St Ethelwold’s House Art Exhibition
Open on 11th, 12th, 13th,14th May 11-5pm
Tea Garden
Saturday 13th May 11-4
Do come and enjoy the exhibition, the garden, and refreshments by the river
Author: steth
Books and Bakes
Books and Bakes 2023
BOOKS, BAKES AND COFFEE ON TUESDAY 18th April AT ST ETHELWOLDS HOUSECoffee, delicious pancakes and home-made cakes from 10.30-12 next Tuesday 18th April St Ethelwolds House, 30 East St Helens Street, AbingdonThere’ll be a warm welcome and pleasant places to sit and enjoy your goodies, as well as shelves of nearly-new Beautiful Books to buy (most paperbacks £1 and hardbacks £2)So do come along, enjoy St Eths and some lovely refreshments – and maybe pick up a book or 2 for yourself too!
Pancakes, Books and Bakes
Books and Bakes 2023
PANCAKES GALORE AT BOOKS, BAKES AND COFFEE ON TUESDAY FEB 21ST AT ST ETHELWOLDS HOUSECoffee, delicious pancakes and home-made cakes from 10.30-12 next Tuesday 21st February St Ethelwolds House, 30 East St Helens Street, AbingdonThere’ll be a warm welcome and pleasant places to sit and enjoy your goodies, as well as shelves of nearly-new Beautiful Books to buy (most paperbacks £1 and hardbacks £2)So do come along, enjoy St Eths and some lovely refreshments – and maybe pick up a book or 2 for yourself too!
Celebrating Diversity
We were delighted to be invited to partner in putting on this event, as old friends Heather-Jane and Isabel explained:
We are wondering if St Ethelwolds would like to partner with us in a music and storytelling event, bringing faith groups together. One of our peace partners, Hanna Yaffe, is over from Jerusalem, so we are building our events around her participation. We hope to bring communities together to create relationships, harmony and understanding.Doesn’t it sound good? – do join us on Tuesday 31st if you can, and do share the posters and invitation with others.If you want to reserve a space in advance please email Heather-Jane at info@spiritofpeace.co.uk. On the night seats will be allocated on a first come first served basis.
Books and Bakes
Next Books and Bakes
Browse and buy beautiful books at St Eth’s
Coffee and Home made Cake
Tuesday 7th March 10.30-12
Do join us!
Kindness and Community
Books and Bakes on 21st January was a special one, to celebrate kindness and community, as it fell in the week of the Winter Great Get Togethers, held nationally in memory of Jo Cox, MP
We were delighted to welcomes many visitors and very touched when one of our regular supporters, Barbara, made these hearts for us. The morning was indeed full of kindness and connecting.
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Update on autumn and Christmas events
“Thanks to all of you who have come along to St Ethelwolds House to our Tuesday morning Books & Bakes sessions and to the Christmas Wreath-making Workshop
We have now given donations of £250 to Crisis at Christmas and £250 to Abingdon Food Bank from the funds raised through these events and really appreciate all our ‘customers’ and the time and generosity of our volunteers.
Christmas Wreath Making Workshop
Saturday December 3rd 10-12.30
Come and join the fun making a beautiful fresh Christmas wreath with two experienced tutors.
Everything provided, including aromatic greenery, dried fruit slices, ribbons and cinnamon sticks, but do feel free to bring along anything you particularly wish to include.
Ticket price includes home made cake, tea,coffee and satsumas and gentle background music!
Numbers limited. £20 per head. Call St Ethelwold’s on 01235 555486 to book a place
In the Abingdon Blog this week
The Garden Room
The Garden Room was open at St Ethelwold’s House. In the Garden Room, there is a Visitors Book. Here is a small and quite typical selection.
‘An amazing retreat to stumble across in Abingdon. I can’t believe I never knew this was here.’
‘I lived in Abingdon from 1964 to 67. I can’t believe I’d never been here before. Wonderful. I’ve done some knitting.’
‘I’m so glad I walked into this fabulous setting. Spring has finally started to do its magic, and flowers are coming up. The birds are singing, and I can watch the geese and riverboats. It’s a site for sore eyes after the harsh winter months.’
‘What’s a lovely place to stumble upon. We are studying at Oxford and decided to take a little day trip to explore Abingdon during our Christmas holidays. What a lovely place.’
‘Stumbled across the lovely garden. So tranquil.’
‘Thank you to all the people who make this what it is. It’s a beautiful place. Restores my soul.’
‘It’s my great joy that I was joined for about five minutes by a Kingfisher on one of the poles.’
When I left, I saw one of the volunteer gardeners cutting back plants, a visitor sitting on a bench enjoying the October sunshine, and a dragonfly resting on a garden table.
Our Garden through the Decades – Photography Exhibition
If you are visiting the House or Garden over the next weeks do call in to see this exhibition, there are some beautiful pictures and it gives a chance to compare parts of the Garden as they were in the 1960’s and as they are now. The exhibition is inside the House, in the corridor from the Office to the Hearth.
Heritage Day
Join us on Heritage Days in September.
This year’s theme is “Astounding Inventions” and several events, including one at St Ethelwold’s, will be based around inventions and innovation.
Thursday 15 – Sunday 18 September: Exhibition in St Ethelwold’s House “Engines, Drains and Nuisances: the Innovative Career of George Winship”
Open 10.30-4.30
On Saturday 17th we will be offering refreshments, weather willing in the garden, from 10-2 and 2-4pm. Come and enjoy delicious home made cake and tea or coffee in our beautiful setting.
Summer Tea Gardens
Summer Tea Garden
We had our last Tea Garden for the season on Tuesday 30th August, a lovely afternoon to round off a very successful series.
One of our volunteers writes:
How we managed to be SO busy and still make the atmosphere so relaxed and welcoming is a bit of a mystery – but a very very pleasant one!It all comes down to the warmth and enthusiasm, incredibly hard work and boundless good-humour of our volunteers. Our profits of £167 go to support the Garden Fund towards new planting which will happen before the end of October in the area to the right at the bottom of the garden by the river. This time at the Tea Garden we were able to welcome so many newcomers to Abingdon and the St Eths Community too – probably the most important part of our work. Offering them such a lovely afternoon and the chance to meet others in the glorious gardens is a real privilege. It was lovely havingthe music from Dani, Hamid and Emma as well to make an even more festive atmosphere
