Had a lovely day last Saturday visiting Wells and taking in a collection of jewellery to 'Just Make' on it's opening day.

I've been to Wells before: it's not far from our home, and has some very lovely historic buildings plus a great market, but I hadn't discovered the Market Street area where Just Make is before.

It's interesting that it's called Market Street, because it's not where the market is: an historical name I guess? Anyway there is one (rather good) fruit and veg stall there, just at the entrance to The Courtyard, which is where Just Make is situated. A good landmark.

I met Laura Pearcey, the owner, at the 'Made by Hand' in Newport last December, where we were both exhibiting. She makes covetable ceramics under the name of Boop Design, and is also an experienced ceramics teacher. Opening Just Make is her latest venture.

Laura's done the space up really well: it all looks very smart. As you'd expect, Laura has some of her own quirky ceramic jewellery and pots on sale. 

There are also ceramics by other great makers, including Tone Von Krogh.

Other Made by Hand makers get in there too: these lovely bags by Dr Bean are really special. We bought one as a present last Christmas: it now lives with my sister-in-law in Australia (and she's extremely pleased with it). I'm very tempted to get one for myself too... 

Not only is there a careful selection of high quality handcrafted work for sale in Just Make, but Laura's also holding classes and kids craft sessions there. It's not a huge space but ideal for small groups.

If you haven't been to Wells it's definitely worth a visit, and Just Make and the area around it are 'musts'. Sew Vintage, a few doors along, is a haberdashery and sewing parlour, and Millie Moon have opened a haberdashery boutique and sewing school just round the corner. In fact 'This is Somerset' is hailing it as the Wells Craft Quarter.

It's also quite foodie, with the farmers markets and a very nice deli. On Laura's recommendation we had lunch in The Good Earth, a vegetarian cafe in Priory Road, just around the corner. I had a delicious quiche, salad, and cake, and will definitely be returning!

It's always good to see a new take on an old tradition, and that's exactly what Filipa Oliveira does. I first came across her work in the New Designers exhibition in London last summer, when she'd just been awarded with the Goldsmiths' Company's award for jewellery: quite an honour.

It was no wonder Filipa had such a crowd around her: this is unusual work, and a great updating of an age-old technique. During her studies Philipa explored the ancient technique of filigree, which is associated with different peoples and cultures at different times and in many countries. Having begun her career in her native Portugal, Filipa took her degree in Jewellery and Metal Design in Dundee.

Making repeated tiny forms and often incorporating gemstones, Philipa constructs beautifully intricate cell-like patterns: her jewellery almost seems to unfold.

You can see (and buy) more of Filipa's work at the Barbican, open again now until 6th January, or on her website or facebook page.

Today I received the loveliest package: some jewellery by Kathryn Hinton. Unfortunately it's not for me - I'm taking it in to the Barbican in London tomorrow, to supplement Kathryn's fast dwindling collection there.

This jewellery is amazing not just in the end result, but also in it's method of production. You can see Kathryn in the picture above, and what she's doing is using a digital hammer to form the shapes of her jewellery: you can see the piece she's working on on the screen in front of her. 

The result of this stage is a digital file, as you can see in the image of the ring above. I haven't discussed the next stages with Kathryn, but I'm imaging the digital file is printed out in wax, which is then cast in metal.

The end product is a silver version of the digital image, which Kathryn then finishes by hand. Pretty incredible really, and the end results are beautiful: facets which catch the light, glimmering gently. Subtle and understated, elegant and sophisticated. Deceptively simple: I love them!

See more of Kathryn's jewellery and silversmithing on her website or pop along to the DJG pop-up shop in the Barbican now until 6th January to buy some. 

Kathryn developed her work at the Royal College of Art, and currently also has a piece in the Crafts Council's Power of Making exhibition at the V&A.

No contemporary jewellery lover can have failed to see this striking image of Mariko wearing one of her brooches: it's been one of The images of the season. Born and educated in Japan, Mariko came to the UK in 2009 to study jewellery and silversmithing in Edinburgh. The photo was taken by Agnieszka Tarnowska, who also studied in Edinburgh, and is as stunning as Mariko's jewellery.

Anyone who has been to Japan will immediately recognise the source of Mariko's inspiration for this collection. It instantly transports me back to Kyoto, with it's bamboo, temples, and tiles. It's definitely worth checking out Mariko's website for some of her photos, sketches and collages - they're just so evocative. 

Mariko's palette includes bamboo, textiles, and metal which she often enamels or patinates, creating a 'wabi sabi' aesthetic which I love. This jewellery is adventurous in form: catwalk necklaces, asymetrical earrings, and big brooches. All one-off pieces make this very collectable jewellery, but also very wearable. This is real creativity, and I look forward to seeing how Mariko's work develops.

I took this image of Mariko and some of her jewellery at the Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair this autumn - beautifully displayed - this is the art of placement! Right now Mariko's work is available in the DJG pop-up shop in the Barbican, London. There's more information about her processes on her blog, and her news on her facebook page.

Unusually, I'd heard of and seen Ros Millar's jewellery before I saw it at New Designers last July. Exhibiting in the 'one year on' section, Ros has done such a brilliant job with getting her work out there that it's hard to believe she only graduated in 2009.  

Ros's trademark is stacks of organically inspired gold and oxidised silver rings, which she makes in her studio in London.

This jewellery has a very contemporary feel to it. A glimspe into Ros' sketch book shows a cluster of teeth cast in silver, giving a hint of the origins of this bold, assertive work. I'd love to see her graduation collection and see how her work has developed, because I hadn't spotted the toothy link in the jewellery I've seen. This work is already really mature and considered. 

It's interesting that Ros uses the process cuttlefish casting in her jewellery. This really ancient technique gives more than just texture to her jewellery: there's definitely a hint of the sea in there. The knobblyness suggests barnacles clinging to and growing out of the rings. And is it just me that sees a shoal of swimming creatures in the image above, and waving fronds of some sort of seaweed or some sea creature in the image below?

 

Work of this quality does no go unrecognised, and Ros already has a string of shows and awards under her belt. The image of her in her workshop above (by Nick Hand) was taken when she was a finalist for the Balvenie Young Master of Craft Awards, and her blog, facebook page, and website bristle with well deserved achievements.

 

I'm delighted that Ros is exhibiting with us in the DJG pop-up shop in the Barbican this winter. Open till 8pm every evening till 6th January (except 24th, 25th & 26th December), this is a great opportunity to see her work and stock up on those late Christmas presents! 

I first met Janice Zethraeus when she was in the first year of her degree in Jewellery and Silversmithing at the London Metropolitan University. I was an artist in residence there at the time, and Janice was one of those students who stood out: friendly, enthusiastic, and particularly eager to learn. Of course at that stage in a degree course it's all about experimentation, and so when I left at the end of the academic year I had no idea what work Janice would end up producing.

We met again at the New Designers show last summer, when I was part of the team selecting six of the best new jewellers to join the DJG in our winter show at the Barbican. The competition was tough as usual, but Janice's work stood out and she won a place: great news because I knew she'd also be a good person to work with.

I'm always interested in where makers get their inspiration from, and Janice was kind enough to share a glimpse inside her sketch book. Photos of cracked mud, imprints of fossils, leaf veins, and sand dunes set the tone. Janice has previously worked as an illustrator, it's no surprise to find ethereal drawings almost floating off the page. 

With these images in mind, it's easy to understand Janice's jewellery: it flows and sparkles. Sinuous and elegant silver and gold wires - often set with tiny diamonds - almost seem to dance. This is joyful work, and I'm sure would be a pleasure to wear.  

Having been selected as one of the Crafts Council's 'hothouse' makers for 2011, Janice is definitely one to watch. You can still see (and buy) her jewellery at the DJG show in the Barbican Centre, London, now until 6th January 2012.

 

I'll be showing my full range of jewellery for the last time before Christmas in Newport at Made By Hand tomorrow. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Made-By-Hand/142350276449 Lots of great craft by 140 designer makers!

Looking forward to my last big show of the season now, Made By Hand, next weekend in Newport. Been so busy over the past few weeks I've had no time to post here, however this is what I've been up to...

I've now got a collection on show in the Victoria Sewart Gallery in Plymouth, in her Christmas exhibition. Nice blog post here. Some great exhibitors that I'm proud to have my work alongside: I particularly love Nobuko Okumura's threads collection, shown in the image above.

My work's selling really well in the Barbican in London too: my new tanzanite sprig necklace (above) was snapped up almost within a week of first being shown, and my pebble crunch brooch (below) has sold too, plus some smaller pieces. Good to have big sales but also a tinge of sadness when a significant one-off pieces go to new homes!

I'm so pleased to have a collection back in Bovey Tracey, for the Devon Guild of Craftsmen's Christmas show, and made this doodle panel necklace with wooden beads especially to go there.

Yesterday I posted a top-up package off to the Waterperry Gallery near Oxford, which always does really well for me. I guess that'll be out on sale by next weekend.

I'm still completing my orders from the Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair and Lustre: nice to keep Tom in the post office busy! This week I'll also be putting the finishing touches to some new pieces that'll have their debut in Newport next weekend: a very busy time!

Near Nottingham this weekend? Lustre https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=201389469930193 is the place to be. A great contemporary craft fair with some of the UK's best independent designer makers.

So so busy here, that I'm only just now getting a chance to finish my blog post about the Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair. It was my first time in Manchester, and this is the only the second time I've tried taking short videos on my phone and uploading them in a blog post, so I'm just hoping it'll work! 

The first video is of the stand of Gillian Harvie, a jeweller I've never met before but who's work I love. I also REALLY admired the way she'd decorated her stand! Anyone who dares draw or paint directly onto that scary white surface gets brownie points from me, but Gillian had gone a step further, with whole scenarios befitting her creations. Raindrops, clouds and birds: some drawings, some wearable, ladders that travelled on dreamlike journeys around little stage sets of beautiful wearable scissors, tables etc. Just great, and really imaginative. And I'm so pleased that searching out her website to give you a link now, I find that her work is actually based on dreams! :-)

While I'm still on the theme of imaginative jewellery, I loved the work of Lucy Elsie Harvey, who displayed several collections using re-appropriated objects which were so beautifully made that they were fascinating and appealing despite also being quite spooky. 

The other jeweller I just HAVE to mention is Yu-Ping Lin - also known as Rainey - who makes fantastic flowing and wonderfully tactile jewellery from fabric. Using origami techniques gives the work great volume although it's wonderfully light, and watching her play with and transform pieces is just mesmerising. Hence the second video! 

Moving on from jewellery, I always love Cathy Miles' wire work, and this wall of shoes was no exception. Although I must admit I love her birds more, but the shoes were just so photogenic, and you can see plenty of her birds on her website!

I suspect this post's getting a bit too long and I'll never get it finished, so I'm going to combine a few more images in a gallery here. Do click through them to get a bit more of a flavour of what was there: hats from Katie Mawson, textile accessories beautifully presented by Rosie's Armoire, lampshades by Hannah Nunn (I fancy some of her hanging pods but my photo of them wasn't so good), ceramics by Tone Von Krogh and Katie Almond, cute little cactus pincushions by &made, intricate scenarios by Kate Lulham and cutlery and dishes by Latimeria.

My final mention is for amazing wooden clocks by Bruce Aitken, which I tried to video but sadly I didn't really do justice to the meditative effect that seeing these clocks in action has. Or maybe mediation and videos just don't go together?

Anyway: great fair, well selected, well run and much enjoyed. 

Just SO busy right now... my first big fair of this winter season is later this week: the Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair. 

Now this is a fair I've heard many good things about but have never been too. A bit off my normal stomping ground as it's up north (as you might guess from the name) in Manchester! If it's reputation - and the list of exhibitors - is anything to go by, it'll be fantastic. Lots of favourite familiar names, and new ones too.

I'm particularly looking forward to seeing the work of Malin Winberg: amazing raised silver bowls,

Ken Eardley: great ceramics

and Bekx Stephens - amazing folded and stitched paper forms.

But who knows what'll grab me when I'm there?!

Do come along.

The opening evening on Thursday 20th is from 6-9pm, and then it's open 10am - 7pm Friday 21st October, 10-6 on Saturday, and 10-5 on Sunday. Only £6 entrance (£10 on Thurs eve, £5 concessions, £10 for a weekend pass). Full info here.

Now I'm feeling slightly guilty about this post because we went to see the Redlynch Artists who were exhibiting at the Organic Gardens at Holt Farm, but actually I'm afraid I preferred the organic gardens to the show. Sorry Redlynch artists, but I guess art isn't meant to appeal to everyone anyway, is it?

The wonderful gardens at Holt Farm certainly did appeal to me though. Holt Farm turns out to be the home farm of the Yeo Valley dairy business owners. They open their garden to the public on specific days throughout the summer and for special events including this show.

This is my sort of garden. Wild(ish) swathes of flowers bursting through gravel, vistas, sculpture, a vegetable garden, and a great tea room. Lovely cakes. Amazing loos!

I particularly liked the way that each little feature was thought through and attended to: the handles on gates were beautifully crafted for instance, in fact there was a lot of art in the garden in one way and another. I regret now not taking more pictures, but it was rather rainy when we were there, and you can see more pictures here, on the Veg Plotting blog. 

Do take a look at the Holt Farm website: it's equally well crafted with - believe it or not - a snail walking around it waving it's antennae (I assume that's what they're called). I guess walking is the wrong word, but it is in all honesty a little too jerky to be called a slither.

Whimsy - no garden (or website) should be without it. Open once more this year only, on 30th October for Seedy Sunday.

This feels like a generous garden, and I shall enjoy my Yeo Valley dairy products all the more from now on!

I've long been a fan of open studios: in fact visiting 'Hidden Art' studios in London's east end was one of the things that made me passionate about craft in the first place long before I became a maker. I loved climbing wonky staircases and emerging into wonderful caverns of creativity: quite magical. Of course the romance disguised often appalling working conditions and extreme poverty, and I'm sure makers who were sometimes quite desperate for a sale. And we did buy some fantastic things, some of which still adorn our home now.

I had no idea what Somerset Art Weeks would be like though, as this is the first time we've had the opportunity to attend any of the exhibitions and events. To our great delight I have to say they've been fantastic. Very different to the London events in many ways, but still revealing sides of life that are new to us, and of course some amazing art and craft.

One place we've visited and thoroughly enjoyed was Wick Farm, near Langport. Ten artists had collaborated to create a whole trail of fun things.

I particularly loved the gigantic metal hare's head shown above, and the swimming costumes which had been planted up with flowers beside a swimming pool were fun. A turf seat with upcycled sacking cushions was refreshingly cool and surprisingly comfortable. The shepherds hut full of fast deteriorating food sculptures, was, I guess, interesting (as well as very saggy and rather mouldy).

In the wood (yes it's a world away from Hoxton) there were a number of installations including a series of action men and women climbing a tree (amongst other antics), a giant rabbit sitting in a tree, a series of etherial dog paintings, and various suspended carvings.

Unlike the London studios, there wasn't much of an emphasis on things being sold, unless you count the soup, tea and cakes, which we happily bought and throughly enjoyed!

All in all: top marks for effort. Loved the map, the atmosphere, the venue, the food, and some of the art, and I'd definitely visit again. Many thanks Wick Farm Arts!

Had a lovely day last Friday taking a package of work into my newest gallery: Gallery nine in Bath.

Bath is the closest big city to my new home in Somerset, and so I was very pleased when Sarah Denholm, the proprietor, came around to my stand at the Contemporary Craft Fair in June and asked if I'd like to exhibit in her gallery. A few weeks later I ventured into Bath and I found that her gallery was definitely my sort of place, so I gladly accepted her offer to be my representative in this beautiful city!

The gallery itself is in a really nice area. Margarets Buildings is a small pedestrian street a few minutes walk from the centre. It's less touristy and more residential up here, and the gallery sits alongside some lovely little shops, cafes and restaurants: an ideal situation. 

Inside everthing is beautifully presented. A number of highly reputable jewellers I know have work there: Catherine Hills, Lesley Strickland, Gail Klevan to name just a few. 

There are two floors, and addition to jewellery, Gallery nine has a great collection of ceramics.

These elegant vessels are by David White. Sasha Wardell and Phillip Lydden also have work there which I also love.

And who can resist Sue Binns lovely stripey and really functional mugs and jugs (not me - I have several!)

There was a great selection of paintings and prints. I particularly liked the paintings in this picture, by Neil Canning. Made me wish I had more wall space. The textiles were good too: some lovely scarves. Sarah and I obviously have similar tastes.

All in all, I'd highly recommend a trip to Gallery nine. It's certainly a place I'd be frequenting even if I didn't have some of my jewellery in there.

9b Margarets Buildings, Bath, BA7 2LP

tel 01225 319197

www.gallerynine.co.uk

Moving into a smaller home has upsides and downsides. One plus has been that I've found newer and better solutions to all those piles of paper I used to accumulate with notes about things I loved. The old paper piles hung around and haunted me, accusingly. I couldn't deal with them: what would dealing with them mean? I couldn't possibly buy all those lovely things, and yet neither could I throw away the little snippetty reminders I posessed.

Thankfully the internet often comes to my rescue now. Evernote and Dropbox are great virtual storage spaces for different things. Pinterest is - I think - lesser known and that's partly why I'm focusing on it here. Not only is it just such a nice, visual storage place, but it's also very public, and why not share lovely things? It's fun and inspirational, and definitely worth shouting about!

How it works is that you sign up for an account, and then clip online images and links to virtual pin-boards, covering whatever categories you like. The boards are public, which means you get to see other peoples great finds too.

So, here's a link to images of some jewellery that I love. 

I often find textile designs and graphic design inspirational, so I have a board for 2d designs.

With moving into a new home, decor is never far from my mind right now. My decor board is a great place for keeping track of 'one day' things, plus things that'll never really fit but I love them anyway!

Of course food is never far from my thoughs, and in those days before we had a fully functional kitchen having a food board was a great way of keeping my aspirations alive.

One thing I really missed, when half our possessions were still in London and we were in Somerset, was my collection of ceramics. We've collected a number of beautiful pots and vases over the years, and having them back with us now really makes the cottage feel like home. So I couldn't be without a vessels board: it's been a way of keeping in touch with my missing pots!

That's just a hint of the delights of pinterest. It's a great way of appreciating, promoting, and sharing as well as remembering and finding new lovely / funny / interesting people and things. Try it!

Well we've finally gone and done it - moved full time to Somerset - bye bye London!

It's now nearly seven years ago that I quit my job as CEO of a charity and went back to university to retrain as a jewellery designer. Having made that career change - and subsequently established myself as a designer/maker - moving to the country was the logical next step in the process of simplifying my life and downshifting. It certainly feels like a new and very different phase: I've spent all my adult life living in the inner city, and have never lived in the country before.

I'm really going to miss our old house in London, which really was a very special house, but at least I know that the new occupants are really nice people who already love their new home and will take good care of her.

I'm going to miss the old London garden in particular, as it really was my favourite place, and I spent many happy hours there. 

When we took on this little country cottage the garden was a complete wilderness: you had to slash your way through to the end, and peep through bushes to get a glimpse of the view beyond. It was sad, because the cottage had been a weekend retreat for my in-laws and in it's prime had been very well tended.

Anyway, with a major renovation on our hands, the garden had to be razed. Luckily a friend of mine fostered the few plants we could salvage.

The garden became a building site. At least this gave us an idea of how much space we had, which was much more than we'd expected.

We planned a terrace next to the house, then a cottage garden, then fruit and vegetable beds (that was before we got the allotment!), and then a gravel garden with another terrace at the end overlooking the valley. In case you hadn't gathered - it's a long thin garden!

The bare earth stage was very difficult for me: I missed the lushness of my mature London garden! We've spent a lot of time this spring visiting plant sales and open gardens, and with the addition of kind donations and lots of hard work, the garden is now looking quite green and floriferous. Amazing when you consider that the first plant only went in one year ago! Of course the hedges help a lot. Wish I could think of a good way to use all those redundant plastic plant pots...

Gardening's always a bit of trial and error with the hens. I love the way free-ranging hens bring the garden to life, so in general my policy is that plants have to stand up for themselves against the hens: they don't get mollycoddled. We've made an exception with the vegetable beds which as you can see are netted, and the new roses are getting protected until they're a bit bigger. But apart from them, every plant gets taste tested! Bizarrely, the hens seem to go for different things at different times: the alchemilla mollis which was very hen-pecked in London is completely ignored here! 

A real bonus is the view from the end of the garden, which emerged once the 'hedge' was hacked down. It's terrific (though often also terrifically windy). I'm looking forward to having the terrace that overlooks it a bit more sorted: at the moment it's just a pile of gravel with a bench in the middle!

Anyway - big move done! I'm now settling into life in the country... and hopefully a few more regular blog posts! 

 

Really looking forward to visiting New Designers 2011 this week. I had such a fantastic time there myself four years ago that I get a buzz just from the anticipation! 

This year I'll be visiting on behalf of the Designer Jewellers Group, as every year we select six of the best new jewellery designer makers to join us in our winter show at the Barbican, London. There'll be seven of us on the selection panel this time. We all separately select our favourites and then whittle down the choices: usually a very hard job!

Revisiting the chosen few afterwards to reveal our identities and make offers can be surprisingly emotional as we're all quite excited!

It'll be great to see three of our last year's group exhibiting again this year in the 'One Year On' section: Tom McDowell, Elizabeth Humble, and Nicola Mather.

Two bits of advice to people exhibiting for the first time: please keep a good stock of postcards to hand (we use them to vote for you), and also do use the experience to get used to talking to people about your work! I know it's hard, but be there, next to it, make eye contact, and smile! You really can't tell who's got a great offer up their sleeve, and competition is strong. If we haven't been able to talk to you it's much harder to make a good case for selecting you even if we love your work.

Good luck to everyone!

Just wanted to show you a few quick snaps of my latest outlet: SEED which is now in the Black Swan Arts building in Frome.

Having recently moved to Somerset I've been checking out potential nearby outlets for my jewellery, and had shortlisted both SEED (which used to be in Catherine Hill) and Black Swan Arts. Imagine my distress when I heard that the Black Swan craft shop was closing due to Somerset County Council's arts funding cuts, and SEED was moving! Luckily it was only short lived as it emerged that SEED was moving into Black Swan's shop: a really great solution, to have a home grown business taking over this key Frome facility. 

I was delighted when Sinead approached me about supplying some jewellery for the new enlarged SEED. The shop only opened the day before these photos were taken, and it had all been set up in record time. Not surprisingly there's a freshness to the display, alongside the feel of this being an aladdin's cave, ripe with opportunities to discover and be delighted.

Regulars will recognise the familiar SEED style: every corner looks fantastic, full of gorgeous products, treats for the self and the home. 

The shop is a haven for gift hunters, with everything from cards and candles through to table wear and probably even tables, because most of the display furniture is actually for sale!

Sinead really does have a knack for both selecting and displaying things, so SEED is well worth a visit. The Black Swan Arts gallery is still open on the first floor with a good programme of exhibitions, and the craft studios and Divas cafe are still open too, so there's plenty to see and do within the same building.

2 Bridge Street, Frome, Somerset, BA11 1BB.

 

Just thought I'd share a few bits and pieces from the weekend, in case you missed it...

The Contemporary Craft Fair at Bovey Tracey is really much more than just a craft fair: it's a major event. The landlord in my B&B complained about the £7 entrance fee, but to be honest there was enough there to keep you occupied for a whole day, and considering the cost of entrance to stately homes or other attractions I think this was a complete bargain. Poor little Bovey Tracey must wonder what's hit it!

There's lots going on: music, food, demonstrations and workshops in addition to 165 designer makers. Couldn't resist snapping this little group of knitters underneath a knitting adorned tree...

Wonderful willow huts - I'd have loved one of these as a child (and they still look tempting now)

In fact I nearly opted for another somewhat more adult woven creation: a wonderful hat by Sally-Ann Provan (is that Sally-Ann knitting under the tree? Think so!)

I was also tempted by pots by Katrin Moye, bags and pictures by Dr Bean's Bags, and jewellery by Sarah Lindsay, to name just a few. Wish I'd had time to snap equally fantastic jewellery by Dot Sim, Tanja Ufer, and Suzanne Potter.

One day I'm definitely going to indulge in a bird sculpture by Celia Smith.

This is my stand:

It was all great fun with amazing creations during the day and parties in the evenings. This toy by Robert Race was on an outing to the designers tent...

I wish I'd made it to the toy tent to see more, but the heavens opened on the Sunday and I didn't manage a full exploration.

Never mind - hopefully I'll manage next year!

 

I'm getting really excited now because it's time for the Contemporary Craft Fair in Bovey Tracey again! Last year I had great fun exhibiting: it's one of the friendliest shows, very well run, and is really just a fantastic event with something for everyone! 165 UK designer makers, demonstrations, workshops, entertainment, food: what more could you want?

Good weather? Well amazingly it looks as if the weather this year is going to be sort of sunshine and showery, which I guess is pretty good. A bit of a surprise as it always seems to be either a heatwave or a torrential downpour every time I've been to Bovey so far - this time I might even risk leaving my fan at home!

Anyway - I hope to see you there: I'm on stand B31.

The fair opens on Friday 10th June at 10am, and runs from 10am - 5pm on Saturday and Sunday too. Full details here.