Love these girls... Love this city

Some pictures of the weekend, when some of my bestest buds came to visit Bristol. Spent loads of time having girl talk and dancing around!

At long last

My internet is finally working! I arrived home from work and found my wireless router and welcome letter sitting in the hallway. Also, my soapmaking supplies have arrived so I'll be cooking up a storm.... and I have a new laminator and have been making laminated bookmarks like it's nobody's business!

Soooo much to write about now that I actually have the internet. New crafts, new friends, new beginnings in Bristol, a weekend with my best friends from afar, the Crafty Ladies Brigade...

but it's bedtime for me...

I promise a huge Etsy and blog update this weekend because the next two days are super busy with work & then out to an open mic night with Milo and two job interviews on Friday plus work and a doctor's appointment. Phewwww.

Quick post before work.

Hello all!

I felt the need to wake up this morning and post quickly before I leave for work just to say hello... and yes, I am still without proper internet. I'm told that it should be hooked up in the next few days and can't wait.... ahhh.. the joy of laying in my bed, snuggling up under my duvet with my laptop on my lap

xx ugh. off to my boring receptionist job, "goodmorning, how may I help you?" type of thing.

The world is full of love. The world is full on love.

hmm. Found out today that I won't have internet until 28 October and am not quite sure how I'll cope until then. At the cafe and I'm being swept up around, it's annoying me. I'm annoyed. It's one of those days where everything is annoying me and I'm not quite sure why really. I've actually had a spiffing morn', went to the farmer's market on Whiteladies Road and got myself a huuuge leek (now I need to figure out what you actually make with a leek), a yummy chocolate brownie and some other farm fresh goodies and all for under a fiver (thanks Jamie Oliver!) Then it was charity shopping, tea, and other afternoon niceties with Milo.

I feel like I just need more internet time, as I'm rushing through everything and I miss the good old days of twice, even THRICE daily blog posting.

Maybe a list form would be best for all of this information then... clear, concise, to the point
(plus my pie from the market is waiting for me)
What happened this week
1. I'm going to start teaching yoga twice a week and a fun and playful yoga dance class once a month at Yogasara studios in Montpelier. I found the owners to be so lovely and welcoming in a time where I had been craving some real communication here in Bristol. I can't wait! I'll be posting the class times and dates on my yoga blog Spiral. Yoga. Dance
2. I have a new job... yes, it's temporary and yes it's quite boring work as a receptionist at an engineering company, but it'll will pay for my rent and it's only 2 1/2 days per week. It's mostly guys, but there's a really sweet, cool girl Lauren who works there. My time speaking with her was really balancing for my social sensibilities which I feel like have been out of sorts recently. I think that I have a "talking quota" that needs to be filled everyday and the less that I speak, the more I feel out of balance and unhappy. I don't like to feel lonely and my first week or so here in Bristol was exciting, but was peppered with that gnawing feeling of loneliness.
3. I wrote an ad out to gumtree looking for crafty ladies and lo and behold, actually found that a few have replied. Happy days! Now to actually be a proactive person and make sure that we actually meet up. If I put my mind to it, maybe I can even organise a craft night for everyone interested.
4. Spoke to home today, felt like it had been ages with the move and the time difference and the phone not being hooked up... it was great to speak to my Dad and Trish (stepmom) and I even got a grumpy hello from my 3 year old brother Ryan. I hope to call my sister tomorrow and my Mom on Monday and then start to tick of a list of American West Coasties that I've been itching to speak to because I have... drumroll please... free international weekend calls!! Be still my beating heart. Now if only they would hook up my internet I would blow kisses in Tiscali's direction.

How I spend my days in Bristol...

Grrrrrr and YAYYYYYYYYYYY!

Simultaneously feeling both grrr and yay today... It's annoying me that I am still without internet, because I find it very difficult to open up and write candidly when I'm sitting in a busy cafe with my laptop on my.. well.. lap. It's been a busy week that feels like a month. A week of settling in, unpacking and trying to find myself here in Bristol. It's the first time that I really find myself in a city not a student, and as I live in a largely university area chockablock full of students, I can't help but feeling jealous and feeling a tug on my heartstrings, missing school and being an academic. Milo's been busy at his music uni pretty much everyday with homework on the weekend, so I've been left to my own devices. I spent a few days wallowing in uncharacteristic self-pity thinking that Bristol has nothing here for me and wondering what I am actually doing here. But I'm happy to report that's all in the past, I've moved on and am now starting with a self confidence of "if you want something done, you have to do it yourself"... I'm stressed because I'm such a social person and I don't actually have any friends here, so I put an add up on gumtree here and here, in the hopes of meeting a few nice girls to spend some time with, drink tea and maybe share some creativity. I'm not sure where to start exactly with this update, since I have so much to talk about, especially my thoughts on Bristol after my first week here. So far I'm loving Bristol and all it has to offer, it's a young and vibrant city, distilling the best that London has to offer with a more manageable scale. I'm finding the people to be friendly and open and the city itself is stylistically interesting and beautiful. Bristol is a maze of hills and valleys and affords some really spectacular views, particularly in the area (Clifton) where I'm living. Over the weekend Milo and I walked to Clifton Village, which is about a 10minute walk, where there are cute little boutique-y shops, antique stores, listed buildings and a suspension bridge that over looks an amazing gorge and a green landscape beyond. On Sunday, we took advantage of amazing weather and went to the seaside (only a 25 minute drive away!)

I'm still planning on updating my etsy and folksy shops this weekend, with lots of new goodies that I've been working on and am hoping to do a freebie giveaway contest on Monday :o) I've been feeling so inspired here in Bristol, from the shapes, sounds, wall murals and art, fashion, and the bustling busyness of it all... and finally having a large desk certainly helps!

I'll give a few previews of what I've been working on and what will be available this weekend.

xo Nikki

To whom it may concern:

I've spent all day applying for jobs with my computer perched on top of an ironing board, 6 books, a round tub and various pieces of paper to catch the one bar of free wireless by this window. Just wanted to say hello and that I should have consistent internet in a few days! I've been making things like crazy and will have a big Etsy and Folksy update by the weekend *hopefully* so maybe something might catch your eye....

Push my buttons!

Hello all!

Yes, unfortunately I am still without internet and I'm feeling a bit crazy because of it. I'm not used to feeling so incommunicado and with the combination of moving to a new city where I don't know anyone, plus Milo in school pretty much all day everyday, I'm feeling a bit lonely and yes... I'm missing my overzealous blogging. I had a job for about... oh.... 5 hours, up until the time when I went to the bathroom, took off my apron and made a James Bond style duck under the bar to find my coat and jacket before putting my coat over my head in a sweet sweeping movement and hurrying myself out of the bar and home. Phew. I'll spare you the details of my awful few hours, but let's just say it wasn't pleasant. So now I'm on the prowl again-- job agencies, handing out CVs, yuck yuck, and all of that stuff.

On a very positive note, I was able to set up my crafty things on the desk and I've received my 1000 buttons from Ebay. Love! I spent last night obsessively putting them into groups and looking at them all, I think my favorites so far are the twin pair of mustard yellow Ferrari buttons. Meow! haha!


Why have only 2 people signed up for the CD swap?? Come on people, this is a chance to get cool mixed CDs in the mail from even cooler people! All you have to do is message me that you want to be a part and I'll send you the directions... it's very simple 1. make a playlist & theme 2. make copies of that playlist (I'll let you know how many) 3. post them to me 4. I'll organize them and within a few weeks you'll receive a pretty package in the mail with mixed CDs and probably some goodies thrown in from me :o)

The new flat...

I don't have internet access yet here in Bristol, so I'm feeling a bit lost without it. Luckily there is a cute cafe next door where for the price of a peppermint tea, I can use their Wi-Fi. I wanted to try to upload a few pictures of the flat before I leave for my first day of work.

xx


Bathroom


Living Room
Kitchen


Ahh! Going to be late for my first day if I don't leave now! I'll post the rest when I get some cafe time :o)

What the rainy weekend has brought...

It's a rainy, cold, dreary Sunday and I'm planning on spending it finishing my packing and probably making things with my goodies from Hobbycraft (especially the fake wood paneling scrapbooking paper I got on sale) with hot water bottle and a heater planted firmly on my feet.




Also, as a treat, I bought 1000 assorted buttons on Ebay yesterday for soooo cheap

International Mixed CD Swap... any takers?

I wanted to see if anyone is interested in an International Mixed CD Swap? Kind of like pen-pals only more fun (got this idea a while ago from Miss Morgan) :o)
1. Write me a comment to let me know you're interested in swapping
2. Choose a theme for your mixed CD, pick the songs, decorate the cover, etc. -- be as creative as you like
3. I'll find out how many people are interested and let you all know how many cd's to burn/make
4. Mail the CDs to me, I'll send them all out
5. Enjoy the new mixed CDs that you receive in the mail made with love plus a free goodie!!

Yay!

Hours later..

I'm still here... as the hours tick by and my hands slowly start to freeze because it is so cold today. I'm bulk buying supplies for vegetarian soap making and am so excited about the endless soap combinations and possibilities! Can't wait to start making soap :o)
So far I've bought a soap base, dried flowers, a set of natural soap dyes, and a set of gold and silver mica shimmer powders. The rest is up to my imagination oatmeal, poppy seeds, chamomile tea, lavender essential oils, turmeric power, coffee grinds...
I'll be dreaming of possible soaps and soap names.... "Mellow Yellow"

Etsy and Folksy updates

I've added links to both my Etsy and Folksy shops and will be updating both shops with products in the next few days, as well as starting out freebie contests next week hopefully. I know that I need to start packing all of things (eventhough all of my stuff is still hanging out of a suitcase because the car we're driving is so tiny I need to relocate all of my things to black rubbish bags so we can squeeze as much as we can into the backseat), but instead of packing I'm updating my blog and thinking about taking some more photos of what I've been making over the past few days while holed up in a hotel room in Bristol. I'm in need of a stock up of supplies before we leave on Monday so I think I'll probably take a trip to Hobbycraft tomorrow and stock up on some new paper, glue, earring backs, and cardstock. I'm on the look-out for a set of cheap buttons because Hobbycraft is ridiculously expensive for buttons.

Updates about Bristol are as follows
1. I love it! and was gutted that I needed to come back to Milo's parents for the weekend because I was really getting used to the idea of Bristol as "home"
2. I got a job straight away, I'll be waitressing 4 nights a week at Rack's only a few blocks away from our flat

This weekend Milo's village is "A Village at War!" and is turning itself into a 1940's war-time village, complete with rationing and air-raids and a 1940's style dance. You're supposed to dress up in period clothing so maybe a pencil skirt and a curly up-do for me.

Music for when you get a crafty urge...

I've made a imix playlist for itunes highlighting some songs that I like to listen to while making things, being creative and playing with paper and scissors. While it's true that this list isn't exhaustive in any way of what I like to listen to while crafting, it functions as a good overview and a damned fine playlist. I usually like to go for soft, singsongy music, preferably with girl singers like Au revior simone, but sometimes I also like upbeat, shake your tail-feathers type of music.

Speaking of... when is Kid Sister going to release her album because I just read a great interview with her from Venus magazine at a roller skating rink and have decided that she gets the thumbs up from me for being well spoken and cute.