Church gets 'green' altar cloth

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/wales/north_west/7549738.stm

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A church has taken the recycling message to its congregation by using old plastic bags and shredded bibles to make a new altar cloth.

The cloth was devised by church member Leanne Rogers, as part of her art course as a mature student.

The Reverend John Harvey, who looks after St Katherine's at Bryn Pydew, Conwy, said it enhanced the link between the church and the environment.

Ms Rogers said she her design inspired by the "quirkiness" of her church.

"My brief as part of my degree meant that whatever I devised had to be very site specific," said Ms Rogers, who has now completed her course in design at Coleg Menai, Bangor.

It is not immediately apparent (that it's plastic) as it looks like a silky material The Reverend John Harvey

"St Katherine's itself is in the hills above Llandudno Junction and is a former look-out hut from WWII, and everything inside has been donated, " she said.

"Also, as a practicing Christian, I wanted to take hold of the concept of making something beautiful out of something nasty," she added.

Trends of making more out of recycled materials further inspired her, she said.

'Quirky'

"It is a beautiful little church and everything is mis-matched, everything has been given.

"There are just 50 chairs, and it's very quirky and the cloth really lifts the window at the end," she added.

The Reverend John Harvey said the work both enhances the inside of the church as well as the links to the outside.

"It is made out of carrier bags, the white material is shredded carrier bags, whist the ivy leaves are recycled bibles," he added.

The cloth design was particularly relevant given that St Katherine's was set in such a "beautiful rural setting", he said.

A detail of the cloth shows the foliage

"People are very struck by it, people come forward to see it, but not until they touch it do they realise what it is.

"It is not immediately apparent (that it's plastic) as it looks like a silky material.

"The church congregation have nothing but praise for it as it has a real sense of wow," he added.

Church member Doreen Atkinson added: "It really is fantastic, absolutely brilliant.

"It reflects the environment as you can see trees and birds feeding out of the window behind."