A Chequered Week and Le Creuset Frying Pan Discount

17 Aug 2024

Andrew Bluett-Duncan
Director

The Royal Academy’s annual exhibition, celebrating art in all forms

The last week or so has been chequered, I think would be a fair way to describe it. On Sunday last we went to the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. This was a real treat. I love art, in a largely unacademic way, for me, it has either to be breathtaking, comforting or the colour combinations mesmerising. For instance, I’m not sure I need to know that Degas was a misogynist and that this led him to often paint his nude female figures from behind. Personally, I think paintings such as La Toilette (back view of a nude arranging her hair) is rather charming and doesn’t in the least suggest misogyny.
Anyway, whilst academically I may have the wrong end of the stick, it doesn’t stop me from appreciating art and there are several pieces that I could have happily taken home, had I the spare cash. And then there were one or two that I thought I could copy to good effect as well!
So, why is it that my week might be described as chequered. Well, back in April, Linda who worked in our Cobham shop, had an op for a hernia, however in the process of that, the doctor discovered that she had cancer of the pancreas which was obviously a huge shock. She decided nonetheless that she wanted to carry on working for the time being. This was typical of her. At 83 (she looked at least 10 years younger) she didn’t want to give in to something like this and, I think anyway, thoroughly enjoyed her job and the social side of working and meeting new people as well. So, when a little less than 4 weeks ago she spoke to Jeanne and then emailed me to say she didn’t think she could carry on, I knew she must be pretty ill.
Linda’s never been one to give in easily! And indeed when Jeanne I went to see her she had lost a lot of weight, but we had a lovely time with her over coffee at her house, chatting happily for well over an hour or so. But, as the following two weeks passed, she became weaker and eventually decided that she should go into the Princess Alice Hospice. Earlier this week I’d been in touch with Matthew, her son, to go and see her, really to say goodbye as she was getting weaker by the day.
On Tuesday morning just before we were about to leave to go there, Matthew rang me to say his mother had died peacefully during the night. I knew it was coming but it was really quite a shock, probably because it all happened so relatively quickly.

And, in the course of this, getting to know them a bit. Ever since my wife Babette died, I’ve found talking about her to others to be a healing experience, and I hope I’m not alone in finding this a help. Linda was a really lovely person who will be greatly missed and it often seems unfair that someone who had so much to give should be taken away from us. But, as we have no choice, lets be grateful that, in our case, we had almost 16 years of her company, her friendship and her love.

Reid Hoffman summarises the importance of friendship to us rather nicely when he said

“Whether you are an introvert or an extrovert, whether you have you have one true friend or many, friendships are what give our lives fabric, and meaning and joy. As you learn friendship, you learn to be a better friend with yourself. The older I get the more I believe the meaning of life is given through our relationships with other people.”

Linda’s friendship gave fabric, meaning and joy to a number of people with whom she was close, and I know that for her (because we discussed this just before she died), that this was reciprocal.

From the meaningful to the less consequential. I’ll now switch to uncoated frying pans.

Le Creuset Signature and 3Ply UNCOATED Frying Pans

As you know, if you’ve been attentively reading my emails for a while, I’m no great fan of nonstick coatings, and this isn’t because nonsticks are fragile (which they are compared to uncoated pans), as they do have their place in any kitchen, but really because you will often get tastier results cooking particularly in frying pans which are uncoated. And incidentally, that pan will become something you hand down to your children, because there’s no coating to wear out. As a one time purchase, it’s also the environmentally sustainable option.

So, when Le Creuset relented (I’ve been asking them to do just this for a number of years) and brought out a range of sizes of uncoated pans in their stainless steel Signature and 3 Ply ranges, I was delighted. Actually, there is little difference between the two ranges, beyond cosmetic differences in the lids and handles.

They’ve decided on four very sensible sizes 20cm 24cm, 26cm, and 28cm in the Signature range and two sizes in the 3 Ply, 24cm and 28cm.
If you are not used to cooking with uncoated pans, there will be a learning curve, and at times its possible that you may regret being persuaded by me, to go down the uncoated route. Persevere and its likely that you will be rewarded with tastier food. If this doesn’t materialise, this is why we have our guarantee of taking anything back that has been used. If it doesn’t suit your lifestyle, level of patience, or cooking skill, then it doesn’t but there’s a reason Chef’s rarely cook meat with nonstick pans.

So if it’s just not you, bring it back in a month or 6 months or a year’s time and we’ll take it back from you and give you a refund.

Take a risk (albeit not much of a one) this weekend and be rewarded with 20% off our Le Creuset Signature and 3 Ply Uncoated Frying Pans. Use the code UNCOATED20 at checkout or mention it at the till, if coming in to our Reigate or Cobham shops.

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