Tuesday, March 29, 2016

The Egg Hunt

Children hand-in their egg hunt sheets in exchange for a Cadbury chocolate bunny. ©Sue Pownall 2016
I was invited to sketch the Egg Hunt at Bourne Mill, a National Trust property, over the Easter weekend.

Good Friday was a glorious spring day, clear skies and sunshine, and the Mill proved to be a very popular venue for an egg hunt as there were over 300 entries, so more Cadbury's bunnies were needed for the rest of the weekend. On Saturday, the forecasted rain held off and saw many more families completing the hunt. Unfortunately, due to Storm Katie and the 50pmh plus winds, the mill was closed on Easter Monday.

Sitting at a picnic table alongside the pond, I sketched the children trying to solve the clues. It was funny watching many of the dads work it out, spot the eggs, almost point, then clamp their mouths shut until their son or daughter could do it.
Egg hunters. ©Sue Pownall
Eggs were hidden throughout the property and I had to find places to sketch without giving the location away and refrain from looking at the eggs when children were near. Here are a couple of them:
A clue in the bug hotel. ©Sue Pownall
The pitt room egg. ©Sue Pownall
Finally, the egg hunters returned to the desk and claimed their Cadbury's bunnies. (Top image)
Right is a photo of me sketching in the wheel room. Behind me is the wheel, which was incredibly noisy, but it was an atmospheric place to sketch.

I have to confess, I am disappointed the weekend is now over as it was a great event to attend in a lovely location.