Lucie Loves... Summer // How to have a sublime trip to the seaside with Galaxy vanilla ice cream

With summer well and truly here I’m making the most of every possible opportunity to spend time with JMG and our friends outdoors. We all lead busy lives, sleep under noisy flightpaths or in busy suburban areas. The hustle and bustle that London has to offer is what drew us here, but every now and again we all need to up sticks and leave the big city for the beautiful serenity of the not-so-distant English countryside.

I leapt at a recent email from Mars to try out Galaxy Vanilla - a delicious vanilla ice cream wrapped in silky smooth Galaxy chocolate, and the newest addition to the Galaxy Ice Cream range. The late May bank holiday weekend was a great excuse to plan a trip away to the Norfolk coast, and put my plans into action for the ultimate beach picnic.

We drove up from London to Norfolk on Friday afternoon, making our way there in stops and starts, along with other bank holiday-escapees.

Our arrival in Norfolk at around 9pm coincided with the tail-end of a very spectacular sunset. I knew then and there that our picnic would have to begin at around 7:30pm to make the most of Golden Hour - every photographer - and instagramers - dream.

Top tips for creating the perfect beach picnic

Props, style and treats Prettify your picnic. If you’re not already a fan - take a look at Pinterest. It’s the perfect discovery tool for gathering ideas about how you might like to style your picnic. In fact it can you give you ideas for how to do almost anything! It’s great for finding cute recipe inspiration too. Take a look at these Galaxy chocolate filled strawberries, I spotted a photo and immediately thought: “They will make yummy beach snacks!” Buy a cool box and fill it with lots of ice to keep drinks and ice cream frosty. Create a Pinterest board like I did and pull together photos of everything that makes you smile. I also thought it would be a cool idea to buy some waffle cones, melt a big bar of Galaxy chocolate, decorate them with smashed up Maltesers and honeycomb, and fill it up with a ‘deconstructed’ Galaxy Ice Cream bar. 

Weather It would be a shame to pack up the perfect picnic and then be caught in a sudden soggy sandwich- making downpour. Look for the next sunny day, but remember to take lots of layers with you so that you don’t have to hurry home when the weather gets cooler. 

Check the weather forecast before you go.

Timing Plan your picnic to start at Golden Hour, so that you can enjoy the incredible light and be all settled ready to bask in a beautiful sunset. Visit the Golden Hour website to find out when it’s going to happen where you are. 

Location Pick a great spot. If you, like us, are planning on feeding a small army (in our case, 4 or 5 people), you’ll soon realise that that’s quite a lot of stuff to carry - especially if you take accessories like candles and storm lanterns too. To make it easier: invest in a couple of attractive, yet functional picnic baskets. Do as much of your food prep at home to save time and hassle. And, once you’ve found a stunning location to host your picnic, be mindful that you take bags with you to collect to your rubbish when you leave. Ideally take plastic cups, as no one wants dogs to get broken glass in their paws, and ensure that when you leave the area looks as good for the next person as it did for you. 

Saturday 13 - Sunday 21 June 2015 is National Picnic Week. Here’s a handy a list of Britain’s top picnic spots to help making planning your own sublime picnic even easier.  

Bring a BBQ* Our disposable BBQ was really cheap and its compact size meant that it was perfect for alfresco dining. We stocked up on ingredients at the local supermarket, and cooked tasty cheeseburgers and barbecued corn on the cob. We then kept the grilled goodness going toasting rather decadent, fluffy marshmallows. And we discovered that fresh cherries taste even more amazing when hot! *Always check whether BBQs are allowed and always BBQ responsibly, chuck water and sand on it when your done cooking and dispose of it carefully to make sure it doesn’t set anything on fire. 

Music Get everyone to contribute to your picnic soundtrack, and then you’ve got all of your favourite songs queued up to get the party started. Portable speakers are a bonus too! 

Find out how tocreate playlists with your friends. 

Share the love Dilemma: got too much of a good thing going on and don’t want to waste any food, but can’t take it home with you either? Make someone’s day and invite them to join in and help you finish off your summer feast. You can never have too many friends and Galaxy Vanilla Ice Cream is ideal for sharing. 

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If I’ve inspired you to plan your own pretty picnic, tweet your pics to @LucieKerley or post on Instagram @LucieLoves using #galaxyicecream

Photography © Lucie Kerley

Video by the hubby © jmgcreative

** This post was sponsored by (yummy) Mars Galaxy Vanilla Ice Cream **