Christmas Countdown 22 ... Candy Canes

A Christmas favourite food of children - candy canes.

Next week ( the second week of December) is allegedly the most popular time for candy cane sales... here are some other "facts" about candy canes

• National Candy Cane Day is celebrated in the United States on Dec. 26.

• Each year about 1.76 billion candy canes are made.

• Ninety percent of candy canes are sold between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

• Candy canes are the number one selling non-chocolate confectionery in the month of December. ( from candycanefacts.com)

There are quite religious connections with candy canes and even simple poems have been written as a reminder of the significance of the colour and shape of candy canes.

I like the story of the choir master in Cologne ( about 1670) who commissioned a confectioner to make some sweets for his restless young singers to eat during the long Christmas church service. It is said that they were white for the purity of Christ and shaped like a shepherd's crook so they were considered to be teaching tools in church rather than simply treats. There is some doubt about the veracity of this story but to read more about this story and other historical links, please see a blog post from last year's Christmas Countdown - here's the link.

I have never made candy canes but believe that getting the exact temperature with a sugar thermometer is essential...

Making candy canes involves boiling sugar, then pulling the warm sugar until it is stiff but pliable and forming it into shapes. Because it is a long, slightly tricky process that involves hot sugar, I recommend you read the recipe thoroughly ahead of time, make sure you have the right ingredients and tools, and give yourself plenty of time to make the candy canes.

INGREDIENTS

· 21 oz (3 cups) granulated sugar

· 11 oz (1 cup) light corn syrup

· 2 oz (1/4 cup) water

· 1 1/2 tsp peppermint extract

· Red food colouring (gel colouring recommended)

· White food colouring (optional, gel colouring recommended)

· Food-safe plastic gloves

· Candy thermometer

· Prep Time: 75 minutes

· Total Time: 75 minutes

· Yield: 12-18 candy canes

purchased candy canes, fabric decoration by Liz Ferry and embroidery by Fay King

Fish and Sticks : Art Dolls

This week I've been working on fish and sticks .... The sticks are the message stick art dolls which were very popular, attracting some attention and a few orders at the Wise Women exhibition. Each of the message stick dolls are from the Wise Women series, each with her own personality and message of wisdom, handwritten on a handmade timber tag. I gather the sticks during my walks around my neighbourhood and the tags are made from special bits of timber, some collected by me or my husband or from off cuts gifted to us from another doll making friend whose husband makes bagpipes. These dolls start off very simply with a wrap around a stick, in the general shape of a body. 'Naked" message stick dolls - strips of wadding wrapped around found sticks. Then I usually wrap other layers of fabric, wool, and/or fibres, over which I do some simple embroidery. I sculpt or mould small face masks for these dolls. I really like using "sari ribbon" as w...

#SeptTextileLove Day 12

#SeptTextileLove #STL26Day12 ‘Friendship’ … This is a story of friendship based on the love of textiles and fibre art . Gallerist and artist, Anne Kempton and I have been friends for 15 years , meeting when we had both retired from ‘ top’ jobs in a government department and a high school respectively. Neither of us were the retiring types - Anne was establishing the first commercial textile art gallery in Australia and I was looking for a creative direction. We discovered we were both driven by a sense of social justice and community and shared similar artistic aspirations . Since then, we have co- curated exhibitions, collaborated on many projects. supported community art and women’s causes, and grown in our individual artistic expression - Anne includes more stitching in her work and she has had a more painterly influence on mine . Moreover, this friendship is multifaceted, deep and personal and one I value and treasure . Thank you, Anne.

#SeptTextileLove26- Day 2

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Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

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