What an extraordinary year 2020 was. We responded to the pandemic by moving online, which proved to be a great success, though we very much missed seeing one another at our monthly meetings and on all our trips.
Monday 7th December – in our festive craft session led by Isabella Mitchell, we made these beautiful paper wreaths. There was a quiet concentration, a glass or two of wine, a mishap with a glue gun, and some weird and wonderful leaf shapes created – but I think we did brilliantly!
Monday 2nd November – was our Annual Meeting. We had circulated to all members in advance, a pack containing the 2021 programme, a tea bag, chocolates, a raffle ticket and personal note. After presentations from the committee, we were thrilled that Natalie de Silva was re-elected as president for the coming year. A HUGE thank you Nat, for taking on the role and responsibilities for another year – particularly as 2020 has been one of the toughest. We had a wonderful turnout of members who zoomed in, many enjoying their delicious limited edition Spiced Pumpkin tea from Bird & Blend – who gave us a fun short talk on tea blends. Once business was concluded, we held a quiz, with some fiendish questions thrown in, and ended the meeting with a raffle with three fantastic prizes donated by Alison. 
Monday 5th October – a big thank you to JO MOSELEY for joining us to talk about her stand up paddleboarding adventure 162 miles along canals from Liverpool to Goole last summer, and her incredible daily beach clean efforts. Jo had a few connection issues – she was talking to us from a stormy Yorkshire – but we were able to circulate her film to members after the meeting. Jo is passionate advocate of adventures in midlife and encouraging others to find joy and achieve their goals whatever their age, and is a very engaging speaker. You can read more on Jo’s website, Health Happy 50, and on instagram. 
Monday 7th September – we had such an interesting discussion on the subject of Stem Cell donation from Reshna Radivan from DKMS UK, who spoke about the challenges they face in encouraging people to sign up to become donors, and learning more about the importance of this resource in deleting blood cancer. One of the WI’s resolutions for this year is “A call to increase potential stem cell donor registration”, and as September is also Blood Cancer Awareness Month, this couldn’t have been more timely. Do take a look at their website (linked above), and spread the word to encourage others to find out more about the subject. 
Monday 3rd August – we were delighted to welcome LUCY BISHOP from Kerry Taylor Auctions, who gave us a fascinating insight into some of the items that have made it into their exceptional vintage fashion auctions, and answered questions including how to protect vintage clothes against moths, what to do with a 30 year old wedding dress, and the value of a traditional Mongolian coat! If you have a truly exceptional vintage piece in your wardrobe, Lucy would be happy to take a look, and you can email photos to her at info@kerrytaylorauctions.com She also invited us to drop in to one of the preview days before their next auction, Antique and Vintage Fashion and Textiles, which is on 27 October, when all the Lots will be on display. – we’ll be there! 
Monday 6th July – thank you to JEN GEORGE, who inspired us with insights into her journey from teacher to expedition leader, and shared the ups and downs experienced during her 365 Days of Adventure – no adventure, however small, is ever wasted.
Monday 1st June – we were thrilled to welcome JANE ROBINSON, author of Ladies Can’t Climb Ladders as our guest speaker. Jane’s latest book focuses on the lives of pioneering women forging careers in the fields of medicine, law, academia, architecture, engineering and the church. “In her startling study into the public and private worlds of these unsung heroines, Jane Robinson sheds light on their desires and ambitions, and how family and society responded to this emerging class of working women.” It was an excellent talk on a fascinating topic.
Monday 4 May – A huge thank you to Sarah Wyndham Lewis for joining our virtual meeting and giving us a fascinating and important talk. Firstly, we enjoyed learning more about the varieties of honey from around the world, and seeing their wonderfully different depths of colour (in real life we were planning on doing a tasting!). Secondly, Sarah gave us a horrifying insight into the honey ‘industry’, from Chinese bee factories to over-processed honey that bears little resemblance to the real thing. If there’s one thing we should all take away from her talk is to NEVER buy blended honey – buy local. Looking in my cupboard afterwards I found a jar of Marks and Spencer squeezy honey, which stated in small type, ‘a blend of EU and non-EU honey’. There is never any excuse or need, to blend honey, so I’ll be using that for a hair mask or something, but certainly won’t be eating it. You can find out more about Bermondsey Street Honey here.
Monday 6 April – Our first virtual meeting, courtesy of ZOOM! We loved meeting ELLA FOOTE, who shared with us her joy of wild swimming. Ella is a writer, swimmer and contributing editor to Outdoor Swimmer magazine, and it was fantastic to hear about her wonderful experiences in the rivers, lakes and coast of Britain. It has certainly inspired many of us to explore swimming outdoors – even if it’s just venturing to Brockwell Lido (when lockdown is over!).
Monday 2nd March – A fascinating talk by ANNA EAVIS, Curatorial Director of English Heritage, and a wonderful insight into the blue plaques scheme. Anna focused her talk on the incredibly brave and inspiring women from all fields who’ve been honoured in the scheme – particularly those who lived or worked in the Chelsea area. Only 14% of plaques are currently to women, but English Heritage are trying to change this. So if you have any ideas for an outstanding woman who you feel should be nominated you can do this through their website. But remember, at least 20 years must have passed since a candidate’s death, and at least one building associated with the figure must survive within Greater London. You can read about all those with blue plaques in their book – The English Heritage Guide To London’s Blue Plaques. One final note…who wouldn’t want to be remembered as ‘Namer of Clouds’!
Monday 3rd February – a really busy meeting to pick the financial brain of LISA CONWAY-HUGHES. By day, Lisa works at a wealth management firm in the City of London. She is a Chartered Financial Adviser, and also a Fellow of the Personal Finance Society, who has shared her money wisdom not only via her podcasts, but in a variety of glossy magazines including Stylist, Glamour and Prima. She was happy to answer questions on investing, savings, and how to plan for the future. I think every one of our members was able to take at least one nugget of financial wisdom or inspiration away with them. Lisa is the author of Money Lessons: How to manage your finances to get the life you want. There’s lots more on her website misslolly.com
Monday 6th January – a huge thank you to the lovely CLARINS team who gave up their evening to come along and pamper us. They shared details of their brand and bestselling products, plus offered advice on skin care and make up. The perfect way to start a new year – and each of our members left with an unexpected goody bag! You can find out more about Clarins on their website. We also did a collection for The Hygiene Bank, and our members very generously donated a bag full of toiletries which Annabel has now dropped off to them. 