Wonderland Wednesdays - What is a Char?

Here we are at another hump day, so it must be Wonderland Wednesday! What fantastical thing shall I share with you this week? Does anyone know what a char is? (And I'm not talking about a 'cuppa cha')  According to scholars Samanta and Lahiri-Dutt, "Charlands are islands formed in major river systems particularly in the flat deltaic plains such as those in the Bengal delta in eastern India and Bangladesh. The charlands in the lower reaches of the Damodar River in India are prone to frequent floods, shifting river channels and consequent riverbank erosion. In spite of these risks posed by the environment, migrant communities from Bihar and Bangladesh settle in the charlands because the soils are fertile, and because being untitled, they are relatively cheaper than legal lands." What this means is that there are large communities of people who live on 'islands' in the middle of rivers. They are not legally recognised as islands because they are far too small. These people live in quite dangerous conditions because the river can wash away the sand banks, their homes, their crops and indeed their lives at any given time.

This image is from the Pulitzer Center and all credit for the photo goes to Glenn Baker. His caption for the photo reads "This village sits tenuously on a char, or temporary island, in the middle of the massive Jamuna River delta in northern Bangladesh. High water flows from India and the Himalayans poses a constant threat during monsoon season. Residents frequently have to suspend their beds and food from the ceilings to get above the floodwaters, often living like that for weeks. In addition to water, snakes are a problem." When I studied articles and interviews with these char-dwellers, what is apparent is their resilience. Even though their homes and lives are in constant danger, the people do the best they can and tend to be optimistic about life. What is truly amazing is the vast majority of people are unaware of their existence. We take our stable homes for granted and do not not have a true understanding of just how many people in the world live in precarious situations. There are so many different kinds of homes, and we tend to assume that the majority of people live in safe ones. Char-homes are just one of countless examples of how humans can adapt to their surroundings out of necessity. If anyone has an example of other interesting situations of house, home, habitat, or adaptations, I'd love to hear them. I hope you have found your eyes widened just a tiny bit to the curioser and curioser world in which we live and I will be back next week for another Wonderland Wednesday.

Wonderland Wednesday - The Throne of Weapons

I know a lot of ladies in bloggy land post 'Wordless Wednesdays' but I have decided to start something different. As I am studying Anthropology and Sociology, I thought I would do a post on things in the big wide world which intrigue me. So every Wednesday I will write about something which is fascinating, wondrous or awe-inspiring. It's a huge world out there, and culture can be found everywhere. This week I am sharing with you an item  called the "Throne of Weapons."

I saw this a few weeks ago in the Western Australian Museum as part of the exhibit from the British Museum and it's story is really interesting.The throne was made by the Mozambican artist Cristovao Canhavato (Kester) from decommissioned weapons collected since the end of the civil war in 1992. It is a product of the TAE project - Transformaçaõ de Armas em Enxadas (Transforming Arms into Tools) - a program which exchanges weapons for agricultural, domestic and construction tools. The parts of the throne to some extent reflect the international arms trade. The main feature is the Russian AK47 rifle but there are also sections from Eastern European, Portuguese and North Korean guns.

There were a lot of beautiful items on display at the museum, but this was by far my favourite. The history of it, the meaning, the symbolism - I think it is just fantastic. For more info or to see more exhibits, visit www.britishmuseum.org To paraphrase a bit of Alice, this world keeps getting 'curioser and curioser' so I'll be back next Wednesday with another wonderful aspect of it.

Catching up

Now I know that I have been MIA for quite some time now, but I have been quite sick, so please go ahead and forgive me :) I am slowly getting better and able to produce some more items in my sewing zone which I am dying to share with you. I made this cover for my plain old A4 lecture note book, and I have to say I really like it! I absolutely adore bunting and this was so easy to make, I will be making more.                            

Calico + scraps + ric rac = no more boring book covers. I also made myself a school tote and pencilcase, so I will be nerding it up in handmade goodness on campus this year! I'm thinking of whipping up some of these for my Etsy shop - doesn't everyone love bunting? New in my shop are some kids bucket hats and knotted fabric necklaces which have identical twins on parade on my kids this week. I had my first attempt at making a skirt this week. It was for my beautiful girl who is 18 months old and had never actually worn a skirt before. She liked it, and she calls it her "nert"
I love the funny things kids say - what crackers have you heard lately?

Here she is with her fat little belly all over her 'nert'. The inside has several raw edge hems which I just can't seem to master the art of - Does anyone have some tips for finishing raw hem edges without a serger? I'm content with the outside though, so it is at least wearable!  The great upside to being sick is that when you don't go out, you don't spend money on trainfares, drinks, lunches and the likes. I found myself with some extra spending money this month just to spend frivolously - how exciting! I decided to step outside of my usual square in which I spend money on fabric, ribbons and jewellery - I bought some home decos. I searched my Etsy favourites pages for hours and eventually decided on this beautiful print from TidbitsStudio

Isn't it just too sweet? I can't wait to receive the parcel and then have to decide where on our rapidly filling walls to hang it....? I also purchased this divine pair of handcrafted polymer clay birds from EttyonEtsy, they are made by an Israeli lady who does spectacular work. I will possibly end up buying more sets of different birds, but these ones caught my eye because the inscriptions read "my" and "soul" in Hebrew. I just couldn't pass them by! (Now in a moment of honesty before I go, I also bought more fabric, but more on that another time!) I hope you are all keeping better than I have been and keep on keeping on :) 

So, mamas, so? Who wins?

Okay gals, the results are in! The winner of the Sew Mama Sew giveaway prize is number 16. That's Kristy QP!!! I will be sending you an email in just a minute to grab your details. A huge thanks to everyone else who responded, I now have some great ideas for desserts for family get-togethers this Christmas. Both on here and on a lot of other blogs this week I've seen a lot of hoo-ha about pumpkin. Pumpkin lattes, pumpkin eggnog, pies, puddings, tarts. It's not usually a done thing here in Australia but my interest has been piqued so I think my family may be turning orange around here these holidays! Again, thankyou to all you ladies who played and I hope you win a giveaway elsewhere in blog land! Merry Christmas :)

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day!

Hi there everyone! I love this giveaway day, it's a brilliant way to check out other people's craft blogs and get inspiration for your next project (oh, and to win cool stuff too) So what am I offering? A softies pattern from the brilliant Australian designers Melly and Me. If you've ever read my blog before, you'll know how much I adore their softies! This one is Penguin Parade, a group of super sweet little penguins just waiting for you to make them and love them.

Of course you'll need some fabrics to make these little darlings, so the winner will receive these also:

I am quite happy to ship internationally so entrants from all countries are welcome. Now you'll need to know what to do to be in the running for the prize! Simply leave a comment telling me your favourite Christmas dessert - traditional or modern. For a second entry, become a follower and leave a second comment letting me know. If you're super keen, you can leave a third comment with a link to your favourite Christmas pudding recipe as I'm still searching for one! Good luck everyone and don't forget to go back to Sew Mama Sew's giveaway page to enter more blog giveaways. Merry Christmas :)

Christmas Stockings. Done. Finally.

 I cannot begin to tell you how glad I am to have these stockings finishes. They have taken several attempts and stitch unpicking until I am finally semi-happy with them. I tried them without the ricrac, which I wasn't happy about, and with embroidered names, which I was also unhappy with since embroidery is definitely NOT my forte. I was inspired by these gorgeous polka dot stockings over at living with punks. I decided to go my own way rather than follow the tute. Big mistake, but oh well, they're done now. Five identical Christmas stockings. So now I have to get wrapping the stocking stuffers and hang the little buggers up. I'm almost certain I won't like them next Christmas and will have to make new ones, but for now I am pleased. They match my felt tree decos and will match the wreath once I have actually
made it. I love being on holidays and actually having time to craft!

So busy!

I wish I had more time to blog. Really I do. I envy all these lovely ladies with their booming crafters blogs, but I just can't seem to find the time. This weekend I have put up our Christmas tree and made some cute felt decos for it. 
My son loves the lights and is adamant that they go on IMMEDIATELY after dinner each night. Hubby took a day off work on Tuesday so that we could go do our Christmas shopping. Over a grand later, (six kids plus large families) our Christmas shopping is done! Because the smallies were at daycare that day, I also finally got my new tattoo which I am super pleased with. If anyone has clicked on, yes I am LDS and yes, tattoos are frowned upon in the eyes of the church, but I just can't help myself. My husband's name needed to make it's way onto my skin, so here it is. So as well as all this Christmas prep (which has barely begun) I have also been making things for my Etsy shop - makeup bags and wristlets. I have finally mastered how to insert a zipper so I am taking full advantage of that along with my other freshly learned
skill of raw edge applique. I adore making wristlets, they are super easy and super cute! Any way, I should stop blabbering because there are still so many things left to do... make stockings and bunting and a wreath, make fruit mince pies and sugar cookies, as well as wrap all these gifts. So until I've achieved some of these things to blog about, happy holidays!