GiveAway ~ Christmas Creative

One of my other blogs is currently celebrating it's 300th post with a giveaway.
Why not head over there and enter with a chance to win Christmas Goodies.
Enter HERE

Your beautiful ~ Phil Wickham

A Beautiful Journey

There are times when being a mum means playing mum taxi.  The chasing round and making sure everyone has everything in the right place, all the components they'll need for their day and the appropriate clothes for the weather. These times can be fraught, but once you are in the car and you've double and tripple checked everything, inevitably the journey is a time to chat and find things out.
This morning I had two of mine and a borrowed child to deliver to Beverley for music.  beverley is about 14 miles from us over the Yorkshire Wolds, undulating chalk hills.  The sun was shining as we drove up the hills and the sky was beautifully blue.  Below us on the flood plain the grey mist obscured the view, but we climbed into the blue sky.  As we travelled along chatting the most stunning site met us.  red Kites flying with the sun glinting on their wings.  The white boomerangs underneath the wings bright.
The colours of autumn were starting to become very evident as the trees have started to take on the acidic colours and the oranges and reds are starting to form, the deep red hawthorn berries and brighter red pods of the rosehips are bright in the hedges.
As we entered Beverley Westwood, the most amazing site greated us.  The dew last night was heavy and still glistened on the grass.  The cows grazed with steam coming off their coats and from their mouths and the mist hung above the floor shrouding the bottoms of the tree's and gave a surreal vision of lines of trees and St. Marys Church graced the scene as though selected by an artist.
None of us had a camera with us, the moments we had witnessed live  on only in our minds, but I did think how lucky we were to have witnessed such beauty.

Neglecting Our Elderly

20 something years ago I was a student nurse working in a hospital on the outskirts of London. When I was training, we were based on the wards (now they train in classrooms)  we were counted in staff numbers, learnt the value of communication, observation and practice in reality not in theory.  We had much time to sit with the patients and talk to them.

Why am I bringing this up now?

Because the news is currently full of stories of neglect of the elderly and of starved patients.

I know that when I trained,  many times I spent over half an hour spoon feeding an elderly patient.  Sometimes it took even longer.  Those patients who had suffered strokes or had difficulty swallowing took great patience to feed, but we knew how vital it was to get the food into them to aid the healing process.  It was frequently drummed into us, the importance of not just putting the food tray on the table, but to make sure the patient was sat up, had the table in reach, was competent to feed themselves etc.  We were taught to help someone overcome the shame of asking for help to cut up their food or to feed themselves.  We were trained to look for tell tale signs that meant someone wouldn't manage.

Who is there to do this now?  They took students off the wards, they squeezed the NHS so that staff were overrun and simply did not have the time to feed the patients.  I have heard countless stories of the elderly being neglected in recent years.

So what is the solution?

The government needs to fund elderly carers who are paid to go and sit and feed these elderly patients.  To give them the responsibility to make sure the elderly and infirm are adequately fed and watered.

This in turn would fund itself as the elderly patients would heal quicker and be off the wards faster.

Who could do this valuable job?

Well, the recent talk from the government that those on job seekers allowance should do work to gain their benefits is just one example of a ready market of workers.

Another is those with long term disabilities who can't "work" in standard jobs,  this would give them purpose etc and be an environment ready set up for access etc.

Thirdly volunteers, who want to do their bit to make the world a better place.

This could be "The Big Society"

The shame of the "Elderly Neglect" should be a thing of the past... we are all going to be old ourselves!

Throwing Away Christmas

I am sure that Rev W F Awdry who originally wrote Thomas the Tank Engine, would be furious at the latest turn of events.  The latest story is set at Christmas, with Christmas trees, Christmas party's and Christmas presents, however there is no mention of Christmas.
Christmas has been referred to as Winter holidays,
Christmas trees as decorated trees
Christmas party as holiday party
This is sadly being allowed to become acceptable and all because no one stops it.  Google are also offenders and won't wish you Happy Christmas.
But the great British public celebrate "Christmas" I'm not claiming they all get the true meaning, but they buy Christmas Cards, Advent calendars, Christmas tree's etc.  I personally find it offensive that the reason for the celebration should be shoved into a cupboard and re-branded as Winter holidays.  I don't have trouble wishing Hindu's a Happy Divali or Muslim's a Happy Ede, or Jewish people a Happy Hanukkah.  The world is made up of diverse cultures and we should be allowed to celebrate it.
We need to stand up and demand that our Christian rights are not removed.

Papier Mache Bowls

At Long last my first three bowls are completed.

 The first is a deep bowl suitable for fruits and nuts etc.

 The second is a classic fruit bowl style.

 Lastly is a large deep bowl

All the bowls are finished with a varnish and can be wi[ped with a rung out damp cloth.

Autumn Bracelet

My latest Jewellery creation is an autumn leaves bracelet.  Makes a very satisfying autumnal noise as the beads cluster together.  On Gold plated base with a toggle clasp.

Display Idea

When I get an idea, I have to go full steam ahead and try it out.  This morning I was pegging out the washing and had an idea for displaying my necklaces at the farmers market.

It has cost me nothing as the planks were from the garden.  Needed washing and painting with a greeny blue  paint wash.  Once dry, I stuck weather worn pegs onto it.

The necklaces can simply be pegged in place.

The planks will be held onto the side struts of my stall with clamps.

Autumn Organising

Most people spring clean, but I Autumn organise. I have been sorting out all my crafting paraphernalia before the Christmas rush starts. I have a workroom that has floor to ceiling deep shelving and over the past few days, I have removed every item and sorted it out. I've dismantled jewellery that I am not happy with, have tidied through the bead boxes, done a stock take, folded, wiped, piled, stacked the paint, paper, beads, fabrics, materials, fabrics, clays etc and ruined my nails in the process. I am now happy with what I see and all that busy-ness has inspired me to make more stuff. I've also been messing around with the look of my blog and I'm not sure if it will stay this way. That's largely because I can't find out how to get it back to how it was!! (it was one of those "press the button" and before you know it things are different.)


 I do like the fact that all the posts are so visible though especially on the Christmas Creative Blog which is a really visual blog.

Disaster ~ Pure Stupidity

Being a crafter, and an experimental one at that, I am prone to having the odd disaster, but my latest is of epic proportions.
I am currently making papier mache bowls for Christmas and this morning I started to make another batch.  For the first layers I use upturned bowls and layer paper strips over them for a couple of layers before I bake them in  a low heat oven to dry out.  Then I make a clay paste papier mache and coat the outer layer on.
So I got out my plastic bowls and covered one huge mixing bowl and two smaller cereal bowls with paper strips.  I use plastic bowls as they are flexible and removal from the formed shape is easy.
I bunged them into the oven and didn't really think about the temp.  Normally it's on a really low setting,  I was so excited at nipping over to the shops for gold spray paint and doilies that I forgot.
I have been unsuccessful in my doily hunt and got talking about crafting to several people and forgot that my bakes were in the oven.
When I came back in I thought, oh lovely they'll be dry by now, and they were, but each one of the paper forms was empty and on the floor of the oven there was a huge pool of melted plastic and to make it even worse it's stuck all over the oven shelves too.  The bowls had completely disappeared.

Christmas Creative ~ What's New?

I have another Blog (well actually I have several more) that I would like to draw your attention to.  it's called Christmas Creative.  It's the perfect blog to inspire your creative side or to give you a great showcase of what the UK fantastic talented people are making for their shops in the run up to Christmas.  There is alos a healthy dose of Christmas music waiting for you over there.

Make your own Christmas Globes

Make Quilled Snowflakes







Music: O Holy Night ~ Celtic Woman

Today's the day ~ Celtic Woman Concert

Today  is the day that I would have been going to the Barbican Centre in York to watch Celtic woman in concert.  Sadly,  I can't tell you how sad I am that it was cancelled.  so I shall console myself with a celtic woman fest of my favourites:

Christmas Decorations ~ Mary & Joseph

 I have spent the last week developing and creating these Nativity figures.  They are created from wooden blocks.  I think they would look great on anyone's mantlepiece or windowsill.

You can purchase them HERE

Paul Bailey Art

I love Paul Bailey's art work.  He works in water colour and indian ink and has a unique style that is very recognisable.  Take a look at his work here

My Memories 9/11

They say that many people can tell you what they were doing when JFK was killed.  I always thought that was a bit of a myth, but during the time of my life, there have been two such utter shocking events that have etched an image in my mind.  The first was the death of Diana and the second happened like this.
I stood in the infant play ground with my little girl in her buggy.  We were waiting for her two big brothers to come out of school.
One of my childhood friends came rushing over.  "Have you heard about the Twin towers?" she said.  I replied in the negative.  I wasn't even sure what the twin towers were, let alone where they were.
She went on to tell me that "an aeroplane has crashed into a skyscraper in new York" What an awful accident.
At that stage the playground flooded with children and we made our way home.
Back inside, I went to turn on the portable in the dining room.  I remember the green carpet, the TV balanced on top of an old beige kitchen cabinet.  The blue wall, the flames pouring from a tower block and then the change of camera angle, the shot of a second plane hitting, the explosion, the amazing flash of orange gold and the glint of the sun on broken glass, all set against a blue sky. Then the shock hit.
It was hours before it was possible to stop watching.  the children played happily, oblivious to what was unfolding infront of my eyes.
The towers crumbling, the dust charging up the streets covering everything in it's path.  memories of lessons in school about Pompei.  Images of grey, grey people, grey cars, grey streets, grey mood.
Sorrow, stress, searching for loved ones.  Anguish, anger, Al Qeada.....
The World Watched, The World Wept, The world Changed