A Hidden gem in Lincolnshire









After a troubled day and night, before

 The dawn reveals a hidden gem

Wykes Manor house and home

A place to be, the place to be today.

A place to hide, a place to share

A place that’s comfortable with itself

A place to meet others

A place to tell your story

A place to dwell in the Spirit

A place with Big sky’s, Large fields, and dykes to drain away

But cold and ice and snow and rain and sleet and sun again

Back to a roaring open fire and mug of warming tea.

Away from home, an yet to feel at home

Home is where the heart is

Home is where the heart is full of Christ

A place to be

A place to be for you and me today

A hidden gem in Lincolnshire

Bob Pritchard February 2015-02-07 - recent retreatant  

Why Hello Again! 

Dear people, please forgive the long silence. Here followeth a list of excuses and promises for better behaviour in the future. 

About the time that the long blog silence began, I started doing the promotion and administration for artist James Gillick, much like I (try to) do for Wykes Manor. And my own art - but that's another whole story! 

James is one of the country's highest paid painters of still lifes, has a strong client base amongst the rich and famous, and is gaining increasing notoriety in England and worldwide. He painted a portrait of the Hon. Margaret Thatcher when he was just 28 (it's okay, I've got 4 years), as well as the late Pope John Paul II. Not in the same year. Last year his work took him to China and the US. He EVEN has his own Wikipedia page! 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Gillick

When you know you've made it. Or written it yourself. Is that a thing? 

Anyway, here's a link to his website (which I'm updating at the mo., so bear with)

http://www.gillick-artist.com/

I recommend a visit if you want to brighten up your day with some beauty. As well as coming here, 'course. 

As his assistant and promoter, my duties currently comprise anything from drafting letters to the Duke of Norfolk, becoming a Photoshop nerdette or trying to look good on Twitter. Lots of desk work and phonecalls. Never has Zumba been so needed. Except for maybe whilst at Cambridge, where the seasons changed and exams came round whilst I stayed glued to my little seat in the Library. 

Not this Duke. 

There will be more running around once the Spring starts, with the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in May, as well as James' solo Exhibitions in June, and then the Burghley Horse Trials in September. In between there is all the organisation for these, done in the main by yours truly #WorkExperience. 

Now if that hashtag hasn't impressed you and got me off the hook, then nothing will! 

Czech out our Christmas Celebrations! 

This year saw a pretty international gathering for Christmas festivities at Wykes Manor, as the family were joined around the festive table by lodgers and house guests from Poland and the Czech Republic. We were also joined by Dora, from Hong Kong who booked a retreat with us over the Christmas period. 

On Christmas Eve we returned from some last-minute shopping that's become a bit of a family tradition. Actually, all our shopping's last minute. Moving on. 

This is the sight that greeted our eyes and cold, hungry bodies. More delights were to come! 

Once everyone was sat down, platters of fried meat and bowls of a delicious potato salad were brought from the kitchen, whilst our glasses were filled with champagne. After grace and a toast to the old and new year, we sat down and hungrily tucked into this traditional Czech fare.

I've tried to find the Czech names for the dishes we ate, but google has failed me this one time! Do leave a comment if you can help!

Time for a festive toast!

Our wonderful chefs take a well-earned break around the festive table.

Dessert- these were delicious with coffee, or champagne! 

The three eldest van Spyks show you how not to pose for photos. 

Thank you to all those who made this such a special day! 

Grants for the Arts - Available Now! 

Do you have an Arts project which will benefit your local community or artists in some way? You might be a visual or dance artist, a budding writer or passionate thespian - then this is for YOU! 

Do you have lots of wonderful ideas but lack the wherewithal to make them come off the ground? Too long have the Arts complained that science gets all the money - now is YOUR time to  prove why your project deserves funding! 

Thanks to the Arts Council England, lottery funding is now available for grants between £1,000 and up to a whopping £100,000. 

Thanks to the organisational skills of local Arts facilitators Transported, we recently attended a workshop in Spalding on how to apply for Arts grants. As well as being taken step-by-step through the application process, we were also given some useful tips on strengthening our applications. 

Useful Tips: 

-You need to have 10% of the funding you are asking for from other sources of funding or your own. However this can include resources you are investing in setting up your project, for example, a £5,000 piece of equipment.   

-The project needs to take place within a set period, and not too close to the funding application period. 

-They want to see proof of your business management acumen as well as the genius of your ideas! 

-Before you apply write up a business plan - what it will look like when it's successful. This will clarify and strengthen your application. 

-Prove how your project will bring the Arts to local communities. 

-Ring up their friendly customer help team if you're unsure at any point. 

-Your financial plan and assessment are as important as your business plan- why that sum? What will the money be spent on? 

-Have a website or online presence so that you look serious. 

-Feel free to collaborate with other artists. 

To apply and get more information, check out the Arts Council's website here.   

Open House Exhibition 

This weekend was the first time we officially opened our doors to local craftspeople and members of the public for an open House Exhibition, the first of many so we hope! 

Our thanks go to all of you who exhibited your work and to all who came along and supported this event. The sense of community was very strong, and wonderful to experience!  

We had a very busy few days, and I was too busy welcoming visitors and selling to take pictures of the event, so these are just some I took once everyone had left, to give you a sense of the event

13 year old Pip Van Spyk did  a roaring trade on his series of match-stick castle candle-holders

All that posing and poor singing paid off with my collection of Christmas cards which were very well received (better than my singing)

Beautiful Jewelry by our lovely Sally Booth, from Donington village.  

Some festive plant holders courtesy of Fairprice Furnishings went away to brighten up many a doorstep over the Christmas season

Jane Austen would approve - beautiful period dresses made by the nimble fingers of Claire from Grantham 

Now this one would grace the best of bachelor pads. Martini anyone?! 

Rustic drop away pine table from Fairprice Furnishings, with one of the wreaths made by our Homeschoolers which went down a storm

Farmhouse chairs and table from Fairprice Furnishings 

Love this little set of drawers 

It wasn't just me that loved these still life studies done in oil paint by Annie Van Spyk, each a masterpiece of observation,great materials and technique - not biased or anything.....

Two little monkeys I found picking over the day's leftovers! 

If you see something you like, please email us and we'll let you know prices, dimensions and availability! 

Painting Angels 

Some people love the thought of heavenly beings surrounding us, others aren't so enamoured. 

However like them or not, Angels remain a big part of the Christmas story, and as such were one to feature on my cards this year. 

That being said, they are hard to portray, especially if you are not satisfied with the barbie-like template we sometimes get stuck on. This doesn't really flow with the many glimpses we get of angels in the Bible. These two quotes just show the different sides to them -  

Psalm 78:49
He unleashed against them his hot anger, his wrath, indignation and hostility -- a band of destroying angels. 

Psalm 91:11
For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; 

Click here if you want to read more! 

I prefer my angels big and powerful, but at Christmas the gentler side seems more appropriate, as angels rush around telling humble people of the good news, look after the infants massacred by King Herod, or throng lovingly around the holy crib. 
With this in mind, what better way to remember these roles than by revisiting a classic..... 
This was 'Angel playing the lute', by Giovanni Rossi, a wonderfully talented Italian Renaissance man - weren't they all?! 

It looks a bit like this

So I gave it the ML treatment - with my nifty little Japanese brush pen. 

Then for a more traditional tribute  - get out those paints! Watercolour for a gentle, bright effect, although the original was in oil. 

 

Hard at work - thanks to Missy Van Spyk, my little paparazzi for these

And yes there was some singing......

Then the paparrazzi discovered the selfie....

Some selfies and radio-tunes later we had our finished product. 

Email us if you would like cards of these images ( not the selfies...) 

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Hunter-Gatherers Hit The Lincolnshire Hedges 

It's common knowledge now that we  all need to dose up on vitamin C as the winter draws in. 

But it's not so well known that our humble English hedgerows actually provide a far better source of this winter supplement than your average orange! Yep, the rosehip, all that's left of the delicate wild roses that bloom so sweetly near us in summer.

So, wrapped up warmly, we braved the thorns to fill our baskets with these native superheroes. 

Back at Wykes, we then used our German Juicer to extract the juice by steam. We then boil this liquid with sugar to create a syrup that is used throughout winter to keep coughs and sneezes at bay. We even put it into our mulled wine, creating a 'healthy' beverage (wink, wink!). 

If you live near fruit trees, you might have noticed how laden they were with fruit this year, and how many berries bejewel the hedges. Old wisdom says that a heavy crop of fruit and berries means a hard winter will follow. But if you keep dosing up on those natural sources of vitamins, then have no fear- winter is sorted! 

Domestic Goddess Makes Christmas Special 

Phoebe Claus. 

She came in a flurry of apron strings and festive ribbons, armed with sewing machine and recipe book. Her task - to equip us to be the best hostesses this festive season. 

First on the To-Do List  - Ginger Cake! - 

Before we knew it, we were up to our elbows in cake mixture, busy lining tins and measuring out the spices for Phoebe's acclaimed Ginger Cake. The spices give this delicious cake a festive air, whilst its light, gooey texture and subtle flavours ensure it will be a winner everywhere, whether you're wowing guests or giving it as a gift. Perfect served hot or cold with custard, cream, you name it! We ate ours still warm from the oven, heavenly with a mug of hot tea. 

Next Up - Christmas Decorations - 

After home-made spicy pumpkin soup, we cracked on with the day's activities - Out came the needle and thread, the crimping scissors and colourful fabrics. 

Simple felt rectangles were sewn together by sewing down through the centre, leaving a few stitches in between each piece of felt, and topping with a loop of Christmas ribbon at the top of the tree.When hung, this felt Christmas tree turns gently around, giving some bright festive colour to your room. 

  - The Mulled Wine Mix - 

Juniper Berries- can't say they're a usual ingredient in my cooking, but who knew they made mulled wine?! We simmered these gently, along with a rich assortment of sugar and spices to make mulled wine syrup, ready to be heated up with bottles of red wine to take the chill out of those cold dark nights. 

Art Attack - Christmas Card Bonanza 

D-day approaches. 

Yep, you got it - Christmas! Jingle those bells and buy in the wrapping paper! 

Isn't it sad that 'Christmas' fills some of us with dread - We worry what to get for who, will it be enough - will they like it?! About the deteriorating condition of our bank balance, or ending up looking like the fat man in red yourself. 

If you're in the commercial sphere, then there are the additional worries of producing Christmas stock, and then selling it at a profit. 

This year I 'm guilty of dreading Christmas on both accounts - shops need their Christmas cards, and they need them quick. 'But it's nowhere near Christmas', you mutter, I don't feel Christmassy yet'. 

And that's before you've even got started on your little sister's wish list. How sweet that she's so good at writing now!

There are ways around the Christmas-brain-freeze (hope you enjoyed that pun). Some recommend playing Christmas carols. Or indulging in some mince-pies - only because you have to, obviously.

Collecting holly sprigs from our garden helped. These were the starting piece for creating some new designs, endowing my usual line drawings with some of the festive spirit. 

Playing Kiss Fm  very loud on the radio and singing all the (wrong) lyrics at the top of my lungs probably didn't.

If this is the first time you've seen this face - apologies. 

Of course, if you're lucky, then you'll have a cosy little nook where you can hide away to produce your mini masterpieces. This is mine - 

Time to get down to work! 

However I find the best way to get over these pre-Christmas blues is to remind yourself what it's all about. Getting back to basics, it's the story of perfect love. The kind of love that you'll sacrifice all for, even sending your son down in the most vulnerable form. The kind of love a mother has for her newborn baby. The love reflected in all the visitors meeting this little one for the first time. 

So my last endeavour tried to reflect this - the heart of Christmas.