by Carla Louise | Feb 28, 2013 | Personal Development |
Feeling: Either overwhelmed or ridiculously excited… I don’t seem to have a middle setting, and it’s rather exhausting!
Reading:
[Interview] The Paris Letters – a project that turned into a business
[Article] Why mess can be a good thing
[Book] The Secret Supper Club, Dana Bate
[Blog post] Dance to your own beat, the Be Free Community
Eating: with other people – it’s been lovely! (And the year’s first Cadbury mini eggs. Nom nom nom).
Planning: new lines of jewellery, wholesale options and a website; things to do in the new house (decorating, cooking, creating, entertaining) and some dance routines.
Dreaming of: Not being surrounded by boxes, and being a bit bloody warmer, please – the novelty of winter is well and truly over now. If we’re talking actual dreams, I dreamed of sunglasses the night before last so we can only hope that means spring is on its way.
Coveting: Contrariety Rose’s cherry dress (yup, that’s me in the listing. I wanted to take it home!!)
Wishing: I was better at playing the ukulele and/or guitar, especially after discovering 9 year old Zoe Thomson’s guitar playing.
Working on: New fonts on the site (did you notice how much prettier they are now?) courtesy of Gemma at Jane & Philbert, and deliberately disconnecting more often, courtesy of Diane Leigh and Grace Marshall.
Celebrating: Having been 27 for a whole week today, and the launch of 15 Queen Street tonight.
Grateful for: The first shafts of sunshine, likeminded souls and my apparently innate ability to network and connect with people.
And finally tomorrow I will be: drinking hot chocolate with Rachael, finalising the packing up of the studio, making lists of the contents of the flat and working on all my websites.
On my to-do list?
– Various money-related tasks (paying bills, setting up accounts, budgeting & planning)
– House admin (let people know I’m moving, switch providers, notify of change of address, etc etc etc)
– Try and get some kind of control over my Ducking Fabulous accounts
– everything is there, but nothing is in date order and it’s making me cross
– Book next burlesque course
– Learn a bit more about Google Analytics
– Getting dates in the diary with friends who I’ve been trying and failing to see for months
So quite a good one ahead – and of course ploughing on with the web stuff at the day job. Which I love, but which occasionally makes my pea brain hurt.
by Carla Louise | Jan 11, 2013 | Creating |
(Prompts courtesy of Brocante Home’s Life Audit)
This week I am:
Settling back into work after the Christmas break, making the most of driving Poppy while the weather is above freezing, getting to know new starters in some of the offices I work in, starting to fill my diary with glorious things and generally marvelling at how opportunities present themselves as soon as you start to make things happen…
Feeling:
Contented with and awestruck at my new life, with one dilemma between two wonderful annual events that are very probably happening on the same weekend in 2013.
Reading:
The new spend less revolution, Blog Inc and Be a Free Range Human – all beautifully aligned with my plans and ideas and feelings this year. I’m also waiting for a chunk of time to start Lace, which was a present from my fabulous business partner at Christmas – but I suspect I won’t be able to put it down!
Eating:
A wonderfully random selection of food from my fridge, freezer and storecupboard, and trying not to buy anything but essentials for the rest of January. It’s making for some entertaining combinations!
Planning:
Project Pin Up goodness, the next Ink Drops boxes, new posts and a more soulful direction for my blogging, a website for my cousin’s go-karting and the things that will make me happiest this year.
Dreaming of:
A world that isn’t topsy-turvy, and a me that is able to skate skilfully.
Coveting:
A whole heap of things, none of which are essential to my happiness, fortunately – teal leather skates from Moxi, feather fans, various courses and an entire studio set up for photography.
Wishing:
I had a garden so I could take on my friends’ beautiful Staffie, Monty when they move to Australia at the end of the month.
Working on:
Ideas and looks for the collaborative photoshoot I’m doing with Contrariety Rose in February, my storecupboard challenge, the new look of Ducking Fabulous and taking more photographs (sadly unevidenced by this post!)
Celebrating:
Beauty at all sizes, getting the new DF site almost finished, my Dyson being fixed (I know, I know, since when did I get so excited over household appliances? But it’s happening…)
Grateful for:
The chance to break habits and beliefs now that otherwise would stalk me and be obstacles for most of my life, and as always the unwavering support of those close to me
And finally tomorrow I will be:
Spring (winter?) cleaning my flat and then curling up for blissful sleep at Mum & Dad’s in the evening
On my to-do list?
So much on my list I might explode, but I have been trying to split everything that occurs to me into a relevant category in Wunderlist – and this way I don’t get overwhelmed.
Things on it I’m looking forward to –
- A day with my camera in London and meeting up with the lovely Miss Joyful
- Organising some rehearsal time for the troupe’s first performances (you heard of Paper Dolls Burlesque here first!)
- Car admin – the Micra needs a SORN and I have been driving for ten years (amazing, huh?!) so need a renewing and amazingly I have been on the road for 10 years – so need a new driving licence!
- Finish reading the Blog, Inc book
A fairly fabulous week if a very busy one…
by Carla Louise | Nov 27, 2011 | Collecting, Creating |
Sunday evenings are my time – after a busy week and usually an even busier weekend, I always try to spend a couple of hours reading, pottering and planning for the week ahead. I cross all the things I’ve achieved off my to-do list, add some more, write cards for any birthdays/anniversaries coming up in the next week (ok, I don’t do that yet, it’s one of those things I perpetually intend to do, lol) and generally prepare myself for the week ahead.
This week I’m struggling more than normal to get back into work mode, because I’ve had four days in a row off and I’m just not functioning in office mode. However, I have finished my Curious Christmas box to send, and am off to see Louise this weekend for a vintage tea party and much girlie fun. I also have another parcel swap to plan and create, which is muchly exciting, so I shall keep smiling over the next couple of weeks! I’ve also managed to make stuff this weekend, so my state of mind is more balanced – it’s amazing how much crafting helps me stay calm!
Here’s a quick this weekend i am mostly… roundup!
Reading: Meet me at the Cupcake Cafe by Jenny Colgan, The Secret of Happy Ever After by Lucy Dillon and Chances by Freya North
Writing: this blog post, lists of things I’d like to stock in my shop one day, cards for people
Drinking: pepsi max, squash, rose wine
Listening: smash hits radio from the TV, sandi thom on youtube, adele and dj fresh in the car
Buying: things for the curiosity project, vintage pyrex, books, beautiful notebooks
Enjoying: four straight days off work, seeing annie, making stuff, scanning my books into library thing, planning for next weekend’s vintage tea party and the Christmas party the week after
Loving: driving with the roof down even though it’s nearly December, late night texts, my bauble wreath, crisp clean sheets, that Christmassy feeling
Have a fabulous week! 🙂 xx
by Carla Louise | Nov 15, 2011 | Collecting, Thrifting |
I am typing this on the train, sitting next to a woman with an ipad and an iphone. I feel a strange mixture of clunky (my laptop is ENORMOUS in comparison and I don’t have mobile broadband) and smug (I can type so much faster and more accurately than she can, mweeheehee).
The last few weeks have changed my life, overwhelmingly for the better. For various reasons I can’t talk about any of those reasons in detail, but one of the net results is that I have signed up for a season ticket loan for a train ticket, which means I’ll be at work for at least another year. This will give me time to get my finances straight and live my life a little without worrying so much about the future and what’s round the next corner (in the job and finances side of life, anyway).
Secondly, I have decided to put my shop plans on hold for the foreseeable future and concentrate on making things for fun and learning, rather than pressurising myself. The same with vintage homewares and clothing – I’ll buy them for me or for presents, and I’ll continue to research them and blog about my finds because I find them fascinating, but I need to remove the pressure for a while so I can focus on other things.
2012 contains, among other plans, my best friend’s wedding, my parents’ long awaited move into their new home and another rally, closely followed by a Canada trip to watch ice skating in early 2013, so now is not a good time to be starting up. Quite apart from the fact that although I know I’m capable of running a business, my finances are most definitely not, and I’m not sure I’m yet ready to sacrifice my social life in favour of it.
Thirdly, but possibly most importantly, after the weekend that’s just passed I am left with a feeling of happiness, peace, freedom and infinite possibility. My sense of self is fully restored and my inner pin up is well on her way to being part of my everyday life! Although I am never taking a train that far again – driving is SO much more fun and less hassle!
So I’m going to make the most of feeling like that, use the sense of purpose to get my flat and my life in order, and then focus on doing fun stuff… and blogging about it all, of course!
Sorry, this is somewhat of a stream-of-consciousness post, but it does feel good to write it down rather than just have it floating around in my head! A little part of me still can’t quite believe I’ve come this far and made this life for myself. When I look back to how I was four short years ago, and realise just how much I love my ‘new’ life… I wonder how the Carla I am now and the Carla I was then can possibly be the same person. I wouldn’t go back now if you paid me, I love who I’ve become and everything that I do. It’s amazing, empowering and really rather lovely. Ok, enough of the soppy crap now.
Right. Before you all throw up, I’m going to get off the train and go and make sausages and chips for dinner 🙂
by Carla Louise | Aug 10, 2011 | Adventures |
I have been mostly moving my flat around, and not blogging as much as I should have been. This evening I intend to rectify that, but for now a quick text-only update will have to do. I’m converting my housemate’s old room into a studio and moving the whole of the rest of the flat around as I go, so it feels different and I don’t miss her so much. Also means I can have lots more of my random stuff on display 🙂
Today I have discovered I would win hands-down if extreme sleeping was a sport, I can sleep anywhere, any time, under any circumstances. Which is a welcome return to normality after close to four years of insomnia and being unable to sleep for more than a couple of hours at a time. I still wake frequently in the night but the quality of my sleep is better (and having this week off work, I’m determined to make the most of being able to lie in in the mornings instead of having to get up at half five!)
This morning I have replied epically to two emails I should have replied to ages ago, which is good… I’ve also kicked into full-on panic mode about the rally. We need to book hotels, but we don’t yet have the route. Some of the other teams have booked some, but I’m still not certain which days we’re meant to be in which country, let alone which town, and I don’t want us to be antisocial and be staying miles and miles from where everyone/anyone else is staying. Quite apart from the fact that the closer we are to the action, the more likely we are to not miss the start every day (you’re looking at Miss Extreme Sleeper 2011, don’t forget!).
Then there’s the actual room booking, I need to make sure it’s ok to share rooms, try and work out where everyone else is going to be and book the bloody ferry as well… aaargghhh. Think maybe my best bet is to get it all prepared and then we can make final decisions as a team at the weekend, and I’ll book everything then.
Last minute much?! It’s an adventure… it will be fun! (No, it actually will be, I’m just a bit flappy at the moment, there’s so much to do and I’m scared of doing stuff wrong as it’s my first rally and I have no clue how stuff works really. Still have creative blank on the tshirt too although if I get a chance this afternoon/evening I’ll have a play with the steampunk stuff that occurred to me late last night. Rust and clockwork and glitter, oh my….)
