It’s been a really busy few weeks recently. After a short holiday south visiting family, it was time to gear up for Christmas.  Plans to go to the big two day ‘Craftastic’ Christmas Fair organised by Orkney Arts and Craft in Kirkwall Grammar School over the weekend of 19th and 20th November were scuppered by the weather. Ferocious gales blowing from the south east meant that the Churchill Barriers had to be closed keeping me in South Ronaldsay.

DragonLady did have a stall at the Cromarty Hall Christmas bazaar in St. Margaret’s Hope in early December.

It seemed ridiculous to be thinking about Christmas as early as October but with most of my items being hand-made, there is the creating time to take into consideration.  With no commissions on the book at present I have been able to donate all my time to Christmas stock.  I now have tree decorations, stand-alone decorations, window /hanging decorations, angels and cards plus non-Christmas items still available.

Some of my earlier paintings, felt and embroidery pieces, (which I photographed on completion for my archive), are now available as canvas prints. I don’t print the canvases myself but they are the only items not hand-made.

Over the winter months when there are no fairs and visitors are ‘thin on the ground’ I intend to go back to my crafting roots and do some more mixed media paint/felt/embroidery pieces. I would also like to ‘play’ with different craft activities to develop more skills. Who knows what that might lead to?

More next month.

— Jo Constantine