The Framers Forum

The next Wessex Branch Event will be held on Tuesday 16 August, from 6pm for 7pm start, at The Grosvenor Hotel, High Street, Stockbridge, Hampshire SO20 6EU.

Canvases – from start to finish

The meeting will be on the subject of stretching, framing, varnishing and cleaning canvases. We are delighted to announce that we will have two well-respected framers to speak: Ian Dixon GCF of Ian Dixon GCF Bespoke Framers in East Horsley will explain and demonstrate stretching and framing and Pierre Lafrance of Galerie Lafrance in Bournemouth will talk about varnishing and basic cleaning.

This will be a great opportunity to bring your questions and to see how the experts do it, as well as exchanging ideas and experiences with others at the meeting.

Date: Tuesday, 16th August
Place: The Grosvenor Hotel, High Street, Stockbridge SO20 6EU http://www.oldenglishinns.co.uk/stockbridge/index.php, in the centre of Stockbridge, opposite the Police Station.
Time: 6 p.m if you’d like a snack/drink first with other framers and the speakers, and Ian and Pierre’s talk will commence at 7, followed by questions.

Our last Branch Event was very successful, thanks to the turnout and enthusiasm of members – we do hope that this one will be as enjoyable..... if you haven’t been to a meeting before, why not come along? It’s very informal.

The evening costs just £5 for members, £7.50 for non-members. We very much hope that you will attend the event, both for the subject featured, and also to put forward ideas for future Branch events – which prompted the topic for this event.

Please confirm your attendance (or send apologies) by calling Johanna Cruickshank on 01962 850430 or email framingstar@tiscali.co.uk or Suzanne Parker GCF, 01264 772251, suzanne@appleshawframes.co.uk so that we have an idea of numbers

For anyone who does not know Stockbridge. It is a small, but delightful old english town full of old fashioned businesses which you don't come accross in most other places.

Give youselves a treat by arriving early and taking the time to have a good look around. My wife and I had lunch in the "White Hart Inn", followed by a wander around the town on the Sunday before last.

As Mark says a wonderful town with the River Test flowing through it. If you get time arrive early have a walk through the river meadows, take a look in the galleries, a cream tea at one of the cafes, feed the trout in the stream that runs along side the High St.

Wish I could come but its too far for a night out.

If you are an angler don't forget to go in the Orvis shop.

There are at least two galleries there. One is the well known Wykeham gallery and has some very nice hand finished frames on show, perhaps their own, or perhaps from Frinton frames. Impressive price tags and nice artworks.

Apart from a small Co-op branch all the other shops are locally based indepentant shops with a unique feel about so many of them. One of the many cafe's does some quite expensive, but very classy local ice cream. Two standard size cornets will cost you a fiver, but if you're into ice cream......It's the business!

We ate in the White hart Inn and had smaller portion meals which were a good price, but the smaller portions were quite a reasonable size for the money. We noticed an interesting cafe called Langtry's Supper Room". If we had not already eaten and scoffed an ice cream each, I would have liked to try there.

If I remember rightly there's a pub at either end of the town and the Grovenor Hotel is in the middle of the town. There's lots of free parking and being a small town with everything all on the one main street, it's only a very short walk from wherever you park your car to absolutely everywhere in the town. Also from memory, the town has two, or three interior design sort of shops, three fishing tackle shops, several independant cafes and a few gifts and craft type shops. It's the sort of town where I go looking for ideas.

Other good ideas type towns on my list are are plces like; Stow on the Wald, Moreton in the Marsh, Henley on Thames, Tavistock, Bridport, Dorchester, etc. Whenever I'm out and about, I'm always looking for inspiration in classy galleries and framers where hand finished frames are on show. You can learn a lot from nosing around these sort of places.

Screw the branch meeting - I wanna visit Stockbridge!

(Could make it the same day and pop my head in though)