St Bartholomew’s Church, Elvaston

As we move to embark on our new adventure in Coventry, I realised what a change it will be from the Parishes on the Trent and Derwent where my husband is a curate. The beautiful waterways with colourful canal boats, country pubs where you are known by name (Ed even gets calls from the Parishioners on the pub landline!), and medieval churches where you sit on the same pew to pray the same prayer as a congregant 1000 years ago are a stones throw from where we live. It’s only now that I realise how special this place is and how I’d taken it for for granted. It’s often upon leaving a place that you realise it had a bigger place in your heart than you realised.

As part of my ‘au revoir’ to this unique part of Derbyshire, I’ve been working on some heritage projects. A legacy and homage to the places that have been my home for the last two years. As a creative person, it’s my natural way to express gratitude to people and place I think. Musicians and writers have different tools, but mine is to create with my hands.

Amongst the seven parishes, that are each unique and historic, is St Bartholomew’s Church, Elvaston. Each church has captured my heart in a different way, but this one is special because it’s nestled in Elvaston park, right next to the castle, famed for it’s beautiful formal gardens and pleasure grounds laid out in 1830 - 1851 by William Barron for the fourth Earl of Harrington.

At my last Wednesday holy communion service at Elvaston I took photos of some of the statues that have made me chuckle and some of that have made me think. Also, I looked up the churches names sake, St Bartholomew. I then set to digitally drawing them and then using my new Cricut Maker to make some papercuts. Here’s a sneaky peak at the sketches but I will show you all the final pieces in my next blog!