Drinking in the history of Shrewsbury's pubs ...

A recent newspaper article debunked the myths of many pubs nationally claiming great age to them. 

Our county town of Shrewsbury was used to film Charles Dicken's A Christmas Carol in 1984 & has several pubs / inns with the age noted (as is common) and the Henry Tudor Inn gets a mention. I walk past it often on my trips so read the note with interest. 

The article (from a book) says that the claim on the front of the Henry Tudor Inn that it was established i 1429 is actually true. The timbers have been carbon-dated to 1426 - how fascinating is that to have been serving drinks for 600 years. 

THE CLAIM – DATES BACK TO 1429

Owner Joule’s Brewery claims that the pub has ‘carbon-dated origins from 1429’.

IS IT TRUE? Yes it is.

James writes: ‘The front range of the property has been tree-ring dated to 1430-31 and was probably built as a mixed-purpose commercial enterprise – including a brewhouse and taproom - for the Shrewsbury MP Hugh Wygan.

‘The southern range, where the present bar is located, has a slightly earlier felling date of 1426.’

I have not been in the pub but I might be tempted on my next visit to pop in. 

The Henry Tudor Inn is next door to The Lion Hotel which is famous for its connection to Charles Darwin. Its website shares this info

 “For most travellers, The Lion Hotel is the end of their journey as they arrive in Shrewsbury for a short break to explore this historic town. However, for one intrepid traveller, The Lion Hotel was the start of an epic adventure. Twenty-two-year-old Charles Darwin departed the hotel in haste on Monday, September 5, 1831, by stagecoach to London on his way to join HMS Beagle for a five-year trip, which would end with him writing his controversial book on evolution, The Origin of Species”. – John Butterworth, ‘Four Centuries at The Lion Hotel, Shrewsbury’.

What fascinating times these must have been. This guide mentions some of Shrewsbury's old pubs

Just over the road from the above two Inns is The Nag's Head , a 14th Century Historic Pub

The Nag's Head

One of Shrewsbury's best-known pubs, The Nags Head dates back to the 16th century. Whilst the building is a classic Tudor timber frame, the front is now hidden behind a stucco facade. The unique side-opening sash windows that grace the front elevation are sandwiched between carved beams, considered to be the finest examples of Tudor carving in Shrewsbury.

Attached to the rear of the pub are the remains of Nags Head House, which dates back to the late medieval period. This structure was moved here in the 1950s.

Some may recognise Nags Head House from A Christmas Carol (1984) which was filmed here in Shrewsbury. It is, according to Scrooge, the “foulest part of the town” and is where the ghost of Christmas Future brings him to watch as his belongings are sold.

I have not visited The Nag's Head either. 

Higher  up in town there is The Loggerheads circa 1665, used as a pub from 1780.

I hope you have found this as interesting as I have,  our county town, nestled in the loop of the Severn River is always interesting. 

Thank you for stopping by & taking the time to share or comment; it is appreciated. 

Dee 🏯🏨🍂

I go to feed my soul ...

I go to lose my mind & feed my soul 

This well known quote describes how I live my life - I need spaces that feed my soul & am happy to seek them out on my own because I enjoy quiet & solitude. 

Solitude is when your inner voice speaks to you, how you ground yourself. 

You are familiar with my favourite local abbey Ruins - there is something there that draws me to it & I visit often when I need space. 

However, the gate is now shut for winter so a walk is needed to it & having the wrong shoes with me for the muddy road, on a whim I decided to visit Buildwas Abbey which is a mere 15 minutes away. 

The joy of driving in to the parking & being the only car & person there - absolute bliss. 

These places take on a different atmosphere when quiet; they almost resonate with their spiritual past & this is what feeds the soul. 

I have visited Buildwas Abbey less than a handful of times only, even though it is not far. This is a comprehensive history of this fascinating space, dating right back to the early 1100's. 

It was a Cistercian abbey with a 12th century church and an original Chapter House with interesting tiles on the floor. 

The tiles are small with many patterns & varied markings. If they could only speak & tell us of the interesting lives who have walked over them for centuries ... 

The vaulted ceilings on these side rooms are impressive but I always find the dark ones a little off putting. 

The River Severn is very close by & that would have supplied the Abbey with all their needs. 

I am glad I stopped off on a whim & even more pleased that I had the space entirely to myself, except for some squirrels who were darting about in the Autumn foliage. 

I hope you have enjoyed this return visit with me, thank you for stopping by, 

Dee 

Infused date & banana loaf on a damp autumn morning ...

 I think we all have times when we look at the fruit bowl & think; how did the bananas go soft so quickly? 

Today was such a morning & as I picked up the last 3 bananas, I thought - I have everything in so waste not & turn them in to a banana loaf. This is a recipe I bake regularly with variations including with cranberries

My store cupboards usually contain everything needed for these impromptu baking times, as well as some extras.  Everyone likes a homemade treat so I took out some dates, desiccated coconut & even a shake of chocolate bits that usually end up in cookies. 

This is my tried & trusty recipe that I often double to make a loaf & some muffins, today just a loaf.  I used a paper lined loaf tin. 

Infused date & banana loaf

The dates felt a bit underwhelming so I cut up about 100g & put them to soak in a warm Earl Grey / Rooibos (Red Bush) tea mixture to just cover them & plump them up again while I made up the rest of the mixture.

Preheat the oven to 175C (for a fan oven)

Ingredients

130g butter 

150g dark brown sugar

2 medium eggs

3 large ripe bananas, mashed

240g self raising flour & 1 tablespoon baking powder 

1 tsp of any spices you like - mixed spice, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger etc 

1 tsp vanilla extract. 

Line a loaf tin with lining paper or grease & flour a loaf tin. 

Cream the butter & sugar until pale  & fluffy.

Add the eggs to the mixture, along with a bit of the flour to stop the mixture curdling. 

Add the mashed bananas & the drained chopped dates & mix well. Sift in the flour, baking powder, spices, vanilla extract & mix in well. 

Pour in to the loaf tin or lined, deep muffin tins & bake in the middle of the oven for about 50-60 minutes or until a knife comes out clean from testing. 

Cool on a cake rack & enjoy with a hot cuppa. It  can be eaten as is or lightly buttered. 

The house smelt absolutely wonderful with the spices & a hint of the tea infusion (you can naturally skip this step if you don’t like infused fruit) 

Do let me know if you make it or what variations you prefer.

Thank you for stopping by, liking, sharing or commenting. 

Dee 👩‍🍳🍪🍞🍌

#10 Circular Stitching - Fascinating fungi

 Month 10 of 12 months circular stitching saw the brief look at fascinating fungi & the forest floor in late Autumn when fungi are abundant & varied.  The previous ones are all listed here ...

The brief was to make fungi in our 4 inch circle. The suggested stitches were the fly stitch combined with the pistol stitch. 

It was suggested to make 3 smaller lightly padded Suffolk puffs then turn them over for the stitching to be done on the round back, suggesting the gills of the mushrooms 

I remembered that I still had these 3 beaded & stitched moss shapes from a stitch along on another group  - making zen is always so inspirational.

The stitches had been challenging & varied - several stitch combinations in each shape & they were still on a hoop along with the various green threads I had used.  They are perfect to combine with this challenge because fungi & moss live side by side on the forest floor. 

I cut out the 3 shapes & decided to add them to the already cut shapes I had prepared for the year. 

I came across this forest scene stamp in my stash & thought - why not? 

It is my understanding that heat will set the ink from normal stamp pads on fabric so I stamped the forest then heated it to set (supposedly.) 

The 4 inch circle was drawn on this stamped background then the cut out moss shapes positioned along the circle. 

I made 2 brown Suffolk puffs, turning the brown fabric around so the reverse was used as it was a gentler colour for the fungi. 

I decided to use the gathered side & as suggested, whip stitched the edges to give it a slightly raised look & then whipped some of the folds to give the structure of the underside of the fungi. 

 The 3 shapes were stitched on to the circular shape, some beads in the same colour dotted around the remaining circular shape. 

We had made these tiny flower shapes in our Blossom stitching in August so I combined circles in green & brown fabric to make the flower shapes & thought just 3 was needed on the forest floor. 

I am not sure about this but I lightly felted in some wafts of felting wool to suggest leaves & canopy on  the stamped background. 

The 3 edges were machined, the stiffener added in & the last edge stitched. It was overstitched by hand with blanket stitch as required so that the final task after month 12 will be to join them - we do not know that detail yet but I am confident mine will be fine as I have followed the binding instructions. 

It is interesting doing something quite different each month, we are encouraged to be bold & original & this is what I have done. 

Edited note - I was pleased that I pushed the boat out & incorporated stamping in this effort but it felt unfinished so I thought - it is mine completely so I am going to try something else. 

I used Ikea fabric pens to lightly add in details on the stamped background to give it definition. Just very light mark making to make it feel more complete & it certainly helped. What do you think? 

Thank you for stopping by, taking time to read, like, share or comment, 

Dee 🪡📍🧵🍂

Felting an Autumn scene with heather & sheep ...

 In 2022, I took a 3D free motion embroidery day course in using dissolvable film to create a tree which was mounted in a tea cup. The details are here and the results are here ...  

A cousin has been visiting & she asked about how needle felting is done so I got down some of the things, it is easier to do than explain. 

My teacup & the test piece was close at hand so we used that as inspiration. 

It was the first  time she had done needle felting so the multi needle stabber with the safety piece was sensible. I had learnt to needle felt on a local course in 2017  & love the creativeness of it. 

Time passed so quickly while cousin & I felted a scene.  I decided to do 3 fat Shropshire sheep for mine; my previous one had 5 smaller ones but I like a change. 

The faces & legs are stitched on with black thread & after a few stitches, they looked good, like well fed sheep in early Autumn. I had felted in some sheep on my Scottish scroll with wool I had found along the way so had had recent practise. 

Cousin Lorraine tinkered with her trees the next morning & her scene was very sweet. She really enjoyed the new challenge & went away with some of my bits to carry on with some more felting. 

I have put both my little panels together with my 3D tree, they are similar but not the same. The lifelong teacher in me loves sharing my skills & inspiring others. 

I hope  you  find time to seize the moment & learn new skills whenever the opportunity arises. 

Thanks for stopping by, taking time to read & liking or sharing the blog, it is much appreciated. 

Dee 📍🧵🪡🐏🐑

Sir Christopher Wren's connection to St Mary's church, Ingestre

 On a visit to Staffordshire, we made a detour to the Ingestre golf course where hubby had recently played & won in a tournament. He had spied a church on the estate & wanted to see more.

The estate on which the golf course is, has so many interesting cottages, buildings & a church that is the only church outside of London attributed to Sir Christopher Wren, the acclaimed architect of St Paul's Cathedral in London & many others rebuilt after the Great Fire of London in 1666.

The church details are as such ... 

The Church to the south-east of the house dates to 1673, and is attributed to Sir Christopher Wren. The formal gardens of that time are extensive. There is a large wilderness on the hill above to the west, and a parterre towards the park to the north.

The inside is absolutely beautiful with impressive tombs & monuments to the Earls of Shrewsbury & other members of the Chetwynd, Talbot & Chetwynd-Talbot families. 

Some of the church windows come from the original church before it was remodelled by Sir Christopher Wren; they are not as bright as the later ones. Some windows were Victorian & were made in the workshops of William Morris, the leader of the Arts  & Crafts Movement. These reflect the richness of the pre-Raphaelite colours.

The cemetery around the church is fascinating too with many family plots & impressive headstones. 

I was touched by this tribute to a teacher.  How amazing to be recognised for his dedication to his profession. It is some thing us educators aspire to; to have our contribution acknowledged. 

A very interesting time soaking in history in this small church set in an estate n that would have been hugely influential in its time. 

I hope you have enjoyed the visit with me, do stop by again, subscribe & share the link please. 

Dee 

A return to Shugborough in Staffordshire ...

 It has been some years since we visited the extensive Shugborough Estate in Staffordshire. 

It has been in the same family for generations, the most recent famous inhabitant being the acclaimed photographer Patrick Anson, 5th Earl of Lichfield. His close connection to the Royal Family through the Bowes Lyon family of Elizabeth, the Queen Mother gave him access to the royals & his photographs of them are well known. 

The Anson line at Shugborough stretches way back to 1624 & the 2 brothers, Thomas & George. George spent 4 years circumnavigating the globe. They started off with 7 ships & returned with just 1 after the trials & tribulations of the voyages. 

The Wind House was particularly lovely with beautiful stained glass windows & doors on either side which would have given stunning view out over the estate. 

The downstairs life of servants, footmen, butlers, ladies maids, scullery maids etc is always interesting. The wages they were paid were set out with the actual names of those who worked at the estate (information from census records) and their wages details given. For many, life at the estate was good with food & accommodation secured. They would have had better jobs than others working on farms etc. 

Life in the laundry, turning out pristine clothes & bedding etc with very basic articles. It was a physically demanding job ... 

Gleaming copper pots, pans & moulds line the shelves. They would have turned out fantastic meals for guests upstairs ... 

The Anson line at Shugborough stretches way back to 1624 & the 2 brothers, Thomas & George. George spent 4 years circumnavigating the globe. They started off with 7 ships & returned with just 1 after the trials & tribulations of the voyages. 

It is a fascinating place with strong oriental influences from their travels, the Chinese house dating back to 1747.  It is a much photographed feature with its red oriental bridge in the foreground. 

Lord Lichfield's apartments are no photography allowed space but it is a fascinating glimpse in to that time & his influence on photography. 

I am glad we returned to it, another visit in the spring perhaps? 

Thank you for stopping by, leaving a comment or just subscribing & sharing the blog. 
Dee 🧹🏡🪑⛲️🏞️

I am finished Picking up the Pieces (I think) ...

At the start of September, I was so fortunate to join the lovely Christine of Gentlework in a days course entitled 'Picking up the pieces'. 

This is what our day was like as we spent the day using up little pieces of fabric The time passed way too quickly, as it did on the previous workshop I did a decade before in our county town of Shrewsbury. 

The whole idea is totally indulgent - the spend the day creating a panel for no reason other than to inspire us - how fabulous is that?  This is some of the completed details ... 

I had positioned all my fabric bits & stitched them down at the workshop & have since then spent hours adding in the details that I really like. Hand sewing is a meditative process where you just concentrate on adding in details. It is a very creative experience because you have to draw from your stitch knowledge to find the ones that  will suit that section. I have my favourite stitches & sometimes simple is often best. I am fortunate to have a good selection of buttons that came from my late mother in law who was a very accomplished sewer but always with a purpose. I have used some of her vintage buttons & silk threads in this piece. 

I like the pieces to have some form of continuity & so added similar colours or finished the shapes with obvious stitching that completes it - old & new evident.    

  I also like merging fabrics to create something new (on the triangles at the top left) and the square pink on the top right. The lace, buttons & beads were vintage. 

I fortunately had several cards of vintage silk threads that were used for stockings. I used them in various thicknesses. 

The soft colours of the vintage silk threads were the right colour to pick up the pinks & blues of the patterns & to provide continuity across the sections. 

I also used vintage & modern threads in the stitching. 

One thing I noticed 10 years apart - the blue fabric looks identical to the one I used on my panel I did in 2013. Do you agree? 

It is very enlightening that I used the same / a very similar blue & pink fabric swatch to complete both panels. Perhaps we are just drawn to certain combinations ... 

The cow parsley flowers are a new one for me - I looked it up & think they look perfect filling in the space from the lettering to the triangles - they just look right in their muted shades with the tall stems reaching in to the space... 

The final part was to add a plain backing fabric & to blanket stitch it to the edges to give a neat edge. 

I fortunately acquired this lovely set of Coats Mercer - crochet threads recently. The colours are so lovely & they are in various weights / thicknesses which gives lots of options. I used one of these threads for the edge blanket stitch. It was the perfect colour in single strand because it did not distract from the panel at all, yet it held it all together. 

I think it is done, though I know that I might be tempted to tinker ... 

These are the stitches I mostly used on this piece, stitches I am comfortable with & which blend together harmoniously. 

I will probably sew loops on the back  & hang it in the room where I have all my sewing things. How would you display it? 

This is the panel from the start (top & bottom left) to the completed one. I like the pops of pink & the hints of blue with light touches of green - I think the colours go well together. 

Thank you for stopping by & sharing this workshop  stitching. I hope I have inspired you to do something for the sake of the love of stitching & creating. 

Dee 🧵📍🪡✔️