From Bath, we went to Salisbury Cathedral.

No, they don't have steak there, wise guy.

Just pretty ceilings and stained glass:

 And lots of crafty stuff, actually!

But before I get into that, let me mention our Dapper Young Man.

That's what we called our tour guide, Phil:

He wore a three piece suit with a lovely butter-color tie in a  kind of tapestry-looking fabric.

He wore cuff links. And a straw fedora.

He was funny and smart.

Phil told  the group about some old clock while I was fascinated by these flags:

 Phil tells me they were carried into battle. Battle!

Love the textures.

Just beyond these flags I happened upon this:

I'm not churchy, so I don't know if they have a specific name, but they are the cushions you kneel on at the pews.

All covered in needlepoint! (I think it would be called needlepoint?)

Ahhhh! All those different designs! Was it a fabric they used or was each stitch handmade? At the very least the crosses on the sides had to have been done by hand, right?

This made me so happy. Who made these? How long ago? Several different old ladies or just one dedicated one?

I assume they were ladies, and old ones--- is that bad? Could have been young ladies or middle aged men, for all I know.

But I like to imagine generations of women getting together and drinking pots of Earl Grey and needlepointing these cushion covers for their beloved Cathedral.

Phil talked a bit about this Baptismal Font (which was like sculpturey pool):

 I only caught the part where he said that cross of darkened metal was where it was blessed (by the cardinal, I guess?) with oil. He said the people who clean the church tried to wash the oil off, not realizing it should stay. Or something like that. But the stain from the oil remains.

There was this area with all different roped-off altars, almost like exhibits, and they each had large needlework-covered cushions for kneeling:

I just love all of this craft in the church! Makes it so homey for me. 

Ahhh! How long did it take to make these giant cushions!?

And look at what I saw on one of the altars:

Amazing patchwork of flames emerging from kind of a log-cabiny base!

Isn't it gorgeous?

Back soon with textures from the cathedral. And scones.

xo, melissa

P.S. if you want -or need- you can have people pray for you at Salisbury Cathedral! Fill out a prayer request form right here.  That is so cool.