Weekend of Tweed & Picnics

Sorry for the long silence again chaps and chapettes! It's been a busy old fortnight of work, events and of looking after some lovely French journalists who spent four days following me around recording my life for a future edition of Le Figaro Magazine. It's all been rather exciting, and I can't wait to tell you all about it in more detail!

This weekend gone was a wonderful one. It started off very badly on the Friday though! On Monday to Wednesday the previous week, I was an extra on the new film Jack the Giant Killer. Whilst being enormous fun, this involved getting up before 5am and being on set for almost 15 hours. Thursday I got up early again to go and meet the aforementioned French journos in London; and by Friday I was shattered. I then managed to crash my car into a lamppost in a carpark. It's a borderline writeoff... it's so bad. The ensuing trauma and joy when my dear friends Jeni and Bethan came to collect me from my flat and drive me to London, meant I left behind a crucial part of my documentation for the following day, which was the utterly glorious Tweed Run!

After being one of the incredibly lucky 500 who registered the second it opened at 11.55am on a Saturday back in January (Jeni and I poised to register not only ourselves but some of the other Mafia...alas!), I was worried they wouldn't let me take part without my bicycle number (though I did have my armband, luckily). Thank heavens the organisers are so nice, because they gave me a 'Guest' card to display proudly on my steed. Which, thanks to the fabulous people at Pashley Cycles, was an unbelievably glamorous Pashley Britannia in lipstick red! Being lent this marvellous machine to do the Tweed Run was a dream come true. I also managed to secure Jeni a blue Britannia, and Naomi Vintage Secret used her own powers of persuasion to borrow a sleek black Princess from Tally Ho Cycle Tours. Here we are (technically at the end of the ride!) looking proud of being Team Pashley for the day! I've never sat on or ridden anything more comfortable. It literally glided, and felt like an easy chair compared to my old Raleigh. Poor Ginny. She does seem so dreadfully past-it now!

This photo from the official Pashley photographer!

It was a stunningly gorgeous day - blazing sunshine and warm temperatures meant that, had I even owned any tweed, I wouldn't have worn it! Instead I wore my pride and joy - a multi-coloured 1940s frock replete with stripes, bows and ruffles, paired with my Rocket Originals wedges, armfuls of bakelite, bamboo and celluloid bangles; and a floral arrangement on my head that was part Frida Kahlo and part Carmen Miranda. It coordinated perfectly with my bike, as did Jeni's yellow frock with red, green, white and blue embroidery, blue Keds and her blue Britannia. Naomi looked stunning in a 50s frock and sky-high wedges! We had hoped to win the Most Dashing Dame contest, but alas, it was not to be. I think people appreciated the effort we made to be bright in a sea of tweed though!

Me, the giant.

The Run took all 500 of us from St Paul's Cathedral, on a five-mile jaunt around London, taking in all the sights as we went. Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, the Mall, Buckingham Palace and up Regent Street. Everywhere we went, the tooting horns from impatient cab drivers (the ones without fares of course) were drowned out by cheers and bicycle bells, with chaps doffing their hats to appease the poor beleaguered motorists. After a stop for lunch at Lincoln's Inn Fields, we headed off once more for five further miles before ending up at the Bethnal Green Working Men's Club for drinks and dancing in the sunshine. The saddest part of the day was having to part with my amazing Britannia. If my car is written off by the insurance company, I am going to have to buy one of my own!

Naomi learned to smoke a pipe, while Jeni and I just posed a bit and drank beer and gin.

The abundance of incredibly dashing chaps in tweed was enough to send us into raptures of delight! The big gossip for the day was that a certain Mr Ewan McGregor was on the Run, and since I'd said hello to him only a few days earlier on the set of Jack the Giant Killer, I had a wee chat with him about the wonder of filming and riding horses in Hampton Court Palace. Twice! He was absolutely lovely, and so handsome. Me and Ewan, we're like best friends now. ;)





Image by Nik Van Herpt!

But, oh. If only every day could be so full of style and panache. It was an utterly smashing day from start to finish, and I can't thank the talented organisers or the lovely Lee from Pashley enough for making it happen for us.

Here are a couple of snaps I pinched from ibikelondon, whom you should visit if you'd like to see more. Also check out Spitalfields Life and Flickr for hundreds more. 

Source: ibikelondon Flickr

And this one by Nik van Herpt is my favourite one of me (& my full outfit) from the day, posing for the French journos with all the Penny Farthing riders!

So that was Saturday, and Sunday, I organised a food and Pimms-filled picnic with La Maf, ostensibly for the le Figaro journalists, but actually just because it was another glorious day. You'll have to wait until the magazine is published to see more, but here is a sneaky peek!

I can only apologise for looking miserable! I can assure you I wasn't, though I was rather sunburned on my neck and chest (as was Naomi, hence the fab hat) from the previous day. Pale and interesting no more! We were all so perfectly coordinated with our outfits and hair flowers. I'm in my biggest bargain dress of the year - it cost under £20 including shipping from the US. It's lilac with a rose print and white piping, wraps at the back but goes very far down and can't be worn with a bra. Gulp! Jeni and Lisa wore Swirls, Bethan a gorgeous pinafore she bought from Adeline's Attic and Naomi was channelling '1930s French peasant chic'. The best accessory, of course, was lovely Winni.

Hope you all had splendid weekends and speak to you all again soon!

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com