Floral department store for Old Hunstanton Flower Festival

A rather drizzly weekend of 26th to 28th July did not hamper the liveliness at St. Mary’s Church in Old Hunstanton as they held their annual Flower Festival and Fete.

Staying diligently faithful to the theme of “The St. Mary Department Store,” the church was transformed into a flower and faux retail paradise inspired by the traditional department store, with sections dedicated to fashion, toy shop, cosmetics, wines and spirits and much more.

The vibrancy and the undercurrent of excitement associated with a department store was exquisitely captured by the creative and inspired flower arrangements and props to both compliment and to perfect the theme of each section.

Despite going slightly over their £2,000 budget for flowers this year, the three-day festival was nothing short of breath-taking and was truly money and effort well spent.

Flower Festival Co-ordinator Gary Bocking said: “I'm thrilled to bits with the overall look of the Flower Festival. Arrangers worked in very difficult conditions yesterday and keeping the flowers in good condition was challenging.”

“It has been really rewarding to see the visitors’ smiling faces and hearing and hearing their comments today.”

“The Flower Festival is a living example of the generosity and joy of people working together. The festival is well into its fifth decade and seems to attract more visitors every year.”

Marie Jarvis, member of the play church team at St. Mary’s, said: “Our beautiful display is called ‘Fun in the Sun’ (Toy Shop) It’s been a team effort and it’s a wonderful thing to be part of the Flower Festival.”

Outside visitors were treated to a variety of stalls, refreshments and the Barking Bugle hosted a Fun Dog Show on the Sunday to ensure fun for every member of the family, with Freddie and Ebony winning Best in Show.

Funds raised from the weekend will go towards maintaining the church and also making contributions to village projects.

(Pictured: Best in Show winners Ebony and Freddie)