The People You Meet....

It's been a week since we returned from our holidays in Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos and most of our holiday stories are about the people we met... Memories are about the people first, the experiecnes, second and the places after that? My photo of our holiday is this one taken in a small Vietnamese village, where a baby was totally fascinated with Jim's "white" beard, and just wanted to touch it and play with it.

The family , outside their village home.

A moment of craziness - a group of young Japanese tourists having a "fish massage" in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Nara, recollecting his own incarceration, and the tragedy of family deaths during the Pol Pot regime, the Killing Fields, Phonm Penh, Cambodia

"Snow" explaining what was edible, Mekong Delta, Vietnam.

Our boat man , Mekong River, Vietnam

Family welcoming us to Vientiane, Laos in a "baci" ceremony.

Buddhist monks at dawn alms giving in Luang Prabang, Laos.

Jim's interst in trees, timber and sawmills always makes him new holiday friends who are here enjoying their lunch break at a sawmill near Kuang Si Falls, Laos.

I didn't mind being beaten in a petanque game by the locals in Luang Prabang, Laos. It was a surprise to learn how popular petanque (boules) is in Laos.

Dancers in the Palace, Luang Prabang Laos.

Vietnamese boy soprano, who sang for us while we drank ginger tea for morning tea.

In a tiny village along the Mekong River, this young woman was cross stitching these beautiful cloths. I couldn't buy one because I didn't have enough cash, and there were no credit card facilities, but I gave her some money to buy more threads if she allowed her work to be photographed.

As grandparents, we could not resist chatting with these little children and their family at One Pillar Pagoda . Hanoi, Vietnam

Even the young visit the home of the revered Ho Chi Minh.

Patting each of the stone turtles' heads means good luck in your exams in Hanoi.

I must also include some really great people we met from England, Scotland and Wales .... and Sydney - at "Lara Croft's " temple, Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Coming soon in this space - some of the more exotic food sensations of the trip- watch this blog, please! There are only 940 of Jim's photos and 480 of mine but don't fear, I have been carefully selecting some of the more interesting.

Too Precious to Waste

Stitched tea bags/ old doily "tea lights" - Wilma Simmons More than a year ago, a decision was made. The annual exhibition of NCEATA ( Newcastle Creative Embroiderers and Textile Artists) 2015-2016 will have the theme "Mottainai". Mottainai in Japanese refers to more than just physical waste (resources). It is even used to refer to thought patterns that give rise to wasteful action. Grammatically, it can be used in Japanese as an exclamation ("mottainai!") or as an adjective phrase ("it feels mottainai"). There is no plural form. The collection of mottainai things could be called mottainai koto ( もったいない事 ? ). As an exclamation ("mottainai!") it means roughly "what a waste!" or "Don't waste." [2] A simple English equivalent is the saying "waste not, want not." A more elaborate meaning conveys a sense of value and worthiness and may be translated as "do not destroy (or lay waste to) that

Fish and Sticks : Art Dolls

This week I've been working on fish and sticks .... The sticks are the message stick art dolls which were very popular, attracting some attention and a few orders at the Wise Women exhibition. Each of the message stick dolls are from the Wise Women series, each with her own personality and message of wisdom, handwritten on a handmade timber tag. I gather the sticks during my walks around my neighbourhood and the tags are made from special bits of timber, some collected by me or my husband or from off cuts gifted to us from another doll making friend whose husband makes bagpipes. These dolls start off very simply with a wrap around a stick, in the general shape of a body. 'Naked" message stick dolls - strips of wadding wrapped around found sticks. Then I usually wrap other layers of fabric, wool, and/or fibres, over which I do some simple embroidery. I sculpt or mould small face masks for these dolls. I really like using "sari ribbon" as wrapping str

May I Present Mrs Chalumeau...

Finally Mrs Chalumeau takes a bow …She is a Pearly Queen … 695 buttons on the doll and 10 on the journal.(I think – could be more). I would like to thank Paula from Antiques and Collectables here in Hamilton, Newcastle and Raku Buttons ETSY seller for supplying me with about 500 of the vintage mother of pearl buttons, and the rest I had in my stash. I think they look great on my pearly queen, but I am truly tired of sewing on buttons. It made me think however, how many buttons must be on the elaborate clothes of the real pearly Kings and Queens! I drew my inspiration from the lovely lady pictured here, and the following description from Wikipedia. ... A Pearly King ( feminine form Pearly Queen) is a person dressed in a traditional Cockney costume covered in mother-of-pearl buttons. These costumes were treasured heirlooms, hand made and sometimes representing much of a family's wealth. .... This doll is all cloth – a little different from most of my other dolls which generally h

Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

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