Lilliput Lane Christmas 2010 Pieces
A great selection of festive pieces to add to your collection.
More will be added in June as they are introduced.
These pieces should arrive late July, early August but you may preorder them now.
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It is easy to see why we have chosen to model this picturesque thatched village, as tourists flock in their thousands to admire the charm of an almost lost bygone era Cockington seems to have preserved, in stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of the nearby seaside town, Torquay.
Listed in the Domesday Book (1086), the unspoilt village of Cockington is now managed by the Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust as part of the Cockington Country Park Estate and visitors can enjoy the scenery by horse-drawn carriage rides around the area.
Spoilt for choice, Gary Kerkhoff chose three little gems of architecture to represent the character and charm of Cockington in his study:
The Forge, Weaver's Cottage, and The Granary - all of which exhibit vernacular features of the village; such as walls built from local stone rubble, with a smattering of plastered cob too, and steeply pitched thatched roofs. All three are Grade-II-Listed, as is most of the village.
Situated by the crossroads at the heart of the village, Cockington's famous forge, as we see it today, is believed to be late eighteenth, early nineteenth century, with origins dating even further back than that (some would argue to the fourteenth century). It is built of local stone rubble with a distinctive steep thatched roof overhanging the open work area to the front, which is supported by three sturdy posts. The floor is paved with cobbles and our smithy can be seen hard at work on both the winter and summer versions of this superb limited edition.
The pretty pink cottage at the top of the hill in our scene has been inspired by Weaver's Cottage, a charming eighteenth-century dwelling built into the slope. It has an attractive gabled thatched porch, and an irregular arrangement of windows, all of which are different sizes, lending it an informal cosy appearance.
At the bottom of the slope, Gary has placed The Granary, which is believed to have served the local watermill. Today, this has been much restored, but visitors can still see the archway of the original cart entrance which was blocked up during twentieth century renovations to allow for a large shop window. Note the unusually wide hipped roof section with three dormer windows peeping out.
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Winslow, Buckinghamshire
Two of a Kind Christmas Collection
A wonderful timber-framed building in the Buckinghamshire town of Winslow has inspired this delightful snowed bakery. The town was first recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in 795 as Wineshlauu, which roughly translates as 'Wine's Mound', and in the Domesday Book of 1086 it was referred to as Wineslai.
The three bays to the right of the building date back to the early seventeenth century and around one hundred years later the building was further extended with the addition of another bay to the left. Note that the newer section has a half-hipped roof and the infill has been colourwashed. The whole building is now Grade II Listed.
Our Yuletide Feast comes complete with a complementary miniature hanging ornament, which features the façade of the shop with its bright red door, tinselled wreath and welcoming warm glow from the window.
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Holy Post, the 2010 Annual Hanging Ornament
Snelston, Derbyshire
Christmas is a time for sharing, of sending cards and greetings to friends far and wide, but it is also a time to reflect on the real meaning of Christmas, as the time to celebrate the birth of the baby Jesus. That's what makes this delightful little Christmas ornament with a post box near the parish church the perfect piece to adorn any festive display - as it symbolises both messages.
Our little church has been inspired by the tower of Snelston's Parish Church of St Peter, which dates back to the early fifteenth century. The rest of the church has seen many alterations over the centuries, most notably in 1825 and 1907 when major alterations were undertaken by Hodgson Fowler, but the tower stands as a proud testament to its ancient construction.
Holy Post Annual 2010 Christmas Ornament
Both of the 2010 Christmas Annual pieces come from Snelston, making them the perfect pairing for your collection.
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In Stock
The Banqueting House Lilliput Lane 2009 Christmas Ornament.
The 2009 Christmas Ornament North Yorkshire, North East & Yorkshire
Height: 5.0cm Length: 3.5cm
Set amidst the glorious Studley Royal Water Garden and surrounded by wildflower lawns and mature trees, it is a wonderfully romantic and secluded place.
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In Stock
Snelston, Derbyshire
2010 Christmas Special Edition,
Illuminated cottage
It's not just Father Christmas who delivers Christmas presents, as the village postman is kept very busy too! Here you can see him loading his van outside Snelston's Grade II Listed former post office ready for some last minute deliveries, as the light glowing through the pretty mullioned windows must mean it is getting rather late in the day!
With its red Flemish brickwork, Tudoresque chimneys, and decorative timber studding, this picturesque building is typical of the architecture to be found in this model village, which was built by the Squire, John Harrison, in the mid-nineteenth century.
Uses two AA-size long life batteries, or a 3-volt adaptor.
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Our delightful Christmas shop has been inspired by the pretty seventeenth-century timber- framed thatched cottages of Wherwell, in Hampshire's beautiful Test Valley, and comes complete with its very own plug-in illuminated grotto.
Wherwell is a fascinating place, not least for its somewhat 'dark' history. It was here, in AD 986, that an abbey was founded by Elfrida, the widow of the Saxon King, Edgar. Elfrida spent the rest of her days doing penance for her sins - being implicated in the death of her husband's son by a previous marriage to secure her own son as heir to the throne.
Outside the grotto, Santa can be seen with a huge sack of toys ready to greet the multitude of village children desperate to sit on his knee and swear that they have been good little girls and boys
all year!
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Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, | $28.00
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'Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are'
This rather unassuming eighteenth-century building with red brick facade is situated on West Stockwell Street, Colchester and has rather engaging literary links. It was home to one of the Taylor sisters who wrote the much-loved nursery rhyme: Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.
It's somewhat ironic then that, even though the poem remains one of the most popular nursery rhymes of all time, most people don't know who wrote it. The lyrics first appeared under the title The Star in Rhymes for the Nursery, a collection of poems penned by Jane Taylor and her older sister Ann, which was published in 1806. Other works by the sisters include: Original Poems for Infant Minds (1804) and Hymns for Infant Minds (1808).
'Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond
in the sky!'
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'The holly and the ivy,
when they are both full grown'
Our delightful little flint folly has been inspired by The Prospect Tower, built in the early 1800s for General Harris (later First Lord Harris of Seringapatum) to grace his Belmont Park Estate. It is recorded as 'Gardener's Lodge' or 'General's Whim' in his accounts, but is more likely to have been used as a summerhouse.
In 1872, when the Fourth Lord Harris inherited the estate, the folly was to serve a new purpose, as a cricket pavilion. A keen cricketer, he had a cricket ground made in an adjacent field to the folly and it wasn't long before the Belmont Eleven were taking on teams from around the county.
'Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown.'
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Ding, dong, Merrily on High | $35.00
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Ding, dong! Merrily on High
is a very appropriate name for our model which has been inspired by the unusual detached bell tower at the church of St Bartholomew that houses five bells. The words of this popular carol were written by G R Woodward (1848-1934) but the tune is French and dates back to the sixteenth century.
Similar detached towers exist in the surrounding area and they are believed to have been used in defence against the Welsh in more turbulent times. The lower level of the tower is of sandstone rubble construction and dates back to the thirteenth century; the close-studded timber-framed upper level, however, is a much later sixteenth-century addition.
'Ding, dong !
Verily the sky
Is riv'n with angels singing.'
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Bark,The Herald Angels Sing | $42.50
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'Hark! The herald angels sing:
Glory to the newborn King!'
Our delightfully festive cottage has been inspired by the Grade-II-Listed Keeper's Cottage that can be found tucked away amidst the pine trees in the grounds of the Shuttleworth Estate at Old Warden, and features two dogs tugging at a piece of tinsel by the Christmas tree.
Keeper's Cottage was built in the popular Cottage Ornee style of the day, as part of Joseph Shuttleworth's improvements to the Bedfordshire estate he purchased in 1872 and was the work of local architect and builder John Usher in 1877-1878. As well as providing a home for the head keeper, there were also kennels for the hunt dogs and a 'sitting house' and pens for the pheasants too.
'With the angelic host proclaim:
'Christ is born in Bethlehem.'
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Bedstone, Shropshire
Two of a Kind Christmas Collection
Truly 'two of a kind', our delightful snowy duo has been inspired by the Norman parish church of St Mary in the small Shropshire village of Bedstone. Situated close to the Welsh and Herefordshire borders, the village was recorded as Betieteune in the Domesday Book commissioned by William I
in 1086.
Built from roughly coursed limestone rubble, the church dates back to the twelfth century, but the attractive timber-framed bell tower is a much later addition (probably seventeenth century) and features an impressive oak-shingled broach spire and louvered belfry windows.
Our version of the Church of St Mary comes complete with a charming complementary miniature hanging ornament, which features the west end elevation of the church with its ornate Romanesque arched doorway with chevron detailing and nineteenth-century round-headed stained-glass window.
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