right now.

well, it's only been a year since I last updated-- better late than never, as the saying goes. let's see how true that is, shall we?  how about a list of what's currently happening around here? because that sounds like the perfect way to ease back into things.

waking far, far earlier than I really want to. this morning, it was 5am. FIVE AM. the mornings I'm supposed to wake at 5am (for work) are a struggle to even open my eyes, and the mornings when I know I can laze in bed for longer, my body clock is all, NOPE NO WAY NUH-UH LADY IT'S TIME TO GET UP GET UP GET UP COME ON UP AND AT 'EM. screw you, body clock. screw you sideways.
watching This Is Us. The Curse of Oak Island. Survivor. (my one reality show I can't go without.) Vikings. The Grand Tour. The Affair.
loving earning my own income after many, many years of not contributing to the household finances. now I can buy all the frivilous things I desire and not feel those pangs of guilt.
appreciating the Loveshack- our bach, fifteen minutes out of town, yet it feels like a whole other world. it's so nice to jump in the car and drive out there to just chill out and relax.

keeping to our budget. mostly.  
hunting for inspiration online for upcoming craft projects.
planning two trips to Christchurch in the New Year, both for concerts. (Simple Minds in February, Don Henley in March.)
looking forward to summer and warm days. it's the first official day of summer today and so far, I'm not impressed. WHERE IS IS MY SUNSHINE AT?
anticipating a phonecall.
working two different jobs. after not being employed for around twenty years, it's slightly hilarious to me that I now have not one, but TWO places of employment, each one vastly different to the other. I enojoy both though, so I know how lucky I am.

having a cup of tea and a hokey pokey biscuit. because I'm a grown up and can ruin my dinner if I want to. (and I definitely want to.)
hoping that it will be warm & sunny tomorrow.
listening to a lot of Spotify playlists lately, especially when at work. 
brainstorming an upcoming mixed-media project.
turning into a morning person. who woulda thunk it? not me.
finishing the pile of magazines that is threatening to take over the house. there's just not enough hours in the day to get them all read!

learning new stuff at work, constantly.
ingesting oranges. so many oranges.
meeting new workmates, new customers. 
feeling content. happy. settled. it's good. 
thinking about getting up off this chair and getting dinner organised.
wishing for a lotto win. yes, please. 

until next year, then? ahahahaha. ha. we shall see.

I would wait for ever & ever.

ah, poor little neglected blog of mine. let's see if we can get some kind of posting happening again, shall we? these lists are easy enough, & I like looking back at them for a snapshot of what was happening in my life at the time I filled them out.

watching  ha! waaaay too much lately, it seems. in my defence, it's winter (& it has been a cold, miserable one) & we also now have Lightbox, so there's just SO MANY SHOWS at my fingertips. so, yes. I (re)watched the entire Brideshead Revisited series, because I had only vague recollections of seeing it originally when I was....13? 14? it was certainly interesting to see it again, & I think I appreciated it more now I'm older. I watched Getting On, which was equal parts hilarious & heartbreaking. I mainlined all 5 seasons of Downton Abbey (better late than never) and oh my god, it was FABULOUS. I'm so happy there's to be one more season. I also devoured Outlander and adored that. I've just got done watching all 4 seasons of The Killing, & it was fantastic. I've watched a few episodes of Unreal, but I don't know if it's really my thing. it's....okay, but not something I'm super-keen to sit back down to, if that makes sense. I'm almost done with the first season of Mad Men-- absolutely loving that. Sense8 was good, Wayward Pines is quirky & just enough to keep me hooked, Mr Robot is refreshingly different, Dark Matter is pretty average but better than nothing, & I still have a few episodes of Hannibal to catch up on when I'm in the right frame of mind. (& stomach, haha.) um, I think that's all-- and if not, well, it's probably best I stop there, because WOW THAT IS A LOT OF TV SHOWS MY GOD. *cough*

 she suddenly realised she watched way too much tv. like, for real.

loving the (slightly) warmer days we've been having. SLIGHTLY. I mean, today was 20c, but I suspect it was a mere aberration & tomorrow it will snow. but hey, glass half full & all that.
appreciating my life. like, all of it, in general. things are pretty good right now & I'm pretty content. LONG MAY IT LAST.
keeping good thoughts, positivity. all of that.
hunting for inspiration, always. some days are more successful than others, of course. 
planning future spring-cleaning projects and to-do tasks. I even have a list! well, a list app on my ipad, but hey, it still counts.

looking up book titles using my library's online catalogue. I've started keeping a list of books I want to read & am working my way through it. one down so far, & I'm about to start another.
working on getting back into better eating habits after easing up a little over the winter. also, attempting to drink all the water. ALL OF IT. 
having long, convoluted dreams most nights. I actually kinda love that. how my brain comes up with some of the scenarios, I will NEVER know, but I am an admirer. keep it up, brain!
hoping our trip to Christchurch in November to see Chris Cornell in concert is fun. I'm sure it will be-- the Billy Idol concert back in April was AMAZING.

 
listening to Taylor Swift's 1989 album. I'm a fan. 
brainstorming  future DT projects & layouts. I'd also like to rearrange my studio, & I have an idea what I want to do, but it's going to be a reasonable-sized mission. so at this point, it's still in the planning stage until my enthusiasm levels ramp up to where they need to be. ha!
turning off the computer in the evenings, still. sometimes it doesn't even get turned ON during the day. (but there's always my ipad, so. technology, y'know. can't be without it.)
learning about myself, still. always.

ingesting an orange. water. maybe a cup of tea. 
meeting deadlines. obligations. expectations. the usual. 
feeling pretty good, actually. thanks for asking. 
thinking too much, sometimes. you are allowed to switch off sometimes, brain. 
wishing for love, health & happiness, always. :)

 and that's how it works, that's how you get the girl.

one more time.

spent a little time in the studio this afternoon, listening to Tori & playing with sprays, stencils & stains. this layout is the result.

sometimes Mondays aren't all bad. :) 

ommm.

hello Friday! the weekend is tantalisingly close, and I just wish the weather was a little brighter. still, you can't have everything, right? right.

I have another Design Team post up over on the Artfull Crafts blog, in which I put together a layout using a Christmas range using no Christmas photos whatsoever, because I am nothing if not contrary. :D it's here,  and the layout is pictured below. I've actually been industriously working away in my studio over the past week or so and have produced around 6 or 7 layouts in all. long may this burst of creativity last!

I've also just about completed one of the scholarship applications I'm putting together on Lauren's behalf (it's a special one, where I am the person who "nominates" her for it) and once I have a few last documents for it, it can be sent away. then it's a matter of waiting to hear back if she's been successful or not.  fingers crossed, because I am sure every little bit of extra cash will be helpful when it comes to the cost of University study. (which I am still in denial about, by the way, because I swear she's only five years old. WHEN DID SHE GET SO GROWN UP?)

let's end with a little bit of zen. I know I could sure use it.

monday musings.

waking to dark mornings. I'm so very over winter. roll on springtime!
watching Resurrection. well, the mister and I marathoned all 8 episodes over the weekend, and now we're eagerly awaiting the new season when it starts in September. an intriguing show, that's for sure.
loving my house, always. always, always, always.
appreciating that I've been feeling better lately. I don't want to jinx it, but wow, it's nice to feel almost-human again.
keeping a daily journal in the form of this book. I'm in the second year of filling it out, and I love that it's a daily habit and a nice way to keep track of the little things in my life.

planning to repaint some walls in the summer, maybe. if the enthusiasm doesn't wane. (it very well might, because, painting.)
looking for scholarships that Lauren can apply for.
anticipating warmer weather! I've seen lambs frolicking, so surely it can't be too far away, right? RIGHT? (LIE TO ME IF YOU HAVE TO.)
working on design team projects, scholarship applications.
having the house to myself, now that Lauren's back at school and Ivan is back at work.  
hoping the rest of this year is stress-free. that would be AWESOME.

listening to this on repeat. it's amazing and haunting and so, so good.
turning in early most evenings. like, stupidly early. and kinda loving it. (that's not to say I'm sleeping any earlier, because I'm on my ipad, but I am in bed, so. technicalities, right?)
finishing a few books from the library. the latest was Night Film. it was a pretty intriguing premise, but the ending SUCKED. (then again, so did the ending of Special Topics in Calamity Physics so I don't know why I'm surprised.) and oh my god, Marisha, lay off the freaking italics every sixth word. seriously.

learning to let go, just a little.
ingesting ginger tea.
meeting obligations. but the fun kind, so that's okay. :)
feeling hopeful. it's a nice feeling.
thinking about my next tattoo design. so many possibilities!

three day weekends are my jam.

this past weekend was a three day one here in New Zealand-- Monday was a holiday for the Queen's Birthday celebration. I don't think it's her actual birthday, but hey, close enough for a mallowpuff as the ancient philosopher Chocolate Biscuit* once said.

the weather-- despite June 1st being the "official" start of winter-- was absolutely glorious. three days of sunshine and blue skies, so we made the most of it. we spent some time gardening: we recently pulled out all the lovely old rosebushes planted by all the previous owners of this house-- all 57348927589235 or so of them. (rosebushes, not owners. I think, anyway.) I have come to the realisation that while I do love roses, I love them best if they're in someone else's garden, not mine. so, out they came. approximately 6897457653479654 bulbs were also removed and tossed into a giant pile, which I attempted to pare down by giving them away to anyone and everyone I have ever met. "do you want some bulbs?" became my war cry, followed closely by, "take as many as you want-- maybe alllll of them!" that said, I still have a few left which I will replant in a spot where they won't run as rampant as they have been over the years.

so, yes. the garden is now rose-free and (almost) bulb-free, and instead features a hand-picked selection of native grasses and shrubs that I hope will prove to be relatively low-maintenance. it's still not quite finished, but it already looks so much better, and suits the style of the house far better than the slightly-confused cottage garden/wild meadow/haphazard planting look that was there before.

to recover from all that gardening, we spent most of Monday in the car, traversing the backroads and byways of surrounding countryside, which was like balm to my soul. we originally intended to end up at Evan's Crossing/the Pareora Dam to check out the walkway, but took a wrong turn somewhere along the way and ended up in Fairlie, scoffing delicious pies from The Bakehouse. best unintentional detour ever, I swear.

naturally, I took a whole lot of photographs. :)

right, then. apparently I can update this thing afterall. always good to know!


* lies. all lies.

hello 2014.

My latest design team post over on the Artfull Crafts blog features one of my favourite projects to date: a multi-window picture frame using the gorgeous Art Of Life range. I love the colours & designs in this release-- black, white, cream & sepia, with a slightly vintage feel.

 

The pictures are of me & the mister, taken to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. As you can see, we've still not mastered that whole "acting like an adult" thing, & to be honest, I kinda hope we never do. Life's far more fun that way. :D

 In other news, I was pretty glad to see the end of 2013. It wasn't one of the greatest years for me, for a variety of reasons, but I have high hopes that 2014 will be much better all-around. Here's to blue skies, a clear road ahead, & sunshine to light the way to what lies ahead just over the crest of the hill. Onward & upward!

 

Heidi Swapp Mixed Company layout

There's another Design Team post from me over on the Artfull Crafts blog this week: this time featuring a layout I made using Heidi Swapp's Mixed Company range.

I usually work on a smaller scale (mini-albums, mostly) so it's been fun switching things up to create 12x12 layouts lately. Plus I got to use some of my Instagram shots in the round format, which I am kinda addicted to. (as anyone who has seen my Instagram feed can no doubt attest to.)

In other news, Miss 16 finished school on Wednesday & is now officially on study leave, with her first exam happening next Tuesday. Her end of year prizegiving was on Wednesday night, & she & I took some goofy self-portraits before we went.

Next year will be her last ever at high school, & the thought of that is already blowing my mind. Time is going by WAY too fast. Only 45 days until Christmas! :)

Have a great Saturday. :)

currently.

waking up super early most mornings, often feeling like I've barely slept. probably because I haven't. the upside is I have so much more time in which to procrastinate!
watching Pentatonix videos on youtube. they are AMAZING. 
loving the warmer weather as we move into late spring/early summer.
appreciating time spent together over the three-day weekend. 
keeping a box some coffee capsules came in, because I think I might be able to upcycle it into something fabulous. well, that's the plan, anyway. 
hunting for a frame for the cool Dick Frizzell print I've ordered. 
planning a little getaway after Lauren finishes her NCEA exams in late November. 
looking at accommodation options in Christchurch for the abovementioned getaway. (update: all booked, yay!)
anticipating Christmas. so far I have resisted the temptation to buy any new ornaments/decorations. SO FAR.but people, I can only take so much, seriously. I spent a while gazing longingly at all the shiny, sparkly goodies on display in Farmers yesterday.
working on several different design team projects.
having my fourth coffee of the day. probably not the smartest idea I've ever had, to be sure. 
hoping to go out for lunch once Ivan gets home from work. that hope has seen me forgo breakfast, so I'm working up a mighty hunger. 
listening to a bunch of assorted music I've been squirrelling away in a desktop folder. it's an eclectic kinda mix, & suits my mood perfectly.  (currently: Counting Crows - Colourblind.) I am folded and unfolded and unfolding.
brainstorming about project ideas. it's so good to feel inspired. 
turning off the computer in the evenings, and reading, listening to music, or playing Scrabble on the ipad.
finishing this post, hopefully. it has been in my draft folder for a ridiculously long time.

learning how to tie a successful bow! better late than never, I suspect. 
ingesting magnesium tablets to help with sleep. supposedly. fingers crossed!
meeting my obligations, because if I'm assigned a task, I like to do everything within my power to make sure it gets done. 
feeling happy. content. it's nice. :)
thinking about how fast this year has gone by. it's kind of crazy.

wishing it could be summer all year round, with a little spring & autumn in there, too. but I'm well & truly over winter, thankyouverymuch.

mixed-media canvas

Just a quick note to say I have another Design Team blog post up at the Artfull Crafts blog, featuring a mixed-media canvas I made which fits in with this month's Artfull Crafts challenge theme of "In The Pink."

Thanks for looking, and enjoy your Thursday! :)