I recently received word that Pandior arrived safe and well in The Netherlands. Apparently she has embraced her new homeland with much enthusiasm and has been seen barracking for the Dutch team at the world cup!
Pic courtesy of Kisskus. You can see more pics here.
I had such a great time putting together a back-tack parcel for Kisskus, my swap recipient. I suspect that the parcel has yet to arrive in The Netherlands despite having been posted two weeks ago. When I think about the possibility of having a lost in the mail panda my stomach starts to turn... it's a bit early to start a panic so for now I will sit tight. For now, here's a phone camera sneak peek of the contents of the parcel before it was put in the mail.
When I returned home from visiting my sister last weekend I found a lovely large parcel waiting for me. It was my back-tack III parcel from the delightful Jhoanna. I saved the pleasure of opening the package until after the kids had gone to bed and it proved to be well worth the wait.
A gorgeous Aranzi Aronzo turtle (I LOVE turtles), a fantastic crafting apron (much needed) and some delicious treats. Thanks so much Jhoanna! Sorry for taking so long to post about it's arrival. This slackness has been due, in part, to the fact that I have been unable to take any pictures so for now I have borrowed an image from Craft Itch. I hope you don't mind Jhoanna!
Allow me to introduce Pandior - my back-tack III creation. Pandior is a panda-teddy bear hybrid made from white flannel and black acrylic fleece. As far as I am aware the back-tack rules have been obeyed - she's made from black and white materials with only one extra colour, she has five buttons (one on each or her arms and legs and one on her necklace). She stands 16cms tall and the initial B is embroidered on her pretty white dress as B is for Berber, the name of my back-tack swap recipient.
Pandior had so much personality from the very beginning that I never had to wonder what to do next, but rather where to stop! I considered knitting her a scarf made from silk ribbon, instead I crocheted her a handbag from embroidery cotton. I wanted to make her a string of pearls but I thought the hot pink ribbon and button necklace was probably enough. Should I have made her a companion poodle instead of a sleeping handbag bunny? A pair of frilly undies? A spare dress to keep in her handbag? Oh the choices! The dilemmas! You have no idea! And then there was the drama of photographing her. I now have hundreds of photographs of her that are all ever so slightly different and I'm the only one who can tell (or who cares about) the difference. A conversation that took place earlier in the day went something like this.
Me: So which picture do you think I should use?
Richard: How about that one.
Me: Are you kidding? The bunny's little ear is all curled up in that shot!
Richard: Oh okay, how about that?
Me: No, she looks a bit snobby in that one.
Mum: Why don't you take some pictures of her cooking in the little toy kitchen?
Me: [Throws arms in the air] But she's clearly dressed for best - not for cooking!
Needless to say I had terrific fun making her and loved the challenge that the back-tack rules added to the project. My next task is to put together a little package for her foster family and send her on her way to her new home in the Netherlands. Now that I think of it I should have used orange as my extra colour! Oh and I could have made her some little panda clogs? or a tiny panda spliff - after all, settling in to a new country can be a very stressful affair! Cultural stereotypes aside, I'm sure that Berber and her family will make Pandior feel very welcome. Well, I'd better go. I have some teeny weeny panda bags to pack!
