Cornwall

In collaboration with Cathy St Germans (founder of Farms to Feed Us) and Harriet Baylis (Marazul clothing), Fiona is launching a new fortnightly <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="artisanal community market (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.instagram.com/market_at_foweyhall/" target="_blank">artisanal community market</a> in the grounds of Fowey Hall Hotel. Bringing together makers, bakers and hopefully even candlestick makers, plus the best of local farm produce, I caught up with Fiona ahead of the first market on 30 May to chat about what makes Cornwall special to her. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Fave place to eat</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="668" src="https://cornwall.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/North-Street-Kitchen-Fowey.png" alt="" class="wp-image-20535" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/North-Street-Kitchen-Fowey.png 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/North-Street-Kitchen-Fowey-300x200.png 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/North-Street-Kitchen-Fowey-720x481.png 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/North-Street-Kitchen-Fowey-768x513.png 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/North-Street-Kitchen-Fowey-786x525.png 786w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



One of the great privileges of living in Cornwall is being able to motor down the river in our John Dory (our boat which fits both us and the dogs), moor up and walk up the gangplank to <a href="https://www.fitzroycornwall.com/#north-st" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="North Street Kitchen (opens in a new tab)">North Street Kitchen</a> in Fowey for a dozen oysters that leapt out of the sea just five minutes before I did. I&#8217;m torn between the oysters, or a piece of Coombeshead bread, spread thick with salted butter and topped with a pickled anchovy, as my favourite thing to eat. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Fave place for a swim</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="667" src="https://cornwall.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/lansallos.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-23474" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/lansallos.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/lansallos-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/lansallos-720x480.jpg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/lansallos-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/lansallos-787x525.jpg 787w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



There&#8217;s something very romantic about walking down the National Trust path to Lansallas &#8211; every inch of the path and beach carries our history and memories. It&#8217;s where my children swam where they were tiny, where my husband swam when he was a child. His aunts came to Cornwall as Land Girls during the war and they never left. 



When you get to the bottom of the magical pathway you see the steps carved into the stones to the beach. You feel the smugglers that made them and the deep magic of Cornwall. The water is gorgeous: barely any waves, just clear and blue and never cold. I used to watch the kids jumping off the rocks, getting braver, higher; this is what was in my mind wherever we&#8217;ve travelled and we&#8217;d ask ourselves, here, or Cornwall? I think you can guess the answer.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">My Cornish beach bag essentials</h2>



I always walk in my Merrells, no matter how much my family laugh. My big investment is an Eres swimsuit (you can take the girl out of fashion but can&#8217;t take fashion out of the girl!) so I either wear that or a high waisted bikini from Davy J, which is a bit like wearing Spanx on the beach, super flattering. Every sunny day could be a rainy day, so I also always have a jumper with me.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://cornwall.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/lansallos-beach-copy.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-20055" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/lansallos-beach-copy.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/lansallos-beach-copy-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/lansallos-beach-copy-720x480.jpg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2020/09/lansallos-beach-copy-768x511.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



I have these striped beach bags we bought in Australia, but I might also use a light Rains backpack that we sell in <a href="https://the-little-shop-fowey.myshopify.com/collections/spring-is-here" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="The Little Shop (opens in a new tab)">The Little Shop</a>. In it I always have a good book, charged up ear buds for an energising walk back up the hills, and a LilyEve sweatshirt to put on after a swim. And always a packet of sausages and a box of matches to make a little fire to cook something to eat after we swim. I&#8217;m not a fan of a pasty but Mr Liddicoat in Lostwithiel makes the best sausage rolls.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Fave places to shop</h2>



I think there really needs to be an emphasise on long lasting and sustainability now which is good. Perhaps exacerbated by lockdown, but it has made me think more carefully about where I spend my money. We hope that the brands we sell embody that, like Marazul, which is easy to wear light clothes, By Settle, who upcycle deadstock (ends of fabric lines from other brands), LilyEve, and Esse who make the pre and probiotic skincare range that I also use myself.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="768" height="1024" src="https://cornwall.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/17ae8a79-aa72-4000-8aa1-3ed6bae94c73.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-23475" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/17ae8a79-aa72-4000-8aa1-3ed6bae94c73.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/17ae8a79-aa72-4000-8aa1-3ed6bae94c73-225x300.jpg 225w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/17ae8a79-aa72-4000-8aa1-3ed6bae94c73-375x500.jpg 375w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/05/17ae8a79-aa72-4000-8aa1-3ed6bae94c73-394x525.jpg 394w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /></figure>



As for Cornish brands, where to start! There&#8217;s so many great little independent businesses that I love, but a few include Lostwithiel Antiques, where you can lose several hours, and also Watts Trading &#8211; I love all their beautiful brushes. 



In Newquay I head for MMW Revolver. I don&#8217;t pretend I was born in Cornwall so I do like to get a London fix sometimes and Michelle has great taste. On my way to MMW I like to stop at Pavilion Bakery to stock up on granola and peanut butter. 



I&#8217;m also obsessed with air plants, which I like to put in my stripy oversized egg cups by Tina Vaia (we sell them at The Little Shop) to put on my desk, and I always head to the <a href="https://cornwall.muddystilettos.co.uk/little-black-book/directory/duchy-of-cornwall-nursery-lostwithiel/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Duchy of Cornwall Nursery (opens in a new tab)">Duchy of Cornwall Nursery</a> for the plants. 



Fave places



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" src="https://cornwall.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2019/10/gurnards-head.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-16565" /></figure>



I&#8217;m a big fan of the saffron yellow <a href="https://cornwall.muddystilettos.co.uk/little-black-book/directory/the-gurnards-head-zennor-cornwall/">Gurnard&#8217;s Head</a> down beyond St Ives, which I might head to for food after visiting Barbara Hepworth&#8217;s Sculpture Garden or the Tate St Ives. A trip to Simon Stallard&#8217;s Hidden Hut in Porthcurnick on the Roseland for one of his epic feasts never disappoints. Caerhays Castle is fantastic in early spring &#8211; the camellias, magnolias and plant shop are another favourite day out.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Fave walk</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="667" src="https://cornwall.muddystilettos.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/01/st-nectans-glen.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-21510" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/01/st-nectans-glen.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/01/st-nectans-glen-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/01/st-nectans-glen-720x480.jpg 720w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/01/st-nectans-glen-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/cornwall/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2021/01/st-nectans-glen-787x525.jpg 787w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



During lockdown we discovered an amazing walk, using the <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="iwalk Cornwall (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.iwalkcornwall.co.uk/" target="_blank">iwalk Cornwall</a> app. It&#8217;s so different on each of the Cornish coasts and kind of amazing that within half an hour of your house you can be somewhere totally different. Wide white beaches, twisty little paths down to the coves; it delivers on every level. This particular walk takes you from the <a href="https://www.iwalkcornwall.co.uk/walk/bossiney_to_rocky_valley">canyons of Rocky Valley to Bossiney</a> along the coast path, via St Nectan&#8217;s Glen for a swim. You go past waterfalls, through forests of ferns and then follow the river down to the sea. I also use the app Picture This so I can identify plants and remember their names for later.



Find the <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="market at Fowey Hall Hotel (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.foweyhallhotel.co.uk/things-to-do-in-fowey/events/fowey-market" target="_blank">market at Fowey Hall Hotel</a> on Sunday 30 May from 10am&nbsp;to 2pm and continuing fortnightly throughout the Summer &#8211; expect farm produce, artisanal and craft stalls.

Fiona Golfar – My Cornwall

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