Le Couvent Diary

Yesterday was a 'stay in front of the computer all day' kinda day. It was raining, so the garden maintenance was out of the question. There's always plenty to do to get ready for the new B&B season which starts on 1 May each year. So yesterday we trawled through websites looking for new bath sheets. Big fluffy Egyptian cotton ones. We'd already searched in more local shops, but no-one had the 18 we need so we settled on the lovely John Lewis in Oxford Street, London. Maria, my new friend in the export department,  has secured us a big parcel and they are on their way. A mere 500 quid including delivery.

That's the problem with a B&B. Everything you need to buy comes in large numbers. When we were setting up six years ago we would find a really beautiful bedside lamp at £100, then realise we needed ten of them. Eeek. And things wear out fast. For example, we have struggled to find good poolside sunbeds. I'll guess that in the past we have bought at least a dozen that were absolutely hopeless after one season. So last year we went to the people that supply all the sunbeds they use on the big beaches here on the Mediterranean. We bought a dozen - more than the number of people we have staying - and they were cripplingly expensive. But, mercifully, they look the same now as they did at the beginning of last season. So, the moral of this whingeing tale is, spend the money, buy the best. Don't hesitate. It's a saving in the long-term and you'll enjoy the item so much more.