South from The Green Gathering to Dartmoor Folk Festival - via The Sidmouth Folk Festival

I was reluctant to leave the Green Gathering where I'd had such a wonderful time, I definitely hope to run workshops there again next year! My next working festival was to be down in Dartmoor in the lovely small village of South Zeal. Firstly a little time out playing music and singing songs at the Sidmouth Folk Festival.
Dartmoor Festival.

The Dartmoor Folk Festival ran from August 9th, 10th and 11th and is a friendly traditional festival, with the highlight being the Dartmoor Step-dance and Broom-dance Championships!
The Craft area, Craft tent, Sideshows, Demonstrations, Dance Displays and Children's Entertainers are all held in the local playing fields where the general feel is of one of those rare days out in the 1900's when all the family dressed in their Sunday best and attended the annual fair - a truly lovely weekend is to be had here!

I was fortunate to have a prime view of all the events and to be situated next to a small stream that could be heard tumbling over the stony river bed. The tuffet-making workshops were well attended, I had a particularly memorable time with a lovely family, mum, dad and two teenage boys that all came along together to make a family collection of tuffets!

Photos to follow!

I would like to extend my thanks to the lovely gentleman that produced some beautiful Welsh Black fleeces for me to use, from his own locally shared Welsh Black flock!

Welsh Black: www.farmonacard.com

From Farmfest to The Green Gathering at Chepstow!

The Green Gathering!

On leaving Farmfest I made my way north-west to Chepstow for the Green Gathering, previously known as The Great Green Gathering, but now downsized for many reasons and rebuilt in the wonderful grounds of Piercefield Park pictured below. A wondefully landscaped park with secret views and magical places that included a grotto, druid's temple, bathing house and giant's cave,  over the Rivers Wye.

The organisers of Green Gathering plan the festival site around the contours of the park and transform the area into a wonderful space full of craft workshops, fun, music, healing, tee pees, saunas and enveloped with plenty of love! The recycling system is excellent, with sacks for every type of waste - definitely involved a lot of thought as to what you are actually throwing away, which added a new element to this festival. 

The craft area was exceptional with all stalls/workshop areas set in a wheel formation facing outwards! Such craft people as Oak Clan Forge, Waynes Wood Spoon Carving, upcycling with Rags to Riches and for something even more useful - wild foraging with Carol Hunt and then....................there was The Travelling Tuffeteer! I absolutely loved everything about this festival, the people, the setting, other stallholders and especially our brilliant craft organiser Simon Craig, who incidentally is an amazing coin carver!