by Carla Louise | Apr 29, 2012 | Adventures, Creating |
I’m finding it increasingly hard to believe we’re still in a drought and still have a hosepipe ban – it has done nothing but rain for days!
My weekend has been rather lovely though – went to see Mum & Dad’s new flat, including their thoroughly gorgeous blue sofas and Dad’s reading lamp – wish I could sneak that out without anyone noticing, hehe (the flat is not ready to move into yet, but it’s getting there!):
I ran around town buying last minute stuff for the next three weekends (uni reunion in Loughborough over the bank holiday, Julia’s hen do in Paris and canal boat trip with Rob and friends) including surprises for Jules and a proper waterproof jacket – lol!
(hmm – no photo, waterproofs are not flattering. But hopefully will keep me dry!)
Then saw lovely Sharon and had icecream to celebrate having tried on the bridesmaids dress and found it now does up. Yup, my weight loss worked – but after this weekend I’m now fairly convinced it doesn’t fit again, lol! Back to le diet tomorrow… sigh. Loooong phone catch up with Lou, designed my business cards which I’ll order this week and was generally very productive. Although did nearly get flattened in the car park by wind and rain (which seems a tad unfair, if you’re going to be flattened in a car park you’d expect it to be by some large and impressive vehicle, surely?!)
Today I hibernated and worked on Ducking Fabulous until the rain stopped, and then I went for coffee with Wendy with the roof down – squeee! We went to Thorntons, it was lush:
And as we left, I left the water-themed keyring I’d made for the Out of the Blue Curiosity Project (which I talked about in this post) on the table – I hope someone picks it up!
by Carla Louise | Apr 15, 2012 | Uncategorized |
I have no idea how it’s already Sunday again, this year is whizzing past! So the main thing that’s happened in the past week is that over the Easter weekend I managed to relaunch my Etsy shop… but despite my best intentions this week, I have not managed to add anything to it! This afternoon I’ve been photographing new stock though, so hopefully will get some up this evening.
Things that have made me smile over the past days and weeks included…
Dashing Magazine and 91 Magazine – online, inspirational craft magazines which I can easily read in my lunchbreak from work. Gorgeous.
Instagram for Android – just in time for my new Sony Xperia S. So now I’m snapping away and posting furiously to Instagram all day long – follow me, I’m @duckingfabulous!
Someone telling me at the roller rink that they thought I was a professional (I am in no way professional, but it’s nice to think that I at least look like I know what I’m doing!)
A corset party I went to a couple of weeks ago, and signing up for burlesque class – squeeeee!
Dinner at Sophie’s with Ellie
National Cupcake Week
Seeing Toria for the first time in two years
MagCloud – how useful is this going to be for catalogues?!
Mum & Dad’s new house – it’s four miles from mine and is utterly gorgeous.
The four day Easter weekend
My bed – it’s genuinely one of my favourite places inthe world, though I don’t spend much time there
Experiments with new jewellery being a success
Lovely colleagues buying me chocolate (and ironically, then cutting down drastically on it and actually shifting some weight)
Successfully making pork belly and fennel mash despite an oven that wouldn’t play ball. It was lush.
Sales to friends and family, and my first Etsy sales
Changing my pin up name to something that suits me better
I’m a lucky girl, no?!
by Carla Louise | Apr 1, 2012 | Photography |
Aren’t they gorgeous? 😀
by Carla Louise | Mar 26, 2012 | Personal Development |
Well, I have discovered something – blogging really can change your life! Even if it’s only in small ways… I drafted a post on the train home tonight about how I was going to be more organised now that I have full permission from the day job to relaunch Ducking Fabulous (excuse me… SQUEEEEEEEEEE!); and with the oft-lamented 2 hours each way commute, I thought it was high time I got my life in order. I have approximately two weeks to do this, before my labels arrive and I can open my shop in earnest.
So I arrived home after a bizarrely productive day at work, dropped a necklace back to my neighbour, chatted to her housemate for a while, came upstairs, made dinner, ate dinner, read for a bit… and then suddenly had a fit of usefulness which surprised even me! So now my labels are ordered, my filing is in a box on top of the filing cabinet, my accounts are done, my computer is set up in the living room rather than on my bed, the bathroom is cleaner than it was and I’m about to hang out the last load of washing. And I’ve replied to some emails which I have been meaning to reply to for at least a month.
I know, right… what happened?! I’m not sure either… but I’m going with the flow, and will re-draft the post to take account of the fact that I actually did housework of my own accord 😮
I’ve also been asked to share some photos of my flat so I’ll do that when I’ve had some decent light to photograph it in, and having had a glorious weekend full of kittens and cooking (but not cooking the kittens), I have those pics to share too 🙂
For now – it’s gone half 11 so I must be heading bedwards. Goodnight, lovelies!
by Carla Louise | Mar 1, 2012 | Uncategorized |
How can it possibly already be Thursday again?!
Happy moments this week:
~ a perfect weekend seeing friends unexpectedly
~ finally getting a chance to test-run bottlecap pendants – I have been meaning to do this for an embarrassingly long time
~ learning (well, remembering – I already knew) that good friends really are infinitely precious
~ anticipating meeting this little chap next week, and the kittens at the end of the month (no photos of them yet – they move too fast!)
~ leaving work on time twice and having a proper evening, including cooking
~ demonstrable geekiness
~ making decisions about Ducking Fabulous and Etsy – keep your ears peeled 😛
~ getting my artwork up, finally – it’s all round the flat and it really feels much more like home all of a sudden 🙂 just the studio left to do!
by Carla Louise | Jan 23, 2012 | Uncategorized |
Watched: Neverwhere the play and Otto the puppy
Read: craft books
Listened to: my friends laughing
Ate: an absolutely stupid amount of chocolate, curry and twiglets
Drank: wine (but not from Atlantis, sadly)
It was completely gorgeous but almost completely photo-free… The only thing I do have is this rather lovely set of Otto.
Long dog is long...
srsly?! I was snoozing!
centre of attention during Articulate
with Auntie Sar (he belongs to her twin sister and her husband)
But lack of photos aside, it was wonderful to be back in Berkshire for a bit and to see everyone. Neverwhere was amazing and I’m muchly proud of Lou for putting so much love, talent and effort into the costumes. Kelly was fab as Lamia and I even found a previously unknown coincidence with a friend on Twitter with whom I share a hometown (and we’re both ex-librarians).
Back to the real world today… I was as unimpressed as Richard Mayhew.
by Carla Louise | Jan 8, 2012 | Uncategorized |
Unexpected weekends are always the best ones, aren’t they? This one was meant to involve lunch in London and then home to tidy up and do useful things.
I’m not going to share a photo of why i should be tidying up :p
Anyway. I came down to Reading to meet Wendy, then went to Lou’s for dinner (VIA Waterstones which was almost very dangerous) with her, Paul, Kelly and Mike, then spent this morning in town with Sar and Dan, and then back to Lou’s for much, creativity and planning. Perfect.
Now on a train home, and hoping to get back and rustle up a roast while I do some washing, then maybe do a little bit of crafting this eve before bed! Currently struggling to keep my eyes open so we’ll see how that goes!
Hope you all have a gorgeous Sunday evening!
by Carla Louise | Jan 2, 2012 | Adventures, Collecting, Creating, Personal Development |
This will have to be quick, because I should have been in bed half an hour ago… oh, how I have really not missed the 5.30am starts at all over the break!!
I’m starting 2012 in an incredibly happy, uplifted and motivated frame of mind. I am surrounded by people I love who love me, I have my little haven of a flat and my much adored Poppy-car, changes at work in the last couple of months of 2011 mean I’m much happier there than I thought possible to begin with, and I’m ridiculously lucky that my main stresses are usually that I have too many people and fun things to fit into my social life. Terrible, isn’t it?!
But genuinely, I’m very lucky and well aware of this fact. I’m also intending and hoping for 2012 to be my best year yet… full of all the things I love to do, all the people I love to see and empty (or emptier, at least) of things that make me sad and stressed out. I’m not completely in la la land, I know that various things will be impossible and hard and tearful through the year, but right now things are rosy and I intend to make the absolute most of that.
Things I am muchly looking forward to this year:
Julia’s wedding ~ this is the big one, my best friend and twin soul is getting married on 7th July and I CANNOT WAIT! I’m honoured to have been chosen as one of her bridesmaids and I’ll do everything I can to make sure her big day is perfect.
USA road trip ~ a road trip round the southern states with my parents that we have been talking about doing for close to ten years, we’re flying out to Texas on 9th February and I’m so excited I can barely breathe!
CAE 2012 ~ Camping Auto Extravaganza with the ROC boys and girls is always a highlight of the calendar – this will be my third one, and each one makes me marvel that a bunch of people who only met each other because of their cars can be such very good friends and have such an awesome time.
Neverwhere ~ one of my favourite books by the awesome Neil Gaiman, and my best friend Lou of Contrariety Rose has been working on the costumes for the play for months and months. I’m off to see it on 20th January and am very excited!
Goodwood Revival ~ another one of those things I’ve been threatening to do for ages, Lou & Paul said they’d like to go and much to my surprise so did Rob when I mentioned it the other day… and dressed vintage too! So I’m hoping we’ll get to do that in September… fingers crossed!
My 26th birthday ~ not a traditional landmark I know, but I feel like I’m hitting my prime, and will be taken more seriously once I’m in my late twenties, and I’m hoping to celebrate with lots of friends and lots of family.
Unofficial Ireland rally with Rat Patrol, Team Allegro and Bucket of Doom ~ Assuming we actually manage to get this organised, I would completely adore to see the others again. I am perfectly prepared to abandon the idea of a banger and just go in Poppy if that’s the only way I can afford to go (as the £250 banger car spending limit would probably pay for most of my petrol and camping costs, lol). I’ve missed those guys!
And last but not least, launching Teasets to Typewriters, rejuvenating Ducking Fabulous jewellery as part of that and hopefully becoming involved with a new website, What Simon Said, with a friend I met on the rally and have kept in touch with via Twitter. I have many, many goals this year… some of them are listed on the 2012 Things page of this site, which can be found on the tabs at the top.
So, enough photo-free waffling from me – it’s been wonderful blogging and tweeting and ‘meeting’ people (I’m mostly looking at you, @craftyguider,@fairlyairyfairy, @meanyjar, @CraftyThINKer, @MissJimJams, @ShhimUK, @LucyMoose ) in 2011, and I hope the friendship and support continues into 2012 and beyond! Happy 2012… enjoy it!
xx
by Carla Louise | Jan 1, 2012 | Photography |
I didn’t make an official list of resolutions for 2011, because I had The List to work through instead… I think I’ve done fairly well with those, not sure on the exact number but I think I’ve crossed off between 50 and 60 things on it, which is at least one a week!
2011’s been an incredible year. Unexpected highs and unexpected lows… but for the most part, the highs have outweighed the lows. It’s been amazing… I hope 2012 has as many highs (and fewer, less sideswiping lows, please).
January: An unexpected interview for a new job; Rob called to ask if I wanted to go on a European rally in September; utterly ridiculous snow;
February: My 25th birthday with friends in Colchester; ballet with Emily; got my sunrise lamp which changed my life (or at least my getting up in the morning);
March: I started the new job from hell (i like it now, but I endured months of it before that became the case); gorgeous and very touching leaving drinks from the library;
April: Julia and Ed got engaged; RSVP event; decent amount of crafting and car booting; Wells with uni girlies and Caitlin;
May: Rally planning started in earnest; Spring Ding Day with ROC; drove an S2000; golf day with work so accidental trip to see Hannah; blue hair; Mum’s 60th party;
June: Gran’s birthday BBQ and pool party; took up roller skating again; Colchester zoo for Father’s Day; theatre with the girls from the library;
July: Nick passed away; Open golf at Deal & Sandwich; the Fling, a perfect thing; CAE; vintage typewriters came to live with me.
August: Julia moved out, meaning I lived alone for the first time; I put up bookshelves all by myself; a whole week of sorting and socialising; last bits of rally prep.
September: R2R 2011; first Curiosity Project; surprised Judy for her 60th birthday; Poppy’s 6-week-overdue MOT; planning for Teasets to Typerwriters
October: Launch of Project Pin Up; Katerina returned; corsets; swishy hair;
November: Mad happenings at work; Bonfire night with the family; first visit to Stratford; Mum & Dad’s 38th anniversary; staycation with Annie;
December: Made a friend who lives in the flat downstairs; old and new work Christmas parties; vintage tea party at Lou’s; carol service with Caroline’s choir; champagne brunch at 8.30am with the team; Christmas; new year in Nottingham!
I’m sure I’ve forgotten some stuff, but so much has happened there’s no way I’ll pack it all in to one post. I am intending to keep track of everything better this year on the blog 🙂
Significant events in the lives of my friends (and people I know):
Engagements: Julia & Ed; Sophia & Jon; Tom & Cat; (plus Georgie Hall, Mandy Sohal, Danni Cooper, Laura Hinchliffe, Kelly Savage, Rachel (SHF), Rachel Daw, Chris Freeman; Justine Boehm, Jared Cooksey, M-C Savage; Rebecca Davies; Steph Cluett) = 16 (olus some Christmas ones I’ve probably forgotten)
Weddings: Heather & Steve Tilley (Shephard); Dan & Jo Morgan (Hill); Paul & Claire Jameson (Gratton); Sathya; Pippa Milner (Govett) = 5 (plus I’m sure I’ve forgotten some)
Babies: Anastasia & Nick’s Zoe; Georgia & Ian’s Delilah; Paul & Abby’s Joseph; Paul & Claire’s Shaun; Debbie & Ste’s Elizabeth; Emma & James’s Jacob; Kelly & Shaun’s Finlay; Louise & hubby’s Finley; Steve & Zoe’s Thea; Jarod & Tara’s Hayden = 10 (plus almost definitely some more)
Pregnancies (due in 2012): Krissie Budworth, Jacqui Dowsett = 2
So there’s a roundup of sorts… the stand out moment of the year is of course R2R, from a vague ‘yeah, why not’ to the prep and then the acual trip, it gave me a new sense of perspective on myself and on life, and made me a muchly happy Carla!
Thanks for reading and for all the support and love you guys have given me in 2011, it’s muchly appreciated! Here’s to 2012… and if you guys have done roundup posts I’d love to see them, tweet me or post them in the comments 🙂
xx
by Carla Louise | Dec 25, 2011 | Uncategorized |
Towards the end of a perfect Christmas day… presents, food, family and music. We ate and laughed and talked, I napped with the dog and then napped with the cat, I helped Eden build a Lego ship and we all ate lots and lots of chocolate – just the way Christmas should be 🙂
I hope all your Christmases were equally perfect if you celebrate Christmas, and that your Sundays were perfect if you don’t.
Happy Holidays!
xx
by Carla Louise | Dec 24, 2011 | Uncategorized |
being very silly with my lovely cousins 🙂
by Carla Louise | Dec 21, 2011 | Photography |
I’m heading home to Mum & Dad’s for Christmas on Saturday morning, and I was thinking how happy going home makes me. I love my flat and my independence, but there really is no place like home at Christmas time.
Some of the things in their flat that make me happy (and all of which I hope will move to their new place in the new year, so it feels like home still!)
Dad playing his guitar… one day I’ll learn too 🙂
It’s five o’ clock somewhere… an Alan Jackson song and unarguably the truth! Mmm… cocktails.
Continuing with signs (see where I get it from? I’ll have to do a post about mine one day) – Tabasco ‘hot stuff’. I don’t actually like the stuff, but Mum and Dad are almost addicts 😛 They put it with everything, including breakfast.
Some of Mum’s camel collection and the cross stitch I made for her 60th birthday. To date this is the only cross stitch I’ve finished!!
My graduation photo. Like a million others across the country I’m sure, but I’m chuffed they keep it in their living room 🙂
And last but by no means least, the very awesome knitted Aleksandr, made for Mum by one of her (talented) friends – isn’t he fabulous?! Simples!
