Come for a beautiful Sunday canal walk ...

 

The Shropshire Union canal winds it way through our county going north & south of us. It was an important water way, moving good around safely, especially fragile wares from The Potteries. 

It is an important tourist route with hire boats using it & taking advantage of local pubs when they tie up for the night. 

My choice of a Sunday walk - the canals nearby & we choose a section we had not walked previously, though we had walked part of it. 

Green bathing is a term now used to apply to spending time in nature & the cuttings along our canals are often deep & this time of the year they are bathed in green light from the trees along the cuttings. 

What absolute bliss to walk the canal path from Wheaton Aston to the Stretton Aquaduct that the A5 / Watling street traffic passes under.  It is a highpoint & is a great walk. 

We turned back at the Aquaduct instead of carrying on to Brewood, a walk we do quite often but our car would have been in several miles away. 

A heron followed along, perching on what looked like an abandoned canal boat, perhaps that is his preferred roosting place. We encountered the same heron further down when he moved up the opposite bank to a high spot. 

The boat yard was an interesting view - canal boats have to have their metal hulls inspected every few years 

They have to be repainted 'blacked' to keep them water tight. 

There were some moored up that were in bad order, going nowhere. However the boat yard was busy with a boat hull being sanded. 

These spaces are beautiful & functional, we passed a few other walkers & several runners who were enjoying the tree shade along the canals. 

I hope you have enjoyed the walk with me, thank you for visiting, 

Dee  🚶‍♀️🛳️🚤🪾🌲🌳

Come for a historic tour of Tanners wine merchants ...

 

Last Autumn, I convinced hubby to join me for an evening of folklore at a local English Heritage property of Boscobel House & what an educational evening it was with fabulous company & so much information.

I saw the same fabulous speaker mentioning an evening tour at Tanners Wine Merchants in Shrewsbury town.

I just knew it would be another fabulous evening. 

I pass this impressive shop on my walk up the hill in to town when I visit which is often. I always admire their beautiful windows & the impressive building. 

However, from the street, it just looks like a long building, no hint of what lies behind the elegant façade. 

We were greeted with a complimentary glass of fizz on arrival in a room with the most beautiful leather books. 

It was obviously the clerks room in times gone by with the rows of leather order books, huge fat volumes with the year etc embossed on the spine.  

I could smell the leather when I walked in. 

I have always had a fondness for old books, particularly beautiful ones. 

I peeked in to one & as expected, beautiful handwriting filled the page. 

Alix lead us through to a vast room with enormous vats / barrels set on a floor of worn railway sleepers. 

It was much cooler in here & the original items were everywhere about. 

We then proceeded through the rambling buildings that you would not know are there when passing on the street. 

Enormous rum barrels, all the associated paraphernalia wine merchants would need, beautifully preserved in this space that has been used by the same Tanners family for generations. 

Alix is a natural speaker with an engaging manner & vast knowledge so time passes quickly in her company. 

Our tiny group of 20 was perfect because it felt intimate & not crowded or rushed. 

There are many cellars, rooms at different temperatures & spaces to store wine in this cavernous building. 

We made our way up stairs to the top room that I recognised from the 1984 version of Charles Dicken's 'A Christmas Carol' that was filmed in Shrewsbury. 

This top room had been the offices of Mr Fizziwig & it is where the Christmas party scene was filmed. 

The beams in the room are simply stunning, huge shaped cruck beams & the tiny panes of glass in the windows overlooking the high street. 

A real joy to be in a space that is familiar from the movie. 

The cellars with the traditional wine barrels was authentic; the barrels are having their regular rehydration & care where they are stored in the vaulted, cool space. 

It was over all too soon, the evening flew by in great company & we left, our love of history whetted by the interesting information of one of Shrewsbury's fabulous buildings & the  trade still carried out in the rambling space. 

I hope you have enjoyed the evening with me too, stop by again soon, 

Dee 🍷🍾🛢️

The Norman Parish church of Aston Eyre

While out in the Shropshire countryside on the way back from our fabulous walk at Dudmaston Hall, we passed the village church of Aston Eyre, one we had not stopped at before. 

There are no graves around the church which is quite unusual  but apparently a dispute between The Lord of the Manor, Fitz Aer & the Monks of Shrewsbury Abbey at Morville Priory resulted in all the burials taking place at Morville.   

Knowing nothing of the church, we ventured inside. 

The lovely church information brochures filled us in on the history which always makes the visits more worthwhile because you look out for the details you would otherwise miss.  It is a grade II listed building, much of it dating back to C12. 

There has been a church here for almost 900 years - let that time period sink in. The church was gifted to the villagers of Eston by the Lord of the Manor. Robert Fitz Aer in 1132. At that time, King Stephen was on the throne & there was great civil unrest in the area. 

The small church was taken over by the Benedictine Priory at Morville & used as a Chapel of Ease for the monks living there. 

It became a village church again in the time of Henry VIII who put an end to the power of the monasteries.

The Tympanum over the South Door of the Church is the best example of Norman (1066) carving in Shropshire. It depicts Christs entry in to Jerusalem. He is seen riding on an ass, to his left a bearded man with a young ass, to his right an older man spreading out palm branches. 

The South Door with its long iron hinges has the date 1636 on one of them. It is an impressive door, solid & you appreciate how many thousands of parishioners have passed through it. 

 The Nave has four Norman windows, and an impressive Transitional Chancel arch. 

It is a really peaceful space that has seen worship for almost 900 years, the sense of history is humbling. 

I am so pleased that we did this unexpected stop & could appreciate this space. 

I hope you have enjoyed the visit with me. 

Dee 🙏⛪️🔔

A woodland walk ...

On a free morning, I needed to pop in to the local Shropshire town of Bridgnorth which is always good for a mooch while picking up healthy nuts. 

It sits high above the river Severn & has old castle remains & the walls & gates in to town. 

The town has some beautiful black & white buildings with the interesting windows & attic rooms. 

We had a wander around but our mind was set on a countryside walk at Dudmaston Hall nearby. 

Nearby is the National Trust estate of Dudmaston Hall that I visited earlier this year with my cousin.  

We decided on the Dingle Walk through the woods to the lake that is near the house.  

Being there early meant we had the woods to ourselves, it was lovely & cool under the tree canopy, our only companions being butterflies, birds & blue dragonflies darting about.

The walk brings you in next to the boat house on the lake. 

It was used recently in the tv series filmed around this area called 'Murder before Evensong'  along with the nearby village of Worfield. 

The boathouse was unfortunately locked so we could not peek inside but it has the most stunning twisted chimney stack & the lake is really delightful. 

When I visited the house recently, we took an art tour & looked at the work of Anthony Twentyman whose large sculptures are visible from the room in the house towards the lake. 

Our walk brought us to it & it is interesting shape looking out over the lake with a second one slightly higher up on the lawn terraces. 

The view from inside the house towards the lake sculptures & of the view back to the house. 

From the lake, the view up to the house is so interesting with a flowing curve of purple lavender, then a huge bed of roses alongside the house. 

Next to that is a riotous bed of colourful summer flowers that is too beautiful to ignore. That is how summer planting should be - unashamedly bold. 

This deep border filled to the brim with colourful plants is such a delight. It is bold, colourful & also scented; a real delight & an example of great summer planting. 

It is always good to browse a NT bookshop where gifted books are sold to raise money - I bought a lovely one on Kirstenbosch gardens in the Cape for a mere £2. 

We enjoyed coffee & sandwiches in the beautiful orchard tea gardens before taking leave of the lovely estate again. 

We are so fortunate to have these fabulous places within easy reach, I will visit again to take in the house & art at a leisurely pace. 

I hope you have enjoyed my visit too, do stop by again soon. 

Dee 🪾🌳🚤🚶‍♀️🚶‍♂️🥪

Learning to draw botanicals ...

 

I am a life long learner, always willing to try something new because you never know if you will like it or be any good unless you try it. 

I did a morning workshop with the lovely Emma to try out glass painting with my friend Ellie & what a great time we had.  I really liked her way of supporting people on the day. While there, I noticed a set of 4 workshops for Botanical drawing & I chatted to Emma before I left. I have not spent enough time drawing & so mine are rather basic, but that is why you seek out a workshop & a tutor to guide you through the process.

Even more delightful is that the 4 workshops are held in the stunning Shrewsbury library. I shared the long history in this blog post of the 450 years of Shrewsbury library. It is a fascinating place, pop over & read the post. 

A delightful group of 10 of us ladies gathered in the Darwin room of the library for the workshops. Some took art lessons, some painting lessons & then at least half of us were like me - enthusiastic beginners,  & we skilfully learnt the basics of drawing, pen & pencil work each week, making noticeable progress through the stages until our drawings look very botanical  & pleasing. 

Emma's knowledge & skills certainly had a lot to do with our progress because she suggested improvements with great patience so that we were supported & enthusiastic about it. 

It certainly has made me happier to have a go at botanicals because of the skills we have learnt, I know there is heaps more to learn but practice is the key to learning any new skill. The muscle memory is important, remembering the skills & applying them. 

I have signed up for another 4 week course / workshop in November which will look at winter botanicals. That will be very handy in the run up to the festive season when darker days keep you inside more.

While out in the forests last weekend, I picked various leaf shapes & pressed them as a reference because you look at leaves but don't really see the shapes, veins & details you need when drawing. I pressed them in a magazine & it is a great reference to actually look at them closely. 

I have been spending time practising my drawings, it is not natural yet & I still have to refer to the drawings we did with Emma, but it is a lot quicker & more defined which is hugely satisfying. 

Several of the ladies commented that they will join another set of workshops & I hope they do because it was a lovely group of women. 

Do tell if you indulge your passions or curiosity & try something new. Thank you for stopping by, it is appreciated.

Dee 🖌️👩‍🎨✍️💐🌷🥀🌺