Two friends spent seven-and-a-half months knitting 78 little figures and other items from the Twelve Days of Christmas song, writes Sue Corcoran.
Mary O’Halloran, 84, and Gwen Hunt, 70, have knitted and chatted together for some time. Their latest project with highly detailed figures from the song is a stunner.
It includes eight maids a-milking (with pails), 10 characterful Lords a-leaping and nine dainty ladies dancing, some arm in arm.
The project, which will raise £250 for Thames Valley Air Ambulance, had another special role.
Mrs O’Halloran’s husband, Chris, died a year ago. They had been married for 61 years. She explained how knitting the figures with Mrs Hunt had helped her with her sadness:
“My son Steven bought me the knitting pattern book. He thought it would give me something to do. Doing the knitting took my mind off things. It’s definitely my most ambitious project,” she said.
“My son Shaun, a carpenter, made the tree to hang the figures on. The tree is 6ft 4ins tall and 4ft wide at the bottom.
“I really didn’t want it go but there’s not the room to keep it here. Through a friend we found some people with a big enough house for it. And they’re making the donation to the Air Ambulance.
“Gwen was my shampoo lady when I ran a hairdressing business in Station Road, Twyford for 25 years.”
Mrs O’Halloran lives in Twyford and Mrs Hunt has just moved from Charvil to Sonning.
When Mrs O’Halloran’s neighbour Asya Barskaya, of ABL Photography, saw the tree she took a photo of it and turned it into a Christmas card for Mrs O’Halloran to send to her friends.
