Tent Sniffing for Beginners

The sun has been shining for 10 minutes so I'm instantly planning for festivals I'm off to this year. Starting with The Curious Arts Festival in the lovely New Forest . Running from Friday 22nd July until Sunday 24th in the grounds of Pylewell Park, I cannot stress strongly enough how lovely this festival is. It's not a full blown music and drugs affair, more a gentle meander though fields to some melodic relief as you sip a G and T. Rather than a rush of sex starved groupies to the back of the tents for a grab at a pop star you'll be more likely to see people wandering unhurredly over to the ice cream van, glass of bubbly in hand, hoping to chat to their favourite author who is lounging in the sun on a deckchair.  For this is a polite festival, a festival of art and culture. With deckchairs strategically placed around the grounds of a gorgeous stately home and snail races on the lawn. A festival where you can share a fried haloumi snack with an author and his do

So each day brings us closer to the day we can get the tent out and I can't help but think there is bound to be something we need to buy as soon as we check our camping gear. I don't know about your kit but I'm sure mine either falls apart or is stolen by leprechauns over the winter. I always find missing tent pegs, a guy line oddly too short, or missing rolls of duck tape. Assuming you struggle with the same pain I'm going to run a giveaway for a £10 Amazon voucher - enabling you to buy a tin of reproofer, some insect spray or a new hat - whatever you feel your camping kit needs. Enter using the RaffleCopter thingy below. UK only. Ends 27th March 2016 a Rafflecopter giveaway

This poor neglected blog is feeling the spring creeping along it's edges, ruffling the grasses. The sun is shining, promising butterflies, warm nights and catkins. Everywhere in our garden new shoots are emerging, I've had to mow the lawn once already - dashing out between hail showers to do it. And soon, very soon, I will find an excuse to get the tents out of the loft for a check up. The one downside of canvas tents is the nervous fear that maybe they weren't BONE DRY when you put them away. That maybe mould or decay (or, as once happened, a mouse!) has crept into the fabric of the tent, damaging it. Last year I left Wilfrid wrapped up for only 3 days while he was wet and when I unfurled him I was horrified to find orange mould. I have since cleaned, scrubbed and dried him, but I admit I'm worried. The spring sunshine calls to the canvas and soon my garden lawn will look like a mini festival. And then I will have the excuse of eating outdoors again. So I have