A special thank you to Shawn at the Lily Pad! Your kindness with my last minute order was…read moreappreciated by me. My daughter received the flowers for Mother's Day and she said they are beautiful. Well done and thank you again from a mother far away.

I used this florist in the summer for my wedding flowers, Its a bit far out for me but I wanted to…read moreuse Gemma, the owner, as I knew her from a previous florist in Bristol and knew she was good so pleased I made the journey from Bristol The staff are so friendly, I knew that no matter what I needed or wanted to know I could just ask. Gemma was really helpful in helping me chose the flowers I wanted, the style of bouquets and button holes and how it would all fit together. The shop is lovely, they have loads of flowers to chose from as well as little gifts and other bits and pieces. I emailed over some ideas initially then we met up and put our heads together and I then was able to leave it to them. I was pretty laid back with my flowers but I know if I had wanted more involvement that would have been fine too. They have some lovely props you can hire such as different vases and candelabras so its really helpful to know you can get all these things from one place. I would highly recommend The Lily Pad florist, its definitely worth paying them a visit.

Chepstow garden centre is great because they have a good range of garden plants,trees etc which are…read moreall in good condition. The staff are very helpful if you need any assistance. They are a bit pricey but its worth it because of the quality. There's a lovely cafe attached which does a superb reasonably priced Sunday lunch.

If you like gardening, this is the place to go. Wide choice of plants and all horticultural items…read more They also have a great cafe, an aquatics section if you are looking for a little nemo or dori, a farmshop with lots of local and organic food and a gift/homeware section. The best thing for me is that they have Yankee Candles in their selection. The best aroma candles I ever came across. They also have now all the christmas items in, which is great and you'll be spoilt for choice. Prices are reasonable and occasional offers are not to be missed.

Listen very carefully: this absolute gem is so much more than a garden centre. Oh, sure, "garden"…read moreis in the title. And they definitely have you covered there. But this place is practically a day out in and of itself. Looking to find a new furry friend or expand your tropical aquarium dreams? Come and say hi to the bunnies, guineas, budgies, tiny turtles, and myriad gorgeous rare and curious fish. Crabs? Oh, sure. Those too. #NBD. How about a whole new wardrobe, shoe collection, and walking gear? Yep -- check out the extensive and incredible selection of leather shoes, Edinburgh Woollen Mill range, and even furry hats. Whilst you're at it, feel free to pick up some of the most delectably scented candles, diffusers, and incense known to woman (and man) kind. Oh, sorry -- you just wanted to feed the ducks and grabbing a delicious Sunday lunch? I think I just found THE best carvery right here. Warning: the locals know about this hidden gem. It gets PACKED! But it's worth it. I don't think I've ever enjoyed queuing with a tray so much -- that roast dinner was incredible. Yep, even the potatoes were the business. And cauli cheese! And honeyed carrots! P.s. uber props to the amazing carver man. He was so nice. Essentially, I want to live here it's so amazing. Final boon: they have a massive plastic gorilla you can sit on. WHUT? For real.

I have a slight addiction to wondering around Garden centres even though I haven't actually got a…read moregarden and so I paid a visit here just to satisfy my craving. I also love Yankee candles and I have now discovered I can combine these two things when I come here. A very nice place with lots of non garden things to buy as well as the usual spades and plant pots. A very good range of Yankee candles (Mr Datcat was not happy about this, but never mind eh) and on the left past the tills they have a range of foodstuffs including yummy cakes. We didn't go to the coffee shop though, but a quick smell and look over did tempt us, but we held out today. Next time though we might have to give in to the lure of coffee. Plenty of friendly staff around and on the tills. Parking is a plentiful so this place is recommended.

This curious little shop of goodies is both the best and pretty much the only gift shop in the tiny…read moremarket town of Dursley. Having grown up here I've been a longstanding customer of theirs, albeit an infrequent one, now that I live up north. The joke of saying "Can we go to that new shop?" has worn a little thin over the years, I must admit, but it matters not. The goods are within and that's what counts. Inside you will find all manner of collectables and shinies. They have hoards of lovely gift cards, wrapping and trim, beautiful ornaments, knick-knacks, smellies, candles and so on. If you venture up stairs you will find a gorgeous selection of jewellery and clothing, some obviously hand picked from designer outlets to suit the store style, and delightful accessories to accompany any outfit. Of course, being the only gift shop in town gives them enough edge to charge a little extra for their stock, so prices are always on the upper end. However, I have always found that the quality is a justifiable factor, and everything I have purchased there before has stood the test of time. So, it's a lovely place to visit and look around! The staff, many of whom I'm sure have worked there for a few years, have always been a pleasure to chat to and very helpful. Win!

I have used this garden centre for plenty of purchases over the years and I have grown to really…read morelike them. They have a good aquatics department and plenty of last minute gift ideas. They are a little expensive but then I think all garden centres are really and you are paying for the browsing experience and the service which on this occassion is very good. I have twice had problems with things I have bought from them (outside of their control) and they have been very helpful and prompt in their willingness to help which makes a nice change from some garden centres I've visited and all done with a smile. In a nutshell - a bit expensive but worth the extra for the good customer service and good ambience.

Quite a few people have been telling me to go to the Arboretum for a while now so today i decided…read moreto check it out! It's pretty close to Bristol, only a 35 minute drive and is located just off the Bath road. It cost about £9 to get in which sounds a lot for a walk in the woods BUT there is 17 MILES of woodland to walk around. for £9..i think that aint half bad. When you get thru the entrance gate there are bathrooms and a snack bar which is ideal after a long journey, you can refresh yourself before your walk. They have a few different sections of the woodland, i started with the old part. Trees planted way back when by the Victorians. I think i left it a little late in the year to go, October would have been better as a lot of the leaves had already fallen. There are park benches dotted around so you can rest if you get tired or just want to sit and appreciate the surroundings. I do loads of craft/art work and contacted Westonbirt beforehand to make sure they didn't mind me collecting some leaves from the floor. My my, didn't i have a bountiful hall or what?!! I collected the best looking, healthiest leaves i've ever seen. I walked for about 3 hours and still didn't see it all. There is a play area for kids, education spot teaching the various kinds of wood, leaves, seeds and wildlife, two cafe's, snack bars and of course an overpriced gift shop. They have mobility scooters available for hire and a plant nursery where you can buy seeds, tree's ready for planting, pottery and more. The Arboretum also makes mulch, wood burning wood an wooden home/garden items with any trees they have to cut down which i love-upcycle baby! the trees are clearly well looked after and it's £9 totally well spent. Now, i don't need ANY encouragement to want a dog, i love them, do you like dags? In half of the woodland dogs are permitted, i even made friend with a small pack of them, they made me their chief stick thrower! All hail Lucy. The Arboretum is a lovely lovely day out, i'm def going to head back in the spring time. Suitable for all ages and walking abilities.

I can completely see Henry's point in some respects - paying what seems to be a rather exorbitant…read morefee of £8 (I think, perhaps it's gone up?!) to see what is essentially a glorified forest is not exactly a great idea from the outset. But, if you let go of that minor detail, and visit in the autumn you'll easily forget about that. Well, at least I did. Westonbirt is filled with some utterly glorious trees and is a truely lovely project. I was reassured several times by my Dad's lovely girlfriend that the money we spent really does go towards a lot, including largely the heavy maintenance and nursing done on the sight, so that certainly eased the pain of nearly a tenner. What eased it even more was walking through what can only be described as a shower of rustling, fresh, wind filled colour. Pure autumn was emanating from these beautiful trees. For the most part it seems as though the trees have been planted in terms of origin. There were all kinds of lovely specimens, which I'm sad to admit, the only ones I could name (of the foreign trees) were the japanese maples. Apparently the native british trees are all kept together and cultivated specifically so as not to be contaminated - I got the impression this was because cross pollination would be detrimental to either the foreign or native trees, though I'm not sure which. (Or even if that's true!) In any case, I had the most wonderful autumnal walk here and enjoyed every penny spent. (And I don't mean that I spent lots of pennies, er, in *that* way - more that I don't begrudge the fee. You know what I mean.) One two hour walk, hoards of pictures (which are on my Flickr), and a coffee later and I was one happy camper. Perfect day out - and let's be honest, you could spend a lot more on a lot less right?

If you look in the shop window you'll think this is just another kitchen wear shop that sells a few…read morehigh priced pots and pans. And yes they do sell saucepans, but actually go in (Minding the step) and you'll find a shop that is a treasure trove of gadgets that you might not need, but I can bet that you'll want at reasonable prices. The shop is a bit bigger than you think, but still small and because they have such a lot of stuff you may need to be a bit careful with any bags and I think pushchair/wheel chair users would really struggle. Anyone who makes jams, chutneys or things like that will be very happy as they carry a range of kilner jars and bottles including the replacement seals. The people behind the counter have always been very helpful with any questions that I've had and are to be commended. Parking is available on the street at meters.

Great service and very helpful. Always know where to go when I need something. Always a lovely…read moredisplay in the shop window very inviting. Great for all those things you rarely need but when you start cooking and think oh I need that they have it. Good quality and choice. Some things are quite expensive though the majority is just well priced goods.

Molton Brown has got to be one of my all time favourite brands. This shop has been here for a bit…read morelonger than the new one at Cabot Circus in the centre of Bristol, but the products are really worth trying if you have never tried them before. DOn't be put off by the prices, yes they are more expensive than your normal high street brand but you get what you pay for. The staff are really helpful aswell and will always give some ideas to any men that want to treat the lady in his life!