Busy busy

 It's been a bit of a hectic week, not helped by a flare up of my food intolerances and consequent feebleness.  

We got the tree last weekend so hauled all the decorations down from the attic and I spent several hours putting most of those up around the house.  I had some friends coming on Thursday so that was my deadline to have at least the public spaces decorated, which I managed. The tree isn't as tall this year so I couldn't get all the ornaments on, I prioritised my handmade ones and ones with special memories.

I've been ploughing ahead with the quilt frame as I am determined to get it down before Christmas.  I loaded and basted the Lone Star that has been kicking around since before the last time I had the frame up five years ago.  Before basting it, I drew in some simple straight line quilting in the open spaces that I will be able to do with my walking foot.

Then I loaded on the final quilt, Tannenbaum, which appropriately is a Christmas quilt.  I'm quilting it with a purchased holly leaf panto.  I've already started taking stuff downstairs that I won't need any longer.  The remaining part of the roll of wadding, more than half I think, has been wrapped in a sheet and has gone on top of my wardrobe in my room to await the next incarnation of the frame.

Earlier in the week I did a two-hour online workshop with the Quilter's Guild to make a traditional Japanese bag.  I used some of the fabric left over from the summer yukata I bought in Kyoto that I made into pyjama bottoms.  I only had some gold cord so that's what I used, but I think it looks too heavy.  I have since picked up some pink ribbon on a charity table so I will likely switch that over.  It's an easy bag to make - I am considering making some in British themed fabric to take as gifts to Japan.

Then last night I joined a live Craftsy workshop for two hours to sew a pair of cosy slippers.  That was a bit slow, it was over an hour before they finally got through the cutting out and discussion of fabrics and got to the sewing part. But I finished one slipper and tried it on and realised the sole is too long for my foot, so I will need to do some ripping back and trimming.  I used some IKEA fleece blanket for the inside and some left over wool coating for the outer.

Today we went to see DS and stopped in at IKEA on the way for a few things.  I was expecting a mob scene but it was strangely quiet for a Saturday, much less a Saturday before Christmas.  Perhaps the intense cold (high of 4 degrees today, and yesterday the frost lasted all day) and the cost of petrol is keeping people home.  We were done so quickly that we had to go back in for a cup of tea in the cafe to kill time before descending on DS.

I'm trying to decide what to wear and pack for a trip to Poland on Monday, where it is predicted to be below freezing all week.  It's only going to be a few degrees below freezing, nothing compared to where I lived for a while in Canada. But I've forgotten what I used to wear in Canada.  So I've been testing out various thermal garments, coats and hats by popping outside and walking around the block a bit to see how they feel.  I'm going to visit a traditional European Christmas market in Wroclaw, another thing that was on my bucket list.  Only they are predicting snow in the UK so I hope that doesn't affect Heathrow airport.  Plus the day I get back is a national train strike, and the following day, so I'm having to get a slow and expensive coach part of the way home until DH can meet me late at night.  I'm also having to go down to Heathrow tomorrow and stay overnight at an airport hotel to catch my flight the next day.  It will be nice when they invent teleportation and you don't have to lose a full day or more  to the stressful  'getting there' part. Hopefully the market experience will be worth it.  I've never been to Poland before.  Which reminds me - I need to look up a few Polish words like please and thank you!