Free Christmas gift pattern number 3...

 

With finances tight for many families and singles these days, creating small gifts which can fit inside a card, whether for Christmas or birthdays, means we can still reach out with love to family and friends near or far. 

The three little gifts included in this one pattern today can be sewn using small scraps of fabric, and embellished with beads, lace, ribbons, tiny buttons - the small bits and bobs we save because they are pretty and we hope to use them one day. 

Inside this free pattern you will find not just embroidery instructions, but tutorials for making the sweet gifts. The lavender sachet below can be kept under a pillow, in an underwear or nightgown drawer, or hung as I have done from a coat hanger in the closet. 

The bookmark is a lovely gift to send to an avid reader, and could even be gifted inside a book. Are there some lovely books on your shelf which you will no longer need or read? Consider regifting them with a pretty bookmark, or perhaps you could sew a pretty cover for the book using one of the little embroidery motifs in this pattern set? 

For many years I would gift Blossom one of my vintage novels every Christmas, and she was thrilled to receive the beautiful works of Jane Austen, Louisa May Alcott and other favourite authors which I had read with her during our homeschooling years. Now they sit on her own shelves, awaiting the day when she can begin reading them to her own daughters. Perhaps you can do something similar with treasured books to be handed down?

The gift card is such a cute way to dress up a wrapped present, but is also lovely just as it is because it can be used as another bookmark. 

One of my projects for 2024 is to make a box of these kind of gift cards, using small fabric pieces such as vintage or recycled linen, lovely cottons, sweet satins and old lace. I'll also make some of the lavender sachets and the bookmarks, because there's nothing more satisfying than to have pretty handmade, useful, gifts on hand to send away in a card. 

Oh, and I'll also be making cards, something I have planned for the longest of times, but which has not been followed through on thus far.

Use the link below to download the free pattern.

DOWNLOAD We Three Gifts pattern

If you missed the first two free 2023 Christmas gift patterns they are HERE and HERE

Not a lot has been happening here at home. There's been no rain other than the hour we received a week ago, so the garden is a bit worse for wear. My roses easily scorch on the tips of their petals if I don't pick them first thing in the morning, when still at the budding stage, yet they smell divine and grace my desk with beauty and dignity. 

Blossom bought me a bunch of sunshine yellow chrysanthemums last weekend and they are still as fresh as ever! That's what I enjoy about mums - they last and last, decorating your home with their presence for weeks. 

As we need to stay indoors more at this time of year due to the intense heat and humidity, once the housework is done I settle down for a bit of reading and a cuppa. I have all three of Rhonda Hetzel's books, and have read them a few times each, but this little one is brilliant for a condensed read and I have highlighted and made notes all through it - adding more each time I read it. 

If you haven't got her two large volumes, or don't have finances for them, then let me assure you that this small book is simply marvellous for learning of her journey to a simpler life, the success and freedom she and her husband found, as well as the challenges along the way. Its available here on Amazon Australia

It's also available here on Amazon US and I just checked and the Kindle version is only $2.99 at the moment. 

I am NOT an amazon affiliate, just really love her books and think this little one is a great place to start. 

Molly-dog is now one year old, and has become our little shadow, no matter where we are. The funny thing about pugs is that they don't look happy, and yet I have found them to be very happy dogs. Molly loves her toys but her favourite is a piece of checked fabric which I tied with a knot in the centre. She was getting into mischief in my sewing room, you see, pouncing on any bits of fabric I dropped...so I thought, "Aha, you are fabric lover too are you, Missy? Then you shall have your own." Since she got her own large piece she has not touched mine. Yay. 

Many of our sunflowers have gone to seed now, which has brought even more birds to the garden. A gorgeous pair of red-winged parrots visit each afternoon to feast, and they are joy to behold! 

The cockatoos prefer to eat from the bird feeder, as do the rainbow lorikeets, but these parrots swing back and forth on the sunflowers and have dinner there instead. 

I have been doing some more crochet edging, but mostly for my older daughters. I'm sending them new crochet-edged tea towels for Christmas (they live in other states far from us) as they both prefer something handmade for gifts. I bought tea towels on sale at Bed, Bath & Table yesterday, in a mix of styles as both girls (and Blossom too) have very different preferences. These are a few I'm working on today...

I finished this blue one last night. It only takes an hour and keeps my hands occupied while we listen to a sermon, or teaching on various subjects like gardening in the tropics or health related seminars.

I always match the cotton yarn with the print of the tea towel, and leave a few pairs on the table at a time so that even if I only have twenty minutes or so of free time (while dinner is cooking perhaps) I can pick one up and make a start for later in the evening.

This is the new runner I'm working on for the top of a chest of drawers in our bedroom. I'll get back to it once all the girl's gifts are made. It's more of the Cath Kidston cotton duck fabric I have had on hand for years. 

Today is Charlie David's 3rd birthday!!

But I am going to ask you to pray for him as he has been ill for a few days - dreadfully high fever, vomiting etc. It has gone through all of Blossom's children, plus Ross (and it was his first week on his new job), but little Charlie got it last of all. So we shan't see him today as he needs rest and healing. Your prayers would be the best birthday gift. ((thank you))

Did I ever tell you that the 'David' in his name was for King David? Blossom always knew that if she had a son she'd want him to be a man after God's own heart and that she would have David in his name so that she could teach him all about his namesake and how God was able to use him. 

(Charlie David pretending to be Nana at her desk - :-)

How are YOU?? What's been happening in your life this past week? Is there anything you need prayer for? Just ask. xxx

My love and prayers go out for all of you who read along, knowing that our God hears them and acts on your behalf because He loves you so much. His answers may not always be what we wanted, they may not come as swiftly as we'd hoped, and for a while we might think He is deaf to our needs...but no, He is our Father and He always answers prayers in the way that is best for us because He is outside of time and knows the beginning from the end. So, we must have faith, hold fast to hope, always choosing to live according to God's Word, and remembering we were bought at a great price by the blood of His Son.

We have a cyclone on the way, and the Bureau of Meteorology expect it to hit somewhere around our region on Wednesday if it follows their predicted trajectory, however, having lived in this cyclone region for more than fourteen years now, I know that cyclones can change their track at any time, so it may move further north, go south, or decide to make landfall here. For the next few days we'll just watch and prepare 'in case' it comes close to home. Thanks for all the emails asking me about it's proximity to us. I'll update on Monday when I share the fourth free pattern. 

God bless you all!

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The subtle slide into laziness and a free pattern...

November has been a real challenge with migraines most days due to our weather. The cloud cover is almost constant, but though just a few kilometres up the road rain has fallen on nearby suburbs, or further north, the clouds refuse to drop the water from heaven on our area. 

Barometric migraines are the worst ones for me because I cannot control them by eliminating the food, light or weariness triggers of my other migraines. That blanket of cloud feels like a vice I am trapped in, and the only relief is when they burst forth with rain - and when that happens the pain just disappears in minutes. So we are praying for rain even more than usual. This time of year in our tropics is the wet season, but so far it's started around us but not on us. Never mind, all challenges teach us something, and this recent challenge has taught me to examine how easily a bad habit can be formed during these longer than usual seasons of migraine. What is that habit you ask? Laziness.

After seven babies (with migraine through all of them) my pain tolerance is quite high, so I am still able to function at a slower, quieter pace around the home when the pain is severe. During this current bout of migraine I began crochet edging, firstly on runners for the home, and then on to new tea towels for Christmas gifts and to restock my own supply in the New Year as is my custom. 

It is such a calming, simple pastime, and as I crocheted I would listen to sermons, watch episodes of The Waltons, or historical documentaries on YouTube. I did still need to water the gardens but resorted to the sprinkler most afternoons as being outside just made my head worse. I still did the washing, prepared meals (especially a very healthy breakfast for my husband and I) and did a general tidy...but the regular afternoon rest time I've always adhered to became longer and longer. On days when I was free of pain you'd think that I would get in and do a jolly good scrub around the home, but I found myself having fallen into the distraction of spending long hours at crochet each afternoon just as on the days of pain, until it was time to begin our evening meal and fold the washing.

Well, that new 'habit' continued for about twelve days, and then I listened to a young mother of six in her mid-30's, and she spoke straight out of God's Word and into my heart. Older ladies, never turn your ears from listening to younger homemakers, for often they will point out things we may have missed or have 'slipped' away from. 

Obviously I'm not proud of my subtle slide into laziness, but I felt impressed to share it with you because so often, especially in times of illness or prolonged pain, we can slide into routines and habits that are not productive in the long term. On my really bad days I shall still sit quietly, but on the not so bad ones and the days when I am pain free, it's back to living my wonderfully gentle domestic life, embracing all the Lord has put before me, for they are great blessings!

Once I had woken up to the subtleness of my slide into long lazy afternoons, I wrote down a list of things which needed to be done around home, and depending on how I felt each day, I completed those tasks over the course of this past week. The linen cupboard was a dreadful mess. It's not on my list of important tasks, but on the seasonal list - and being that we are about to welcome summer in a few days, this big seasonal task had to be tackled. I thoroughly enjoyed bringing everything out in to the living room and going through it! I was able to donate about one quarter of what was in there, mostly items kept for the grandchildren, but which they no longer use or had grown out of. We do not have much storage in our modest home so their spare clothes, toys and games are kept there, you see. Plus there were old ratty towels and similar items which my husband can use for rags in his workshop out back. 

Grain was milled, fresh flour baked into delicious bread. Before and after...

Nutritious evening meals, like this yummy lentil curry with brown rice, were made...

Treats were baked for the grandchildren...

...and both fridges were given a thorough clean out. I also rearranged the living/dining area and scrubbed everything there as well. 

Fresh roses picked from the garden are popped here and there in vases around the house and add the most delightful scent. 

On my list of tasks to accomplish, I included fun things too, like putting aside some of the crochet and getting back to work on Blossom's 30th birthday quilt (she will be 30 next May). Now that I've returned to my hour of handwork after lunch each day (a little longer if it's a migraine day), I'm enjoying the making of Dresden fan blocks in her requested 1930's style fabric prints. I need sixteen blocks and have completed seven so far since June, the last two this past week. 

It's very relaxing to make the individual fans in the evening when my husband is home and we're sitting together watching a good sermon, or a documentary. I stitch slow because there's no rush, and because I do most things slowly these days out of choice. Why rush, rush, through the day when it is such a precious gift to be savoured? 

I have spent most of my life powering through the days God gave me, but since about 2015 I have gradually (very gradually) retrained my mind to slow, to notice what's around me, to be fully present in the day as it is given. Jesus told us to focus on today, not to faint over what tomorrow may hold because it may come with troubles, and worrying about the 'what ifs' robs us of His peace today. 

So what I have learned through November is to be watchful of subtle lazy habits which are easy to fall into, especially when pain is dominating my days. Getting up and moving through my normal gentle homemaker rhythms and routines as best I can, with a bit more gusto on really good days, is very important, more that I first imagined, because its the reason I love this gentle domestic life. Within the pain and the long lazy afternoons (there were some lazy morning too, and my floors could attest to that) I began to feel something wasn't right, like a loss of something meaningful, but I was so absorbed in the crochet distraction (even on days when pain wasn't bad) that I was blind to the new problem I had created. Praise God this only lasted a couple of weeks! Imagine if I'd kept going along that path? 

This home my husband and I share is our sanctuary, it is a God-gifted anchor to our life, a place where we are always welcome, always able to relax and unwind from the chaos of the world around us. But a sanctuary must be cultivated, loved, and thoughtfully maintained to reflect the lives of those who dwell within. It is made beautiful when purposefully crafted with generosity, compassion, kindness, hospitality and time - and it is doubly blessed by the precious voices of praise and prayer which fill each room.

As we move closer to year's end, I plan on recommitting my homemaker intentions to the Lord, to seek His will moving forward, and to let go of those habits or pursuits which He sees as a hindrance to the higher calling He has put on my life. That calling? Loving wife, mother, grandmother...devoted homemaker. Praise Him for opening my eyes quickly to that slide down Lazy Lane. May He open my eyes to every path which draws me away from His best in my life. 

FREE pattern...

I love this prayer, and think it's really worthwhile to have it hanging in our homes as a reminder that those daily chores which sometimes seem endless and boring and exhausting, are evidence of great blessings.

Use the link below to download this free pattern. 

DOWNLOAD The Kitchen Prayer pattern

God bless you, keep you safe, fill your heart with hope and joy, and gently direct you along the blessed path He created for your precious and very unique life. 

Till next time, hugs...

Don't miss out on any Elefantz news or free patterns. 

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Slowing the everyday...

I always find the weekly rhythm of homemaking to be a constant source of peace and calm, satisfaction, gratitude, and productivity in my everyday life. It also provides a sense of purpose, something many of us look for, yet too often a thing we can doubt. 

Knowing your unique purpose removes a lot of self doubt from the mind. When we become aware it, usually from a very young age or later when the Lord places it right in the centre of our hearts as a desire waiting to be fulfilled, we can choose to follow where it leads, or, as many do, choose a different path. I have done both in different seasons of life...and the paths I chose were both 'good', but as the years progressed, one path shone far more brightly than the other. That bright path, over time, was to expand my love for God, family and home. It caused me to see the very real need for a revival in homemakers, and homemaking. 

Friday's prep for the weekend: 2 litres of almond milk, bread from freshly ground grain, cranberry rock cakes.

 As with many things in life, I have a tendency 'at times' to push myself too hard, and then as the months pass, one day I'll find myself collapsing in a worn-out mess for a while, unable to do a lot until my energy (and health) recovers a week or two later - but I do believe in the past year especially, that I have finally learned to balance the everyday tasks and interactions of a homemaker life. 

Today my daily homemaker rhythms are kinder, slower and gentler than ever, each task bringing simple delights, gratitude and smiles. If I cannot complete the tasks on my list by the end of the day or the week, it causes me no regret or feelings of failure; I simply move those tasks to another day in order of importance...and not many are very important anyhow. For example, I like to regularly pull everything out of the linen cupboard and give it a clean, replacing each item neatly and in order, and placing anything no longer needed into the charity box which is kept in the boot of my car - but this is not a task of importance. It's a task to do when I have time, or when I'm in the mood for a deep clean of cupboards through the house (usually once per season). 

(as there are only two of us at home now, I bake the bread so that it's easy to pull into two halves, one for now and one for the freezer)

It was quite an epiphany this year to grasp a certain truth about age - more specifically, about what is expected of us as we age. How can I at 64 expect to keep moving at the same pace as I did at 34, 44 or 54? Well, unless I am on some ego trip to keep up with the younger generation, at this time of life I need to allow myself to pull back and slow down more, resting a while each afternoon with a book, some crochet, or an episode of The Waltons (currently watching my way through the entire series); perhaps reading some blogs or writing cards, continuing with my Bible study from that morning, having a short nap or praying for my loved ones. 

(I'm currently crocheting the edges of some new thick cotton tea towels)

Living a slower life does not mean living an easier life. I still need to keep the floors vacuumed and mopped, the washing hung on the line, the ironing done, meals prepared, bathrooms scrubbed, gardens weeded and watered...but those tasks are not raced through, or burdensome anymore. They are very important tasks, and when completed with a gentle and joyful attitude, unhurried but done with diligence and care, they bring a great deal of satisfaction to my homemaker heart. I no longer think about what I'll do when I finish them, because that is the main reason I used to rush. My mind is on the privilege of having a home to maintain, someone to care for, and the gift of another day of life with a body that still has working limbs. I even appreciate the migraines which the Lord has never seen a need to heal me of, because they also remind me to slow things down. 

(I recently used four orphan applique blocks in the corners of a new topper for my kitchen island and finished it with crochet edging...yes, I am addicted to this craft)

Sometimes we read articles or blogs where the writer has done so much around the home that our heads are spinning wondering how they do it, and that can cause feelings of failure or disappointment in our own achievements. Let me gently remind you that they are living a different life to you. They will have completely different life circumstances - such as where they live, size of their home and property, their age, their finances, hands on help, climate, health, and responsibilities. If you are content with your day-to-day tasks, and can keep up with the important things such as looking after your family, your home, your health and your relationship with Jesus, then cheer them on in the comments, whilst cheering yourself for living a life that brings joy and satisfaction within the home sanctuary you have created.

**Admittedly, many emails and comments have been left here on my blog over the years asking "how do you get so much done?!"...and I can confess that I used to be a bit of whirlwind around the house, garden and in the design studio, because I am a true introvert and spend almost every day at home alone, so I had time to do those things back then. Now I enjoy the slower rhythms of each day.**

(the last of our tomatoes and snow peas picked from the garden)

How you live your life is also unique to your circumstances. We may face seasons that stretch us further than we thought we could endure, times when the grace of God is the only thing that keeps us going, so especially in those seasons do not compare yourself to another. I don't believe we should compare ourselves to others at any time, yet even unconsciously to some extent we probably will...but if that happens, stop and consider the very real differences between your life and what you know of the other's life. Don't be disheartened if you're not as well off, as healthy, as seemingly happy, as creative, as beautiful, or as organised as they appear to be...just be YOU, wonderful YOU, a unique and lovely woman crafted by our God, a God who has a mighty heart which stamped the full depth of His love on a cross. For YOU. 

We have six foot high sunflowers across the front of the house. No amount of sun or extreme heat can thwart their natural tendency to look up at the sun and follow it across the sky. 

Dear one, let us be like the sunflower and let nothing turn us away from the true Son. Let our hearts look up to Him and follow His example in how we live our lives, treat others, and bear witness to His Word. 

Precious girl, if your purpose seems clouded and elusive right now, if you are just not sure what you're meant to be doing (and how) with the rest of your earthly life, know I am praying this coming week that the fullness of the knowledge of His purpose for you becomes radiantly clear, and that His peace which surpasses all understanding will fill your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. 

Hugs

Counting the cost...

Dear friends, Thank you for the prayers many of you have offered on our family's behalf, prayers for employment for both my husband and our son in law Ross. I want to assure you that Blossom and I have complete trust in the Lord to provide what is needed at the right time. My husband knows this too, but being the head of the home and our main provider, there's more pressure on him (in his own mind) to gain work soon. Ross is not a Christian so he's feeling more pressure with each week that passes...so we keep praying, and as my beloved Nana would say all the time, "God willing it (whatever the need or plan was) will come to pass." 

Homemaking in my experience, is like the seasons, a rhythmic change of circumstances. We have the season of noisy growing children filling the rooms, and then the season of  quiet when they have left the nest. There are the seasons of plenty, times when we have comfortably enough, and the times when every penny counts. A season of excellent health may be followed by a serious illness, and vice versa. Our home garden might be abundant one year, and swallowed up by flood or drought the next, and of course there may be a season of being ably employed, followed by a season of no work at all. 

As a homemaker first and foremost, I find myself challenged in various ways when a certain season arrives or leaves. For example, I knew in advance that my husband would be unemployed by early October, so I did what I immediately thought should be done, and began a new Stitchery Club to at least help us pay the mortgage each week...but I was wrong to do that. 

Hubby used to work six days a week, and when he would have holidays I'd consciously pull back a bit with my regular chores so that we could spend more time together, especially in the garden as that's a pastime we really enjoy. But a week or two later he was back at work and after playing catch-up with deep cleaning for a few days, I'd settle back to the normal routines and rhythms of keeping home.

Having him home now for an unknown period of time, and adding a new Stitchery Club to my list of to-dos (working on the club requires hours every day) on top of my regular and important responsibilities around home, he has noticed that I am run off my feet trying to keep up, and this has put a real damper on our days. My beloved is the head of our home, and through God, he is our income provider. When we married the plan was always that I'd raise the children and keep house, and he would be the breadwinner. Admittedly, when the children were younger (as was I) and he was retraining at University, he was happy that I was able to earn a little extra by doing things like Avon, cleaning a large local church (hubby helped) or selling used rare books online which I'd found at op-shops - these all helped fund our homeschooling expenses over the years...but they never replaced his wage, nor became a necessity.  If it was getting too much I simply stopped with his blessing and gave my full attention to home and family. 

When the children were at the end of their homeschooling education, I had begun to design stitcheries and offered a free block of the month on my blog every year (still do). Soon various craft magazines were asking me to design for them on a monthly basis, and I did that for about five or six years before choosing to offer my patterns through my own site. It's been a wonderful journey doing this, and because of the income we were finally able to save enough for a deposit on a home of our own late in 2018. Buying our home was a long held dream and we give thanks daily to the Lord for making this possible. 

As I reflect on the changes having a home of our own made in our lives as we neared 60, we were simply not prepared for the energy it would take to turn a home in the tropics which was surrounded by concrete, into a green, shady, edible garden. On top of that were the internal changes, a flood in 2019, so many home repairs and flood pumps installed as we fought rising water every wet season, and each year getting older and both of us having auto-immune diseases to manage.  We do not regret a thing, and we know this home was a gift from God so that we'd not have to rent anymore, but could create our own home sanctuary to last through the latter years of life, and ultimately be passed on one day if the Lord tarries His return. 

But jumping in to start a new club, even though my intentions were good, did not make them right for this season of life. One day I was so exhausted and with my body a mass of pain, another migraine beginning to brew, all I wanted was to fall into bed. Later that night when bedtime finally came around I prayed and asked the Lord for help. Do you know what He said?

"You didn't count the cost first." Every time I woke in the night I pondered those words and next morning re-read Jesus' words on that very subject. (Luke 14:28,29) He was describing how a builder would not build a tower without first sitting down and counting the cost, to make sure he had enough supplies before he began. Then I read chapters before and after that one, because I am very much a contextualist when it comes to studying Scripture, and discovered more examples of counting the cost.

Cost can be anything which will be required of you to pursue a certain task, relationship or belief. It's not just about money. The cost I had not factored in was time, energy, age, health and priorities. As the past few months have come and gone, it's clear that not much was lain aside, apart from blogging,  because I take my homemaking very seriously, but in order to keep up I had to fill more and more hours each week with precious time which should not have been surrendered so rashly. No wonder I was exhausted and in so much pain. If only I had counted the cost before making that decision. 

When I eventually fell on my knees before our Lord, He was so very gracious, and in the past week or so I have become more aware of the cost that must be paid for any decision I will make now and in the future. Counting the cost is marvellous for putting things into perspective, for alerting me to a pot-hole in the road ahead, for reminding me of what I have in my hand and what I can do without. 

I even got inspiration for a new design, with words of life to keep me steady and grounded in the simple life I love so much, and which recently began to slip away.

I do not have to design anymore. But I can when I have time, when inspiration from the Lord is present, and when I am enjoying it. The project above was lovely to create, and because it came from my heart, overflowing with gratitude to the Lord (and my husband), I relaxed and did something I'd only attempted once before...cotton crochet edging. It took time, but it wasn't rushed. It simply brought me joy. 

So, no more new Stitchery Club, but yes to the occasional new pattern which I'll just pop in my Etsy Shop. I do have a few already, which I made for the club, but now they'll just be single patterns in the shop. Maybe later in the week the patterns will be added there, but right now, hubby and I have a garden to work in, a Bible to study, some bread to bake, and time with each other to enjoy. Oh, and our Molly-dog too. She's become the sweetest addition to our home and puts a smile on our faces all the time. 

If you've become overwhelmed this year, perhaps you have taken on too much? Step back a bit and pray for the Father to show you what needs to go. 

Perhaps you are facing a decision? Count the cost first, dear one. Count the cost. You might be paying more than it's worth.

Bless you heaps,

Don't miss out on any Elefantz news or free patterns. 

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