Having not revisited Paisley since I finished dealing with my late mother’s house in early 2022, I have now been back three times this year! This time I went to see the Renfrewshire Tapestry consisting of eight large panels telling the history of the county and numerous small teardrops (referencing the Paisley Pattern) made by members of the public to their own design. Here are my four favourite panels.

And here are just some of my favourite teardrops.

As part of the trip to Paisley I collected two more Scotties, one in Central Station and one outside Paisley Abbey. Worldie has his tickets in his pocket for the World Cup (and was no doubt sadly disappointed) while Paisley and Proud also references Paisley patterns which drift like clouds across the surface.

Glasgow Women’s Library has three exhibitions at the moment, and this is the one I enjoyed the most. In The Saltire Series Alixandra Prybyla collaborated with the many wonderful immigrant and refugee communities associated with the Library to reimagine what it means to belong in Scotland: this is particularly important at the moment when far-right racists have been demonstrating in our streets. Through cyanotype workshops, participants remade the Scottish saltire flag from objects that carry stories of immigration. Also on display were 88 small cards, on which each woman described the object she had chosen and its significance to her, and a lovely quote from Toni Morrison.

We had a brief trip down to Yorkshire to visit friends. On the first day we visited Burnby Hall Gardens and on the second, Plumpton Rocks – both new to me.

Burnby Hall was occupied by Major Percy Stewart and his wife Katherine from 1901 until Percy’s death in 1962. The couple had two main interests in life – creating beautiful gardens and travelling the world. Today the gardens are a registered charity and there is a small museum on site with some of the artefacts collected during the Stewarts’ journeys.

The Upper and Lower Lakes are home to over 100 varieties of waterlily which flower between mid-June and the end of August. The Upper Lake is also home to thousands of very hungry carp, roach, and rudd. No wonder they were selling fish food at the entrance!

There are other interesting features too. The Stumpery created mainly from the upturned roots of large trees:

The giraffes:

The Dovecote and the Secret Garden:

And the Edwardian Garden and a (rather unflattering) relief of Major Stewart:

Finally, the artefacts in the museum are mostly as you would expect from the Edwardian travelling collector / pillager so I was more interested in some of the quotes from the Major’s writings, particularly his thoughts on the Taj Mahal and his self-deprecating reason for travelling.

The Stewarts created the lakes at Burnby Hall. The one at Plumpton Rocks looks much more natural, but is just as artificial. Originally created in the 1760s, the site has been restored to its 18th-century glory, with dramatic millstone grit rock formations and woodland trails as well as the lake. The scenic views once inspired artist J.M.W. Turner who painted it around 1798.

And finally, to finish off, a few views from the cyclist.

Linked to Natalie’s July Monthly Wrap-Up. Happy August!