A Week of Wool and Winners

We have had a few days of cold, wet and wintry weather, so it seemed just right last week to create with wool. I have been making little free form pieces which I hope to transform into some of my altered bags for some individual orders amd for the Edelweiss gallery which wants more stock coming into the colder months.

And, just for me, I have started to knit a pair of socks from Kaffee Fassett wool – quite an extravagance, but I can’t wait to get the lovely wool socks on my feet.

My family, it seems, also love wearing and playing with wool.

I made Kellie this little shrug as the cardigan I made for her last year was too big. Jim's Aunty Maureen now has the cardigan,and loves it and Kellie is much happier with her warm woolly shrug. Kellie's little son , our outdoorsy grandson, William wouldn’t be without his woolly hat in this weather.

My blog friend from South Australia has been sending me lovely parcels of goodies, and in the last one, was a set of wool knitted finger puppets – Dylan, our middle grandson, is having a great time with them this week.

How lucky am I! This week I found out that I am the winner of the Blog giveaway by Dust of Enchantment . http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5338181
I chose some wearable origami – tiny paper cranes inserted into a tiny glass bottles made into earrings. Thank you very much, Tracy .

This is the second blog giveaway I’ve won this year. The first was the beautiful fabric from Thea and Sami in February. http://www.thea-sami.com.au/

And that’s not all, a couple of weeks ago, I was very embarrassed that I had double booked - a Rotary fundraising breakfast for Gemma Sisia's School in Tanzania and babysitting William in Maitland. So, I started the morning at the breakfast, gulped down some toast and mushrooms, bought some raffle tickets to support the cause and rushed off even before the guest speaker began and drove to Maitland. I didn’t think again about the raffle tickets, but I found out yesterday that I won a night for two in a hotel with breakfast! Thanks, Rotary Club of Newcastle Sunrise! There is also a different sort of winner in our family. Brandon our oldest grandson is also a winner, but he worked very hard to achieve his prize. He won an award at school for his outstanding literacy skills and mastery of phonics. He only started school this year, and is reading quite well. Congratulations, Brandon.

"Temari Or Not Temari?" Tutorial

Background Information: Temari (literally translated “hand ball”) is a Japanese folk craft that is alleged to have originated in China and was introduced to Japan five or six hundred years ago. Traditionally, the balls were constructed from wrapped kimono fabric remnants and silk threads. They were made by mothers and grandmothers for children to play with. Nowadays, decorative embroidered temari represent a highly valued and cherished gift symbolizing friendship and loyalty. Recently I've wondered if your don't use traditional techniques whether you should call what you create "temari". That is an ongoing debate but today I share what I do to make a "non-traditional temari".... 1.I start with a polystrene ball ( traditionally the balls were wound silk scraps or other organic materials) and begin to wrap with approx 4 ply wool, turning the ball as I wrap. 2. I then wrap another layer of wool in a similar fashion , this time a 3 or 2 ...

Christmas Countdown 3 ; Christmas tree # 23 - Mannequins and Motors

Mannequin and Mercedes Benz logo Christmas trees Advent Blog Day 23 - Mannequins and Motors ... or... What does a Mannequin have in common with a Mercedes Benz? I have been in such a dilemma as I have so few days left and so many Christmas trees I want to feature. So, in the spirit of balance today, I've combined a couple of categories into the theme of Mannequins and Motors - winsome wonders and winning wheels .... Mannequin and motor oil Christmas trees Hubcaps and Mannequin Christmas trees Not satisfied with auto parts? Decorate with the whole car.... Mannequin and Mini Cooper cars Christmas trees And tyres seem to be a popular choice and somehow they go beautifully with these 'green' mannequin trees... Tyres and red ribbons Tyres and baubles on mannequin Christmas trees Red bird wire form and sparkly tyres Ch...

Stitched Gardens and Magpies

Magpies are always around in our garden , strutting, poking about for insects and having a splash in the birdbath. They often call if the water is at a low level in the birdbath until one of us replenishes the water supply. It is no coincidence then that they have figured prominently as part of recent little works in the stitched garden series. I also like to include human figures in my gardens, especially taken from old photos of family members. This "impressionist ' stitched garden features my husband's great aunt, Sarah Ann Bath. I like to think of her in this abundant garden , when in reality, she grew up in the early 1900s in rather cramped living conditions in Birmingham UK See more and read more about my stitched gardens - other posts: How does your garden grow with stitch? How does your garden grow with crayons?

Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

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