Ola!
Well Matt & I survived the three day beer, cheese & ...more cheese Fest that is the BBC Good Food Show.
We ate...and drank exceptionally well & we left enough tummy space for the best Tandooris & Thai Tom Yums that Shepherds Bush had to throw at us.Lush!!The straw was still billowing from our tousled mops as we hit the city smoke & we loved every second of it.Even our highly dodgy (or as website put it "quirky") B&B complete with red light in the front room.
The B&B website also reckoned we'd arrive as guests and leave as friends....Hmmmmmm.
All good material to bore our long suffering friends with.
The show was great for meeting customers & we were flabbergasted to sell out of our Honeybuns shopping bags & our beaaaautiful Baby tins.
The cakes were almost incidental.
Since then we've been on a rollercoaster of emotions. Well I have really.
I'd got my over implusive heart set on an ex race horse called Ralph.The deal was done, or so we thought, & I'd prepared his snuggly bed ready for the big today...today.
We were then disappointed to hear we'd been gazummmped. It right took the wind from underneath my wings. Never mind. I'm sure we'll find something gorgeous & equiney to love soon.I'll take my time to find the right horse this time.
Back to cakeys. We're now working on a new collection of delicious tit bits for a quiet, gradual launch...or slow release in the New Year.Won't say too much in case our beloved H**R* are reading this......tee heee.
Anyone lovely is welcome to a little parteeee we're holding on Sat 29th Nov at the Halsey Arms in Pulham. Matt's playing in his band, Buzz.They're lovely. If you ever get our Honeybuns hold muic on the phones- it's Buzz playing.And they're ACE.
We're off to see the Mighty Boooosh lib=ve tomorrow. Can't wait. I love Bob Fossil sooo much. I hope he does his nice little dance with his way too tight safari suit on.
Wishig everyone a tres happy & snuggly weekend.
I think it's all about embracing & cuddling into the winter this year. Our strategy- light a fire & snuggle.
Em xxxx

Hiya,
hope everyone has had a good week.I was enjoying myself until Friday. I was supposed to be going to Suffolk to meet a wholesaler but we were extra ordinarily busy & it seemed insane to take an entire day out & leave the teeeeam all alone.
This should have meant I made the best use of my precous extra time...but alas- I was fretful on Friday & felt all agitated. Not at all sure why. I think it might be a simple case of "mental SIM card overload".It was a full on week with lots of travelling & meetings-I'm highly strung at the best of times but this was a BADLY jittery day.
Havng had a bit of a food -bingey- wingey past- these are danger days. Sadly- we'd received a omplimentary box of biccies into the office-yup- I scoffed well more than my fair share of them.Funny how I don't get tempted by all the HBuns stuff despite it tasting ubberly gorgeous. I think I've trained my brain to resist everday temptation, but blimey- when I discovere the old Mc mass produced biccie box I went kerrrazzzeeee....
I went for a lovely run today with the dogs & my mate Jo.Jo is not at all nervy & mental like moi but she said she also felt fidgety yesterday. Must have been sth in the air.Or maybe moon thingey meiggies.Anyway, today has been lush- runnig always helps. Getting ready for da big bad Grizzly in March too. Eeeek...
Going to a parteee tonight.
Then need to gear up for week ahead. Going to the BBC Good Food Show next Friday which I'm really looking forwards to.
We'll be popping some Gluten Free recipes onto our www.hoeybuns.co.uk website.
Hope ou all hav a fab week,
take care,
Em xxx

Hi there!
Gosh, what a beaaautiful weekend of catching up on all the things that make me feel nice.Saturday was a good mix of sorting out the big barn & getting all the animal bedroom arrangments sorted for the winter.This involved moving feedbins, mending fencing, cleaning water troughs etc.In the afternoon, Matt, our neighbour Aud & I trekked off to Bath for a spot of retail therapy...it was lush despite the non stop rain.Matt looks the proppa rockstar now- all skinny jeans & pointy wizard boots.He'll be blinged up & ready for his gig- 29th Nov in the Halsey Arms, Pulham.Do come along. Anyone up for a laugh & a boogey is more than welcome.
I'm planning the next Joaneycams so you call all actually see the donks- they're honestly not imaginary! Our pal Conrad is coming round soon to do some more post & rail fencing to create a little side paddock. We can then pop a camera on that & also inside the Big Barn.Pls do kep an eye on our website- there'll be new "spot the donk." weekly competitions coming soon....we promise endless fun! Instant messaging & audiocasts coming soon too.
Gooey cake news- we're delighted to have been listed with a chain of Hong Kong retailers- thanks to our secret agent AJ for this!! The French trade show follow ups are still in full swing. We're on target for singing up with 3 intl w'salers.This is that we set out to achieve-it's given us the confidence to bookup for another 2 intl. shows in 2009.We need to get quite a bit more organised in order to fit everything in. The 2009 diary is already looking chocca-blocca.
We're very excited about our NPD too. We're working on Gluten free cookies- a little bit of Italy- Dorset style. I am a little bit naughty on this blog- deliberately winding up our painfully competetive fellow cakebakers. I do 'fess up that the kiddies range was complete boloney. Such fun to drop in a few teasers though.
But the non cakey products & ; cookies ...I think they might just catch on.. We've stayed away from NPD fo a while so we're looking forward to getting back to the devpt kitchen.
Wishing everyone a Fantabulouso week,(thanks for typo spotting Jack Frost!!)
Em xxx

Hallo,
It's been so lovely being back in Blighty. Paris was great. We A
ate our own body weight in molluscs in white wine sauce avec Pommes Frites. Even managed to catch a full on Reggae gig near to the Gare du Nord on our last night..but it's still sooo lush to be home.Our gorgeous dogs went bananas when we got back, lots of slobbery canine kisses were liberally applied.Arriving back on Sat. we then had our Dorset Food Week open evening on the Sat night.Annually we open the Bee Shack doors to guests & we hold a BIG Quiz with lots of nibbles , drinks & blind folded "ingredients feeling". This involves blindfolded participants delving their paws into bowls of bakery ingredients...some stickier than others...
This week has been helter skelterery busy following up on all the leads from the Sial trade show...fingers crossed we get some good business from it.We need to grow a bit more this coming year so we can get started on H'Buns bakery mark 2.We're bursting at the seams where we are & we're keen to be able to expand our range of amaretti stylie cookies-it all takes a surprising amount of space-on the other hand times are so uncertain , we're taking things very cautiously too. We need to expand but only if we can do it relatively safely.
Tomorow we have our team Halloween Party-Charlotte was making spooky food todayinc "witches fingers"-chipolatas with finger nails & stategic splodges of ketchup.
Happy Halloween to all,
Have a beatiful weekend,
Em xx

Bonjour!
Honeybuns are on tour in Gay Paris. We're at SIAL- we've currently had interest from Norway, Denmark & Holland- which we're chuffed about- they love our packaing. The nice thing too has been receiving lovely compliments on the cakes themselves..from the v. discerning French buyers.
It's all such a learning curve for us & it also gives us valuable time to catch up and chat about the business without the distractions of day to day logistics etc.Matt & I need to figure out where we're headed next really- business wise.As well as our gluten free cakes we're also hatching plans to launch a little non food Honeybuns range in the New Year.....should get our competitors twitching.Love it!! Cakes are cool but there are lots of other lovely things we can do with the Honeybuns brand.
One of our Irish wholesalers came to our stand today & told us about their donkeys- great minds think alike. We're equally as besotted with our donks & it was quite a surreal conversation to be having in the midst of a hectic trade show....
We're looking forward to visiting the Moulin Rouge before coming home.Must make the most of everything- including moules mariniere & the fabulous vin rouge.
That's it for now.
Love to everyone,
Em xxxx

Hallo- after writing about my indecent exposure jogging bottoms yesterday- I realised I'd written "peasants" not "pheasants". I truly do not fancy myself as lady muck lording it over the local serfs...although it read exactly like that.
Oooohhhhps. Note to self- re read what I've written. My spellig is horrendous!
Muchios inclusive love Em xxxx

Hallo,
Well...finally my imaginary website is up and running. We're soon to be adding our village notice boad, Instant messaging, extended shoppe & other nice & lovely things...It all takes time, but we shoud be there in the next month.
Thanks so very much to all our facebook fans...please do bear with me whilst I get to gripz with it.I've replied to quite a few of you but I'm a bit slow...just like me texting too. Painful to watch.
Yesterday, Trish & I went to our first Coeliac UK Volunteers Conference in Londonium. It was great to meet people who we've been exchanging e-mails & tel calls with for years.We gave out all our samples & again, people love our tins. We're having the first lmited edition print done in a couple of months. If I said donkeys...you'd have an idea of what to expect.The Coeliac tingey was well worth doing & I bizarrely met 2 people from home town of Grimsby.V. weird.
Last night we had a gorj. supper at Trish 'n' Dave's - fish pie with pollock, prawns & smoked cod with lots of Gibbsy Veggies folowed by baked apples, magnificently thick clotted cream & icecream...Lush-Dush.
All good fuel for da Grizzly training pogramme.Got a good run in today with Jo- we took most of our dogs too & must have looked like a right rag taggle team.Just recently realised my jogger bottoms have had an indecently large hole exposing my knickers for all to see. Fortuntely it's mostly sheep & pheasants on my regular route. Apologies to anyone who has had the misfortune...I've now got a new pair.
Looking forward to geting this ednesday over with- giving a talk on business- hardly feel qualified as I'm realising we're one of the few set up that actually adore what we do.I think we must be a bit of an oddity- not uber caring amassing lots of dosh. Nowt so queer as folk I guess!
Lots of love & fun to all,
Em xx PS- I'm really sorry to everyone who has asked for advice/meetings etc.I do politey decline for 2 reasons:
1. Business wise we're weirdos & cannot advice you on how to get rich (it's not chosen our journey).
2. Once Honeybuns is done the rest of the days is for hobbies, feckless fu & the animals.
I can always point you in the direction of go getting Aston Martin driving company directors who'll be uber qualified to advise....xx

Hallo,
My goodness me I've got sore feet today. Danced like a loon (again!!!) to AC-DC at the Leon Book lauch party last night.
Lucy- you were a supa star. I think I may have been a bit of a liability so thanks to you for looking out for me- fun though wasn't it??? The Leon book is lush too, written by the uber talented & incredbly down to earth Allegra Mc.Our de-lushious brownie recipe appears in there & I'm going to pop a copy in the post to dad-our gorgeous, late mum is in it too & he'll be very happy indeed, if a little tearful.
Matt & I had a MIGHTY BOOSH like adventure & took Betsy the Bongo camper van into London- we stayed over night at the Crystal Palace campsite-it was a proper adventure & naturally we missed the last train back to base camp...equally predicable was our craving for crap food at 1am. Kind of ironic having attended the party at Leon- Observer restaurant of the year.I knew we should have put the cocktails down & had some tapas- hindsight is a wonderful thing.
In the morning we had a slight Bongo roof malfunction by way of not being able to get the fecking thing down.Time was an issue- having lots of meetings arranged At Waitrose in Bracknell starting at 10am.We called the RAC suspecting a blown fuse-when it worked.Great. We then hit the M25 & came to a standstill. Quite stressy for me driving.Not so stressy for Matt still tucked up asleep in the back of the van-charmed scamp.
Anyroad- had lovely meetings & brainstormed with sleepy head Matticus once he "got up" at lunchtime. Ideas we came up with- Rating our competitors cakes on our website- blind tasting them on our Bee Shack audience alongside our own. I think this would be awesome- would keep us on our toes & provide great rference for customer/interested cakey people. Just need to research legality of naming names.
We could pop Handmade Cake Company on there as well as Honey- (I'm not at all bitter they nicked half our name)Rose & the brilliant Fudges & Popina- I'll keep you posted.THe latter 2 we can highly recommend. The blind tasting would speak louder than our say so though.
Instant messaging is the next plan for the new HoneyBUNS website- can't wait.I'm really keen to do ome podcasts of our BeeShack days too. Need to recover from my Bob Fossil dancing impersonations first & then get me thinking cap on.
Wishing you all a glorious weekend
xxxxx

Hallo,
I hope everyone is having a good week.It feels properly autumnal here at Naish Farm. I inhaled some good strong wafts of our cult favourite, Snowy Hills (aka ginger & lemon crunch) today. I was walking across the yard, just past the bakery & the ginger & lemon zest came right at me...just the thing for a damp, chilly October morning.The baking aromas are so lush here at HBuns...I wonder whether we could tap into the natural parfum market...?
Last week we were hoping to be online with our "all new" website & groovesome online shop. There are just a few more techy bits to settle in & we have been advised by Greg, our IT wizard, that the new date is hopefully this coming Monday.As soon as it is live we've let everyone know via e-mail.I absolutely promise it is not a figment of my imagination! Meanwhile, Jackie & Trish have been busying away sending tins out to press contacts, key buyers & ....lots of our pals! Feedback has been awesome.
Our office is now mainly...Honeybuns pink. I went a bit ceerazzeee with a tin of Fired Earth pink paint over the weekend & Trish's desk is now Barbietastic. All the better for her front of house role! Next stage is to get pics taken tomorrow of us all at work in da office. We'll then post these up on the website.
Other exciting things- we've acquired 2 more beaaautiful donkeys called Meg & Tash- this has prompted us to design a Christmas card featuring the HBuns donks whilst promoting the Sidmouth Donkey Sanctuary.
All good fun.
Best go now. I have to pop all the animals to bed tonight.It's well chilly outside tonight.
love Em x

Hallo
I'm feeling a little bit out of sorts today. I had to cancel a trip to London to visit Lunch! a new trade show.Not like me, but I'm fighting a bit of a nasty virus & have been feeling quite dizzy. I'd hazard a guess that my running training for the pending Great South Run in October has not aided the healing process....I must put my trainers down & listen to my body a bit more methinks.
Worky wise at Honeybuns, we're very pleased with our brand new mail order tins, we also now have our gorgeous hessian bags for life too- these will both be available on line very shortly.We've also got plans to start selling our groovesome Ts, hoodies & aprons in the online shop.Each time we do a show, customers want to know where to get them. I've managed to give away all our current hoodies & Ts-so we need to pop another order in quite soon. All our Honeybuns kit is beautifully embroidered locally. We even have H'Buns tablecloths & cushion covers in our Bee Shack Cafe.
Our friends & family keep putting their tin orders in so I hope we'll have enough official stock left. We were hoping to be live this week but there have been a few more techy things to finalise.It's a bit like waiting for Father Christmas. We're all soooo excited. our office is undergoing abit of a makeover too. Everything is colour coded in our beautiful retro pastel pallette & we will finally have pics of us all on the website.
We are also going to be on Facebook - not quite sure how to design our page but my bruv, Ted, is down this weekend so he can give us a hand.The other groovesome feature of www.honeybuns.newstylie.co.uk is the new instant messaging service. You'll be able to chat to me, Jackie or Trish about your orders,the donkeys & our favorite cakes!
Sometmes my head feels it's spnning with all this new stuffette but when I draw breath & get a chance to reflect on how far we've come & how tiny we still our- I'm very proud. Thankyou team Honeybuns-you're inspirational!
Em x