Treasured gifts.......from treasured friends

I'm such a lucky duck!  Friends from all over have sent me such special gifts to take to Africa.............so you know I have to squeeze them in my one duffel bag, the gifts not the friends, unfortunately!

The fantastic little Baggellini bag is from dear Sarah at Hyacinths For The Soul in Texas. This is perfect for stashing my passport, personal papers, reading glasses, lip treatment, Altoids, and that large size package of Imodium, lol!!  I love that it has two long adjustable shoulder straps, wide and skinny - perhaps one for 'feeling fat' days and the other for, well you know, those days we all hope for after living on lettuce for two weeks!! Sarah obviously has great taste in accessories.....imagine finding a bush print in the perfect shade of olive to dress up my khaki duds!  Love it Sarah and thank you so much.

Talk about perfect jewelry for travel when safety, space and weight means leaving the diamond tiara and dear-to-the-heart sentimental pieces at home for a trip into the bush........well my longtime sweet friend Patti in Washington State came through!  Her new venture into making beautiful beaded jewelery, also includes these featherweight, pretty and wispy flower pins with teeny beaded centers. Patti explained how this would be perfect on those boring tee shirts when I need to 'dress for dinner'.

OK - who knows what the pin is made from..............no prize but would love to hear your thoughts!

Here's the link to Patti's Etsy shop, Patrician Crafts where you can see her lovely jewelry and other handmade items. Thank you for sending such a perfect 'jewel' Patti.  I may not be dressing like Karen Blixen in Out of Africa, but I'll at least have a few little special adornments tucked in my bag.

The journal......such a gem with both lined and plain opposing pages which means writing and sketching, which I'll give a try as I'll be without my laptop.......is from my North Carolina friend of 33 years, Elinor.  My next door neighbor when we first moved to Raleigh, she has remained a dear, loyal and generous friend all these years.  Elinor travels often and knows what makes a journey easier.  Another travel gift she gave me many years ago was the Totes pack-away nylon bag............it's perfect, I've used it a zillion times, and it will be going to Africa too! Thank you Elinor, you always know what I'll love.

The watch?  What about the 'bush watch' looking all ready to tick across thousands of miles on my wrist?  This is my little gift to myself as I don't want to take my good watch.  This is just a Timex, and it's a actually a man's because they don't make it for a woman - but I loved it when I saw it.  With the push of the button the face illuminates in the dark.  I'm not sure just how dark the African bush gets but as we're 'out in the middle of nowhere' much of the time, perhaps a little light will be welcome when lions are roaring in the night - hopefully in the distance, not outside my 'tent'!