Jo Fairley

GREEN & BLACK’S CO-FOUNDER, SPEAKER AND LEADING ENTREPRENEUR

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Jo Fairley writes regularly for Telegraph Online, among her media portfolio. Here are some of the articles she's written about women and business and/or entrepreneurialism, appearing under the ‘Wonder Women’ experts section. Simply click on the article title below to read. Others can be sourced at the Telegraph.   

Why you should think about women's achievements today (your own included)

Construction needs to ditch its macho image and nail the gender imbalance fast

Women do need to man-up and stop using the word 'just'

High-achieving women have these 6 personality traits. Do you?

Mark Zuckerberg is right - personal goals are great. So what should you be striving for?

My Bizhub: Inspiring Entrepreneurs: an interview with Green & Black’s co-founder Jo Fairley

Digital detox baths: are we finally ready to be cleansed of our tech addiction?

How to have a sense of humour in the office (even when everything's gone wrong)
 

TWITTER

  • Josephine Fairley
    Discussed the benefits a 4-day working week can bring with @henleybschool yesterday. Happy employees = thriving bus… https://t.co/nAVnSLVGfd
    about 2 weeks ago
  • Josephine Fairley
    Had SUCH fun choosing my share picks for new Fantasy Share Picking game created in partnership with @Fidelity_UK to… https://t.co/P5LeHMvykS
    about 3 weeks ago

INSTAGRAM

#DESKAGRAM I realise looking at my #instagram that all I ever post are the pretty and fun bits. The gardens, the shed, the pretty dresses, the books, the workshops, the holidays, the swimming, the lunches, the fun, the food, the kids, the friends... And yet really, this is where I spend the vast majority of my time. Working really, really hard, editing a magazine (The Scented Letter), writing speeches and articles, giving interviews, doing interviews, running websites, paying bills, invoicing, doing my VAT and my tax, trying and failing to stay on top of email (I’ve basically given up - if something’s really important, they’ll call). I have a great view out of the window that I never get to look at. But I’m surrounded by all the things I rely on to get me through the day: my @kikki.k To Do pads (tick, tick, tick!), my @apple Mac, my @rareteacompany teas to keep me stoked up and focused, lip balms and hand creams and endless glasses of water because I seem to desiccate completely when I’m at my desk, a wall of inspirational sayings, my clever IKEA lamp which is also a wireless iPhone charger, a scented candle - always a scented candle (and am VERY happy to have discovered @jonathanwardofficial candles which burn really clean). I worked - still work - really long hours for everything I have. I’m pretty sure you do, too. So I challenge you to post a #deskagram of the place where you do what makes all the other, more Instagrammable stuff possible... Because this is #reallife
#DESKAGRAM I realise looking at my #instagram that all I ever post are the pretty and fun bits. The gardens, the shed, the pretty dresses, the books, the workshops, the holidays, the swimming, the lunches, the fun, the food, the kids, the friends... And yet really, this is where I spend the vast majority of my time. Working really, really hard, editing a magazine (The Scented Letter), writing speeches and articles, giving interviews, doing interviews, running websites, paying bills, invoicing, doing my VAT and my tax, trying and failing to stay on top of email (I’ve basically given up - if something’s really important, they’ll call). I have a great view out of the window that I never get to look at. But I’m surrounded by all the things I rely on to get me through the day: my @kikki.k To Do pads (tick, tick, tick!), my @apple Mac, my @rareteacompany teas to keep me stoked up and focused, lip balms and hand creams and endless glasses of water because I seem to desiccate completely when I’m at my desk, a wall of inspirational sayings, my clever IKEA lamp which is also a wireless iPhone charger, a scented candle - always a scented candle (and am VERY happy to have discovered @jonathanwardofficial candles which burn really clean). I worked - still work - really long hours for everything I have. I’m pretty sure you do, too. So I challenge you to post a #deskagram of the place where you do what makes all the other, more Instagrammable stuff possible... Because this is #reallife
50 years ago we watched in amazement as man landed on the moon, with my dad #peterfairley fronting ITN’s coverage as Science Editor (a very busy time for science which is why we saw him less than we’d have liked). We were so excited, not least to be able to stay up way past bedtime to watch the first moonwalk. My dad finished the programme and the ITN team went to celebrate @thesavoylondon American Bar where the barman invented a Moonwalk cocktail, an utterly delectable concoction involving champagne, Grand Marnier, grapefruit bitters and orange flower water. I just looked up the recipe and apparently Joe Difford (aforementioned barman) mixed a flask of it and sent it to NASA and it was the first thing Neil Armstrong drank when he landed. Astronauts’ chum that he was, Dad would’ve organised that. Raising a glass this weekend to mankind’s giant leap and to my father... It may include Grand Marnier and champagne... #cocktails
50 years ago we watched in amazement as man landed on the moon, with my dad #peterfairley fronting ITN’s coverage as Science Editor (a very busy time for science which is why we saw him less than we’d have liked). We were so excited, not least to be able to stay up way past bedtime to watch the first moonwalk. My dad finished the programme and the ITN team went to celebrate @thesavoylondon American Bar where the barman invented a Moonwalk cocktail, an utterly delectable concoction involving champagne, Grand Marnier, grapefruit bitters and orange flower water. I just looked up the recipe and apparently Joe Difford (aforementioned barman) mixed a flask of it and sent it to NASA and it was the first thing Neil Armstrong drank when he landed. Astronauts’ chum that he was, Dad would’ve organised that. Raising a glass this weekend to mankind’s giant leap and to my father... It may include Grand Marnier and champagne... #cocktails
SWIPE FOR AMAZING STYLE! Vanishing Africa photographer @mirella_ricciardi has always had more style in her (talented) little finger than almost anyone I know. I’ve known her since I was 18 and we met in Kenya at a crazy party and I became the greatest friends with her elder daughter, Marina. Now, cleverly, Mirella’s surviving daughter @amina_ricciardi_dempsey has worked to put together a collection of clothes inspired by her mother’s dashing look, from the safari jackets and explorer coats to the most stunning red raw silk dress. (Galliano based his entire 1997 @dior couture collection around Mirella’s book and the red dress is a tribute to the collection that was about HER...) Another great, great friend Elizabeth Glaysher - whose Kenya-made @ayam_africa fairly-traded, incredibly stylish jewellery is the ONLY jewellery I wear - has created a possibly even more gorgeous collection of jewellery inspired by the tribal pieces in Vanishing Africa (very accessibly-priced too), along with the fab ‘globe’ necklace in this first shot and some gorgeous earrings inspired by beautiful fishing nets on Lake Turkana, and this weekend it’s all being shown at 25 Holmead Road (near Chelsea Football Ground, full details with opening hours in last photo). Go, go, go... You too can have Mirella’s style - ON your little finger (there are rings) even if not IN it...!
SWIPE FOR AMAZING STYLE! Vanishing Africa photographer @mirella_ricciardi has always had more style in her (talented) little finger than almost anyone I know. I’ve known her since I was 18 and we met in Kenya at a crazy party and I became the greatest friends with her elder daughter, Marina. Now, cleverly, Mirella’s surviving daughter @amina_ricciardi_dempsey has worked to put together a collection of clothes inspired by her mother’s dashing look, from the safari jackets and explorer coats to the most stunning red raw silk dress. (Galliano based his entire 1997 @dior couture collection around Mirella’s book and the red dress is a tribute to the collection that was about HER...) Another great, great friend Elizabeth Glaysher - whose Kenya-made @ayam_africa fairly-traded, incredibly stylish jewellery is the ONLY jewellery I wear - has created a possibly even more gorgeous collection of jewellery inspired by the tribal pieces in Vanishing Africa (very accessibly-priced too), along with the fab ‘globe’ necklace in this first shot and some gorgeous earrings inspired by beautiful fishing nets on Lake Turkana, and this weekend it’s all being shown at 25 Holmead Road (near Chelsea Football Ground, full details with opening hours in last photo). Go, go, go... You too can have Mirella’s style - ON your little finger (there are rings) even if not IN it...!
#nofilter - the first of the #hydrangeas - so much bang for your floral buck. Or no bucks at all, actually. Have done flowers for three family weddings with hydrangeas from my garden along with carloads donated by friends = flower budget: zero. #happydays
#nofilter - the first of the #hydrangeas - so much bang for your floral buck. Or no bucks at all, actually. Have done flowers for three family weddings with hydrangeas from my garden along with carloads donated by friends = flower budget: zero. #happydays
SWIPE FOR BIRTHDAY FANTASTICNESS! ‘Can you make @craigsams a psychedelic cake?’, I casually asked my genius cakemaker cousin @louisemakescakes - and she came up with the MOST brilliant hippie creation that wasn’t just beautiful but completely delicious, light as air and yet rich and chocolate-y. (Albeit ever-so-slightly wonky by the time it had been on two trains, carried through the streets of Soho and taken a taxi to NW10. But that’s OK, because so is its recipient! In the nicest possible way.) It was the highlight of a potluck celebration hosted in Gregory Sams’s garden in Kensal Rise, everyone in the family bringing something scrummy (food VERY high on the priority list for the Sams clan...) Our first four-generation celebration with little Sonny, too. For a man who’s never that keen on birthdays, Craig had a pretty good time...
SWIPE FOR BIRTHDAY FANTASTICNESS! ‘Can you make @craigsams a psychedelic cake?’, I casually asked my genius cakemaker cousin @louisemakescakes - and she came up with the MOST brilliant hippie creation that wasn’t just beautiful but completely delicious, light as air and yet rich and chocolate-y. (Albeit ever-so-slightly wonky by the time it had been on two trains, carried through the streets of Soho and taken a taxi to NW10. But that’s OK, because so is its recipient! In the nicest possible way.) It was the highlight of a potluck celebration hosted in Gregory Sams’s garden in Kensal Rise, everyone in the family bringing something scrummy (food VERY high on the priority list for the Sams clan...) Our first four-generation celebration with little Sonny, too. For a man who’s never that keen on birthdays, Craig had a pretty good time...
Wishing the happiest of birthdays to my beloved @craigsams - a Cancerian never happier than when he’s in the water #soulmate #dude (pictured here in NZ not #hastings !)
Wishing the happiest of birthdays to my beloved @craigsams - a Cancerian never happier than when he’s in the water #soulmate #dude (pictured here in NZ not #hastings !)
Fascinating find from the wonderful treasure trove that is @endlings.hastings - I never loved history at school but through the lens of gardens, it’s riveting...
Fascinating find from the wonderful treasure trove that is @endlings.hastings - I never loved history at school but through the lens of gardens, it’s riveting...
SWIPE FOR GARDENS! Another weekend, another garden festival... This time close by @charlestontrust where @theenduringgardener and I went to listen to fascinating (and surprisingly funny) talks on garden design by @tomstuartsmith and @andysturgeondesign and more poignantly from lovely @racheldethame talk about the healing power of gardens, after her cancer journey. One of their most interesting discussions was around the idea that after mid-life people either become ‘generative’ or ‘stagnant’. You either are someone who likes to do stuff (& basically all gardeners are generative), or someone who likes to do nothing, or ‘stagnate’. I aspire to being better at doing nothing in a staring-at-clouds sort of way, but I guess I feel better knowing I’m fundamentally ‘generative’. PS If you get the chance, the gardens at #charleston are stunning right now - note to self: plant a gazillion #hollyhocks in 2020.
SWIPE FOR GARDENS! Another weekend, another garden festival... This time close by @charlestontrust where @theenduringgardener and I went to listen to fascinating (and surprisingly funny) talks on garden design by @tomstuartsmith and @andysturgeondesign and more poignantly from lovely @racheldethame talk about the healing power of gardens, after her cancer journey. One of their most interesting discussions was around the idea that after mid-life people either become ‘generative’ or ‘stagnant’. You either are someone who likes to do stuff (& basically all gardeners are generative), or someone who likes to do nothing, or ‘stagnate’. I aspire to being better at doing nothing in a staring-at-clouds sort of way, but I guess I feel better knowing I’m fundamentally ‘generative’. PS If you get the chance, the gardens at #charleston are stunning right now - note to self: plant a gazillion #hollyhocks in 2020.
Fact: I ❤️ shops and admire clever retailers. When I had my own shop - @judgesbakery - I worked to make it the kind of place I would like to shop in: tempting and ever-changing displays, great products, smiling service, remembering customers’ names and favourite loaves as much as possible. It was the hardest work I’ve ever done and redoubled my admiration for other shopkeepers. @cutterbrooksshop in Stow-on-the-Wold, opened by Amanda Brooks (who spent years @barneysny Department store) is somewhere I’ve been wanting to go for ages, but it’s bloody miles from home. But before Monday’s eco-think tank @daylesfordfarm we stayed in Stow & I got the chance to check it out. There are plates and tablecloths and lamps and vintage paintings and scented candles and baskets and loveliness by @johnderian and @astierdevillatte and all so, so, so beautifully displayed. Much of it heart-stoppingly expensive but she clearly knows her well-heeled Cotswold market (um, I bought a box of matches and some gift tags, but even those were beautifully presented in a kraftpaper bag tied with gingham ribbon. Very much regretting not buying the bergamot-scented washing-up liquid, though, even if I’d have had to hide it from the rest of the family.) An inspiring example of how to make a shop chic and inspiring, helping to keep shops themselves alive in the age of the internet - because buying online can never rival ‘experiences’ like this... Visit if you ❤️ shops too, even if just for ideas for tablescapes, dinner tables and displaying your stuff. (Sun)hats off to you, Ms. Brooks.
Fact: I ❤️ shops and admire clever retailers. When I had my own shop - @judgesbakery - I worked to make it the kind of place I would like to shop in: tempting and ever-changing displays, great products, smiling service, remembering customers’ names and favourite loaves as much as possible. It was the hardest work I’ve ever done and redoubled my admiration for other shopkeepers. @cutterbrooksshop in Stow-on-the-Wold, opened by Amanda Brooks (who spent years @barneysny Department store) is somewhere I’ve been wanting to go for ages, but it’s bloody miles from home. But before Monday’s eco-think tank @daylesfordfarm we stayed in Stow & I got the chance to check it out. There are plates and tablecloths and lamps and vintage paintings and scented candles and baskets and loveliness by @johnderian and @astierdevillatte and all so, so, so beautifully displayed. Much of it heart-stoppingly expensive but she clearly knows her well-heeled Cotswold market (um, I bought a box of matches and some gift tags, but even those were beautifully presented in a kraftpaper bag tied with gingham ribbon. Very much regretting not buying the bergamot-scented washing-up liquid, though, even if I’d have had to hide it from the rest of the family.) An inspiring example of how to make a shop chic and inspiring, helping to keep shops themselves alive in the age of the internet - because buying online can never rival ‘experiences’ like this... Visit if you ❤️ shops too, even if just for ideas for tablescapes, dinner tables and displaying your stuff. (Sun)hats off to you, Ms. Brooks.
Beware - not of sand in your sandwiches but pebbles. Someone got creative on one of the picnic tables... #hastings
Beware - not of sand in your sandwiches but pebbles. Someone got creative on one of the picnic tables... #hastings
Who knew you can now get married on #hastingsharbourarm ? This couple tied the knot there in a very colourful way (and their wedding pictures will feature us in our swimming costumes in the background) #wildwedding
Who knew you can now get married on #hastingsharbourarm ? This couple tied the knot there in a very colourful way (and their wedding pictures will feature us in our swimming costumes in the background) #wildwedding
#tbt to last Thursday’s trip to #henley - poshest #cashpoint I’ve ever seen... #holeinthedoor
#tbt to last Thursday’s trip to #henley - poshest #cashpoint I’ve ever seen... #holeinthedoor
Dusk walk in my pretty Old Town #churchpassage #hastings #10000stepsaday
Dusk walk in my pretty Old Town #churchpassage #hastings #10000stepsaday
SWIPE FOR SUSTAINABILITY AND LOVELINESS (and pretty cows...) Have you heard of Agricology? The name says it all, really. Agriculture/ecology. Easier to get your head around, probably, than biodynamic or organic. For me, growing in harmony with nature, without chemicals, in a way that increases soil carbon, is THE only way to farm. (Also: I don’t want those agrochemicals in my body if I can help it. We are what we eat.) Of course it’s all massively complicated. But hats off to Carole Bamford for getting some very high-powered people around this beautiful table yesterday - from Justin King to Satish Kumar via Patrick Holden and my very own @craigsams along with young faces like Alice and Charles Manners @charlesgranby - to talk about the future of farming. (I really wish you could’ve smelled the roses. Incredible.) We’d just had a tour of what is unquestionably the most beautiful farm I’ve ever visited - a Cotswolds picture-postcard place, a dream farm. Then the serious stuff. Now, I’ve always thought that farmers should have bumper stickers and badges that say: ‘We Farm So You Can Live.’ No farmers = no farmers = no human life. Yet most people never give farming a thought. Here’s the definition of Agricology, if you’re interested. (And I really think you should be, she says bossily.) Though first, thank you so much @casiebamford for an amazing day... 'Agricology is a growing community of farmers and researchers sharing knowledge to work towards more resource efficient, resilient and profitable agricultural systems. We are a collaboration of over 20 of the UKs leading organisations working with sustainable agriculture (see below) led by the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, The Daylesford Foundation and the Organic Research Centre. In response to increasing challenges including declining soil fertility and increasing cost of inputs, there is a need to rethink the way we farm. Agricology supports farmers and growers to transition to more resilient, sustainable farming systems. Bringing together research and farmer experience on agroecological practices to replace inputs with knowledge.’ And it is A Good Thing, guys...
SWIPE FOR SUSTAINABILITY AND LOVELINESS (and pretty cows...) Have you heard of Agricology? The name says it all, really. Agriculture/ecology. Easier to get your head around, probably, than biodynamic or organic. For me, growing in harmony with nature, without chemicals, in a way that increases soil carbon, is THE only way to farm. (Also: I don’t want those agrochemicals in my body if I can help it. We are what we eat.) Of course it’s all massively complicated. But hats off to Carole Bamford for getting some very high-powered people around this beautiful table yesterday - from Justin King to Satish Kumar via Patrick Holden and my very own @craigsams along with young faces like Alice and Charles Manners @charlesgranby - to talk about the future of farming. (I really wish you could’ve smelled the roses. Incredible.) We’d just had a tour of what is unquestionably the most beautiful farm I’ve ever visited - a Cotswolds picture-postcard place, a dream farm. Then the serious stuff. Now, I’ve always thought that farmers should have bumper stickers and badges that say: ‘We Farm So You Can Live.’ No farmers = no farmers = no human life. Yet most people never give farming a thought. Here’s the definition of Agricology, if you’re interested. (And I really think you should be, she says bossily.) Though first, thank you so much @casiebamford for an amazing day... 'Agricology is a growing community of farmers and researchers sharing knowledge to work towards more resource efficient, resilient and profitable agricultural systems. We are a collaboration of over 20 of the UKs leading organisations working with sustainable agriculture (see below) led by the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, The Daylesford Foundation and the Organic Research Centre. In response to increasing challenges including declining soil fertility and increasing cost of inputs, there is a need to rethink the way we farm. Agricology supports farmers and growers to transition to more resilient, sustainable farming systems. Bringing together research and farmer experience on agroecological practices to replace inputs with knowledge.’ And it is A Good Thing, guys...
SOURPUSSES SWIPE HERE! I ❤️ vinegar. So when I saw @gardenmuseum was offering a cookery workshop called ‘The Vinegar Cupboard’, it had my name all over it (especially as I could go en route to Gloucestershire where I’ll be spending today). Oh, SUCH fun. SO delicious. SO instructive, thanks to brilliant, jolly and confidence-boosting teaching by @angela_clutton who’s written a Jane Grigson Award-winning book called... The Vinegar Cupboard! We tasted vinegars made from vermouth (YUM), sherry, maple, red and white wines, moscatel (DOUBLE YUM!), cider... We made mayonnaise (BY HAND!) and got to choose our vinegar, infused herbs, pickled beetroot, made ricotta (unbelievably easy), marinated mackerel, dressed carrots (with plump sultanas soaked in spiced vinegar), and then sat down to a flipping feast. Basically if you stand still in my house in future, there is a chance you’ll be crammed into a jar and covered in some exotic vinegar or other, with some fresh herbs for good measure. God, I love learning new stuff. (Also: Christmas presents sorted for years to come, guys.) #cookery #mykindasundayschool #vinegar
SOURPUSSES SWIPE HERE! I ❤️ vinegar. So when I saw @gardenmuseum was offering a cookery workshop called ‘The Vinegar Cupboard’, it had my name all over it (especially as I could go en route to Gloucestershire where I’ll be spending today). Oh, SUCH fun. SO delicious. SO instructive, thanks to brilliant, jolly and confidence-boosting teaching by @angela_clutton who’s written a Jane Grigson Award-winning book called... The Vinegar Cupboard! We tasted vinegars made from vermouth (YUM), sherry, maple, red and white wines, moscatel (DOUBLE YUM!), cider... We made mayonnaise (BY HAND!) and got to choose our vinegar, infused herbs, pickled beetroot, made ricotta (unbelievably easy), marinated mackerel, dressed carrots (with plump sultanas soaked in spiced vinegar), and then sat down to a flipping feast. Basically if you stand still in my house in future, there is a chance you’ll be crammed into a jar and covered in some exotic vinegar or other, with some fresh herbs for good measure. God, I love learning new stuff. (Also: Christmas presents sorted for years to come, guys.) #cookery #mykindasundayschool #vinegar
#magnolia goals - this one the size of a dinner plate at #ashburnhamplace
#magnolia goals - this one the size of a dinner plate at #ashburnhamplace
This brave little beauty has been in and out of hospital with an incredibly high (still) unexplained fever this week, giving us all a lot of anxiety. She’s still having to go back every day for a mega-dose of antibiotics but it was such a relief to see her running, playing, pink-cheeked and demanding watermelon @gailstella beach hut birthday party yesterday... @lilz4evz your strength and calm has been amazing to watch this week ❤️❤️❤️
This brave little beauty has been in and out of hospital with an incredibly high (still) unexplained fever this week, giving us all a lot of anxiety. She’s still having to go back every day for a mega-dose of antibiotics but it was such a relief to see her running, playing, pink-cheeked and demanding watermelon @gailstella beach hut birthday party yesterday... @lilz4evz your strength and calm has been amazing to watch this week ❤️❤️❤️
When your scarf accidentally matches the (fascinating) report you were helping to launch... Had a beautiful day @henleybschool this week – a pleasure debating the impact of a four-day working week, as I have championed flexible working for years. The positive effects on work-life balance and the benefits for both employees and employers are pretty endless. The ‘Four Better, Four Worse’ research really underlines this, showing that a four-day week can make staff happier, less stressed and take fewer days off ill. Lots to read and ponder. #FourBetterFourWorse #HenleyRegatta #ad
When your scarf accidentally matches the (fascinating) report you were helping to launch... Had a beautiful day @henleybschool this week – a pleasure debating the impact of a four-day working week, as I have championed flexible working for years. The positive effects on work-life balance and the benefits for both employees and employers are pretty endless. The ‘Four Better, Four Worse’ research really underlines this, showing that a four-day week can make staff happier, less stressed and take fewer days off ill. Lots to read and ponder. #FourBetterFourWorse #HenleyRegatta #ad
Is there a nicer present than fresh-laid eggs? (Maybe if you’re #vegan - and we have a few of those in the family - but do still consume a bit of dairy ourselves.) Thanks @williamfugard and Bryony for the delicious offering from your hens - Craig made them into ‘flower omelettes’ (see second shot) with pansies and marigolds from the garden and they were almost (almost!) too pretty to eat... PS Love the gift-wrapping #summerevening
Is there a nicer present than fresh-laid eggs? (Maybe if you’re #vegan - and we have a few of those in the family - but do still consume a bit of dairy ourselves.) Thanks @williamfugard and Bryony for the delicious offering from your hens - Craig made them into ‘flower omelettes’ (see second shot) with pansies and marigolds from the garden and they were almost (almost!) too pretty to eat... PS Love the gift-wrapping #summerevening
#tbt It’s so weird, the way the universe works. Yesterday I was in Henley - NOT for the regatta (which is on this week) but to be on a panel about flexible working at #henleybusinessschool. But it got me thinking back the regattas I went to with #danieltopolski , who definitely wins Most Fun Boyfriend That I Didn’t Marry (and was Oxford rowing coach at the time, during their long winning streak). Daniel died a couple of years ago which still makes me so sad - such a life force, gone. Anyway, I was early for my event so I sat in @shaundickens enjoying a fine cuppa and some muesli and going through some unopened texts, by the river. And there was one from @matthewdonaldsonstudio which included this photo - of me and Daniel at Henley - that Matthew just found in a drawer, definitely showing early signs of his huge photographic talent. (It was the summer Matthew left school, I think - and, um, there are a few stories there, too...) Just the weirdest coincidence. I haven’t been to Henley for more than 30 years. What are the odds of being there and opening a text with photo of me taken a few hundred yards away and several decades back...???
#tbt It’s so weird, the way the universe works. Yesterday I was in Henley - NOT for the regatta (which is on this week) but to be on a panel about flexible working at #henleybusinessschool. But it got me thinking back the regattas I went to with #danieltopolski , who definitely wins Most Fun Boyfriend That I Didn’t Marry (and was Oxford rowing coach at the time, during their long winning streak). Daniel died a couple of years ago which still makes me so sad - such a life force, gone. Anyway, I was early for my event so I sat in @shaundickens enjoying a fine cuppa and some muesli and going through some unopened texts, by the river. And there was one from @matthewdonaldsonstudio which included this photo - of me and Daniel at Henley - that Matthew just found in a drawer, definitely showing early signs of his huge photographic talent. (It was the summer Matthew left school, I think - and, um, there are a few stories there, too...) Just the weirdest coincidence. I haven’t been to Henley for more than 30 years. What are the odds of being there and opening a text with photo of me taken a few hundred yards away and several decades back...???
#DESKAGRAM I realise looking at my #instagram that all I ever post are the pretty and fun bits. The gardens, the shed, the pretty dresses, the books, the workshops, the holidays, the swimming, the lunches, the fun, the food, the kids, the friends... And yet really, this is where I spend the vast majority of my time. Working really, really hard, editing a magazine (The Scented Letter), writing speeches and articles, giving interviews, doing interviews, running websites, paying bills, invoicing, doing my VAT and my tax, trying and failing to stay on top of email (I’ve basically given up - if something’s really important, they’ll call). I have a great view out of the window that I never get to look at. But I’m surrounded by all the things I rely on to get me through the day: my @kikki.k To Do pads (tick, tick, tick!), my @apple Mac, my @rareteacompany teas to keep me stoked up and focused, lip balms and hand creams and endless glasses of water because I seem to desiccate completely when I’m at my desk, a wall of inspirational sayings, my clever IKEA lamp which is also a wireless iPhone charger, a scented candle - always a scented candle (and am VERY happy to have discovered @jonathanwardofficial candles which burn really clean). I worked - still work - really long hours for everything I have. I’m pretty sure you do, too. So I challenge you to post a #deskagram of the place where you do what makes all the other, more Instagrammable stuff possible... Because this is #reallife 50 years ago we watched in amazement as man landed on the moon, with my dad #peterfairley fronting ITN’s coverage as Science Editor (a very busy time for science which is why we saw him less than we’d have liked). We were so excited, not least to be able to stay up way past bedtime to watch the first moonwalk. My dad finished the programme and the ITN team went to celebrate @thesavoylondon American Bar where the barman invented a Moonwalk cocktail, an utterly delectable concoction involving champagne, Grand Marnier, grapefruit bitters and orange flower water. I just looked up the recipe and apparently Joe Difford (aforementioned barman) mixed a flask of it and sent it to NASA and it was the first thing Neil Armstrong drank when he landed. Astronauts’ chum that he was, Dad would’ve organised that. Raising a glass this weekend to mankind’s giant leap and to my father... It may include Grand Marnier and champagne... #cocktails SWIPE FOR AMAZING STYLE! Vanishing Africa photographer @mirella_ricciardi has always had more style in her (talented) little finger than almost anyone I know. I’ve known her since I was 18 and we met in Kenya at a crazy party and I became the greatest friends with her elder daughter, Marina. Now, cleverly, Mirella’s surviving daughter @amina_ricciardi_dempsey has worked to put together a collection of clothes inspired by her mother’s dashing look, from the safari jackets and explorer coats to the most stunning red raw silk dress. (Galliano based his entire 1997 @dior couture collection around Mirella’s book and the red dress is a tribute to the collection that was about HER...) Another great, great friend Elizabeth Glaysher - whose Kenya-made @ayam_africa fairly-traded, incredibly stylish jewellery is the ONLY jewellery I wear - has created a possibly even more gorgeous collection of jewellery inspired by the tribal pieces in Vanishing Africa (very accessibly-priced too), along with the fab ‘globe’ necklace in this first shot and some gorgeous earrings inspired by beautiful fishing nets on Lake Turkana, and this weekend it’s all being shown at 25 Holmead Road (near Chelsea Football Ground, full details with opening hours in last photo). Go, go, go... You too can have Mirella’s style - ON your little finger (there are rings) even if not IN it...! #nofilter - the first of the #hydrangeas - so much bang for your floral buck. Or no bucks at all, actually. Have done flowers for three family weddings with hydrangeas from my garden along with carloads donated by friends = flower budget: zero. #happydays SWIPE FOR BIRTHDAY FANTASTICNESS! ‘Can you make @craigsams a psychedelic cake?’, I casually asked my genius cakemaker cousin @louisemakescakes - and she came up with the MOST brilliant hippie creation that wasn’t just beautiful but completely delicious, light as air and yet rich and chocolate-y. (Albeit ever-so-slightly wonky by the time it had been on two trains, carried through the streets of Soho and taken a taxi to NW10. But that’s OK, because so is its recipient! In the nicest possible way.) It was the highlight of a potluck celebration hosted in Gregory Sams’s garden in Kensal Rise, everyone in the family bringing something scrummy (food VERY high on the priority list for the Sams clan...) Our first four-generation celebration with little Sonny, too. For a man who’s never that keen on birthdays, Craig had a pretty good time... Wishing the happiest of birthdays to my beloved @craigsams - a Cancerian never happier than when he’s in the water #soulmate #dude (pictured here in NZ not #hastings !) Fascinating find from the wonderful treasure trove that is @endlings.hastings - I never loved history at school but through the lens of gardens, it’s riveting... SWIPE FOR GARDENS! Another weekend, another garden festival... This time close by @charlestontrust where @theenduringgardener and I went to listen to fascinating (and surprisingly funny) talks on garden design by @tomstuartsmith and @andysturgeondesign and more poignantly from lovely @racheldethame talk about the healing power of gardens, after her cancer journey. One of their most interesting discussions was around the idea that after mid-life people either become ‘generative’ or ‘stagnant’. You either are someone who likes to do stuff (& basically all gardeners are generative), or someone who likes to do nothing, or ‘stagnate’. I aspire to being better at doing nothing in a staring-at-clouds sort of way, but I guess I feel better knowing I’m fundamentally ‘generative’. PS If you get the chance, the gardens at #charleston are stunning right now - note to self: plant a gazillion #hollyhocks in 2020. Fact: I ❤️ shops and admire clever retailers. When I had my own shop - @judgesbakery - I worked to make it the kind of place I would like to shop in: tempting and ever-changing displays, great products, smiling service, remembering customers’ names and favourite loaves as much as possible. It was the hardest work I’ve ever done and redoubled my admiration for other shopkeepers. @cutterbrooksshop in Stow-on-the-Wold, opened by Amanda Brooks (who spent years @barneysny Department store) is somewhere I’ve been wanting to go for ages, but it’s bloody miles from home. But before Monday’s eco-think tank @daylesfordfarm we stayed in Stow & I got the chance to check it out. There are plates and tablecloths and lamps and vintage paintings and scented candles and baskets and loveliness by @johnderian and @astierdevillatte and all so, so, so beautifully displayed. Much of it heart-stoppingly expensive but she clearly knows her well-heeled Cotswold market (um, I bought a box of matches and some gift tags, but even those were beautifully presented in a kraftpaper bag tied with gingham ribbon. Very much regretting not buying the bergamot-scented washing-up liquid, though, even if I’d have had to hide it from the rest of the family.) An inspiring example of how to make a shop chic and inspiring, helping to keep shops themselves alive in the age of the internet - because buying online can never rival ‘experiences’ like this... Visit if you ❤️ shops too, even if just for ideas for tablescapes, dinner tables and displaying your stuff. (Sun)hats off to you, Ms. Brooks. Beware - not of sand in your sandwiches but pebbles. Someone got creative on one of the picnic tables... #hastings Who knew you can now get married on #hastingsharbourarm ? This couple tied the knot there in a very colourful way (and their wedding pictures will feature us in our swimming costumes in the background) #wildwedding #tbt to last Thursday’s trip to #henley - poshest #cashpoint I’ve ever seen... #holeinthedoor Dusk walk in my pretty Old Town #churchpassage #hastings #10000stepsaday SWIPE FOR SUSTAINABILITY AND LOVELINESS (and pretty cows...) Have you heard of Agricology? The name says it all, really. Agriculture/ecology. Easier to get your head around, probably, than biodynamic or organic. For me, growing in harmony with nature, without chemicals, in a way that increases soil carbon, is THE only way to farm. (Also: I don’t want those agrochemicals in my body if I can help it. We are what we eat.) Of course it’s all massively complicated. But hats off to Carole Bamford for getting some very high-powered people around this beautiful table yesterday - from Justin King to Satish Kumar via Patrick Holden and my very own @craigsams along with young faces like Alice and Charles Manners @charlesgranby - to talk about the future of farming. (I really wish you could’ve smelled the roses. Incredible.) We’d just had a tour of what is unquestionably the most beautiful farm I’ve ever visited - a Cotswolds picture-postcard place, a dream farm. Then the serious stuff. Now, I’ve always thought that farmers should have bumper stickers and badges that say: ‘We Farm So You Can Live.’ No farmers = no farmers = no human life. Yet most people never give farming a thought. Here’s the definition of Agricology, if you’re interested. (And I really think you should be, she says bossily.) Though first, thank you so much @casiebamford for an amazing day... 'Agricology is a growing community of farmers and researchers sharing knowledge to work towards more resource efficient, resilient and profitable agricultural systems. We are a collaboration of over 20 of the UKs leading organisations working with sustainable agriculture (see below) led by the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, The Daylesford Foundation and the Organic Research Centre. In response to increasing challenges including declining soil fertility and increasing cost of inputs, there is a need to rethink the way we farm. Agricology supports farmers and growers to transition to more resilient, sustainable farming systems. Bringing together research and farmer experience on agroecological practices to replace inputs with knowledge.’ And it is A Good Thing, guys... SOURPUSSES SWIPE HERE! I ❤️ vinegar. So when I saw @gardenmuseum was offering a cookery workshop called ‘The Vinegar Cupboard’, it had my name all over it (especially as I could go en route to Gloucestershire where I’ll be spending today). Oh, SUCH fun. SO delicious. SO instructive, thanks to brilliant, jolly and confidence-boosting teaching by @angela_clutton who’s written a Jane Grigson Award-winning book called... The Vinegar Cupboard! We tasted vinegars made from vermouth (YUM), sherry, maple, red and white wines, moscatel (DOUBLE YUM!), cider... We made mayonnaise (BY HAND!) and got to choose our vinegar, infused herbs, pickled beetroot, made ricotta (unbelievably easy), marinated mackerel, dressed carrots (with plump sultanas soaked in spiced vinegar), and then sat down to a flipping feast. Basically if you stand still in my house in future, there is a chance you’ll be crammed into a jar and covered in some exotic vinegar or other, with some fresh herbs for good measure. God, I love learning new stuff. (Also: Christmas presents sorted for years to come, guys.) #cookery #mykindasundayschool #vinegar #magnolia goals - this one the size of a dinner plate at #ashburnhamplace This brave little beauty has been in and out of hospital with an incredibly high (still) unexplained fever this week, giving us all a lot of anxiety. She’s still having to go back every day for a mega-dose of antibiotics but it was such a relief to see her running, playing, pink-cheeked and demanding watermelon @gailstella beach hut birthday party yesterday... @lilz4evz your strength and calm has been amazing to watch this week ❤️❤️❤️ When your scarf accidentally matches the (fascinating) report you were helping to launch... Had a beautiful day @henleybschool this week – a pleasure debating the impact of a four-day working week, as I have championed flexible working for years. The positive effects on work-life balance and the benefits for both employees and employers are pretty endless. The ‘Four Better, Four Worse’ research really underlines this, showing that a four-day week can make staff happier, less stressed and take fewer days off ill. Lots to read and ponder. #FourBetterFourWorse #HenleyRegatta #ad Is there a nicer present than fresh-laid eggs? (Maybe if you’re #vegan - and we have a few of those in the family - but do still consume a bit of dairy ourselves.) Thanks @williamfugard and Bryony for the delicious offering from your hens - Craig made them into ‘flower omelettes’ (see second shot) with pansies and marigolds from the garden and they were almost (almost!) too pretty to eat... PS Love the gift-wrapping #summerevening #tbt It’s so weird, the way the universe works. Yesterday I was in Henley - NOT for the regatta (which is on this week) but to be on a panel about flexible working at #henleybusinessschool. But it got me thinking back the regattas I went to with #danieltopolski , who definitely wins Most Fun Boyfriend That I Didn’t Marry (and was Oxford rowing coach at the time, during their long winning streak). Daniel died a couple of years ago which still makes me so sad - such a life force, gone. Anyway, I was early for my event so I sat in @shaundickens enjoying a fine cuppa and some muesli and going through some unopened texts, by the river. And there was one from @matthewdonaldsonstudio which included this photo - of me and Daniel at Henley - that Matthew just found in a drawer, definitely showing early signs of his huge photographic talent. (It was the summer Matthew left school, I think - and, um, there are a few stories there, too...) Just the weirdest coincidence. I haven’t been to Henley for more than 30 years. What are the odds of being there and opening a text with photo of me taken a few hundred yards away and several decades back...???

PODCAST

For the Guardian's Meet the Mentors podcast series Jo gave her tips to milliner Sahar Freemantle on how to make it big. Listen below...

For the Guardian's Meet the Mentors podcast series Jo gave her tips to milliner Sahar Freemantle on how to make it big. Listen below...

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THE STORY
The Story of Green & Black's: How two entrepreneurs turned an ethical idea into a business success
By Craig Sams, Josephine Fairley
Contact Jo Fairley