Nature in Art - Gloucester

A few weeks ago I met up with an old friend in Gloucester and, rather than our usual lunch in town, we had an outing with a different kind of vibe planned.
We were off to visit the Nature in Art Museum & Gallery, just North of Gloucester, which is described in their brochure as being ...

"... unique and the World's only museum and art gallery dedicated exclusively to art inspired by nature in all its diversity."

Upon arrival we were pleasantly surprised by the setting. We were very lucky with the weather and arrived to bright sunshine and clear blue skies.

The first glimpses that we got of the museum, as we walked in from the car park, are really striking and really drew us in. We passed this wood carved owl on our way in and just couldn't wait to explore further.
The museum building is a beautiful old property based in a lovely setting in the Gloucestershire countryside, with plenty of exhibits both in and outside.  We were looking forward to having a good wander about, and I was hoping for plenty of photo opportunities.

We started inside.

Downstairs there was an interesting selection of art and sculpture, which forms the backbone of the permanent display. Sadly you can't take any photographs of the indoor exhibits but you can find a gallery of images of the full collection here.

Upstairs we were lucky enough to get to see a display of all of the winning images from the 2016 British Wildlife Photography Awards. There really were some incredible shots which were really inspiring.

Halfway between the two, on the landing, was what had to be my favourite exhibit of all. I've managed to find a good image of it here.
The Cycle of Flowers by Rosalind Wise is in acrylic on canvas and depicts every British garden flower that we could think off. We spent a good while stood on the stairs admiring it and, not being aware of the title of the painting, trying to decide if there was any method to the composition.

I'd just clicked on to the fact that it started with snowdrops in the middle and wondered how relevant that was, when a guide, overhearing our ponderings, chipped in to tell us that the plants were depicted in the order within which they flower in the gardening year, starting with the snowdrop in January.

Knowing this made it even more interesting and, being a keen gardener and lover of all things floral, we proceeded to 'test' the painting to see if anything was missing.

I am pleased to say that, having reeled through pretty much all of the flowering plants I could think of that are in my garden, with much scrutiny, we did manage to locate every last one.

I absolutely loved it. It was stunning and truly beautiful.

Before heading outside to explore the sculpture exhibition we had a wander round the small gift shop, where there are plenty of cards and bits and pieces that would make great gifts. I really wanted to buy a postcard of The Cycle of Flowers, but having seen the original, the colours on the postcards just didn't have the same vibrancy, so I decided against it.

We had a quick early lunch in the small cafe, which went down very nicely before heading outside into the sunshine to explore the outdoor sculptures.

I love outdoor sculpture and this garden was certainly no disappointment. We started on the lawned area at the back of the museum, which gave more great views of the museum building itself.
I was particularly taken by the first sculpture that we came across which depicted a pond with bullrushes, irises and even a frog on a lily pad. It was just lovely and wouldn't look the least bit out of place on my patio ...

I also absolutely loved the detailing on this wrought iron gate. It was stunning and the more you looked at it the more you saw ...
There was plenty more to look at on the lawned area ...

There is far more on display than originally meets the eye and, from the main lawned area, you are drawn off the main track and into the undergrowth for lots of surprising finds. Apologies now for the photo overload, but I just couldn't resist.

I just loved these giant poppy seedheads, which were just set amongst the undergrowth and just looked amazing from every angle ...
There were all manner of bird sculptures ...
...including this most graceful of herons, perched high amongst the foliage ...

Just when we thought we'd seen it all, this just seemed to appear from nowhere ...

We saw the biggest bug hotel we'd ever seen and some of the biggest bugs ...

And another piece, depicting fern fronds unfurling, that I would be happy to find a home for somewhere in my own garden ... 

The trail through the undergrowth winds its way back to the lawned area, where a further exhibition can be viewed in the education centre before wandering through greenhouses where you can watch real live artists at work!!

This little fella is definitely the real thing and just seemed to be taking it all in ...

Including our stop for lunch we spent a good couple of hours exploring the museum and were both impressed. We would definitely recommend a visit if you are in the area and you like that kind of thing. It was well worth the entrance fee of £5.25.

HM@No27 - My September Makes

Hi there everyone

It's been a really busy September for Hand Made at Number 27 and I've had a go at making quite a few new things.

You may have seen some of them already over on my Facebook page but here's what I got up to in September ...

Christmas Stocking Tree Decorations
I had made a start on these last month, but have managed to now use up all of my green Christmas themed patchwork look material, which I was actually quite sad about.

These Christmas stocking decorations are my first real go at quilting and this fabric really made it easy for me, already being a patchwork design. It is also a design which works any way up, which definitely helped.

They are all hand finished with a ribbon hanging loop and decorative button.










Christmas Star Tree Topper
Still on the Christmas theme, I had been challenged by one of my lovely customers to make a fabric decoration for the top of the Christmas tree. After all, if all of her other decorations were fabric, this really need to be too.

At first I wasn't sure where I was going to go with this, but I managed to find a free tutorial for a star Christmas tree decoration on Pinterest and it was just a case of doubling up on the size.

I've made it up to match some Christmas bunting that I've already made and I've attached a long length of ribbon to the back, which can be used to tie it to the top of the tree.

I ended up with this as a first attempt, which I am actually quite happy with.

Gingerbread Man Gift Tags
My next make is a new addition to my gift tag range. Last year I did sets of hearts, Christmas trees and stars.
This year I have added a gingerbread man gift tag, which is pretty darn cute, if I say so myself. It has been very popular already, so I think I am going to be making lots more of these.

Dog Bandanas
I'm now up to 20 of the 200 dog bandanas I need to make for a local dog grooming parlour, so still a way to go, but these will be my next big priority, along with stock for a Christmas craft fair that I am attending in November.
As well as these I've had a couple of orders for bandanas from new customers and these two fellas look very handsome in their's, it was nice to make some up in a non-Christmas fabric for a change.

Crocheted Baby Bootees
Now for something completely different, as good old Kenny Everett used to say! I've a new niece or nephew due in the course of the next few months and I decided to have a go at crocheting some baby bootees.

There are hundreds of designs and patterns for all manner of these on Pinterest and I decided to start of with something fairly simple, or so I thought, and made up this Ugg style pair in grey, with bright red buttons.

They were a bit fiddly, but I managed to make them up in an evening and I'm quite pleased with how they've turned out.
Motivated by my success I decided to up the ante a bit and went on to make a pair of far more complicated owl bootees, which are just so darn cute. Not sure how serviceable they are, but they will look nice on display, if nothing else!
I've now got a Pinterest board just full of different designs of these but have decided to rein myself in a bit for now. I need to see how the sizing is when the baby actually comes and to find out if it's a boy or a girl. I'm sure these will not be the last I make of these.

And finally for September ...

Wedding Hearts
A friend had asked me if I could make three stuffed hearts that she could give her nephew's wife to hold on their wedding day.

They needed to be decorated in an ivory, burgundy and silver theme and we wanted to try and incorporate a piece of handmade lace, made by friend's mum, who is sadly no longer with us.

She was also the groom's nan, and we thought she would have loved to have thought that piece of lace would have been used in this way.

I did have to cut it and I can not begin to explain how sick I felt inside when I did this. After all there would be no going back and we couldn't just knock up another piece.

In the end all turned out well and I am looking forward to seeing pictures from the wedding, but here is what they ended up like. I hope the bride loves them and manages to find a good use for them after the wedding ...

So that's what I've been up to in September. We now get to spend a couple of lovely weeks in The New Forest before getting out the sewing machine again, with lots to get made for the arrival of my new niece or nephew and to stock my Christmas craft stall, so I will see you all back here again at the beginning of November, where you can see how I've got on.

Beautiful Britain - Bitting & Bobbing along the Suffolk Coast

So you've seen what we thought of Aldeburgh, Southwold and Thorpeness. All really different and all lovely in different ways.
This post is a bit of a round up of what else we got up on our Suffolk holiday. Lots of bitting and bobbing about ...

Orford
Orford is another lovely Suffolk village, separated from the sea by a huge shingle spit, with lovely coastal walks and a pretty village centre, overlooked by the castle.

We started our visit with a wander along the front where we found more of the now familiar 'fish sheds' and lots of photo opportunities, as well as the most perfect spot for a house.

Martin spent lots of time photographing the wildflowers and rusting metal, both of which are available in sheer abundance ...
 
 
Having explored the port area, we headed into the village centre to have a look at the castle. We didn't go in, but you can walk right up to and round it and it looked pretty striking with the clear blue sky behind it.
We could have easily spent more time here and would definitely re-visit if we are back in the area.

Snape Maltings
Snape Maltings is based on the bank of the River Alde at Snape. It is a collection of shops, galleries, restaurants and a concert hall, which fill the buildings of the old Maltings.
It is definitely worth a visit and we spent an hour or so here, mooching about and having lunch.

We particularly loved the old buildings, which retain lots of their original character, and the mirror sculpture, which was great fun in the sunshine.

Sutton Hoo

We didn't really intend on visiting Sutton Hoo, it wasn't really our thing, but we were passing, we are members of the National Trust and it was lunch time and you can normally rely on the good old NT to have a decent cafe, so we decided to give it a go.

We started off with lunch, a very nice Suffolk Monsieur, followed by cake - well it was a NT cafe!

The National Trust describe Sutton Hoo as an 'Awe-inspiring Anglo-Saxon royal burial site'.

As well as the cafe there is an exhibition centre displaying some of the finds and replicas of others. It also tells the story of the site and was actually quite interesting.

There is then a circular walk which takes you around the mounds, with a map showing you what was buried in each of them. To be honest, whilst we did walk around the site, we didn't find it that appealing, though it was a bit of a grey day.
You can then also visit Tranmer House, the home of Mrs Edith Pretty - the landowner who instigated the archaeological digs on the site back in back in the 1930s.
We found the house much more interesting. It was laid out really well, as it would have been back in the 1930s, and we really enjoyed exploring it.

We were fascinated by some of the WW1 exhibits, especially those relating to 'Polly Hopkins', the horse of Major Frank Petty of the Suffolk Regiment, which referred to the same places that Martin's grandad, Will Sidney, had spent time in, at the same time, during his time in the army. At the beginning of the war Will was a Shoeing Smith. It was fascinating to wonder whether Will would ever have come across Polly during his time in Flanders.

Sizewell Beach
We called in at Sizewell beach on our way home from a day out. I think it was a case of morbid curiosity that led us there.

Would we find enormous, glow in the dark fish? Would it be really ugly? We really had no idea what to expect, but I have to say we were both pleasantly surprised.

Yes, there is clearly the evidence of the nuclear power station, but it is still a really lovely spot by the sea.

You approach the beach via a wooden boardwalk, which slopes up a bank.

It is only once we crested the bank that we both were completely surprised by what we saw.

It was actually a bit surreal. Families sitting on the beach and paddling in the sea, to the backdrop of Sizewell B to the land side and, what we can only assume, some form of rigs out to sea.
We actually ended up spending quite a while here, watching a pretty small dog chase a huge 'stick' and generally just enjoying the sunshine ...
... before laying back and just generally chilling out for a bit.
I am sure it's not everyone's cup of tea but we liked it.

So, finally, I've managed to finish off the posts from our Suffolk holiday back in July. We really enjoyed exploring a new part of the country and are always amazed at how much it continues to provide us with new delights.

We are off to the New Forest next, which will be another national park holiday undertaken so, slowly but surely, I am working through my list of the 50 things I want to do before I'm 60.

I'm sure there will be plenty to tell you about, so please, don't go away.

Beautiful Britain - Thorpeness, Suffolk

Another of our forays out and about whilst on our recent holiday on the Suffolk coast took us to the small village of Thorpeness.

Whilst we weren't sure quite what to expect, having read this on the Suffolk Tourist Guide, we were looking forward to finding something a little unusual ...

"If there was ever a village that deserved to be called ‘fantastic’ it is Thorpeness, built at the start of last century by a wealthy Scottish barrister with a penchant for mock Tudor and Jacobean architecture. Glencairn Stuart Ogilvie was a Scottish barrister who made his money designing railways and bought some land from north Aldeburgh to south of Sizewell where he created Thorpeness as a holiday village centred around the Meare.

Thorpeness is full of quirky buildings, some of which are more than meet the eye. For example, Ogilvie ingeniously disguised the village’s water tower as an overgrown house, the striking ‘House in the Clouds’, lest it offend the eye! This 5 storey house is still in use today and overlooks the golf course on one side, with views of the boating lake, village and beach on the others."

We weren't in the least bit disappointed. For a pretty small village, it certainly had enough to hold our interest for a pleasant morning's wander and so much colour. I hope you are prepared for a photo overload!

It was another glorious day and we managed to park up on the street alongside The Meare, which is an artificially created, shallow boating lake covering 3 acres, with several streams running off the main lake with landings marked with names on a Peter Pan theme. Tiny islands on the Meare contain locations found in J. M. Barrie's novel such as the Pirates Lair, Wendy's home and many others which children are encouraged to play on.

There were lots of colourful boats for hire for those of the rowing inclination, lots of ducks and a nice cafe with lots of people enjoying a relaxing coffee whilst taking in the sunshine.We had a good wander and managed to spot the Peter Pan crocodile and that 'House in the Clouds' that had really drawn us here in the first place.

We really wanted to be able to see this up a bit closer so made our way back along the main street and took the lane on the opposite side of The Meare down towards the golf club. Towards the end of the lane we took a public footpath on the right which brought us out dead opposite where we wanted to be.

It really is incredible and looked really pretty in the sunshine, backed with a clear blue sky. We'd never seen anything quite like it and took plenty of time just gazing in awe and wondering at the imagination of some people.

We took a short walk to the left, where we found the windmill, again another excellent photo opportunity which we made the most of.

We headed back along the track to the main road and continued our walk through the village, past the Alms Houses and The Dolphin Inn before nipping in to the village shop for ice lollies - it was just so hot.

We spotted a sign for the beach and couldn't help but follow it ... along pretty hedgerows and a narrow track ...
To be faced with an almost deserted wide shingle beach, overlooked by brightly coloured houses and stretching as far as the eye could see in either direction.

The whole of the village of Thorpeness is any photographer's dream, with quirky and beautiful buildings around every corner.
We soon found ourselves back at the car, but not before having a good mooch round the Thorpeness Emporium, where there is a vast array of all kinds of all sorts for a good pick through.

Having thoroughly enjoyed our wander around Thorpeness, we would most definitely recommend a visit if you are in the area.

For us, it was time to head off to Snape Maltings for a bit of shopping and lunch.