Fairy Tale of York - the 'White' way to a Happy Christmas!

The ceramic-tiled staircase with a warm welcome at the top.

The customers' coffee lounge

I had a magical start to my Christmas this week in the wonderful city of York where the friendliness of the shop staff showed what this time of the year is all about. Entering White Stuff's traditional store in Stonegate, my daughter and I noticed a steep staircase decorated with colourful ceramic tiles .
'Would you mind if I took a photo for my blog,' I asked the assistant.
She smiled and said 'Of course not - everyone does.'
I was soon shown up the stairs through the men's department to a Victorian lounge designed especially for shoppers to relax in and drink coffee 'on the house.'  I learnt the history of some of the antique furniture in the room from another friendly assistant and left feeling like one of the family.
We spent around 20 mins in the shop and called back later to buy my daughter a beautiful matching necklace and bracelet for Christmas.

Congratulations, White Stuff, for the best customer service I've every encountered.

The White Stuff store in York

Wishing a Happy  and peaceful Christmas to you all.

York Minster

BAGGY PANTS AND BOOTEES - THE PAPERBACK ARRIVES!

 

The first paperback copy arrives.

 

                                        BAGGY PANTS AND BOOTEES is available in paperback  now!

When war baby Sophie joins the macho world of 1960s journalism she’s determined to prove that she’s ‘one of the boys.’ But a phone call from her estranged mother after years of guilt and torment sets Sophie on a quest to uncover the secret of her birth.

Was her father the all-American soldier she dreamt of when she was a child, or someone far more sinister? This is the story the ambitious reporter was destined to write.

Helped by the charming but mysterious David, Sophie uncovers a heartbroken wartime orphan, a GI romance and a terrifying rape that leads to an innocent man’s court martial – and finds clues to her own unhappy childhood.

Torn between her secret love for Steve, the newspaper’s most eligible bachelor, and her desire to know who she really is, Sophie follows David to find her father.  Only when faced with the startling truth can she accept the tragedy of love, loss and betrayal and begin a very different kind of future.

Baggy Pants and Bootees ,will shortly be available from Plackitt & Booth, booksellers, Lytham, Lancashire, or to order from any good bookshop.
 

You can also buy it on amazon.co.uk
here
and  on amazon.com
here

CHOC FULL OF MYSTERY - WHERE ARE THE AERO GIRLS?

Were you an Aero girl? This is the tantalising question being posed by one of the world's most famous confectioners and yes - they could be looking for you!

Photograph courtesy of Visit York

According to archives of Rowntrees, who were taken over by Nestle in 1988, several  sitters were commissioned for oil paintings featured in the company's advertisements for Aero between 1951 and 1957. Chocolate, it seems, was still a luxury at that time and the manufacturers wanted to appeal to a broader range of customers.

These wonderful portraits lined the walls of the Rowntrees offices for many years though,  amazingly,  no records were kept of these women. Now  Alex Hutchinson, archive curator at Nestle, is trying to discover who they were.  As most of them will now be in their eighties he's understandably eager to make contact now before it is too late. Think what a wonderful story these women would have to tell, particularly about the social etiquette of a time that is already firmly sealed in history.

Aero first went on sale in 1935, ceasing production during the war, becoming extremely popular again when sweet rationing ceased.  And I was one of its biggest fans!As a child in the sixties I remember thinking someone must have spent a great deal of time adding all those bubbles...

This week, until October 20 York is staging The Chocolate Girls - an exhibition of original art work and advertising material used in Terry's and Rowntrees campaigns between 1950 and 1980.

Apparently the display focuses on the link between women and chocolate....Now that's something that really hasn't changed at all.

If you want to know more go to http://www.visityork.org/information/ and find out about the many chocolate events going on in the city right now.