Meet Mrs Christmas

When I was a child the year dragged by so slowly it seemed that Christmas would never come. Now it seems to come all too regularly!

But I’m not complaining – I love this time of the year! My family likes to call me 'Mrs Christmas'. That’s because, when we designed our house by the river back in 2001, I included a huge Christmas cupboard to store my collection of decorations and festive napery, as well as the presents-to-be that I begin to accumulate at each Boxing Day sale and build on during the year.

My favourite activity in the lead-up to Christmas is decorating the tree, a full-day event that takes place on November 30 in time for the first day of Advent.

Last Christmas my lovely friend Jan N gave me an ornament organiser from Aldi which transformed my tree-decorating. Now, instead of using multiple boxes and random carry bags, I can fit almost everything into the organiser. And as you can see from the pic below, it looks very smart indeed. What's more, it takes up far less space in the Christmas cupboard, allowing me to collect or create even more Christmas decorations! 

This year's tree.

Every ornament in my collection has a history. Some have been brought back by friends from their travels to exotic locations, others are hand-made (many crafted by my beautiful mum) - painted, embroidered, sculpted, beaded, quilted - you name it! Each one is very special, as are the people who made and gave them. And one day I intend to document the story of each exquisite ornament, following the fine example of writer, Jennie Jones, who has photographed and recorded her family heirlooms and curios.

 Hand-sewn decorations from my friend Gabi in Germany

Christmas Santas - the painted gourd (yes, gourd!) and the stunning quilt are the work of my dear friend, Marilyn McCann. I painted the standing Santa in a workshop with American painter, Delane Lange. My mum did one too.

Provencal-style Nativity triptych painted by me for my book, 'Folk Art of France' and inspired by a 19th century Nativity scene in the folk museum in Aix-en-Provence. The terracotta santons or 'little saints' (made by a santonnier in Provence) are dressed in traditional costumes. 

Magnificent faux tortoiseshell and gold leaf bowl by my dear friend Chrissie W

 Fireplace almost ready for Santa's arrival - stockings to come. 

Verbena and bower vine - both flowering for Christmas

I've always loved twig wreaths - any excuse to hang one on a door!

Gorgeous metal tree and decorations - a gift from my lovely friend, Judy A.

The easiest Christmas dessert ever - buy a good quality pavlova base, smear generously with freshly whipped cream, add masses of berries (fresh, of course) and a dusting of ground pistachios and icing sugar (add the icing sugar just before serving or it will dissolve). We had this for Christmas Eve supper last year and everyone loved it.

Christmas reindogs: Molly and Angel. (Angel refused to wear her antlers.)

And if you're looking for a Christmas gift for someone who has everything, what about a copy of 'The Trivia Man'? It's available as a print book or an e-book from the following online booksellers, or at good bookstores.

Wishing you a joyful Christmas and a happy, healthy and fulfilling 2016.

Deborah

17 December 2015

Film Review:

‘The Dressmaker’

After a number of glowing recommendations from friends, I finally went to see ‘The Dressmaker'. They were right. This is a wonderful film – funny, sad, quirky, engaging and beautiful to look at. It deservedly won People’s Choice Award for Favourite Australian Film at the recent AACTA Awards.

The opening credits are filmed from above, showing a grid of dusty wheat fields divided by a highway. It’s night-time and a lone Pioneer bus is heading towards its destination. Along the way it stops at a one-horse town somewhere in rural Australia, where an elegant and mysterious passenger, wearing a ‘New Look’ outfit, alights from the bus and deposits a wooden Singer sewing machine case on the ground. It’s the Dressmaker herself, Tilly Dunnage, returning to her hometown of Dungatar to care for her mother who is ill and apparently suffering from dementia.

Set in 1951, ‘The Dressmaker’ is a tale of vengeance and redemption, a variation on the parable of the Prodigal Son, except that this is about a daughter, and she is not welcomed with open arms – quite the opposite. The story will resonate with anyone who was once bullied in the schoolyard and has always dreamt of returning to their hometown, glamorous and successful, to confront their persecutors. There’s also the added element of seeking out the truth about a long-ago death which has tainted many lives.

Veteran cinematographer Don McAlpine (‘Breaker Morant’ and ‘My Brilliant Career’) bring us dusty, sepia landscapes studded with dead gum trees, granite outcrops and squeaking windmills. The little town of Dungatar has one short street lined with archetypal wooden buildings. On a hill within putting distance of the town are the local tip and the rundown house belonging to Tilly’s mother, played with the perfect mix of histrionics and poignancy by Judy Davis, who won an AACTA as Best Supporting Actress.

The cast of ‘The Dressmaker' is faultless. As Tilly, Kate Winslet gives one of the finest performances of a brilliant career, delivered in the best Australian accent I’ve heard from a non-Australian actor – in fact, it’s so good you don’t even notice it! In the supporting cast we encounter old hands such as Barry Otto, Terry Norris and Julia Blake, and a new generation of stars including the intriguing Sarah Snook (‘The Beautiful Lie’ and ‘The Secret River’) and the azure-eyed hunk Liam Hemsworth (this bloke is so gorgeous he doesn’t need to act).

Hugo Weaving is charming as a cross-dressing policeman, while Rebecca Gibney and Shane Jacobson are suitably jovial and harried as the proprietors of the general store with its iconic Golden Fleece signpost featuring the yellow ram. I loved Kerry Fox as the spiteful schoolteacher, Gyton Grantley as Hemsworth’s ‘slow’ brother, and Shane Bourne as the villain (well, one of the villains).

And finally there would be no film without the fabulous frocks, designed by Marion Boyce and Margot Wilson, which transform the ladies of the town from frumps to pinup girls. Sarah Snook’s makeover, in particular, is a delight.

‘The Dressmaker’ is directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse and produced by Sue Maslin from the novel of the same name by Rosalie Ham (which I’ll definitely be putting on my Christmas list). The screenplay was written by Jocelyn Moorhouse and her husband, P.J. Hogan.

In short, ‘The Dressmaker’ is a beautifully crafted film which swings between comedy and pathos and never fails to enchant.

TRIVIA: Sue Maslin and Rosalie Ham went to high school together.

Deborah O’Brien

13 December 2015

'The Trivia Man'

Trivia Quiz

Answers at the bottom of the page.

1.  What is Kevin Dwyer’s original team name?

2.   Maggie Taylor teaches:

     A.   French and German          B.  Music         C.  French and Latin         D.  P.E.

3.  Which character in the book says, ‘Everyone has their quirks’?

     A.  Peter the psychologist     B.  Stephen, Patrick’s father     C.  Kevin Dwyer    

     D.  Maggie Taylor

4.  The Usual Suspects win the fancy dress prize on the literary-themed night.

 Which classic children’s book by Maurice Sendak provided the inspiration

 for their costumes?

5.  What answer did Kevin suggest for the following question:

    What do the following actors have in common?

    Sean Connery, John Wayne, Frank Sinatra, Charlton Heston

6.  What is the name of the Professor’s wife?

7.   How old is Kevin?

    A. 28                     B. 38                         C. 48                         D. 58

8.  Which character comes to the movie night dressed as Ginger Rogers?

    A. Maggie            B. Mei Zhen              C. Ash                    D. Carole

9.  For her entire adult life Maggie has been besotted with one man. Who is he?

10. Which team came third in the trivia competition?

     A.  The Amazons      B.  Teddy and the Dreamers      C.  The Usual Suspects

ANSWERS:

1. One Man Band   2. C. French and Latin   3. B. Stephen   4. 'Where the Wild Things Are'   5. They all wore toupees.   6. Miss Kitty   7. C. 48   8.  B. Mei Zhen   9. Josh/Dr Josh/Joshua Houghton   10. A, Amazons

November 17, 2015

Writing and Art

I’ve never been sure whether I’m an artist who also writes, or a writer who happens to paint. I’ve done both for as long as I can remember, probably from the time I could hold a pencil in my hand.

Read more at the Australian Rural Romance website