Post 279 Few photo opportunities

I had a few jobs to do today, a bit of domestic tidying in the morning and commitments in the afternoon. I managed to add a zip to the first of the sashiko squares I had finished.I haven't fixed the sides as yet, but I wanted to try the zip. 

It seemed to work, so I went off happy to Pilates. There I was able to try out the new Covid Safe Check-in app. The first time you use it you need to register with a verification code sent to your mobile. I didn't want to do that with a queue behind me. Plenty of time and space at Pilates.

It worked!

I had arranged to meet some friends at Elders Fine Art on Melbourne St North Adelaide. They have an Art auction on Sunday and I am interested in a couple of paintings. My friends were interested in some Bernard Hesling plates. Elders have two buildings in their Gallery, the old church on the left and the terrace on the right. There is a building between. The paintings I am interested in are in the church. I used my Covid Safe Check-in app to get in - again, it worked very quickly!  I'm still thinking about the paintings.

Between Pilates and Elders I managed to park outside DK Fabrics and buy a pile of zips for however many sashiko pouches I might make. DK have plenty of parking at the back, but the council has introduced ticket parking to stop people parking there all day. It is a nuisance. You can't use a credit card for less than 3 hours. For 1 hour parking you need a $1 coin. Covid has all but eliminated coins as a method of payment, so I rarely have a $1 coin. Street parking outside is 15 minutes only - OK for buying a handful of zips!

I got home with about 15 minutes to spare before Niamh and Veronica arrived so I could take them to choir practice.  They are getting ready for a socially distanced end of year concert. Usually Young Adelaide Voices have concerts in which all six of their choirs perform but this year each choir will perform only to their own parents. 

In between my outings I managed to finish a second sashiko panel.

I  also worked another dot square. I'm getting the hang of these. I will make a blanket, but I think I need to come up with a second and third plan to use up some of this cotton.

I admit, however, that I am finding both these projects more engrossing than stitching on hexies. The quilt,  is taking up quite a bit of room next to a chair in my lounge room and will eventually shame me into tackling it.

Eventually.

Post 278 Christmas cards

Another pleasant Adelaide day. The walls continue to rise on the apartment block next door. There is a young dove who returns each morning to look for seed and rest in my small balcony box.

I had a couple of phone calls, read a lot of news bulletins and a bit of my latest cosy crime before deciding I really did need to compose and order my Christmas cards. For several years now I have used a photo to create and print a card and add a summary of my year. It was harder than normal. this year. I pitched it, in the end, to friends who haven't followed my blog, and kept it shorter than usual.

When my laptop battery was ready to die, I set off to Unley Village to get milk,  a bit more fruit, drop off my soft plastic recycling and get a bit of cash from the bank. I tried to manipulate the amount to get as many notes under $50 as possible. I had minor success. They don't dispense $5 notes, which is what I need for visits to the Guild. 

I had to wait in a queue to get out of the carpark. The carpark exit faces St Augustine's Unley. I have often wanted to take a photograph but couldn't do it safely. The wait was long enough today. The church was built in 1870 and remains well-positioned. There are usually people coming and going, possibly to an op shop that seems to operate on some days. It advertises two ministries, one in English and one in Mandarin. It also has a William Morris window.

Back at home I finished designing and ordering my cards. This is a spoiler for anyone who gets a card - for the most part people who don't read blogs! I've had this photo in mind for this purpose since I took it several weeks ago. It usually takes me several days to prepare the card, but today I managed in about 3 hours.

I also posted the 46th Baby Boomer Teacher Conversation.

I dug out all the 4 ply knitting cotton I have, so I can experiment with the Morris & Sons Baby Blanket. There are 12-13 200 gram balls in various pastel colours. I think this will be more than a baby blanket by the time I finish

I completed a second square, a bit neater than the first. I think it could work, but I might need a bit of help if I am to use up the wool.

I also cut out the rest of my sashiko squares and backing to go with them 6 more squares in all. 

I have stitched the backing to two of those squares, ready to stitch. The one I stitched yesterday did not have interfacing between the top and backing. It was much easier to stitch by scooped running stitch whereas I needed to stab with the interfacing in between. Much faster, and quite firm enough without. 

This is what I worked today. Not a whole lot, but fun and interesting.

I have notification that the two crewel printed linens for the back of my chair are in Adelaide. They should come in the post either tomorrow or Friday. That might put some of these projects on to the back-burner