Christmas Countdown Trivia

I have been counting down Christmas from 1 December on my Facebook page... here is some trivia I have been uncovering during the process.

Christmas Bells... In older times he very shape of the bell is reminiscent to dome of heaven. In Christianity the ringing of a bell is a sacred announcement to the presence of Christ at mass. In Buddhism, the sounding of a bell is the resonance of pure wisdom - a tonal symbol of perfect harmony & clarity. In Asian thought the bell is also a harmonic symbol - the bell itself considered female, the clapper or pendulum within the bell is male. The two working as one to create a beautiful tone is symbolic of the union between male and female (yin and yang) to create perfect cooperation and balance

I use these pillow cases every December and have done so for about 30+ years? I have enough for everyone in the family so now I guess I have a set of "vintage" Christmas pillow cases To see a pillow in your dream represents comfort. relaxation, ease, and/or luxury. You need to take it easy on yourself

Christmas is celebrated all over the world but there are many different traditions and there are some Christmas celebrations even in countries where the majority of people are non-Christian. Celebrate Christmas by giving an "ethnic " gift .... some ideas?

According to research commissioned by eBay , this year Australians each spent an average of $662 to buy 12.7 Christmas presents, with an average cost of just over $52 per gift. Yet despite this $8.5 billion spend on gifts, more than half the respondents still received at least one unwanted present on Christmas day.

In "The Father Christmas Letters", which Tolkien wrote for his children, Red Gnomes are helpful creatures who come from Norway to the North Pole to assist Father Christmas and his Elves in fighting the wicked Goblins.

Before electricity, people used candles to light their homes and to decorate their Christmas trees. Today electric lights have replaced candles. Candles and Christmas lights represent Christ, the Light of the World. "I am the light of the world. No follower of mine shall ever walk in darkness; no, he shall possess the light of life" (John 8:12). "

Gingerbread dates back to the15th century, and figural biscuit-making was practised in the 16th century.^[1 The first documented instance of figure-shaped gingerbread-biscuits appearing was in the court of Elizabeth I of England. She had the gingerbread figures made and presented in the likeness of some of her important guests

"Run, run, run as fast as you can.

You’ll never catch me, I’m the gingerbread man.

I ran from the baker and his wife too.

You’ll never catch me, not any of you"

Did you know that holly is associated with males and is considered to bring men good luck and protection; the female counterpart to holly is ivy?

Early Christians recognized deeper symbolism in Holly by associating the leaves as the "crown of thorns" and the red berries as the blood of Christ....

From now until Christmas .... I will add a brief post daily to countdown the next three weeks to Christmas Day.

Is it a mutant? Is it an alien? It's an octopus - or is it?

Have you ever thought how strange a creature the octopus is? This week's fascination started when I asked the question, "What colour is an octopus when it's underwater?" The answer is "any colour it wants to be " - An octopus' coloration depends upon its surroundings. An octopus possesses the ability to alter its coloration depending on its immediate environment. This defensive technique protects the animal from predators and entices prey to come close to the animal . ((from https://www.reference.com/pets-animals/color-octopus-be94f74fcdc74ebe) . Why did I want to know the colour of an octopus? Because I wanted to draw octopus tentacles as mermaid hair for my art journal! Then, I began to think it might be considered a little too weird and even perverse to give a mermaid octopus hair.... Facebook friends assured me that this was not so, citing Medusa and her snake hair as a precedent, and even one friend said that she thought it was l...

Lilly Pilly

Today is Australia Day. I chose a photo of some Lilly Pilly berries as a celebratory image for this national day. Lilly Pilly is a common name for a plant, Syzygium smithii which grows mostly in Eastern Australia, from the northern rain forests of Queensland, throughout NSW to the southern Wilson's Promontory in Victoria. In New Zealand it is called "monkey apple, but other names used in Australia, besides lilly pilly, are Eungella Gum and Coast Satinash. The largest Lilly Pilly recorded was found in Dingo Creek Flora Reserve, near Tenterfield where I once lived. The tree now growing in my garden was once a small seedling which I was gifted when I left Woolgoolga, a small coastal town in northern NSW. Its name is said to come from the Aboriginal word 'weelgoolga' describing the lilly pilly which grows in profusion there. It is probably no surprise that the lilly pilly berries are edible as bush tucker, and make a beautiful jam or jelly. I have even seen re...

Stitched Faces

I 've always enjoyed that imperfect line of "not quite in control' free motion machine stitching.... I think it really suits creating portraits , giving them some character and even a quirkiness that hints of personality plus. These ones below are from my " Red Cheeks" series from a couple of years ago, and are amongst my favourite stitched portraits. The current Stitch Club ( textileartist.org) workshop, by Batool Showghi has inspired me to stitch more this week. Batool , of course, is in complete control of her machine stitching and her works are exquisite and they tell a moving story. ... " Working with paper, print, paint and stitch, her textile art bears witness to displacement, silenced women and the damage that authoritarian regimes impose on ordinary lives. Batool’s mixed media wall pieces are incredibly striking, but her artist books truly set her apart. Printed imagery of family photographs, birth certificate documents and her o...

Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

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