Post 463 It's beginning to feel a bit like Christmas

It has been an incredibly busy week. I've had medical appointments, pre-Christmas catch-ups, Book Club, World Embroidery Study Group, hairdresser - and lots of preparation and project finishing.

After a bit of experimenting, I managed to establish the air plants I bought last week. I glued one to a mineral paperweight I've had for years, and the other to the side of my wall garden. I try to spray them with water at least once a day.  So far so good.

After a discussion with the green-fingered receptionist at Pilates, I realised that plants in clay beads need to be in transparent glass containers to access light on the beads. That means the handleless cup won't work with beads. I got out some glass vases and used up the remaining beads I had with some philodendron cuttings and another begonia.

Worth a try. 

The World Embroidery Study Group final meeting for the year was last Wednesday. There were two last minute apologies who were COVID close contacts. We were all appreciative of this consideration. Most members are vulnerable and cautious - but still enthusiastic to meet. The 9 of us who made it had a terrific session with Junette talking about Smocks. I took the opportunity to wear a top I smocked years ago and rarely wear - along with the crystal Denise gave me last week.

There were lots of examples of smocks to examine and a really interesting history. About 6 of us stayed on for lunch - keeping our distance and with doors open - and enjoying the chance to share and catch up. It's a fabulous group - and next year's program is looking good.

After WES Group, I made a quick trip to the Yarn Trader at Port Adelaide to pick up a tube of wooden darning needles, then on to a Guild friend's place for an early dinner. She had cooked a delicious salmon meal to go with the bottle of Stan Ivanova's wine that Nelly gave me when the Guild Museum accepted some of Stan's mother's embroidery. I've been saving it to drink with these friends who need and appreciate organic wine. It was a lovely meal - and lovely wine. Other than half a dozen or so glasses of prosecco, this is the first wine I've drunk in over a year - and it was worth waiting for. 

On Thursday I had an extended dental appointment with the lovely Clemmie - an Xray and tricky filling. All good. I made it to  Pilates where there were only two of us and the anaesthetic eventually wore off.  Friday was a rarity - I had lunch with a friend and dinner with other friends. I try hard to follow my nutritionist's advice to have only one main meal a day, so avoid eating out for 2 meals, but I chose carefully. It was a privilege to be able to do it - and to have such friends.

In between commitments I have been preparing for Christmas. Last year I bought re-usable crackers, so needed to remake them. That involved sourcing and purchasing snaps, downloading and printing this year's Christmas jokes and riddles (which bear a striking resemblance to last year's) and finding fillings for them. It proved a bit tricky and took a couple of hours or so, but I got there in the end. Two have gone in a parcel to Canberra and the rest are now ready for Christmas Day in Adelaide.

While preparing the parcel for Canberra, I decided to get all my presents organised. A couple of months ago I bought a basket of Christmas fabric from the Guild Trading Table, with a view to making more of the drawstring bags I use in place of wrapping paper. While I could have managed with the bags I have already, it seemed timely to use the fabric now. Realistically, if I don't, it will sit there for another year. So I took the plunge. It turned out to be more than I had bargained for. There was A LOT of fabric. I cut out and machined what I needed for this year - maybe 10 bags. For several days my sitting area had piles of gifts, fabric, beads, ribbon. 

Eventually it transformed to this.

During the process, it dawned on me, that there might be something in the advice of my one-time dressmaker several years ago, that it was more efficient to prepare and iron the bags I cut out, rather than just zooming them up on the machine and tidying them later. 

So I gave it a go. 

Last night I cut out a further 30 bags from the Christmas fabric. Some are quite large, some small. When I got home from the hairdresser today, I got out the iron and pressed the side seams and turn-overs.  They are sitting on my machine - hopefully tomorrow's task - more professional than my usual effort - and hopefully efficient.

On Sunday I took time out from bags for a commission from Veronica - two Christmas stockings for family visitors.The wool felt is left over from the coat I made a few years ago and the rest is felt and bling left over from felt Christmas ornaments in past years.

Book Club was relaxed and fun. I had managed to completely read one of the books - Exiles by Jane Harper, listened to half on another The Tilt by Chris Hammer, and read 20% of Day's End by Garry Disher. All good reads - but I just ran out of time this month. I'm trying to finish them.

A couple of other books arrived this week (just what I need!) I ordered Fabric after it was lent to me in hard-back. It was available at a reasonable price in paperback and I thought it would be useful for WES Group. I read her Jewels  when it was first published in 2005 and really enjoyed it. I've looked for it a few times without success. It too has just been published in paperback. 

Maybe in January I'll have time......

The other adventure this week was a visit from my friend Cathy. She called me seeking directions from Frome Rd, around the corner from me. I (irrationally, I realise) assumed she was heading south and gave her instructions accordingly. She was, of course, heading north. By the time we worked out the problem she was crossing North Terrace, so ended up touring Adelaide University before retracing her path and arriving in one piece, with a pile of embroidery books for me. Several, on Candlewicking, are reviving my once quite intense interest, and another, by Helen Stevens,  has great chapters on Anglo-Saxon and Medieval embroidery. A Guild friend is enjoying the two Jane Nicolas Stumpwork books. It was a very generous gift. We had a good catch-up, in spite of the directions drama. 

My local Post Office has moved - same great staff, more convenient to me, expanded and with parcel lockers! I have my access code!

Finally, my second order of Christmas cards arrived.

I have made my own Christmas cards for many years. In recent years I have had cards printed with a run-down of my year. I still add a personal note but the broad news is printed. I no longer send them to friends I see regularly, or many who keep up with my news online (don't want to bore them silly!). Cards are a bit of an anachronism in an age of social media, and every year I ask recipients if I should stop. There are some friends and family who like the annual connection and news, so I continue.  This week Jeremy Ng posted a link   V&A post on Victorian Christmas cards to the Guild website. The history is interesting.  I'm not sure of the purpose of Christmas card greetings in 2022. I have come to see cards as a vehicle for catching up and communicating with absent friends but  I was so pleased with this year's card,  that I decided to have it reprinted without the lengthy text for a few people who like cards but don't need the news. Now these have arrived I will send a couple tomorrow and hope they arrive in time. Evolving traditions.

I do hope your Christmastide is Joyful.

Post 410 Christmas is Coming - Keeping Watch

It seems that Feedburner is still working, but not on the two hour window on which it is set. Last week the post was 16 hours late in going out. I will now plan for that and keep monitoring. 

I spent Wednesday recovering from my booster. I cancelled a visit to a friend's place. My arm and gland under my left arm sore, but mostly I was just tired. Around midday got a few provisions from Markets but read and rested. 

I finished the Fallahi pincushion, deciding not to put the tassels all around as  per the pattern. I didn't like the way the cushion sits with tassels on all sides. I quite like it hanging with tassels only around the bottom.

I haven't quite shaken the lethargy all week, but I was fine for Pilates and had friends around for early dinner  on Thursday. 

I cooked duck and made, for the first time in about 30 years, an orange sauce. It tasted good but was a bit thin (shouldn't have added that cup of wine!). No cornflour. It was a relaxed and renewing evening, very pleasant sitting with the balcony door open and the city lights. They brought me a lovely table centre.

The long awaited Rowan No 70 arrived in my letterbox. It has some fabulous patterns. Fortunately, summer is upon us and I have a few things to finish before I decide whether I will take the plunge.

I saw my doctor on Friday morning for my driver's licence assessment. She was, I think, a bit impatient with needing to do it. She believes I no longer need to declare epilepsy and has written as much on the form. I now need to get my optometrist to fill out the eye test and send it off.

I also took a necklace to be repaired at the Norwood bead shop. One strand had come out of the clip. I did my best to retrieve the beads but was one short. I expected to leave it and pick it up after Christmas, but the diligent proprietor repaired it there and then - took about 20 minutes and cost me $12! Brilliant.

Just after returning from Norwood I found a promo for a book that looked promising for my Goddess in Embroidery studies next year. After sourcing it online, I rang Dillon's books (back in Norwood!) to see if they had it in stock. I paid for their one copy and picked it up on Saturday morning. 

It is less useful for the Goddess than I hoped, but very useful for a couple of other projects - including the Certificate Course Christmas challenge, with its theme of 'Star'. It has really clear illustrations and diagrams. Pleased to have it.

Saturday by moonlight.

There were very delicious burgers for dinner courtesy of Anthony. The kids are enjoying their holidays.  It is, however, a very busy time for their parents.

Ali, who cleans for me once a fortnight, is from Pakistan. His father is still there, and is dying. Ali's children were born here and have never met their grandfather. The family of four are attempting to fly to Pakistan in the next week, implementing elaborate precautions to protect themselves against Covid and get back in time to isolate before school goes back in late January. Such hard decisions.

On Sunday I was a woman on a mission. I needed an item of underwear and I wanted to buy two packs of DIY Christmas BonBons from Ecolateral.  The underwear was most easily purchased from a department store in the city. Ecolateral have a large, new shop in the city although I like their original shop on Magill Rd, about 4km from me. I went into the city. I got the underwear in Myers. It took a bit longer than I expected because the helpful assistant persisted in reactivating my loyalty card (which I didn't have on me, and didn't try to us) and installing the App on my phone. Ecolateral, when I got there, had sold out of BonBon kits, but told me their Magill store still had 7 in stock! So of course, I headed out there, secured two of them and headed home to make them up.

They come with cloth wraps, tubes, jokes and snaps, but you provide your own novelty. No plastic toys. The idea is to reuse the wraps and tubes each year. Replacement snaps are promised.    I think people will enjoy them, this year, at least.

This week I selected another long-held but unstarted kit. This one is by Sue Barrows and I've had it since 2009. I did her class in Italian Smocked Silk Cushion at Beating Around the Bush that year, and she had spare kits from another of her classes, The Most Useful Needle Case Ever. I bought a kit, which has sat in my kit drawer until now. 

The smocked panel sits in a double band of silk

Inside you construct pouches in felt for needle packets. Single needles can be added to the felt near the packet. 

It then folds into a pouch.  I found a silk-covered button to hold it in place.  I don't need another one of these, but someone will like and use it. I'm delighted to have finished it!

On a roll, I have begun another old kit, this Hearts and Roses bag from Inspirations 75 - ten years ago. This one is rather more complicated. It comes with a metre of fabric and interfacing, which has to be marked up into over 20 pattern pieces. 

I've ironed and traced, marked up all pieces, attached interfacing, and begun work on the base of the bag. 

This is one of six individual hearts that form the base, surrounded by a vine border.

Now that the stitching is started, this is proving to be a most enjoyable, if fiddly, project to work on.  At the current rate of one heart per night, I might have the base finished by next week's post!

Today I had a podiatrist appointment and went from there to supermarket shopping. I'm hoping I've stocked up sufficiently to get me through the Christmas break. The less I need to go out over the holiday period the better, given the current chaos around opening borders, queues for testing and Christmas shopping.

As I recovered in my favourite chair with a glass of mineral water there was activity on the balcony. To my joy an abseiler swung down to remove the covering on my Vergola.  20 minutes later I heard them depart across the roof - like elves removing chimney covers for Santa's visit.

I'm delighted to have sky back for Christmas! It fits with the 'Star' theme for the stitching challenge.

Today was my mother's birthday. Had she lived, she'd have been 96 today. 

For all of you who follow this journey, I wish you the very best of the season - and hope you too, have plenty of sky for Christmas.