A delightful, small, florists on Navenby High Street.
They carefully source British grown flowers to reduce the carbon footprint of their displays. Upcycling and reusing items to create one of a kind gifts.
Making cycling accessible to everyone is the goal for this small cycle shop on East Road in Navenby.
Their dedicated staff see electric bicycles as an important tool for reducing car use. Making cycling accessible to those who might otherwise struggle with a standard push bicycle, and allowing confident cyclists to go further or carry more shopping.
Throughout 2022 we’re sharing practical everyday skills inspired by Mrs Smith’s low waste lifestyle and helping us understand seasonal eating, food production, and waste disposal methods to make more sustainable choices.
Have a look at the ‘Be More…’ webpage for more information and see the list below for May’s exciting events!
Coming up in May
We’re open to guests on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Mondays, 12pm-4pm. Mrs Smith’s door was always open to drop-in visitors, and so are we! Due to the small size of the building we recommend booking your visit in advance to avoid disappointment.
As well as our usual opening, we have these great events coming up in May:
Spring Forage: Saturday 14th May – 10-12pm
We are excited about our first seasonal forage! Join us at Hill Holt Wood for a Spring forage led by Hannah, the District Herbalist. The group will be taking a walk around Hill Holt Wood, identifying and gathering the plant material needed to brew a wonderful tea to share at the end.
A wonderful introduction to foraging, tickets are only £5.
Memory Sharing Day: Friday 20th May – 12-4pm
Do you have any memories of meeting Mrs Smith? We are opening the cottage doors for free for anyone who has memories of Mrs Smith to share with our dedicated volunteer team. We would like to record stories which will help us, and our visitors, to get to know more about Mrs Smith, her everyday life, food, and personality.
Small Space Gardening Talk: Tuesday 31st May – -4pm
The Sage Gardener team will be leading this exciting talk on small space gardening, helping you to make the most of any available growing space. This talk is ideal for beginner gardeners, those with limited growing space, or people who don’t know where to start with their own garden projects.
Tickets are only £5.
Find out more about Sage Gardener on their website: Sage Gardener
Group Workshops and Activities
Did you know that we run workshops and outreach visits for youth groups?
From Victorian wash days to rag rug workshops the Mrs Smith’s Cottage team provides a range of exciting activities – we can bring all the resources to your scouts/guides/beavers/brownies group, or you can book a workshop at the cottage and immerse yourself in history.
It was lovely to get our Early Years group to the cottage to make progress on their garden. They will be growing lots of different veggies and flowers which will be enjoyed in the summer.
Todays Activities:
Planted carrot, spring onion, radish, and nasturtium seeds.
Added compost to the corner bed.
Watered front garden, back garden, and pots.
Checked on seedlings in the cold frame.
Made bug hotels from milk bottles and waste paper.
Went bug hunting using magnifying glasses, spotted ants, bees, woodlice.
Enjoyed the different textures and smells of herbs in the garden – we all liked the rosemary best.
Be More Sustainable Blog – Inspirational Growers
Inspirational Growers
The Allotment Cook
Allotment holder and green fingered cook from Lincolnshire. She runs a blog, full of growing advice and seasonal recipes, and appears as the BBC radio Lincolnshire Sunday Snippet Gardener.
A Lincolnshire gardener and sustainable living advocate, whose Instagram page is packed with information and inspiration to get you growing food at home!
A passionate urban small space gardener dedicating their small London garden to food production. They share practical tips and trick on youtube and tiktoc to encourage others to start growing their own, even in the smallest spaces.
One UK grandpa sharing his love of growing with audiences across the world through tiktoc. With cosy videos sharing useful growing information, this grandpa will guide you through how to start growing your own food at home.
It was great to see so many residents and visitors at our ‘Lights Off Navenby’ event on Saturday, as the village was brought to life with light art, nature and astronomy!
Kicking off with a Bat Walk led by rangers from Hill Holt Wood, the evening continued with astronomical photography with Lincoln Astronomic Society, and painting with light using PixelSticks, enabling visitors to ‘print’ a picture in the air. The world, wildlife and even Mrs Smith herself were transformed into dynamic new images!
A big thank you to all involved in helping to organise and deliver the event, including the Lincoln Astronomical Society, Hill Holt Wood, The Hub, 1st Wellingore Scout Group, Macy’s Brasserie and Navenby C of E Primary School.
Did you visit during the event? We’d love to see your photos – be sure to tag us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @MrsSmithsCottage #LightsOffNavenby
‘Lights Off Navenby’ was funded as part of the Mrs Smith’s Cottage Restoration project, through the National Lottery Heritage Fund and North Kesteven District Council. The National Lottery Heritage Fund ‘Thanks To You’ event enabled anyone with a lottery ticket or scratch card to get a free drink from Macy’s Brasserie.
Be a little bit more Hilda…
Throughout 2022, the team at Mrs Smith’s Cottage will be sharing practical everyday skills inspired by Mrs Smith’s low waste lifestyle and helping us understand seasonal eating, food production, and waste disposal methods to make more sustainable choices.
With a season of workshops, talks, and events at the cottage, online, and around North Kesteven, the programme will culminate in an almanac-style guide giving practical low waste advice inspired by Mrs Smith’s life, interspersed with quotes from Mrs Smith’s diaries.
Have a look at the ‘Be More…’ webpage for more information and a guide to all the events lined up!
Coming up in April
We’re open to guests on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Mondays, 12pm-4pm. Mrs Smith’s door was always open to drop-in visitors, and so are we! Due to the small size of the building we recommend booking your visit in advance to avoid disappointment.
As well as our usual opening, we have these great events coming up in April:
Throughout the Easter Half Term, have a go at Spring Bingo! A free trail to pick up from the Mrs Smith’s Cottage shop, take it with you on walks and see how long it takes for you to spot the signs of spring!
While you’re there you can also collect a Spring Flowers Craft Pack – This simple kit contains everything you need to create a set of adorable spring flowers.
Thursday 7th April is our Willow Weaving Workshop – create your own beautiful obelisk to add character to your outdoor space! Book your place here.
On Saturday 9th April there will be a Buzz About Bees at the cottage: The Artisan Honey Co. will be joining us in the garden, with observation and demonstration hives, talking about bee keeping and the fascinating world of our favourite pollinators!
On Tuesday 12th we are running a Rag Rug workshop, the ideal opportunity to learn a new skill as a family.
On Thursday 14th we’re having a Teacher’s Open Afternoon – join the education team at Mrs Smith’s Cottage for an exciting opportunity to experience our learning offers first hand. Explore the cottage, have a go at our Wash Day workshop, delve into our Loans Boxes and share your feedback over a cup of tea with our team. No need to book, simply drop in!
On Easter Sunday 17th, 12-4pm we’ll be holding a twist on a traditional Easter Egg Hunt – book your visit to the cottage and bring the little ones for felty family fun!
Poetry Competition Winners
Thank you to those of you who entered our Navenby themed Poetry Competition! The winning poems will be on display at the Cottage and on 11th April we’ll be handing out the prize to the competition winners.
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