No Pain, No Gain

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This is going to hurt...I know if my legs are starting to ache now, only an hour after my first session, tomorrow is going to be really bad!
It was of course my first personal training session, with the very bouncy Sharon, from the BFFA team, in Bromsgrove. I had been feeling like my daily routine of gym sessions were getting mundane, and whilst they provide good thinking time, I still wasn't really switching off from Ochre & Ocre. So I bit the bullet and booked in with Sharon. Although they are essentially Martial Arts instructors, a lot of the techniques and moves can be used to improve your general fitness, posture etc, without the need for bruise inducing combat. Sharon is the better half of Andy Hopwood, a name you might well be hearing more of on your tv screens soon, I will keep you posted. Sharon as well as teaching at BFFA in Bromsgrove, has written childrens books, and is looking for a literary agent for her adult book, so another name to watch out for!
However, that doesn't mean I won't be tempted to practice a few moves on my other half - after all it was whilst I was practicing my Jiu Jitsu on my housemates at Uni, that we got together.
You certainly have to concentrate - and at least for one hour the world of Ochre & Ocre seemed far away! And its great fun learning to throw proper punches and kick.
It's now back to reality, and the day job. The beekeeper dropped off the new terracotta pots filled with beeswax yesterday, so I just need the right light to try to get some pics done. The hand wash and hand lotion are ready and waiting for their labels - I finally found a great supplier called Borble, who can do a really nice laminated label that will be waterproof.
I just now need to see if I can move from this chair - but it is very comfy....maybe I'll just stay here a bit!

Cheltenham Food festival

Life is slowly getting back to normal, after we spent 3 days over the weekend at the Cheltenham Food Festival, with Ochre & Ocre.
We had a really great reaction to our new Organic Italian Linen range, with people really understanding the beautiful finish.
It was a really nice show, and the other exhibitors were very friendly. Our friends from Riverford Organics were there with their great value, organic veg boxes. Whilst chatting with Marc, I sampled their Italian Organic white wine, and fresh strawberries, which were yummy.
It always suprises me how much work there is after a show - it took me several hours yesterday to pack away the stock and all our shelving etc. I also had to wash and iron all the display stock, as we were quite close to crepes stand, so everything had a foody smell about it!
Our new honey handwash and hand lotion is ready to go - I just need to pull together the labelling information. The organic essential oils smell divine, with fresh lemon, basil and bergamot.

It's Raining

The weather for a Bank Holiday weekend was lovely - it was the first time we have actually sat and enjoyed the garden, since we moved in last August. If the BBC weather people have got it right, the rain today should be a blip, and we will have sunshine tomorrow.
I am picking the flowers up from Charlie, first thing in the morning, and then heading over to see Peter to get some pics done. They are going live on the site at the end of next week.
The new Italian organic linen range also turned up yesterday, so we are all ready to go!
We have already had a great reaction to our recycled placemat and coaster range, and I only loaded them onto the system on Friday!
Our new organic honey handwash and handcream have passed all the tests so far, so we should have those live on the site in 6-8 weeks time, just the packaging and label design to sort out. Luckily with talented friends like Lindsey Joyce on the case, I know they will look the bees knees!!(No pun intended!).
I will be posting updates on the photoshoot next week - pop back to get a sneal preview!