Winchester Get-Together - August 2018

The Take Joy Society's August get-together was in Old Town Winchester, VA today.  First we did the requisite shopping.  Our first stop was Peacock Antiques. . . .

The Farmer's Market was just a few steps down along Winchester's Pedestrian Mall. . . .

They had these very interesting mushrooms. . . .

And no Farmer's Market is complete without fresh flowers. . . .

If you bought anything from the Market you got a free insulated shopping bag--so we all bought something!

Several of us went into the Eugene B. Smith Gallery.  Lovely watercolors. . . .

Bluebells florist had a lovely assortment of garden-themed products. . . .

I neglected to get a photo of the Exotic Himalayan Handicrafts shop but it is worth a return visit for the lovely clothing.

Then we had lunch at the Village Square Restaurant. . . .

It was a very warm day and the umbrella didn't quite cover the whole table, but it was too lovely to not eat outside along the Pedestrian Mall. . . .

I was one of those who had the quiche and can attest it was DEE-licious, as my 2-year-old grandson would say. . . .

Chris had to leave us after lunch.  The rest of us drove the mile to The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley.  We were running later than I'd planned so we decided to do the gardens of Glen Burnie House first to make sure we saw all of the gardens.  Here is a bit of history about the house (click on to enlarge). . . .

The original house was built in 1793 by the son of the founder of Winchester.  Descendants of the Wood family lived there until 1992.  The Museum of the Shenanadoah Valley was built in 2005 on the 254-acre property.  This barn is at the entrance to the seven acres of gardens which were began in 1956 by Julian Wood Glass, Jr. . . .

HERE IS A MAP of the grounds.

Currently there is an interesting art installation throughout the gardens--Legos creations. . . .

We began our tour in the Rose Garden.  Each lego creation had a informational sign connecting the object to nature. . . .

There were still a few roses in bloom in this garden. . . .

There is another set of steps on the other side of the wall. . . .

We've had so much rain lately.  This duck is taking advantage of the flooded South Lawn. . . .

Parterre Garden. . . .

Front Lawn. . . .

The view from the Tea House. . . .

Bamboo on the other side of the wall. . . .

The Tea House. . . .

The gate to the left of the Tea House. . . .

The Folly. . . .We all agreed we could spend an afternoon sipping iced tea and reading a book here on a hot summer's afternoon. . . .

There was more to this waterfall, but if I'd included it, I would have gotten the two workmen who were sitting in the cooling water that was pooling at the bottom. . . .

As we were walking down the path to this part of the garden a little girl who had run ahead of her mother asked me where to find the dragon 😊

Near the original entry drive to the property. . . .

Kathie's Garden lined the stream that flowed along the driveway.  It was planted with wildflowers to attract butterflies. . . .

We saw a real baby snapping turtle later in the garden. . . .

A Lego spider could be seen hanging from a tree. . . .

Beyond the geese along the pond you can see the carriage house and staff building. . . .

The Carolina Jasmine Allée, but it seems to be planted with young Clematis now. . . .

Pink Pavilion Court Yard. . . .

The Vegetable Garden. . . .

From a distance I thought these were real people working in the garden. . . .

Herb Garden. . . .

This is the back of Glen Burnie House as seen down the Grand Allée.  Weddings are held here. . . .

Six generations at Glen Burnie. . . .

Click on to enlarge

Julian Glass Jr. added this room onto the house. . . .

After Julian died in 1992 his former partner R. Lee Taylor continued to live in the upstairs portion of the house when it was opened to the public in 1997 as a museum.  It was Taylor who, with the help of artisans, created this replica of the house. . . .

We were not allowed upstairs, but we got a "tour" none the less by looking at its miniature replica. . . .

The center hall and staircase. . . .

The dining room is where the miniature replica is now housed. . . .

The Library. . . .

We did indeed run out of time to visit The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley. . . .

HERE IS A MAP of the Museum.

But we went in to visit the R. Lee Taylor Miniature Gallery.  Taylor designed and had made a miniature of what his dream house would look like. . . .

You can read an article about Mr. Taylor's "A World in Miniature" HERE.
See more of the lego artist's work HERE.

❤️Take Joy❤️