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Meet Your Muddy Stilettos Awards 2023 Essex Finalists!


That’s right – it’s time to reveal your Muddy Stilettos Awards 2023 Essex finalists, which have been sponsored by Chelmsford City Racecourse. First up; a massive THANK YOU for taking the time to support your awesome local businesses this year. The Nominations stage of the Awards have been the biggest ever so far. To be frank, the response has blown our socks off! And, while we wish every brilliant business nominated could make it through, there can only be five finalists in each category. That means it’s up to YOU to decide who wins each coveted Regional Award. Each Regional winner will also be considered for the National Muddy Awards to find the ‘best of the best’ across all 28 Muddy Stilettos counties. So, there’s even more reason to show your support this year!

The Awards close on midnight Sunday 4 June 2023 – so if there’s a business you love, make sure you VOTE HERE.

OK, you want to see who made it through? Course you do! Meet your worthy Essex Finalists:

BEST ART GALLERY
Art Exchange (Colchester)
Chelmer Fine Art (Chelmsford)
Firstsite (Colchester)
Nicky Gayle (Chelmsford)
WhimbrelArt (Tollesbury)

BEST BAR
ACanteen (Chelmsford)
De La Terre (Great Dunmow)
Ginny’s Cocktail Lounge (Maldon)
Number 92 (Braintree)
Voodoo Keller Bar (Chelmsford)

BEST BEAUTY SALON/CLINIC
Cream Beauty Salon (Bocking)
e.m.skin clinic & beauty (Colchester)
JK Beauty (Mountnessing)
Skin Envy (Colchester)
The Glamour Room (Chelmsford)

BEST BOOKSHOP
Caxton Books (Frinton on Sea)
Chicken and Frog (Brentwood)
Hart’s Books (Saffron Walden)
Maldon Books (Maldon)
Red Lion Books (Colchester)

BEST BOUTIQUE STAY (UNDER 30 ROOMS)
Downham Hall (Billericay)
Essex Stays (Great Baddow)
Glass House Retreat (Bulphan)
Piglets Boutique (Saffron Walden)
The Cricketers (Clavering)

BEST BRIDAL STORE
Abigail’s Collection (Colchester)
Adore Bridal & Occasion (Chelmsford)
Bellissima Weddings (South Woodham Ferrers)
Hilary B (Colchester)
Rock The Frock (Chelmsford)

BEST CAFÉ
Bonnies Café (Hutton)
Forget Me Not Tearooms (Tiptree)
Mrs Salisbury’s Tea Room (Maldon)
Panners Coffee Bar (Braintree)
Table (Earls Colne)

BEST CHILDREN’S BUSINESS
Bunny & Bear Clothing (Rayleigh)
Exotic Explorers (Brentwood)
Green Earth Learning (Chelmsford)
LivLieto (Saffron Walden)
Tiny Bundles (Southend)

BEST DAY SPA
Down Hall (Bishop’s Stortford)
Glass House Retreat (Bulphan)
Greenwoods Hotel & Spa (Stock)
Lifehouse Spa & Hotel (Thorpe le Soken)
Orsett Hall Hotel (Orsett)

BEST DESTINATION PUB
Lion and Lamb (Little Canfield)
The Cricketers Arms (Rickling Green)
The Hoop (Stock)
The Rayleigh Arms (Terling)
The Three Horseshoes (Fordham)

BEST FAMILY ATTRACTION
Audley End House and Gardens (Saffron Walden)
Call of the Wild Zoo (South Woodham Ferrers)
Colchester Zoo (Colchester)
Discovery Seals (Wallasea Island)
Mersea Boating Lake (Mersea)

BEST FARMSHOP/DELI
C Humphreys & Sons (Chelmsford)
Dan Hull Farm Shop (Althorne)
Great Garnetts (Barnston)
Nanny Kay’s Farm Shop (Wickford)
The Manor Farm Shop (Great Baddow)

BEST FITNESS INSTRUCTOR
Becky Scott, MissFits Workout (Colchester)
Ingrid Payne, Breathe Pilates (Bocking)
Lorna Cole, Fitness Fever (Chelmsford)
Michelle Russell, Maximize Fitness (Ongar)
Vicki Marks, VickiPT (Colchester)

BEST FLORIST
Dillys Bespoke Florist (Maldon)
Poppydots (Chelmsford)
Scent (Leigh on Sea)
The Blue Dandelion (Ingatestone)
The Botanical Shed (Great Dunmow)

BEST HAIR SALON
Crop Salon (Braintree)
Lipstick & Locks (Braintree)
The Strand (Chelmsford)
Westwood Hairdressing (Chelmsford)
Willows Hair Salon (Gosfield)

BEST HOTEL/INN (WITH 30+ ROOMS)
Down Hall (Hatfield Heath)
Lifehouse Spa & Hotel (Thorpe le Soken)
Roslin Beach Hotel (Thorpe Bay)
Seven Hotel (Southend on Sea)
Wivenhoe House (Wivenhoe)

BEST JEWELLER
Anvil and Ivy (Maldon)
House of Zadeh (Colchester)
LL Loves (Billericay)
The Luna Edit (Chelmsford)
TLK Jeweller (Chelmsford)

BEST LIFESTYLE STORE
Beatrice & Lilly (Rochford)
Blume (Rayleigh)
Little Boat Gifts (Brightlingsea)
Suzi M (Chelmsford)
Vintage Style Living (Thaxted)

BEST LOCAL FOOD/DRINK PRODUCER
Becky’s Butchers (Great Bromley)
Blackwater Bakes (Tollesbury)
East Coast Distillery (Thorpe le Soken)
Essex Bakery (Colchester)
The Hungry Tribe (Gosfield)

BEST NEW LIFESTYLE START-UP
Artisans Hub (Braintree)
Bubble and Sweets (Braintree)
Courtyard Bridal (Tiptree)
Patch (Colchester)
The Stour Store (Manningtree)

BEST RESTAURANT
Fête Grays Yard (Chelmsford)
Olio At The Chequers (Wickham Bishops)
Pig & Whistle Restaurant (Chelmsford)
Ranfield’s Brasserie (Coggeshall)
The Onley (Stisted)

BEST SUSTAINABLE LIFESTYLE BUSINESS
Beautiful Healthy Home (Leigh on Sea)
La Pomme (Ingatestone)
Refill (Chelmsford)
The Wildest Rumpus (Tollesbury)
Wear ’em Out (Frinton on Sea)

BEST THEATRE/ARTS VENUE
Brentwood Theatre (Brentwood)
Chelmsford Theatre (Chelmsford)
Colchester Arts Centre (Colchester)
Mercury Theatre (Colchester)
Thameside Theatre (Thurrock)

BEST WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER
A* Photography (Clacton on Sea)
Bloomwood Photography (Rochford)
Capture House Weddings (Great Dunmow)
Three Flowers Photography (Braintree)
Tom Halliday Photography (Saffron Walden)

BEST WEDDING VENUE
Apton Hall (Rochford)
East Mersea Hall (Mersea)
Hedingham Castle (Halstead)
The Boundary (Southend on Sea)
The Park Weddings & Events (Saffron Walden)

BEST WOMEN’S FASHION
Annabelle 87 (Colchester)
My Fairytale Wardrobe (Chelmsford)
Number Six (Chelmsford)
Victoria Charles Headpieces (Chelmsford)
Willow & Fox (Maldon)

BEST YOGA/PILATES STUDIO
Green Pilates Movement Studio (Braintree)
Little Yoga Studio (Chelmsford)
The Yoga Club (Billericay)
Totally Yoga (Laindon)
Yoga Wise (Mayland)

Got that? Good. Now GO FORTH AND VOTE HERE for your Muddy Stilettos Awards 2023 Essex finalists!