FREE What's On - helping you find great days out!

Our What's On lists events submitted by both members and non members providing you with a great way to discover places to visit, things to do, and new experiences! Have a look at our What's On, tell us about a great days out that you know of - let's make sure all these wonderful small and rural businesses get the events they attend the publicity they deserve.

Close to SIO HQ is Powis Castle a fantastic National Trust property and despite the snow yesterday when I popped there to visit the shop it was busy, with people enjoying the magic of the snow covered hills and the stunning castle grounds - a great day out and what a pearl to have to close so base. Now they may be a big organisation but they are fantastic is supporting local arts and craft professionals who provide wonderful items for the shops and the restaurants - so even the big boys help the small businesses. Thank you National Trust for giving them a chance!

Our great announcement of Spring was a little early it seems as we woke to snow on Sunday! So back to the winter clothes such as the snuggly Alpaca socks from Perilla.
However, have a feeling this won't last too long and now that the nights have stretch out we will be looking for great days out - we have some adventures to try out through Seek It Out such as Hoar Farm Park and Craft Village.

So go have a look at Seek It Out today!

Spring with Seek It Out

SPRING HAS ARRIVED
Finally we get to put the clocks forward and it's official, SPRING is here. Seek It Out's rural HQ is perfect for watching spring arrive, seeing the birds busy building nests, listening to the lambs calling to mum and watching the frogs sploshing about in the pond.
So with all this newness in the air it gives the Seek It Out team a renewed passion to spread the Seek It Out message and to try and help smaller and rural business across the UK.
Spring for many signals the start of a new trading year and so many will be busy gearing up for the months ahead, especially tourist related businesses. Seek It Out has house and pet sitters to personal travel agents amongst the showcase members. Imagine not having to queue in a high street travel agent but get it all done over the phone or in person at your leisure, still accessing the same wide range of choices. How easy would it be to combine the pet sitting with the house sitting, saving the upheaval for your beloved pets and knowing your house is safe too. So visit Seek It Out if you want to make your life a whole lot easier.
Personal Travel Agent view THE SITTING SERVICE
House and Pet Sitting view FUTURE TRAVEL

Images by kind permission of http://www.freeimages.co.uk

Time to Spring Clean

Seek It Out welcomes the newest member to our family Junk Busters - they are a Shropshire based company selling unwanted items on behalf of others through eBay, auctions, and privately locally. Run by a young mum from her offices in Oswestry, the business is booming already despite being quite new. Georgina has a wealth of experience selling with eBay and so this is proving the key to the business.

So as spring time is upon us and thoughts turn to clearing out and cleaning, then what better a time for Junk Busters to come on board. The business has taken off and it just proves that selling something is hardwork and most would rather hand the hassle to people with the right experience and knowledge. So visit their showcase to get a better idea and see if you cannot start your spring cleaning with a real spurt! I know this is a popular one with the SIO team!

Craft courses in Suffolk

Deep in the Suffolk countryside there is a gem of a find, a place of learning, of fun, and of interest.....Assington Mill

Assington Mill announce their programme of rural and craft courses for 2008. In a time where people want to put something back into the environment these course at Assington Mill in the stunning Suffolk Countryside close to Sudbury seem more important than ever. Assington is set in the perfect location to see some of the finest architecture Suffolk and Essex have to offer.

Many want to learn how to build using less toxic methods, or traditional crafts and this surely has to be the perfect way to learn. Fantastic surroundings, like minded souls but with all mod cons - could not be better.

There are 45 different courses to choose from. The choice ranges from beekeeping to cider making, furniture restoration to team building. The list is endless and amazing. So if just using up the apples from your tree or going to the other extreme and learning bush craft its all possible. Even corporate team building is catered for.

Why not explore the possibilities, amaze yourself by booking something totally different...
Visit Assington Mill at Seek It Out today

B and B Wins another award.

Churton Heath Farm has won yet another award for their stylish farm B and B in Cheshire. Already winners of Best Bed and Breakfast 2007 in Visit Chester and Cheshire Awards, they have now been awarded Highly Commended (runners up) in Best B and B in the North West Tourism Awards. Amazing when they have only been open a year. It shows how hard work, a determination to succeed can make it happen. However, Vanessa herself said to me its about not taking it all to seriously that makes it work. Having seen the farm and the beautiful rooms I would say they take it very seriously indeed but maybe not themselves too seriously and that is the winning formula. Congratulations!
Visit their showcase now!

Spoilt for Choice

Just the other day I was contacted by a Seek It Out member to add an event to their showcase. It made me realise how many events are being lovingly arranged across the country. Hard not to know its Christmas coming up! It was lovely to see simple and traditional along side the high street commercial. A Victorian Fair caught my eye at Hoar Park Craft Village and Farm, just the perfect picture, nippy winters night stood around the fire, with a glass of warming mulled wine, the smell of roasting chestnuts in the air and the sound of excited children waiting for the visit to Father Christmas in his grotto and all set amongst historic buildings. What a wonderful winter scene.

Enough nostalgia I hear you say but why not after all its fun to embrace the past, well the good bits at least as I am not keen on small boys being made to go up chimneys!

It is amazing how sounds, smells and settings drift you off into another world. Every December in Shrewsbury's stunning historic square they have Christmas Carols with false snow, and despite being surrounded by classy shops selling designer goods out of medieval buildings - the scene is set. The smell once again of chestnuts wafting through the air, the mass of people singing their hearts out and despite the DJ from BBC radio and the false snow you soon start to believe somehow its all real, carried away by the atmosphere and the scene that greets you.

So maybe there are still some aspects of Christmas that are not ruined by commercialism.
Go to one of the traditional events and see if you too are not at least a little taken by the moment.

Have a great run up to Christmas !

Fordhall Win Again!

Fordhall Farm - Market Drayton Brother and sister have been crowned the UK's Young Rural Entrepreneurs of 2007.

Ben and Charlotte Hollins raised nearly £1.5m to save their late father's organic farm near Market Drayton from the threat of development. The won that battle and now they receive very justified recognition.

Read the full story of how they came to be crowned UK's Young Rural Entrepreneurs of 2007 at the BBC website

Visit their showcase, learn about how you can be involved in this fantastic on going process.

Or visit their showcase to discover how you can shop on line with Fordhall - fine foods straight from the farm.

Recently publication of a fantastic book tells the full amazing story of their fight to save years of family history and keep their farm alive.