THE 27th St Teath village show on Saturday, August 12 proved yet again just what a talented and skilful bunch of people live in St Teath and its surrounds.

From the tiniest of flower displays in a four-inch glass, to the largest plants and displays of floral arts, handicrafts, fruit and vegetables, home produce and wines, not forgetting the superb entries in the children’s classes — the show had them all.

It was also good to see many more new exhibitors and trophy winners again this year, with their efforts applauded.

Despite the vagaries of the Cornish weather wreaking havoc amongst the allotments and gardens of North Cornwall, it was good to see some fine specimens in the horticultural section — even if the number of entries in some classes were lower than usual, the quality was certainly evident.

Quality exhibits of fruit, vegetables and cut flowers were on display, giving the judges a hard time in whittling them down to deserving winners.

In the floral art category, there were three adult classes — garden in a four-inch glass, seaside and shades of one colour. There was also an artist’s palette class for under 16s. the imaginative and colourful displays in these classes were a joy to behold.

The home produce category once again produced some mouth-watering results, from carrot cake, ginger cake, cupcakes and shortbreads galore, to Cornish pasties, sausage rolls and savoury scones. Jams, jellies, curds, marmalades and chutneys were all on display too.

The wine category again posed some tongue tickling teasers for the judge. His first comment was that the bottle must be sparkling clean and the contents clear of residue or any floating ‘bits’.

The second thing they look for is how much alcohol is actually contained in the drink. They check this by spinning the drink in the glass and watch the ‘legs’ come down. They will make a judgement of alcohol content on this procedure, as well as tasting.

All entries in alcoholic classes should be properly aged. The judge commented that the spirits were let down by lack of maturing and they needed to be aged and any that were discounted this year due to immaturity should be re-entered in a few years when they are more mature.

The number of entries in the photography classes certainly increased this year, and the sunlight class was difficult to judge. The judge commented that he was looking for centralisation of the subject, good composition and good focus. The majority of entries in this class certainly met the criteria.

In the black and white silhouette class the judge was pleased with the entries in the children’s photographic class, and had a hard time choosing the winning photograph.

The handicrafts and art classes also delivered on quality. The new upcycled class sported an old sheet that had been tie-dyed and then made into an all-in-one apron, and a notebook made from recycled pieces of cardboard and paper.

The patchwork class showed just how versatile this craft can be, with a quilt, rucksack, Christmas decoration and book cover among the entries.

The knitted entries included some cute matinee jackets for premature babies, and there were around 28 entries. Once again, these will be going to the premature baby unit at Treliske; there are around 60 in total.

It was nice to see some new exhibitors in the art classes. There was a new art judge, who gave informative feedback on each entry. The quality of the entries certainly made for hard judging.

Other classes on display were knitted items for a child, knitted items for adults, knitted scarves, and a selection of crocheted items. There were also many models on display, made from wood, Lego, and also some wood-turned items.

Kevin Hargrave, chairman, said: “I must thank the Timepiece for delivering the schedules, and the ladies of the WI for another splendid lunch. Thank you to the committee, stewards and recorders for their hard work on show day, and all who helped set up and dismantle and clean up afterwards.

“Thanks to Lynsey once again for serving the teas, and to the staff and pupils of St Teath Preschool and primary school for their fantastic entries. Thanks also to the judges and exhibitors — without you there wouldn’t be a show.

“A very special thank you to David Jasper for his help in this, my first year as chair of the village show committee. His knowledge and expertise in running the show has been invaluable — long may it continue.”

To get involved in the running of the village show, contact Kevin on 01208 850002 or 01208 850650.

See this week’s Post for the show results.