Things that please

 

Things that please

Often, it’s the small details that make something different and special.

I discovered that we had almost run out of soap recently. I searched feverishly through my drawers, where I store soap bars, but there were none to be found, so I sent away for some.

The Little Soap Company started life in the Cotswolds. Its original name was the Naked Soap Company and the founder, Emma Heathcote-James, created her first soaps in her kitchen and started selling them at local farmers’ markets. That was more than fifteen years ago, and her business has gone from strength to strength. Her soaps can be found in supermarkets, pharmacies and online.

The soaps arrived securely packaged in recyclable materials. The scent, as I unpacked them, was sensational (yes, that’s a pun!) If one were susceptible to strong perfumes, the package might be overwhelming, with the concentration of many bars, although I didn’t find them so. Individually, the soaps are pleasantly perfumed.

I am aware of how scents can sometimes be too much. I bought a scent diffuser a few weeks ago that had such an overpowering smell – all natural ingredients! - that it made my throat sore. I had to put it at the end of the garden, and even at a distance of about twenty yards, I could still smell it.

The little thing on the box of soap that really made me smile was the packing tape, shown at the top and below.

It depicted scenes of bucolic bliss, bringing to mind the rolling Cotswold hills, the sparkling streams and the honeyed tones of the buildings.

                                    Essential information.

 I know that Alison in Devon, (once upon a time in Wales) makes her own soap. Does she sell locally, I wonder?

Jonquil, Daffodil or Narcissus?

 

Jonquil, Daffodil or Narcissus?

The common botanical name for all these lovely spring flowers is Narcissus.

Daffodils may be perfumed, but their scent is delicate and, to my nose, green. They have one flower per stem. They come in many shades, from white, through yellow to peach and pink. Often their trumpets are a brighter colour.

Jonquils are strongly perfumed and carry many flowers on each stem. They are seen in all shades of yellow and the trumpets, or corona, are shorter than in daffodils, but, like them, contrast with the outer petals.

Although daffodils and jonquils are both classified as narcissus, they are different species. Nonetheless, they will probably always be referred to as ‘daffodils,’ glorious harbingers of spring.

 I noticed a bent stem of jonquils in the garden and brought it into the house. It smelt wonderful. My photographic skills do not do it justice, and there is no way of capturing the scent, but I think it is beautiful.