Janet won’t be pleased with me when she sees the curly sage leaves in this pic – she’ll tell me it should have been photographed a couple of days ago when the leaves we fresh, not shrivelly.

However, I still think that for a button hole that’s a good three days old and it hasn’t seen water since being tied (if that’s the right expression) then it’s looking fab.

Janet has read my “mood” with regards to flowers really well, as this button hole demonstrates – it’s made from herbs. Chives, rosemary and sage, along with other natural “foraged” bits and bobs. I feel very confident that the flowers for our big day will be very special indeed.

Today’s been their last day with us for this visit and we’ve been off to visit the floristry wholesalers where the flowers will come from on the day to vet their quality as a supplier, then to the pub for lunch and finally onto a big hole in the ground (John is a geologist so is fascinated by holes and such like). We’ve taken him to see Carnglaze Caverns – a slate mine near here.

I’m still amazed by the way that people worked these heavy, unwieldy materials in the dark and without the aid of modern machinery. It’s quite something to imagine.

DM and I have been there a number of times before but the scale and the spectacle are still breathtaking even for us.