does anyone have a Pashley princess?

[basildonbond]

I have been hankering after a new bike :) I have a trek entry-level road bike and a mountain bike which I inherited from dh (it was too small for him) but most of my riding is pottering around locally - taking dd to school and going to work - both 30 mins round trips from home.

I really like the look of the pashleys and as I have a [ahem] significant birthday coming up next year I was toying with the idea of asking my family to club together and get one

so if anyone has one what are the good points and are there any bad points?

I have one and I love it. My other bike's a hybrid and I definitely noticed the heavier weight of the Pashley. That would be its main downside IMO. The other is that, if you are used to lots of gears, only having 5 can take some getting used to. There are times when I find the lack of a gear between 4 and 5 a bit frustrating (cycling along slight incline on windy day, sort of thing). I don't think it is great for you if you have to go up lots of steep hills, even if slowly - I do so occasionally and always get off to push after about half-mile, and I'm pretty fit.
That said, I don't regret the purchase AT ALL. My reasons for buying were: I wanted to look like Miss Marple, I wanted a bike that would be ok in traffic, and I wanted a bike that might slow me down a bit - I had a tendency to zip thru traffic which in my town is not always that sensible, and to race to meetings and arrive hot and sweaty. The Pashley does all that. It looks fab, you end up having the loveliest conversations with people who like it, the saddle is really comfortable (after the first 3 months wearing in), and it is very solid and upright, which I really like for pottering round town and being visible in traffic. The basket is superb too. I tried a few friends' Dutch bikes before taking the plunge and didn't find them as ergonomically pleasing as the Pashley - but of course that's got a lot to do with build and so on, you could find that out in 2 mins by trying one in a shop. I'm a fan. Go for it!