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Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Luscious Ladies Love Lipstick!

I was going to call this post "Boring Lesley Buys Lipstick", but then I referred to all my positivity prompts...you know the mantra..."Accentuate the Positive"!
Counting beads...!
I've been bogged down in end of year financial stuff and was feeling totally over it all before we went over to Nelson for the day on Saturday - the Toy Boy worked at his stall at the market while I went off shopping and having a girlie morning out.
I went make-up shopping - just mooching around looking at all of the gorgeousness and remembered that galadarling had recommended the new Revlon Lip Butters.  I bought "Berry Smoothie"  and I love it!
 
Revlon Lip Butter - Berry Smoothie
It's lovely stuff - really moisturising and a nice shot of transparent colour - subtle but not too subtle, if you know what I mean.
There's a nice range of colours and I have "Pink Truffle" in my sights for my next purchase.
It's a good price too - $27.95, I think?
It was a freezing cold day so we met up with my big sister and went to Cafe Olive where we sat in front of their fire and ate a yummy tasty (and again, really well priced) lamb kebab for lunch.  
This is a spot I really recommend - it's cosy, comfortable, friendly and the food's great!  The place has had many incarnations since it was built as "Faces" long ago and far away...I can remember going there when the Wearable Arts still had their shows in Nelson :).  
Cafe Olive - full of sumptuous couches, carpets and kilims.  They get an A+ for atmosphere!
From there we went on to be wined, dined and spoilt by our long time friends who live at Marybank with a fabulous view over the coast.  They have a beautiful home and D has an  amazing design "eye" for design - she can put a montage of lovely things together just "because".  I love that!  She inspires me!
The little heart is made up of tiny bells
So, filled up with inspiration, I have come home to finish off the boring stuff and get my teeth into something more fun - I have a selection of brooch beads under way.


Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Autumn Cleanup

There's something about domestic chores - they make me feel really settled sometimes.  When I'm in the mood, that is!  A friend of mind suggested that I post some pictures of the tools of my craft on Pinterest, so I played around with that thought for a while...  The trouble was, my bench was in such a shockingly messy state that I couldn't photograph any single thing with it like that!
Before
 So, reluctantly, it was time for a clean up.
I started by taking all the short ends of glass that need to be used up (did I tell you I never waste glass?) and sorting them out...there are all sorts of "treasures" in here from silvered ivory stringers, twisties, encased canes...
Then I took all the longer lengths and laid them out in another place...  There are THAT MANY??  REALLY?  I suppose I should sort these and use them up - sometimes I threaten myself with not allowing me to take a new rod till all of the old ones are used up..
.  
YEAH RIGHT!

Then I had all this clear space so I laid out the tools that were also in that same spot...

So, here we have them - this is what I use most of the time, though there are a couple in there that I hardly ever use, and there's a set of brass picks that aren't in this shot that I use all the time, too.
So then it was time for a cup of tea and a quick bead or two before I headed home.
and after....
I have to say that once I relaxed into it I quite enjoyed the process and now I feel quite super charged and ready to make another mess ;).

I need to find a new container for my hot tools, though...somehow the plastic box doesn't quite cut it.
Perhaps I should make a regular practice of taking photos of my work areas so I am forced to tidy up.

OUT WITH THE OLD AND IN WITH THE NEW!!!

Friday, May 18, 2012

We Are All Weird!

This is the cover of a book I've just read.  Yes, that's a pretty individual look alright!
His premise is that the world has changed from the mass compliance of the 20th century, where we found safety and acceptance in complying with the norm, where mass marketing was efficient and cost effective, and a few very large companies became even larger - the larger they became, the more influence they had on our everyday way of life.
He says that the introduction of the internet and our easy, instant access to information about everything from sky diving clubs in Mongolia to Star Trekkies groups in Amsterdam has made us all able to express ourselves in new and unique ways, which means the demise of the mass market and "normal" societies are becoming a thing of the past.
It's a little book - I'm sure a faster reader with an a day to spend could gobble it up - and an interesting read.  It's well written and interestingly laid out to accentuate his points.
And I think he may be right - we all want to express our own individuality, and certainly in New Zealand, I think that we feel free to do that.  It makes me wonder about other oppressed populations and to appreciate the gift of freedom that we have here.
 I have been changing things around in the workroom this week, putting my bead stash on display for sale - it's always been available but I haven't had the place to show it off till now.  If there's anything you need in the way of Swarovski Crystals or sterling silver beads and findings, please just ask - I'm happy to sell bits and pieces for your own projects and I love hearing about your creative juice!
While I was going through everything I came across some beautiful Swarovski Light Sapphire 8mm bicones that are just begging to be made up into something - I've been enjoying tossing around some ideas.
 I have also just got in some Swarovski Rondelles for a project I'm planning with pearls - they're pretty gorgeous, and I'm thinking that I might need to get a range of sizes in these.  They're silver plated and nickel free, so should be nice to wear.
Have a wonderful weekend, and if you need a little treat and a pick-me-up, sit with this clip of galadarling talking about her Radical Self Love Project on TED.

Monday, May 14, 2012

They TOOK what they NEEDED


In the TAKE what you NEED poster, I found the best toy I've had in a long time!
It's been a real pleasure watching people first discover the poster, then noticing that more and more - and eventually all - of the tabs have been removed.
It was interesting to notice that "FREEDOM" was the first tab to go.
I wonder what that means?  Financial, spiritual, emotional...?  I guess it means something different to all of us.

The last tabs to go were PEACE and HEALING, then the very last was BEAUTY, which I thought was rather nice. It seems that our "takers" this week were more interested in their spiritual well-being than their physical appearance.  How very Golden Bay!
Now, I must tell you that I haven't owned up to doing this to anyone locally, and if you come into the shop and front up to me I will tell that I couldn't say who was responsible.  I will deny all knowledge 'cos half of the fun is anonymity!
A nice guy came in and while he was browsing the beads we chatted a little, as we do.  He did ask if I had made the sign and I just looked dumb (not hard - there you go - I said it before you did!). 
He said how cool he thought it was and showed me his tab - how sweet!
I think I'm addicted to this now, and I'll make another one soon.
Do you have any ideas of new "gifts" to use?
Oh, by the way, here's that new necklace and bracelet I was working on for the Stitchbird's new shop in Wellington.  Peacock Colours Chakra Lotus Flowers...

Friday, May 11, 2012

TAKE what you NEED

After a week of grey "porridge" weather we have woken to a glorious morning!
I've been thinking about how I bang on about the weather, but it really does affect me.
  I'm OK about getting my head down and bum up and working away when it's grey and horrible, but I feel infinitely more cheerful when the sun shines.'
I've found this really cool new time-wasting device called "Pinterest " - you  may have heard of it ;).
I can spend hours looking at all of the pretty things and getting inspired while pretending to watch TV with the Toy Boy.  He also pretends to watch TV with his lap-top on his lap, but he cruises cars and machinery and blokey stuff.
I was inspired this week by a picture of a simple sign, and decided - for once - to act upon my inspiration.
I pinned this on a little noticeboard between the workroom and the Organic Grocery Store it's been really uplifting to watch people stumble upon it.  Even if they don't physically take a "gift" , they smile.  I wonder how many "gifts" will have gone when I get in this morning?
 There has also been lots of work going on to stock the Stitchbird's new store in Wellington.
 Being back into my work is good! 


{Share your bliss! Scatter your joy in a comment below or link up at LivLane.com!}

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

It was Time for a Break

We're just home from a wonderful two week holiday where we did a loop of the South Island of New Zealand.  We traveled down the beautiful wild West Coast, passing through Nikau Forests in the sub tropical north.  We stopped at the pancake rocks at Punakaiki...

where the sea was disappointingly calm so the blowholes were quiet...
but the cheeky wekas were busily begging from the tourists...
This wee fellow almost got into the car!  There was a gang of three working the car park like rather hardened operators!
We stayed a night with family at Moana on beautiful Lake Brunner and went bushwalking there.  The peace and quality of stillness there is exquisite.
This collection of old English cars at Dobson is so typically old West Coast!  The Toy Boy is a bit of an old petrol head, so we had to have a "scenic" shot here!
The drive from Moana to Queenstown was long but very diverse and beautiful - from poor pasturelands and stony beaches, through dense rainforest, past the glaciers and into the dry, rocky interior.
The purpose of the trip was a visit with Number One Son and his partner MM.  They live on the shores of Lake Wakitipu in the very busy year round tourist town of Queenstown.  
It's quite a place, with the picturesque old town nestled on the side of the lake in amongst towering mountains.  We had a little flash of snow on the tops while we were there, but in a few weeks the whole town will be focussed on magnificent world-class skifields.  
Number One Son has always been a mad keen fisherman (check out queenstownfisher.com )
and he took us for a drive up the lake to Glenorchy and the Dart River.  We stopped off so he could have a quick fish, and lo and behold he caught a lovely brown trout!  There was great excitement as the fish was landed and safely returned to its home!
The Toy Boy and I bade a reluctant farewell to the kids and headed off towards Moeraki on the East Coast (the place where those beautiful boulders are born).
 
I love the look of the dry, brown-cloaked hills of the inland country.
Our road trip was topped off with a couple of nights at Hanmer Springs and a day soaking ourselves wrinkly in the hot pools, then quietly home.
It was a lovely break, and it's good to be home!