It was a beautiful bright-sun, blue-sky day last Saturday for the Michaelmas Fair at the Hospital of St Cross and Almshouse of Noble Poverty.
We walked around the outside stalls and had a look at the birds of prey, including one renegade owl who had flown off to sit on the roof of the Hundred Men's Hall, and then we went into the part of the almshouses which has been preserved in the spirit of medieval times.
In the former Brethren's Hall, where usually three empty wooden chairs sit round an unlit fire of casually-arranged sticks, we found more stalls, including one displaying ladies' clothes. I spied a purple fur gilet and thought I would try it on.
The stallholder, Ann, as I later found her name to be, told me that the gilet was a small size. As indeed it was. The lining was a soft material in a red print. Purple and red - favourite colours. As I type this, Jenny Jones' poem comes to mind but with a slight alteration to the first line: "When I am an old woman, I shall wear purple with a red lining."
Before Ann got up to help me I had noticed the plain background of the wall behind where she was sitting on a wooden pew. She also had a lovely smile. I asked her if I could take her portrait and went on to explain my strangers' project. She did immediately seem happy to say yes but went on to say that she didn't really like her photo taken. So I told her that people quite often say that to me but are always pleased when they see the photo on the camera screen.
I asked Ann to sit again on the pew and took several shots. With the photo agreed, with the support of the lady on the neighbouring stall, it was time to ask Ann to speak a little about herself for the text to accompany the portrait.
Ann used to have a vintage stall on Portobello Road when her family lived in London. Now that they - her husband, teenage son and daughter, two cats, and her springer spaniel, Ludo - have re-located to Winchester, she makes all the clothes for sale at home and sells them by word of mouth to family and friends.
I asked Ann what she likes doing when she is not making clothes and she replied that walking Ludo is her favourite activity. Sadly, our Cairn terrier, Jinks, had died the previous day and I found myself mentioning him and we went on to talk about the endearing, and sometimes not so endearing, traits of pets present and past.
My plan that day had been not to find any portraits so I was ill equipped and Ann kindly gave me something to write on and something to write with so that I could make a couple of notes and also have her email address to send her a photo. She explained that the words 'Nazi Germany' written on the back of the index card she gave me were there from the recent occasion when she had been helping her son with his homework. This led me to mention my dad's recently published PoW diaries and we spoke a little about that and she asked me to send her the link to the website.
It was a real pleasure for us to speak with Ann, even though I did not come away with that purple fur gilet. She told us 'You've made my day.' Thank you to her and all good wishes for her family's new life in Winchester
See more portraits of Ann, and associated photos:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/150442566@N07/37109927740/in/dateposted-public/
Thank you - I'm with you!
Thanks for your email I will get back to you soon. Had a busy week. Hope you are coping okay.
Thanks Babs - I think 'flat' is the word!