A Christmas tree made of 400 peggy squares

Christmas is one of the busiest and happiest times at Real Living. Residents and staff are very busy preparing for the magic season, putting up decorations, making homemade wreaths and covering the villages in tinsel and garlands.

At Pakuranga Park Christmas kicked off a few months ago, when the residents started knitting hundreds of peggy squares to create a unique Christmas tree to decorate the Lounge. The impressive tree was assembled last week; it has 400 squares and it’s 2.7 metres high, so it almost touches the Lounge’s ceiling!

The talent and creativity of our residents always shines at this time of the year. At Pakuranga Park the annual Christmas market had a vast display of homemade goodies and yummy treats. Residents and visitors alike had the opportunity to browse stalls with gorgeous jewellery, retro candles, hand-crafted kauri artefacts, fruit cakes and handknitted gifts.

Epsom Village also held a very successful market with shortbread, muffins, jams, pickles, unique decorations and homemade Christmas cards. One of the most impressive stalls was the one with wood artifacts. David is a very talented resident who every day spends hours in the village’s workshop creating stunning wood pieces such as ornamental vases, old-fashioned toys and novelty gifts.

David is also the designer of Epsom Village’s original Christmas trees, that are being decorated this week. At Real Living we love this time of the year, when staff and residents come together as a big family to celebrate the magic season. The organisation of the Christmas dinner is in full swing with most residents having already registered to participate in one of the most important events of the year.

If you’d like to know more about joining our community contact Syvlie on 027 314 5767 or email sylvie.borrett@realliving.co.nz