Holidays Malaysian Style!

A completely non-stitching, non-geeky post!

In April, my parents and I went to Malaysia for a week.  Flights had come up on sale about 8 months earlier so Mum and I decided we were going to go for a visit, and Dad, being retired now, decided to come too.

I love Malaysia.  I actually lived there for a year when I was 18 as part of a student exchange program with AFS.  I lived with a Malay family, went to school, and generally immersed myself in the culture.  I've been back several times over the years since, including once with Mum for my host sister's wedding.  This was Dad's first trip though, so we spent the week showing him the sights of Kuala Lumpur, meeting up with my host family and eating more food than you can imagine.

Seeing the sights: i-City, KL Tower, Central Markets, Merdeka Square, the Palace
and the Twin Towers.  The photo in the middle is the machine that cleans the
windows of KL Tower - Dad was fascinated by it.

Over the course of the 6 days we spent a lot of time catching up with my host family.  We saw them for dinner every night but one, and spent a day 1/2 sightseeing with them.  My host family are some of the most generous people I know, and I love them dearly.  They lived in a five-bedroom house with 5 children, a cousin, and myself, so it was quite a squeeze but also a lot of fun.  Now two of my host sisters are married with kids so I guess that makes me a host-aunty.... now it's just getting confusing!  My host parents own two restaurants so we spent most of our time with them eating, chatting and eating!  My host parents only speak a smattering of English so it put my Malay skills to the test, but I think I did pretty well given I haven't spoken any for 3 years, and haven't spoken it properly (as in full-time) in over 12 years.

My dads, my mums, and two of my sisters.  I call my host parents Mak and Ayah
which is Malay for Mum and Dad.  Look at the difference in heights of my mums!

Hanging out with my host family.  Bottom right is my youngest host brother, born
since I lived there.  One of my parent's restaurants has karaoke and he loves it!

One of the days we spent with my host family, they took us to i-City, a new theme-park-esk attraction in Kuala Lumpur.  One of the attractions was the Red Carpet, an ineractive wax work museum.  Interactive in that some of the figures moved.  It was a tad creepy by a lot of fun!  Dad in particular seemed to really enjoy it - he got right into posing with the different figures.  My niece and nephew also had a blast, particularly with the Mr Bean figure.

Dad discussing relativity with Einstein and meeting the Terminator.
Mum met the rather disturbing Queen of England.

We met Bill Gates, Barak Obama, Elton John, Elvis, and Mr Bean

Did I mention that we ate?  A lot?  Food is very cultural and very social in Malaysia.  Most gatherings involve food.  Someone comes to visit, you offer them food.  At least, that's what my family did, but then they do own a restaurant... They are also a very generous culture so like to give you a lot of food.  It's all very yummy and I can eat so much of it, but we were all bursting at the seams by the end of the week!  If you go to Malaysia (particulalry if you are fortunate enough to meet my host family) there are 3 words you need to learn: 

• "makan" which means "food" or "eat" 
• "sudah" which means "already" as in "sudah makan" "I've already eaten" (when someone asks you if you want to eat, you say "sudah" not "no" - "no" means you never want to eat and isn't a phrase you should use), and
• "Cukup" which means "enough".  I can never remember the word for "full" so just say "cukup, cukup!" "I can't eat another thing!"

The food is soooooo good.  Malay, Chinese, and Indian are the three main styles.
Bottom right - this was Dad and I with I think our 4th meal of the day (it was 4pm) -
we were so full, hence our rather concerned expressions! :)

Because I'd lived in Malaysia, and Mum had been there once before so had done most of the standard attractions, we decided to do some different things this visit.  We visited the Royal Selangor pewter factory and tried our hands at making our own pewter bowls - so much fun banging out metal.  We also tried batik painting.  I'd done this a couple of times before (both in high school in Australia, and when I lived in Malaysia), however it was mum and dad's first time.  Batik painting is where you use hot wax on silk to draw a design, and then use water colours to fill in the spaces.  We each had a dedicated teacher/assistant.  Mine was very hands-off and left me to my own devices (which I loved), Dad's was hands off but gave him a lot of help/suggestions with choosing colours.  Mum's was the most over-the-top - he didn't have great (ie any) English, so instead of giving mum instructions, would just take the tool away from her, and disregarded her choice of colours entirely.  Oh well, she still had a lot of fun.

Being artistic and creative in Malaysia

We had a fish foot spa, toured the pewter factors, rode betcas (rickshaws) in Melaka
climbed the Twin Towers and KL Tower, and visited the National Museum
which was having a tea display.  The red teapot is actually a walk-through display. 

All in all we had a fantastic time and one week was no where near long enough.  I'd love to visit more regularly than I have been (4 times in 12 years) but unfortunately money is always and issue.  I'm under strict orders that when my third host-sister gets married, the whole family have to come back, including my three brothers.  Hope you're saving up boys!

Happy Stitching!

Decorating for Christmas

Today is the first Sunday of Advent, and the weekend closest to 1st December, which means it's time to put out the Christmas decorations!

I love decorating for Christmas.  I get it from my mum.  When we were kids there were decorations everywhere - in the kitchen, in the hall, in the lounge room, even in the bathrooms!  Hanging decorations was one of my favourite family Christmas activities - that and looking at Christmas lights.

It still is one of my favourite Christmas activities.  Finding unique or special ornaments on my travels, reliving the memories as I decorate, or creating something special of my own.  These are some of my favourites on display this year.

The cross stitch Nativity scene on plastic canvas.  I started this about 10 years ago, although it took me awhile to finish.  It was a 3-parter in a CrossStitcher magazine probably about 15 or 20 years ago.  We had one of the parts and Mum managed to track down the others so I could stitch the series.  There's also an angel, a star, and the Inn Keeper and his wife, but I need to buy more stands to display them!  I've used game piece stands which work a treat.

Blackwork Christmas Angel.  This one also came from a magazine, although I can't remember which one!  It was one of the patterns I stitched in 2012 when I lived in the UK. She was meant to have a border around her, but I didn't like it, so I left it off - after all, life's too short to stitch background.













My cross stitch advent calendar - another one from a magazine!  I think this was also from CrossStitcher.  There's a stitched picture on each reverse side.  4 and 15 are missing because I have to fix their hangers.  Mum made the hanging quilt.  It has tabs to hang on a dowel hanger, but I'm using a skirt hanger in the meantime.

Ninja turtle baubles.  They were surprisingly easy to make  - green baubles, ribbon, googly eyes and some craft glue.

My Christmas decorations from my travels in the UK and Europe.  They should be hanging on the tree, but my 7 month old kitten thinks the Christmas tree is her new climbing frame and that anything hanging on it is hers to attack by right.  So instead they are on sticky hooks on one of the high kitchen cabinets to keep them safe!  The teacup and crown come from the Royal Palaces in England, the shamrock from Ireland, the purple bell is from Germany, the man in the red circle is from Iceland, and the two on red ribbons are from Harrods.

My second advent calendar - Lego Star Wars!  Very excited to start this tomorrow. Each day you get a little thing to create or build.  I had to hunt it down online because the only one I could get locally was the Lego City one.  And Star Wars is so much cooler.

Discworld Christmas cards.  I bought a set of 4 one year, gave two away as presents, and kept the other two as decorations.  They did hang on my wall for about two years before joining the Christmas decorations box.  Artwork by the very talented Paul Kidby

The Willow Tree nativity scene.  I love Willow Tree figurines - they are some of the only dust-collectors that I own.  The nativity scene is just stunning in its simplicity.  There are a couple of other sets you can buy to build on it - the wise men, and a set of animals.  Maybe one year.






Do you decorate for Christmas?  Do you go all out, or only have a few special decorations?  Do you prefer to have colour themes, or do you keep and collect your decorations to use year after year?  Are you a geeky Christmas person, or more traditional?  Religious or mainstream? Or maybe you don't do Christmas at all - maybe you do Hanaka or forego religious celebrations. I'd love to hear how you decorate (or don't) for Christmas, or any other holidays.

Happy Stitching!

Gotta Stitch'em All - Pokemon memories and a new cross stitch pattern

Pokemon dominate a lot of my teenage memories, in particular family holidays.  Bare with me - there is a stitch-y point to this blog I promise.

When I was growing up, my father's family lived an 8 hour drive north of us, and my mother's family lived a solid 2 day drive (as in 10 hour days) south of us.  So any holiday involving visiting the family meant a lot of driving.  Flying wasn't an option to visit Dad's family (cattle station in the middle of nowhere), and with a family of 6 it would have been too expensive to fly to visit Mum's family.  So we drove.  We got good at driving.  In my memories we were pretty good travellers - it was just what we did on family holidays.  We learnt to entertain ourselves.  I tended to stitch, my three brothers tended to read or play Game Boys.

Family camping holiday 2004
Mum, Dad, Grandma, three brothers, and exchange student
from Japan

 The game of choice tended to be Pokemon.

In fact, I don't remember their Game Boys being used for anything else.

One particularly strong travelling Pokemon memory is in 2004 when we went on a four-week driving holiday around Central Australia.  Dad had fitted cigarette lighters in the back of the Landcruiser and the boys (my three brothers plus our exchange student from Japan) had adapters so they could run their Game Boys through the cigarette lighters and charge their Game Boy at the same time.  This did mean though that as soon as Dad turned off the car, the Game Boy would shut down.  The catch-cries of the camping trip quickly became:

Family camping holiday 2004
All 8 of us (I'm taking the photo) crammed into the car
Game Boys were down long enough to smile for the photo!

"Don't turn off the car, I haven't saved yet" and "I can't save, I'm in the middle of a battle".

"I'm in the middle of a battle" is still the catch-cry of our family, particularly when someone doesn't respond immediately!

At Uluru (Ayre's Rock) 2004

Although they are now all in their 20s (or almost - 2 months to go for the youngest), Pokemon is still a favoured game amongst my brothers and I.  My eldest brother recently loaded a version of Pokemon onto my iPad... not a lot else was accomplished for a good few weeks!

To celebrate this awesome, long-lived, much-loved game I have designed some cross-stitch patterns (I told you there was a point to this ramble!)

It started with a Pokemon Alphabet.  This is the Pokemon Alphabet as determined by my youngest brother.  I tried to get my brothers and sister-in-law to collaborate on designing the perfect Pokemon Alphabet but that proved too much of a challenge!!  To make everyone happy though, custom orders are available for this pattern - choose your favourite 26 Pokemon and have an alphabet designed just for you - check out the Etsy page for details.

For all those people (like me) who never managed to catch all 151 Pokemon, there is now the "Gotta Catch'em All" cross stitch pattern, featuring the original 151 Pokemon.

It is a massive pattern, fitting into an A1 frame, but how cute are they?!

While I was looking out mini sprites to turn into cross stitch patterns, I became a bit overwhelmed with how big the Pokemon universe has become!  I tend to only think of the original 151.  No - now there are over 700 Pokemon!  719 to be exact I think.  Well, I can't stop at just 151, now can I?

So now there is the Generation II Pokemon cross stitch pattern, featuring the Pokemon from the Silver, Gold and Crystal versions of the game - numbers 152-251.  This also fits into an A1 frame.

Generations III, IV, V and VI are in the planning stages and will probably be finished over the Christmas holidays when I have 4 or 5 weeks off work :)

Happy Stitching, and remember - Gotta Stitch'em All!!

Oz Comic Con, Veronica Mars, and me

The Oz Comic Con is happening at the moment, with days in Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Adelaide, and, for the first time ever, Brisbane!!

So I went.

Of course I went. Was there ever any doubt I would? 

With my brother, waiting for one of the Q&As to start

October last year I went to the London MCM Comic Con.  I had so much fun I decided I wanted to go to one in Australia with one or more of my brothers as there was a lot of anime and computer game stuff that they are into and which I don't understand. Found out it was on in Brisbane, gave my brother a ticket for his birthday present (which is in January, so he had a bit of a wait!) and booked my flights.

I had a great time.

In the lead-up when guests where being announced, there weren't any that I was really excited about. There were a couple of people from Stargate coming which was cool, but no one else. Sorry William Shatner - I'm just not a super-duper fan.

Nicholas and Emma in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer".
Image from bbc.co.uk

This all changed about two weeks out (when I realised that I hadn't actually bought tickets, I just thought I had, but it all worked out okay), when I found out that Nicholas Brendon (Xander) and Emma Caulfield (Anya) were going to be guests.  I have loved Buffy The Vampire Slayer since I was a teenager.  The wit, the sheer cleverness of it, plus the great characters... What's not to love? Joss Whedon is a brilliant writer, and Xander was always one of my favourite characters. So I was pretty excited.

The cast of Veronica Mars.
Image from warnerbros.com.au

But not as excited as when I saw that Jason Dohring (Logan), Percy Daggs III (Wallace) and Michael Muhney (Sherif Lamb) were coming to Brisbane. Veronica Mars, people.  Check it out.  Buffy was my high school show.  Veronica Mars was my uni show.  Intrigue, plot, characters, dialogue, one-liners, twists and turns, heartache, plus utter cuteness of the male cast.  I was sad when it was cancelled.  I backed the Kickstarter campaign for the movie.  I waited in anticipation for the movie's release and the book and enjoyed both.  It's not Doctor Who or Discworld, but it's pretty damn good.  And I was very excited to see the cast were coming to Brisbane.

Finn the Human

Oh, and Orlando Bloom was there too.  Quite a coup for Brisbane.  I was excited, but not as much as for Veronica Mars and Buffy. My brother was pretty excited about Orlando. And about the guy from Game of Thrones, Jason Momoa.  I don't watch Game of Thrones, so can't comment.

My Comic Con costume

I enjoyed Oz Comic Con. I loved looking at the costumes and admiring the cosplay.  I enjoyed wandering around the stalls and checking out the games and merch for sale.  Bought my brother's Christmas and birthday presents. I had fun chatting to other fans and getting the chance to wear my Harry Potter cloak.

I really enjoyed attending the Q&As with Michael Muhney, Percy Daggs III, and Jason Dohring. So much fun.

Percy and Michael's Q&A

But the major Fangirl, squeal-enticing, shaking-so-I-couldn't-sit-down moments: having a photo with the three Veronica Mars boys.

With Percy, Michael and Jason

Oh and one with Emma Caulfield and Nicholas Brendon.

With Emma and Nicholas

My brother went back on Sunday for a photo with Orlando Bloom and to listen to the Q&A with Jason Momoa. I had to fly back home. Downside of living in a small town in Central Queensland.

With Orlando Bloom!

But I got to hug Percy, Michael and Jason, so it all works out I guess!

Some more pics from our adventure:

My brother's Comic Con buys

I'm now a toy!

Facing off against the Black Knight
(Monty Python's Holy Grail)

My other brother posing

Finn and I in line

How do you finish up a day at Comic Con?
With Magic the Gathering and dodgy cartoons of course!

Happy Stitching and Geeking!!

Stitching in flight - Tips for successful in-flight cross stitching

Queensland school holidays begin at the end of this week - a time of travel, relaxation and a chance to catch up on stitching projects. I am having a week off these holidays (public servants do not get the full school holidays) and am going to Brisbane for a few days- a journey that (this time) will involve 1 1/2 hours in a plane and 10 hours in a car. Perfect stitching time!

Stitching while travelling takes a bit of preparation but I find it the perfect time to catch up on my stitching- what else is there to do while sitting in an airport, on a plane, or in a car (providing you aren't driving of course!!). As I plan my holiday stitching I thought I'd share my preparations:

1. The project itself - this will often depend on what I'm currently in the middle of, however smaller is always better!  Takes up less room in the suitcase, plus it's easier to manage in the car or on the plane :).  My favourite travel material these days is plastic canvas because it doesn't need a frame.  I've got a couple of projects on the go at the moment, but I'm going to be taking my newest pattern in order to finish the test stitch.  It measures 30 by 30, but doesn't have too many colours and fits nicely in a smaller frame.



2. The pattern - I tend to find it a good idea to only take a photocopy of your pattern with you, rather than the original.  That way if you spill your drink on your pattern or lose it in transit, you will still have your original waiting safely for you when you return.  These days, with the wonders of technology I no longer have to take a paper copy with me - my patterns are either PDFs saved on my iPad or computer, or photographs/scans of the originals.  Even more space saved :)

I think I've got the "spare needles"
 point covered

3. Extra needles - so very important!  Invariably if I forget to pack extras I will loose my needle within the first half hour.  Guaranteed.  I have a cute little tin that came free with a magazine that has a magnetic strip in the lid - very useful for keeping your needles organised (or at least together!)

QSnap Frame

4. Frame - unless I'm using plastic canvas or the project is minuscule, I never stitch without a fame.  The loss of tension frustrates me and I find I get too many knots.  I love my frames.  I have a couple of smaller hoops that are not only suitable for smaller projects, but perfect travel size.  However these days I prefer to use the plastic snap frames than hoops, and during my visit to the craft fair in March, I picked up a lovely small one (6") that fits nicely in my travel pack.

The Clover Thread Cutter Pendant

5. Thread cutter - with airport rules what they are these days you have to be so careful about scissors.  The last thing you want to do is loose your good pair at airport security!  One of my best travel investments years ago was the Clover Thread Cutter Pendant.  Worth its weight (which isn't much) in gold.  It's airport safe and can be worn on a chain around your neck (although the small opening means you need to be selective about which necklace you use!).

Triumph LED light

6. Light - another recent purchase at the craft fair was a small LED clip-on light.  Originally designed/marketed for reading, I find it the perfect travel size for stitching in the car and plane.  Now I have excellent light throughout the flight, even when they dim the cabin lights and without disturbing my fellow passengers, plus I don't lose valuable stitching time in the car after the sun goes down.




7. Carrying bag/box - last but certainly not least is the all important carrying box.  For many years I used a soft calico bag to keep my stitching supplies together while on holidays, which worked well, although didn't always keep the sand and dirt out, and wouldn't keep everything dry if it was dropped in water or had a drink spilled on it.  I've recently invested in some small plastic storage boxes to keep my WIPs in, and they are perfect for travelling.  The small 500ml and 1 litre sizes are great for stitching projects - everything folds up neat and tidy.  Best of all, they are dirt and water proof, and fit perfectly in my handbag for carry-on luggage.  The light won't fit inside, but that can go separately in my handbag.


8. A couple of other items - these aren't essentials, however can be useful depending on the project
Mini Highlighter - to help keep my place on my cross stitch pattern.  This is becoming less and less of a useful item as I move to PDF and scanned patterns on the iPad, but is still very valuable for the good old paper copies.
Thread Heaven - to keep my metallic threads in a usable condition.  And it comes in a lovely travel sized box.


Now that all the important packing is done, I suppose I should start on the rest of it.  You know, clothes and stuff.

I'd love to hear your stitchy travelling tips.

Happy stitching!!

Happy Mother's Day plus a free pattern!

The second Sunday in May is Mother's Day in Australia, so happy mother's day to all the wonderful mums out there.

Ozzypip and I - Germany 2010

In particular, Happy Mother's Day to my own wonderful mum, Ozzypip from Ozzypip Quilts.  My mum is a pretty amazing person - she's very generous with her time, and volunteers a lot around the community, particularly for our Church - leads the singing, teachers RE (religious education), helps with the service at the Aged Care Home in town, was coordinator of the Sunday School.

With Ozzypip in Scotland, 2013

She's also on the committee for her patchwork group, used to be involved in the school P&C (when she still had kids at school), was a breastfeeding councillor for 19 years.  Most recently Mum agreed be prompt for the play I'm directing after the girl who was going to do it had to pull out due to a clash of dates - no small task when you consider the number of rehearsals we've been having lately!

   

Doctor Who Spectacular - 2014

More than all that though, Ozzypip and my dad raised four awesomely geeky kids, and put up with us quoting movies and books at every given occasion.  She and my father got me hooked on reading, introduced me to Harry Potter and Doctor Who, showed me the world of British crime drama, taught me the value of audiobooks on long car rides, and showed me how much fun theatre and musicals are.

At the Harry Potter Studio Tour -2013

She instilled in me the value of family, friendship and my religious faith, gave me the confidence to be myself and to know that I could succeed in whatever I wanted to do.  Lately she's been supporting, pushing, and promoting Fangirl Stitches, again showing me that I can do what I want to do if only I strive to succeed.  We've travelled around the world together, and she is my closet friend and confident.  Love you Mum!



To celebrate Mother's Day, I've got a free pattern for you:  the most amazing mum in the Harry Potter series - Mrs Weasley, who went down in history for her line "Stay away from my daughter, you bitch!"

Happy Stitching, and Happy Mother's Day!!