Recalling another recent visit to a nearby UK Stately Home

Once more, greetings to one and all.  It's been a beautiful Spring day, with lots of sunshine here in Nottinghamshire today, even though there was a keen breeze to lower the temperature somewhat.  While still living out of two places, I've still not been able to motivate myself to sew Cuddlies - even though there are many to do - but I have been able to visit another nearby Stately Home - and thought you might like to see some pictures of the brief visit - regrettably cut short by a sharp April Shower (or two!).
This time we visited Newstead Abbey, once owned by the famous English poet, Lord Byron - and now in the care of Nottingham City Council.  

South side of the Abbey - looking over the stream linking two lakes

Lord Byron inherited his title when his great uncle died in May 1798 at the age of 10.  He became the 6th Lord Byron of Rochdale, and with the title came Newstead Abbey - which was in a state of disrepair - so much so, that Byron's mother leased it out to various people during her son's adolescence.  Much of the Abbey remains in a ruined state even now - but there's enough land to accommodate several mansion type residences (mostly privately owned) and a magnificent acreage of parkland, around the Abbey. These are open to the public and  one can to go for long walks -accompanied by children and dogs (on leads);  because there are free-roaming peacocks, as well as many ducks, geese, moorhen and other water birds which frequent the area around a couple of lakes, linked by a stream and water fall.  (On this occasion, we heard, but didn't see the pea fowl - but they have to be taken seriously when one comes upon them - apparently).

Some Canada Geese and a lone Moor Hen - beside one of the Lakes

Parts of the Abbey interior can be visited too, but it wasn't on the agenda this time around.  We did visit the Abbey Shop - where I purchased a post card to send to a long time family friend whose late husband used to run a Restaurant in London's Carnaby Street area - called the Lord Byron, where beautiful home made Greek food was to be found.  The card will be on its way to its intended destination on early next week - hopefully to remind our friend of good times had in days past.

The Abbey Shop doorway is located in the corner of this view of the Abbey.

Clare, Grandson E. and myself decided to take advantage of a bright sunny day earlier this week, and drove to the Abbey (which is located a short distance from were both our homes are located) and with the aid of a annual family pass, drove right in to the car park along a road with rhododendron bushes on either side.  They're going to look fabulous in a week or so when they come into bloom and I'm hoping to be able to visit the Abbey grounds again - when they are at their flowering best; and maybe post a picture of two here when that happens.

The Abbey view from the left of the Entrance to the Shop

This is how the Abbey looks on the immediate right of the Abbey Shop entrance.

We didn't see too much more of the gardens - due for the most part to the onset of a sharp April Shower, but also because we had a Little Person with short legs with us - who kept up the pace admirably, but after a 40 minute brisk walk was understandably tiring.  So, on the way back we admired the garden view - in front of this aspect of the Abbey.

A weeping willow shrouding the stream linking the two lakes over-looked by the Abbey view in the first photo

On the left of this picture, you can see a waterfall from the lake the other side of this daffodil decorated slope.

A head-on view of the willow tree, with the stream into which the waterfall goes

 After admiring the budding rhododendron bushes along the long driveway from the main road to the Abbey itself, the view shown below is the one  we got as we drove into the Car Park area.

There's a cricket ground nearby, as well - so one can see why the grounds are so popular for the local visiting public.  It's also great that we can take advantage of the space - and believe me, we certainly will be doing so, provided the capricious English Spring weather allows us so to do.

While I may not have been motivated to sew Cuddlies this week, I have spent some time tidying up the way our Cuddlies Shop is arranged - to take advantage of the overall Etsy.com "New Look" for all our Shops.  I've also taken advantage of an offer to create a website for the Cuddlies.  It's something I've been thinking about for some time - but having purchased the domain name (to be revealed shortly), I'm now not sure how to go about linking it to this blog, and the Shop as well. Assistance has been sought from Team Members and Etsy Support itself - and  I hope to be proficient in this new look Cuddlies era soon.

Until next week, folks - hope this find everyone having a good time and keeping well.

Your friend - Isobel,

Visit to Hardwick Hall - Part 2

Hello there Everyone:
Again, it's Isobel posting this week's blog - Cy Bear is doing his guardian duties sitting on my pillow in the flat, while I continue to stay with Clare, Alan and GrandsonE.  This arrangement has been on going for some time, and although I've done some sewing (replacement Baby Bunnies), I've found it difficult to get stuck in - with notions and fabric often in the "other place", when I do get around to it in the evening.  Hopefully, things will be back to normal soon - but in the meantime, the ColdhamCuddlies have been very fortunate in being highlighted in a huge number of Treasuries - thanks to the wonderful supportive actions of several Team Mates on my Etsy Teams in the past week.  That's also meant less time for making Cuddlies!
However, at the end of last week's unexpected topic, I did say I had further pictures of our visit to Hardwick Hall to show you - so without more ado, here they come!

This is the west facing view of Hardwick Hall (pretend you've come along the side of the south side and turned in to this side of the house - from the left of the picture).  The family group is in the foreground.  You can see the balustrade along the roof continues, and each wing of the house has the E and S indicating it's the residence of "Elizabeth, Countess of Shrewsbury"!  The windows are also well to the fore.

If one was inside and looking out of the southern face of Hardwick Hall, this avenue of Yew Hedges would be what you see - looking towards the stables and other Estate out-buildings I showed in my last week's post.

There is a huge pond just in front of the west-facing side of the Hall, and the afternoon we were there, just one drake could be found swimming in the immense structure.  The whole pond can be seen in the first picture - just to the right of the family group!

If you were looking out of Hall, on the west side, this is the view you would get - looking over the Estate for as far as the eye can see.  Being Springtime, the Estate sheep were grazing and the day we were there, we could see lots of baby lambs - although, because of the very blustery wind, they weren't doing their usual skipping about.

We walked across the grass to the gap between the yew hedge, to see how the sheep were being kept away from the Hall gardens, by means of a big ditch - otherwise known as a "Ha-Ha".  You can see from the previous photo, the ditch is not visible from inside the Hall. Having arrived early on in the afternoon, we had, had to wait to enter the Hall itself.  So, as the weather wasn't improving, and the front door opening time was imminent, the party moved back to the front entrance and moved out of the bitter cold wind - into the Banqueting Hall, which runs from the front entrance through almost the whole length of the house.

The Banqueting Hall seems to be a dark place, but in fact it is not.  I'd hazard a guess that on a bright, sunny day, the light would flood in and the embroidery and paintings would show off to a much better effect.  However, my snapshots do give you an idea of the height and splendour of the inside of Hardwick Hall.  (This is just the ground floor!)

Here is a better view of the Coat of Arms of the Earl of Shrewsbury, and throughout the inner rooms on the Ground Floor of the Hall visitors can see examples of the exquisite embroidery commissions by Bess of  Hardwick during the 1570's.  One commemorating some of the "Legend of Good Women" by Chaucer - which as a well-educated lady of the time, Bess of Hardwick would have known well. -  is shown below of  Penelope, Lucretia and Cleopatra. 

Photography is allowed inside Hardwick Hall, but flash lights are not.  So, although I did use a flash to take these inside pictures, they are not as clear as they might be had a light been allowed.  Given that all these hangings were made from medieval church vestments and sewn mostly by Bess of Hardwick's household servants, they are in amazing condition.  Professional embroiderers would have been responsible for the designs.  In all, according to a 1601 inventory, there are "fyve peeces of hangings of Cloth of golde velvett and other like stuffe imbrodered with pictures of the vertues.....every piece being twelve foote deep".    Here's another example - 

and yet another - which I think could be part of the collection celebrating the Noble Women of Chaucers tale.

Even to the untrained eye, and allowing for no flash lights, there is real difference in quality of these hangings, and given that they've been hanging since the 1570's, these embroideries are currently being conserved at the National Trust Textile Conservation Studio, the work having been started in 2012.  Each hanging have different types and levels of damage, so will vary in times taken for the conservation work to be carried out. Certain stages do remain the same however. For those who currently enjoy embroidery or other stitching crafts, according to the leaflet describing the work - 
(a) The condition of the hanging is assessed - and conservation needs decided. (b) Pictures are then taken- because everything a conservator does should be reversible, and they provide a record of the work done on each hanging. (c) The front is then cleaned - making the fabric colour and threads more visible.  Previous repairs will kept unless they threaten the hanging's overall stability. (d) Very fragile areas will be covered with protective netting.
As I said in my last week's post, the trip to Hardwick Hall was halted because I had found myself unable to walk much more.  We'd only done the Ground Floor of the Hall, and there are two more floors to explore another time. 
But before I close this blog about Hardwick Hall, before the weather closed in and made outside exploration uncomfortable, I did manage to take one more picture - confirming that Spring is not too far away - with daffodils showing between some of the trees in the Hardwick Hall gardens.

So - here's to the next time:  goodness knows what I'll be posting about then, but I do hope you've enjoyed sharing this visit to one of the picturesque Stately Homes in our local vicinity.  We're blessed with many of them. Your Friend, Isobel