Blog #17 - Fun at Beating Around the Bush

Thursday,  16 October  2014  -

The weekly needlework programme at Beating Around The Bush was as follows -
Sunday - One day classes
Monday and Tuesday  -  Two day classes


Wednesday  - The Stitcher’s Village Fair Day
with over 30 vendors
showcasing needlework related items -
threads, ribbons, designs, books, tools and accessories
and free time to explore the lovely city,
shops & surrounding area of Adelaide.
The fair opened at 9am until 10am
exclusively for the BATB attendees
and from 10am until 3pm
it was open to the general public.

Thursday and Friday  -  two day classes.

 Monday evening there was an optional event  -
a BBQ dinner followed by a Quiz Night.

This was hilarious and so much fun! 

The evening was hosted by Hazel Blomkamp - and what a character!!

Everyone sat at round tables (ten to a table) and each table chose a name
and then competed against each other.
The competition was a musical one - music was played
and we had to guess the title of the song or piece of music.

There were about six categories with about 8 - 10 musical pieces
to name in each category. 

One category, all titles would have needlework connotations
(e.g. Chantilly Lace);
another category include a colour (e.g. yellow submarine);
another category, all titles would include a name
(e.g. Mrs. Brown You’ve Got A lovely Daughter);
another category, all titles would include a flower;
another a boy’s name; another a girl’s name and so on.

Interspersed with each musical category
(while judges checked and totalled up the answer sheets from each table)
there were other competitions. 

 

Two of these were -
the quickest lady (not a tutor) to stitch a bullion rose and leaves
before a piece of music finished and a fancy dress competition. 
This involved each table choosing a “model” and being given
exactly the same contents in a bag - ribbon, streamers, rubbish bags,
crepe paper, etc. together with sellotape, stapler, pins, etc. -
and to a set piece of music each table had to ‘dress’ their model. 

This model then had to parade around the room amongst the tables
and finally each model had to undress to a piece of striptease music.

 

Such hilarity and noisy heckling!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 To fortify us during this evening we partook of the following -

 

In case
you are unable
to read the label,
it says
~

DR. M. BROIDER

Famous
STITCHING
TONIC

To Be Taken
As Required

 

Tuesday evening - the school bus took us to the ‘Create In Stitch’ shop
(previously the Country Bumpkin shop) to shop - and this is what we did - SHOP!

Thursday evening - a visit to an Asian needlework exhibition
at one of Adelaide’s Art Galleries.  I did not attend this event.

Friday evening - a Gala Dinner at the Adelaide Racecourse -
another optional event.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

A delicious meal and an entertaining and interesting  account of her life
as a commissioned needlewoman given by Jenny Adin-Christie of the UK. 

 

Jenny is an ex-tutor from the Royal School of Needlework
at Hampton Court, London.

She also showed beautiful pieces of her work -
embroidered robes for the clergy; Church alter cloths;
one of the Queen’s robes; Katherine’s wedding gown;
Prince George’s baby cardigans,
huge royal Coats of Arms on theatre drapes,
tiny Coats of Arms on leather gloves, etc.

Absolutely exquisite.

Also at this time winners of the various needlework competitions were announced.
Firstly the pieces selected by the judges

and secondly those chosen by viewer’s choice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And too, some of those attending the evening won a prize
according to the sticker that was under their chair.
(Example above)

I won a prize! 

The
’Beating Around The Bush’
table decoration.

 

 

 

 

 

And so, the lovely time at BATB came to a close after breakfast the next morning.

Here is a photo of myself with Fiona - the main organiser for the event -
just as I was about to leave.

 

 

That's all
for the
moment.