Ten Photos

A '50 Thing' task I've been working on for a while is number 8 on my list  'Explore your neighbourhood in 10 photographs'. I live in a town called Paisley, which doesn't have the best of reputations. Over the years I've discovered the beauty of the town, which I hope will be reflected in some of these photographs.

Arts Centre

I love the Arts Centre building, a converted church (The Old Laigh Kirk), with graveyard still intact. I used to go to life drawing classes here and have also been to gigs/plays/dance performances at this arts venue. It's a great little place and one which I should make more use of. I used to also love the Haunt Bar upstairs, which sadly is no longer there...

Thomas Coats Church

Thomas Coats Church has got to be one of my favourite buildings ever - such amazing gothic architecture. The more I look at it, the more intricate detail I notice, and I really want to just sit for a whole day sketching parts of it. My Postgrad graduation ceremony was held here. I don't think I fully appreciated the beauty of the building back then.

Paisley Abbey

Paisley Abbey is another amazing building, so it deserves to be showcased in 4 photos. I've been to a service in here and it was amazing sitting listening to an organ playing in a building like this, with sunlight streaming through the stain glass windows. I love the corridor you walk along to lead into the main part of the building (If you turn right it takes you into the little gift shop and cafe). The year a medieval festival took place in the town there were lots of stalls outside the Abbey and I think an alchemist type stall was set up inside (I vaguely remember an old man holding something up in a jar...). Another year when the Witch Trial Reenactments Day took place, a woman dressed in old clothes told old witch stories in a corner of the Abbey (mainly to a group of children, plus me and two friends!).

Park

The Fountain Park is a great little green haven for me. On many a sunny day I have sat under a tree reading a book. Just outside the park is a cherry blossom tree - I always love seeing that in bloom, particulary because it signifies my favourite season, Spring. I took this photo a few weeks ago, just before the trees in the park turned to yellow and red.

Old Bedroom

Sma' Shot Cottages

A couple of months ago I visited the Sma' Shot Cottages for the first time. The cottages at the front were used by Weavers, and this part of the building was originally built in the 1740s. When you walk through the gardens you are taken to cottages 100 years on, which were used by Mill workers. Volunteers act as tour guides, explaining the history and little details of the times as they show you round the rooms. I was told that a woman who was a member of the Old Paisley society made sure the cottages were restored in order to preserve an important part of Paisley's history. The attention to detail in all of the rooms is amazing, with old hair pins laid out on dressers and button up boots by the beds. It truly felt like stepping back in time and is well worth a visit. There's also a nice tea room and shop.

I'll end this blog post with one of my favourite photos that I took about three years ago now, early one morning when it had been snowing heavily overnight, just as the sun was rising...Who knew my little town could be so pretty...