DEVON COUNTY SHOW, 2023

Friday was my hubby’s birthday, and since the Devon County Show usually falls around this date, we decided to go, and make it a birthday treat – actually a joint birthday treat as my birthday is at the end of the month.

It is always the best day out of the year for me. There’s so much to see and do, and as usual I spent more money than I intended!

I had on my list to look out for a new saute pan as my current one is Teflon lined, and I think the centre is beginning to deteriorate a bit, and I’ve read that this stuff isn’t safe if it flakes off into the food. I know that non-stick technology has moved on somewhat since Teflon was first introduced. We found a stand selling a whole range of really good quality saucepans of every shape and size – with the exception of a straight-sided, shallow saute pan with two handles! I chose the next best thing which was described as a wok – actually quite a bit shallower than the average wok, but it had the two handles, and curved sides deeper than a standard frying pan, and a domed lid. It is lined with a ceramic non-stick surface which is apparently integrated into the surface of the pan during the manufacturing process and not sprayed on afterwards. I’ve tried it out a couple of times and so far so good – I haven’t put it to the ultimate pancake test yet! I had given up making pancakes in my saute pan as they did nothing but stick.

We also found a smashing ethnic clothing stand run by a charming Sikh couple who regularly return to India as the husband’s family still reside there, and they get the clothes made there. They also buy in clothing from Italy which is always stylish and different. I stocked up on some great summer wardrobe additions and because of my bulk buy, the delightful lady gave me a hefty discount!

We had a delicious healthy lunch consisting of vegetable samosas from another Indian who was cooking them on the spot, so nice and hot! We went for a salad box from the Scotch Egg stand (minus the Scotch eggs) and both dug into that with relish. Gorgeous yoghurt dip accompanying the samosas too.

We both agreed that the whole thing seemed to be on a smaller scale than previously. The last time we attended was pre-Covid. There is always a central display in the main exhibition tent and this year it was very disappointing. It was a display on the production of wool, which was interesting in its own right, and well done, but it lacked the visual impact of displays of previous years.

In that tent were also the usual garden and plant displays, and the floral arrangement competition display, all of which were definitely on a reduced scale. Such a shame. What we did see was excellent, though.

Beyond the wool display was an installation of a grand piano with flowers and plants. Definitely lacking in visual impact but the flowers were lovely, of course.

I always enjoy the cactus display because of the sheer quirkiness of these weird plants! This year the stand was quite small.

There was a display of still-life arrangements on the theme “A Stitch in Time” – these were really gorgeous.

The floral arrangements also had several themes, as usual. The “Sitting Pretty” theme had a floral arrangement on a chair, and they really were very pretty.

 

“Enchanted Garden” was a delight. So much detail, and full of mystery and magic.

An example from the “Jewel Encrusted” class.

A prize-winner, and also my favourite, from the “Box of Delights” class. Everything made from plant materials.

I think my favourite class of the whole collection was “Seascape.” I love anything with a sea theme and these exhibits really captured the essence of it.

Moving outside again, we did the round of the various stands. I loved this one, full of wooden crates engraved with the names of wines and beers.

This stand, with a theme of water conservation, had a giant version of one of those magic taps which seem to hang in mid-air and produce an endless stream of water! I first saw one of these when I was a child and was absolutely entranced by it and couldn’t think how it worked!!

The scouts had a climbing wall and lots of people were having a go on that.

The beautiful llamas with their placid pretty faces.

We were both delighted when we came across the blacksmithing display, alongside the working forges which were pretty noisy with their constant ringing of hammer on anvil! We always enjoy looking at the incredible work these craftsmen produce. At the entrance was this assemblage of iron seed heads on a grand scale.

Astonishing detail and so realistic.

Moving inside, here are some of the pieces which particularly caught my attention.

I am always amazed at the organic and almost soft properties that some of these pieces exhibit, particularly as they are made of such a hard, unyieldng substance as iron! The skill is simply astonishing. So graceful and fluid.

We saw a bit of the show jumping as it began, but it was hard to get close enough to see everything, and there was so much else to see that we didn’t linger for long there. It was great seeing the beautiful horses, though, and the riders so beautifully turned out.

A charming little patch of buttercups growing around a post.

I loved this honey stand with its pretty backdrop and the shelves shaped like honeycombs. We bought two pots of delicious honey from them.

This was a fascinating stand that I don’t think has been at the show before – beautiful wooden brushes of all descriptions, and kitchen utensils all made of wood. I had a chat with the man about his boar bristle hair brushes which unfortunately also had nylon mixed in with the bristles – he said this was for detangling. The best way is to detangle your hair with your fingers, and use a pure boar bristle brush for smoothing and distributing the natural oils, and to act as a dry shampoo as it removes dirt and lint from your hair. The main was very amusing as he pointed at his own bald scalp and said he wasn’t much of an advert for his own produce, was he!!

All the lovely wood and brushes made such a gorgeous display.

We were delighted to see the lady back again with her colourful Indian garden umbrellas – we bought one from her a few years ago. We told her how thrilled we are with it, and how much it has been admired by our various visitors, who say it is very “us” as we are a bit quirky!!

She had quite a collection as always, but none of them were as pretty as the one we bought.

Judging the sheep. I was a bit annoyed because there was a magnificent black one with rosettes stuck all over him (obviously supreme champion!) but people kept getting in the way and then he was led off and I couldn’t get a photo of him. You can just see his legs behind the lady with the bare legs.

I love seeing the very serious judges in their white coats, examining the beautifully turned out livestock.

The final photo I took was of this magnificent life-sized sculpture of a horse made from driftwood.

The skill of all the craftsmen displaying their work at this year’s show was simply amazing.

As always, a brilliant day out, and I think my hubby really enjoyed his birthday!