stationary state

Another bout of illness, in the form of tonsillitis has induced me into a stationary state, again. Booooo I am really missing crafting which I suppose is why I am enjoying others' craftiness at the moment, specifically photography.  Social Media alerted me to the work of this creative genius;
 http://www.viralnovelty.com/photos-will-blow-mind-one-look-youll-see-mean/

This is one of my favourite shots!

Another photographer I was made aware of was from this link:
 www.boredpanda.com/animal-children-photography-elena-shumilova/?fb_action_ids=10152146145870280&fb_action_types=og.likes&fb_source=aggregation&fb_aggregation_id=288381481237582

I couldn't pick between these pics so I've uploaded both.  The first I love as the little boy reminds me of my own sweet Mikey with similar coloured hair with curls, and I also love ducks.

 
This 2nd picture encompasses an emotion within my own children and one I remember myself which the mother has captured so beautifully (even if the picture has been edited, I don't really care because I think it's beautiful!)

Being ill straight after Christmas definitely leads to sentimental melancholy and thus I have looked over all my own pictures over the last year, categorising which ones I should send off to be printed and which should grace the walls, enter scrapbooks etc.  Here are a few of my own favourites from last year.

insufficient apologies

Where to begin? Apologies won't quite cover why I have been quiet so long.  I had a very busy build up to Christmas with guests coming and going and then the inevitable illnesses which, on this occasion floored me (quite literally).  I had/ have sinusitis and the swelling is putting pressure on my inner ear so lots of dizziness etc.  The worst of it came after Christmas which did allow me to enjoy the holiday before spending 4 days straight in bed unable to move for nausea.  Enough of the pity party now though eh?!  Here are some pictures which captured my Christmas.

Here is the finished advent calendar I previously posted about.  I added pieces of magnet onto the back of them cut from a long strip bought from a craft shop and then I put chocolate coins inside.

 
 And here is my beloved dresser.  It isn't quite as Christmassy as other years but I liked the colour theme taking place.  This is by my front door so is a nice welcome to the home.

 I love the lazy days at Christmas and they have never been better spent than the days when the kids and I sat at the table and did Christmas crafts.  I started a scrap book for them this year and have stuck in pictures, gift tags and their makes inside.  I can't fit their Christingles inside but here is a pic of the finished product in addition to some of their paintings which did make it.

 

Yet what would the holidays be without trips out to places like the theatre for PANTO!

 Fiona got a puppet show as one of her presents that she had to colour and assemble herself.  They were from Oxfam and a great buy.  They advise that they're suitable for approx 7 year olds but she is 5 and Lydia is 3 and they both have had great fun with it.  After having visited the pantomine, Fiona had lots of ideas for the performance.  Her audience consisted of the school bear which she was honoured with hosting for the holidays although her Nanny, Grandad, Aunt and Uncle were also treated to a special performance.  She had some help from her younger sibling too.

Some of the pre-Christmas crafts which have occupied my hands and time included making 12 meters of bunting for Fiona's School Christmas Fair, Stockings for friend's children, and nativity costumes for our Church children.

These lovely tags were made by my clever sister-in-law and will be kept for years to come (perhaps sewn onto their own stockings).

2013 Christmas Markets

 I didn’t manage to get to the Manchester Christmas markets last year with being sick during pregnancy and then I was busy doing fairs at several weekends over the Christmas build up.  I have been determined to get to some this year and over the last 10 days, I managed to get to 3.  Last Friday I went to Birmingham and met up with my mother in Law to have a gentle stroll around the markets with several children in tow.  It was quite the adventure for my little girl embarking on our train journey from the picturesque Great Malvern station to arriving to our 2^nd largest, bustling city.  I came to the Birmingham markets approximately 6 years ago and was quite unimpressed in comparison to the Manchester event.  However I found them much improved this year and less cramped than the aforementioned.  Whilst still being quite expensive, I also thought that they were more reasonable although I can’t share my purchases as yet as it may ruin the surprise for family members who read this post.

My next adventure was to the Worcester Victorian markets.  I was very excited as I have only heard good things about them.  I had my 2 youngest again and decided it would be another new experience which would only be benefited if we truly embraced the theme and thus, I got dressed up.  It was a wonderful day and I am considering having a stall there next year.  

I will write later in the week of some of the stalls I saw as I have links to pages and photos of individual stalls but it was hands down the best fair I have been to.  The prices are reasonable and I don’t mean expensive but understandable, I actually mean fair, competitive prices and nearly all the stalls (perhaps 200 odd) were crafters not traders (which is all I saw at the Birmingham and Manchester ones).  There were many people dressed in Victorian regalia and entertainment on the street for children making the atmosphere very friendly.  Again I cannot share pictures of my purchases as they are for presents.

The last fair visited was the Malvern Christmas Fair and switching on of the lights.  My eldest daughter was involved in the lantern parade as part of her school but there were activities on throughout the day including a crafters market, face painting, a Grotto and choirs, brass bands and the local radio station were hosts.  Another lovely day with a family friendly environment and food and fair rides were quite affordable.  

The craft stalls however, were very expensive.  The sellers are definitely more artists rather than hobby crafters but I didn't buy a single item even though I was very tempted by a baby bib (but I felt £8 was too much for one).   The fair was beautifully laid out and the stall owners were warm and chatty but this was more of a high end gift fair.

Christmas bargains

I mentioned that I had won some Christmas decorations on ebay and that I'd share pics of them on here when they arrived and so, true to my word, here are a few:

These were all bought from the same lady along with 2 beautiful candlesticks.  I really love the angel and have looked for years for one that I didn't think was creepy.  I am very pleased with this one. 

 These were extra cheeky bids that I won and was really pleased as they're vintage and a little different to everything else I see repeated in high street stores.

I also managed to pick up some unusual pieces in a local charity shop.

These were 10 pence each in a box under a shelf so I did have to rummage but I was very pleased with my efforts.  Above them on the shelf were two paper envelopes with a £1 sticker on.  When I opened them out, I discovered they were these lovely lanterns!  I had a little helper to display them!

This little stash of material set me back the grande sum of £6! The green and white polka dot pieces are 0.5 meters long but 2m wide and the patterned piece is 3m long and 2m wide.

This William Morris piece however, was 50pence.  It is uneven but there's enough fabric for a full a line, knee length skirt or several cushions- ooooh decisions decisions!

Christmas Spirit

I love Christmas; the decorating, eating great food, buying/ making gifts, time off with family, cold weather and fires but I love Christmas for it's true message.  I always try each year to start telling the kids the Christmas story early so that they know Christmas is about Jesus being born rather than just about them getting presents and so buy as many nativity related things that I see and find in order to make it fun.  I bought a lovely 3D nativity puzzle from M&S 2 years ago and a gift set of a book with paper figures and a stable which we got out this week and completed.

I am going to try and post all things Nativity related in the lead up to Christmas including the things I make which follow this theme. 

I saw these on Mollie Makes Facebook feed and wish I was skilled enough to make although I like to think I could manage the cardboard stable....

I had a little look on ebay and etsy etc to see what a knitted/ crochet set would cost me and they seem to be approx £25 which isn't bad for all the time someone would take to create them but I can't justify it at the moment and thus, I have begun to create my own.  Not being the best knitter or crochet chic however, I have decided to sew mine and am going to use a very eclectic mix of fabric to make it totally unique!  Here's the first of my wise men.

Watch this space!