This first meeting to be held at Bourton-on-the-Water, hosted by Emma Jenkinson was a great success. Almost 40 members gathered in a spacious hall in the picturesque village location on a fine day, to enjoy both wooden and cardboard jigsaw puzzling, plenty of tea, coffee, biscuits and cakes and a Show and Tell session themed “Natural Beauty”. And members both old and new – BCD founder member Mollie Barnes attended, as did Sara White collector and new member Francis, all the way from Plymouth in Devon.
As always, the Show and Tell included nicely varied interpretations of the theme! David brought two cardboard puzzles – a Forestry Commission “Beech and Sycamore” and a Photocrom “”Lower Falls at Glen Nevis” – and a Chapman & Wise 1930’s studded-framed wooden puzzle “Sweet Rocket”. Sally followed with three puzzles including “Windsor Castle” a wooden puzzle made by Ex British Servicemen. Bronwen’s puzzles were a beautiful, intricately “American Scroll” style cut, oriental scene by Five Frogs and Peter Stocken’s “The Bare Essentials” which left little to the imagination!
Pete showed a pretty 700 piece Vera miniature “Les Vielles Marches” (Old Steps) “Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May” cut by Genest Desfosses (Le Colimacon) and an oval “Queen of Sheba” by an unknown cutter, suggested to be Salmon, but our resident Salmon expert not so sure!
Next was Francis who, as a neighbour of the family, had acquired a strong interest in Sara White’s puzzles and showed us a really impressive 1170 piece puzzle of hers, “The Adoration of The Magi”. Jackie followed with a Wentworth 500 piece tessellated “quilt” of several of her own tree and leaves photos, titled “New England Fall”. Her second was a combination of 6 individual monthly Meredith Worsfold puzzles and she finished up with a 3000 piece cardboard Educa puzzle, “James Bond’s Island” – a beautiful photo taken in Phang Nga Bay, Thailand.
Gillian presented a 1000 Waddington puzzle of boats (including her husband’s!) on the Thames at Abingdon and a much older wooden “Temperance of Industry” puzzle, Les showed a Chad Valley “Three Little Pigs”, Lynne brought along three Dave Evans cuts, “A Coastal Walk”,”Cornwall” and “Devon” and Alan another Chad Valley, “Yachting” and a Tuck “Edge of The Common”. John closed the session with “Dona, Isabel de Porcel” a lovely puzzle of what he considered to be the star painting , by Goya, in the Prado in Madrid.