You haven't heard from us in a while but that's because we've been busy making the newsletter even better than before. The first cool change is that we're saving you a click, because the newsletter us now right before your eyes. Secondly, we've got a great new feature called Tested by Barbara that we know you will find useful. And even more eggcitingly you can eggspect to see a brand new design next week too! Let us know what you think and if you have any photos, jokes, stories or recipes that you would like us to feature, please send to stephanie@omlet.co.uk. Enjoy!
Shop Opening
First for some very eggciting news straight from Omlet HQ. We first started selling the Eglu in 2004 and our range of products, large and small, has been eggspanding year on year ever since. Although our website is great for ordering Eglus, chickens and other bits and bobs, we know that lots of you would prefer to see our products in the flesh before buying. So, we thought it was about time to try something new...we are venturing into the unknown and opening our very first shop!
Opening at weekends, the Omlet shop will give you the opportunity to see our eggstraordinary range of products like never before. Peek into a Beehaus, flick through a book, touch an egg cosy, or even stroke a chicken, and after you've had a good old mooch around you can pop into the garden centre next door and enjoy a cup of coffee.
So why not pop along for the grand unveiling this weekend? You will find us in the picturesque village of Wardington, Oxfordshire, alongside Barn Farm Plants. Click here to find us! We will be there Saturday 9am - 5pm and Sunday 10am - 4pm. We'd love to see you!
British Egg Week
All was calm at Omlet HQ on Tuesday morning. It was just another day at the office...for the first couple of hours. When the clock ticked to 10:30am something strange happened. Orders started flooding through so quickly that we couldn't keep up. Orders for a a few items in particular. Orders for Spiral Egg Racks, Fried Egg Earrings and Flip Egg Spatulas...and loads of them. But what was the reason for the sudden rush in eggcessories? It was then that we realised our products had just made an appearance on ITV's This Morning. In light of British Egg Week Holly Willoughby and Philip Schofield were joined by Edwina Currie to show off a range of egg gadgets. And despite Edwina's previous fiasco with eggs, she embraced the eggsperience and wore the earrings with pride.
If you missed the feature you can catch it again by clicking here. And why not visit the British Egg Week website for some great recipes and competitions.
Grand Designs
This weekend Grand Designs Live will be taking to the stage again, at the NEC, Birmingham. Running from today until Sunday, the UK's number one home show is brilliant for anyone that's interested in home and garden, gifts and gadgets and new technology. Whether it's some early christmas pressies you're after or a whole new load of furnishings for your home, this is the show to visit. Potter around the array of stands, nosy through eco show homes, watch live cooking demos and finish with some tasty grub at the Grand Gardens Cafe (or, if you're feeling flash, the Grand Restaurant by John Burton-Race).
We will be on stand G130, in in Grand Gardens section. Come and say hello, see a demo of the Eglu and Beehaus, and browse our selection of gifts and accessories. It opens at 10am each day and you can book tickets online now. See you there!
Competition
Fancy bagging yourself a posh meal for two at one of the country's top restaurants? Who wouldn't!? Enter this month's eggstra special competition and you and a friend will be treated to a three course lunch and a glass of bubbly at one of the 10 in 8 Fine Dining Group restaurants. Choose to dine at the beautiful Paris House in Bedfordshire, L'Ortolan in Berkshire, or La Becasse in Shropshire, or if you can wait until January you could also choose to try their latest addition, The New Angel in Dartmouth. Formally run by John Burton Race, this will be relaunched as The Carved Angel and we eggspect it will be just as fabulous as the other restaurants. Run by Alan Murchison, michelin starred chef and star of BBC's Great British Menu, you can be sure to enjoy some eggsquisite food wherever you choose.
So now that we've got your tastebuds tingling we can reveal the competition. Some find it easy, some find it frustrating, but one thing's for sure, it always proves popular...yes, it's that good old Spot the Difference! Simply look at the two photos of Paris House and find the 10 differences, then send your answers, written or circled, to stephanie@omlet.co.uk by Sunday 24th October. Good luck!
The Omlet Team
Welcome to the Omlet shop...
open this weekend for all to see!
Orders for eggcessories are spiralling out of control!
Visit Grand Designs and see the latest in show homes for chickens, bees and bunnies
We wouldn't eggspect you to spot the differences in photos this small - click on the image to see the full size version!
The Annual Pumpkin competition was traditionally held at the end of October. However, Mr Perryman who had judged the competition for 34 years, was due a hip replacement, so the village agreed to hold it a month early. We were all too scared to suggest that someone else should judge. After the initial panic of ‘would they be ready in time’, the date was set.
The one to watch was Mrs Lidington, school teacher and champion cucurbit grower. Her shed on the allotment was akin to a secret bunker. Black out curtains protected the contents from prying eyes. No one knew what was in her special brew for fertiliser, although she did seem to have a rather large amount of beer cans every week on recycling day. She could be seen late in the afternoon, mixing up a few buckets of potion and chatting away to her pumpkins and gourds. What ever she did, it was working, her pumpkins were the envy of the village.
Competition day arrived and the W.I had laid on a pumpkin related feast. Pies, cakes, chutneys and even wine, were displayed on tables in the Sneaky Weasel pub car park. The landlord Mr Figg was sporting a rather fetching pumpkin hat and had decorated the pub with mini gourds.
When a trailer arrived containing a pumpkin shape covered in cloth, we feared the worst. Mrs Lidington was again going to be the champion. It didn’t really matter. The
competition brought the village together and raised money for worthwhile causes in the area and was an excuse to get together and have a chat with neighbours.
Barbara and I consoled ourselves over a warming pumpkin soup. The veg plot was going great guns and we had plenty of mini squashes and gourds to see us through the winter. They were all neatly stacked in our shed, nestled next to onions, wrapped apples and pears. We have had a bumper fruit crop this year and have run out of space for jars of jam and bottled fruits. I have relented and agreed to get a few more point of lay hens. We have a couple of older girls now and thought it time to add a few extra hens to ensure a good supply of eggs through the winter.
Once the judging was completed and Mr Perryman had finalised the scores, young Millie, the post mistress’s daughter, was awarded first prize much to everyone’s delight. It was her pumpkin in the trailer, weighing in at 74 kilos, she was a very deserving winner. Mrs Lidington seemed genuinely pleased for her. It later transpired that she had struck up a deal with Millie. She would divulge her secret recipe for pumpkin fertiliser, if Millie did well in her exams.
Not only had Milly had achieved top marks in her end of year exams and she had also been crowned the new village pumpkin champion!
Poultry Nutri-Drops
My elderly Pepperpot has been really struggling with the moult this year and has looked very tired and lethargic for a couple of weeks now so I decided to put some Nutri-Drops to the test for this month’s newsletter to see if they would deliver “instant energy” as the packaging promised. Well, I have to say that I’m very impressed! They smell rather odd but as soon as I put a few drops from the pipette into her beak, she showed an immediate interest in them and was quite happy to finish the measured dose. Instead of standing still and doing nothing as she had been previously, within a few minutes of having the Nutri-Drops, she stepped out of the conservatory door into the garden and started eating grass and rootling around in the flower beds! When I next checked on her, she was happily tucking into a windfall apple looking bright eyed and tail up! A definite improvement on how she was half an hour before. A “thumbs up” from Barbara for Nutri-Drops!
New Products!
Earrings - Acrylic Bees
If a real bee were to ever land on your ear you'd probably start squealing, flapping and jumping around in hysteria. All the same symptoms that are experienced when wearing these earrings then, really. No, these bees won't sting - they're made of acrylic, but, yes, they will cause somewhat of a buzz around jewellery loving honeys.
Unique, fun and very much bee-joux, these studs are ideal for queen bees everywhere. You'll bee sure to stand out from the workers as you won't find these earrings anywhere else.
Handmade and presented in a recycled gift box.
Wooden Sign - Fresh Farm Eggs
Like to sell your eggcess eggs outside your front door? If you're a bit of an hentrepreneur make sure you grab the attention of passers by with this fresh farm eggs sign. Made from reclaimed wood and handpainted with a handsome hen sitting on her nest, this sign is just the thing for hanging outside your house to advertise your fresh eggs.
A sign like this is too good to be kept outside all the time though and it looks eggcellent hung up in the kitchen. The vintage style and distressed finish give it real character and each one is unique, making it perfect for displaying in your home or for giving to a friend that's mad about chickens.
Lavender Honey
If you prefer toast to cereal as your breakfast of choice you'll be faced with the mind-boggling decision of what to spread on it each morning. Some swear by marmite, others just like jam, but we reckon it's hard to beat a bit of honey to get you ready and raring to go.
Beekeepers are lucky enough to have a supply of honey that beats the supermarket stuff by miles, but shouldn't everyone bee able to enjoy the finest of nature's ingredients too? If you're no apiarist but you like to dine like a queen (bee), why not treat yourself to a jar of this?
This is a delicious, fragrant honey produced in Spain, from bees fed on lavender. It can be used as an ingredient in all sorts of dishes and it makes a healthy alternative to sugar for sweetening. We think it's best just as it is though, on a bit of bread or toast.
Best before 2020, although we doubt it'll last longer than a few months in a honey-loving household. Other flavours also available.
Eggling Crack & Grow - Mint
Crack open this egg and you might have a shock, for inside is not a creamy white and a golden yolk but an eggstaordinary garden waiting to grow!
Gardening is quick and easy with an eggling and everything you need to grow a fragrant array of herbs is in one little box. Simply crack the top of the ceramic egg gently by tapping with a spoon, place on the terracotta tray, water slowly until it begins to drain into the tray and pop in a bright, warm room. There are enough nutrients in the eggling to allow it to grow for up to five months, and all you need to do is ensure the soil is always moist. When the plant outgrows the eggling, transplant into a larger pot and shatter the ceramic egg to use as a fertilizer for the surrounding soil.
This mint is brilliant for using in many dishes. How about roast lamb with mint sauce, followed by chocolate mint mousse? Tempting...
Other herbs also available.
