Here Comes The Sun: Newcastle Arts Festival

Get down to Newcastle Co. Down this weekend for a great Arts Festival, lots to do for young and old, and all in glorious sunsine!

These pictures were all taken this morning:

Newcastle promenade yarn-bombed

Some lively yarn-related goings on in the town this morning!

Newcastle promenade yarn-bombed « newcastle rocks:

'via Blog this'

2nd Anniversary

It's two years to the day that we completed the purchase of 64 Dromara Road - and what a time it's been. So much done and yet the time seems to have flown. We were so excited that first day.

From the initial clearing of the site, to moving the mobile home in, starting the gardens, renovating the Turnip House Workshop, and now finishing the Gallery, it's been non stop 'doing'.

Still, the enthusiasm has not waned, we're just as excited and full of plans as we were then. 

Parts of the project are more or less realised, (or at least in a usable condition). 

So along with the anticipation of what's to come, we can enjoy what we've achieved.

Now that's an even happier state of being!

International Felting

A great day today felting with new friends from France.

Test pieces and felt pens in the morning, and then fortified by soup and cake there were major bowl creations after lunch:

fantastic!

getting started - mop tops!

just add water - and effort!

getting stuck in

the finished products - riotous colour!

justly proud of their handiwork

very creative

all my own work - well done

Picture perfect - Sunday afternoon

Great day today - good (by our current dismal standards!) weather, about 16 degrees C but dry and sunny on and off.

It is good just to be about the Gallery and garden on days like this - not like working at all!

Some pictures:

sunny Sunday - sunflowers

Crocosmiae Lucifer - living up to it's name

the largest daisy flower I've ever seen

Agyranthemum - my favourite

new flower bed and water tank bed - plus Furby on the prowl!

looking to the Mountains

up to Slievenaboley

from the picnic lawn

the Gallery behind the sunflowers

the Sun Terrace - really warm today

the fireplace and dresser

up the street

looking across to the fruit garden

Bernagh with sunflower

Jewellery by Frances White in the Gallery

welcome!

Renovation Reflections

the roof of the dwelling house - a sorry sight

I have just put down some of our thoughts  for the website on what we're about up here. 


It kind of sharpens the focus and objectives to take a step back now and again, take stock, and re-prioritise.


Now that the gallery is open, and we are getting a steady flow of people, it really feels like the old place is coming back to life, albeit in a different incarnation. 

It's heartening to see the old newspapers, plans, pictures and artefacts from the house being poured over, sparking conversations about other times and places. 


It feels good.

Felt pens at the ready!

Today we had another felt workshop with 5 delightful creators. Lots of craic and enormous amount of work produced, despite the laughter and the food!

mad felt pens!

fantastic designs on our sample pieces

full of good cheer - and carrot & coriander soup!

look what we made!

bags to carry everything home!

 More Felt Workshop dates to come, check out the website www.turniphouse.com Or book your own with three or four friends at a time to suit you!

Home Sweet Home

been putting together pictures for the website, which I am determined to keep more 'alive' these days, and thought that they'd look good here too:

the turnip house and outbuildings, taken from the fruit garden - now more or less clear of nettles

 a long shot across the picnic lawn to the south west end of the gallery - with terrace seating, the greenhouse an ancient wheelbarrow full of sunflowers - and our satellite dish!

 the turnip house from the flowerbed, lovely colours really set this off

 Charlie on the lawn 

daisies and hollyhocks