Thought the last thread was getting a little long, particularly when we start posting the pictures.
Here is the group sending signals out to those who didn't attend.
I will post individual pictures next and if the hat owners would d-mail their descriptions, I will cut and paste them as an edit to each picture.
the lineup for voting
A late entry, but the WINNER. Holly's hat.
My foil hat was designed for purposes of transmission and reception of ideas for gardening and life, kind of a telepathic PNW forum. The spirals, wandering curlicues, and antennae on the headgear are reminiscent of the way i tend to garden (not a linear thinker here). The hat is adorned with numerous symbolic trinkets. There is a pink plastic door (from a lego set) in the loop at the back intended to open the doors of the subconscious to myriad possibilities. The keys dangling on either side are for unlocking talents and potential. The spring at the top is to keep a sense of enthusiasm and bounce, the shell at the front for navigating the nautilus of life, the shoe charm for putting one foot in front of the other when encountering challenges, the little saxophone for bringing music and swing into the garden, the pink rose pin for remembering to be tender with those we love, the bat to appreciate even those aspects of life that are sometimes vilified but are really useful and good, the bee in the front is for essential cross pollination of ideas with other gardeners, the ladybug and sunflower are to enjoy the beauty in the garden (and those elements that help you out), the bell is meant to ring a warning against undue negativity, and the clip is to hold it all together when all else fails (as happens occasionally in anyone's life).
This message was edited Jan 31, 2010 5:43 PM
The first entry to arrive. It caused Pixy to forewarn us that we had better strive for creativity.: Jan's hat.
"I was going for a Pippi Longstocking-type hat with the pigtailly things and also a veil for a more formal occasion".
This message was edited Jan 31, 2010 10:49 AM
Gwen's hat.
The solar powered (centrally-located cellophane solar panel) TV cap is perfect for both earthly and other-worldly TV viewing.
During dark periods (certain lunar, black hole, and PNW locations, there is a lavender back-up windmill which does an excellent job of harnessing the wind to power your TV cap.
Snack and drink dispensers (including a special dispenser for holiday snacks) assure one will have their favorite snacks and beverage close at hand. Merely press on a snack, and out it pops! Water? Beer? Wine? We gotcha covered! Press on your beverage of choice and it will be dispensed through the flexible straw.
A copper antenna assures reception at all locations, no matter the galaxy.
Decorative as well as functional headlights provide light should you need to consult your intergalactic TV Guide.
Last, but not least, a fabulous fuchsia bow provides the perfect fashion statement for your trendy TV top hat!
This message was edited Jan 31, 2010 12:19 PM
Julie's hat.
"My hat is mainly for transmitting purposes. It has a crystal that hangs down in the center to focus your thoughts, a ribbon ending in two side shields to prevent outside interference while transmitting, and of course, the antennas necessary to forward the transmission"
This message was edited Jan 31, 2010 11:23 AM
Pixy's hat.
My hat is based on the need to camouflage while out in the garden. The antennae are hidden inside the sedges, which can turn in any direction. Ferns are for blending in and giving the hat a 'softer' appearance. The berries on top actually store sent and received messages and can be used to poison enemies in a pinch.
This message was edited Jan 31, 2010 10:51 AM
Lynn's hat.
My hat's design is influenced by a special aircraft. The green jets are are special jet thrusts to get me where I want to go, especially useful in case of an unpleasant abduction. The middle portion of the hat is the detachable beanie, which serves a dual purpose. It protects the brain from unwanted radiation that is bombarding us everyday, and it can be used as a reservoir to collect precious water in case of a disaster. The brim offers protection to the face and eyes in case of too much sun in the garden, and it will shield the eyes when encountering visiting spacecraft. The colorful top knot camouflages the built in receiver/transmitter, and blends in with the garden flowers.
The ribbon helps hold the hat in place when being jet propelled, and when tugged, a parachute pops out to enable a perfect soft landing, which one can walk away from.
This message was edited Jan 31, 2010 1:31 PM
Can we vote more than once!!???? Too marvellous, but the singing sextet is just to die for! Who is your agent?
Sharon's hat.
My hat has three "wings," on the back and both sides, to protect me from unwanted transmissions. My antenna is spiralled. The right hand curve is for receiving the left for transmitting.
This message was edited Jan 31, 2010 10:45 AM
Gwen (gwendalou) modeling her hat.
I L O V E them. It would have been a tough choice.
Oh, I forgot the description of mine, but I was going for a Pippi Longstocking-type hat with the pigtailly things and also a veil for a more formal occasion.
Pixy, somehow I didn't get a picture of you with your hat.. Did get one, however, of you modeling Holly's hat.
Lynn (Lynnweidman) modeling her hat.
And it goes sooooo well with the Chagall!
And just as I clicked send I noted the 'seeds for me' - hurrah!!! Thank you for thinking of me. I'm touched.
This message was edited Jan 31, 2010 6:21 PM
Holly (mauryhillfarm) modeling her hat.
Sharon (PNWMountaingirl) in her hat.
Julie (Rarejem) in her hat, receiving a message from Jan23.
Julie modeling Jan23's hat, as per instructions recently received.
And Julie again. Note that the occasion was formal enough to keep the veil in place.
My mouse hand is tired. I will post a few pictures of the party in general a little later.
Except here is one of the seed table, and this is before several later additions.
What a great idea to put the reference book out on the seed table.
wow, looks like I missed another good time. Sigh. :(
I am now getting full descriptions of the hats, so be sure to go back to read them from time to time.
Perfect descriptions! All very clever, but I wouldn't have expected anything less.
(((HUGS))) everybody.
Something that has yet to be mentioned was the creativeness of our hostess in not only organizing the soiree, but arranging interesting and amusing ways of winning wonderful door prizes! Not only did we have the hat contest, but she had markings on some of the dinner plates that won prizes, and some wonderful quizzes (yes, we definitely should have studied!) that the best score got prizes as well.
One quiz involved matching latin names to common name of a group of plants, one involved matching salix latin names to their common names, and my favorite (which I scored embarrasingly low on but really enjoyed learning the answers to) was to try to define a list of garden related phobias.
Arachnophobia was an easy one (spiders), but can you guess
anthrophobia
Dendrophobia
Rupophobia?
You could win a fantastic prize like Sharon did!
My hat's design is influenced by a special aircraft. The green jets are are special jet thrusts to get me where I want to go, especially useful in case of an unpleasant abduction. The middle portion of the hat is the detachable beanie, which serves a dual purpose. It protects the brain from unwanted radiation that is bombarding us everyday, and it can be used as a reservoir to collect precious water in case of a disaster. The brim offers protection to the face and eyes in case of too much sun in the garden, and it will shield the eyes when encountering visiting spacecraft. The colorful top knot camouflages the built in receiver/transmitter, and blends in with the garden flowers.
The ribbon helps hold the hat in place when being jet propelled, and when tugged, a parachute pops out to enable a perfect soft landing, which one can walk away from.
For those of you like me who have "latinophobia", here are the answers, and another sample of the prizes:
anthrophobia... fear of flowers
Dendrophobia... fear of trees
Rupophobia... fear of dirt.
Also forgot to mention the "name this seed" contest, with a pair of seeds that was unanimously voted to look most like a "fishing fly". Melissa, it would be cool if you could post a pic of the seed and see if anyone who didn't attend might guess. I was stumped!
It was so much fun, thank you Melissa! All of the food and the punch were yummy. And, oh my goodness, there were seeds galore! Thank you everyone for the seeds and the cuttings and the baby hellebores, and the helianothus (from Katye).
very cool to be able to attend... wish I could have made the event instead of attending to family things. Love the head gear! Thanks for sharing.
Melissa, it sounds like you have a gift for creating a fun time . . .
She does indeed, Kathy - wish you could have been there . . . hope all is well.
Melissa's home, both inside and out, is incredibly welcoming - I'm so glad I heard about it (Thanks, Gwen) and was able to attend though too late to do a hat!
Thanks, Carol. It was just a case of timing - recent events mean that I need to find a different dog-sitter solution and I'm likely to need a sitter quite a bit as I travel to visit my folks. So I was off meeting up with another Silken owner to see if she might not be able to help me out . . .
I'm so sorry to have missed this!
Kathy, I sincerely hope you are able to find a reliable person to care for your 'babies' when you need to be away from home. The last thing you need is more stress wondering if things are going well at home when you are visiting and helping out your folks.
Most of the photos I took are similar to the ones already shown, but I have a few different (or slightly different) ones. This one of the group with hats is probably a repeat of others, but I'm sending it anyway because I just love it!
Melissa modeling Holly's hat and Holly giving her delightful explanation.
This is one of Lynn and Sharon - as you can see, everyone was having a marvelous time!
