In the lavender fields

A couple of weeks ago on a lovely sunny day, my Mum, Dad, sister-in-law and I hopped in the car and drove for about an hour to some lavender fields in Banstead. I’d been desperate to visit some lavender fields for a couple of years, but didn’t ever get as far as finding any. So, when I was watching the Saccone-Jolys recently and saw that they had visited some, I decided to do a bit of investigating. I live roughly in the same area as them, so knew they weren’t too far away, and after a bit of research found out about Mayfield Lavender Fields, Café and Shop.

We got a little lost on the way there, but as soon as we caught sight of the rolling purple fields we knew we were in the right place. We went on a Monday, and despite it being a hot and sunny day, it wasn’t too busy. The fields stretch for 25 acres, so even when it is busy I can imagine the experience would still be peaceful and enjoyable.

I knew I would struggle to walk very far, so we took my wheelchair with us. Disabled access is a bit patchy with it essentially being a wild field, but the spaces between the lavender rows were wide enough to fit my chair (although it was rather bumpy and I think my Dad got quite a good workout by pushing me!) The only thing they didn’t have was disabled toilet facilities, which made life a little difficult. They had portaloos, which aren’t much fun at the best of times, but it did make me wonder whether disabled portaloos exist.

The actual fields were incredibly beautiful, with a deep purple hue stretching for what felt like miles. As we moved through the field we passed so many different types of lavender, from dark purple to lilac and even some white lavender, which I’d never seen before. The scent was amazing too. Not too overpowering, but delicate and fragrant. I closed my eyes, letting the warmth of the sunshine bathe my face as the relaxing scent enveloped me, and for those few minutes I felt completely calm.

As we were in such a beautiful setting, I decided to get some photos of my gorgeous new dress from Simply Be. The white sundress with colourful polka dots and little pompoms around the skirt, designed by the lovely Louise from Sprinkle of Glitter was a complete bargain at half price in the sale. I’d been eyeing it up for quite a while, so when I found out it had been reduced I knew I had to snap it up. I paired it with this pretty white sunhat from Primark, which kept the sun off my face.

I absolutely love it, and it’s perfect for the warm summery days we’ve been having over the last couple of months. It is made from a very lightweight fabric, which helped me keep cool as the sun beat down on us. The colourful polka dots give it a fun, cheerful feel and seriously make me smile every time I see them poking out of my wardrobe. And the little pompoms around the bottom of the skirt are just the cutest little addition and so on trend at the moment. I did find that it comes up a bit bigger, so you may want to size down if you’re thinking of buying it, although I don’t actually mind it being a little looser, especially when it’s warm.

After taking our photos and soaking in the relaxing atmosphere, we made our way down to the little café and gift shop. Although very rustic, the café had a fantastic menu full of dishes infused with lavender. From lavender scones to lavender ice cream, as well as homemade sandwiches and toasties, there were so many options to choose from. I was particularly impressed with their lavender lemonade, which was so delicious and refreshing, perfect for quenching our thirst after being out in the sun. The little gift shop was very cute, with lots of homemade products such as teas, pillows and toiletries. I picked up a beautiful lavender plant for our garden, but was very tempted by lots of other things! Overall, it was such a lovely day out and something I would definitely recommend checking out either this year (until the 14^th September) or next summer.

Have you visited any lavender fields this year? And have you bought any clothes from Louise’s Simply Be range?

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