I’m 30. I work in marketing in a shopping centre in Perth. I’m a professional creative who has learned strategy and gets along quite well in my career. This blog is my outlet for all things non- work related
I saw a stag decanter at Pottery Barn and it would have been a perfect gift for my brother, except I wasn’t willing to pay $60 for a fancy glass bottle. Sorry bro.
What I did have at home were some fancy glass bottles that were former homes to the whiskey everyone’s been drinking in front of me while I’m pregnant. Jerks.
A lot of my crafts tend to involve me decapitating a plastic animal, so it was no great step to the decision to purchase a Christmas stag to complete my gift.
I’m growing my first baby. Hooray! (That's my insides up there).
But man, it’s not as easy as I thought it would be.
It’s like everyone I ever talked to in my life about children was hiding this one specific fact: the first trimester is hard.
Especially if you get a good dose of morning sickness. Which I did.
Well duh, I know. It’s kind of a no brainer, right?
On top of the feeling of being sick, I’ve had to go against everything I’ve learned about dieting and EAT MORE (yes good stuff, but also muffins and hot chocolate because I deserve it).
Then there’s the general feeling of fatigue, which I started out completely hating. My blogging regime went out the window because I didn’t have the power in my limbs to glue my fingers together let alone make something pretty.
Then I learned I had to review my concept of success. I had to realise the limitations of my body, and I had to become alright with that.
I went from a highly functional, busy professional with a growing blog, to someone who was happy if I could make it through the day at work then get home into my stretchy pants.
But I’m growing a fricking baby! Of course my body will be a little bit confused. We made it to 32 without having to do anything this hard together (unless you count the weight loss we achieved before my wedding, and even that exercise regime pales in comparison).
So, here I sit, typing away and praying for my energy to return. Apparently it comes back.
But it if doesn’t… I’ll learn to be ok with that too.
We’ve all done it, got a jumper that was just a little bit too short. It looked good in the store because you pulled it down and wedged it on your hips then didn’t move while you surveyed it. Then, the first time you wore it out, the bugger pops up over your hips and shows your crack.
Fashun, hey?
If you’re lucky enough to have wasted your money on a knit jumper, and if you know how to crochet, you may be able to rescue your poor choice with a couple of hours of quality couch time.
2 x balls of wool in a ply that matches the weight of your jumper, a crochet hook (I used a 4mm hook).
4 hours.
under $10 of yarn.
You might find it hard to match the exact colour of the wool like we did, so we decided to go for a different colour in the same tone and hem in a colour that almost matched the jumper.
Starting at one of the edges, chain two stitches like you were starting a new row.
Double crochet all around, counting the stitches as you go or when you finish the row.
Chain up and put a double crochet into that stitch, then two doubles into the next stitch on either side of the seam. Do the same when you reach the next seam. We just want to give a little extra room for the hips.
Do the same for the next two rows.
When you get the jumper to the width you’re happy with, work on the length. We crocheted 10 rows before we were happy with the length.
Use the alternate colour of yarn to single crochet the hem of the jumper and tie off.
This was a art of an abortive attempt to get the hell out of my job and move into something way cooler. Well, The Urban List didn't want me, but that's no reason why you can't be introduced to 5 places that are pretty awesome (for me, my bladder and my dirty mind anyway).
The Toilets at ‘The Trustee’ Brookfield Place, Perth City
The back of house is often an area that gets overlooked when designing a restaurant. As a woman with a tiny bladder and a love of design, I really appreciate a good toilet block. To me, if a restaurant takes the time to extend their design flair to a women’s toilet, they really have the happiness of their customers at heart.
The toilets at The Trustee are like stepping back in time to a mix of a Jules Verne novel and your grandma’s house. They’ve coined their own design theme here, ‘Submarine Chic’. There might not be much room in the loos, and you have to keep your elbows close to your sides when you’re washing your hands, but the exposed pipes and floral framed prints make it well worth the trip.
The Theatre at Kitsch Leederville
If you go to Kitsch, you have to get the table in front of the bar. There’s nothing better than watching a mixologist at work, especially if they’re sampling as they mix. It’s like dinner theatre without the cheese.
The Side Salads at Low Key Chow House Leederville
Yes, Manu said this was his fave restaurant in Perth, but I knew it was cool before you did.
Just like my attitude towards toilets, I think that a restaurants side salad indicates their customer focus. There’s nothing worse than getting a great looking main meal with a desultory salad of wilted packet mix and some generic balsamic ejaculated over it.
Low Key have it made on the salad front. They have some truly amazing kim chee with just the right mix of sour and sweet. And their som tam (green papaya, chilli, green beans, dried shrimp, tomato, mint, thai basil) is something from another world. Although I’ll admit that I had to ask what the papaya was, like a proper Aussie.
The Creativity at Studio Bomba Leederville
Something about the words ‘shared creative space’ gets me all tingly inside. Couple that with a shop and a schedule of classes and I’m banging down the door.
Studio Bomba is a perfect example of a fluid business that moves with the times to meet the needs of the city. From design firm, to a stationery line, to shared space and now a studio and shop, Studio Bomba is here to stay.
The Décor at Halcyon Wolf Lane, Perth City
Halcyon’s décor is a testament to glory days gone by in WA. I was remembering things I had forgotten existed when I walked in their doors, and I was reminiscing tipsily about my childhood after a couple of glasses of their shiraz.
Who remembers Telecom? Or the black and yellow swan that was painted on bins? These design elements are blended in with a pumping bar and some truly amazing pinxtos: tiny, delicious foods on sticks.
Don’t forget to take a trip to the toilets for their extremely unique wallpaper, either. Naked celebrities. How deliciously decadent.
I’m usually too cheap to buy the cheese that comes in the wooden box, so that’s why I never thought of this DIY before. It was on special when I went shopping late on Friday night for something to go with my wine, so here we are!
Not sure what type of wood the box is made from, but the sticker came off easily so I’m going to go ahead assuming yours did too. Sucks to be you if you have to soak off a stubborn sticker. Just go out and buy some new cheese, you deserve it.
Want to hear something cool? This was the first project made and shot completely in my new craft room! By ‘new’, read ‘picked things up off the floor and put them on a shelf’. More on that later!
1 x brie box, 1 cute paper pattern, 1 x door knob, hot glue gun, pen, piece of paper, scissors, double sided tape and a scalpel.
20 minutes (not counting time it took to eat cheese).
Approx. $20.
Eat cheese.
Peel off the stickers off your sadly empty cheese box.
Measure the width of the outer lip and cut a strip of paper to that width. I had to cut two strips to cover the whole lip.
Cover the lip completely with your double sided tape.
Press the lip down firmly on the reverse side of the paper and roll it along the strip. Don’t be too worried if there’s a bit of extra on the edges.
Take the scalpel and gently trim off the edges of the paper so they’re flush with the lids edges.
Take your piece of paper and trace the edge of the lip with your pen. I held the paper up to a window and folded it in half twice to find the middle, then punched a hole in it with the pen.
I had a really hard time coming up with a title for this one! It is what it is, though. Use a piece of cardboard to support the stem of your plastic plant in a pot. It will stand up straight and you won’t have to faff about with scrunched up pieces of paper or what not.
Interesting fact: want to learn how to speak Spanish? Simply spell out the word ‘socks’, letter for letter. S. O. C. K. S. There, you’ve just said ‘It is what it is,’ in Spanish.
Mind. Blown.
Cardboard, pen, scissors, pot, plastic plant and stones.
10 minutes.
Dependent on the cost of the pot and plant, which I already had lying around.
Upturn the pot onto the card and trace around the outside rim.
Draw a second circle within the first that’s narrower than the lip, then trim. It doesn’t have to be perfectly round, just wing it.
Stabby stab a hole in the middle of the circle. Stab. Stab.
Upturn the cardboard and ease it into the lip of the pot, you should have a couple of cm’s leeway to pile up your stones. If not, give it another little trim.
Load in the stones, and then the succulent. It will stand up perfectly!
I had some Sugru left over from my test pack, and I wanted to make some stag earrings. By the time I finished with my stencil though, it would have looked like I was wearing a branch on my face… and while I’m not adverse to big earrings, I’m not into animal cruelty.
So the project became an ‘embellishment’. I chose to attach it to a notebook, but you could use it in scrapbooking, attach it to a photo frame, or turn it into a magnet.
I sketched out the stag on a piece of paper, but I only detailed one side. This is how I get a symmetrical stencil. Cut out the detailed side and put it onto a piece of card.
I used two different paint colours to outline the stencil by dabbing my fingers on it. It would have gone a lot smoother if I’d used card to make the original stencil so you might want to think about doing that. Flip the stencil and outline the opposite half.
Cut out the stencil.
Roll the Sugru out flat on a cutting board; I used a carving tool with a level surface. Put the stencil onto the Sugru and use the scalpel to cut around it, scraping away the bits that you don’t need.
Leave to dry .Don’t worry too much about messy edges; you will trim these off once the stag is dry.
Once your stag is dry, use the edge of your scalpel to ease it off the cutting board and glue to your notebook!
Dining alone doesn’t mean you have no friends. Take it from me. I’ve got plenty of friends*, and I dine alone as a choice.
I started dining alone when I was doing a photography course in the city. I’d drive from work straight into town and have just under an hour to feed myself. I could have simply brought a sandwich and scoffed it while hiding in the car, but pre- planning food is not a skill I’m known for.
The first time I ate alone was a bit daunting, I was worried that people were looking and me, I was worried I’d be bored, and I thought I’d feel like a total loser. But I was pleasantly surprised! Eating alone is awesome, and here’s why:
You can order what you want! You can eat the whole share plate if you want to and there’s no one there to judge. Get the mac and cheese, order an extra side, have a glass of wine. Your skinny friend/ spouse/ mother isn’t sitting across from you silently judging.
You can concentrate on the food. I always find that I concentrate less on the food when I’m talking. You have to split your concentration between whatever is being said, and chewing. When eating alone, you can consider each bite and taste the flavours so much easier.
You can take the time to unwind. There’s no need to listen to other people whining about how their day was. Or how sick their kid is. Or any number of things that sometimes you just don’t want to listen to. Simply be in your own mind, work through any issues of the day and prepare yourself for the next.
I rediscovered the pleasure of eating alone when I signed up for another course recently, so I was prompted to write this post. If you’re thinking of taking me up on my advice, here are three places I’ve successfully solo-dined at recently in the Northbridge area:
Bivouac:There’s a cool area at the back of the restaurant that looks over the bar and makes you feel like you’re in the action, but also gives privacy to read or write.
Lot 20: Tuck yourself away under the stairs or along the windows and listen to the lively chatter of your fellow diners while you contemplate life.
Shadow:Underneath The Alex Hotel, the lighting in Shadow is perfect for the lone diner. Understated and moody, you can retreat into the depths of your booth and practically disappear.
So why not try the solo dine? Remember, the only person who’s paying attention is yourself.
My family have been stepping up while I’ve been busy with annoying life related things (My birthday celebrations really got in the way of my blogging lately. Having friends and family who want to spend time with you is such a drag!).
I just can't rely on image quality...
This one’s from my sister. I think we can all tell who the better looking one is!
Decorating a mug with nail polish is something that’s going round right now, but if you haven’t seen it, here’s my sister’s take on it.
"It sticks like white on rice"- Jodi.
Under $10, especially if you’ve got a bunch of leftover nail polish or a random mug hanging around.
A mug, a selection of nail polish, a plastic container and a tea towel.
15 minutes, tops. My sister’s attention span doesn’t extend longer than that.
Fill your plastic container with a couple of inches of water.
Spread random drops of nail polish into the water, but be quick. It will start to set pretty fast. It pays to prep by opening the tops of the bottles before pouring.
Dip your mug steadily in and out of the water on the pattern of nail polish that you like best.
Wait for it to completely dry then hand wash before using.
I got this skull at Kmart for just $6, then used Mexican inspiration for the sugar skull design. Sugru is something I heard of recently, and I was keen to give it a try.
It was a great product to work with, malleable and bright!
sugru, skull, white spray paint.
$25
3 hours.
I gave my skull an extra coat of spray paint because it was a bit beat up, then waited for it to dry.
In the meantime, I researched sugar skulls on Pinterest and pinned a whole board with inspirations. Then I drafted my patterns on paper, working out what I wanted to use on my skull.
I then opened each packet, moulded the Sugru and pressed it on the skull. A couple of hours, and it was dry!
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