This little blog has been somewhat delayed so apologies.

This was a return visit to the Good Life Experience for us. Last year was the first time I had visited this little pocket sized festival of joy and went with @thetallphotographer as his assistant. Well not that I actually know one end of a camera from the other but I was very good at carrying stuff! And we absolutely loved it!

So this year we decided to return, Charlie doing his photo thing and me running sewing workshops. Yes we were sewing in a tent!

We packed up a few machines, fabric, scissors and anything else we could think of and headed for North Wales.

I tried to think of something beautiful yet practical that would be handy to have at a festival, but that would also be easy to sew as well for complete newbies and I came up with a Festival Bag! This handy little gem was made in either robust demin or practical dry oil cloth to keep out the damp. It was fully lined with some simple calico and fastened with a clip buckle. AND you had a choice of colours for the webbing straps. What’s not to love. (It will be available as a pdf pattern very soon.)

It was rather popular and we even had one young lady come back to make another one for her Dad.

We had our youngest ever workshop attendee, little 3 year old Joshua who was very intent on making his own bag without his Dad’s help. My lovely chum Claire-Louise came along to the festival too and popped in to help. She was great and had so much patience with this young man while I helped the others in the workshop to sew their own bags.

The whole weekend was a joy! And although I was teaching during the day I didn’t miss out on the evening’s entertainment. The highlight for me was Friday night with DJ Trevor Nelson taking me back to my clubbing days and throwing some shapes on the dancefloor with CL.

Rather too much of the superbly delicious Rhubarb & Ginger Gin produced by the Harwarden Estate was consumed that night too. But the morning after was worth the night before!  

One of the reasons I love this festival so much is that there is so much to see and do.

 

We topped off the weekend with a delightful meal at the Glynne Arms Pub in Hawarden village for Charlie’s birthday. A bit of a Busman’s Holiday for me but I thoroughly enjoyed the whole weekend.

 

And its all due to these lovely people Charlie and Caroline Gladstone (that run Pedlars) who along with Cerys Matthews (yes from Catatonia) and her husband Steve Abbott founded this delight of a festival. It’s ethos is something that resonates with both Charlie and I, particularly since the last time we were here our lives have changed quite considerably following Charlies accident! 

All pictures by The Tall Photographer

Now we are planning on how we can do it better and what we can make on more Festival Workshops. If you go to festivals do let me know which ones you enjoy and what would YOU make at a festival? Would it be practical and useful? Or just fun?

Hopefully you can join us next year, but get in quick as tickets are going like hot cakes!

Happy Festival Going!

Jules x