Decorations for an old-fashioned Christmas

Press, 23 November 1987, Page 10

Decorations for an old-fashioned Christmas

Few things evoke the Christmas spirit better than families working together to create their own decorations.

In recent years, there has been a move away from the tinseliy, plastic trappings of Christmas to more traditional crafts. Talented local artists will be demonstrating their Christmas crafts in Ballantynes department store from this week through to Saturday, December 12. They will use everything from fabrics, flowers and food and should inspire everyone from children to the elderly. This week, Sumner freelance artist, Margaret Halcrow-Cross, will be working on her 12 Days of Christmas poster, which will be available next year. She will also make paper decorations. Margaret has designed many of our stamps. Other demonstrations

this week will be given by Jo Proctor, who makes advent calendars and Pru Stringer, who prints wrapping paper and cards. Next week, from November 30 to December 5, the Canterbury Patchworkers’ Guild will make fabric decorations; Jude Bastion will create wreaths and decorations from dried flowers and sweets, as well as corn dolls, and the Danish Handcraft Guild will display their ethnic decorations.

During the week from December 7 to December 12, Jan Clifford will be showing how to make delicious foods for Christmas — with tastings, of course. All the Christmas craft demonstrations are on the ground floor from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily, from 7 p.m. to 8.30 p.m. on Friday evenings and from 10.30 a.m. until noon on Saturdays.