Present Perfect: Handcarved Indian Woodblock

 

This is a present I gave myself and

I plan to give myself many more...

 

They are made for printing designs onto

fabric or paper.  I often see blocks like

this on my travels but I don't buy them

since I'm generally throwing my luggage

onto trains, boats, tuk-tuks, planes and

other assorted modes of transport and

I was afraid they would chip or break.

Since this trip I only had to get home

from Houston, I finally bought one!

 

And... it is a Paisley/Persian Pickle/Welsh

Pear design which is one of my favorite

design elements of all time.  I plan to print

it onto fabric and add additional embroidery.

 

And... these woodblocks are handcarved by

families in India and the income from the

blocks being sold in Europe and the USA 

has helped 40 families earn enough money

to get electricity in their homes and pay for

their children to attend school ~ and that

is a great thing!  Here is the link to where

you can purchase them:

 

http://www.splintersandthreads.com/wooden-printing-blocks

 

I think this will become my new travel

project.  It will be something I do for me.

The presents multiply...

 

Present Perfect!

I was in Istanbul last Spring and wanted

to purchase one of these  silk embroideries.

I debated, I compared stores and prices,

and I ended up never buying one...

The following Fall I was doggie sitting for 

this little cutie, Millie Dog because other

travelers were off to explore Istanbul.

I thought, now is my perfect chance to get

that textile.  I gave the travelers specific

instructions.  Get off the tram at the Gulhane

stop, when you find the restaurant where the

woman is making food in the window, cross 

the street and head down toward the bend in 

the road, find a shop with a loom in the window.

The shop was found, photos were sent back to

the US and finally a decision was reached.  They

did not have the embroidery I originally had seen.

It had a pomegranate design, the shop owner

explained they didn't place orders for these items.

Every few months ladies would arrive from

Uzbekistan with suitcases filled with textiles and

that was what they would sell.  So I chose this one 

because of the tulip design which is so popular in

Turkey.

Read about the Turkish history of the 

tulip here:

http://americanhomestead.blogspot.com/2012/04/turkish-tulips.html

And when the travelers returned I found out 

the textile was a gift from Millie Dog ~ perfect!

Present Perfect: An Antique Key

The Key to Adventure?

Yesterday a friend of mine

gave me this beautiful antique

key.  A perfect present for

me.  They found it and thought

of me ~ how sweet.  I plan to

take it around the world with

me as a good luck charm.

Merci beaucoup...

Present Perfect ~ Little Blue Bird

& Present Imperfect...

In this beautiful baroque

palace, Schloss Nyphenburg,

in Munich, Germany, I found

a little blue bird that caught

my eye. 

 I may have mentioned

to my traveling companion that

I loved the little thing.

Lo & behold, my he gave it to me

 as a present and I look at it

everyday and I think of

the beautiful palace and the

wonderful trip we took.

Some of you may know

my daughter Kate is going

to attend Purdue University

in the Fall.  Already it is being

suggested that I will have to

wear clothing that says,

"Purdue Mom!"

Oh save me....

I'm just not that kind of

Mom and let me just state

right here that if any of

my family members are

getting thoughts of great

joke gifts for me along the lines

of this...

Or even worse, this...

Just know, I will throw them

at you if you bring them

anywhere near me!

Just sayin'...

What has been a perfect

or imperfect present for you?

Gift from Ireland ~ Present Perfect

We Are Family No Matter Where We Live

Many, many years ago

Uncle Jamie was traveling through

Ireland with my brother, and my

Mum & Dad.  In all the pubs

they went to (and yes, there

were many) he would see trays

that said Murphy's Irish Stout

and thought that would be a great

present to bring home for a couple

of Murphys.  So he called the brewery

and told them he had relatives named

Murphy in the States and could he buy

a tray to bring back to them? 

They said, "Lad, just come out to the

brewery and we will give you a tray

as a present to bring back to our

family in America."  And that began

the great search through County

Cork for the Lady's Well Brewery. 

They drove through the Irish

countryside, uphill and down dale

for what seemed like hours.  They

could see it in the distance but just

couldn't find the right road to get them

there.  Finally they made it there and

the gift was presented and lo these

many years it still has a place of

honor in our home.

Gu raibh maith agat,

Uncle Jamie!