What’s on

How can we celebrate Christmas, and give presents in ways that reduce waste, stress, and are good for the planet, our bank balances, and ultimately ourselves?

We were thinking about this question at our recent Anchored service at the Fishermen’s Chapel, and so we pooled our thoughts to come up with the Fishermen’s Chapel Gift Guide.

The Fishermen’s Chapel Gift Guide

We’ve divided our Guide into categories. You won’t be able to do all of them, but hopefully they might spark some ideas!

Food

Food is a great gift, as everyone loves good food, it’s something everyone can use, and it doesn’t clutter up people’s houses. Here are some suggestions we came up with:

Cakes. Suggestions were ginger or fruit cake – make a batch – but could be anything.

Gingerbread figures

Handmade sweets

Chutney. One option is to make it out of whatever you have growing in the garden (this does assume you grow things, I admit). So, for instance, green tomatoes that won’t ripen, or apples from your tree.

Homemade sloe gin (OK, yes, we are a Methodist chapel…)

Crafts

The emphasis here is ‘whatever you make, make some of that’ to give as gifts – it’s about using your skills. You won’t be able to do everything here, but some of us suggested:

Knit something. One suggestion: a simple hot water bottle cover, using this pattern. People are using hot water bottles a lot these days, and it isn’t too complex a design… if you can knit.

Flower arrangements, using greenery from the garden, maybe combined with Christmas decorations

Make a wreath using a hanger, and tying lots of pieces of material on. This is one most people could have a go at!

A painting you’ve done

Make your own Christmas cards. There are many ways to do this – too many to list. But you could use collage, stamping, drawing, photography, recycle other cards – there are so many options. Alternatively buy your cards from a charity, so they get the profit.

Make Christmas decorations – use your creativity!

Cover things in Christmas paper – jam jars, etc.

Buying local

Buying local crafts means that you’re supporting local people and local businesses, and not buying mass-produced items that have been shipped halfway around the world.

Unfortunately you’ve just missed our Artisan Craft Market, but there are lots of similar Christmas fairs on at this time of year.

Fairly-traded gifts

Buying fairly-traded items means that the people who made the items are being paid a fair price. We mentioned Traidcraft, but there are other sources of fairly traded gifts, such as Oxfam.

Secondhand and charity shops

Presents don’t all have to be new. You might be able to find the perfect gift in a charity shop, either locally or online. Again, Oxfam do a huge range of secondhand items online.

A charity donation

Lots of charities run ‘alternative gift’ schemes, whereby you donate and you get a card telling you what your donation has been able to buy. One example is the Methodist charity (we’re a Methodist chapel, for anyone just finding us!) All We Can – you can browse them here.

Alternatively one suggestion was to donate to a local charity, then make a card to give to the recipient.

Plants

For the green-fingered. Probably not one for this year if you aren’t already growing them, but in future, why not grow plants to give as gifts?

Crackers

Over 40 million Christmas crackers are pulled in the UK each year, producing a huge amount of waste. Often they contain plastic ‘gifts’ that are just thrown away. Why not make your own crackers? People will love them. You can get kits that have the cardboard outers, or you could find a template for the cracker body online. Then fill the crackers with gifts people might actually want to keep, devise your own party hats, maybe… and use your joke-writing skills!

Give your time

Someone suggested giving a voucher donating your time, maybe to help them with something. A great idea.

 

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Thank you to Dilys, Eleanor and Matt for the photographs, and to everyone at our November Anchored service for the ideas. Do join us for the next one, in January.

Got more ideas? I’m sure we haven’t covered everything. Add them to the comments section under this post on our Facebook page.

Want more ideas? Tearfund have this guide: Hand-picked ideas for a more ethical Christmas

Our 9.30am Communion service on the first Sunday of the month is now taking place in the Chapel once again.

Some other groups and activities are now able to meet in person if they wish – please contact the leader of the group to find out what they have planned.

Our Coffee morning, every Wednesday morning are now back in the Chapel community room at 10.30am. Please keep an eye on our Fishermen’s Chapel Facebook page for any changes to this.

The Gospel Service is now being held in person in the Chapel once again, on the second Sunday of the month, but also broadcast on Zoom. See this page for details, and sign up to our newsletter if you’d like the Zoom link each month.

Mindfulness: We are running ‘Mindfulness, every fourth Sunday of the month, at 7.30pm. If you’re interested please follow Mindfulness at the Fishermen’s Chapel on Facebook and check there for details.

Bible studies take place on Zoom every first and third Sunday. Contact Pete via peter.moorhouse@methodist.org.uk for details if you’d like to join in.

Please follow our Fishermen’s Chapel Facebook page and sign up for our email updates to keep in touch. The Methodist Church, of which we are a part, also has ways we can stay connected in our worship, prayer and mission work: methodist.org.uk.

Love
All of us from The Fishermen’s Chapel xxx

We are incredibly grateful to the Co-op and to local people who have supported the Co-op Community fund for raising £5015 towards a new kitchen at the Chapel.

Pictured: members of the Chapel receive the cheque at the Co-op in Leigh-on-Sea.

Thank you Co-op communiity Leigh-on-Sea!

We have art on display in our community room. Do pop in and see the work at any time that the Chapel is open, so on Wednesday mornings or before and after a service.

Currently we have work by Nicola Osborne Art on display. See Nicola’s Facebook page.

Previous artists

Claire Thompson, aka Eyeseethingsdifferently is our artist in residence at the Chapel.

At the beginning of 2018 I decided to undertake an artistic challenge of completing a page in my sketchbook everyday.
The challenge allowed me to experiment with different mediums and different ways of working.
I intuitively decided to break each page into 4 smaller squares and stick to a limited colour palette of 2/3 colours.
Whilst experimenting with different mediums, I picked up my watercolour paints and the subsequent sketchbook pages that followed seemed to flow easily from my brush.
Nature is and always will be a huge source of inspiration to me and whilst I was undertaking the challenge I was intuitively thinking of new life, hidden growth and what happens to our natural world during the Winter months.
The ‘Grow’ series is my intuitive response to the start of a new year and how you can develop and ‘Grow’ by stepping outside of your comfort zone and trying something new.

Claire is Eyeseethingsdifferently on Facebook / Instagram.

 

Eco-Wind Publishing is an illustration partnership between Architect / Sailor Chris Page and Animator / Perspectivist Amber Young.

Our combined passion for visual storytelling first ignited with the realisation that we could bring people back in time using digital apps when in 2009 we realised that were lucky to be at an amazing period in time when you could interact with another person through an application on a phone at any single point in time to provide them with new information wherever they may be. Never before had a product allowed a viewer to experience events true-to-timescale in such a manner than we were able to achieve with the technology of notifications within smartphones. We created our own art form called ‘iPT-A’ or ‘i-Push Time-Alternation’ to explore historic events and magical sporting spectacles from the past century in true to time, 1st person illustrated accounts.

During research to create the applications and their companion books, we begun to accumulate a substantial body of visual work and our two individual styles gradually converged into one playful, colourful aesthetic that we have utilised in each of our projects to date, initially starting work traditionally with hand drawn pen to paper illustration before moving into inks, watercolours and digital to complete the imagery. There is always a keen desire to retain the essence of being in the moment with retained freehand speed lines, raw edged borders, freehand text and sometimes jotted annotation.

Portrayals of the trackside at Le Mans, being in the pilots seat during the Schneider Trophy Races, at the launch site of a manned rocket, or on the waves alongside a C-Class Catamaran, by keeping our work looking slightly sketchy it helps feel like the drawings have been completed in the moment of these events.

We hope that our illustrations inspires onlookers to stay curious and look to building a better future by experiencing the past in as close to the road accounts as possible.

Prints can be bought via the Eco-wind website.

Music Adventures for 2-4 year olds.

The latest Facebook event links are here: Crayon Rock Music

Today is all about beats and counting. Whip up a storm with the rainstick and thunderbox and let’s all head down to the rainforest, where we will jump and croak like treefrogs and catch flies on our ‘tongues’. Then we will form a regiment of army ants, marching and drumming our way round the room. We will then try some bird sounds using occarinas.
Of course there will be plenty of time for singing, dancing, and jamming with the instrument box.

£6 per child by bank transfer or paypal, please book in advance. crayonrockrecords@gmail.com for booking or more info (including bank transfer details).

Music Adventures is a new fun and inclusive music group for 2-4 year olds. The children will learn about creating and appreciating music through pretend play and movement, and every session will include an introduction to a new instrument (whereever hygenic and safe the children will be allowed to handle and play the main instrument). There will be dancing, plenty of time to play a wide range of real instruments and a trip on the magic carpet to a new theme each session.

Early musical education helps with all areas of life, in particular listening, turn taking, counting, sharing, body awareness, co-ordination, concentration, confidence and self expression. However this is not a classroom situation! We will be being very silly and loud. There will be no wrong answers and the sessions will evolve to suit the character and experience of the children present. Music is a social and joyous thing and this is the main message I wish to pass on.

Payment will be on a session by session basis, not by term, so if your child finds they do not enjoy it or if you would just like to explore their favourite themes there is no pressure or extra cost. I do request advance booking, to control class size.

Children with extra needs are welcomed and the age range is a recommendation, not a rule. This venue is downstairs and we can open the fire doors for wheelchair access. This session will involve drumming and thundery noises, although they shouldn’t be excessively loud. Please let me know when paying if there is anything special which will make it easier for your child to take part.

The latest Facebook event links are here: Crayon Rock Music