Its June!!!

Wow, its June already, what a busy month this is going to be!!

Diane sets off on Friday 11th June from York to cycle 250 miles to Amsterdam and back for Marie Curie Cancer Care.

She is hoping to help raise £30,000! Diane is not cycling this distance on her own, she is cycling with another 59 ladies and will be back in York on Tuesday 15th June, very tired but very pleased with herself.

If you would like to make a donation to her charity ride then you can pop in to the gallery and leave a contribution, every little helps :-). Alternatively you can donate online using this link to their just giving page http://www.justgiving.com/amsterdame10 please quote Acorn Gallery in the message box! The gallery will be late opening on Friday as I will be waving her off :-(

The town of Pocklington is awash with Red and White flags and bunting in the shop windows ready for the start of the World Cup!!

COME ON ENGLAND!!

In keeping with the spirit of the game we have a few specially selected pieces in our NEW World Cup Gallery on line at http://www.theacorngallery.co.uk/

Also this month there is Fathers Day on Sunday 20th June and we have some fabulous gifts starting at just £35.00! Excellant value on superb business card holder, cufflinks and bottle stopper! Order online for fast delivery!

The latest release of work from Bob Dylan was held on Saturday 22nd May and was very well received with almost half the collection selling on the first day!! We do still have some pieces left but for how long who knows!!

Our top sellers for May are as follows:-

1. Bob Dylan
2. Keith Proctor
3. Drew Darcy

As you can see Keith has been knocked off top spot however without Dylan he would have been the top seller for the 4th month in a row - a first for us!!

We have just started a very special event for gallery visitors only... a few specially chosen items are available at a very special price but only for customers who purchase in store :-)

So, come along to Pocklington this weekend and BAG YOURSELF A BARGAIN!

I Want to Ride my Bicycle...

Diane and I spent Sunday on our bikes taking part in the Great Selby Bike ride, cycling a total of 50.4 miles!!

Great Selby Bike Ride - Over 1000 people took part this year!

It was a brilliant day and good training for Dianes charity cycle ride next month to Amsterdam! If you would like to sponsor Diane then please contact us with your pledge or pop in and leave her a donation. Or you can click on the title of this entry to donate through JustGiving!

Diane's enthusiasm for this fantastic event is such that she even has me considering signing up for next year - it'll have to be the guys ride though - I don't think they'd let me ride with the ladies ;-)

Stopping halfway for a well earned break :-)

March Madness!!

Spring has arrived and the weather has turned better, however March madness has set in at The Acorn Gallery!!

Diane has decided to do the Amsterdam bike trip again! It is a 250 miles round trip cycle ride from York to Amsterdam and back again raising money for Marie Curie Cancer Care which Diane successfully completed in June of last year helping to raise more than £28,000 for the charity!!

So training has started in ernest!! At least I mean for me as I have agreed to train alongside Diane to give her moral support... but so far I am the only one doing the training as I have insisted that we get out at 6am every morning and unfortunately Diane is not a morning person!

Good job I have the dogs for company however Sophie is not too keen for such an early start but Samson is eager enough for the both of them!!

We have today received our copies of the fabulous new Paul Kenton releases and they are stunning especially London Red!!

London Red by Paul Kenton

£699

You should really come and see it in the flesh - it is superb!!

With Mothers Day weekend upon us why not treat your Mum to some chocolate? Caroline Shottons Dairy Milk is superb and bound to raise a smile :-)

'Dairy Milk' by Caroline Shotton

£475

Or why not make a promise of cake? Peter Smith's 'I Eat Cake' is superb and really hits the spot...

I Eat Cake by Peter Smith

£399

And finally the top sellers for February are as follows:-

1. Keith Proctor
2. Caroline Shotton
3. Alexander Millar

Congratulations to Keith, what a debut to take top spot by selling more than any other artist - amazing!!

We have a growing list of customers waiting for Keith Proctor Original Oils so if you too would like to be added to the list then please feel free to contact us!!

Fine Art Auction

Just a quick entry to let you know about our Fine Art Auction which will be held on Friday 10th July from 6pm at The Acorn Gallery, 5 Market Place, Pocklington.



There will be a superb selection of work and even some 'treasure' in the form of items which are no longer generally available!

Please email info@theacorngallery.co.uk or ring 01759 307652 for a sale catalogue!

Champagne will be flowing and Chris Clubley is sure to entertain so come on down and bid for a bargain!!

A donation will be made to Marie Curie Cancer Care on proceeds raised on the evening.

Huge Thanks!!

We have now made the draw for the raffle and we can reveal that the winner is ... BECKY MACKENZIE of Becky MacKenzie's Homemade Cakes in Pocklington!! Congratulations Becky :-)

We raised an impressive £184 all of which will be donated to Marie Curie Cancer Care following Diane's fundraising bike ride to Amsterdam earlier this month.

Diane & I would like to say a huge THANKS for your support with sponsorship and raffle tickets over the last few months!

You will be pleased to know that there are no more sponsored events in the pipeline but there will still be plenty happening here at The Acorn Gallery over the Summer so keep watching the blog for news!!

Amsterdame09 Last Day!!

The ferry landed at 8am in Hull and once they had cleared customs they were off!! The three groups kept to the original route up to Brantingham where they stopped for an hour and had a great write up on the pubs website. Check out the article headed Daffodil Girls..at www.thetritoninn.com under the news link.

From there they headed to Howden through some pretty villages. After a very nice pub lunch they headed towards Knedlington and on to Barmby On The Marsh, cycling along the river bank. Whilst on the river bank Diane asked Craz, leader of Team Chaos ( this was the name they gave themselves!!), if she could ring our daughter Emily, as they were going to go through Hemingbrough. Craz said yes so Diane rang ahead and announced that Team Chaos would be riding through the village! The whole team stopped outside the church and Emily managed to get a hug from Diane and also gave hugs to Lisa, Jayne & Lianne.

Diane told me later on that the whole team was in tears when hugs were being handed out and that after she received her hug it spurred her on and she flew the rest of the way!!

At 6pm 54 ladies could be heard singing 'Here Come The Girls' and as they rounded the corner in to the car park they were honking their horns, waving their arms and shouting 'Woop Woop!' at the tops of their voices! Immediately there were party poppers going off, champagne corks being popped and lots of cheering and clapping. You should have been there it was amazing!!

For the next hour there were lots of photos and hugs and tears as the girls greeted family and friends but also as they said goodbye to each other - who knows if they will all meet up next year for Amsterdame10??



Diane has had an amazing trip and is still on a high. What an achievement 250 miles in 5 days! A lot of hard work by all the ladies but special thanks must go to the ride guides, Craz, Gaz, Matt, Ginny, Michelle and Sian and to Mitch & Simon from Red Courier who provided the support vehicles and who according to Craz were fantastic!!


The Ride Guides!!

Diane & I would like to thank everyone who has made a donation and I can tell you all that as I write this entry the total currently stands at £22,431.70 which is an amazing total!!

If you feel inspired by the ladies and want to donate then please go to www.justgiving.com/amsterdame09 and if you want to do the ride next year then look up Charity Adventure who organise these events at www.charityadventure.org.uk.



All I can say is ... what's next???

Amsterdame09 Day 3

Spoke to Diane who advises that the ride back from Amsterdam to Rotterdam was fine and that they made good time as they were at the ferry terminal by 6pm however she did have a bit of a tumble but is ok.

Spoke to Diane later on around 10pm after she had managed to get a shower and some food. Diane says the whole team is in high spirits and that a few of the ladies are now feeling the aches and pains. I wonder if the bottles of champagne had anything to do with the high spirits!! Diane says they are all looking forward to docking in Hull and the final leg back to York.

The ladies are aiming to be back in York for 6pm. You can still donate on line at www.justgiving.com/amsterdame09.

I will update you tomorrow on the last leg of the journey.

Amsterdame 09!!

Well May has been a funny old month! The odd day has been busy but mostly its been very quiet! Have you all been on holiday?

Having some quiet time has given us chance to plan some exciting events for the summer - make sure you get your name on the database so you can find out what's happening!

I know you like to know who's hot right now and so here are the top sellers for this month:-

1. Alexander Millar
2. Paul Kenton
3. Paul Horton

Congratulations Alex, top spot for the third month in a row. Well done!!

Well June is here and Dianes 250 mile bike ride is only 5 sleeps away. Diane, Lisa, Lianne and Jayne leave on Friday 12th and return Tuesday 16th. In total there will be nearly 60 of them going and it will be a sight to see them on their way!

I will apologise in advance as the gallery will be a little late opening on the morning of the 12th as I will be there to wave them off!! On Tuesday 16th the gallery will close a little earlier than usual as I want to be there to see them cross the finishing line!!

Don't worry - I'll get photos for the blog so you can see for yourselves!

To sponsor Diane please go to http://www.justgiving.com/amsterdame09 or call in to the gallery and make a pledge on her sponsor form. It is in aid of Marie Curie Cancer Care and they are trying to raise £30,000!! They are already over the £10k mark so they are well on the way!!

Don't forget the PRIZE DRAW - If you haven't bought a raffle ticket yet then you still have time as the draw is not till the 19th June. The prize is a superb signed limited edition print by Paul Kenton (this months second top seller!) All proceeds from the sale of tickets are also going to Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Well that's it for now - more entires will surely follow as I hear from Diane on her travels. Check back soon :-)

Competition

On 12th June Diane is setting off on a bike ride to Amsterdam with 53 other ladies to raise much needed funds for Marie Curie Cancer Care! They are hoping to raise £30,000!!

The Acorn Gallery are pleased to announce a competition in support of their efforts and the prize is a signed limited edition print by Paul Kenton called Early Light Amsterdam - see picture below:-



This superb print will be framed and is valued at £199.00. All proceeds from the sale of the tickets will be going to Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Raffle tickets are £1 each and are available from the gallery. Whether you want to buy 1 or 100 pop in and gets yours now and help Marie Curie reach their total of £30,000. Remember tickets are only £1 :-)

Diane will be setting off from McArthur Glen Designer Outlet in York at 9am on Friday 12th June and is due back at about 6pm on Tuesday 16th June.

The raffle will be drawn on Friday 19th June 2009 and the winner will be notified accordingly.

If you wish to sponsor Diane then you can do so on-line at www.justgiving.com/amsterdame09 Please mention her name in your message!

We will let you know how she gets on so watch this space for news...

Congratulations!!

Diane and Val!!

Moonwalk Tattoo!!

Dawn over the River Thames!!

26.2 miles done!!

Tired but very happy!!

The medal!!

Congratulations to Diane and Val for finishing in 8 hours 4 minutes!!!

Now you would think that Diane would be happy to put her feet up after 5 months of hard training and bask in the glory of finishing the Moonwalk - but she isn't!!

Diane is now in training for the 250 mile round cycle trip to Amsterdam which sets off on the 12th June 2009 in aid of Marie Curie Cancer Care.

If you would like to support Diane you can donate at www.justgiving.com/amsterdame09

Keep checking the website and the blog for details on how you could win a signed limited edition print titled Early Light Amsterdam by Paul Kenton!!

Once again Diane, many congratulations on finishing the Moonwalk and raising an amazing £375.50 for breast cancer charities!!

And thankyou to all of you who supported her in her challenge!