Ever heard the expression “They f*!k you up, your Mom and
Dad?”
Well, sometimes, a lifestyle brand can do the same to your
lifestyle. At the end of July we were
jaded, overworked and creatively spent.
The obvious answer may not be a 1,700 mile road trip around the Scottish
Highlands, incorporating a 4 night stay in the Outer Hebrides, but that’s
exactly what we did.
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| Regular visitors at the croft on Lewis |
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| Horgabost, Harris |
We drove on
pothole-ridden roads through stunning mountain ranges and around hare pin bends
rivalling Italy’s alpine roads. We lost
count of the number of lochs and lochlets we passed, although we kept a close
eye on Loch Ness (the monster was a no-show) and walked, awestruck, along
deserted silvery beaches - some without names - and even squeezed in an arduous
6 hour trek to the summit of Ben Nevis and back.
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| A witty sculpture at a road side on Lewis |
Returning home, we couldn’t shake the feeling of wanderlust
and so didn’t turn down the offer of a weekend in Cornwall with old
friends. We visited Fowey Regatta,
sampled the local ice cream and pasties and again found ourselves strolling
along yet another sandy beach.
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| Gaz's favourite shop, Fowey |
Driving
rain and weariness provided enough justification for us to have a final, cheeky
holiday. A most decadent Exmoor homeward-bound stop off in a hotel suite once
occupied by C.S. Lewis (the author of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe)
complete with – yes – a wardrobe, plus an enormous four poster bed. our guilt
assuaged by the supply of stickers we took along for the trip, enabling us to
process and despatch orders on the road.
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| Gaz prepping orders in luxury |
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| Four Poster Suite, Exmoor |
Back into the swing of things last…er…Tuesday, we started
packing up for another weekend away, but this time our destination, although
picturesque, was Camper Calling, a music festival with a Vdub flavour, at
Ragley Hall in Warwickshire and we had work to do. A sticker was designed, orders placed, checklists were checked,
boxes were packed, loaded and unloaded, gazebos were erected, clothes were hung
and a “touched up” Dr Jones made a more low key appearance under cover of canvas,
so as not to bleach his newly illustrated thighs.
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| Check out those thighs! |
I had to wait in for a delivery on Friday and so sadly
missed Thursday night’s set-up slot, which coincided with a torrential downpour
of biblical proportions and resulted in Gaz taking to his bed in the changing
room of our very understanding (or should I say tolerant) friends Vicky and
John of Kinky Melon fame.
The scene that greeted me on arrival could not have been
more different; blistering sunshine, a stunning stately home, manicured grounds
and a glistening lake flanked by mature trees.
Friday afternoon was a pretty laid back affair, which allowed Vicky and
I to disappear for an intended foraging workshop, cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances. Instead we sat and whiled away the hour with
another festival goer over an early evening tipple. The vibes were good and the line-up even better.
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| Gemma in her Voodoo St headscarf, Camper Calling |
Friday night saw polished sets from Dodgy and The Magic
Numbers which set the standard for the weekend.
Saturday morning was a mixed bag in terms of weather and
there was intermittent, brisk trade. A deluge of rain during the afternoon forced us to shut up shop
for an hour, but weirdly as soon as Dodgy frontman, Nigel Clark, was spotted
walking around the trade area, the weather seemed to clear up….dare I say the
sun was
“staying out for the summer?”
Soon talk turned to outfit plans for Saturday night’s
headliners, 80s icons, ABC. Having
Kinky Melon trading near by is always a bonus, but with an 80s theme on the
cards, their rails of vintage clothing beckoned. However, cocktail dresses and gold lame suits were not to be, for
once we spotted a pair of unicorn masks, there was no going back! We struck a deal on the masks and with the
addition of a couple of flowing ivory gowns, hey presto, we had nailed our
festival look. Gaz was a little more
reluctant to depart entirely from his Voodoo Street wardrobe, but did agree to
don a safari jacket alongside this year’s magic eye/camo bucket hat.
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| Camper Calling, with Vicky Brierley and John Baker |
It turned out to be a most surreal, enchanted evening. The unicorn masks were a real hit, providing
photo opportunities, tears of happiness, high fives, drinks on the house and to
top it all off, a song dedication from Mr ABC himself, Martin Fry, who
dedicated Poison Arrow “…to the two unicorns.”
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| Available to order at www.voodoostreet.com |
Sunday brought with it steady trade, chats with our regulars, positive comments
aplenty and we more than covered our costs. We had sold out of our Voodoo Street Camper Calling stickers by close of play on Saturday and so re-prints are available to order online as we speak!
As last minute decisions go, the decision to trade at Camper Calling was
one of our best.
