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Hotpod News from 2009
Keep up to date with the news and press on Hotpod.
Click on the month to find out more:
Hotpod appears in the Kitchens and Bathrooms News magazine!
The end of last year was manic with hotpod orders, so Christmas was a much needed rest. Unfortunately Dan caught the flue so although he took some time off he missed out on all the walks that I did with family and friends, so he took a week off at the start of January too.
We did some wonderful walks that week. The footpaths were quieter because the rest of the world had gone back to school and work. One of our favourite walks finished up at the Gurnards head pub near Zennor. It is a lovely place to go and warm up after a blowy stomp across the cliff paths and moors. The pub has the feel very much like the Austrian huttes that we frequent when we go snowboarding, with a log fire and woolly jumper atmosphere.
The top image here is taken from the top of St Ives church tower. We were walking in town and Dan spotted Scrappy the Steeplejack up the tower removing the christmas lights. Dan asked if he needed a hand...and luckily he did, so we got to go up to the top for the best view in town!
When we returned to Hotpod HQ we needed to tidy up after the hectic Christmas rush and prepare for our new arrival; the hotpod cast model.
Alan and Neil from the Thomas Dudley foundry came down with the first samples in thier car , had a pasty and went home again.
Dan is over the moon with how it looks but has to make a few alterations so that it can be as beautiful and efficient as possible.
Hotpod testing
With the first prototype Hotpod "unlimited" in place in our living room Dan got to work finding out exactly how efficient this new model is. Only after we had raised a toast for good luck :)
It all went really well and Dan was stoked with the results. We now need to get them independently verified.
We were fortunate enough to have to do the testing during the really cold snap so although we suffered a burst water pipe in our garden we had a wonderfully toasty warm house and Dan got to work for a couple of days in the warm instead of in the workshop.
When it snowed though, it was important to take some time out to try out the all terrain VW campervan that Dan has built. Dan was desperate to help anyone stuck in the snow, snow happens so rarely in Cornwall that everyone stayed in and the whole county ground to a halt.
We have found the van to be the most wonderful space to work from, incredibly comfortable and with an infinite choice of view.
March
Spring has finally sprung and we were all totally stoked to see the Hotpod appear in this month’s Top Gear Magazine, what a great start to this month.
I have got a veg patch in my garden for the first time and I am becoming slightly obsessed with compost.
I have started to add my wood ash to the compost heap, much easier on a calm day, when it is windy you might catch me walking across the garden in Lanyon’s swimming goggles, looking like I have a rather bad case of dandruff, as the ash is blown everywhere :) not a pretty sight. It is apparently a good source of lime, potassium and other elements and seems to be mixing in quite well.
I am such a newbie at all this that if you have any hints or tips about composting or veg patches that you are prepared to share with me I would appreciate it very much.
Arctic adventures
Home is where your heart is. Our heart is where our friends are. So a wedding in Lapland meant our first ever visit to the Arctic circle.
Not only did we see our friends get married, but we got to go on skidoo safari, go ice fishing on a frozen lake in the wilderness and then travel even further north to go snowboarding in Riksgransen on the border with Norway
Riksgransen felt like we were almost at the North Pole but we found out that there was a Norwegian fjord not very far away so we went off to find a beach. After half an hour driving in snowcblown arctic wasteland, we rounded a bend and were amazed to discover that spring had sprung in the fjords. Although most of the snow had melted, the water was still a bit cold so Dan bottled out of the swim he was hoping for and settled for a paddle instead!
On our return home we were pleased to discover that it was almost like summer. It was Easter bank holiday weekend so we had time for chilling at the beach in the camper and some good walks too. One day it was so warm that when we found a bath in the hedge, Lucy thought it was too good an opportunity to miss!
Lucys famous nettle soup
Dan gets involved in brand management
Phoebe came home!
After 9 amazing months travelling around the globe, Phoebe has come back home to Cornwall, and back to her friends and the Hotpod team – refreshed and ready to work! Phoebe will be busy helping with marketing, sales and communications, enabling Dan to concentrate on being creative and Lucy to focus on her Yoga. Hopefully making every one happy!
Dan & Lucy’s mission to Switzerland
Friends, Hugo & Anoushka, have recently completed an impressive chalet build in Switzerland. Dan & Lucy offered to help out by driving a van full of kit to furnish the new home from London to the mountainside resort of Sion. It was an exhausting weekend, but spending time at the luxurious chalet with Hugo & Anoushka was worth it. Go to http://www.bestique.co.uk/chaletfeiler.htm for more information.
Oh so Scilly
Dan, Lucy and the boys have just got back from their summer holidays - a week in the Scillies spending time with Dan's parents, completely relaxing and eating lots of fish (this is Dan's new hobby - fishing!). Phoebe is also back from her adventures around the globe, and David back from his annual visit to Finland so the whole Hotpod team is back! Refreshed! And raring to go!
We hope that you, too, have had a chance to relax for a week or two over the summer at some point - perhaps you joined the throngs of other holiday makers here in Cornwall -we find it beautiful here, even in the rain. Lucky us to live here!
Down at the veg patch
Things grew...
And they're feeding the entire Hotpod crew fantastically (Phoebe loves going to dinner with Lucy's ace cooking).
A couple of weeks ago, Ewon commented on all the beautiful butterflies on the veg patch, when Lucy told him they were cabbage whites, he wasn't sure if it was OK to still like them - of course you are! But the caterpillars have done a fair bit of damage to the cabbages and brussel sprouts since the gardeners have been away on the Scillies.
Fortunately, no one will starve because of the hungry caterpillars - the home-grown veg is topped up with a locally grown veg box, which Lucy writes recipes for - here's one for the enormous amount of Super-food Curly Kale around at this time of year...
Deep fried curly kale
ingredients:
1kg curly kale
1 tsp Salt (opt) - Dan likes salt
2 tsp sugar (opt) - The Boys like sugar
Sunflower oil, for deep frying
method:
1. Using a sharp knife, remove the thick stalks from the kale, and any snails and any other crawly creatures. If you don't want extra crunch when you are munching - here's this totally unhealthy tasty way to get your greens sorted - leave to soak in salted water, most of the bugs float to the top
2. Remember to rinse well
3. Dry the kale (this step is vitally important to ensure that it remains crisp when deep-fried)
4. Finely shred the leaves
5. Heat the oil in a wok or deep fat fryer until slightly smoking. Deep-fry the shredded greens (this is best done in batches), for about 30 seconds until they turn a slightly darker green and begin to crisp. Remove them immediately using a slotted spoon, drain well on kitchen paper and leave to cool
6. Transfer the kale to a bowl and sprinkle with salt and sugar to taste.
Enjoy!
Busy in the forge
As we head towards the 2009 winter season, the Hotpod team have been busy preparing for the long-awaited launch of Hotpod Unlimited into stove showrooms around the country. Dan has been working hard finalising casting specifications, and also developing the Limited Edition design still further refining the new liner and baffle.
Lucy had a fantastic weekend teaching yoga at the Island Hotel on Tresco in the Scillies – could life get much better? The next Yoga weekend on Tresco is in May 2010, go to www.lucyaldridge.co.uk for more information.
Of course, it hasn’t been all work, so with all the beautiful autumn sunshine and September swell, we’ve managed to squeeze in an end of summer beach Barbeque with friends, and a few sunny surfs and walks – just what Cornwall’s all about.
Hotpod features in the Telegraph Magazine
(Dan was stoked as he got to drive his camper on the cliffs...)
The response has been amazing so thank you to everyone who got in touch and big thanks to Angela Wintle for writing the article, Michelle Sank for taking the photos and of course the Telegraph Magazine.
All systems go!
We now have the completed Hotpod Unlimited, so can get going with setting up a network of retailers across the UK – a Hotpod will be coming to a town near you! As part of this plan, Dan & Phoebe set of f on a ‘grand tour' this month – taking the new Hotpod Unlimited around to potential retailers across the UK in Dan's pride & joy campervan. In true Hotpod style, Dan insisted on camping every night in his van – sometimes in the B&B car parks, much to landlord's amusement – they didn't quite understand these Cornwall folk! And business meetings were also held in the van over a cup of quality van-made coffee. After a week on the road and chatting to a lovely bunch of stove showroom owners, we are happy to be finally on the road to introducing Hotpod to more people, other than just through our website – exciting times!
Winter is always a busy time for the stove industry,
and we've been happily getting Hotpods out to customers before Christmas – Dan has been stepping up to the challenge.
The stove trade's magazine, Fires & Fireplaces have also done us a fab bit of editorial letting retailers know we are looking for people to sell the Hotpod, so we've had lots of interest from that – great!
