December TUSAL

It's TUSAL time again!  For those of you new to blogging, the TUSAL is a project run by Daffycat, click on the button on the right hand bar for more details.

Just for a change, the TUSAL jar is posing with my Advent Calendar tree and the current new start, a Dragon Dreams Birthday Card.  There's really not much to see on it so far!

Here's a closer picture of the tree:

The tree came from Wilkinsons and as it black and gold it can double up as a Hallowe'en tree too!  I bought two sheets of scrapbooking paper, one with 25 numbered panels and the other with an assortment of Christmas "patches".  I cut them all out, stuck numbers on the patches and mounted them on the tree with velcro tape.  Then I cut out and stuck each motif on a number panel using double-sided tape.  Each day I remove the numbered block and replace it with the relevant panel.

Because everything is velcroed I can just get some Hallowe'en patches and use them instead of the Christmas themed ones.

Here is the latest progress picture on the higher numbered motifs:

The Little Stitcher Fairy Tale Advent Calendar

I love everyone single one of these but especially the two little girls in red and green.  Only two motifs to go!

You may have noted my reference to using the tree as a Hallowe'en tree too.  The Large Boy and I had got as far as jotting down some notes as to which motifs we would include when this plopped through my letterbox:

It's Spooky Countdown by Primitive Hare!  The lovely Chiara of The Grey Tail was visiting the needlework show in Albimente and had a giveaway to win two different signed charts.  The charts were both won by some people who weren't me but never mind I thought I could always treat myself later.

Anyway Chiara had promised to send me some DVDs a while ago so as a "sorry they took longer to reach you than they should have" she sent me the Spooky Countdown chart!  And not just a chart, but a signed chart.  How amazing is that?  And before you ask, it wasn't signed by Chiara (which would have been exciting enough) but by Isabella the designer her very self!  So now I have two charts signed by the designers.  (I got a signed Teresa Wentzler from Karen for my Birthday).

Finally, the Advent Calendar Blog Hop has started, we have three people posted so far - Vickie, Kevin and Shirlee.  I hope you've been over to their blogs to read what they had to say about their foodie traditions  You can find the Calendar post by clicking on that door to the top right of my sidebar.  BTW apologies to anyone who thought they'd slept through December because I put the door for the 24th at the top of the post!  Blogger arranges posts so the most recent things are at the top so I have done the same for the Calendar.  ooops!