Three Years On at Risby Folly: When a Bench Becomes Part of the Landscape

Posted on January 05, 2026

Almost three years ago, we installed an 8ft  memorial bench at Risby Folly in East Yorkshire — a peaceful spot beside the water, surrounded by woodland and long-established walking paths.

That post is here → https://www.woodcraftuk.co.uk/news/2023/mendip-memorial-bench-installed-at-risby-folly

Recently, I found myself sitting on that same bench again. This time, not as Woodcraft UK — but simply as another visitor pausing for a moment.

And it struck me just how right it now looks.

Click on the pictures to enlarge

The bench, three years later
Time and weather have done what they always do outdoors. The timber has gently silvered. Lichen and moss have settled into corners where the grain is deepest. The surface is softer to the eye, calmer, less “new”.

This isn’t wear in the sense of damage.
It’s weathering in the truest sense — the bench responding to its environment and becoming part of it.

Placed beside still water and under bare winter trees, it no longer draws attention to itself. Instead, it quietly belongs.

Why this matters
When we make benches, we don’t design them to look perfect forever. We design them to age well.

Wood is honest. It changes. And in settings like Risby Folly, that change is exactly what allows a bench to feel appropriate, respectful, and permanent without being imposing.

A memorial bench, in particular, shouldn’t feel frozen in time. Memories don’t work like that — and neither should the furniture that holds them.

Click on the pictures to enlarge

A place for everyday moments
Looking around while sitting there, it was clear the bench has become part of everyday life at Risby Folly.

It’s a place for anglers waiting patiently.
For walkers to stop and look out across the water.
For parents lingering while children finish one last cast.

Moments that were never planned — but are quietly important.

Click on the pictures to enlarge

Built to last, designed to belong
Seeing this bench again reminded us why we do what we do.

Not to create something that stays pristine, but something that lasts, settles, serves its purpose quietly and feels more meaningful with time, not less

Three years on, the Risby Folly bench isn’t just still there.
It’s exactly where it should be.