Visit Bolton this Weekend and a Reminder - Blog Hop Tomorrow

We had to go into Bolton today and what a surprise we got.  We had forgotten that the August BH weekend is always given over to the Food Festival.  Well, for the past 10 years that is.  We were amazed at how it has grown so we had to sample some of the food on offer at the various stalls - what decisions!!

Anyway, if you are anywhere near I suggest you get yourself down to the town and see for yourself. Here is a bit of blurb I have got from the information leaflet we picked up. (sorry for the quality on here, hope you can read it, can't make them bigger or I lose half the info)

The little ones haven't been forgotten

Live Music!

Street Entertainment

We heard a few times on the loudspeakers that Sean Wilson (Martin Platt, Coronation Street) was demo'ing this afternoon and there are others:  Tom Gardner, Luis Troyano, May Wakefield, Andrew Nutter, Russell Brown, Jon Jones, Michael Harrison, Anthony Prince, Kate Robinson, Jackie Kearney, Alain Job, Andrew Parker, Phil & Omar, Chris Yates, Nick Cullen, Simon Wood  Steven Halsall.  Think these are free demonstrations.  On Saturday, (these are ticketed) you can see Lisa Faulkner in action and on Sunday it is John Torode finally finishing off with on the Monday - James Martin (sigh).

Shame I can't go down on Sunday but I will be at Leigh Show with the Minc, which reminds me, we have the Blog Hop for Oyster Stamps starting tomorrow HERE!  Anyway, what I was going to say was why not combine your half day ticket with a morning at the Food Festival or just stay for the morning at the Leigh Show and visit Bolton Centre in the afternoon.  Best of both worlds!

Here's a sneak peek for tomorrow

WOYWW - 325

Been busy most of the week as there is going to be a BLOG HOP at Oyster Stamps so I have been making samples.  Can't show you yet, obviously, but I kick it off on Saturday so you will have to come back to see what I make.

As a result my little corner of the stamping room has been taken over by Oyster Stamps so I have not much to show you - do have some cards I made just before all of this started so here you are

First off is another card using the same background as one I showed last week

The image is one I stamped and embossed in white years ago when I worked for Paddy's Stamping Place - I believe it was a Magenta image - wish I had the stamp.

This was a congratulations card, for a lovely young couple who have just got engaged, using the swinging die I bought ages ago from Karen Bernstein.  Here's how it is inside

and now, what you came for - my desk

Stamps upside down so you can't see the images, foam pad over cardstock, lethal looking knife in the background, are the dies a clue?

Well, that is it for now folks - call back on Saturday when I will begin the Blog Hop (open to all) but in the meantime I will see you over at Julia's Place for fun and frolics with like-minded crafters. Cheerio!

WOYWW 324

Thank you those of you who followed my three blog posts of my trip to Liverpool last week.  I don't know if you saw the bit at the end where the hotel offered us two free nights with complimentary breakfast, but I was not complaining to get something like that (which the receptionist made me feel as if she thought was the case) but I declined.  As I said in my reply I just wanted to know why the noise had not stopped despite my call, some kind of apology and the assurance that it would not happen to anyone else.

We are hoping to finish off our trip to Liverpool but it will be to the hotel we just had the one night in (four beds) but this time with a walk in shower - can't wait.

Enough of that - here is a card I made for a friend's birthday - a bit of card candy to lighten the load?

Well, this week I have still been in my black and white mood so here is my desk which has the cut out pieces for a 'Crealies' card on it - well two actually.  The circular one was fine, the square one drove me nuts.  I cut the wrong colour of pieces out to begin with so had to do them again.  A bit like doing a jigsaw puzzle putting these together.  It's still not stuck down and won't be until later this afternoon as I have a couple of appointments.

Breathing has been bad recently (medication changes) so it is a trip for a Spirometer test and then my new glasses want adjusting as they are making my ears sore, so that comes first today.  

Hopefully I will show you the completed cards by next week but yesterday I just wanted to leave them alone until I could get the borders even and the pieces lined up correctly.  Got ideas for what I am finishing off with but that could change if it doesn't work out.  What is in my head and what transpires are often different things.

In the meantime I suggest you go over to Julia's to see what she has to say and then follow a few links for a good old snoop.  See you!

Later:  It's now 2.15 pm and look what is on my desk now.  Did a quick sweep of the black and white to the left and here is my new toy.  This is what I am dem'ing at Leigh Show for Oyster Stamps on the last Sunday of this month.

Now to PLAY!!

Liverpool - Final Day

Well, what a Thursday night we had.  At 11 pm we were rudely awoken with a loud banging on our communicating door.  Someone had come in at the other side, thought it fun to open their side of the door, seen ours and banged on it and then started laughing hilariously.  That was the beginning ...
they now began talking in a very loud voice - had they left the communicating door open on their side?  It was so loud and one of those screeching voices that gets in your head and you cannot switch off from.

1.10 AM I rang reception and asked them to ring and get the people in the room next door to be quiet.
2.00 AM Talking finally subsided
3.30 AM Started again
4.00 AM Stopped
4.30 AM Started again and was on and off until 5.20 AM
6.15 AM Talking again
6.35 AM I got up as it was evident it was not going to cease.  Then I thought to use the "throw" from the bottom of the bed to try to block out some of the noise from that door.  Stood cushions on top of one another up the side.  Noise was deadened a little.  Got back into bed and managed to sleep a little.
8.00 AM Talking still at it - went for a shower
9.30 AM They are still talking loudly.  Left hotel with a bad taste in my mouth - we had to leave to catch our Ferry, bog-eyed but knowing we were going home later that day.  A jam-packed morning awaited us and we felt like "yuk" and, we were brain dead.

Snowdrop - Dazzle Ferry (read here)

Because I could not climb the stairs we had to sit in a covered area so photographs did not come out that well but I did manage to get a super one of the Atlantic Hotel - notice the shape - when we left the ferry whilst waiting for our bus tour.

Tried to get a good photograph of the Liver Birds but my camera is not powerful enough so this is the best I did for you

You see the one on the clock tower - that is supposed to be female and she is looking out to sea watching for the sailors to return safely home.  The other is the male looking out across the city to make sure the pubs are open.  At least that is the funny version.

Chinatown was a must for me, especially the gate which Jo had told me so much about.  It is the largest multi-span arch of its kind outside of China.  This photograph and the ones following are from the Thursday and not the Friday last minute ride around town.

I wondered what the significance of the blocked out windows were on this building?  This is just half of it.

The Museum of Liverpool had this exhibition advertised so I just had to go and see it and were we glad we went.

A Modern Liver Bird - Just look at that window

We, in no way, did justice to this museum and so we have decided we have to go back to see it and experience more of the Liverpool scene.

Shopping seems to be one heck of a big thing and Liverpool One is full of lovely shops with a park on an upper floor and lots of restaurants for you to sit in (or outside of).

Sandman

and a Lambanana

This is only a small selection of photographs from our four days in Liverpool.  We want to go back and see more and we will.  

I must say I was extremely pleased with the customer care we got from all the shops and services apart from the receptionist at the last hotel who made me feel as if she thought I was lying about the disturbance by saying that she was aware of my complaint and "staff had walked the corridor during the night but heard nothing" and "what did I want doing about it?"  An explanation as to why they had not contacted us when they heard nothing time and time again, a sincere apology and an assurance that other people would not be put in the same position was all that I wanted.  I was not after any "freebies' and to suggest that I should have gone down to reception myself (in the middle of the night) left me speechless.

On Tuesday afternoon I received an email, from the hotel we had stayed in with the disturbance, offering us two free nights accommodation plus breakfasts.  That was not my objective for complaining and I thanked them but declined their kind offer.  I did notice someone had complained about something and was made to feel as if they were lying too just a couple of posts above mine. Maybe time for customer care training to step in.

Next time it will be the Home of the Titanic again, it's luxury at a very reasonable cost - but once more I will be pushing for us to use the train, it is so convenient.

Well done Angela Radford  (see Wednesday's post) - the statue of Eleanor Rigby is indeed by Tommy Steele.  You should read all about him on Wikipaedia, I never knew he was such an artist.

Since writing this post I have heard from the customer services manager of the hotel and been offered a two night free stay at the hotel.  I wrote back and thanked the but declined the offer as that was not what I wanted.  I simply wanted an apology and an explanation of why the noise had continued throughout the night plus the assurance that this would not happen to anyone else.

Liverpool Continued

Following on from my WOYWW post yesterday we moved from 30 James Street to next door.  We love staying in the Days Inn at Harrogate (great walk in showers) and this hotel had good reviews so we felt sure we would enjoy our next two nights.

We were given a King Room (offer again which included a ferry ride and a bus ride) which turned out to be what I would call a Family Room (big space for another bed and communicating door with the next room).  Lovely fluffy towels and a walk in shower although not as modern as the hotel in Harrogate.

Must say the weather was awful.  Cold, windy and wet!  We had spent the previous day visiting the Maritime Museum but as there was so much to see we went back there.

Chas outside with the Anchor

Tableau outside the Emigrants Museum

You were not allowed to take photographs where the Titanic Exhibition was but I did not see the sign until the end (honestly) so I do not feel it is right for me to show any pictures that I took.  This is the only photo I took (after asking) the next day at the Migrant Exhibition where the exhibition, again, was very interesting, well done and of interest to the young children who were going around doing a quiz and playing with the interactive exhibits.

From there we went into the "Seized" exhibition which dealt with smuggling both past and present and then up to the floor with the Lusitania exhibition on.  This featured other ships, not just that one.  

I must say that all the exhibitions are excellent and well worth a visit, especially on a cold wet day. Just a word of warning though, the lifts have a habit of doing their own thing.  On pressing to go down you often found you went up first, calling on all floors.  Amusing - Annoying?

I was "museum'd out" by this time so a little bus ride was in order to see the architecture of the Central Library.  WOW!  Loved the walkway with all the book titles

Escalator and cafe to the left

Impressive or what?

(asked permission, was obsessed by asking now)

St Georges Hall

Who is this?

My Clever photo - 4 things to see

The two stone lions guarding St George's Hall, the Wellington Column far right and the lady on horseback (did you guess, it was Queen Victoria?)  I thought it was good that I got them all on one picture.  And to finish off, I liked this pub just down the road - so colourful.

more tomorrow ... featuring a bad night

WOYWW 323

Well, I had hoped to do a few posts about our trip to Liverpool before WOYWW Day but time just flew by so I will do a bit on here.  Nothing arty to show you, got a new book on Bubble Writing whilst in Liverpool so been trying various ones out in a little notebook but that is all so here are a couple of things not seen before (I hope) from my painty journal.  Not very exciting but at least it is artwork.

Hate to say but desk is not much different from last week as I am still putting things away so here is my alternative desk/table in the utility room.

Purple bag - My Oyster Demo bag with lots of Finnabair products inside, the tin on top has some paper casts in it, then to the right there is my spray station with a couple of canvasses in. (Have put some paste through stencils on them both and on the one at the front of the table.  Some pictures from the internet and the front canvas plus my dirty green mat and a rubber glove.  Not at all exciting.  

So to our Liverpool Trip:

Just a little bit about it.  We went on the train.  That was fun and we will do it again some day.  Our hotel first night was right beside James Street Station - "30 James Street, Home of the Titanic".  I was paying so it was just the one night (remember it was part of his birthday present and he had already had part when we stayed at the Football Hotel in June).  I had bought him one of those Amazon Local offers so we were placed on the Lower Ground Floor and I wondered as the (luxurious padded) lift went down just what to expect.

Jo told me it is known as the 'streaky bacon' building

Can you see why?

Well, we had a choice of FOUR double beds!  I let him choose but secretly hoped he did not choose the upper one as visions of going up and down the steps in the night (like we women often have to do) filled me with dread.

Upper Bed (above)
We had the middle one (ground floor - his choice)

Did you notice all the mirrors?

The bathroom had a huge whirlpool bath with a rainforest shower over the top so Chas had a lovely luxurious soak and then the rain fell gently on him (sorry no photo of him in the bath - or getting in it which was a feat even for him).  Unfortunately because I am not steady on my feet and have difficulties getting in and out of a bath I could not use it - next time a room with a walk in shower!

That evening we had a lovely meal in the Carpathian restaurant on the 7th floor, met a super young couple and discovered that the girl had an interesting job working behind the scenes for the Jeremy Kyle Show.  A chance for a good natter, what a lovely girl she was, the night went by in a tick.  Next morning breakfast was h-u-g-e and we ventured out onto the balcony at the back of the hotel (front one was locked this morning)

All too soon it was time to leave but we will be going back, loved it and want to try some of the themed rooms (click here for a nosey) - and it will not be on an offer this time.  From here on we had a pear shaped moment (some of you on Facebook will have read about the (to say 'disturbed' is not enough) night we had in a different hotel - more on Friday about that - and then we learned that the Brazilian restaurant we had been looking forward to trying out had had a fire and had to cancel our booking.  It was nice of them to ring me like they did in the midst of their trouble and we will try it next time we go to Liverpool.  Things happen in three's so they say.  Ugh!

Now a little question for those who do NOT live in Liverpool - which well known pop singer of a certain age is responsible for this figure in Stanley Street?

I will leave it there as I have already far far exceeded what Julia wants from us (sorry Julia) but just before I go I will share some of Liverpool's sorrow at the untimely death of a great singer - Cilla!

R.I.P. Cilla

Can I just say that I apologise for being late commenting last week, but in doing so I discovered lots of you do not link to your post, but to your blog.  Just click on your actual WOYWW Post Title and copy what is in the bar above for your link.  Then it takes everyone to the actual post instead of trawling through whatever else you have posted since.  Not a grumble - just a bit of information.