November meeting - the Biology of Christmas

This month's talk is on Wednesday 15th November at 6.30pm and our topic is the biology of Christmas. 

Have you ever wondered about the stories behind our favourite Christmas plants and animals? Come along to our November meeting and find out about robins, reindeer, Christmas trees and the rest with our returning speaker, Jane McLauchlin.

We meet at 6.30pm in the Upper Vestry Hall of St George's, Bloomsbury. See our 'about us' page for a map and more info. Guests are welcome and your first meeting is free - we welcome all women aged 18 and over. If you haven't been before and want more info, you can email us on londonwestendwi@gmail.com

October meeting, Helena Roden and her art installations

 

OCTOBER MEETING - WEDNESDAY 18th - 6.30pm

Helena will be guiding us through the stages, from development, planning and installation of her exhibition... no mean feat when you look at the size of the sculptures. She'll be talking to us about the seven different sculptures which were commissioned by the housing developers, they were commissioned to enhance the landscape and act as a focal point around the 400 new homes in the area.  The pieces were made in a forge in Wales and had to be transported to Billingshurst in Sussex. Sadly these won't be on display in the hall... but we might be able to see some of the models and certainly find out about the creativity and logistics involved.

We meet in the Upper Vestry Hall of St George's Bloomsbury, 6.30pm to 8.30pm. Meetings are open to all women over the age of 18 - visitors are very welcome and your first meeting is free. Email us on londonwestendwi@gmail.com or check out our social media posts for more information

July meeting, Wed 19th - handbell ringing

 

This month we’re having a go at handbell ringing with Sandra, a member of the Handbell Ringers of Great Britain.

We meet in the Upper Vestry Hall of St George's Bloomsbury from 6.30pm to 8.30pm. Visitors are welcome, do contact us on londonwestendwi@gmail.com or message us via social media so we know to look out for you.

June meeting - local history talk with Jane Palm-Gold

Our next meeting is Wednesday 21 June, where we're having a local history talk from Jane Palm-Gold, on the history of Church Lane in St Giles, near to where we meet.

In the 1840s, the sheer number of desperately poor living in filthy conditions in the St. Giles Rookery meant disease and death lingered like a miasma over the parish. The authorities' view was that the locality was a breeding-ground for cholera and other diseases. 

Church Lane lay at the heart of the Rookery, yet within a few years, the grease and grime was gone, transformed by soap and sanitation measures.

 Jane Palm-Gold takes us on a journey to reveal the area's regeneration: New Oxford Street, 19^th century London’s newest street and shopping destination, and the Pears Soap emporium, exploring its art, advertising and Christmas Annuals as well as its problematic past.

We meet in the Upper Vestry Hall of St George's Bloomsbury from 6.30pm to 8.30pm. Visitors are welcome, do contact us on londonwestendwi@gmail.com or message us via social media so we know to look out for you.

May Meeting: Origami for Mindfulness

Our next meeting is on Wednesday 17th May when we're trying origami with Vanessa from Origami Party London.

Making origami can often be considered as just a novel form of entertainment and, in some circumstances, that is true.  However, I believe that origami is also a powerful mental health tool when used with the purpose of helping to reduce anxiety.  It helps a person to quieten and facilitates a calmer emotional state as it puts them back into their body whilst still engaging their hands and brain. And, as with other mindfulness practices, doing origami also encourages living in the moment which can provide a much needed mental break from worrying about the future or ruminating over the past.  I believe that it is a very accessible introduction to the concept of a meditative practice and making origami is a skill that once learned can be accessed any time that someone may feel the need to ground themselves. 

It is cheap, quick, creative, fun and also flexible. It can be enjoyed either alone or in a group setting and it works for all ages.  You can also take a simple design (eg a crane) and once you have created a number of them make an art installation for your room/home/community space.

Meet in the Upper Vestry Hall of St George's Bloomsbury from 6.30pm to 8.30pm. Visitors are welcome, do contact us on londonwestendwi@gmail.com or message us via social media so we know to look out for you.

Craft Club 2023

Craft club is back in person in 2023, and from Tuesday 4th April we are back at our old home of Atlantis Books on Museum Street! We'll be there 6.30 to 7.30pm on the 1st Tuesday of every month, in the downstairs meeting room. 

From April to have a craft of the month for everyone to join in with.

• Tuesday 4th April: Beaded earrings
• Tuesday 2nd May: Wool heart garlands
• Tuesday 6th June: Turning old books into hedgehogs (see photo below)
• Tuesday 4th July: Paper quilling

Even better, to get us going again the first 3 months are free! LWEWI will cover the cost of the room hire and the materials. From July there will be a small charge to cover the room hire and tea and biscuits, and we'll supply any materials needed for the monthly craft.

All members and non-members are welcome to join us, and also to lead craft sessions if you're an expert in paper crafts, or knitting, or glass painting, or jewellery making, or crochet, or....

Email us on londonwestendwi@gmail.com for more info or just turn up on the night!

2023 Meetings

 A reminder that the details for all of our 2023 meetings can be found in 3 places online:

 
1. the Events 2023 tab of this blog:http://londonwestendwi.blogspot.com/p/events-2015_12.html

2. Our Facebook page as events: https://www.facebook.com/LondonWestEndWomensInstitute/events/?id=100064572460020&sk=events

3. Our Instagram page as stories and posts the week before a meeting

Members will also be notified via the LWEWI WhatsApp group and our regular e-newsletter. 

We'll also add information on these pages about craft club when it restarts in 2023, BM visits, outings and cake/craft stalls.