A Solo Summer Weekend

A weekend on my own and looking for something to keep me entertained, I found some nice things to do over in Dunoon, and locally, and ended up having quite a busy time. With it being the summer holidays there is a bit more going on and Dunoon were holding a food festival and maker's market which coincided with the Dunoon POP Shop holding a rhubarb themed open garden.

The food festival was in a marquee in the Castle Gardens, along with a few food vans and a busker providing entertainment. It was so busy they could have done with twice the size of tent, but this was the first year so perhaps next year will be even bigger and better. A celebration of local and Scottish produce, and it was so nice to see the huge variety of stuff on offer. I bought a few goodies to share with H on our next meet-up in a week's time.

Next I headed across the road to the old pier building, which I thought was too decrepit to be open to the public, for the maker's market. A nice selection of local artists were on display, most of whom I had not seen before, with it being a bit further from home. I am always impressed by the amazing talent I find at these sales. If I could have found space for the beautiful blue dish with the tree on top I would have bought it, but I just can't fit it in anywhere. He also does classes, so maybe I'll go make my own sometime...

Then it was on to the POP Shop - a tiny place away from the main streets of the town centre, and through a tunnel to the back, out into a garden you would never know was there! Full of botanicals that can be used in drinks and cooking, laid out nicely with joyful bunting and benches to sit on in the sunshine. They were selling samples of their rhubarb with a hint of ginger cordial, which was delicious. I bought a couple of different flavours for Amber and a rhubarb plant for Charlotte's new allotment. On the way home I did a little foraging of my own because the local wild raspberries were ready, along with the rosebay willowherb flowers which I had a recipe for. I took them home and made rosebay scones (average) and Eton mess (great!)

I rounded the day off with a quick visit to the Tighnabruaich gallery which had just opened its latest exhibition. Tim Sandys’ Distribution 18 was the winning work of the inaugural Michael Harding Secret Coast Prize for Fine Art. This exhibition 'Distribution', brings together a wider body of paintings from the same series. They are pretty cool, and interesting to look at, reminding me of highrise buildings. I popped a few doors down to the 'antique' shop to look for the perfect finial for the passing place pole outside the house, which seems to have been missing for many years, but apart from a beautiful egg shaped glass paperweight there wasn't anything. Then I went for a swim seeing as I was pretty much at the beach anyway. A lovely day all round.