Arts & Crafts In A Seaside Town
Why You Should Visit Ayrshire Arts & Crafts Fair In Troon.
Ayrshire Arts & Craft Fair takes place on a monthly basis in the Concert Hall in Troon. It is a gathering for an eclectic mix of crafters and designers, who come from all over the West Coast to showcase their handmade products.
Troon itself is a small seaside town on the Ayrshire Coastline, with a bustling harbour, yacht marina and a lovely sandy beach. On the day I visited the sun had finally come out, sharing a beautiful view of snow capped Arran.
The Concert Hall, one of the town's municipal buildings, is located right next to the beach. It holds around forty stalls, selling a mixture of products ranging from wood and leather work, jewellery, handbags and accessories to pictures, framed prints and ceramics.
Gary and Alec of Ayrshire Art run the Fair, and have built it up to have a consistent regular local following. Gary explained that the key to this was a number of regular popular stalls, plus a turnover of different makers, so there is always something fresh and new to see. At Christmas they also expand to fill two halls with around sixty independent businesses.
The Makers At The Fair
Ayrshire Art sells a divine scented range of candles, soap and skincare products. Who could resist a bath soap scented in Lime Basil & Mandarin? (Well not me anyway).
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| Ayrshire Art |
In the next door stall, I couldn’t help but love Jodie Pope Jewellery. The Glasgow trained designer creates delicately crafted items featuring instantly recognisable cartoon and pop culture characters (think Pacman and Button Moon!). Lovely to see something totally different. In contrast were various makers using tartans and tweeds to create gifts with a modern twist on the traditional. Braw Bricht Crafts make accessories including broaches and scarf pins, cleverly designed as flowers, from authentic Harris Tweed.
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| Ivy Crafts |
Other stallholders included Mary Rafferty’s Chameleon Ceramics, refreshingly bright and quirky handpainted ceramic homewares – all completely unique.
With such a friendly and talented group of crafters, my intended half hour at the fair turned into a whole afternoon's browsing. Has to be a good sign.
When Is It On
Ayrshire Arts & Crafts Fair generally takes place on the first Saturday of each month. Dates can be found on their website here.
Address
Troon Concert Hall, South Beach Troon, KA10 6EF.
A map can be found here.
How To Get There
Troon is located around 35 miles south west of Glasgow City Centre, via the A77. Alternatively there are good transport links, with the West Coast commuter train line stopping regularly at Troon Railway Station.
Coffee Stop
A short walk from Troon Concert Hall, in the town centre is The Strawberry Cushion, a cosy family run coffee shop which also does a nice line in home made soup, sandwiches and cakes. Well recommended.
While You Are There
Weather dependent, it would be remiss not to take a stroll along nearby Barassie Beach, and spot the kite surfers. Ayrshire is well known as the birthplace of Robert Burns, Scotland's national poet, and a little further south, around 12 miles via the A77 is Burns Cottage and The Burns Museum.
Verdict
When Is It On
Ayrshire Arts & Crafts Fair generally takes place on the first Saturday of each month. Dates can be found on their website here.
Address
Troon Concert Hall, South Beach Troon, KA10 6EF.
A map can be found here.
How To Get There
Troon is located around 35 miles south west of Glasgow City Centre, via the A77. Alternatively there are good transport links, with the West Coast commuter train line stopping regularly at Troon Railway Station.
Coffee Stop
A short walk from Troon Concert Hall, in the town centre is The Strawberry Cushion, a cosy family run coffee shop which also does a nice line in home made soup, sandwiches and cakes. Well recommended.
While You Are There
Weather dependent, it would be remiss not to take a stroll along nearby Barassie Beach, and spot the kite surfers. Ayrshire is well known as the birthplace of Robert Burns, Scotland's national poet, and a little further south, around 12 miles via the A77 is Burns Cottage and The Burns Museum.
Verdict
A lovely mix of different Scottish designed products ranging from traditional crafts to very unique one-offs. The stallholders change round every month, and apparently there is also a waiting list – a great indication of a popular fair, well worth a visit.
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PS: Want to read more? Click here to return to the main blog and hit "Subscribe" to register for updates. Before you go, let me know what you think in the "Comments" box below.
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| View Of Arran From Ayr Bay |
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