New Zealand: Volume Two

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Queenstown was wonderful. The weather was extremely warm, high 20 degrees Celsius at the least i would imagine.

We went up the gondola.

Each view is so spectacular. I really can't get enough of this place.

Saying goodbye to Queenstown, we made our way to Wanaka. On the way we stopped of to have a look around the quaint Arrowtown.

When we arrived at Wanaka, we booked into a great place. We were right on the cliff top overlooking Lake Wanaka.

So far, this is the only place I have found a yarn shop, although i haven't been looking very hard. Anyway, after a bit of shopping and dinner we went to bed early to rest up for the big trip to Milford Sound in the morning.

Although i say I'm afraid of heights, you wouldn't think I was getting into a small plane like this! On the way there I was in the co-pilots seat!! I felt too silly to take a picture of the pilot...wish i did now, he was a nice bloke. Anyway, I'll let the pictures do the talking for the flight to Milford Sound.

After a soft landing we were at the boat terminal, boarding our little ship for a round trip of the Sound.

And boy, was it a nice day. Apparently it was only the second day without any rain this season. Not sure what we're doing right but i do hope the weather keeps up!

The trip couldn't really get any better – but it did.

Can you believe the dolphins were swimming right by the boat? Its like they were leading us :D So cool.

On the road again the following morning, on our way to Fox Glacier. I did some driving. I don't think my Dad likes not being in control of the car. But i'm sure he was glad he could relax (I use the term lightly) and look at the scenery without having to concentrate on the road. We stopped off to look at the blue pools. We had to cross a swing bridge!

But yeah. I've just woken up in Fox Glacier and we will shortly be heading of to Greymouth.

New Zealand: Volume One

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Greetings from New Zealand everyone!

And wow.

Just wow. What a country. I fell in love with the place as soon as i set eyes on the land from the aeroplane. And that was when i really got excited, when i finally realised that i was on holiday half way around the world! The flights were long and hard, particularly Dubai to Sydney, but when you finally arrive, you forget all that. Its completely worth feeling like a battery hen for over 27 hours, because its just so breath taking. I can already say i feel at home.

On to pictures and such!

Well, we spent our first few days in Christchurch, third largest city in NZ. It doesn't feel like a city though, as its not all sky high buildings and its quite open. It also has the river Avon running through it and some nice small parks, loads of trees. Its really clean and feels really safe too. I'll let the pictures do the talking.

We met up with my Dads old work mate who emigrated here 3 years ago. They are doing really well and loving it here. They showed us around, took us on the Gondola just out side of town, up Mount Pleasant over looking Lyttleton Harbour. From here, we headed off for an early dinner at a place called 'She' which overlooked the harbour. Not only was the setting lovely, but the food! Who would have thought that chocolate would go with chicken salad, or lamb!? They knew what they were doing because it went perfectly. The deserts afterwards were even better! We all had a chocolate brownie with raspberry sauce. I really can't describe how delicious it was. I have never had such a wonderful meal.

On our last morning, we had an absolutely amazing punt on the river Avon. It was so peaceful and pretty – if you ever go to Christchurch, do it! You won't be disappointed.

After we packed up, we headed for our next destination – Twizel. On the way there, I did my first bit of driving. To those of you who drive automatics – you must be mad! I didn't feel like i was in control of the car at all! But i'm getting used to it, the more i do. Manuals are better though.
Anyhoo, we stopped off at Lake Tekapo. B-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l.

The pictures don't do this place justice. The Church is that of 'The Good Shepard'.

Moving on from here we arrived at Twizel, booking in to some nice chalets.

We drove to Mount Cook for some dinner. The cafe was in the most breathtaking of spots. It was fantastic to be so close to the mountains while enjoying dinner!

We are now on our way to Queenstown.

Skirt To Pouch In About An Hour.

Lately, I've been inspired to recycle old clothes and either make them into something I would wear again or use the fabric to make something else. This isn't limited to the clothes I own, either. I like to go into the local charity shops and buy unwanted garments I can reuse for projects.

Take this skirt for example:

This cost me £3.20. You may be forgiven for thinking this is a lot, but when compared to say, Hobbycraft which do nice cotton prints for £5 per meter and up, it doesn't seem so bad. That and you're giving to charity and recycling. The fabric is nice quality too (plus, I salvaged the zip :D).

So, it took about half an hour to rip the three panels out, along with the zip. The rest of the time was the usual cutting, pinning pressing and sewing. Which brings me to the final product:

A snazzy pouch for my netbook cables and mouse to go into :D This will be so useful on holiday :)

I have loads left over which I'm hoping to use when I come home for new coin purse designs, along with some other charity shop finds which are waiting to be used!
So next time you go past a charity shop, think of all the things you could do with the fabric in there :)

Old WIPs...

Its been a while since I've actually posted any projects I'm working on. Sorry, this is going to be a big post to make up for all the lost time :o

First up though, in light of my resolution to make TomatoTea more successful this year I have rearranged my bedroom to be more productive.

Uh, no before shot. I didn't think I'd blog about it to be honest! And the second picture is terrible, my room is quite dark, so it's hard to get the exposure right :( But you get the idea.

So on to the projects.

The majority are half made bags; knitted, crocheted and waiting for some lovely linning :) Heres some thumbs from Flickr:

I've also got 'Thermal' on the needles... and the knit picks gloss is staining them XD. Admittedly, I haven't got far with that one but I'm taking it to New Zealand in the hopes of getting it done.

Yes. That's right. DONE.

I just wish I could knit on the plane... I have 16+ hours to kill on the way there and back ;_;

Also, I'm in the middle of crocheting some baskets for my new 'Studio' (can I call it that if I sleep in there? XD). Parcel string is dead hard on the hands though. I need to work out if I'm making the most of the string by crocheting in the round (as shown) or if its more 'economical' to crochet back and forth. I'll get back to you guys on that one at a later date!

I think thats enough of an update for now.

Oh, and Happy New Year :)

Christmas Cards '08

Its a little late, but I wanted to share the beautiful cards I received last Christmas from some friends over on deviantArt. Thanks guys - these are going in my keep sake box :D

Resolutions

...umm.

Where did 2008 go!? Seriously, this year has suddenly flown by for me. Perhaps its due to looking forward to New Zealand so much that I have wished the time away. That or its working 9-5.30, Mon-Fri for I don't know how long now!

Eee, that reminds me. I finish on Friday. 2 days left. I don't know if I'm pleased or sad. I do like working in that shop, but I couldn't do it as a full time job, or at least I can't see myself doing it.

Which brings me to resolutions. Sort of.

I have to admit, I'm in the frame of mind of thinking "2009 doesn't start until March for me". So, I guess I'm thinking of when I'm back from New Zealand, that's when I want to make these 'changes' to my life... perhaps 'changes' is too strong a word.

Anyway, I'm babbling.

Here's my resolutions:

1) To make TomatoTea more successful.
2) Not to get so hung up about things being perfect (ie drawings and art - products HAVE to be perfect!).
3) To enjoy and make use of my holiday in New Zealand.

I know these resolutions are kind of generalised. Particularly the first one - I need to define what 'more successful' means to me. I have an idea in my head, but its kinda fuzzy and this is where resolutions aren't usually kept.

Perhaps its a case of me not wanting to drone on about it here. That and probably laziness.

Anyhoo, I wish everyone a great 2009 :)

Why, Hallo thar.

... yeah. Busy.

Its sort of crazy busy at work. Although, I expect this week to be the worst of it. Only 3 days. Well, and Friday :/ I hate working Boxing day. But I won't go on about that.

4 weeks on Wednesday until New Zealand. 8D I can't believe it!! I remember when it was 13 weeks and I was excited! I am really going to try and blog at least once a week while I'm there.

Anyhoo, here's a little look at what I have been up to lately. Although, this is only a small amount :o A fair few sales on Etsy/Dawanda too. Surprising seeing how people are being careful with their money and looking for bargains...

OKAY! Quick post before i start work :)

I have never been so busy in my life. My goodness i'm glad the bookshop have now taken me on full-time now, even if it is only up until the new year. I'll be earning more because a) i'm doing a few more hours and b) because im not working 2 jobs i won't get taxed 22% and c) i should technically get my tax back that i paid last month... and possibly this month which will be like £300.

That's disgusting isn't it? Getting taxed 22% just because I had to work two jobs because i couldn't get any extra hours because of this whole recession business. It wasn't fair. I seriously think the hours should be added up from the two jobs and treated like one job. Besides, employers prefer part timers because they are cheaper :/

BAH!

Anyhoo. Besides working in shops, i have also been making stuff. Here's a quick preview of one of the many things i have been doing...

I'll be back later to tell you more. But for now, i need to get ready to go to work :o

Hope everyone is well!

ACK.

Lack of updating again. But a lot has been going on!

I started my second part time job on 22nd September and i have very little time for things now. Particularly Mon-Wed as i start my morning job at 07.30, finish at 11.30, rush home for lunch and start at my afternoon job at 13.00, for another 4 hours of working minimum wage. Its not bad but its not ideal either. But as i announced over on dA im off to New Zealand for 5 weeks in January so i have something to work towards and it really helps me get through those 3 hard days. Thursday and Friday are okay, as i only have the afternoon job to go to, so my mornings are free. And of course, weekends but as we all know, those get eaten up very quickly.

I was also ill last Thursday for 4 days... so i've lost 8 hours pay but im hoping to make that up somewhere along the line when things get busier at Christmas. But my gosh i never want to feel that ill again, ever. I have never felt that sick. I'll spare you the details though ;)

On some positive notes, i was asked at my morning job to do a "photo shoot" tomorrow morning for advertising. Its a craft store so i'll be doing some knitting and i think there's some sort of 'story' or something that the marketing lady is going to write for it.
Uh, as you can see, i have no idea what its all about really. But im getting paid to do it and its a big help :)

Also, my sister-in-law had a 'Yummy Mummy' event and asked for me to show some of my stuff. Unfortunately, it was day i fell ill but luckily i had already printed some leaflets and got my stuff together ready for it so a friend picked it up and took it over for me. Good thing too, as a very nice lady is very interested in knitted toys for her shop! So wish me luck!

...and thats basically whats been going on. Theres loads of other things ive been up to, like making my own Niddy Noddy out of PVC piping and i spun and plied my first yarn...and i started dying yarn again, but this time using natural ingredents, such as tea, grapes and stinging nettles. But i think i will talk about that another time.

Well done and thank you if you read this far :)
I'll leave it there for now, i really hope everyone is doing well.

Oh, two more things. The awesome and sweet Sally bought me a 3 month subscription for dA and i will be making use of it this weekend and catch up with a lot of my friends over there :)
And finally the blog on tomatotea.net is now going to purely be for 'documenting' new products i add on the internet. Having a mirrored blog is silly i guess. And extra work.
Blah.

Phew! Thanks for listening reading!

Folksy

Just signed up to Folksy.com, a UK based handmade, non-commercial online marketplace. Loving it already :D


I decided to list my purses on there for now - i may put a couple on DaWanda too. Not sure why im avoiding listing them on Etsy, i guess because listings get buried so quickly. That and Folksy is UK exclusive and listings are in good old GBP£.


...which leaves the question: what about pinkdoodle.com?


Well, its like i said to one of my online friends, Sally. Not much is happening over there. Yes its free (for now) but how long do we have to wait for a subdomain? Folksy already has this :o It cant be that hard, surely?


I also don’t want to be spread to thin over the internet. I think the three regional ones are where i will stay for now :)


...oh yeah. Green background and stuff. Much fresher i think :) How about you guys?

mirrored from tomatotea.net

Hmm...

Musings follow, skip this bit if you don’t care for reading my train of thought :p

I feel lately I have been stretching myself too thinly with too many crafts. My problem is I love learning new things and new techniques and well, my ideas are all over the place. It needs to stop! XD So lets see, what have i tried...

1. Crochet
2. Knitting
3. Hand dyeing yarn
4. Jewellery Making
5. Sewing
6. Screen Printing
7. Sculpture
8. Making Fimo/Sculpey Charms

I have a feeling I’ve been to ‘broad’ with some of these craft types (Like sewing includes making lining for crochet bags but also plushies, which I'm not too keen on now days :/ ). But in any case i have highlighted the crafts i REALLY enjoy and get on with fine.

...And to me it seems like textiles is the answer. Not all aspects, but most i guess.

Its not that i didn’t enjoy making sculpey stuff, for example. However, there are loads of sculpey artisans out there that do a fantastic job with their handmade charms etc which i dont have the hands and patience for. I will probably try my hand at it again for my own personal use or gifts. Same with jewellery making. I have so many beads and findings stored away... but i know if i give it away/sell it, i’ll need something!!

I guess what i’m trying to figure out is where i need to concentrate my skills. More so for my future, something to base a small business on. And as sad as it sounds the 3 at the top get me excited. I love making a ball of yarn into SOMETHING, you know? And what’s more, if i hand dyed that yarn myself - even more exciting :D


The not so boring bit

Anyway.

I have been busy. I love being busy with stuff. Makes me feel like I'm actually doing something. By which I mean, not just sitting around watching tv or working or something. Oh, i know what i mean. I wont pile everything i’ve been doing into one post, otherwise the projects will get lost under my stupid “train of thought” essay thingy up there :)

Theres more photos on Flickr (just click one of the pictures).

Not sure where to list them though.... I may dip my toe further into the DaWanda pool. Or just share them out a bit.... or something.

mirrored from tomatotea.net