Stitch Explorer - Chicken Scratch

I'm a little behind in Sharon B's latest challenge, so I haven't even signed up for it yet. On January 15th Sharon asked us to explore the technique of Chicken Scratch embroidery, so at the February meeting of my children's stitching group we worked on some simple chicken scratch bookmarks on checked cotton gingham. For the older girls we worked more complicated designs while the younger members worked a basic flower woven into the cross stitches. We tried to do our best cross stitch, with the top stitch always going in the same direction, and most of us succeeded, LOL. Here are my class samples, fused onto some vilene and pinked on the ends to neaten them up. I didn't have time to take photos of the actual childrens' work, they were so excited to have finished their bookmarks that they all bounded out the door to show their parents before I could get out my camera. Next time I'll be quicker off the mark.

Family update for March

I'm so glad to be back, it seems so long since I've had time to post here. The re-building work is finished (finally) after 10 weeks. I know exactly how long it's been since the builders arrived the day after my 2nd grandchild Miss Amelie Jane arrived on 11th January. I'm very pleased to say that her progress has been remarkable compared to the slowness of our building work. There were many problems with the finishing off in our new 3 way bathroom and laundry, which resulted in tiler and painter paying repeated re-visits to put things right (well in our eyes anyway.) I don't think it's unreasonable to expect the new work to be as well finished as the damaged rooms were before the fire, do you? What we now have is quite modern and hopefully easy to keep clean in my dotage, VBG. Pictures will follow as soon as I can get the floor cleaned to my satisfaction after the re-grouting earlier this week!!




Yesterday I spent a wonderful lunch time with both my little grandchildren and my mother. My DIL (Riley's mum) hosted a lunch for my Mum (Nannie), my DD#1 (Amelie's mum), my SIL (with new baby Jorja) and me. Jorja is my middle brother's second family with his current partner, and very lucky to be here. Her mummy had IVF treatment, then developed diabetes and liver problems. She was delivered by C section on 11th February about 6 weeks early weighing around 5lbs. In the photo Jorja is joining Amelie on the play mat for some cousin time. I'm sure little Jorja will bring much happiness to her parents' lives.




Of course Master Riley enjoyed his little cousins' visit too, he was most interested in the girls' hair, since he has very little himself. A very happy little bloke he is too, and shared all his toys very well.

I was so glad Nannie (my 79 year old mum) got to spend time with all 3 babies. You never know what tomorrow will bring at her age, so here's a photo of Nannie with Amelie her 9th great grandchild.

Bushfires, babies and chicken scratch!

A bit of a mixed bag in this post, hence the stange title.

Tonight on the TV the Nine Network is hosting the Red Cross Bushfire Appeal, and it's very heartening to see that over $60 million AUD has been raised already since last Sunday for the victims of the horrific fires in Victoria. We're particularly humbled that so many of our overseas friends have responded to our calls for help. It just proves that old cliche that it's a small world and we should all help each other in times of natural disaster no matter what political or religious persuasion we might be. Thanks to everyone for your generosity.

Some of the ladies in my ATC swap group live in the fire affected areas, and one in particular Lyn D. lives in Kinglake, which was all but wiped out on Saturday night. We hadn't heard from or about Lyn, and we all feared for her and her family. Thankfully today she was able to post on our group from her work. Her husband's business is gone, and one of her close relations lost their home, but Lyn is OK. We all breathed a collective sigh of relief for our "internet friend". I can't tell you how distracted I've been since the bad news about the fires first starting coming over the TV and radio. I'm really hoping that the cooler weather we've been having since Sunday will allow the fire fighters to gain control and eventually the fires will be put out so everyone can start rebuilding shattered lives.

On a happier note, my little granddaughter is gaining weight fast, she's even started giving little smiles (no, not wind !!) to people who hold her close and make eye contact.



The past 4 weeks have flown by but my poor DD#1 hasn't been able to get into much of a routine yet. She's been dealing with a fractious baby due to antibiotics she's been taking for a staph infection in the C section wound, then mastitis (ouch) needing more antibiotics and now thrush. I remember the delights of motherhood myself, VBG. I'll be visiting her again tomorrow to help for a while, the bonus is I get to spend some quality time with Miss Amelie Jane and her mum. I haven't been neglecting my grandson either, he's at that giggling stage and starting to teethe. Poor little bloke, he dribbles constantly. Hard to believe he's already 5 months old.

Not a lot to report on the stitching front I'm afraid, my grandiose plans to stitch on the Counted Thread Band Round Robin over the holidays fell through due to our re-building work commencing, the premature arrival of Amelie Jane and the darned heat. Now it's the middle of February already, and all the usual committments are starting again. I have my first kids embroidery class on Saturday, so I think I'll do a lesson about Chicken Scratch embroidery as featured in the Stitch Explorer from Sharon B.

I'll post my class sample here as soon as it's stitched, and a photo of the class work if I can remember to take the camera on Saturday, VBG.

A very hectic fortnight, part 2

Just now I'm using my hands in a different way than usual, and they're letting me know they don't like it one little bit. I've irritated my left carpal tunnel, so my fingers are tingling as well as lumpy and red from the heatwave we've been having here in Sydney. My best friends at the moment are an ice pack and Celebrex.

We've had the builders in for the past fortnight, working on our laundry and bathroom after a fire destroyed the floors under them both. See below the progress shots of the work on the laundry. The rooms have all been gutted back to the bare frames, and the burnt bits replaced. This involved propping up the whole corner of the house at one stage, on big Accrow supports. Quite scary really.







I've also had to do lots of tidying to prepare our living areas for cleaning after the smoke damage. I've been emptying a large entertainment unit and sorting out the kitchen so everything can be put away while the walls and ceilings are washed and re-painted. There's a wooden kitchen dresser to unpack so it can be moved to paint behind, and a small moveable pantry to be unpacked and shifted.

In our wisdom (!!!) we also decided to have 3 windows in the front of the house replaced at the same time. That involves emptying a bow fronted china cabinet of about 30 years of clutter, my bedroom needs sorting so that window can be pulled out, and the major job, the Sewing Room needs to be cleared right along one wall!!! I've already had 2 1/2 weeks to do it all, and time is running out fast to finish all my jobs. We expect the painters in about a week, but I estimate it will take about a week just to do the Sewing Room, without even touching the rest that still needs to be done. When I was despairing of being ready on time, the owner of the building firm was very helpful, putting a kindly hand on my arm and said, don't worry dear, we'll work around it !!! But I dread the thought of the builders standing on my built-in cutting table while all my storage and machinery is in-situ. So I've been filling up boxes with fabric, UFO's and haberdashery and moving them to the other end of the house at all hours of the day and night.

What's that old saying, Life is like a circus? Well we've been juggling visits to the new baby, trying to pick out vanities, choosing taps, tiles and paint colours and designing laundry tubs and storage all at the same time!!! Then a minor hurdle today when DH discovered a floor waste had been accidentally left out of one of the wet areas and the waterproofing was about to be laid! One unhappy plumber had to go back to the hardware and buy the correct fitting, which held him up even more. He finally finished the job about 5 pm, so now we've got to hold our noses for a couple of days while the floor "cures" before the tiler comes on Saturday. I'll be sooooooo glad when this is all over, all I can say is I HOPE I like the colours and things I've chosen. There's even a whisper about new blinds for the new front windows, as the old ones won't fit the new modern windows. Another dilemma, wood or metal venetians??

I've decided that the new laundry should have some purpose built storage and a broom cupboard!! Who would have thought that could be so exciting?? But for the first time in 30 years I'll be able to store the vacuum cleaner somewhere out of sight, out of mind, LOL !

A very hectic fortnight !

I mentioned in my previous post that this past fortnight has passed in a blur of activity. The biggest event was the premature arrival of Miss Amelie Jane on Sunday 11th January. We made a dash to the hospital on the Sunday morning after DD#1 was admitted for monitoring on the Saturday evening. No-one really expected to be greeting a baby by midday on Sunday, especially the new mum and dad !



Luckily, despite a knotted umbilical cord and an emergency Caesarian section, the baby was fit and well. I noticed in a previous post that I mistakenly gave her length as 49cm (about 19 inches) when in fact she was 45 cm ( about 17 3/4 inches) but her weight was 2510 gms (about 5 lb 8 oz) These details will be important to her as she grows up, I'm sure, VBG.

Another small drama occured at day 3 when Amelie's blood sugar levels dipped and she had to go into the special care nursery for 24 hours till it stabilised. Finally the new family went home on the Thursday night for some well-earned rest. Unfortunately things took another interesting turn on Monday afternoon when DD#1 felt very unwell and her Caesar scar was red and sore. Back to the hospital for a check-up and sure enough, an infection was diagnosed. This time they were admitted to the Ante-natal section for some intense anti-biotic treatment and a quieter room was available (not usually so many visitors when there's not a new baby to play with you see!)




The best bit about this for me was that when we visited on Tuesday morning the new Dad was just getting ready to bathe the baby. When asked, I jumped at the chance to do it for them, we had such a nice bonding session Amelie and I. She's such a little doll, although a little unsettled just now, I'm sure it will pass soon. Arriving 4 weeks early, and 2 stints in hospital as well as the extreme heatwave we've been having in Sydney would unsettle anybody. I'm really enjoying my second grandchild and first granddaughter. Pop and I have already discussed having regular family get togethers every fortnight, if not more often, so that we can be part of both the grandkids early lives and so that the 2 little cousins can spend time together.

I'll post about the rest of the fortnight's activities very soon.

A textile update

The past 2 weeks has been so eventful I don't know where to begin to tell it all. As I sit here deciding what to document I feel a little guilty that there hasn't been more textile "stuff" lately for regular followers of this blog. So to remedy this I've taken a photo today of the progess of a WISP which started back in June when my SIL was first diagnosed with APL a rare form of Leukemia. Gail is doing really well at the moment, as you'll see in a future post, VBG. You may recall that I decided to co-ordinate a Healing Hearts Quilt for her to encourage and comfort her during treatment and recovery.



I decided on pink and blue hearts appliqued onto old fashioned floral blocks which she likes. So I cut and ironed hearts onto freezer paper and started collecting signatures. 40 hearts were secretly posted to friends and relations to write encouraging messages with a gel pen on each heart. With her colleagues help I even managed to send some to her kindergarten class, where kids drew on the blocks and the teachers wrote the kids names on for Gail to remember those she had to leave mid way through the year. Luckily the school was able to appoint the regular school substitute teacher to take Gail's class, the kids all knew her and settled remarkably well. That didn't stop her from worrying about them while she was sitting in the hospital hooked up to the chemotherapy treatment though, VBG.
As the hearts started returning I cut them out, removed the freezer paper then fused with Vleisofix to the 6 and 1/2 inch floral squares and hand appliqued around each one with 2 strands of cotton floss. I took Michelle Marvig's advice and chose a cream sashing with a small pattern to make the squares "pop up". I'm hoping to get the blocks all machined together and turned into a small lap rug in time to take it to school during the first term when Gail intends to return to teaching.

Welcome to Amelie Jane

It's been a very busy week or so around here, VBG. First we started sorting out rooms ready for the builders to make repairs after our house fire, then on Sunday 11th January our second grandchild and first granddaughter Miss Amelie Jane decided she couldn't wait till early February and put in an appearance in a rather dramatic way by emergency Caesarian section. Her mummy was almost prepared for her arrival at home, with baby basket and clothing all washed and ready, but when she went to the hospital on Saturday she thought it was just for a few hours of monitoring.

Doctor decided to induce labour but it soon became obvious baby was distressed so the decision was taken to perform the Caesarian, which was very lucky because the umbilical cord was knotted. Amelie weighted in at 5lbs 8 oz and was 49 cm long. Not so tiny really, but to me she seems like a little dolly as my own babies all weighed in over 7lbs 3oz up to 9lbs 4 oz. Only one slight setback with low blood sugar since Sunday, but her mother is up and walking well, feeling great and looking forward to home and a comfortable bed. The plan is to discharge them from hospital on Thursday so it's "all hands on deck" to transport all the flowers, toys and gifts home from the hospital. The photo shows Amelie at day 3, that's her daddy's hair she has there as mummy's was blonde and very fine. Chin, nose and eyes are all mummy though. Isn't she a cute little bundle?

Photos of Vintage Underwear

As requested by a regular reader, VBG, I've photographed the vintage underwear bought recently and posted the photos on my costume blog Actually, I didn't personally model them, since they are Australian size 8 to 10, and I'm certainly NOT. My DD#3 Bron has kindly modelled for me, so pop over and have a look if you're curious.

Cyber Fyber Exhibition is open

(Photo courtesy Susan Lenz Cyber Fyber blog)



If you haven't heard about Susan Lenz's fabulous exhibition of internet textile art called Cyber Fyber by now, you haven't missed it !! It's online here. The word got around the textile blogs pretty quickly back in 2008 that Susan was offering trades of ATCs and Postcards, and that your own traded cards were going to be hung in an international exhibition of internet textile artists in Columbia, South Carolina, USA. beginning January 2009.

So textile artists / artisans from all around the world have been selecting one of Susan's cards from those offered online and sending their own to take its place. Now Susan has 160 plus ATCs and 220 plus postcards from us to display, as well as the works of selected invited artists. Australia is quite well represented, too, with about 7 or 8 different people showing their textile work. I traded an ATC with Aemelia Ars style lace on it (card number 143) and one of my postcards made for Sharon B.'s TIF Challenge last year (card number 207). If you'd like to look them up, go to the website, click on online exhibition on the right side in the Atc or Postcard category and scroll down. Comments on the cards are being collected for a Viewers Choice award, so please add comments if you like what you see. Can I say now I'm an internationally exhibited fibre artisan too, LOL?

Christmas de-brief

Now, before you get too excited, the family did NOT all become nudists in the Christmas break, LOL. I just thought I'd take the opportunity during the holiday lull to tidy up a few loose ends for 2008.

I received a comment on a previous post asking where was the photo of my new little grandson Riley opening his Christmas gifts. I had to wait till his mum posted some on her Facebook page, so here they are.



He looks so cute in his Santa T-shirt!



Look at that earnest little face, not sure what this gift was as he got SO MUCH LOOT.


Then there were some ATCs traded with members of my Scquilters online group, 3 great sets for Christmas including Gold and White,







Christmas Trees








and Christmas Food.






And for the New Year, Let's Party and Happy New Year which have not yet all arrived. I also signed up for a Birthday Swap, so I'm expecting about 28 cards to arrive in the next week or so for my own birthday. Each person on the list makes one card and sends it to the birthday person during their birthday month. There were 2 of us on 1st January, Del is only the 3rd person I've known personally with a New Years' Day birthday. I went to school with another girl who co-incidentally had the same initials as myself, spooky eh?

The other loose end is to show you the Christmas ATC I traded with Anne L. in France, arranged by Doreen G. (see previous post) The first photo is my card to Anne, a silk print of an old fashioned Victorian christmas embellished with beads and braid.





Anne's card is a goregous cross stitched one featuring variegated stranded silk thread on a fine Aida type cloth. I'm so delighted with it, and thanks Doreen for suggesting the trade.

Holiday happenings

For several years in a row we have made an annual pilgrimage to Canberra, our nation's capital. Canberra was established halfway between Melbourne and Sydney, inland in the middle of the bush really. It was a planned city so there are circular drives and straight roads very much like wheels within wheels. There are mostly offices in the CBD while the population lives in satelite suburbs.

In 2007 for various reasons we weren't able to get away, so this year I was determined to have at least a few days down South to recharge our batteries. Eventually DH booked a room for 3 nights at the Crowne where we usually like to stay, next to the Casino right in the heart of the city and just a walk from all the eateries. So on Sunday 28th December we drove down, arriving after 3 hours which included a stop at historic Berrima.

On Monday we visited the Museum of Australia, a very modern building well worth seeing in its own right. Here is the view heading towards the entrance.




And the extension on the roof of the walkway from the carparking area, the kids love the path to nowwhere !





As well as the permanent exhibitions, this time there was an excellent exhibition about Charles Darwin. Lots of information about the man as well as his theory of Evolution of the Species. There were letters, journals, diaries, and a facsimile of his study at Down House during his later years. 2 live lizards were also on show, a beautiful green tree iguana with a long 3 foot tail, and a striped blue tongue lizard which looked like a model till he blinked !!



I'd also arranged to meet one of my web friends in Canberra so Doreen G. drove into Canberra and took me on a guided tour of the ACT Embroiderers' Guild headquarters. It was interesting to see how their Guild operates as compared to the NSW Guild. We have about 15 times as many members but probably operate out of smaller rooms than does the ACT Guild. Certainly sounds like the ACT members have a lot of fun and Doreen has her hands full co-ordinating the Recycled Goods tables and serving on the Guild committee. I really enjoyed meeting her in the flesh, and seeing her completed TIF crazy patchwork block cloth book so beautifully finished. Wish I'd been more disciplined with TIF in 2008, but there's hope for me 2009 with Sharon's Stitch Explorer each month.

On Tuesday we had tickets to the Degas exhibition at the National Gallery. We didn't take an audio tour, and perhaps that was one reason I was a bit dissapointed with the exhibition. Or it could have been that we went in the afternoon after a mixup at the hotel with our tickets, and we were a bit tired. The Exhibition was quite busy, and the crowd was 3 deep in front of some works. There were more prints and etchings than paintings, but the ones on show were worth seeing. I was most impressed with the scupltures and photos I guess. The Victorian man's obsession with the female nude figure always intriques me - the everyday clothing of the late Victorian women were so enveloping and modest, sombre in the British Empire after Prince Albert died. But behind closed doors, in certain establishments and on the Continent, oh la la !! I'll just say that the images typical of Victorian French postcards were very well represented in the Degas exhibition.

Wednesday saw us enjoying our 3rd large cooked buffet breakfast at the hotel then packing to start the homeward journey. I must say we dined very well on the whole trip, out to dinner 3 nights in a row and cooked breakfasts. Lunches were neccessarily smaller affairs, usually just a snack really. I can well imagine what my DH says when away on business, after being away for a long time and eating out you just feel like a cup of tea and a slice of toast with vegemite for your dinner sometimes!!

We detoured back to Berrima on the way home, as I hadn't been to my favourite antique shop for a couple of years and was itching to see what was in stock. Peppergreen's Antiques is a great rambling building with several large rooms. They regularly receive container loads from agents in Europe and I wasn't dissapointed with a recent shipment from France. Fabrics, threads, bed coverings, clothing of all sorts vied for my attention. I was determined though to buy myself something for my birthday to add to my Victorian and Edwardian underwear collection. I sorted through a bin labelled corsets and bras and reluctantly put them aside. There were several fabulous early brassieres made of pink satin fabric and ingenious in design, but not my era. There were bins full of glorious early 1920's and 1930's lingerie, all satin and lace and some completely hand embroidered which had to be put aside. In the end I chose 2 machine knitted woollen ladies combinations, pre WW1. They probably came from Europe as they look very warm complete with the divided crotch for WC convenience and below the knee legs. One has small gussets let into the front lowered neckline for accomodating the bosom, while the other is higher and has slits at the appropriate level with inserted gussets. Such a hoot, will try to photograph them and post later this week. I also bought 3 pairs of over the knee stockings. One in knitted lace is quite beautiful, one in plain cotton with the brand still stamped on the upper leg and one which is reputed to be a maid's stocking with a period mend on the toe and her initials worked in fine crossstitch on the top. Photographs to follow of those too.

So quite a nice short break, not long enough of course, but we hope to plan a few more such breaks in the near future.

My Australian Christmas traditions

This time of the year I get quite sentimental, so be warned !!

I used to love Christmas as a child growing up in Australia. As it's high Summer here and a Christmas Day average temp of 25 degrees Celsius we'd take the best of the British traditions and add some of our own Australian ones. A fresh or artificial tree in the house, decorated with hand made or store bought decorations if you could afford them. Crepe paper chain garlands and handmade card stars with glitter on them were usually on our tree at home. The highlight of our Christmas in the 1960's was visiting my Nanna on the North Shore of Sydney and driving home through the city at night to see the stores like David Jones and Mark Foys. They had animated (clockwork) Christmas store windows which drew crowds from all over the suburbs to see the displays of fairy tales and the nativity.

Our Christmas menu back then might include hot chicken, ham or roast pork, or cold versions of them. Turkey wasn't big in Australia until recently. Mum did a mean "pumped leg" , a piece of silverside (beef) soaked in brine by the butcher, which Mum simmered in water with vinegar, brown sugar, onions and cloves. It was delicious served cold with relish or chutney, and economical because it would last for days in the fridge. My Nanna would prepare hot vegetables for Christmas lunch for 18 or so. Roast potatoes, 2 hot meats, peas and carrots, and gravy. Then a traditional boiled Christmas pudding with pre-decimal coins hidden inside for luck, with a little warm custard poured over and a scoop of vanilla icecream or cream. Occasionally we'd have a trifle, an economical dessert for a large group consisting of cut up cake lining a bowl filled with jelly, custard, tinned fruit, cream all layered together. Last weekend I made a punch bowl full for a party, and added flaked chocolate to the top at the last minute. Yum !

After lunch the adults would all have a siesta (with one eye open) while the kids played with their new gifts or ran around outside. These days we have hot and cold meats, seafood, salads, roast vegetables, Christmas pudding or pavlova, cheese cakes, anything goes really. We borrow European traditions, and bring dishes and flavours from all around the world to our Australian Christmas meals.

It became a difficult task co-ordinating Christmas Day visits to both sides of the family once I was a married woman. We got in the habit of having breakfast at home, then Christmas lunch with my in-laws or the evening meal at a relatives home, hosted in turns. This all changed again after my children came along. By then the in-laws would come for Christmas Eve tea, stay the night then we'd all get up early to watch the kids open their gifts. Breakfast became a grand affair with warm croissants, cereal and fruit and orange juice with a touch of Champagne for those who liked it.
They'd go home to prepare lunch for us, then siestas for everyone and more visits in the evening. Eventually it got harder for us to go out with the 4 children all day, so we often had both sides of the family to our home at some point. Everyone would bring a plate of food (or 2) to share. Mum continued Nanna's traditional boiled Christmas pudding after she passed away, and only stopped making the puddings in the last 3 or 4 years when it got too much for her.

This Christmas a new tradition was started. We all visited my oldest brother's home last weekend for a pre-Christmas BBQ with relatives and friends as everyone is now trying to juggle their own grown-up family visits. DH and I joined our adult offspring and my in-laws at my new grandson Riley's home for early Christmas morning breakfast. I'm sure that little boy will have to take over his Dad's study for toy storage, Santa was very generous, LOL. We bought him a toy pull along telephone with a rotary dial, eyes which move and a clacking noise when it moves along. Noisy toys are good ! I found a piggy bank with his name on it, and a cute set of T-shirts with his nickname on them. Even my daughters' baby which is due in February got a few gifts, I bought her a pink rabbit toy and some little one piece romper suits.

At the moment we're recovering at home after the early start to the day, we thought after our kids were grown up that we'd finished with all that, but now the grandchildren are starting to arrive, it's all starting again, VBG.

PS the photo is of the Angel I made for the Stitchin Fingers Christmas Cloth Doll Swap. She now lives at Cindy's place in the USA.

PPS the Santa collection has now increased to 42, following 3 new purchases on Tuesday and 2 Royal Albert santas received as gifts today !!

Santa collection on display

I knew eventually that the Christmassy feeling would arrive at our house. Today I actually felt like cleaning and putting up some decorations. So you can imagine my surprise when I unpacked the Santas. I have 37 now. I'm sure they've been breeding in the cupboard since last Christmas. But then, I did buy 3 at the Rosehill Stitches and Craft Show, Chris Gray made a Drunken Elf for me in the Stitchin Fingers Christmas Doll Swap, and I bought a Scottish Santa for a Scottish raffle in September, then promptly forgot to put him in the prize basket. That accounts for 5 more than last year. Oh, and a couple bought at the post Christmas sales... Still a bit suspicious though, LOL.

The saddest thing is that I've nearly filled the top of the entertainment unit now. And I've discovered that somewhere, somehow I've started a collection of miniature Christmas trees. I have 4, the basis of a collection ! I should start looking in the shops now for some more, or should I wait till after Christmas when they are all reduced?

Family time

I think I'm a "family" person, in that I cherish and celebrate my family unit and my extended family. I don't make close friends easily. I probably have about 5 or 6 friends I've known since my late teens through my husband though. I'm the oldest of 4children and the only girl in my family. I have 2 surviving brothers but I wouldn't say we're terribly close really.

I'm closer to my siser-in-law and probably consider her more like my sister. We talk quite often and share things only girls can. So I'm extremely happy that Gail has done so well with her treatment for APL, a rare form of Leukaemia. She's on the tablet maintenance phase now and things are looking pretty optimistic. I hope she won't mind me putting this gorgeous photo of her holding a sleeping Riley (her great nephew) on Sunday at my DD #1's baby shower. Her hair has grown back soft and curly, she's feeling pretty well and looking forward to returning to her kindergarten teaching job in 2009.





We gave my oldest daughter Di a great baby shower, she won't need to buy much more to look after her new baby due in early February 2009. My middle daughter Col did some cooking as did a couple of other ladies. We had decorated cup cakes, slices, fruit platter, sandwiches, pastissi, hot chicken balls and lamb koftas (?) with dipping sauces as well as crudites and dips, and the (non-alcoholic) fruit punch. I had organised a couple of party games, but we had 3 babies to play with !! No need for games, so we gave out the prizes to the last few guests. When the men returned home they headed straight to the left over cakes, trust a man ! I love the following photo, the 3 girls lined up for a "belly photo"




I cut myself out of it so as not to spoil your image of me !! Not the most flattering photo I've ever taken after a few sleepless nights. The middle girl looks like me around 18 years old B.C. (before children!) while the girl in the white shirt (Bron) looks like me at about 14 years old. I think my other daughter looks like my DH side of the family more. Wonder who the little baby will look like, if the scan is correct we're expecting a granddaughter. Don't you love the pink cloth we made the mother-to-be wear? A burp cloth with a nappy pin on her shirt, shouldn't every new mother be prepared for every emergency, LOL?

We've decided to have a quiet Christmas this year. Events conspired to make a large family Christmas difficult at our home, so we'll be having a BBQ lunch at one of my brothers' homes on the 21st December, then visiting the new Grandson first thing Christmas morning. My own children have to visit their respective partners' families too, so first thing in the morning seemed the most sensible option to get together. Next year will be better, we'll have a second grandchild to spoil. I think Christmas is all about the Family, getting together and hopefully forgetting old quarrels and differences. My mother will be 80 in June 2009, so I'm hopeful she will be enjoying next Christmas with us still. This final photo is great-grandmother Nannie, with Riley last Sunday.

Everyone should have a hobby

I'm a firm believer that having a hobby is an investment in your mental health. The planning, designing and making of crafts is especially good for keeping the mind active. I've heard of men who complain about the money spent on "unnecessary" crafting materials. These are the same men who like a beer, spend money on gambling and that other anti-social occupation which requires you to leave the building. I meant smoking of course, LOL. Statistically men die younger, have more heart attacks and higher cholesterol readings - do you think it has anything to do with lack of a hobby?

The men I know who build models, turn wood and metal, do tapestries, and yes, even knit, are calmer more alert and more sociable than all those other blokes. They understand that even the trip to the craft store gets you out of the house and into the fresh air amongst other people once in a while, instead of sitting in front of the television "relaxing".

I've been trying to throw off a dark mood for several weeks now, which probably hasn't been helped by poor sleep after recent events here at home. However, I've joined a number of online groups which are running swaps. So with committments to produce some ATCs to swap and cloth dolls for my Stitchin Fingers group, I've been able to forget the real world for a little while and plunge into the sewing room. There's nothing like a pile of fabrics, trims and embellishments to brighten your mood, and once I get the difficult design decisions made, I start to enjoy myself.

I received a lovely Drunken Elf just recently, and owed a Christmas Cloth Doll to Cindy in the US, which was duly mailed on Tuesday. She asked for a picture of my efforts, as she couldn't wait to see it. I know I'm a meany, but I hate to spoil surprises. So here is a teaser of the Dolly, on its way to Cindy as we speak. A full picture will follow in due course.

First the good news...

As promised, today I wrote names from comments on posts 150 through 155 on slips of paper, and my House Model Bron, DD #3, drew the lucky winner out of my 1850's repro bonnet. Doesn't everyone have such an elegant hat to conduct lucky draws from??

The winner will receive some of my stash, which might include fabrics and trims, useful bits and pieces (I hope) as well as a couple of little surprises.



Here is Bron conducting the draw, watched by an independant witness. Well, actually it was her boyfriend, LOL and he thinks we're both nutters. Now he could be right there, but he loves her anyway, they've been together for 5 years now. I wish he'd just propose marriage and get the agony over, but they are only 23 so plenty of time these days for all that serious stuff.

O.K. enough suspense, the winner is.....






Erica P.


Thanks for all the kind comments recently everyone, especially about our household drama recently. The Insurance company has sent out engineers and we are waiting for the Scope of Works report. Then 2 or 3 builders will be asked to quote on the same work. They did indicate that it was a bit worse than first thought. Not only do we have external damage which is quite repairable, but the underfloor sustained considerable damage and will need to be completely replaced in at least 2 rooms. So... the 3 way bathroom and laundry will need to be gutted and re-built from the bearers up, including new floor, tiles, plumbing, toilet, shower screen, vanity etc. etc. There's also a possibility that the back wall of the kitchen will need to be stripped of cupboards to get to that part of the floor as well. That will mean new cork floor tiles for the dining room and kitchen, and new kitchen benches. The bill could be quite a lot if all that has to be replaced as well.

I'm still a nervous nellie, finding it hard to sleep at night and have resorted to sleeping in another spare bedroom closer to the rest of the family. A mother is always a protective mother, even when the kids are grown up, isn't she?
Time (and a holiday) will heal my nerves, if we can fit one in before they start the repairs, which will now not begin until late January I should think, after the building industry has it's own annual holidays.

The Drunken Elf has arrived in Australia

This gorgeous cloth doll (christened the Drunken Elf by his creator) arrived in Australia late last week from Chris in the UK. We are part of a swap on Stitchin Fingers, so this week I finalised my own swap to Cindy in the USA and sent her in today's mail. I won't post a photo here till I hear she has arrived in Minnesota, so you'll have to wait a little longer to see my doll.

This photo is my rather feeble attempt to make the D. E. look like he's leaning against a gum tree in rural Australia, instead of in front of an original oil painting by the talented Werner Philipitch in my backyard, VBG. I'll never win awards for my air brush technique on Photostudio, that's for sure.

Well, this is the 155th post, and the last opportunity to go in the lucky draw I'm conducting for some of my stash to celebrate the 150th post on this blog. I'll enter all comments on this post in the draw as well as all previous ones from 150 till now.
I hope to conduct the draw on Thursday 11th December.

I'm far too easily distracted !

Here is my cloth doll for a recent Show Business Cloth Doll swap on Stitchin Fingers. I should be finishing the costumes for the Dancing Studio show, due next week. However, having committed to making this doll I felt the need to take a break from the costumes and finish her, after all she was naked for nearly 2 weeks while I procrastinated about which character to dress her in. I had several ideas, but for some reason Dorothy won the day. So of course, I had to make a very quick brown felt Toto to go in her basket. I made him a Scotty terrier shape, and the basket was made from a cardboard inner layer painted cream and covered with buckram pieces and a straw braid handle. Dorothy's arms have pipe cleaners inserted so they are bendy. I sealed the face and feet with a Doll Art Face Sealer medium which I bought at a doll show, then drew on the face with fine fiber pens. The ruby slippers are a gloss folk art paint in red then overpainted with a clear glitter paint. I made the blouse and dress from stash fabrics, and the braid on the neck and arms is finger crochet chain in suitable colour. I used a colour photo of a paper doll printed from Google as my reference.

The face is still quite basic, haven't mastered them yet, LOL, need a LOT more practice. I just admire those artists who can get great faces all the time, like my friend Erica P. who has faces to die for on her character dolls.

I hope my swap partner likes her dolly, and that she makes her smile when she opens the little box.

Warning !! Cuteness ahead !!

This year has certainly been eventful, with one very important milestone in my life happening on 29th August. I became a Nan to this little chap, Riley John. He's growing up too fast, at 12 weeks old already.

It's a pity we don't hold traditional Baby Shows anymore here in Australia. In the 1960's and 70's you'd take along your freshly washed and groomed baby to be weighed and examined by a group of nurses and judges, usually from the local Council and sponsors' reps. My mother used to enter my brother's Warren and Anthony in them, they were both bonnie babies. The judges looked for healthy, alert, active and yes, cute, babies who were weight for age and looked like the "ideal" baby, whatever that was. Both of them won small prizes, usually baby clothes or photo albums or such things.

The Shows were sponsored by baby product companies and there was a token entry fee paid by the doting mums which went to a charity. All a lot of fun, and I suppose it did encourage the young mums to take pride in their cute offspring. Australia never took it as seriously as they do now in the US though. We still have competitions but they are photography based and are usually talent spotting for advertisers.

Mum couldn't afford to put me in baby shows when I was little, as I was her first child. Anyway, I'd already won one title, Miss Royal North Shore Hospital 1954. I was the first baby born in that year, at 12.40 pm on 1st January. I received a certificate and a small gift.

Riley could certainly win a prize with his cheeky smiles, and now he's starting to gurgle and giggle when you play with him. Definitely tugs at the heart strings to hear him vocalise, takes me back to his Daddy doing it, 30 years ago.

No good me getting all clucky though, will have to give Riley extra cuddles when I see him. Looking forward to meeting my little granddaughter who is due in February too, I'll have 2 littlies to play with then, LOL.

I'm Celebrating !!

My 2 year Blogiversary slipped by in September without me even realising. Wow, time flies when you're doing something you enjoy. So after being on the receiving end of a lucky draw from Mary Anne at Magpies Mumblings recently, I thought I'd celebrate my 150th post instead with a Lucky Draw.

So, if you commented on post 150 (The Payten Bed) and comment through to post 155 (whatever that may be) I'll collect your names and conduct a lucky draw before Christmas to receive a small parcel of goodies from my stash. International posts are fine, but I'm not accepting anonymous posts for this draw.

My New Year's resolution is to dig deeper into my stash before buying more material for ATCs, postcards and other textiley works so this little competition will hopefully make a start in the stash busting !!