THE December meeting had a decidedly festive air with mince pies and wine on offer after the speaker, George Hook, entertained with his amusing and knowledgeable talk on mother of pearl.

Mr Hook's company in Birmingham has been in his family since 1824 but after the introduction of plastic in the 1960s, the mother of pearl industry has been in decline.

Mother of pearl is produced by sea creatures such as oysters, abalones and sea snails secreting a substance when forming their shells. These shells are then used by craftsmen to make buttons, buckles, hair slides, spoons and jewellery, samples of which drew deserved admiration from the audience.

A selection of jewellery was available for purchase and proved most popular.

The meeting was told the annual luncheon will be held in February and a new yoga group is expected to start in January.