Ballarat is continuing to recognise and celebrate its past as the second weekend of the Ballarat Heritage Festival comes to a close.
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A Craft Lab and Design Expo was hosted at the Mining Exchange on Saturday and Sunday, offering a chance to watch 18 of the region's artisans at work, chat about the process of making and buy their creations.
The expo showcased practices passed down generations, from loom weaving, embroidery, natural dying, show making and leatherwork, to furniture making and musical instrument crafting.
See our photographer Lachlan Bence's photos from the Craft Lab and Design Expo below.
A carnival was hosted at Maze House in Newlyn North and a vintage car show and swing dancers at Bridge Mall.
Aunty Jacks ran a beer school themed on old and new beers, exploring the advancements in malting and brewing and how flavours have changed over time.
Aunty Jacks brewer Matt Ives said he curated a line up of beers that referenced brewing techniques from 100 to 200 years ago and dotted some modern day examples in the line-up.
"It has been great, the range of beers people were able to try. One of the comments on Sunday was 'I always thought beer was one of two or three colours, either pale or stout and black'," he said.
"We managed to find beers that showcased ingredients and techniques from 100 to 150 years ago and have led to different beer styles and is reflected in colour especially.
"There was a range from pale yellow through to bright gold and amber ales and brown.
"One of the pieces of feedback from today was 'I didn't realise beer could be so many different things and also be beer'."
Mr Ives said the line-up also included the beer Aunty Jacks was commissioned to produce by City of Ballarat for the Heritage Festival and the Breheny Brothers brew launched this year from a 100-year-old recipe.
Kate Harris from Colac stayed two nights in Ballarat last weekend and commented on the Ballarat Heritage Festival Facebook page she had a 'wonderful time' joining heritage festival events.
She said she visited Mount Mitchell Estate and the Art Gallery of Ballarat.
She said the guided walking tour of the Ballarat jail was interesting and the walking tour of the Ballarat Botanical Gardens Sequoiadendron Giganteum Avenue was 'fascinating' and 'beautiful'.
City of Ballarat Mayor Daniel Moloney said there was a range of events around Ballarat at the weekend that helped draw people to town.
These included IDAHOBIT events, BLOC Music Theatre's production of Mamma Mia and the Western United A-League match.
"It was a god mix of arts and sport," Cr Moloney said.
Cr Moloney said Ballarat Heritage Festival events tended to be more popular on sunny weekends, as was seen during the Begonia Festival.
We are looking to promote live music a lot more in the coming months, so you can come to Ballarat for one off events and there is good strong entertainment to carry you through the night.
- Cr Daniel Moloney, City of Ballarat Mayor
The rain and cold weather dampened some of the outdoor offerings at the weekend, like the Ballarat Memorial Concert Band performance at Lake Wenoduree.
Cr Moloney said City of Ballarat was continuing to focus on ensuring a consistency of night-time events in Ballarat, to entice people to stay the night rather than visit Ballarat for the day.
"BLOC doing good work at the moment," Cr Moloney said.
"We are looking to promote live music a lot more in the coming months, so you can come to Ballarat for one off events and there is good strong entertainment to carry you through the night.
"Ballarat is an easy day trip from Melbourne, but we want people to hang around for more than the day, to stay the night and enjoy the rest of the region the next day."
The 24-day Ballarat Heritage Festival will continue its program of events until May 30.
Visit ballaratheritagefestival.com.au/ for the full program.
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