LOVING New Blogger Designs!

I really just LOVE the new theme options in blogger...what do you think?

Family Veldrif Weekend

On the weekend of the 16th of April, my mom and dad, brother + wife, sister + husband, Geoff and I, headed off to Veldrif for the weekend (for mom's 50th birthday). We stayed at the most awesome house - River Time > the website photos don't do it justice at all!

Here are a few pics from the weekend:

The river jetties

Family photo fun...can you spot the 2 pregos?
Clue below >

Yay! Grace Cooper in da tum. Due between the 30th May - 8 June 2010!

Afternoon Beach Fun

I forgot my wetsuit last Wednesday (we were meant to go and surf Muizenberg)....so we decided to go for a walk on Fish Hoek beach...which ended up in an unexpected impromptu construction mission!

The start of the waterway from the mountain to the sea

Making progress

Geoff working hard from the top end

OOOH! Random passers by joiner-inners!

Everybody mucking in!
(one lady joined in as her dog destroyed a wall & she ended up sticking it through till the end!)

Another joiner-inner!

Success!!

Some wonderful flow :)

Montegu / Greyton Weekend

Geoff and I headed in Montegu / Greyton direction a couple of weekends back. The main reason was for Dwain and Danelle's wedding..We left on the Wednesday and went through to Montegu to visit an alpaca farm... Now I want some more than ever!! I got some wonderful alpaca wool to create something with & Geoff bought some stunning stock for his shop.

There's a phenomenon in Montegu: Sacred Ibis that flock to a particular tree. It was so beautiful (and noisy) that we had to stop off and take some pics! :

Sacred Ibis

Alpaca mom & daughter

The wedding couple! Dwain & Danelle xx

Finally settling

Geoff and I are finally settling into our new home. The only irritation is a whole bunch of dogs in the neighbourhood which I've never seen get walked. No wonder they bark out of boredom!

We've spent 2 weeks away since moving in so it was great to spend last weekend at home...pottering around...going for the odd surf. Hopefully we'll be fully unpacked soon & I can just RELAX!

New home...Day 1

We moved yesterday. Actually, we are not quite finished moving but we did the bulk of it yesterday.

It is quite perfect moving just before Easter weekend. 4 days of un-interrupted settling.

Today was day 1. We had a lovely sleep last night. The odd getting used to dogs barking...neighbours having a noisy braai...there things will take a bit of patience to get used to.

We spent a lot of time organising today. Geoff set up the music and i sorted the kitchen out as much as possible.

The pool is amazing to have. I have not connected with the garden yet...crossing fingers that my proposed veggie patch will be approved soon!

I took the photo in this post on my first swim yesterday :)

Tikolo

My sister's sweet little angel of a snow white budgie was visiting us for 2 weeks while she and her husband were off to Thailand for a second honeymoon before their baby girl, Grace arrives.

...at least we thought she was a sweet little angel! We found out how one little bird can make enough of a racket to drive us half round the bend!

I've re-nicknamed Tikolo (who was previously nicknamed 'Ticks') to 'THE NOISE BOX'. Shame, she's quite old, and she really is very sweet...kind of like a granny who's past caring what everybody else around her thinks.

I actually missed her a bit this morning when stirring my barley grass (the spoon makes quite a noise on the sides of the glass) & there was no equivilant noise from around the pillar as there has been for the past 2 weeks...The flat seems very quiet without the little extra life inside it.

I Love Fridays

I really really really love Fridays since I started working with clay. Before that, Fridays were just another work day & I never spent time being actively 'artistic' - So Friday became Clay-Day & I've been learning & making amazing things...but most of all, I've been making gifts & experimenting with different clays & colouring / decorating methods etc

These hearts are made of porcelain & are items to experiment with different treatments with:

I plan on decorating them to match & then make a mobile or something out of them when they are done with their glaze firing.

I've made all sorts of other beautiful things, but cannot post pictures of them yet (they are being made for gifts & the recipients may not see them!!) ;)

I had a lovely drive past Long Beach, Kommetjie at midday after my Kommetjie pottery class. When the day is as beautiful as today is, I'm so pleased that this will be such a close beach! Pity the water is so cold.

Sunset Side Sunset

We went over to the sunset side again last night > Geoff wanted to have an end-of-day swim & I wanted to try my new camera out on the sunset. The result? :

It's finally arrived!

My Canon G10 has finally arrived! It's been a bit of a nightmare actually: I ordered it from a very reputable supplier on Bid or Buy as I couldn't find anybody that still stocked them (the G11 is out). It was supposed to take 2 to 3 weeks...and in the end it took 8 weeks because customs got hold of 5 boxes being sent in & kept them from the 15th of Feb.

[This is the kind of thing that happens when a company is trying to operate legally, pay their taxes & declare what they are importing].

Its so frustrating -- I did tons of research... finally decided what the best option is (the G10)... saved up... couldn't find the model I was after... finally found one & ordered it... then had to wait for 8 weeks before receiving it.

It was delivered this morning early & I have it fired up and ready to start snapping!
[We will hopefully go for a walk this evening Noordhoek-wards & snap some pics! ...will post them if we do!]

Talking Point

As mentioned in a (very) recent post, I indulged by buying 2 necklaces by Skermunkil at the Design Indaba the other Saturday.

Somebody mentioned to me that when people wearing Skermunkil creations see one another's choices, conversations often strike up.

Well, let me tell you that just wearing a Skermunkil will get people chatting!! :

I was at the gym on Thursday where I never speak with anybody (apart from saying a polite 'hi' to the receptionist & having a quick chat if I bump into somebody I know)...and no less than TWO ladies commented on my 'Cape Sparrow' necklace - one of whom I had a long conversation with & she told me one of the most beautiful things I've learned in a long while:

Do you know how you get the fur off Angora bunnies?

You brush them (!!) Now I really want some! :)

My Friday...

This morning I saw Thaya from the Beatnik Bazaar's request for a blogger Friday documentery... So this was my day:

8am > morning routine including daily Barley Grass & lots of Fruit.
My lovely HUGE fruit bowl from Wonki Ware as of this morning:

I fulfilled a last minute client request & rushed off to my Friday pottery class in Kommetjie...

I popped in to visit my sister-in-law, Colleen, in Fish Hoek...got home at around 1.30pm to a beautiful sea...This was the view from my kitchen window at 2pm:

Geoff and I went for a surf at Muizenberg...followed by the harvesting our first olives off the tree at the shop (we counted 270!!) & I raided my basil patch...

I made a wonderful batch of basil pesto & mixed it into some tagliatelle with fresh avo on top for dinner...followed by packing & pottering in and around our studio :)

Will probably finish the day off with an episode of Pushing Daisies :)

Jack Parow

About 7 years ago, my brother came to wake me up at midnight (I was sleeping on the sleeper couch for 2 months between places) to watch what I can only describe as a phenomenon: 3 beer bellied Afrikaans guys at the side of a dam with a tree...skinny slutty looking girls walking around looking "koel" & posing all over the guys & next to a Ford Cortina... the worst kind of Afrikaans lyrics (and Afrikaans can be DIRTY!) being rapped out of the guys' mouths...It was freakin' hilarious.

I was with a group of people a short while back who were talking about this 'new' form of Afrikaans rap - a sub-culture of people doing really South African, "bad taste" but really cool music with ridiculous music video personas.

We had a pizza evening with Pete & Elaine tonight. They always have something amazing to show & tell.... & tonight, they introduced us to Jack Parow.

(I think that Jack Parow is a great example of this "sub-culture")

You have to understand 'South African' to get this & its worth every bit of bandwidth!



(Hey T: Jy's dink jy's cooler as ekke: want jy ry in 'n Peugeot 206!)

The Sunset Side...

So this is Kommetjie... Soon to be our closest beach destination...at the end of the month we will move to the sunset side with a different set of rules for day end.

NEW HOME!!

I am very excited to annouce that we have found our new home to rent! I signed the leese on Tuesday :)

Some of the features:

• Double volume living room
• The main bedroom which has its own balcony (upstairs)
• Indoor/Outdoor bathroom (Victorian bath indoor, reed-surrounded shower outdoors!!)
• Northfacing; unobstructed views of Noordhoek Beach
• Balcony leading out from the dining room & lounge
• 16 metre swimming pool (long and narrow) within rockery-type pathways & amazing garden plants...

Here are some pics:

Could we start a Llama farm?

My Skermunkel necklaces
(the oval one I've had for about 4 months & wear all the time!)

We have had such a busy time as, on top of everything else, we are trying to source a new place to live...the options are so vast that it is not making the decision very easy.

We went to the design indaba yesterday. It was fantastic. We ended up being there for 7 or so hours.

I bought 2 necklaces from Skermunkel (liked 2 & could not choose - a heart with a ship & a cape sparrow)...a handbag like my sister in laws one that I absolutely love-hers is red-i found i blue one...and Geoff bought me a fantastic felt hat which has started a new train of options including obtaining land and a flock(?) of llama!

31 days to go. Who knows what might happen. Just trust it will work out for the best.

Wedding Gift

These cups are my first attempt at working with porcelain! I've been working with a clay called Fenix for the past 3 months but I wanted to make a very special, fine porcelian wedding gift for Gill & Vincent's wedding on Saturday past: Porcelain cups with knitted & felted mug-cozies!

I made the cups at home...had them bisque fired at CPS...got them back...decorated them with a black underglaze pencil...got them into a friend's glaze firing (matt glaze)...I can hardly believe I managed to finish these on time!


Decorations:

I wrote snips of poems by ee cummings:

"Tomorrow is our permanent address"

"I carry your heart (I carry it in my heart)"

"Love is more thicker than forget"

"Nothing except the impossible shall occur"

As well as a little illustration of the relative words...and some leafy twigs.

The cozies are knitted from 100% merino solids & lightly felted (I didn't make handles as I wanted to rather knit cozies)

This is how I packaged them:

The styrofoam container was wrapped in black and white polka dot tissue paper...tied with a thick black satin ribbon. It was a great way to finish this project :)

The House That Jack Built

We slept with the doors and windows wide open when we were in Stillbay. It is such a relief to not have to worry about anything happening. Earlier today, Geoff was at his shop and had hidden his wallet...but it somehow disappeared anyhow. People say that this happens all the time. As if that makes anything better. Its inexcusable. Its an outrage - any type of abuse on another human being.

Theft is such a cruel type of emotional abuse - one looses something that you treasure (in this case, a very special soft leather wallet chosen out of hundreds & the only awesome thing I found on my trip 2 years ago to Hong Kong) to someone who will most proabably take what they want and ditch the special item in a bin somewhere.

I am feeling so angry. Makes me feel like moving to Stillbay (or an abandoned island - will suit my diet!!) as soon as possible.

View from Kitchen/Lounge

Jack and Me'shell's house is a Cape Dutch / Greek Mansion / French style place where spaces are large and decor is simple. The views are spectacular & the lack of traffic noise is a dream.

We stayed in one of the flats at the bottom of their house (kitchen/lounge, bedroom, bathroom) & I managed to get a fair amount of work done in the kitchen/lounge area. Complete peace.

Kitchen/Lounge

Stuck

So we finally set off in George direction - about 3 hours later than we wanted to...only to have a burst water pipe. Why life throws things like this in multitude...kicking you in is down...I just dont know.

Geoff had to run down to a river at the side of the road (just after SrLowry's Pass) 3 times to fetch more water to stop the car overheating.....

We managed to get to Grabouw and found a plumbing / hardware shop that was open till 6pm. Thank goodness as it was just before 5pm... we managed to Macgyver the broken part with bits of pipe and clamps...Unfortunately it had to keep getting fixed.

We finally arrived in Stillbay at around 12.30pm. Exhausted.

Another Lake Trip

Yesterday Geoff decided that we should go to the 'Coca Cola' dam at the top of Redhill mountain...an easy half hour walk each way (which in actual fact turned out to be a 50 minute walk each way!)... We collected Robyn and her dogs - Flash & Zorro - in Kommetjie & set off.
It was such a beautiful day - not too hot - and the walk was really amazing! It was a bit chilly at the lake (wind & clouds) so we mostly threw sticks for the dogs & lazed about next to the water... It feels so good to have got out and about & done some excersise!

The other exciting thing that happened this weekend is that on Friday night, we had dinner at my sister's place & I had two huge treats:

1. T'Neal played her guitar and sang for us

2. I felt Grace kick for the first time (unborn baby 22weeks in my sister's womb!)...and it wasn't a girly kick either!