Poldark and Petrol

I have been on holiday in Cornwall and Devon so for the next few weeks I will be postings some interesting photos of my visit.

We went to the Poldark tin mine near St Austell. Originally it was called Wheal Roots.The tour guide was fascinating and told us many facts about when the mine was working and included a lot of anecdotes. 

Chimneys in the landscape used for ventilation.

Photo taken from the car window

Mining in 1720 - 1780 was very hard. Pumps were used to drain the water from the mine.

The engineering skill was amazing

Underground the tin seams were often so narrow that one man could only just squeeze through the gap.

Narrow and dark

Children as young as 10 worked in the mine.

The black seams are the tin

The only head protection the miners wore was a Tull hat made from felt dipped in pine resin.The light was provided by a tallow candle attached to the hat with a lump of clay. The candle only lasted about an hour and gave a poor light.

Such flimsy hats for protection

Woman who were only allowed to work on the surface as it was considered bad luck for them to work underground They sorted the tin ore and traditionally they wore white bonnets and were known as Bal maidens. 

 A white Bal maidens bonnet

Before dynamite was invented a hole was made in the rock. Gunpowder was put inside a birds quill then sealed with clay. This method was very dangerous and unpredictable.

Feather quills

This is an early type of fire engine.

A King Patent Fire Pump

An old set of weighing scales.

How heavy are you?

The tin ore is very heavy.

Shiny and bright

I saw some interesting petrol pumps. Some antique.

Look at the price of petrol

Sorry sold out

Other pumps are very modern.

Get charged up here

Visiting the sculpture garden at Tremenheere in Cornwall I saw.

A bulls head made of fibreglass.

Black and powerful

A reflective skip.

Mirror mirror on the skip

Jet black aeonium.

Black edges and radiating 'petals'

This succulent was so flat and compact.

A perfect circle

Since returning home the weather has turned cold with some very strong Easterly winds that have broken some of my pottery houses. I have been busy catching up on all my gardening, the weeds grow so quickly. I have dug over the vegetable patch where the peas and broad beans were. I am still picking runner beans and potatoes.

This scarecrow was outside a house as we arrived at Polruan. It does not take a lot to make you smile.

Check out my Vans

Wedding Decorations

The wedding cake expressed the interests of the bride and groom.

The happy couple

I decorated the garden gate with homemade tea lights and bunting.

Bunting made from doilies

Bunting hung from the washing line near the back door.

Can you see my Egyptian pottery head on the house wall?

I decorated a heart for the front door with lace and bunting made from a plastic bag. As the weather is so unpredictable I had to make sure that all the decorations were waterproof.

White heart

The white lantern I placed next to the back door.

Artificial flowers

Bunting was throughout the ground floor with hearts hanging 

from each door handle.

Tartan paper and doilies

Bunting in detail

Inside the kitchen.

Pink and blue made from cupcake cases

It was a wonderful and memorable occasion.

Wedding Flowers

On Saturday 9 August my eldest daughter was married at St. Catherine's church in Penrith. This is the cake my youngest daughter and I decorated for the wedding reception.

Sarah and John

It was a Scottish wedding so the colours were blue and cream to reflect the Spirit of Bannockburn tartan of the groom's kilt.

Two pedestals were either side of the church door

The  main flowers were a mixture of roses, gladioli, larkspurrk, delphinium and hydrangea with foliage from the Artful Garden.

Entrance porch

There were cream organza bows on the pew end with blue cornflowers and freesias.

Bows on the ends of the pews

This arrangement include cream in curled chrysanthemums.

Middle radiator

The gladioli were in purple and cream.

St Josephs altar

The powder blue hydrangea was stunning.

In front of the lectern

Gladioli decorated he altar.

The high altar

The centre piece was a cream hydrangea and the arrangements radiated outwards.

To one side of the altar

The Lady chapel again had a cream hydrangea and a lot of white and blue larkspur.

Our Lady's altar