Pakistan

Have been digging through some photos from trips and thought I would share these ones from 2007 when we did a trip through the North West Frontier of Pakistan - one of the best trips I have ever done!!!...totally awesome scenery and lovely people!

Above: Passu suspension bridge, Passu village, Hunza...World's most dangerous bridge?... as cited on youtube!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DPP3Ei9X_0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1Gyl2S6rI8

Above: Beautiful scenery

Above: Men chatting, Chitral

Above: Lowari Pass

Above: Boys leaning out of their car windows in a queue of traffic.

 Kalash women of the village of Balanguru

Above: Dancing at the Kalash festival of Joshi

Above and below: Children enjoying the Kalash festival of Joshi

Above: A Nuristani girl in the village of Shakanande

Above: Boys taking a rest, Shandur Pass

Above and below: Cathedral Mountains, Passu village

Above: Passu suspension bridge!

Above: Stunning mountain view from Eagles Nest, Karimabad, Hunza

Hope you enjoyed!

Christmas

This year's Christmas tree is a bargain from last year's post Christmas sales!!  A lovely silver tree with clear 'jewels' on each stem!  Am really pleased with it!  Sticking with my favourite colours - pink and purple with a bit of silver and white - I have accessorized with a mixture of homemade and shop-bought decorations.

I first started making the silk heart decorations last year before I got a sewing machine for Christmas.  Each heart has sequins and beads sewn on by hand, although the process of sewing round the actual heart is a lot quicker now I have a machine!

Oh and I found some cute wooden robin decorations in John Lewis to sit at the base of my tree...

If I didn't love pink and purple so much, I think I would make my theme red and white like the beautifully festive Christmas created by Country Kitty (http://countrykittyland.blogspot.com/2011/12/elves-at-work.html).  Inspired by Country Kitty's red and white theme I made a garland of red and white hearts to hang from my curtains rails.

I love the fabric which has all the names of Santa's reindeer on it!...I couldn't find it anywhere in the UK so I ended up having it shipped from the States via Etsy!

I also quickly ran up some felt decorations for my two year old niece to decorate with coloured sequins...she loves glueing and sticking!!!

I just must remember to get a photo of the finished artices post glueing and sticking with sequims!!!

We also did some handprint art as a Christmas present for my sister-in-law - my niece's mum - a picture of their black and gold fish!

I was particularly inspired by this picture...(http://www.walkingbytheway.com/blog/?p=821)

But there's loads of websites out there to get inspiration for handprint art...

http://notsoidlehands.blogspot.com/2009/05/great-mothers-day-gift.html

http://www.meetthedubiens.com/search/label/crafts?updated-max=2010-04-15T17%3A01%3A00-04%3A00&max-results=20

http://funhandprintart.blogspot.com/2010/11/handprint-indians.html

Finally, I managed to get the cushion finished for my niece which along with the chair I bought her made a Christmas present I hope she will enjoy for a long time!

A very Happy New Year to everyone!

Christmas Robin....

Have just made this Christmas Robin for my niece using this Hooty and Tweet Pattern by Melly and Me:

http://mellyandme.typepad.com/photos/designs_by_melly_me/hooty_tweet_email.html#tp :

I think the pattern is meant to be for making an owl but I think it's worked really well for a robin too!!  I tried to make it look funky with it's stripey tights and my niece loves the fact I added bells to it's feet!!!  It should look really cute sitting on the mantel piece at Christmas.  I sewed a ribbon in the top of it's head and I think it also looks cute hanging from a door handle! 

This robin even ventured out into the garden to hang out in a tree!

And an update on a work in progress... the personalised cushion I am making for my niece as part of her Christmas present...this is it so far...

...the front will be her initial appliqued onto a patterned fabric of hearts and the back - for now, as I am not sure whether I am entirely happy with it - is this little girl holding a heart which is based on this pure innocence stamp by Heather Ellis

http://heather-ellis.co.uk/page2.htm

Luvly Fabrics!...

I have just taken delivery of some fabrics I ordered from
http://fabricrehab.co.uk/

Am really pleased with them...they are gorgeous!

I am planning to buy this chair from
http://www.notonthehighstreet.com/rosegreyinteriors/product/child_s_heart_chair 
for my two year old niece for Christmas...it matches her "big girl's bed" her Mum and Dad have recently bought her and I thought it would look lovely with a little cushion on it!! 

I have bought a 30cm x 30m cushion pad and plan to design a double-sided applique cushion for her from these fabrics!!As you can see, the fabrics only arrived yesterday and I have already done the first side of the cushion...an applique initial of my niece's first name!!...I have chosen the fabric for the other side of the cushion...the pink with white spots...but I am still deciding on the design!!

I am quite pleased with it but quite nervous as I am hoping to pop an invisible zip in...something I have never done before!!...fingers crossed!!

I also got these fabrics from

http://www.eternalmaker.com/

...I needed a bright stripey pattern for a Christmas Robin I am planning to make for my two year-old niece...I wanted it to have some funky stripey tights to wear!!!

Mali

I have been having a sort out of some old photos and found some from a visit to Mali in 2005!...it was my first and only visit to Africa and despite the heat and dust I loved it!  The country was really interesting and the people were so lovely!...I hope you enjoy looking at these photos!

Above: We travelled by boat up a river to Timbuktu...this is a mosque at one of our stops en-route!...the people in the foreground are just making their way back from washing at the riverbank.

Above: The largest mud building in the world, Djenne.

I saw a picture of this building and this is what inspired the trip!...I just had to see it!

Above: Dogon country

Above: Lady carrying a bucket on her head, Djenne

Above: Sheep, Djenne!...so cute!

Hope you enjoyed these photos!