T.U.S.A.L. time .......

Not so many new moons left in the year.....

Here is my latest TUSAL offering, you can't see the cork on the top of the bottle, but you can see some orange and black creeping in - I am so overdue to stitch a whopping huge fleecy lot of white to add to my jar...

The jar is sitting on a bit of tea-dyed aida.  I was so sick of all the white, and I've got one more halloween project in mind... The colours on the fabric are there more as an indication of the true nature of the fabric.

Yes, I'll post the answers to the quiz from my game book in the next day or two...

Halloweenie stitch and Parlour Games of the 1930's

Whoa!  So long since a post from me... - Where has the time gone?  Do you realise that it's only 3 MONTHS  to Christmas??????

Before Christmas of course, comes Halloween - and I finished this little one last Saturday - but forgot to show you earlier.  I'm still thinking of having a frantic finishing day very soon - need to finish something to send to a friend in the US in time for Halloween.

How do you like my LK - If the broom fits! - ?
Thank you again Nancy for your wonderful floss - I will be enjoying using your floss for some time to come - If I need inspiration, I merely plunge my hand into the bag of special floss and I've been able to find the right colour every time.
Once again, I modified the instructions, I couldn't be bothered to remember where to stitch the little black spots, so cheated and stitched beads later.  I do like making the googly eyes - I think using the pearl beads instead of buttons makes for a more googlier look - googlier - is that even a word??


Now - on a completely different subject:  Parlour Games of the late 30's and early 40's.
Way back in a different time, when I was a cub-scout Akela, I would scour bookshops looking for unique publications relating to games that I could tweak for use in the Pack.  This book must have been one of them.  I'm thinking some of you might like to learn some of the games that were suggested from this book, first printed in 1939, my re-print is 1942.

Games for Parties - Competitions, Games for Small Parties and Many Players, Tableaux, and Charades and Ideas for Dances.

On the inner flap:  the games are mostly new ones, but many variants of the old favourites will be found.  A most useful book for organisers of socials, hotel and shipboard entertainment, and very helpful to the giver of the most modest of house-parties.

The contents are divided into sections -

1. Competitions
2. Games
3. Tableaux, Charades & Miscellaneous Events
4. Ideas for Dances

The competitions themselves are quite complex - how Parties and gatherings have changed, as has the intelligence of gentle folk.  Some of the competitions are based upon your knowledge of inner London of the 1930's and have not withstood the test of time.  Some of them amaze me with their very complexity.     Let's see..........  one to start with..  pencils ready?

TABLE TURNING
The solutions are all words that end with 'table'

1. A table you cannot copy           Inimitable
2. A table that is good to eat           Vegetable
3. A very delightful table              Delectable
4. A table very easily annoyed
5. A table that will suit any purpose
6. A table you can sell
7. A table for the lazy man
8. A table that will bring good results
9. A table that will not be useful
10. A table a burglar can take away
11. A table that will not be left behind
12. A table you must not doubt
13. A table you cannot avoid
14. A table that is not very smart
15. A table that is pleasant to the taste
16. A table that is known for good conduct
17. A table you cannot improve upon
18. A table of little importance
19. A table that does your bidding
20. A table that is boundless

There we go.. I've given the answers to the first 3.  I think I am charmed by the phrasing of the questions - it takes me back to the time of Agatha Christie novels.  I'll post the answers on my next blog posting - and another quiz if you are interested...

One from the section on Active Contests and Team Events.   Try playing this at your next social gathering!

WOOL WINDING
This is a competition for men.  Have as many balls of wool as there are competitors.  Unwind the balls down the length of the room and let a girl hold one end.  The man takes the other end and proceeds to wind the wool into a ball.  It is not as easy as it sounds, and some queer and bunchy effects will be produced.  The winner is the one who first winds all the wool, provided it looks something like a ball!

Do you want more games?  Post a message and let me know!  There's even a whole selection for setting up a Halloween Party!

Year of the Sheepie - September

I know the date 11-9-11 has sorrowful connotations for most of the western civilisation, but I don't wish to dwell on the tragedy that changed our world irrevocably.  I'll mourn privately, the loss of international innocence.  I have my own intense memories of that morning, which are still too raw to share.


Lest We Forget.  (Associated with ANZAC and wartime memorials, yet still appropriate)

However, following all the previous months - here is my 11-9-11 Sheepie.

As it is now Springtime here in Australia, I thought a BBQ was appropriate.  I can pretend the grass under the bbq utensils are mint and rosemary.......

Thank you for sharing my journey this year.  I'm still thinking of next year's theme.  Nothing spectacular has leapt out at me, so I'm still swivelling around Cats/Santas/Houses and pretty much all Samplers.