12 Days of Christmas- 27th December- Orion

If I have worked my magic on the website then the spare Merino & Silk fibre from each 12 Days of Christmas parcel will be going in the online shop each day. This is the same base as all the other Superfine Merino & Silk fibre that's available, so you can mix and match with any other colour that's in stock, and also benefit from the same offer of "Buy any 2 and get the 3rd half price". 
The whole range of fibre is available here.

The fibre this year has a theme of the Stars. In the northern hemisphere, at this darkest time of the year starlight can feel magical. Humanity has always looked to the heavens, and created stories around the patterns that they can see from these glowing balls of gas so far away from our own little planet. 

If you fancy trying to find the stars linked to the fibre then there are some great apps that use the camera in your phone, assisted reality, and the internal compass to help you identify where to look. ​

One of the easiest constellations to see in the sky, and on clear nights will definitely be one you can step outside and see. I'm lucky enough to live on the edge of a Dark Sky Reserve, so my views of the night sky are pretty incredible, but Orion contains such bright stars that it will be visible in all but the most light polluted locations. Betelgeuse is a red supergiant, and the 10th brightest star in the night sky, and is at Orions right shoulder. It contrasts very clearly with Rigel, the 6th brightest star in the night sky, which is a blue supergiant. If you want to know more about the types of stars then this is a nice starting point. It's very easy to see the difference in their colours. 

This constellation features in the mythology of many cultures, but under the name Orion, the Greeks describe him as the hunter. Orion is the son of Poseidon and the Gorgon Euryale, His father gave him the gift of being able to walk on water, and using his powers Orion walked to the island of Chios. He then had too much to drink, and made unwanted advances to Merope, daughter of King Oenopion. As punishment the king blinded Orion, Orion managed to return home, where Hephastus (the god of fire and blacksmithing) took pity on him, and made his servant Cedalion accompany Orion to Helios (god of the sun), who restored Orion's site. 
Orion however didn't learn his lesson. He boasted that he would conquer every creature on Earth. This angered the Earth goddess Gaia, who sent a giant scorpion to kill Orion. In death Orion was placed in the stars alog=ngside the scorpion who had killed him.