Stoney Middleton Wells are up!!

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Sat 26th Jul 2008

When in Rome live as the Romans do!

Congratulations to everyone! - This year the main picture in the Nook is based on the advice given to St Augustine by St Ambrose, the Bishop of Milan."When in Rome, live as the Romans do". St Ambrose goes on to finish by saying "when elsewhere live as they live elsewhere". The idea for this theme came after of visits by the designer Dave Thorpe to the Forum in Rome and to the museums to see the mosaics.

The Bath Well is inspired by Proverbs Chapter 4, Verse 18: - " The path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day" and was designed again this year by Jill Askey

The Childrens's Well, designed by the children celebrates the successful return to normality of Stoney Middleton Church of England Primary School after the struggle to keep the school open in 2006 and 2007.

St Ambrose, mosaic in the Basiliac of St Ambrogio, Milan

Dave Thorpe who has been designing Main Well in Stoney since the 1970's with a break last year says: -"Designing the wells is a long process - preliminary sketches are made, discarded or reworked until a satisfactory idea emerges which achieves the desired balance, rhythm and impact. The colour and theme of the picture determine the style and colours of the frame surround. A scaled down colour design of the whole board is then created which gives the petallers a colour reference point. But the colours change depending on availability of certain flowers each season.

Next I takes over the house and litter every available floor and space to produce a full scale line drawing from the squared-up original design." Poor Kath!

"Doubts creep in!! Will the picture work? Is that arm too long? Should that cloth fold like that? Shall I go on holiday tomorrow?

But a week before the Well Dressing Dave laid the paper on to the clay and transferred the designs by following the pencil lines with a dressmaker's wheel. Wooling, petalling and continued until the Wells were erected on Friday evening.

Photographs of the Wells are available in the Photo Gallery for downloading

Details of the daily programme can be seen under Forthcoming Events.

Everyone welcome to the opening at 3.00pm today