Christmas is coming

Christmas is coming! Everywhere is starting to sparkle, with lights in our towns, lots of festivals and markets. I must admit I can get a bit 'Bah, humbug' about it on occasion, when I focus on how consumerist it has become. I do, however, try to get into the spirit of it, so when friends suggested we visited a Christmas Tree Festival, I decided to go with them. It was held in the church of St James, Thornton. There were 49 trees, each one decorated by a local group, organisation or charity. Each had a donation bucket for the relevant cause, so it is a way of raising money for good - a worthy aim at this season.

It proved to be quite tricky to photograph but I did my best, so here is a selection of shots to give a flavour of some of the innovative themes.

I couldn't decide whether I liked the football club gingerbread men best or the rather cute little cricketers, representing Thornton Cricket Club.

Leeds Light Night 2

On the way back to the rail station to get my train home, I watched an installation called 'The Vision', by Studio Ocubo from Portugal, which was projected onto the facade of the Queen's Hotel. It lasted about five minutes; these things must take weeks of work to put together in order to produce just those five minutes.

I must admit I found rather more joy, personally, in watching the children walking around with light lasers, lit balloons and umbrellas threaded with lights. The advent of the LED has really sparked off a revolution and there were many street sellers with carts full of sparkly wares.

Leeds Light Night 1

I happened to be in Leeds city centre one day last week and decided I'd stay into the evening to see some of the annual Light Night, a two day festival when key buildings in the city are illuminated and there are sound and light installations at various points.

I found that many of the events were like 'performances' so there turned out to be quite a lot of waiting around for things to start. With that, and the crowds and the rain, I soon realised I wasn't really in the mood for it all. (To be honest, these days I seldom am in the mood for cities with their bustle and noise.) There was a parade too but I decided not to stay for that.

I saw a performance by a flying violinist from Cirque Bijou, in the Trinity shopping centre. Quite spectacular, with fireworks too - but I had to wait ages for just five minutes of action!

There were some rather fun installations like illuminated musical see-saws and cycles that people could ride to light up the structure with their pedal power.

There was also a pretty display of lights hung from the trees in St John's churchyard, with (recorded) music by Opera North's orchestra, performing 'Swans Migrating' by Rautavaara and an actual piano recital in the church itself. I'm sure the music was wonderful but, as I'm so deaf, it sadly didn't mean much to me. In future years I will have to be more careful to choose which events to see. There were many on offer but so spread out around the city centre that you couldn't possibly see them all. There are, I notice, videos on YouTube now too, which is possibly an easier way to experience it all, in more comfort!

Festival Weekend 2

Saltaire Festival 2019
Amazingly, the second Saturday of Saltaire Festival was a very warm and sunny day too, rare for this time of year. (Though the Sunday was more traditionally seasonal again, with dull skies and drizzle!) The crowds flocked to the village to enjoy the various markets, a vintage fair in the Victoria Hall and the live music in the park. Personally, I prefer the first weekend, which has much more of a community feel to it, but you couldn't help getting caught up in the lively atmosphere and it was lovely to see folks enjoying themselves. Exhibition Road is pedestrianised for the Continental Market, with street food and gifts for sale.

Victoria Road (seen here from one of the upper windows in Salts Mill) was partially pedestrianised and was thus a lot safer than in previous years. It doesn't look too crowded here but there was a huge jam of people further down, trying to cross the narrow footbridge into the park. Check out the hordes of people getting off the train in the station, too! When it's busy like this, it always reminds me of the old film clips I've seen of Saltaire in the early 20th century, when people came here at weekends to enjoy the pleasure grounds up in Shipley Glen. Many things don't really change, do they?

It was very crowded in Roberts Park and I didn't stay long. There was another market and many food and drink outlets, all around the main stage where they have live music all afternoon. The act I caught was a band called Majesty, a reggae soul band, with singer Hayley Gaftarnick.

Front garden fabulousness

Saltaire Festival 2019
Many of Saltaire's houses don't have front gardens but Viv's is one of the larger houses on Albert Road, built, they say, for the more significant members of Victorian Saltaire's community: senior managers at the Mill, teachers, accountants and lawyers.

Someone had decided to sit and rest on their bench... It would be too impolite to call this lady a scarecrow. She was beautifully made with felted wool features. (Great hair!) There were some baby succulents for sale too, so sweet, and a selection of tiny, colourful, crocheted hanging baskets. And, yes, more blue and white pottery and pretty fabrics.

Also on display was this pair of worn leather clogs, with heavy wooden soles, that were traditionally worn by mill workers. This pair had rubber soles over the wood. They found them under the floorboards of their house, so it is possible they belonged to a previous occupant of the house who worked at Salts Mill. If only objects could talk, what stories they'd tell!

Back yard blues

Saltaire Festival 2019
It sometimes shocks me to realise that I've lived in Saltaire for 20 years this year, longer than I've stayed anywhere else. I love it and one of the things I love most is the sense of community, how I have a social network fostered simply through bumping into people in the street, or at events in which we have a shared interest, or even through being 'friends of friends'. One such acquaintance is Viv. I wouldn't exactly say we're close friends, as we've never been to each other's houses (in fact, I didn't even know where she lived until recently) but we've stopped and chatted at various times over the years and I'm always pleased to see her. We met a week or two ago in the village and had an amicable chat. She mentioned then that she was opening her garden as part of this year's Festival and invited me to visit, so of course I did. It was only when I arrived at her house that I realised I'd taken a photo of it before - HERE.  She's clearly a lover of blue and white. Her pretty, walled back yard had a selection of blue glassware, blue and white pottery and fabrics, as well as some lovely plants and a fine selection of succulents, nurtured by her partner.

I've never really paid much attention to succulents until recently. I was interested in the amazing display they have a Cliffe Castle (HERE), and then noticed the variety of plants in the alpine house at RHS Harlow Carr. I've even planted up a small stone trough with some this year. The leaf forms are fascinating: whorls, crinkles, spikes and layers. It's magic too when they suddenly throw up a flower, intricate and vibrantly coloured. I think I'm rapidly becoming a succulent fan.

Yardfest

 Saltaire Festival 2019
As well as a series of Open Gardens around the village, the Saltaire Festival encourages 'pop-up' events, where people can provide refreshments, sell their wares or explore and educate visitors about a hobby or interest. This year there were Mexican breakfasts, the history of gin, poetry, letterpress printing and specimens of 150m-year-old fossils from the Yorkshire coast, among the varied offerings. For several years, some neighbours on George Street have hosted 'Yardfest'. They close the road and provide live music, food from Edward Street Bakery and drinks from the Cap and Collar, a local bar. There's stuff for the kids to do and it usually ends up with people dancing in the street. All good fun.

The Forest of Saltaire

  
Saltaire Festival 2019
Planting trees and hedgerows combats climate change, prevents flooding, regenerates landscapes and provides habitat for wildlife. What's not to like? (As they say).

The Forest of Saltaire is an interesting project that aims to encourage people to grow and plant native trees within our local area. Many of Saltaire's small gardens and yards, my own included, are not big enough for a full sized tree. Nevertheless, they are encouraging local people to plant tree seeds (which they can provide) in a pot, nurture and water the plant and, after two years, return it to the project team to be planted out in a suitable local spot.

Such a great idea! There is a Facebook page that interested people can join - search for The Forest of Saltaire. It's very new, so no doubt there'll be more information as time goes on. I might have a go at this. If I put a pot in my back garden, that might discourage the grey squirrels from digging up the seed!

Terence Lister sculptures

Saltaire Festival 2019
One of Saltaire's larger gardens on Albert Road was hosting a number of sculptures by Terence Lister, an artist based in Huddersfield. Most of them were depictions, in one form or another, of the human body. I really liked the wooden panel, below, which used the wood grain as well as some gentle carving to subtly suggest the curves and shaping of a nude torso.

This wooden head also had so much character:

Two figures that might suggest Adam and Eve were placed beside a tomato plant - a love apple. I'm sure that wasn't an accidental placement.

These were attractive displays of very good work. Much of it appealed to me. Pity I'm not wealthy!

Bird life

                                                   
Saltaire Festival 2019 An almost hidden gateway off the busy Saltaire Road...  a curving, secluded path ... and a tiny, charming, hidden garden complete with a wildlife pond. Saltaire is full of surprises and the Festival's Open Gardens enable visitors to discover some of them.

This year's Festival did not have the usual sculpture trail as part of the Open Gardens, but some residents had organised their own art exhibits. Hiding in the magical little patch above, there were a series of bird sculptures and ceramics by Jo Whitehead, Kate Rawnsley and Sarah Muller. They were celebrating the birds that live alongside us and enrich our lives, whilst also marking the tragic decline in song bird numbers.

I particularly liked the small bowl, below, cradling two little eggs; the combination of shades of terracotta and blue grey was beautiful.

Festival Sunday

Saltaire Festival 2019
In contrast to the sunny Saturday, the first Sunday of Saltaire Festival was dull, overcast and rather chilly. I was free to wander and take photos though, as I'd delivered my grandchildren safely back to their parents, so I explored quite a few of the Open Gardens. I was also able to see some of the choirs taking part in Saltaire Sings. Community choirs seem to be a growing trend and we now have the Great Yorkshire Chorus, launched about a year ago in Saltaire. They are fairly easy to spot in their colourful bright purple and orange tops. Being so deaf, I can't really tell good music from bad but they had drawn a good crowd outside the Victoria Hall. It's a large choir too, obviously attracting people to join, so I presume they are pretty good at what they do.

The serious business of ice cream

Saltaire Festival 2019
Another activity that needed intense concentration... the serious business of eating ice cream. Not just any old ice cream either... These were carefully curated concoctions of whippy ice cream in a wafer cone and sprinkles and raspberry sauce and a chocolate flake and a spoon! (They were most definite about what they wanted.) Not a drop was spilled.

The serious work of childhood

Saltaire Festival 2019
There were a few activities laid on for children as part of the Festival, perhaps not as many as in past years but my granddaughters certainly enjoyed themselves.

Here they were engaged in creating 'cameras' out of egg boxes, with plastic lids attached as 'lenses' and 'shutter buttons'.  They drew pictures on small pieces of paper to store inside as 'photographs'. Both of them settled down to the task with intense concentration, producing cameras that they seemed quite pleased with (even though the plastic lids kept falling off!)

Then there was the opportunity for a 'framed photo' - taken with Gran's camera, of course.

Day of Dance

Saltaire Festival 2019
Mid September in Saltaire means it's the annual Saltaire Festival. The first Saturday dawned fair and warm, delightful for the crowds who gathered. Teams of Morris dancers were dancing at various places throughout the village. There were at least six teams, including the border morris side from Otley, Wayzgoose (above), with their colourful traditional costumes. They make a lot of noise with their sticks, all rather exciting. Our local Rainbow Morris were dancing too, and Four Hundred Roses, the ladies who dance an interesting fusion of folk and belly dancing.

I didn't take many photos as I had my two granddaughters for the day. My focus had to be on them, making sure hats and toy dogs didn't get lost and drinks and snacks were constantly available. (Toy dog nearly did get lost!) When there are crowds, I get anxious about losing sight of them. It's a bit like keeping an eye on two fireworks! The girls are not really old enough or familiar enough with the village to find their own way home. All was well, however and we had a super day. They were enthralled by the dancing.