All over Red Rover, including help from the canine residents.
The puzzle was ‘Doors Open’ by Colin Thompson – a 1500 piece wooden jigsaw from Wentworth jigsaws.
Do we have another jigsaw in us these holidays?
Category: About the Convent
Christmas Puzzle Day 4
Boxing Day and now taking serious shape.
The Christmas Feast
Whilst the first Convent Christmas dinner was a little late getting to the table (just after 2pm), diners made no attempt to leave the table until nearly 6pm.
A very traditional fare, but I was pleased with the results, particularly given the small galley kitchen. Perhaps Christmas in July should be on the Convent Calendar for 2014.
Christmas Puzzle Day 3
Suffering from a little neglect on Christmas Day.
Christmas Puzzle Day 2
It may not look it, but a few sections are starting to come together – the easiest ones obviously. These puzzles have very tricky edges – many pieces like to pretend they are edges to attract attention, but it’s all a trick! Means you can’t do it the traditional way and start with the edge.
One More Sleep
It’s getting late at the Convent, the night before Christmas. The fairy lights are twinkling and the fridges are laden. Christmas cake is cooked and pudding is hanging. A pavlova and raspberry ripple semifreddo are finished (along with earlier mixed berry sorbet and strawberry icecream courtesy of the berry bed).
The ham is glazed, a turkey breast is stuffed with cranberries and pistachios and a rolled and seasoned pork loin awaits. Grossly over catered for one day but I’m hoping it will feed us for the few days after so the cook can put her feet up. My first Convent Christmas.
The Christmas Challenge
I’m not sure it’s the most relaxing thing, given how addictive this can be, but I’ve started a Wentworth wooden jigsaw – 1500 pieces.The house guests are joining in and I think progress may be slow.
Settling In
Whilst I had thought I’d have a few quiet weeks settling in once selling Sydney and moving all my worldly goods into the Convent, life has a way of taking its own course.
My daughter’s arrival the day after the removalists, along with the rambunctious Popcorn, meant a different but very welcome change of pace. My two small dogs have settled in to Convent life easily and now they are both around six years old, they are pretty relaxed. However they didn’t anticipate Popcorn arriving and unsettling the status quo.
Whilst still young at eight months old, he is also very big and active. However he is smart and anxious to please. Quickly he has learnt not to invade little dog space or try to make them play with him. They are getting to know each other and becoming more comfortable together. Little Roxy isn’t up to joining in games but loves to watch and encourage Popcorn from the sidelines. Tango has managed to work out a bitey type game with Popcorn that they both love. Whilst they may not interact directly together much, they are often exploring and chilling together. I now seem to have a “pack” of dogs on the property.
Despite Popcorn’s gardening efforts and that he will chew anything he can get hold of, he’s a good boy and is responding well to training. He is already enrolled and attending a local training class and may get to do agility at some point.
I have a feeing the Convent animal family may grow some more as I start to explore chickens as a next stage.
Market Day
Yesterday was our big day at Rylstone Artisan Markets, which are a little different as the ethos is:
“If you create it, bake it, grow it or make it, and you live locally, you can sell it at our markets”, which is strictly adhered to.
Accompanied by my daughter and good friend, we started off allowing for plenty of time to be shown the ropes and set ourselves up. The organisers and fellow stall holders were all very helpful and friendly and we were raring to go by 9am when the markets opened. For the first hour and a half it seemed like we’d be lucky to make a sale but a flux of people a little later meant we ended up more than happy with the outcome. We even managed to get some orders in advance for next markets.
December in Australia is not exactly “knit” weather and it was a really hot day. We had also be warned that it may take over three markets before locals would come up for a chat. However I think that our knitting display was very accessible and it was clear we were from the Convent, which made it really easy for people to start a conversation. We also met plenty of other knitters, spinners and weavers. Gemma with her drop spindle was a good conversation-starter.
A few items sold very well and we managed to sell both kits as well as knitted items – the lace scarves were a real hit and attracted lots of attention. I know that this market had the benefit of people buying for Christmas presents and the next few markets might be a bit slower, but I’m also pretty sure come the colder months we will do very well. Also the markets sometimes co-incide with tourist buses and I think my knits should be a hit with visitors.
Anyway, for the first foray into knitting at the markets, I ended up really pleased and am keen to become a regular. Whilst it’s great to sell things, it is even more rewarding being part of the community, speaking to locals and joining in with the other stall holders.
In the meantime, I’m back knitting the more popular items and getting my entry ready for the Rylstone Kandos Show on 22 February.
To Market, To Market …
It’s been pretty busy the last week or so, with my daughter here, settling in Popcorn and a good friend visiting.
It’s been even more busy given I’m planning my first foray into the local markets tomorrow. I have a feeling my guests think I’m running a sweat shop as they have been helping me prepare and will be there for support on the day as well.
My stall will be selling my knits and knitting kits. I know the weather isn’t all that appropriate for knitting, so for my first appearance I have prepared lace bookmarks and featherweight lace scarves. I also have simple kits for knits for those who would prefer to do it themselves.
A friend is selling pet products at the neighbouring market and I’m trialling dog treats at that stall. Hopefully they should be popular with the locals given Kandos is also known as ‘Dog Town’, with the dog population rumoured to outnumber children.
I’m looking forward to the markets as something new and a great way to meet more locals – both customers and stall holders. There’s always great camaraderie.
CONVENT AND CHAPEL 