My excuse!

We're moved. That was the easy bit. Unpacking all the boxes is the hard part!

This end of the living room is even worse than the one I am flaked out in! (MrC is taking photos from the stairs)

The studio is so solid with boxes, I can't imagine ever being able to sew in it.

The funny thing is that the amount of boxes totally overrepresents the amount of our stuff - the packers use so much paper and bubble wrap, each box is easily a third just that.

mind you many of the boxes in this last pic are fabric and things that don't break and are chocka. Hmm.

Anyway, am I excused for not being a good little blogger?!

I am Versatile, it's official! :)

How cool is this! The wonderful Dreamstress  gave me this award a while ago and I'm sorry it's taken so long to put it up and post something :) This morning is the first time since P2P I feel like I've been able to just sit and blog.

Anyway, I have to tell you seven things about myself and nominate 15 blogs to give it to. I don't even know of 15 blogs so I will do my best!

Seven things about MrsC

1. I love RED. Almost every shade of it. I love to wear it, to live surrounded by it. I find it soothing and inspiring. The only thing better than red, is red and gold together. The bedroom in our previous apartment. Red, gold, maximalism :)

2. I love PURPLE. I love to wear purple, but not so much to live surrounded by it. I got married in purple velvet (among other fabrics and colours) and I love red and purple together. My favourite shades of purple are the redder ones, like royalty wear, although I am also fond of ultraviolets.

Yes it is very, very dark purple silk/rayon velvet. My many attendants (the joys of stepkids and nieces) wore cherry burgundy velvet, among other fabrics and colours.

3. My favourite roses as in the kind you buy cut from a florist not the kind you plant in a garden, are Leonidis and Bluebell (although I think it's odd to name one flower after another!) They are the roses in my wedding bouquet and in my hair. Leonidis is the terracotta one, Bluebell the deep burgundy one.

This image is a little fiddled with in photoshop, and it is the background on my PC.

4. I recently remet my first boyfriend (17) and was rather touched to find how I had it right the first time. He is lovely and very like my husband. I did spend most of the intervening 20 years with the wrong kinds of blokes. Like many fairly smart people, I can be a slow learner...

5. I love weather. I love hail, wind, rain, scorching sun, warm or cool breezes, the whole gambit of it. I would hate to live somewhere where the weather never really did much. I like weather with personality! No wonder I love Wellington and Christchurch! People in these cities talk about the weather because it is interesting, not because they have nothing else to talk about :)

6. Is it a cheat to include the revealing truth that I am a maximalist? Maximalism is a movement my friend Terry and I invented, shocked that it didn't exist already. Minimalists have had all the press. Maximalists believe that "More is More". A maximalist believes that you should add something, not take something away. The mistake minimalists always make when they judge and dismiss a maximalist piece is that it is chaos. IT IS NOT. It is much harder to make something work when it has many components. Well, I would say that wouldn't I..

7. I love Art Nouveau. I suspect that this really is a cheat as of course a hard core maximalist would love Art nouveau. I also love the Arts and Crafts movement.

Right now though I have to run away! I will nominate some wonderful blogs for a versatility award very soon :)

I'm still here!

Sorry my devoted readers, to neglect you for so long. Life has been...textural...lately.
Best news is that we are now the proud owners of one gorgeous inner city apartment, converted from 1920's warehouse and with covered parking. All miracles. The complementary news is that we are soon not to be the owners of our lovely townhouse, and the upshot of course is that the contents of House B need to be moved to Apartment A, but not before the contents of House B have been scrutinised for ongoing relevance in our downsized life, and dispatched to new homes, hopefully occasionally with shekels changing hands.
So, because I have gorgeous photos taken for online listing, I am devoting this post to House B. It is not its fault that it is too far and uphill from the city. We will miss the tuis singing in the trees, the quiet and peace and loveliness of its setting.

This is our front view. We fell in love with the cute cottageyness of the place

Sunspots through the cabbage tree - MrC gets artistic :)

I love this view from our landing down into the front hall. The long interior window is all that is left of the original and unnecessary kitchen door. Reclaiming the space allowed the magic to happen within.

Our dining area with the famous WLW (World's loudest wallpaper). I like this is as it shows the library dresser my Dad made, the chest I painted and the chair I had powder-coated and recovered, twice now.

The other end, living room. It is bigger than it looks but it is not big.

You've seen this room even if you don't realise it - it used to be my studio. Who'd have guessed that under all those cupboards and shelves there lurked a tranquil, tasteful master bedroom? I am very proud of this bed - it is a blow up queen mattress balanced on a bookcase lying on its back, still full of books. Anyone sitting on it would have ended up on the floor with a duvet flung over their head hehehe.

Ironically, the new owners are running their business for this room and they are in the sewing machine business!

The inner sanctum - our room. You can't properly see our dear little chandelier. I love the curtains in this room, the fabric is so William Morris and it was a bargain from D Alexanders back when Doug was still there *sob sob*. Still, party of the fun of a new place is choosing new stuff. And I've already done most of that!

the view UP from the landing to the upstairs. Our room to the right, bath straight ahead, spare room to the left. It shows off the lovely paintings my M-i-L gave us as a wedding present. I had them framed and the Chinese couple who own the framers were amazed a westerner wanted gold mounting. But it suits the style :)

So, that's what we're giving up. when I get some good photos of Apartment A, I will post. It is about to get a semi makeover so that should be interesting!

Cosy to a T...

It's just got to be this weather that has me obsessing about Tea cosies. Making them is time consuming but not endless, and they are cosy to make, and hot tea is nice when it is so cold. So how can I resist?

Black and white - it's so very pleasing to the senses!

I love blue and white in this context, it looks like a teacosy made of broken china.

And of course, the homage to Clarice Cliff. There was a CC tea set on the Antiques Roadshow tonight, only two trios but a full teapot, sugar and milk, and they valued it at £2,500!! I wish my tea cosies would sell for that, but it won't be quite so much ;-)

It's just a jump to the left...

...and a step to the right!
On Friday night Husband and I donned our silliest Rocky Horroresque outfits and headed off to the Embassy to watch The Rocky Horror Picture Show on a BIG screen. It is a VERY silly movie isn't it!
We didn't take a photo of DH as he went as Prof Scott (ambulatory)- all tweed and corduroy. Quite boring really. Moi wore the Fabulous PVC jacket gifted to moi by the Fabulous Ang Reeves. It starred in our production of Silly Cow and what it lacks in tastefulness it makes up for in sluttiness. Every woman needs a PVC garment of no taste or discernment in her wardrobe, just in case she goes to a Rocky Horror viewing or party. ;-) I think it looks rather nice with the red bustier gifted to me by the fabulous Trees Maclean of the recent second baby.
Hmm, now I just realised how many Fab women pass on their slutty clothes to me. What are they trying to say?!?! I assure all readers that I am a very sensible person and behave very well. Most of the time!

By Hoki Quilts turns Two!

By Hoki Quilts is a shop in Hokitika on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island. "By Hoki" was an exclamation made popular in NZ by Selwyn Toogood, a TV host with one of those wonderful rolling voices that fill a theatre. A great name for a shop in Hokitika!
http://byhokiquilts.blogspot.com/2010/05/birthday-give-away.html
Mich'ele is having a giveaway on her blog of a lovely Moda jelly roll and matching charm squares. I am addicted to these!
Happy Sunday, all :)

Cosy and comforting things for this cold weather

I don't know what the weather's like in 'furrin parts', but here in Kiwiland it's ferkin' cold. And wet. And windy. All the winter things!
Anyway to warm up our thoughts, I've been thinking about cosy things. Like tea cosies, and plunger cosies.

Here are both views of one I made this weekend that is travelling all the way to the UK as a present for some people who have willow pattern china. It's crazy patched - I'm not usually a blue and white lover but I am LOVIN' this one and am going to make more. Also the whole toile thing, I LOVE it!

Now this set I made for my kitchen. It goes very well with it too. Suits the oranges and reds etc. However now I am in love with toiles I'm not so sure I love this. How can I be so fickle at my age??!!

This is a vegetarian calzone I made for a pie competition at work tomorrow. I've made it look pielike in case someone decides that calzone is not really a pie. Pick, pick, pick. I made a fern for the top as it is my company's emblem. It's very yummy too - aubergine, tomato, red onion, spinach, cheese and olives. YUM. So there you go, comfort food and cosies. Bring on the winter weather, I can hack it now! :)