Get your yoga on....

It was "Amy Butler Bag Day" at Clare's today with M and Clare hitting Spotlight early for spectacular post Christmas fabric bargains for their beautiful bag creations. They were working with the Amy Butler Style Stitches bag book and I was working on a free Nigella Yoga Bag pattern which is down-loadable from the Amy Butler site. In keeping with the Amy theme, I used decorator weight Love fabric that I had in the stash. Actually, I've used this fabric three times already, once for teacher totes and then my iPad cover and the little cover for work's alternating back up drive. Funnily enough, I had originally purchased it for the teacher totes and realised I hadn't ordered enough....and then had to buy some more! Seriously, this is absolutely the last of it but I haven't wasted a scrap. I've used the last of the big bits of this colour way today....and even then I did some surreptitious joining! The fabric is the Heart range from Love, Trumpet Flowers in pink and Sunspots in grass and is perfect for the pink-sh yoga mat that will live in the bag. It's a birthday gift for my dear friend whom I do yoga with. I'll have to get one sorted for myself...won't we be the stylish two! It will certainly make up for our lack of technique as we hide down the back of the room....did I really say that!

It's starting to feel a little like Christmas.....

Life in our household has been rather hectic.
My 80 year old mum has just had a hip replacement. I quipped back in September that she was going bionic status after her second shoulder replacement....but maybe I shouldn't have said it out loud!
It's been tough. It's her third major operation in 13 months and it's taking a toll. I won't go into detail but needless to say we have been through hoops co-ordinating aged care respite following her stay in a rehabilitation hospital following the surgery. (My sister and I constantly sing, "I don't want to go to rehab....no....no....no!") However, steep learning curve for anyone my age with parents. You feel a lot like Alice in Wonderland, sent from pillar to post and learning a brand new language called 'aged care'! Mind you, after all the grief we've found a wonderful aged care home for 2 weeks of respite for mum which means that we, in the short term, know that she'll have 24 hour care, medication and equipment to help get through her day AND it's not that far away. At first, mum was frightened we were going to 'lock her up' but now she's made friends, found old ones and is going out. The hairdresser has visited and the physio came yesterday. I can't begin to tell how much of a blessing that is that we've eliminated two appointments that we would have had to have take her to during our working day. The downside is that she's forgetting to do her exercises because she's so busy! It's been a real turning point for us and maybe makes some future decision making a little easier.
But all that aside, it's been very time consuming. I've hardly blogged. I certainly haven't finished very much, much less taken photos of stuff and I'm really not that prepared for Christmas. However, life hasn't been completely devoid of creativity....here goes.....
I taught myself via YouTube how to make piping! Yes! Amazing a new skill. Who would have thought to have turned to YouTube a few years ago? But there it was, 'learn how to make piping' in all it's glory! Joe was less than impressed when I'd tune in each night on the iPad!
I had been working at mum's clearing out stuff and found some fabric that I had bought maybe 20 years ago. I almost chucked it but then realised it was a little bit 'Liberty-sh'. (And isn't it a sin to throw away any sort of fabric?) So piping was born....and pincushions for the girls followed. I've used my corners cut from binding joins and those donated from Kay to make mini maverick square pincushions measuring around 6" square finished. They're backed with an Ikea fabric from years ago.We had our Sew & Sews annual Christmas get together earlier this week. This year at a local hotel and the gift giving was rigorous and 100% creative. (Please don't laugh at the little man symbol above our heads! His presence destroyed quite a few photos as the photographer burst into giggles!)And this year the little girls joined us! Aren't they gorgeous!And whilst I've been finishing up at work.....someone at home has been cooking up a storm AND doing a splendid job. Ahhhh, yes...it is starting to feel a little like Christmas....let's hope there's more to follow!

Friends....

I had to go to Sydney this weekend to organise a client's Christmas Party. I always find it rather amazing that he doesn't have anyone on staff that can do that but it seems he doesn't and he gets me to do it. Up until now he was in the Gold Coast but he recently transferred to Sydney. So when R found out I was heading to Sydney for a weekend she hatched a plan to come too and catch up with her 'old' friend C who moved there with her family 7 years ago. C and R met in day care when they were just months old. They were always together from 'babies' to 'kindy' and were so alike in so many ways....right down to turning up in the same dresses but in different colours! R hadn't seen C for 3 years and was so excited when I told her I'd bought her an airfare and that C wanted her to have a sleep over whilst I was working. I was a bit nervous about them meeting again. After all, they're 12 now and a lot changes in 3 years. But I needn't have worried. After the initial "oh my goodness, look how you've grown!" from the mums, the girls embraced and disappeared into C's room. They talked and talked and talked all weekend. They're exactly the same! Same clothes, same books, same interests, same everything. It's remarkable. It's wonderful. To be able to pick up after 3 years and still have so much in common is a blessing.

I eventually came up for air and was lucky enough to spend Sunday with the family. The girls, Margaret and I went for a walk for a bit of window shopping and along their local beach front. At the end of the beach is Bathers Pavilion, the renowned Sydney restaurant. Margaret explained that you can't book. We checked it out and it was only a ten minute wait for lunch. So we grabbed it. What a treat! And as Margaret rightly said, "if we'd planned it, it wouldn't have happened and we'd have been disappointed". So with a chink of the glasses..."here's to friendships and good fortune".