After more than ten fulfilling, magical years beginning in the good old days of 2012, Hello Pretty is retiring and heading off to the beach with a drink with a tiny umbrella.
Read our goodbye letter
We love our South Africa! ???
On Heritage Day, we celebrate our culture, our diverse beliefs & traditions, and how they coexist to make us the unique and special country that we are.
The Hello Pretty team wishes everybody a colourful and happy Heritage Day.
We had the great honour of being guests at La Motte in Franschhoek for a family day on Heritage Day last year. Jen (who helps with Hello Pretty's social strategies and planning) attended with her husband Philippe, and their little girl Frankie. And, lucky for us, this was already one of our favourite wineries - their red wines are really good.
If you thought South African wine estates were only about wine you'd be mistaken. Visiting a winery in South Africa is a rich experience that offers a bit of history in the estates themselves which are commonly established in the 1600s, a bit of horticulture where they explain some of the science of what is planted where and why, a bit of theatre when you do the tasting and get a passionate explanation of the wine and it's notes, and a culinary spectacular at the phenomenal restaurants (I've never had a disappointing meal and dining experience at a winery restaurant).
La Motte's wine, their restaurant, their art and their estate are all magnificent. But don't believe me, taste and see for yourself.
La Motte has a close association with, and admiration of, one of South Africa's most well-known artists, Jacob Hendrik Pierneef. Bizarrely, I recently found my primary school workbooks and discovered that in 7th grade we had learnt about him and the familiar South African landscape paintings that he's most famous for.
They celebrate Pierneef and his work in a variety of ways. They have a gallery of his work, a range of Pierneef wines in tribute, and a restaurant called Pierneef à La Motte's Chef's Table, led by chef Michelle Theron.
First let's talk about...
Or rather, let us look at some photos of what we ate, and drool and daydream about plowing through this food like a swarm of rabid locusts (I'm not proud. I can own this behaviour.).
And honestly if this hasn't sold you on the place then I don't even know what to think about you. But just in case, here's a little more:
And since you are reading this post you are obviously someone who enjoys and appreciates wine. We have a tonne of fantastic wine-themed things on Hello Pretty that you'll love. Some for you, and some that just make really excellent "different" gifts. Here's a tiny selection of the things we ? :
[ 01 ] Wooden Word - Wine
[ 02 ] Name Monogram Wine Box
[ 03 ] Eat Drink and be Married Wine Bottle Signage
[ 04 ] Wine Fanatic Bamboo Coasters
[ 05 ] "Pic-Wik" Table (Picnic + Wine = Pic-Wik)
[ 06 ] Large Reclaimed Oak Wine Barrel Cheese Board
[ 07 ] 2 Piece Wine Rack (Black)
[ 08 ] Shhh... There's Wine in Here Mug
[ 09 ] Wine Shopping Carrier Bags
[ 10 ] Rhino (Whino) Wine Holder (check out this store - there are loads of animals to choose from)
Thank you La Motte for including us in your beautiful Heritage Day celebration. As you can see, a ball was had, particularly by Frankie ?
? Photographs taken by Jen Morin and Philippe Morin.
It's been a while, but finally it's GIVEAWAY TIME! We love these giveaways just as much as you do.
This week, enter to win any two items of your choice - one for you, one for your best friend - from Hallo Jane. Say what!
Her stuff is super cute, made-in-South-Africa bamboo jewellery and homeware, and you should know that it's one of Hello Pretty's top sellers.
To enter:
Here are a couple of customer favourites to whet your appetite:
This giveaway is open to everyone, everywhere. Entries close at 10am on Friday 13th of November (this Friday). Hello Pretty's standard competition Ts and Cs apply. Only one entry per channel will be counted.
So from time to time, Team Hello Pretty ingests things that aren't wine, cheese and coffee - and recently, Zestly Box has made our kitchen endeavours infinitely more enjoyable.
As the new kid on the subscription box block, Zestly Box is all about gourmet snacking, so we were naturally thrilled when one landed on our doorstep. AND! Because there are glass bottles and jars in the package, there is also lots of shredded paper padding. What's that thing about how you give a child a gift and they play with the packaging?
Jokes aside, I am possibly the least domestic human alive. In my mind, I'm Bree Van der Kamp herself (sans the drama), but in reality I am a flailing mess in the kitchen. I'm happy to report there have been no fires as yet, but I am still new in this life.
SO! What better way to become more kitchen savvy than to have someone send me things to try out? Everything in the package is delicious and I develop mad skillz.
Each box comes with a detailed "meet the makers" page, so you know exactly who the gourmet wizards are that have created such droolworthy items, with every item carefully selected by the Zestly duo, Gino and Tamlyn.
In this particular box, the slab of lavender white chocolate was the first to go, with the olive caviar hot on it's heels. (Yes, they are already finished. #sorrynotsorry)
You should definitely get in on the action, at http://zestly.co.za/get-started/ - say hello to many delicious days in your future!
We celebrate the beauty of pearls in this week's newsletter - sign up over HERE and make sure you don't miss out!
We love all things rose gold and copper!
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Watch this space - it's going to be HUGE.
*Squeaks with excitement*
