Putting a little colour in to my life,

It is time to do a little quilting before I start packing for our next trip.

I wanted to use some of these beautiful fabrics my friend Jan brought back from the states. They are cotton scarves made in India!! The colors are vibrant and fun and run just a little so a wall hanging will work as it won't need much washing.





When I look out from our 25th floor apartment on the one side, are these "little" boxes.
 Not much sign of life except at night when lights go on and the T.V. monitor provides entertainment












 On the other side is the Kampong with it's colourful roofs. This is where the local people live and one can hear laughter and music ringing out from there. The children chase each other on the open field and the parents sit in groups on their plastic chairs exchanging news.
There is a sense of community life and fun.

My inspiration.

Something colourful and wavy.

When I get back from my travels I will quilt this and add beads and .......we'll see!

More to follow!

May is the month for weddings!

 Weddings in Sri Lanka, take place mainly during the month of May and are huge lavish affairs with everyone dressing to the nines!

From early Thursday morning, really early, as in six thirty in the morning, bridal parties arrive for photo sessions.

 While we were staying in Galle, we saw many bridal parties having their photos taken using the walls of the fort as the back drop. Evidently, men have the choice of wearing the traditional outfit, which is the same as the Kings of Sri Lanka wear or a formal dark suit. The tradition for the brides is to wear a beautiful golden cream dress. The attendants are also dressed beautifully in brightly coloured, stunning outfits. The Mothers and Aunties too wear amazingly lovely sarees.

 It was explained to me that the first part of the celebrations is hosted by the Brides parents then the couple go away for two nights on their honeymoon and then the Groom's parents host a welcoming party. For this part of the ceremony the bride wears crimson red and the groom wears long traditional clothes.

 It is very important in some families to show how generously they are sending their daughter off and sometimes a truck will arrive filled with furniture, household goods, cleaning equipment and even a SEWING machine!! (that should be top of the list.)

 




 In Kandy, our hotel was right next to a hotel that had a Banquet hall catering for weddings and from Thursday morning until Sunday, when we were leaving, it was a non stop stream of wedding parties arriving and leaving. Often the groom would arrive in a very smart sedan while the bride and her party were all stuffed into a tuk tuk!

The "Before" picture.

 Our hotel was the "honeymoon" venue and we interacted with this lovely young couple.

The "After' shot.

 Evidently foreigners also like to go to Sri Lanka to get married. They have to reside in the country for five days and the English system is used to legalize these affairs.

It is just a pity we did not crack an invite to one of the weddings!! What a privilege that would have been.