top ten pictures from the week ~ and photographer Peta Rudd

Oops...a bit late this week.

seen on abigail ahern

Work. Don't ask.

seen on decorology

Consequently, a smallish collection...

seen on the style files

only five...

seen on pretty space tumblr

but...there's a bonus...

seen on the diversion project

A few weeks ago...in one of my regular top ten posts...there was this picture...

by peta rudd and seen on the design files

It was of a very cool Canberra house, and as I said in that post, yes...Canberra can do cool. Not often. But sometimes...

by peta rudd

It certainly does cool people, because Peta Rudd, the photographer and stylist and artist who took that shot wrote to me and very politely, incredibly politely in fact, asked if I wouldn't mind crediting her as the photographer in that post. Hell yes, hang my head in shame, of course I wouldn't mind. So I did. You can go back and check if you don't believe me :)

peta rudd

I felt really bad that I hadn't done it in the first place. You know me...always running on empty, trying to get posts up, do the very busy day job, to say nothing of the Cert IV (yes, let's say nothing about that!), wanting to do stuff around the townhouse, drag out the sewing machine, the crochet hooks, the knitting needles, the brushes...yada, yada, yada...

peta rudd

So I thought the next best thing was to highlight some of Peta's work for you to see...and so I have. It's a bit lovely isn't it. You can find more of her stuff here and here. Phew, one thing done that I told myself I'd do. 

peta rudd

Only eleventy-seven more to go! But they'll have to wait. I'm off to watch MasterChef :)

A few changes in the living room...

How was your weekend? Mine was pretty good thanks.
I made a few changes to the living room wall...

...added the mirror (found at an op shop) and stuck up one of my 'K's using blu-tac. It hasn't fallen on anyone's head yet,  but I'm afraid the cyclamen is past its best. But no probs...I've got a hyacinth now...even if it does have a slight lean :)

I framed and hung the New York poster...and moved the ballets russes costume painting. Sorry about the reflections.

My friend Chris suggested I need to fill the whole wall. Not likely, and certainly not without a bloody big ladder!  Some things however, always stay the same...

The vampire slayer wishes you a good week. I do too.

a new blog for you to visit...

Morning all. I just had an email from a lovely woman I met on Shannon Fricke's Styling workshop last month. Nic was sitting next to me and we got to talking...and then more talking with Kerri with an 'i'...(because is there such a thing as too much gas bagging? I think not). And we kept in touch as like minded people do.  Nic didn't have a blog. But she does now! 

She's blaming Kerri and me for her entry into bloggy world, and I'm happy to be blamed. Bet Kerri is too. Thank goodness Nic's not a Kerrie with an 'ie' or there'd be mass confusion.

Nic's a colour girl like me, and lucky for me she's doing the same Cert IV course I am, so I'll be making a nuisance of myself asking for advice. These are some pics from her very first blog post...

How about you pop over, see the rest and make her welcome...that'd be lovely :)
Have a terrific weekend everyone. I'm very hopeful that I'll be doing a great deal of not a lot!

mason jars...an interesting but completely useless fact

First of all...thank you for your sympathetic responses about my weekend of working. Believe me, it's not something I like to make a habit of. This is in lieu of a 'my creative space' post this week, because as we know, damn it, the aforementioned weekend of working meant I didn't do anything remotely creative. Not even glueing anything together. 
So, having complained twice in the one week I'm going to drop it now. Possibly. Instead I'm going to talk about mason jars. If you're anything like me, and are quite the fan of a bit of useless information...read on.

source

You see these jars all over bloggy world...there's no end to their uses... storage for one...

via pinterest (which I am still resisting!)

lighting...

via small acorns

they're even quite nice when being used for their original purpose...heaven forbid...

via simply recipes

...but did you know that John Landis Mason (who solved the preserving problem by patenting the threaded glass jar with a metal screw-on lid thereby making it possible to preserve all kinds of foods that would have spoiled without the benefit of said jar)...you can take a breath now...

via pink patent mary janes

...did you know that he sold the rights to his patent for a very modest amount of money so he could concentrate on inventing other things (a folding life raft, self draining soap dish, case for cigars) that he thought would make him rich but didn't. As all his other inventions failed he "withdrew into a semi demented poverty (and) died alone and forgotten in a New York City tenement house in 1902". Did you know that? No? Me either. In fact before I started blogging I don't think I'd even heard of a mason jar, let alone its inventor.
And how did I know this? By reading this book. Not that I've had time to finish it....too much work to do! I did say possibly :)

I'll catch you next week...after what I hope will be a really relaxing weekend. Enjoy yours and thank you for dropping in whenever you have the chance. I will try my best to do the same very soon :)

top ten pictures from the week ~ 31 May 11

I have my grumbly-bum pants on as I'm writing this.

via bohemian hunter

I worked all weekend...

via the seventy tree

yes really...all weekend

matthew patrick smythe via if the lampshade fits

From 10 am till 5.15 pm on Saturday.

naomi from design manifest (her place)

stopping only because the fella was coming for dinner and there was no food in the house so I had to go and get some.

by janis nicolay, pinecone camp 

then from 7.30 am till 5 pm on Sunday...ludicrous, absolutely ludicrous!

via bohemian hunter

After a very full on working week. Consequently I don't have ten pictures.

via design junkies

...nor have I done anything remotely crafty, creative or relaxing. Not happy.

Perhaps next weekend.

Ok, grumbling done...thanks for listening :)

look what charlotta did for me...

Earlier this week I posted about my casual interest fixation on this wallpaper...

and remarked that if only the 23 year old still lived here that he could have done a mock up of that particular wallpaper on this particular bedroom wall (with some arm twisting involved no doubt!)

But...who needs 23 year olds in the house when you have bloggy friends like Charlotta from Space for Inspiration. She saw my post and did a mock-up for me.

Am I going to do this? You betcha!  Thanks Charlotta...you're lovely, and smart, and kind, and clever, and...etc, etc :))
Have a terrific weekend everyone. And happy wallpaper dreams. I'll be working out where to get some and how to hang it!

my creative space: one use for a broken teacup!

I feel this is somewhat of a fraudulent 'my creative space' this week as it involves nothing more than a bit of glue...but sorry, it's all I've got!
When I was helping my friend Susan move out of her rented townhouse so that she could go and babysit another friend's home while they were having the annual five month stint at their other place in the south of France...phew, did you get all that? Good. How jealous are you? Me? I'm an unattractive shade of green...

Anyway, while the chandelier fairy and I were helping clean and pack (and to be completely fair, a lot of it had already been done), I accidentally broke one of Susan's teacups...

She was very good about it (and quite right since I'd just cleaned the bathroom for her!)...I know you're reading Susan, and I know you know I'm joking :)

So I took it home and fixed it (but not brilliantly as you can see!) and I'm using it to hold the garlic...ok, so not hugely creative, especially seeing I stole the whole 'garlic in a teacup' idea from the first born's house, but...

...at least it's useful again. Gotta love that. From dim-witted clumsiness to garlic holder. Even a chilli repository from time to time. And cheap...really cheap. Friendship still intact as well :)
For a much more interesting post, you can read about my friend Susan's sea change and see her house by the coast here...and then go and see a whole lot of creative spaces here. There'll be more than glue involved I'm sure!
all photos by me