A finish, a wip, Christmas in July, Bank Hall
Door stop, flower and door hanger are all finished.
These 3 needleturned panels are finished but they need a 4th side.
With big relief I can say that my Christmas in July parcel arrived at Squash House Quilts with Candace. My lovely brief was traditional red and green and that she collected Santas. She was a joy to make for with that sort of brief.
The fronts.
The backs
Santa’s outfit close up.
Face
Inside of the needlecase
Outside of the needlecase.
Close up of stocking with lots of braid.
Coasters and a pin cushion to match the needle case.
Do you feel like a quick trip?
And like old stuff?
Then read on while I take you to a special place.
You can have a cake. Bribe bribe- can you tell the children didn’t want to leave the house on an overcast day?
There were a lot of very old cars. The blue one in the centre would almost fit in our boot!
They are in a walled garden which once had vegetables and heated green houses.
There were some vintage motorbikes.
So beautiful and belonging to a far more gracious age.
The MG Owners Club amongst others were helping them to raise money and awareness to help restore Bank Hall where the show was taking place.
Although I live close, this is a hall I didn’t know existed. I think this anonymity is why it has been able to get so neglected.
Click to read. The picture shows the Hall as it was.
This is the back (south) side of the hall today.
Only parts of the roof remain with floors tumbling down.
The clock tower is protected from further ruin by the scafolding. They are currently raising money to restore the clock mechanism. If you feel you can help please email them.
There are many photos showing how the house used to look. It was the HQ for the army for the North West ports during the 2nd world war, and returned to Lord Lilford in 1945
Front of the Hall.
It has got into a worse state sine then. It was the Action Group who cut back the ivy which was threatening to destroy the brickwork. They have secured a lease of the site now. The group has been running for over 14 years and are making progress. They hold a number of events here every year.
Here’s a map from a similar angle showing the front of the hall.
The Keck family crest. I was shooting through the wire barriers for this close up. The figurehead of the lady by the ram is very beautiful. Although this says 1608, the writing above says renovated 1832.
Come for a woodland walk in the grounds.
They are very beautiful and where the action group are doing a lot of hands on work as it isn’t safe to work near the house.
There are little areas to picnic and a maze of paths in the thickly planted wood area.
One of the estate’s farm buildings which now houses the Bank Hall Action Group Information Centre.
Some of the finds that the volunteers found as they cleared away the ivy. I recognised the blue willow pattern on a piece of pottery.
The Harcourt Clares who lived in Bank Hall 1899-1922.
I hope you liked the tour. Like I said this is a special place. I would love to see it restored and a place where people could visit like Rufford Old Hall or Speke Hall where I’ve taken you before. Such buildings shouldn’t be allowed to decay out of memory.
Posted in Uncategorized by House Elf with 16 comments.