One down....

Thanksgiving is over---whew---now on to the rest of the pesky winter holidays. This seems very scrooge-ish, I'm sure, but aren't we tired of the pressure to be happy about Christmas and it's "true" meaning (see December 18, 2011 post), all the while having the commercialness of it so overtly displayed??? I certainly am weary of the sales, the ads, the music!!! At least the solstice seems real enough to count as a time to celebrate. Fire is involved there.
And New Years is symbolic of a fresh start. Maybe that's what I'll get myself for Christmas.

Postcards

This is what I've been working on the last two days. I really love those trees.

Gold Xmas cactus

This is the plant that has gold colored blooms, even though they have a pinkish blush in the photo. The last post was worded strangely--my bad.

Indoor gardening

The Xmas cactus spent all summer outside and obviously were very happy with that arrangement. There is a pot of gold blooming ones about to open. Photo of that next time.

Photos

From the MACA Tour of Fine Craft on Saturday.

Saturday

My weekends seem to be busier than the weeks these days. Today was the opening day of the MACA tour of  fine craft. I was hostessing at the venue where my fiber art also is being displayed. The morning was not so busy, but by the time I had to leave to teach the final skirt class, people were stopping by. Tomorrow, I will be at two other locations and it will be fun to see other artists and their work. I took pictures, but didn't get a chance to download from the camera. Maybe tomorrow or Monday.
  The skirt class was a success. One of the students finished her garment and started on another. The other ladies finished their skirts (except for a tiny bit of handwork) and seemed very pleased with the results. There were a few moments of angst when stitches needed to be ripped out and replaced, but all in all everyone had a positive experience and learned new skills. ALL of us...I learned patience, which I am sorely in need of these days.
   Sew Memphis is on Facebook, so go there to see photos. The shop also has a fun and informative website---www.SewMemphis.com
  The best part of the day was dinner out with my husband and the Noodlemans. I haven't been to visit them in a while, so it was good to catch up with their recent antics. We're already talking about going to St. Louis next fall.

Happy Day

All I have to say is "Yay!"

Post Halloween cleanup

Halloween was a raging success here at casa del Willett. We ran out of candy and had to blow out the candles and get into the house before the next horde of children came by expecting treats. It was a lovely evening anyway and the neighbors were out and had their houses decorated, too. The children were, for the most part, well behaved. The weirdest thing that we saw was the guy who was old enough to grow a moustache trick or treating. Yeah, right !?! There really should be an age limit for this holiday.
Yesterday, I took down all the fake spider webs and put the pumpkins around in the back yard on my patio (which is really the upper end of the driveway) after I swept leaves and rearranged the benches and tables. Yes, my life is just this boring.
   This afternoon was part one of the skirt class I am teaching. Like I told my husband, it was successful because no one "shivved" me with their scissors...hahahahahaha
   The students have varying experience with sewing so it made for a good mix of how much attention everyone needed. I made a booboo on one step in the construction of the skirt, but apologized and helped "unsew" some of the garments. So it was a lesson for us all. There was good progress and we will finish next week. I had a great time and really love meeting new people with an interest in sewing.

all decked out for Halloween

new patio arrangement--looking forward to good weather

  Next weekend is also the MACA Fine Craft Tour, so I will be juggling my schedule to help with that, as well as finish the skirt class. The Sewing Guild meets Thursday and I am in the middle of a special project in my studio. Plus this is the week I see my therapist (nothing like a biweekly dose of mental health).  The week seems to shaping up quite nicely.