Love letter to local women and businesses

I was irked by the view of my husband, who’s not from ‘round here, that our local shopping centres are somewhat dated.  But I have deep emotional attachment to them.  Although my education and work have taken me all over the world, I choose to live less than 2 miles away from my childhood home.

I was born in Kingston, as were both my sons.  During the early 1990s recession, one shop assistant in Dolcis talked about Kingston becoming a ghost town.  As a child, I took this literally and got quite scared.  So when the Bentalls Centre was first built, it marked the beginning of a new era for the town and the start of Kingston as I know and love it today.  Glass lifts! A bridge link with cars driving underneath it!

So now I feel really proud to be starting my own local business and to be co-hosting two events in the Bentall Centre this month with west elm.  Hanging out with my sisters and my girlfriends making things has always given me a sense of calmness and connection.  And I set up Maiden Aunt to share this with everyone.

It is only since maternity leave that have I reconnected with our local community.  I love that we are so diverse in outlooks and lifestyles.  Seeing the local mums sharing, buying, selling and giving away their things, views and skills makes me feel like we have something so special.

So if you want to support local businesses, or if you just like Prosecco and pretty things then please come along or share this post on your Facebook profile.  Full details of the events and tickets are available from Eventbrite.