Christmas birds

I have decided to revamp the decorations for our Christmas tree and having been making new ones since the weekend.
We have a lovely unusual tree made out of driftwood, which spends most of the year on the landing (making no noise and pretending it doesn't exist!) and then in December gets its rightful place in the living room.
First off are little felt Christmas birds, in pairs.

So here they are, and will be hanging off the tree in a couple of weeks (we usually wait until after my son's birthday in December to put the tree up).

I'll post a picture of the tree when it is decorated.

Mandala

A mandala is a form of meditation, creating a beautiful picture from a mindful state. Last night my sangha (the group I practise meditation with) held a special evening contemplating death and continuation. This was very appropriate as our teacher Thich Nhat Hanh is currently seriously ill in hospital. We asked people to bring in photos of their ancestors and loved ones who had passed on and so it seemed fitting to create a beautiful setting around which the photos were placed.
Here is the mandala I created.

The leaves and flowers were all collected from my garden. The large leaves (Cotinus Grace) were still wet from the morning's frost. The white pebbles have all been collected over the years and some were polished many years ago by my Grandpa. I remember the odd noise coming from his cellar as his 'rumbler' tumbled and polished the stones.

Roulotte retreat

In the summer we went for a long weekend away to a beautiful place near Melrose in Scotland and stayed in a Roulotte, which is the name for a French gypsy caravan. There are now 6 together on one site, scattered around a meadow, each decorated individually. The one we stayed in was called Devanna and decorated in peacock colours of turquoise and purple. The owners have taken a huge amount of care in decorating and personalising each roulotte. I just love how well this collection of photos sits together showing many of the beautiful details inside and outside the roulotte.

You can find out about the roulottes from the Canopy and Stars website http://www.canopyandstars.co.uk/britain/scotland/scottish-borders/roulotte-retreat/devanna

A huggin of Christmas cards

What's the collective noun for Christmas cards?
An angelic host?
A choir?
I feel like there should be something as I started to assemble them yesterday and they are now spreading across my kitchen table.
Here they are

I made a jacket!

Well, it's been a while, busy with other things and sadly haven't had a lot of time for creative things, but then I had a free weekend and made a jacket.
I'd seen the coating material by chance when I was buying some other material and it really caught my eye. Then I found a lovely jacket pattern online and it all fell into place.
Nice and cosy for the cold weather!
Here it is!

 The lining is a duvet cover from Ikea that I bought as skirt material. Just the job.

 And the buttons were a last minute find from Hobbycraft this morning. Nearly gave up when I saw the traffic queue to get into the shopping centre!

Two baby congratulation cards

I'm very fortunate to know two new babies that have recently been born, and had a lot of fun today making these cards for them.

I also discovered some new alphabet fonts that I have ordered and are on their way. Looking forward to have a play with them. I'll let you know when they turn up!

Bags of Japanese knot bags!

I've gone a little crazy in making more knot bags, 10 in all now! I think it's time to stop! But once you start I find I was thinking about how the next one could be slightly different, so I had to have another go. Then I found a pattern for a really cute smaller bag and I had to have a go!
The reason I have made so many is that in January I offered via facebook to do a kind of pay-it-forward. The people who replied to my post would receive something from me at an undetermined time in the future. I wasn't sure what it would be when I offered but the bag gave me inspiration so I started making some. I also wanted a bag big and strong enough to transport my meditation stool and mat, so that's what the big bag is for.
Here are the pics!

 Here are 9 of them all together.

 Here's one I made for a friend and took the opportunity to give it to her while she was over from Switzerland. This is made from the fabric of a beloved skirt of mine that sadly hit the fabric pile when the zip broke and I had to cut myself out of it!

 Daddy, mummy and baby bags. 

 The same basic pattern with and without an inset base.

 Patchwork bag open

 4 baby bags. These are cut from pieces 8 1/2" across and the base is 4" in diameter. 

All of the bags are reversible. 

I think it's time to give the sewing machine a rest and do something different for a while!