Summer Solstice in Sherwood

Hello Lovelies,
every Wednesday I meet up with mum and more often than not we go food shopping. It's not very exciting but it gives us chance to chat and shop around for food and household bargains ( which all help towards my thrifty goals) . Happily this week we went on a mini adventure instead.

We headed for north Nottinghamshire and the Robin Hood Country of Sherwood Forest.

Our first stop was the Courtyard at Thoresby Hall. We admired this Robin Hood statue, then perused the gallery and shops a little.

 But this sort of shopping is not me. Or rather, I dare not let it tempt me, so after a short while we left.

Next door the grounds of the hall are open to the public, so I went for a little wander while mum sat in the car. That's better. Open spaces and lots of pretty photo opportunities.

Notice the helicopter on the lawn.

It was a very warm day ...which has since been declared the hottest solstice since U.K. records began.....and this shallow water looked very tempting for a paddle.

But I had to get back, so I wandered towards the imposing hall. It's a posh hotel and spa but the gates were open and only one or two people were about.

I asked an older lady if it was ok to look round and she said it was for hotel guests, but nobody would know I wasn't a guest. Bless her.

I walked up the staircase and met some odd "props".

Then chickened out when I saw how busy the gardens were. Sorry I didn't even dare snap a quick photo :0)

It was time to continue our journey anyway, so we headed for another place mum knew well . Sherwood Arts and Crafts Centre was just a few miles down the road. I loved the contrast of the  simple red brick buildings to the ornate stone facade of Thoresby.

Everywhere was looking so well cared for and the hanging baskets were a picture.



Part of the centre is under glass, which was hardly needed yesterday, but I'm sure it's great in winter.

 Ha, I've just noticed those customised toilet seats on the wall :0)

We were wilting somewhat and the words Air-conditioning on this cafe door caught our eye.



As this trip was also a birthday treat for me, mum bought us a yummy lunch which we ate in the welcome coolness of the cafe.

I did buy a very small memento of our visit. A postcard by local artist Jeremy Mayes

 It seemed perfect for a visit to this part of the world and I liked the simple, romantic image.

Next we planned to stop off at Rufford Abbey ( there are loads of visitor attractions in a compact area here) but the car parking charge seemed a bit expensive for a half hour visit. So instead we headed through the ford. Always fun.

and stopped at the pretty village of Wellow.

I had a walk around. I loved the old buildings, and the old vehicles.

the church in it's natural setting.



The cottages with climbing roses.


And the stripy thing on the village green :0)

You have to really stand back to fit it all in a photo. It's tall!

It's a Maypole  and it's topped with an attractive weather vane.

and adorned with crowns.

And you can see HERE how lovely it looks on May day.

All was quiet on Wednesday.
 

and I returned to the car to admire Mum's sketch. She had used some "artistic licence" to shorten the pole a little :0)

I really love your picture mum. Thank you for a special day out :0)

Jacquie x

Yorkshire Places :: Part 3

Hello Lovelies,

On Sunday the weather forecast was less than promising. Never mind, it gave mum and I  time to do some indoor things.

Despite the grey day it was clear that spring had arrived in Yorkshire.............

And it was being celebrated in the gallery at Salts Mill............

Here I need to thank Jenny at the lovely blog Saltaire Daily Photo.
 Her POST about this exhibition is very interesting and mum and I would not have known of it's existence otherwise.

And what a treat it was!..........

The paintings were so joyous and inspiring.........

A real celebration of the changing seasons in the countryside 

I LOVE the way David Hockney sees colour.

The exhibition space was gorgeous too. It was also very quiet when we were there and we loved being able to sit peacefully  and drink it all in............

The whole of Salts mill is such a delightful place...I even took a photo of the ladies loos....like you do :0)

It's filled with tempting things to buy as well.........how about this lovely notebook.........

with inspiring an inspiring quote

Or a nice crochet book...........

We could have stayed for hours, but had another place or two to squeeze in.

But first it was coffee time ......we parked overlooking another delightful Reservoir..........

Unfortunately the rain, which was being blown sideways in the strong wind,  obscured the view somewhat!

HERE'S the view on a better day

It was so disappointing after all the lovely weather we have enjoyed the previous week.

 Over in Calderdale the weather was just the same.........

and HERE'S this view on a better day!

It was a bit grim....talk about dark satanic mills..........

We were heading for Hebden Bridge, who's steeps streets ran with water..........

But I still loved details like this red letterbox in the stone wall....and being up amongst the rooftops..............

We were heading to this pretty town in search of another exhibition.  Stupidly I just presumed the gallery would be easy to spot. I got out of the car and wandered around in the pouring rain.......

It's such a charming spot, even in a downpour...........

But my feet were getting wet and I was feeling decidedly chilly after a while...........

I was so glad to find the warm and welcoming Tourist Information Centre, and step indoors for a while............

It was a lovely space....and I especially liked this O.S.map  armchair....brilliant.

The ladies in there were brilliant too. They were chatting with a local when I arrived so I wandered about, looking at the displays, but also enjoying listening to the Yorkshire accents. They always sound like home to me. My own has faded somewhat over the years.

When I emerged, with directions, I collected mum who was waiting in the car and we headed for the gallery.

Look, it's my Reservoir on the cover of Kate's leaflet!

The exhibition was another delight in a rainy day, small but perfectly formed, as they say. If you click on the pictures on Kate's facebook pages HERE you can see her beautiful work clearly.....in real life it's even more stunning...simmering with gold thread and touches of gold leaf.

By now it was early afternoon and there was just time to squeeze in one more visit. As the weather was still not cooperating we headed for a museum.

Shibden Hall dates back to 1420! ....I think it's beautiful....even in the rain.

It's somewhere I'd been as a child, both with family and on a school trip. My photo's taken here are pretty rubbish. I was on my reserve camera as I'd flattened the batteries in my new one....and my old camera does not cope well with low light levels.

There are lots of interesting rooms to explore. From the kitchen to the impressive Grand Hall

I loved the ancient leaded glass windows..........

There was a very informative guide in the main.house.  A lovely lady who made the place come to life.

Outside there is a folk museum............

I loved the estate worker cottage here. It had just two rooms, a kitchen, living room on the ground floor.............

And a tiny bedroom, up a steep wooden staircase...........

By this time I was thoroughly frozen....wet feet do that to you, don't they. And mum was tired, so we called it a day and began the drive home.

I was very good, and resisted all the tempting things in Salts Mill.....but I did treat myself to a small purchase in the Heart Gallery.

 I loved this little jug, which was made in England and designed by Yorkshire based ceramic artist Kate Thorburn

It's perfect to hold a small posy of spring flowers picked in the garden. And a lovely reminder of a special weekend with mum.
Jacquie x

A Day in Derbyshire

Hello Lovelies,

The Friday before last mum and I grabbed the opportunity to have a mini adventure into Derbyshire....fancy seeing some piccys :0)

After an hour of driving I was so happy to turn off the busy roads and stop for a moment to gaze upon the gorgeous view..........

The sun was shining and locals were friendly.............

There were plenty of places to pull off the road and have a little wander.............

and admire the gorgeous scenery...........

while mum did a quick sketch or two..........

It's tricky taking photos into the light, but I loved how this one turned out...........

and I'm always intrigued as to  where tempting paths like this one lead...........

into a field of bales.......perfect.............

We could smell a coal fire close by on this sunny but cool morning.........smoke drifted up from this chimney in the valley.............

Driving higher now up to Crich, I stop again to try and capture the far reaching views.........

Then it's steeply downhill, past pretty stone houses and autumnal trees...........

In the valley bottom we follow the river Derwent to Cromford mill

Where they have a Knit and Natter on the second Wednesday of every month :0)...........

I loved all the water and the ripply reflections of these old stone buildings..............

The site is still being restored with the aid of grants and lottery funding, I'm sure it will be an amazing place when all the work is done.

There is already lots to see and little shops to visit.

Again I loved the history of the place and could almost hear my school history teacher's lesson about Richard Arkwright ringing in my ears as I wandered around............

I hope they will eventually replace the water wheel that powered these mills...........

This patchwork shop caught my eye..............

I resisted the fabric as I need to use up some of my stash really. But I did get a few buttons :0)

The plant sales looked tempting too......

Next we hopped back in the car and headed into Cromford village. I've never been here before but mum has and she wanted to show me this place...............

Scarthin Books

It looked quirky from the outside........you can buy these books for 50p even when the shop is closed....as the sign says.........."please put money through letter box"..........

Inside the place is crammed with books, both new and second-hand............

There are lovely hand painted signs for every section.............

This is the sun filled art and craft room.........isn't it wonderful..........

So quirky, original, and FULL of interesting books...............

with a great view over the window boxes to the mill pond and the hills beyond..........

and when you open the "secret" curved bookcase..........

You find a cosy cafe with it's own grapevine, growing in through the conservatory roof.............

There were delightful little oddities everywhere ..........

and delightful little books :0)

Mum and I ordered the Spicy lentil and tomato soup.............

it was another DeLiciOus  lunch.

On the shops web site there is a video where you can find out lots more about this amazing place. I really enjoyed it.
The owner says it's more like a library where you can browse and read.....and maybe buy a book if you want.

It was so relaxed and friendly, I can see why it's loved by so many visitors and locals.

After lunch I left Mum to browse the art section some more and headed off for a little walk.

Past a water wheel............

and around the other side of the mill pond.............

past blackened cottages..............

and back onto "Scarthin", the name of the narrow road, from which the bookshop gets its name..........

This sign outside the pub made me smile...........

Back inside the book shop I couldn't resist a peek inside the wonderful children's room...........

Once again everywhere was crammed with books and I loved the creative touches on the ceiling.........

Next we hopped back in the car and drove the short distance to pretty Bonsall

The sun had disappeared but this characterful village still looked pretty..............

Once again I went for a little wander on foot.......up the steep lanes............

and around hairpin bends..........

Climbing steadily upwards I was soon looking down over rooftops..........and spotting lovely views in the distance, to zoom in on..............

When I got to this point the sun came out and made the stone cottages look even nicer.........

I headed along a footpath, to a spot where you can sit and enjoy the view...........

And what a gorgeous view it is..............over more of the village and the church.........

or just to the right, you can see the countryside stretching for miles..............

I was so lucky to get this window of sunshine to enjoy......as soon the clouds rolled back in.........

I retuned along the mossy walled path...........

past the cute cottages............

down the hill............

and back to the car. It was time to head home. The rain began to pour down as we headed towards Matlock and the road south.......but the view was still worth photographing..........

We had a really lovely day in this picturesque part of the world. It's so nice to be able to make the most of the mild Autumn weather together, before the days get too short and cold.
And after years of being too tied with family commitments to indulge in such days, it's wonderful to enjoy them once again.
Jacquie x

p.s. THANK YOU so much for your kind comments about my mandala. I'll be back very soon with some more Autumn inspired creativity :0)