Countryside Craft Day

This Saturday (25th July) from 10.30 till 5 we have our annual Countryside Craft Day at Swan Barn Farm in Haslemere. I hope you can come and join us, I think it is going to be a really interesting day.

It is a fun event for all the family where lots of local Countryside Craft workers come together to demonstrate their skills and show their wears. There will be demonstrations of countryside skills and wonderful woodland craft items to see. There will be pole lathing, timber hewing and carving on display along with livestock, bats, amphibians and reptiles and even a bouncy castle for the kids.

Refreshments including burgers made from our own conservation grazed rare breed Belted Galloway beef will be on sale and there will be tours of our timber framed buildings. It will also be a chance to meet the team who look after the wonderful countryside that surrounds the town.

Maybe see you there.

Orchard House Progress

Good progress is being made on the Orchard House at Swan Barn Farm.

Weatherboarding and studwork for the end room is well underway, and the shingles are starting to go on the roof.

A window and door frame have also appeared in our structure… we still have to make the window and door, but things are definitely moving in the right direction.

Our fantastic volunteer groups have spent so much time over the past year making the hand cleaved shingles for the roof. It is fantastic to see them starting to be nailed on.

Each one is individual and slightly different shaped, it is like a giant jigsaw puzzle. Every shingle has its place, it just isn’t necessarily the first place you try and put it.

Most of the building is an open barn, looking up from underneath you can see the pattern of the shingles above you, I really like the look of them against the roundwood frame and the battens.

It isn’t long now till our countryside crafts open day on 25th July, if you get chance and are in the area it will be a great chance to come to the farm and see the roundwood buildings here as well as lots of other countryside and woody crafts and skills on display.

 

 

Speckled Wood Opening

Well, sometimes I thought we would never see the day, but at last we are there, Speckled Wood has been officially opened. Jane Cecil, National Trust General Manager for the South Downs, without whom the project would likely not have got very far, kindly agreed to open the building.

She cut a ribbon of bark from a Sweet chestnut tree and declared the building open. It was quite a moment, thanks very much to everyone who came along to help mark the occasion. As I tried to say at the time so many people have been involved and have worked so hard to make it become a reality, thanks very much to all of you.

After the opening Ben and I led a tour round the building, I hope everyone liked what they saw, they certainly seemed to like the look of the building as well as being interested in the processes and ideas behind the construction.

This all took place as part of our Green Woodworking Day, an event for all the family where woodland and countryside craft skills were on display for the public, it went really well, and there were lots of fascinating stalls and crafts for everyone to see. Particularly popular were all of the hands on activities where kids could get involved in making their own stools, pencils, woven willow decorations and much more besides, lots of fun was had by all.

There were all sorts of crafts and skills on display, from pole lathing, to spinning and dyeing, to willow weaving and even log hewing.

Before I forget, Amber, if your mum or dad read this we found the pencil you made near my spoon carving stall. I heard you were looking for it, if you want it back we have it here at Swan Barn Farm in our office.

The event had a really freindly atmosphere, and it was great to meet up with old freinds and new. If you missed out you could always look out for our Apple pressing event in October, or make sure you try and catch it next year.