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!

Sunday morning prose

How I valued:

• Sparkling sharing of travel stories that danced across the globe – finding Dingle gin in Dingle, Ireland; ancestral research in Cork; finding Jan in Nice with pap on the menu; Balinese street food and the sublime balance of sweet black coffee and aromatics; the surprise of Milan; perfect pizzas in Nieu Bethesda; the joy of a daily flat white in Wellington while minding James; an accident in Germany; yet another French chateau; a doggy road trip in winter to the Cape; the delight of Gaudi in Barcelona….
• As always our minds love planning where next - an exciting declaration to take in la Perle by Dragond in Dubai at some point over the next few years; maybe a river cruise in Europe; could even pop across to visit Petra in Jordan;  Thailand beckoning soon for the Twomey's…
• A perfect highveld summer evening – residual heat from the day slowly abating; the pretty pink evening sky; a piet-my-vrou calling; candles dancing in the pool and candles making shadows on the veranda; the braai fire smoke and baking bread mixing and tantalizing our senses; the heady fragrance of star jasmine…
• A round table set with mindfulness and creativity – a basket of artichokes; sparkling green glassware and icy crystal bowls; eclectic Wonkyware…
• Inspiration from the Shared Economy - numbers 1-9 from the Enneagram inspiring a new business venture from the Twomey home, sharing knowledge and experience; 175 bed nights in the Kersten's spaces in Toti and Cape Town been shared this year with people from all over the world; the numbers are staggering on a  vast property vision on the brink of been shared with the world....
• Neville’s gin setting – a choice from around the world, with lemon or orange, I am now excited to explore the botanicals and stories of South African gin…
• Rosella’s masterclass of bread making – kneading; shaping; creating flavour with thyme; baking with stream; a well of oozy, decadent camembert; a hint of chilli in the salmon mousse; such fresh crusty, delicious bread; Nikki’s proclamation of ‘I am happy’ was a voice for all….
• The generosity of slipping in a pasta course while the braai smells drifted over – stuffed parcels of happiness with an unpronounceable Italian name washed down with a crispy white or a tasty red…
• The nibbling of salty lamb fat straight from Neville's hot coals, sucking the roasted artichokes hearts, picking up the hint of bay leaf on the meatballs, the fennel and orange just made for each other…
• Banting for the last course - the decadence of berries, cream and an almond chocolate desert...
• Our conversation dancing around our passions - books to read, note to self Origin by Dan Brown a recommendation from Geoff; movies and series that we enjoy; hugging cats and dogs; cuddling gorgeous grandchildren; Fred building Herb Cottage; continually getting lighter in the world...

How I value friendship....

The Yoga Shala Alphabet

The Yoga Shala, Blooming Lotus Yoga, Ubud, Bali

Aum, Breathing, Circle, Downward Dog, Energy, Friendship, Ganesh, Heat, Incense, Jungle, Kind, Lycra, Meditation, Nidra, Ouch, Poses, Quiet, Restless, Savasana, Teaching, Uijayi, Volcano, Wellness,  Xtreme, Yoga,  Zeds.

The Banyan Tree

The roots of an old banyan tree.

Banyan trees and my thoughts go to my old childhood favorites, Mowgli, Bagheera, Baloo, Kaa and menacing Shere Khan.

And here I am, in Bali, craning my neck looking out for any number of birds that feed on the fruit of the Banyan. It is a life blood for wild life in the forests around the world.

Their size is remarkable given that life for a Banyan starts as a seed as small as a grain of sand! And they can life for many hundreds of years.

I have been most amused with the trees wearing 'sarongs' using the ubiquitous black and white check fabric or yellow. What I did not know is that the Banyan is a sacred tree for Balinese people and used for ceremonies and rituals, so the Balinese dress the trunks.

The tree even features in the Coat of Arms of Indonesia.

I see them with new eyes.

Some thoughts about Bali

I:

• am missing my photographer to capture the exotic culture of Bali and the secret pleasure of its birds.
• appreciate getting closer to all things Balinese.
• learn each day from my generous birding guide Bayu Hendra, he has certainly opened my eyes to all things Sunda.
• see ceremonies at the heart of living life here in Bali.
• have forgotten how punishing a full day of birding can be, but...
• love to bird and be in nature.
• ate dragonfruit.
• so enjoy doing my bird 'admin', listing and recording is part of my daily routine, this was the view today sitting with a pot of ginger tea and reflecting on an epic day in the field.

  

  A perfect spot for listing.

• am been woken by the 4.50am call to prayer and kept awake by traditional music, and how I dislike noisy bar fridges in hotel rooms.
• smile at the variety of headgear worn by the men.
• frown that everyone smokes.
• birded in the peaceful grounds of the Patu Karu temple.
• am intrigued by the notion of home as a temple and how literal this is here in Bali.
• so enjoyed the rice paddies of Jatiluwih.
• put aside my anxiety about Mount Agung.
• added 100 new birds to my world list.
• had dinner for one on the beach watching the full moon rise over the Java Sea.
• noticed how I do not have the courage to swim and snorkel here at Taman Sari Resort, but the evening swim in the private pool for the Studios was rather pleasant.
• find seeing the swastika, representing the wheel of the sun in Balinese Hinduism, jarring.
• am eating chicken three times a day and did not know that was possible.
• tasted something most unusual, avocado as a dessert served with chocolate condensed milk.
• did not expect the dominance of concrete in the cultural artifacts.
• see thousands of motorcycles and see children on motorcycles.
• rather like the colorful soft-top VW's on the island.
• like the mid morning ground coffee break, which is sweet and black and from a sachet, then having ginger tea with lunch.
• am down-heartened at the close up view of back-breaking work and poverty.
  
• wonder when the black and white checked fabric became the choice for statue dressing. 
• have lost count of the number of yellow, or white, or checked umbrellas in the temples, some new but most are tattered and torn.
• see women sweeping bare ground.
• am dismayed that the culture of caged birds in Bali, which started as a sign of status and wealth, now causes poaching and species decline. 
• have yet to find pristine anything.
• did not take to the long-tailed macaques, they line the roads, strategically placed in the shade, and beg for hand-outs. The Ebony Leaf Monkeys had more dignity, getting on with life in the Bali Barat National Park.
• did however experience the Christian communities of Blimbingsari and Palasari as peaceful, with lovely gardens and their links to the Dutch taking control of Bali in 1908 is fascinating.
• am in awe of the huge ficus trees and the bamboo forest of the Bali Botanical Garden.
• was impressed with the caldera in the centre of Bali with its misty lakes and vegetable farms.
• see offerings, remnants of offerings, offerings as a business, offerings as trash, and as a welcome to my room today with fruit.
• have a favorite meal to date, Chicken Satay at the Harris Hotel.
  
• see hints of what we call "Bali-style" back home. 
• think laundry skills are excellent here, white is whiter than white and worn by all. Apart from yellow.
• notice the inside outside way of life along the roads we have travelled.
• witnessed a personal blessing along the busy road.
• notice the beauty of flowers.
• walked the Pemuteran black beach at sunrise and watched the start of day routine for the resort staff.
• look forward to Sharon, Natalie and Bev arriving, but before then I am swelling my world bird list and so delighted to be doing so.

Another first, delicious tof