SECTION 2: Flowers

(The container forms part of the exhibit and will be judged accordingly)

CLASS

19. Rose – single bud.
20. Rose – 3 of the same variety, any type.
21. Dahlia – 3 of the same variety, any type, can be mixed colours.
22. Phlox – 3 same colour.
23. Vase or bowl of sweet peas – 5 sprays, any variety.
24. Begonia – 1 bloom of any type.
25. Pansies – 6 of any colour.
26. Clematis – 1 bloom.
27. A single floating flower – stem cut to 25 mm maximum, no foliage.
28. Pot plant – foliage.
29. Pot plant – flowering.
30. Open class – any single bloom not covered above.

Tips on showing Vegetables, Fruit and Flowers
1. Always bring extra items, and choose the best when staging your exhibit.
2. If a class asks for more than 1 example, remember the judges will be looking for condition and uniformity (shape, size, and colour).
3. Check that you exhibit the correct number of items required in the class description.
4. Leave stalks intact, and cut to length if required by the class description.
5. All vegetables to be lightly washed .
6. “As Grown” means lightly washed, but not stripped or peeled.
7. Only exhibit items that are free of disease and/or pests such as aphids.

SECTION 3: Crafts

CLASS

31. A decorated Wellington boot.
32. A cushion 40 x 40 cm pad inserted – judged on skills involved.
33. A hand knitted item – judged on skills involved.
34. A craft item for a baby – judged on material choice, skill and presentation.
35. A celebration card.
36. An item of embroidery.
37. A hand quilted item
38. A ladies scarf or small shawl – made from fabric, silk or wool.
39. An item of lace
40. Piece of woodwork/li>
41. An item of soft furnishing
42. Open craft – any medium, metal, wood, clay, glass, lace, wool, fabric etc.

SECTION 4: Photography

CLASS

43. A sunrise or sunset.
44. A landscape.
45. A water scene.
46. The power of nature.
47. A flower or vegetable portrait
48. A bird or birds.
49. Animals or pets.
50. A selfie
51. Make us laugh
52. A silhouette
53. Sport

SECTION 6: Baking

CLASS

59. A lemon drizzle cake – to the given recipe below.
60. Tray bake – 4 pieces.
61. Biscuits – 6.
62. A loaf of bread – 1lb or 500g, any type.
63. Cornish pasty.
64. Men Only – 4 fruit scones.
65. Women Only – 4 fruit muffins.

Lemon Drizzle Cake Recipe
150g SR flour
150g softened butter
150g castor sugar
50g cornflour
150g eggs
2 medium lemons

For the drizzle
150g castor sugar
75ml lemon juice

1lb loaf tin
gas mark 4 or 180°C
Bake around 40 mins

SECTION 5: Preserves & Chutneys

(Containers should be clear glass, labelled with contents and date / Top can be screwed or cellophane.)

CLASS

54. Jar of Raspberry jam.
55. Jar of “stoned fruit” jam.
56. Jar of Marmalade.
57. Jar of chutney.
58. Bottle of Elderflower cordial.

SECTION 7: Floral Arrangements

CLASS

66. Arrangement in a candlestick.
67. Arrangement of cakes made from flowers on a cake stand.
68. Arrangement of foliage for a side table – any colours, no more than 70 cm high.
69. A jug of mixed garden flowers – no more than 60 cm high.
70. Table arrangement for a wedding.
71. A wired corsage of any flowers.

SECTION 8: Art Class

(Unframed artwork need not hang / All art work must not have been previously exhibited in any show.)

CLASS

72. Abstract – any medium.
73. Landscape – any medium.
74. Portrait – any medium.
75. Flower or flowers – any medium.
76. Pottery – any item.
77. Sculpture – any item.

SECTION 10: Junior Class Aged 9 – 16

(All work must have been completed since 1st Sept. 2016)

CLASS

89. A painted or decorated pebble.
90. A decorated paper plate.
91. Painting of an animal – A4, any medium.
92. A card for a friend – any medium – finished card A5 when folded.
93. Model of a figure in any modelling material – no larger than 12 cm.
94. Decorated cupcakes.
95. A craft item made from a kit.
96. A craft item designed and made by you.
97. A piece of computer-generated art.
98. A photograph of family or friends having fun.
99. Open craft – any item not covered in another category.

Sponsored Cups

The Dugmore Allotment Trophy – most points in Classes 1 – 18.

Chamisky Award for Excellence – most points in Classes 19 – 30.

The Digby Challenge cup – most points in Classes 31 -42.

The Penny Shield – most points in Classes 43 – 53.

Patricia Lake Cup – most points in Classes 59 – 65.

GlassJarsBottles.com cup – most points in Classes 54 – 58.

The White Lion Bowl – most points in Classes 66 – 71.

The Alan Oliver Art Shield – most points in Classes 72 – 77.

The Junior 4-8 Shield – most points in Classes 78 – 88.

The Junior 9-16 Shield – most points in Classes 89 – 100.

The Edmunds Shield – most points in show.

Prizes presented by Laurence Howard – HM Lord-Leiutenant of Rutland

Other Sponsors

Gates Nurseries & Garden Centre
Mike & Sonia Graves
Whissendine Parish Council

Show Officials

Chairman Tom Digby 474391
Show Manager David Penny 474008
Show Secretary Marion Lawrie 474072

Keith Dugmore has a few suggestions for growing Fruit and Vegetables:

As Chairman of the Village Allotment Association dare I possibly suggest that you needn’t have an allotment to win a prize in the show ! You don’t necessarily even have to have a veg plot to be a winner.

You can grow prize winning carrots in a container, or champion courgettes in a growbag, and even top class tomatoes in a hanging basket so everyone can enter and stand a chance.
What you will need to do though is to time your seed sowing carefully to be ready to harvest in early September. So do be sure to check the growing guides on the back of your seed packets, and choose the variety carefully some will vary significantly from early to late season.

When you are ready to exhibit your crop check again the class descriptions and the tips on showing in the brochure, presentation may be the difference of a rosette or not.
Lets hope for good growing weather, warm days gentle rain and no late frosts.

Sarah Bysouth tells us about the important points to remember for Crafts:

Now is your chance to finish those half finished projects that have been lurking in the dark recesses of your cupboards and tugging at your conscience to complete.

If you are starting from scratch, there is no need to spend lots of money! You can get great ideas for new projects from the internet or the library.

Check the wording in the show brochure to make sure your exhibit complies.

Be unique, the quickest way to a judge’s heart is to stand out with a unique idea within the classes specified.

Give some thought as to how the finished item will look, the more professional the finish , the better.

Remember to consider shape, scale, balance, space, colour, texture, proportion and the harmony of your item.

Finally, when choosing materials, they should be appropriate for the design and intended purpose and of course show your workmanship to best advantage.

Ro Raymond gives some Tips on Floral Arranging:
Healthy, fresh flowers and foliage in season, make even the simplest arrangement memorable. One stem “going over” can ruin the whole arrangement, so leave it out even if it is a special one.

Colour needs careful consideration. Choose your main colour and hold other colours against it to check that they blend together before placing it in position. Clashing colours should be used with care but can make a very exciting arrangement.

Make sure that your Oasis (or similar) is soaked through by floating it on the top of a bowl of water until it sinks to the bottom (approx. 10 mins) It can be bought from any florist or the Pound Shop. Old Oasis that has gone dry will not re-soak! Wire netting can be fixed over the top with Florists wire or tape if this is necessary for a more secure arrangement. (Are you going to carry it to the Church in the wind?) I am using the brand name Oasis here as most people have heard the name but there are several more similar good blocks on the market.

Flowers with hollow stems don’t really like Oasis as it tends to block them, therefore it is better to make a hole with a twig or knitting needle first for the stem to go into.

Roses live better by stripping the leaves up to the last one or two, trimming the stems and plunging into boiling water for ten seconds before putting in cold water. This takes the air bubbles out of the stem so the water can reach the bloom.

Collect your flowers and foliage the day before, trim the stalks and soak them over night, taking off as much of the greenery as possible. You want the water to keep feeding the flower not the extra greenery.

Choose a container that isn’t too dominant, so that it will not distract from the flowers.

Make sure that your arrangement does not exceed the size stated in the schedule, as this will loose an awful lot of points.

Pat Lake has an article about Baking & the history behind every Victoria Sponge:
As you may have guessed, Victoria Sponge was created for Queen Victoria when she resided at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight, when she was in retreat after the death of Prince Albert.

The Queen was encouraged to give small tea parties to close friends, hoping to bring her back into polite society and to take up the reins again. This is when the sponge came into being.

The fashion soon spread through the large houses, then to farms, and homes. In a very short time everyone was copying what the Queen had for tea.

There were many deviations but the traditional sponge made for the Queen is as follows:

• 100gm/4oz softened butter
• 100gm/4oz castor sugar
• 100gm/4oz self-raising flour
• 2 standard eggs
• Raspberry jam
• Castor sugar for dusting
• 2 X 18cm- or 7-inch sandwich tins

This will be what the judges will be looking for so have a go. Its easier than it looks, and you will be very popular when you take the sponge home for tea.

The tray-bake and biscuits can be of any description and the bread roll can be made by hand or with a bread-maker. For a Savoury flan, a 4 to 6 portion will be a good size and a suggestion for the gentlemen: dried fruit or glace cherries will help them to stay firm with no soggy bottoms.

Alan Oliver gives his tips for a successful piece of Artwork:

Choosing a Subject.
Choosing a subject to convert to a painting is perhaps the most difficult part of the process.
The artist should be excited by it, possibly by the particular light effect. Once you feel excited about it, all you have to do is convert it to a finished painting.

What Medium to use.
Watercolours, oils, acrylics, pastels, pencils, pens or charcoal. Also, what size will the painting be?

Style.
Try to be inventive. Try not to get bogged down trying to make a perfect image of the subject. A camera can do that much easier. Change the colours perhaps, work in a loose impressionist or even abstract style.

Design or Composition.
Will make or break the finished work. Avoid placing main objects in the centre. Divide your painting space into a third grid and place strong verticals and horizontal marks on or near the grid lines. Remember, the finished must look and feel balanced so that when it is hung up on the wall it will not swing to the left or right. In other words it will feel and look balanced.

Presentation.
This is as important as the painting itself. If it is a watercolour it should have a nicely proportioned mount and a slim frame. If it is an oil painting it could have a wider frame that compliments the paintings colours.

There are many fun classes to enter and in general a few simple guidelines are worth observing.

The judges will be looking to see if the exhibit follows the schedule. Is it really a seascape? Perhaps the seagulls by the sea should be in the bird or birds class instead? Really study the content of the photo to enter the most relevant class to be sure you give yourself a better chance of glory!

Originality; Is the photograph really original or is it yet another hill or sunset.

Technical Excellence; Is it properly exposed, if some aspect of the photo is fuzzy was this intended? Be aware of lens flare, reflection from lights and sunlight, shutter speed and depth of field.

Composition; Is the photo in balance, is the amount of sky too great or perhaps too little. Is one feature or colour too dominant? However, be aware that one feature or colour can also emphasize the photograph beautifully. Is the main feature of the photograph in balance with its surroundings. The main subject does not have to be in the centre of the shot unless you want it to be.

Artistic Merit; Do all elements come together, we all view photographs differently but do you think it works? Does your photo have drama, style, activity, movement? Do remember though that an understated, peaceful image can be beautifully powerful.

Overall Impact; Would a person looking at your photograph be shocked, impressed, moved or amused and certainly wish to take a second, longer look.

All the above are important factors to consider in every class except class 47 ……….’Your worst mistake – the one you usually delete’. The judges are really looking forward to this class do what you like.

Finally, common to all classes is that winning your rosette does not mean just snapping away but also skill in the way you prepare and present your exhibit. Plan ahead, stick to the schedule and success, glory and a career as a millionaire international professional photographer awaits you.

Two of our Judges Susan Gale-Sewell and Val Page give some advice on Preserves & Chutneys:

• The judges will be looking to see if the exhibit follows the schedule. The correct fruit or chutney for the class for which it is entered.
• A golden rule is that the exhibit should not be burnt. If it is it will be automatically disqualified and not judged.
• Exhibits are judged on taste, texture, colour and cleanliness.
• Use a clear jar or bottle to display the exhibit, make sure the jar is clean inside and out.