Christmas Countdown Characters #16

P is for Pollyanna

Yes - today the Christmas celebrity is that beloved happy girl from Eleanor H Porter's classic children's book. Now I know you are all wondering if there were any Pollyanna Christmas stories? No there weren't any specific Christmas stories, but I just want to remind you of the reason for Pollyanna's being was making others happy and seeing the good in everything. In the original stories and all the sequels, Pollyanna was renowned for her optimistic "Glad Game" where you were challenged to find the positive in any situation. I remember that I admired Pollyanna for being "glad" about whatever gift she was given. When she received crutches in a gift exchange, instead of a doll, and she learnt that she should be glad about the gift, because she did not need them! I also remember that although I thought Pollyanna was very virtuous, I hoped desperately that I was never given crutches when I didn't need them!
Now to the real reason for the choice of Pollyanna today - I am sure this " glad game" approach gave rise to the practice of gift exchange which in some parts of USA is called a "Pollyanna". The practice named after today's heroine is probably better known in other parts of the world as Secret Santa or Kris Kringle or even the White Elephant Gift Swap.

It’s a way to give gifts, as you say, to other members of a group, such as fellow workers in an office, other members of a club, or within a large family. The formal term at one time was Pollyanna gift exchange, which turns up a lot in newspapers from about 1947 on. . The idea is to limit present giving by ensuring that each person gives one gift to one other person in the group; often a ceiling is placed on the amount that can be spent on each gift. In some cases, each person provides a gift already wrapped so nobody knows what it is; the potential recipients draw lots to decide who gets which gift. Or people draw lots to determine who buys a gift for whom; sometimes recipients are asked to guess who bought it for them. Both the giver and the receiver may be called the Pollyanna. (from http://www.worldwidewords.org)

I was amused to read a blog written by someone obviously disgruntled with Pollyanna and Secret Santa gift exchanges in the past and wanted to be sure some formalised 'Pollyanna" etiquette be established to ensure no future disappointments.
Not quite in the spirit of the Pollyanna but then again Pollyanna was about making everyone happy!

I have to admit that on occasions I have been disappointed in what I received in gift exchanges, and at other times, I have been overwhelmed by the generosity and thoughtfulness of the gift giver. I guess the lesson to learn from Pollyanna is that whatever your gift is, be positive and happy - enjoy the giving and stress less about the gift itself!

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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