I was beginning to get a bit worried about the house-warming gift I had sent off to the USA. However,all is well and it has arrived safely and all in one piece. I can now show you what I sent to Betsy at Simple Life of a Queen. Moving into a new home is such a special occasion that I couldn't resist making something for her. As I had hoped she now has it hanging in her Craft Room.
Incredible difference in colours from the outside shot to the indoor photo! I presume it must be the lighting in the hallway. The wall looks white too but its painted in pale blue.
Midday Sun over the Med Dream/Sun catcher. 30cm diameter. I used Katia Jaipur variegated cotton and Katia Capri cotton. The green blob at the end of the middle tassel is a little glass fish. It has been in my hoard of bits for years and I can't remember where I got it from. I am glad it has a new home.
I called this dream/sun catcher Midday Sun in the Med because through the mix of colours and the pattern I tried to portray the reflection of the hazy torrid midday sun soaking the Mediterranean with its fiery light and the ever-changing colours of the sea as the waves rise and fall.
When we see the sun position itself that high in the centre of the sky we know it is around about 12ish and our time to leave the beach. After midday it just gets far to hot and and unless you have the right gear and protection to spend the day on the beach it isn't advisable to stay any longer. We usually go from 9:30am until 12pm and just take our snorkelling gear,hats and towels and one small deck chair. I don't do sunbathing! I prefer to stay in the sea the majority of the time. It is the best place to be!
The Land of OZ
I am super pleased that I now have another blog friend and follower from Australia. I haven't got many blog contacts in OZ as yet. Should you like to pop in and visit Wendy at Ruff' Adventures I know she will be delighted to have more blog-friends.
As I have mentioned before I have family in Australia mostly in Queensland and a nephew in Melbourne. I have also been very lucky to have visited OZ twice for a month each time. Once in 2009 where I stayed in Hervey Bay,Queensland with my sister.
The highlight of my stay, other than seeing my sister again after eleven years, was to go whale watching with my niece past Fraser island,Queensland.We were really fortunate to sight a mother and calf. An amazing stroke of luck that I shall never forget. I was able to take some incredible photos hence my blog heading always has the photograph of the mother whale. I never tire of that photo and the fact that I took it myself.
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| Whale watching July 2009 Fraser Island,Queensland,Australia. |
The other time in 2011 I returned to Australia once again to stay with my sister who had bought a Motel and had moved from Queensland to New South Wales. It was a thriving business situated in a little inland town called Gilgandra which was a very popular midway stop off point for travellers on long distance journeys across Australia. There wasn't a lot to do or see in Gilgandra yet I enjoyed the different way of life,meeting people and also helping a little in the motel.
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| Gilgandra, New South Wales |
Nevertheless, my sister managed to organise several trips away and we went up into the Blue Mountains and also to Hunter's Bay.
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| Blue Mountains | |
Fabulous countryside and wonderful mountains which take your breath away.
We also went to Sydney to meet up with my other sister from the UK and stayed there for a few days to celebrate her birthday.
I don't like cities much...never have but Sydney is awesome.
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| Sydney Harbour | |
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| and... of course the Opera House. Fabulous Architecture! |
In all I thoroughly enjoyed both holidays and I have seen a lot of Australia but there is so much more that I want to see there! I do hope I will be able to go back.
My own personal ties there make me feel quite attached to it and hence I am drawn to bloggers from the Land of OZ. 🐳
Stormy Stormy day
Sunny Spain...well not this week more like wet soggy Spain!
Grumbling storm creeping in!
and the heavens open up....
Happy blogging
Amanda x
Thew dream catcher is amazing - no wonder you were concerned about it getting lost. It truly is beautiful.
ReplyDeletexx
Many thanks Joy. I also enjoyed making it :-) A x
DeleteI agree with Joy - the dreamcatcher is a lovely gift. I think the UK has got Spain's weather this week!
ReplyDeleteBest wishes
Ellie
Thank you Ellie. I think it has too as we have nothing but rain here. There have been serious floods in the next province. A x
DeleteGood morning Amanda, your sun catcher is gorgeous-and wow what a difference in the two photos. I have not been out of the States except for visiting Canada when I was a kid at home.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the photos of Australia-looks gorgeous, and glad you were able to visit family and see some sites too.
We have had sooooo much rain and also cooler warmer most of May and it is raining again today-the sewer crew works in light rain so it is a muddy mess here right now.
Enjoy your day-hugs Kathy
I just wanted you to know that I tried the link to the new blogger and I got a big red message from Blogger that it was a "dangerous" link
DeleteThat is strange! I have just tried it and didn’t get any message from blogger. Did anyone else get that?
DeleteHi Kathy, I just hope I'll be able to get back to Australia in the near future. My sister can't travel too far now as her husband is in his 80s. We are thinking we could meet half way somewhere like Hong Kong or Singapore or even Dubai where my nephew lives. Time will tell :-) A x
DeleteWhat a stunning gift! Just fantastically beautiful.
ReplyDeleteAnd thank you for the travel photos. Quarantine has meant only goiing places through others' generosity.
Hi KSD,thank you :-) Like yourself and more so since the various lockdowns I mainly travel nowadays via my armchair. At least we get a very personal view and commentary about wonderful places out there. It also inspires me to think about future travel plans. A x
DeleteThe dream catcher is lovely, what a wonderful gift to send. Thanks for giving us another mini-break! xx
ReplyDeleteHello HH, Many thanks. Glad you enjoyed the break :-) A x
DeleteThat suncatcher you made is beautiful. Love using up bits and pieces ☺☺ Oh I am in your blog ❤ I have sister in Brisbane Qld and rest of us are Melbourne or country victoria 😀😀 Thankyou Amanda.
ReplyDeleteNever been Hervey Bay or Fraser YET lucky you and whales. Fabulous you have family here and the blue mountains beautiful. We have a few in the UK and have (before covid) travelled over there a few times. Woody misses travel. 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀
Thank you for your latest email Wendy. Thanks! :-) I so look forward to visiting Australia again. I would really like to try out the Ghan through the Northern territory and my sister is keen too so we could make it a family trip. It is one way of seeing more of Australia over a short period of time. Have you done it? A x
DeleteI really, really love that amazing sun/dream catcher, the colours are fabulous. And I wondered about your header picture, so it wasn't taken in the Med! I always thought it was.
ReplyDeleteThank you for calling in Joy. You are right the whale photo is a little deceiving but I wanted a good sea photo as a header and I also felt quite chuffed about the photo I was lucky to take in Oz so I decided to use. 🙂. A x.
DeleteDear Amanda... I love the sun catcher that your kind hands made for dear Betsy and I know that she was ever so very delighted too!
ReplyDeleteI loved hearing about your Oz visits, I was born near Gilgandra and we often drove though it when we visited my grandma who lived near it.
I do love my country and have been blessed to travel a bit too, having friends and family overseas and visiting them .. however far I travel or roam though I am so glad glad to call Australia home!
No place like it.. last trip in 2018 I flew around the world literally, a bargain RTW ticket thanks to the LORD, and was just as glad as ever to go around the world.. but oh my home I love. You must call in if you ever get to travel again. I will look in on other Aussie blog too. 😃🙏❤️
Thanks for Sharing, God bless and keep you safe, and all those you love, hugs Shaz in Oz.x
{Wonderful Words of Life - Shaz in Oz}
{Calligraphy Cards - Shaz in Oz}
Your whale photos are amazing, I’ve seen dolphins that close, one even here in our local jetty, up very close, but not whales. Mind you we can go out the boats leave from our harbour to view them. I’ve seen them off the coast often though.
DeleteWhat a lovely house warming gift for Betsy, it's so pretty and the colours are beautiful, I bet she was thrilled with it. Your time in Australia sounds and looks amazing, I have been to N Zealand and we did stop off in the airport in Australia for 3 hours but that's all close as I got, my N Zealand friends now live in Brisbane so maybe I will get there one day. Have a great week, I hope the weather has improved.xx
ReplyDeleteHello Linda, Thank you :-) Brisbane is a beautiful city and I never thought I would ever say this about a city (I am anti-cities LOL! ). If you ever get to Brisbane take a trip down the river...fabulous views! My nephew has invited me several times to visit him in New Zealand and I would love to go but it is so costly at present. Hopefully in the near future :-) A x
DeleteNow we know where your header picture comes from :-)
ReplyDeleteOur son worked in Blue Mountains for a while when in OZ; unfortunately he experienced forest fires there and had to leave pretty sharp.
The dream catcher is lovely, love the colours
xx
Many thanks Radka. The Blue Mountains visit was fabulous however I wouldn't like to be stuck up there in a forest fire! Beyond scary! A x
DeleteLove your dream catcher, beautiful work. I´m sure your friend is very proud to display it in her craft room. What a total mix of weather at the moment, we are now watching the low clouds descent down the mountains, blocking every view, it´s forecast to pour tomorrow, waters the garden though lol. We have family over in Australia too, although we don´t keep in touch, just know through Ancestry, but Chris spent 23 years in NZ, he still keeps in touch with friends and family. Can´t see me ever going though. xcx
ReplyDeleteHi Chrissie. Thank you :-) It is hot here today and the forecast indicates temperatures are rising...hope that is for just a couple of days and not full blast heat already. My nephew keeps inviting me to visit him in NZ and I would really like to go but far too costly for the moment so put on stand by. A x
DeleteI love your gift for Betsy, that was so kind of you. I have always wanted to visit Australia, and Wendy is also a new friend of mine. It is so wonderful to connect with so many great people. Stay safe my friend.
ReplyDeleteThank you Mere. Betsy is always giving and making for others I though it was about time she received. :-) A x
DeleteJust popped in to say ¡Hola!
ReplyDeleteThe dreamcatcher is beautiful and such a lovely housewarming gift.
I enjoy crafts, although having arthritic hands I'm not a knitter or competent at crochet. My main interests are watercolour painting, glass and tile mosaics, and machine embroidery. In the past I`ve belonged to a local Craft group and tried my hand at all manner of things - some of which I never knew existed!
Interesting to read that you are near Alicante - I'm living just up the coast from you, in a rather wet and windy Calpe!
Hola :-) Thanks for visiting my blog. I have been looking but can't seem to find your blog. Perhaps you'd like to send me a link so I can comment there too. That's right,we live in Alicante City. Calpe is a lovely part of the coast,we go that way occasionally during our Sunday outings pre-Covid of course. We have been staying nearer to home during the various lockdown. Amanda :-)
DeleteNo, I don't have a blog - I just enjoy reading others. I find things other people have to say or do, much more interesting!
DeleteHi That¡s fine with me :-) You are most welcome to visit and comment when you like. A x
DeleteVery impressed with your whale photography - it never occurred to me you had taken the picture yourself. And the sun catcher is stunning - especially in the sun outside - lucky Betsy!
ReplyDeleteMany thanks for calling in :-) The dream/sun catcher does look good on a window too because there are little sparkly bits on the tassels so they make it shine. A x
DeleteYour dream catcher is really beautiful. Beautiful pictures of Australia, what a great trip and the whales are so beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThank you Loes. I just hope I get to go back to Australia it is a fabulous country. A x
DeleteWhat a gorgeous gift, Amanda, you've captured the sea and sun colors of the Mediterranean exactly. Your friend must be so pleased.
ReplyDeleteAmalia
xo
Thank you Amalia. I shouldn't say so but I am pleased with it. It is really hard to copy the sea's colours as they change constantly :-) A x
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