Thursday 17 July 2014

Belgium Battlefields and Cemeteries WW1 Trip

 
Hello everyone!
 
So sorry that this post is up late! I have no excuses! There is a small crafty DIY at the bottom of this post that relates to my recent trip to Belgium, where I visited many landmarks, cemeteries and battlefields remembering all those who lost their lives during WW1.
Without any of those brave courageous soldiers we would not be living the same lives as we do today. Here are a couple of the places that I visited.

 
First off is the Menin Gate where all the names of the missing are engraves into the walls, arranged in regiments and ranks. This was also a moving visit as we watched the Last Post Ceremony, which is held every night, to honour all soldiers.



Next is Vimy Ridge, where Canadian tour guides show us around the memorial which holds cemeteries, trenches and tunnels. The image above illustrates an area of Canadian trench along the front line on Vimy Ridge.
 

 
Thiepval shown above and below is the memorial commemorating all the French and British soldiers who where missing in action during the battle of The Somme, (Unfortunately it was raining that day),in this particular cemetery British Soldiers have been remembered through curved top grave stones, and French soldiers with crosses.
 

 
Here in Britain on 11:00am on the 11th day of the 11th month we participate in a minute silence remembering those who lost their lives in honour of their country- Not only those of past wars, but those of present too. Poppies are a symbol of our remembrance at this time of year, and have been inspired by the poem In Flanders Field, Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae .

DIY Poppy Jewellery

This inspired me to create a quick DIY, poppy jewellery. In particular I made a poppy ring(seen in picture below), using two circles of red polymer clay, a smaller circle of black polymer clay
and a green polymer clay leaf.
 
Then follow the baking instructions on the clay packaging. Add your chosen findings, and voila! This can be easily manipulated to create a pendant of charm by simply adding an eye pin.
 
Sorry that there is only a few images, these were the ones on my phone, the rest are on my camera and were visits to German Cemeteries, memorials and also museum.
Hope you enjoyed this post even though it's not what I would normally post! New Tutorials coming soon over the holidays! Yay!
 
For the mean time, Keep the Creative Juices Flowing!x
 

2 comments:

  1. I'm really enjoying the traveling posts! I also love poppies so the ring is quite cute. If you had a moment could you check out my blog!
    simplyeasierliving.blogspot.com
    I also just followed you on Bloglovin, if you could do the same!
    Thanks
    Laura

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