Back in the summer the Crafty Crew tried picture felting which proved so popular with the rest of Pewsham Belles when they saw the results on Facebook, they asked for it to be the next activity led by the Crew. Little did we know at the time that we'd be Crew-lite for the actual evening, but thanks to meticulous preparation beforehand by Steph and great leadership on the night, especially from Diane, a most enjoyable evening was had by all. The results are fab-u-lous!
It was also our charity fundraising night, with plenty of cake gorgeousness supplied by our willing volunteer bakers. Those unable to attend were sad to miss out, especially when they saw Kim's cherry bakewell! We're delighted this part of the evening raised over £90* for this year's nominated local charity, the Wilts and Berks Canal Trust. As Wendy says, "What better way to spend an evening than coffee, cake, craft and chatter!" * = includes an extra £15 raised when Kim took the rest of her cherry bakewell into work the next day. She's our star baker!
Elsewhere this month, the Theatre Group tried the comfy surroundings of Bath's Tivoli cinema for their screening of Matthew Bourne's Romeo and Juliet. It was a double theatre month, with members enjoying the adult version of Dick Whittington at The Neeld earlier. The Crafty Crew managed to squeeze in a session of Japanese origami; specifically kusudama flower making, whilst the Book Club reviewed Lissa Evans' Old Baggage. The Peacock Trail was enjoyed in various locations in Corsham and Chippenham and not just by Old Town group members. Mary Quarmby's glass workshop was enjoyed in particular, especially by Crafty Crew members. Other Pewsham Belles enjoyed the Museum's tile making workshop and will collect their fired clay tiles very soon. The Make It and More event in Swindon was also visited, and the workshops on offer there proved popular, particularly block printing, notebook making and silk painting. Wendy and Michelle enjoyed their return to The Pound in Corsham and enjoyed Emma Leith's introduction to the addictive world of punched needlework. The Creative Writing group fleshed out their latest project - a murder mystery - in more detail and lots of Pewsham Belles found out more about the world of crime writing at the John Aubrey Group meeting. There was also some time found to enjoy various Story Town events in Corsham. One member in particular has some very exciting news from that, but it's her story to tell! The Flexi Club managed a return trip to Coffee#1 and also enjoyed a 6.5 mile walk from Chippenham to Calne along the railway path on one of October's few sunny days. After lunch at the delightful Fay's Bistro, they rounded off their trip with a journey back on the number 55 bus which runs frequently, even on a Sunday. It's a very posh bus, which has USB sockets and reading lights at every seat!
Finally, Pewsham Belles were very much in evidence at Wiltshire WI's October events. Michelle and Sally found out lots about Canada on a study day in Market Lavington and then were joined later in the month by 4 more members at the Annual Meeting in Salisbury. Sally worked her AV magic as usual behind the scenes and was also introduced more publicly to attendees as one of the new Wiltshire WI Trustees. Carolyn G and Michelle were on stage as part of Wiltshire WI's amazing centenary choir - can you see them in the photo above? Everyone particularly enjoyed Stella Rimmington's talk on her time at MI5. Who will forget the image of a room at GPO HQ with a table full of kettles and knitting needles, ready for steaming open likely looking mail for intelligence gathering?