Flutterby Patch

A knitted Santa takes shape

It seems rain has been pouring down for weeks and I haven't been feeling at all Christmasy but with only five weeks to go I decided I should seek some festive cheer. I keep my Christmas books on a shelf behind the sofa so that I'm not tempted to look at them throughout the year. And so last weekend out they came. Don't you just love vintage Christmas decorations.

These old Santas must have seen many Christmases come and go. What tales they could tell.

After drooling over a few more Santas I was inspired to knit one of my own. A little fellow in traditional red and white of course, but to ring the changes I decided to make a Santa mouse who would deliver gifts to good little boy and girl mice around the world on Christmas Eve.

Out came the yarn and needles and I sat by the fire and busied myself with my festive creation.

And here he is.... just 17cm (7in) tall to the tip of his ears.

To begin with I gave him a traditional white beard and bushy eyebrows and he looked ridiculous! And so he ended up being beardless and eyebrow-less and looks a lot more mousy.

I found a small amount of hessian coloured wool in my stash and it was just enough to make a sack for the little fellow. He wasted no time in filling it and trotting off to wherever it is he keeps his gifts for good mice.

I was so pleased with him that I decided to write out the pattern which in the end took almost as long as knitting the actual mouse. You'll find the pattern in my Etsy shop. It's easy to follow (I don't do difficult) and you only require basic knitting skills.

And so now my all time favourite festive poem will never seem the same. I used to read it to my children every Christmas Eve but the line 'not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse' seems no longer relevant!

Until next time,

Eli

Festive thoughts

You might remember last week I told you I was I feeling rather autumnal. Well friends, today you find me feeling distinctly festive. The reason....

I just happened to be loitering outside the local fabric store (as you do) when my eye was drawn to some delicious silver and gold fabrics. It's a warm sunny summery day today but on seeing these I was immediately transported to mid December and could definitely detect the scent of pine needles in the air. I had to buy a small selection of course.

On arriving home I matched the fabrics to my various trims.....

and was closely watched by some little faces waiting patiently to be made into Christmas fairies. It's never too early to start thinking about Christmas is it?

New Year greetings to you all

New Year greetings fellow bloggers, wherever you may be. As I get so many lovely people around the world visiting my Flutterby Patch I wanted to post a picture representing different nations. I'm afraid this illustration from an old children's encyclopedia isn't at all appropriate as so many flags have changed in the last few decades.

 
My daughter remembered that we have a vintage card game that depicts national costumes of the world. Perhaps that would be more suitable. A trip into the attic unearthed a couple of boxes of children's games that hadn't seen the light of day for quite a while.

Husband and son made a beeline for one of their favourite jigsaw puzzles ...a map of mountain terrain.

Not my idea of fun but it kept them busy for hours.

Meanwhile my daughter and I had a great time reminiscing about the familiar vintage games we had found.

You might recognise some of these cards. They date from the 1950s, 60s and 70s .

Ah...success at last. 'Tops and Tails' the game depicting national costumes that we were looking for. An elderly lady gave it to us many years ago. It dates from the 1930s and I think its quite charming.

What can I wish you this New Year's Day?

Virtue to guide you on your way.
Happiness, comfort, sufficient wealth;

Constant affection and rosy health.

Happy New Year to you all