All the fun OF THE FAIR!
By Martha Fosberry
Phew! What a season it has been... as I write this, I am eyeing up the first juicy red apples of autumn growing slowly but surely in our newly planted orchard. I say “new”, as our fledgling apple growing efforts began only about five years ago. Sadly, the ancient orchards whose apples would have adorned the fields of Moon & I HQ (originally an 18th century cider house), like ruby jewels in a harvest crown, were ripped out several years ago in an effort to make the house more “desirable” to potential buyers. Call me old fashioned, but I desire nothing more than celebrating the ancient history of these acres we are blessed to build our business on. We are therefore, slowly, consciously replanting our patch of Herefordshire heaven. Each tree planted feels in some way like a quiet, thank you, to the land. Back to our beloved fun fair stall. Truthfully, progress has been slow, but steady. A wise friend once said to me, “progress is progress, forward is forward... even if you are a tortoise”. Well after a hare-paced summer, we are feeling a bit tortoise-y as we slide into winter. We have been blessed like many I hope, with a very busy season. It has been an absolute joy doing check-in after check-in, as the big C has loosened its grip on our industry. However, with the combo of full occupancy, change overs and full-time childcare during the summer holidays, any work on our beautiful fun fair stall has taken place either off site or in our evenings.
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It’s what’s on the inside that counts... Once the structure was in place, we decide a rain-proof solution was required for working within the space itself. We dusted off and donned the stall with its original (spiders and all) yellow ragged roof, which actually fared better than anyone expected and I am almost certain its brilliant yellow cover can be seen from outer space. During the height of summer, Reuben travelled to Kent to work with his father Kel on the ingeniously crafted panels to seal and create the upper walls of the stall. Contrary to my theory of just “putting a bit of a wood panelling in”, the infills of the old stall proved a bit more challenging. Kel engineered the most incredibly designed, lightweight panels whose bespoke shape lifted into the opening windows, all seven of them (eighth panel begin kept clear for the door), sealing and insulating the stall. The inside of the panelling flat, and the external panel curved to mimic the overall shape. We had some issue with suppliers and price increases which meant it took over two months to design and create the panels, Kel carefully rethinking things at each issue we uncovered along the way. Now, with panels reunited with stall; like Cinderella with her shoe, we are one step closer to being ready for the ball.
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Meanwhile, I had been clutching at straws, trying to listen to the funfair stall’s identity – by this, I mean the breakthrough idea or concept that is the catalyst for the space’s ongoing deigns (external and internal). It is important that this light bulb moment occur in good time for Reu, Kel and I to discuss and collaborate on all of the aesthetic decisions about the space as it develops. From windows to woodwork, if we all have a clear idea of how the space will “feel”, it makes it easier for us all to dream up how the space can develop. I know the nature of the stall lends itself to the obvious fairground theme... but I was struggling to find the linchpin. Luckily, due to my ongoing addiction to car boot sales, my eureka moment came in the shape of an unloved, £1 antique reproduction of Lothar Meggendorfer’s International pop-up Circus book. Meggendofer was a German illustrator and early cartoonist known for these pop-up books published in the 19th century. In another moment of divine serendipity, I sat on the warm grass floor at the car boot sale and unfolded each beautifully illustrated scene. Six scenes stood in front of me telling stories of circus acts of daring do. Six scenes almost screaming out to be adorned onto the six internal panels of the stall that
