend my weekends taking her to different towns and cities, show her all these places I’d talked so much about, and of course we could discover new places together. The reality though, is that I became a mum myself and we’re all of a sudden very busy. I see mum weekly but often feel like we’re tag-teaming, taking it in turns to watch the boys while one of gets another job done.
Sometimes we’ll head out all together for the whole day, and while it’s lovely, I get home and realise we barely spoke, because rightly so, its all about the boys.
Determined to have a lovely day together before the wedding (Two weeks on Friday! Eak!) I thought it would be perfect to have a simple day out together, exploring somewhere new, lunching and pampering for a proper treat and catch up.
We decided to visit the ancient town of Marlborough, Wiltshire.
Famous for it’s twice weekly market, Marlboroughs pretty street is one of the widest in the UK and lined on both sides with characterful buildings, boutique shops and eateries.
I had whizzed through the town about two years ago, when I was pregnant with Rory. We were in the process of recruiting for a brand new Bobbi Brown Store opening on the high street. I remember thinking Marlborough was so pretty and so full of life for a small town on a random Thursday morning and promised myself I would come back. I finished up for maternity leave before the new store opened and I didn’t go back.
So, last week, mum and I left the baby bags at home, dropped the boys off at nursery and headed off for a long overdue girly adventure. We chatted the whole way (standard) so the 90 minute journey through the countryside flew by, and before knew it, we were ‘Ooing’ and ‘Ahhing’ at the pretty buildings as we approached the town.
Parking was easy, almost on the high street itself and just a two minute walk to our first stop, Polly’s Tearoom for some much needed coffee. When I asked my instagram friends where we ‘must go’ in Marlborough, Polly’s was top of the list. This quaint, typically British tea room first opened its doors in 1912. That’s 106 years go for those who, like me, think its still 1998.
The building has hardly changed in all those years, and some of the recipes for cakes and biscuits are still being used there today…well if it aint broke!
It’s been said that this was one of Kate Middletons favourite hang outs during her school days at Marlborough College when she visited the tea rooms most Wednesdays with her friends.
We were greeted by the smartest gentleman waiter who talked passionately about everything I’ve said above.
As well as an english breakfast tea and a coffee, we could resist the glossy strawberry tart sitting prettily on the cake shelf, so we ordered one of those to share too and took a seat at the front of the Tea Room watching the streets fill.
The first shop on our list was Susie Watson Designs, this was another store that instagram had raved about. An interiors store with a warm and typically english feel. Apparently, the Marlborough showroom is one of the oldest of the nine in the Uk, and Susie started the brand on her kitchen table in Axford, Marlborough. So many beautiful finds in this shop, but mum and I fell head over heels for their collection of silk flowers. I never thought I’d say that as I’m typically not a fan of artificial flowers. I don’t think you can beat fresh seasonal blooms at home, but my goodness, these are the next best thing to a fresh designer bouquet. We treated ourselves to some autumnal blooms, and I cant wait to go back and get more.
Then we wandered around the other stores, so many independent beauties like Radish Loves Rhubarb, as well as a lovely edit of high street brands like Aveda, Joules and Mint Velvet.
We were going to stop at the Food Gallery for another coffee but decided to hold out for a Rick Steinlate lunch to end the day. So instead headed to the swanky new Bobbi Brown store for a bit of a make-up bag update for mum.
The store is completely gorgeous and larger than I’d imagined looking at the plans years ago. It has a skincare bar, private Brow/Bridal area and several make-up stations, so perfect if you were hoping to book in a larger group with your friends one evening — did you know we can keep the stores open just for you if you make a group booking in advance? Real VIP treatment.
It’s typically Bobbi Brown Soho Chic style, with a cosy Marlborough twist.
We grabbed a glass of fizz, well it was lunch time after all , and jumped in our seats.
Mum had a proper pamper, switching up some of her favourite products for the new season.
Her skin can get a little dry this time of year, so the artists used richer skincare like Extra Moisturising Balm and Extra Eye Repair Cream.
Here’s a before and after. Beautiful both ways but definitely feeling more confident in the after shot.
I couldn’t help hopping in the seat too of course. Who wouldn’t?
We left feeling an awful lot fresher, grabbed our bag of Bobbi Brown goodies and skipped to our final stop of the day, lovely Rick Steins Restaurant.
This was another one that was highly recommended. Colin and I had a delicious meal at the Padstow restaurant years ago, but I wasn’t sure it would be quite as lovely so far from the sea. I needn’t have worried.
Contemporary and elegant, the style of this restaurant is perfectly in-keeping with its pretty Wiltshire base, but the food is certainly still a taste of Cornwall.
We enjoyed a rather indulgent three course meal from the week day special menu, with accompanying white wine (just a half glass for the designated driver — yours truly) and another coffee before hitting the road.
The October sunset drive home was equally as lovey as our day together. A perfect mother and daughter treat…right before I become a married lady 🙂
Love you mum!
To book a complimentary make-up session with Bobbi Brown Marlborough call 03701 925936
For an added Aveda treat (its just next door) call 03701 925933
To book a table at the busy and gorgeous Rick Stein restaurant call 01672 233333