Number 9: A wool project with Provenance

Di and I met Alice Underwood at The Wool Clip in Caldbeck, Cumbria in the summer of 2016. She has her own flock of Manx Loaghtan sheep and spins yarn for knitting. She is one of the 14 women running The Wool Clip as a co-operative. Her passion for wool from rare and native British sheep breeds really got me excited about buying one of her kits of Aran Wool celebrating ten British breeds.

NUMBER NINE:

A wool project with provenance.

As the summer heat starts to suggest that it may be fading just a little, I am getting ready to start knitting up a cable bolster cushion cover from Sheepfold, one of Alice Underwood's original designs.

The natural hues of the undyed British native breeds range from a creamy white to a deep blackish brown. The British breeds have fabulous names! In my stash for this project are Boreray, Hebridean, Manx Loaghtan and North Ronaldsay which are Primitive breeds; Herdwick, Jacob and Swaledale which are English Hill and Heath breeds; Badgerface Welsh Mountain a Welsh Hill and Heath breed; Black Leicester Longwool and Blueface Leicester are the Longwool breeds.

As I put my nose to the wool I can smell the farm, the sheep and I feel deeply honored to be working with wool with this type of provenance, a rare treat indeed in this fast paced and mechanised world we live in. Some of the wool is soft to the touch, others are coarse and textured.

I am ready with circular and cable needles in hand. I will miss these gorgeous balls of wool in my studio but it's time to make a start.

My bolster with hand made buttons, thanks to Fred.

Number 8: A Lotus Ceremony

I was so taken in by the beauty of the lotus ponds at Saraswati Temple in Ubud, Bali last October. Bev and I stood rather stunned at the scale of the plant with its large coarse leaves, the meter high stems and the dinner plate sized luscious pink flowers with their secret yellow centre.

NUMBER EIGHT:

A Lotus Ceremony.

Justin ordered lotus plant seeds from China last year and he has patiently and gently germinated a seed and nurtured the fragile unfurling leaves. 

And he has done this for me! He was ready to bring the plant to its intended home.

So I created a ceremony to welcome the delicate plant to our pond in the front garden. It is potted in mud, in a quiet part of the pond with lots of dappled light.

It is a deeply symbolic plant for so many eastern cultures and religions. One  remarkable quality is its will to live, a seed can survive hundreds of years. 

So it is a most welcome plant in our home, I thank Justin for bringing it here and I hope it flourishes and stays true to its innate will to survive against all odds.

Number 7: Civic responsibility, donating blood

Our lad spent a week in hospital in December as his platelets had plummeted to a critical level and I was struck, as he was having his second platelet transfusion, that the simple task of donating blood had to be on my to do list.

He is still under a physician's care now, having ruled out any of the blood disorders, he is taking copious amounts of cortisone as they figure out the best regime to manage his condition.

NUMBER SEVEN:

Civic responsibility, donating blood.

I am well and healthy and under the age limit for a new blood donor, so I took myself off on Monday morning to find the office closed. I almost gave in but drove back to Linksfield as the afternoon session opened. Forms filled in, blood pressure taken, iron tested, all good so water bottle gift in hand I quietly sat as the bag filled. All quite effortless and I will continue to donate now.

I also realized during the hospital visits to see Barry that I do not know my blood type, and if I did at one time I have no record or recall. So another action for the year, will call SANBS and note my blood group.

And my blood type in A+.....

March update: popped across and donated for the second time this year, and a third time in June, a fourth time in August, fifth time in November....

Number 6, Part 1: Seeing my city through its Art Galleries, Keyes Art Mile

South African artist Beezy Bailey's cat caught our attention!

I have long neglected being curious about Johannesburg and as a result I have missed out on the explosion of it's art scene and the many interesting galleries and precincts.

As part of my 'hundred different things in 2018' I enlisted my dear friend Martie, who is passionate and knowledgeable about the local art scene, to go on a monthly excursion to visit galleries and exhibitions.

We got started this weekend!

Number 6:

Seeing my city through its Art Galleries, Keyes Art Mile. 

A garden space at Everard Read Gallery

Martie's first pick was the exciting Keyes Art Mile. 

This fringe zone of Rosebank is one of Johannesburg's most visionary art locations, anchored by the Everard Read and Circa Galleries. The Trumpet building which opened in late 2016, is a contemporary space with the SMAC Gallery, design stores, a high-end members club with Pierneef's in the loos and trendy cafes opening out onto the street!

We started our outing at the Everard Read Gallery, Africa's oldest commercial art gallery, open since 1913 and we particularly wanted to see Paula Louw's work as Martie knows the artist from her art classes.

I loved everything about this post modern building, especially its garden spaces. I coveted a bronze and wooden sculpture called 'Sentimental Block' with its humorous bronze Sunlight Soap bar! My virtual spending came to more than a million rand.

Circa Gallery is a contemporary landmark along Jan Smuts Avenue with it's circular form and metal fins. Its top floor has glorious view across the central suburbs too.

Exploring Everard Read and Circa Galleries

All good outings need interesting food options and Keyes Art Mile is anchored by two fascinating places, one the Milk Bar, is a quirky African-retro styled cafe modeled on a similar cafe in Addis Ababa and BGR, a take out burger joint that has totally yummy burger options.

Number 5: A dress for the MotG

A special time awaits Fred and I this quarter, our lad Barry is getting married.  I am MotG which requires a dress.

NUMBER FIVE:

A dress for the MotG

Fred and I enjoy binge watching series and were watching 'The Night Manager' last year and the lead actress wore a drop dead gorgeous dress that caught my eye. I kept making him freeze frame to take a photo, which seriously interrupted the plot!

Anyway, no way I could carry off her dress but  I have trawled Pinterest, downloaded images I like that have echoes of her dress.

I was MotB 4 years ago so fortunately I have a dressmaker that I could call on, which was one of the first things I did this year. So armed with a collar here, a line there and a potential color palette I went for my first appointment during the week.

A collar, a line and a color palette and off to meet my dressmaker!

So deposit paid and hopefully Rihette finds a funky color for the dress.

Number 4: Calling in a birding expert

Birding has many guises, leisurely from the window of our Loft apartment, watching the birds enjoying our fountain at home, birding opportunistically wherever we find ourselves, or, targeting specific birds in specific places. This tends to be about growing my local or global list, finding endemics, rarities, vagrants, whatever the purpose it tends to be 'hardcore' birding.

NUMBER FOUR:

Calling in a birding expert.

As my Southern African bird list creeps towards 800 species seen, a good milestone by SA standards, I have been keen to target some of the gaps on the list. I am a very average birder as I do not spend enough time in the field and also I do not have a good ear for remembering - or even hearing- bird calls. So I decided to ask Etienne Marias to guide Fred and me for a day to focus on some of the notoriously tricky larks and pipits found in greater Gauteng.

A day in the field, birding with Etienne Marais

I am auditing my list too and some of the birds I have recorded I need to resee to be happy with the identification.

Target bird - Bushveld Pipit

'Hardcore' means up and out the house by 3.30am to meet Etienne by 4am, birding at sunrise around the Mabusa Nature Reserve in Mpumalanga, on the move and in and out of the vehicle for a solid 14 hours, barest of facilities, brief picnics in the field, sunburn, thrashing through waist-high grasses to see if a Corn Crake will flush, traversing a rocky outcrop to try locate an elusive calling Shelley's Francolin, getting frustrating glimpses of a targeted pipit in the poor morning light, delighting in the vast swarms of queleas over the grasslands, excitement at Fred's photos of the targeted Bushveld Pipit, relief at getting the resee needed of the Icterine Warbler, the realisation of how little I really know about the wonder of our birdlife but still so pleased that despite the tiredness, the passion to be out birding is part of who we are.

Number 3: Marathon week walking

Fred and I walk. 

Over the decades I have been humbled by aching knees, blisters, neuromas that burn, a tired back but I continue to walk. Our walking has taken us into the most wonderful places, the 301km over 10 days walking through the flowers of Namaqualand. The 20km coastal Cliff Path in Hermanus. The 4-day walk through the beauty of the Queen Charlotte Sound, in New Zealand. Some days among the hills of Girona in Spain. Amazing volcano hikes –Tongariro in New Zealand, Haleakala on Maui and the glorious days spent walking in the Sierra Nevada's in California. We have spent time on the path with family and friends which has made walking even more special. 

Hands down the finest walk we have experienced was the week along the Amalfi Coast, the Mediterranean always in view, the tangy fragrance of the lemon groves as we hiked up the mountain paths and the blissful simplicity of the Italian food!

NUMBER THREE:

Marathon week walking.

This year we plan to walk 42km per week. No pressure on doing this every week but certainly a goal to see how many weeks we can walk the distance of a marathon.

Our week started on Monday 1 January, we kept our walks local, mapping out 3 routes and walking in the coolness of the early mornings. Fred plotted the routes for us, the 10km Munro Drive walk, the 7km past the Hindu Temple and the 6km walk along 4th Avenue in Houghton. 

An easy 6 days of walking to make up our target. 

Our three local routes.

One week done! I will keep a running list on this post of where and when we have marathon walking weeks. Come walking with us anytime....

Walking log:
Weeks:       Walking marathons:
52          37
Suburbs of Johannesburg and Cape Town beaches and mountains; Split and Hvar Island, Croatia; Centre to Sea Hike, Sicily; Malta; Dolomites, Italy; Gastein Valley, Austria; beaches of the South Coast, Durban Promenade; Wellington, New Zealand;  Bouddi National Park, NSW; Mt Wellington, Hobart and Freycinet National Park, Tasmania; Hermanus; Chintsa Beach; Millstream ...
Walking with Michelle, Natalie, Bev, Collen, Bruce and Cathy, John and John, Ian and Julie, Shawni, Craig, Ellie and Jason, James (in his stroller), Inel, Guy and Jossie; Alistair and Neville.....

Number 2: Making the same quilt again and again

I am sitting peacefully in the Morocco Room, my creative space in my home, the radio is on, it's hot, the sliding window is wide open to let in some breeze, an incense stick -a gift from our yoga teacher in Bali- is burning and I am sewing together hundreds of 2 inch blocks.
I am making a quilt for a dear friend who got married last year and will be leaving South Africa over the next couple of months.

Some of my Transition Quilts.

NUMBER TWO:

Making the same quilt again and again.

And again, and again, and again...

I have just checked my Quilter's Journal where I have kept a record of all the quilts I have made since 1990. And I love how I am completely stuck on sewing the same quilt pattern.  I call these quilts 'Transitions', and I am making number 9 at the moment, an interesting palette of ecru, mustard yellows, pink and inky purples!

It started when Nicky gifted me a quilt called 'Cut Flowers' made in 2006. She was part of our quilting group and now lives in Brisbane. As a group we enjoy the design of these lap quilts (52 sq. inches) and we have all made a few. The quilt has 36, 6x6 blocks, made up of 2 inch squares, and the color transitions from a dark corner to a light corner and it is a wonderful challenge to grapple with 36 different fabrics to create a smooth and interesting transition. 

Our quilting group has been sewing together for over 25 years! Nicky and her quilt in the background.
My sewing corner in the Morocco Room at home.

Nicky, who is now a professional quilter in Australia and has award winning quilts, has progressed in her craft and challenges herself to learn new techniques and styles of quilt making. She is just a little bemused by our love of making this same pattern!

I only work scrap quilts and for me the pleasure is trying to control different, zany and challenging fabrics, both old and new. There is nothing like going into my fabric stash - small by comparison with the rest of my quilting group- to start planning a quilt. My fabric collection is eclectic, fat quarters bought from all over the world as I travel, gifts from friends and I even have bits and pieces from my mothers stash. I dip into the group's stashes too, as we share fabrics rather than buy new pieces.

Detail of a quilt block.

My first transition quilt, called 'Hot Pink' was made in 2010 for my sister Doreen's 40th birthday.

Here is my list of transition quilts: 'Hot Pink', 'Light and Shade of Life', 'Summer Haze', 'Hidden Kiwi', 'Bahama Blues', 'Summer Ablaze', 'Blue Holes', 'The Shallows', all gifts, except for 'Hidden Kiwi' which I made for myself after a two month campervan holiday in New Zealand in the spring of 2011.

The title of quilt number 9 has not come to me yet, but it will. I will add to this post with a photo of the finished quilt and its title.

So, I am thinking I cannot finish on 9,  I will need to start yet another one this year, will number 10 be it?

Post Script:
The title for quilt number 9, made for Michele, is "Sunflowers and Aubergines", inspired by our quilt retreat to Ficksburg.
Her message after I gifted the quilt to her:
'My quilt is overwhelmingly gorgeous. I love it and I feel the sunflowers and aubergines sums up our life journeys throughout our 18 year friendship perfectly. We have danced fantastically light at times with joy and sunflowers in our hearts - and at others felt bruised and purple by what the world around us shaped. Always and always - I have found sunflowers with you...exposure to you is like turning your face into the sun and soaking up all the deliciousness you have to offer. So deeply grateful for our friendship.'

Number 1. Expanding my footprint in the Shared Ecomony

I start my new blogging project today, which is to focus on '100 different things in 2018'.

I have always loved to blog and list, so what better way than to track and write about the different things that come my way this year. It is a joy to showcase Fred's photos too, as he captures special moments in our lives. Some of these different things may be new, may be revisiting the usual, may be about things, people, family, places or about travel, but either way I am curious to see where this blog takes me and to understand the emotions attached to each 'thing'.

Getting started....

NUMBER ONE:

Expanding my footprint in the Shared Economy.

My adventure into the 'shared ecomony' started last year when I listed our Amanzimtoti and Cape Town properties on Airbnb. I have loved every minute and have also been hugely challenged. Interestingly, not so much about sharing our spaces or our things, but more when communication breaks down between my support team and guests, and when I feel helpless to correct issues like no hot water or satellite dishes been blown off the roof by a tornado! 

Mid-year I decided to explore the local portals and have been hugely impressed by TravelGround/Lekkeslaap. The website is easy to use and their service is excellent.

I have had 178 bed nights across the two places, guests from Italy, Australia, Germany, USA, UK and from all over South Africa. And through all this activity, I only got to meet one guest, a special man, Thabo and his family. He booked The Loft through Booking.com - a platform that did not suite me at all, and then popped into Gardenflat in Cape Town for a night. He made me smile and I loved how he left me gifts as a thank you.

Fred built Herb Cottage last year, here in Norwood, we loved styling it, shopping in our home for furniture pieces and upcycling elements. So my footprint now includes this quirky, special self-catering cottage, nestled in our back garden. I started the process with TravelGround and Airbnb today to put Herb Cottage onto their portals and so starts my listing of 100 different things - 99 to go.

Herb Cottage, Norwood, Johannesburg.

And - had my first paying guests on the 12 January!