Cheshire Tourism Annual Awards 2008 - The Winners!
Self Catering Holiday of the Year 2008 - Mellow Brook Cottage at Harrop Fold Farm
The judge said “This was the only self-catering unit we saw with a special magic – nothing to do with plasma tv screens etc, more to do with imaginative restoration of the cottage, making the most of natural materials and beautiful simplicity.”
We all had simply the most exciting night last Friday at the beautiful Chester Racecourse. Visit Chester and Cheshire put on the most glamourous Awards ceremony which was organised by the happy and lovely Nicola Said and her very able team. Harrop Fold was shortlisted for 4 awards - yes! 4 awards! - B&B of the Year, Tourism Experience of the Year, Self Catering Holiday of the Year and Taste of Cheshire. We won the first 2 in 2006 and 2007 and are totally delighted to win the Self-Catering Holiday Award this year.
How wonderful it is to be rewarded for all the thought and consideration we all really do put into the business to ensure our guests have a truly memorable time...from David's vision in building the barn and his unbelievable skill in keeping the barn true to its character - so many guests comment on the original plough 'bit' and the horse harness found under the hay when beginning the conversion - to Leah offering the finest local produce - to Helen and I 'charring' and making the cottage look welcoming to guests. And of course, Edward's lawn mowering and weeding skills! and must not miss out Alice's and George's help in the holidays. All in all a damn fine Team!
...and of course this gives us entry to the North West Development Agency Award's Ceremony in October, and we all just love that night too!
All this celebrating and more lovely guests to care for gave us an exhausting weekend! Bollington celebrated the Cheshire Year of the Gardens 08 with its wonderful Floating Garden Festival on Sunday where we all gathered to wave off Bollington's own floating garden to wind its way over to Middlewich - what tremendous weather the crew will have enjoyed.
Speaking of the weather, it is fantastic, David and I had a stroll on Monday evening to pick more rhubarb for our jams and enjoyed a quiet few moments watching the sunset and the view was so clear we could see right over the Cheshire Plain to the Welsh Mountains.
The lovely weather is encouraging the wildlife to 'perform well' for our guests, our visitors in Mellow Brook Cottage have been treated on several evenings to playful visits from the badgers and on one occasion this beautiful creature was so close he could have been touched! This morning the Kites are to be seen soaring over the bottom meadow.
Waxing lyrical about nature is not going to help with this morning's jobs. We have an art course running and I have cakes to bake and lunch to prepare - so off to the Aga I must go, first on the list is preparing some Cheshire beetroot, which I think I will make into soup, it always looks so fantastic being such an incredible colour and with a dollop of contrasting Delamere Creamed Cheese tastes divine...feeling peckish now too!
Speak soon.
Love, Sue x
Sue's News (Tag: alice)
A Hat Trick of Awards for Harrop Fold!
- 21 June 2008, 17:00
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Happy New Year!
- 15 January 2008, 15:00
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Happy New Year to all and hoping you had the Merriest of Christmases. We had a lovely Christmas, for the first time ever, shared with bed & breakfast guests who were visiting the area from Europe. Never before have we enjoyed breakfast with our guests in our dressing gowns…but…it was Christmas morning and jolly relaxed and enjoyable it was too – maybe the Champagne helped! We closed for New Year and had a family break in colder climes. Mulled wine and snow was enjoyed by all.
Now, back home relaxed and ready to welcome our 2008 guests.
A little sadness just before Christmas when John, the cat, unexpectedly died. He had a great life and will be very sadly missed. Lottie did pine, looking everywhere for her pal. However, the children surprised me for Christmas, I was made to sit down and was blindfolded before this little fluffy ball was placed in my hand – on close inspection it was the most adorable tabby kitten and following our theme of King’s names, this tiny ball of trouble now answers to the big name of Arthur. Lottie once again has a chum, we think really she now imagines herself as Mum, but frequently forgets and is found rolling round the floor with the kitten attached to her long floppy ears!
Rain, rain, rain seems to be the weather for the present, we brought the cows in today for the first time this winter, really because the land is so wet and to rest the fields. For the cows it was just another adventure as they ran around the farmhouse with their tails in the air! The ponies were looking a little jealous at the attention lavished on the cows and began to charge around their field but it is amazing how a few carrots calm our boys – well the four-legged lot! The two-legged lot require much more food preparation, speaking of which, must go and put the pastry round a steak and kidney pie, our footballing school boy will be home very soon, and no doubt starving – as usual!
Speak again soon.
Autumnal Activities
- 14 December 2007, 12:00
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Still much to say about autumn activities. We represented Cheshire as their Tourism Experience of the Year 2007 at the recent North West England Tourism Awards, sadly we did not win – we were beaten by the Royal Liverpool Open Golf 2006 so of course, Good Luck to them in the England finals. However, what a marvellous evening we enjoyed, although it might sound corny to say it was the taking part that mattered...it truly was. It was a pleasure and delight to spend this exciting night with Leah and Alice and parents and we all had the most amazing fun. We decided to stay at the Great John Street Hotel and what a treat it was – all tasted a yummy breakfast that I was so glad I didn’t have to rise and prepare! I so hope we might reach these awards next year – we think they should introduce a new category of Most Enthusiastic Attendees – we would definitely score there!
Northern Harvest has supplied me with some of their wonderful, delicious, extra juicy Amalfi lemons for this week's lemon curd, must make a few extra jars since my Mystery Shopper wrote 'The lemon curd was the best I have ever tasted and of an excellent consistency' I wonder if it is our lovely eggs that make the difference? Poor hens have moulted and are on a bit of a 'go slow', I keep slipping them treats of left over cake but I think these dark evenings are tiring them! The last of this year's fruit has been prepared and is in the preserving pan on the aga as I am writing...a quick check and the jam is looking ready to jar now…so we will speak again soon.
Sue
Whoops - only my second blog!
- 30 August 2007, 15:38
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Well, I have struggled with this blog - forgot my password! All sorted now and must keep up to date!
A different kind of summer has been enjoyed by us all this year. I do believe the ducks have enjoyed it but the rest of us….! However, the weather has not been good but the welcome is as warm and cosy here at Harrop Fold Farm as ever! Still, we do not holiday in England to enjoy the weather, our visitors have come prepared to walk and have not been put off. One family in the cottage loved lighting the cosy wood burning fire each evening since it was a novelty to them. The crackling noise and lovely smell of wood made for cosy evenings playing monopoly and enjoying quality family time.
Speaking of family, we have had a lovely summer, we managed a family holiday, which was wonderful, spending time together doing what we do at home – laughing, eating and drinking! Our son was offered a visit to the home of one of our guests from the USA and he enjoyed a week surfing and cooking out!
Alice and I spent a lovely day up at the Chatsworth Country Fair, it was so much fun, just as a Country Fair should be. We bumped into Alan Titchmarsh who watched smiling as we bought four new hens to add to our flock to increase the egg numbers. We struggled abit on the walk to the car; four hens can make quite a noise! They have settled really well and are incredibly tame. One pecked at Alice’s toes, pretty and pink from her holiday, thinking they were cherries!
Geoffrey Peacock has reunited with his peahen, and they are both lying in the garden as I am writing, he is looking lovely although has shed his tail feathers that are now sought after by our visitors. Meeting his real owner last week over a beer in the Highwayman it appears that Geoffrey returns home for tea and ambles back here for supper!
Had great fun with the jam making with fruits beg, stolen and ‘borrowed’ from our neighbours and friends, the decision making over which one to eat at breakfast is now delaying breakfast service. ‘Arthurs’ Damson jam is probably the most popular at the moment. Leah is making the most of the blackberries and her crumbles and pies are being enjoyed by all.
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Harrop Fold Farm
Macclesfield Road
Rainow
Macclesfield
SK10 5UU
T: 01625 560085
E: stay@harropfoldfarm.co.uk
