Fast forward

I was sitting at the sewing machine this afternoon, idly tuning out the sounds of revelry from both gardens either side of us as Melbourne Cup parties are in progress, and then I tuned back in as the sound subtly changed. "Hm," I thought, "I wonder who's sitting in the garden going Umminnanni Umminani umminanni umminani..." Hm, that would be the race commentator, dear. We may have been here four years, but I'm not a Melburnian yet.

Even if I don't understand horse racing, there are some Aussie obsessions that I do understand and love: Photo by Mr. Tacc.

Last year we spent a very cheerful Cup Day at our friends' place, where somehow I ended up teaching a bunch of the neighbourhood kids how to make patchwork stars. Champagne, sewing machines and seven year olds, stars and a big scrap bag. Everyone was happy, especially my friends the parents, who quietly polished off all the champagne.

Today, I've been stitching and plotting and scheming. Due to constraint on the family purse, I'm going to be hand-making a few of my Christmas gifts this year. Some will be stencilled, and some will be stitched. I've got to get cracking!


How about this i-pod pocket scarf as a present for my Canadian commuter friends? (Pattern spotted in an Italian magazine). I suspect I'll be making this one up as I go along, not being fluent in Italian and all. It looks fairly simple, and velvet with Japanese fabric strikes me as a nice idea. Soft and snuzzly.

B