Ladies Bring A Plate IV

Maybe it should be IIIa, because I haven’t had time to do the next step of this project, and this will be a very quick post.

I mentioned in a earlier post that I wondered if one of the plates I have to work on was in the photo of the 21st party. When the images were printed for us, some were inadvertently done as A3s – which offered the opportunity to look more closely at the details. It’s not one of the cream coloured plates – but we think this pale pink plate is the one in Daryl’s Grandmother’s hand!

Ladies Bring A Plate III

Having merged two historical photos for the dinner plate, my next task was to find images for the four bread and butter plates. I have a collection of old cook books, which I hoped would inspire me, if not provide something ready made. I really like the line drawing style some of them used, but none of the images fitted with what I was looking for. So I had to do my own drawings…

 

Afternoon teas and suppers served in our Hall invariably include sandwiches, and often sausage rolls as well – that’s the savoury plate. Cream cakes are always popular, and Lamingtons are another favourite, so the sweet plate has Lamingtons, butterfly cakes and cream kisses.

For the third plate, I took my inspiration from the table settings we use for High Tea at the Moyston Hall. By scanning my drawings, I was able to clean them up a little digitally much more effectively than with any analogue methods.

I found an illustration on the correct serving of tea in one of my old books, but I didn’t really want the text. I’m no expert at digital manipulation, but I did manage to remove the unwanted words. I was left with a paler rectangle which refused to blend in, and solved the problem by giving it a purpose.

Now that I have all my images prepared, and photocopied, the next step is to apply them…

Ladies Bring A Plate II

Having decided to decorate the old plates, the second task was to decide what to put on them. We had gathered some old photos of events in the Hall when we produced a history book for the Hall’s Centenary celebration in 2014, and I had one of those in mind – it was taken in the old supper room.

I was able to edit it a little to bring up the details of the the food on the table. Once a circle is cut to fit the old dinner plate, some of that will disappear, unfortunately. I wonder if the plate it will be applied to is there in the photo?!

I thought it might be interesting to superimpose the photo of inside with that of outside. It took some tweaking before I was really happy with the result. Aligning the window in both images was the key.

I made the party image slightly transparent, so that the outside wall is just visible behind the party goers. The occasion was a 21st birthday party – look at that cake! The plate held by the lady in the foreground (the birthday boy’s grandmother, I think) is similar to the  bread and butter plates I have plans for…

Ladies Bring a Plate

Our local Hall in Moyston has had more than a hundred years of community social occasions, most of which would have been catered for by the ladies “bringing a plate”. We had fifty years of the Moyston Old Time Dance, held once a month in the Hall. It started out as a fundraiser to build the new supper room, and went on until 2016. Local clubs took turns to cater, making sandwiches on the night and “the ladies” donating cakes and slices. Moyston Hall was renowned throughout the district for the quality of the food.

When we moved here 34 years ago, there was the “new” supper room, with an old kitchen behind it. I remember it as being dark and dingy, with a copper in one corner that was used in days of yore to make bulk coffee on those social occasions. They enhanced the flavour with mustard, and who knows what else… I kid you not! Sadly, no one thought to take photos.

Assessing the crockery recently, some very old plates came to light, marked as belonging to the Hall, and judging from the style, dating from the 1930’s. I decided on the spot that we should do something to/with/on them, and an hour or two later, we had a plan to apply images relating to the history of the Hall to these plates, and to display them somehow.

The finished piece will be in celebration of all the plates of food served up and enjoyed over the years.

Mt Hood Daffodils – and Mt Hood

I planted a White Garden over thirty years ago, inspired by the famous one at Sissinghurst castle in England. Over the years, the “White” has become less disciplined, but the Mt Hood daffodils have survived, multiplied and continue to bloom.

In August 2011, we spent a few days in Portland, Oregon, enjoying the views of the actual Mount Hood. When we got home again in early September, my ghostly white daffodils had excelled themselves, and were the first thing I saw as we pulled in to our driveway.

They have flowered well again this year. The trumpet is a soft lemon when they first open, but over a week or two, they fade to snowy white – just like their namesake.

Spider Webs and Bokeh

On a sunny and frosty morning, the trees and fences were decorated with perfect, dew-spangled spider webs, so I had to go outside with the ‘proper’ camera to try to capture some. It was worth the icy fingers and toes!

Silverband Falls walk

On a sunny Sunday afternoon in winter, we went to Hall’s Gap and, for a change, took the walk to Silverband Falls instead of our usual Venus Baths. The actual walk is roughly the same distance, but we had to drive south of Hall’s gap to reach it. There are not many flowers in July, but plenty of mosses, lichens and fungi. We spotted a dead tree that looks like a funny/monster face, which was definitely a bonus!

Winter Sunset

It didn’t last very long, but while it did…I managed to capture a few hints of the colour and light. The one from inside is possibly the best…maybe I think that because it’s so pink’n’orange!

Frosty Morning

With the ending of the Weekly photography Challenge, I am at a bit of a loss – clearly I need to challenge myself (or find another weekly prompt…) We had a good frost this morning, and I challenged my toes by going out to take photos in bare feet.

Weekly Photography Challenge: Twisted

“Not straight, not so straight” – twisted, in fact. Sticks, and the flames that consume them, cannot keep a straight line.

Bonfires are a regular event here, signalling the end of summer and fire restrictions. It’s also the end of Alex’s tired old thrifted chair – and a sobering reminder of the flammability of foam upholstery!

I made some candle lanterns using glass jars and twisted wire, to add atmosphere and light up the path to the paddock. This one has a hanger made with a found, twisted piece of heavy wire. The marbles around the tea light candle keep it centred and avoid overheating the glass. The jar lid can be popped on when the lantern isn’t in use, to keep the rain out.