Once all the notices had been delivered we were told that we would be making a Sashiko coaster and we were given an envelope which contained a piece of dark blue fabric with a design printed on it in white and a sheet of instructions which were written in Japanese! Luckily there were also very easy to follow pictures so we threaded up the needles that were also supplied and got to work.

Each design had a "path" of small running stitch to follow with a "route" marked out on the instructions which was great as it took the guesswork out of which was the best way to stitch the design. I found it very relaxing and would consider it as a great "mindfulness" project as it was quite repetitive but without being boring.

The hall was buzzing with the sound of people chatting as they stitched and this was soon joined by the sound of crockery rattling as we broke for our evening refreshments, all too soon it was all cleared away and we continued to follow our stitched paths until the end of the evening when there was a show and tell before we packed up and headed home.

Note: Members also handed 58 knitted mittens to the Multiple Sclerosis Society, to be filled with sweets and sold for its Christmas fundraising.