Getting there.

Sort of. One step at a time.

Looking for 'love'!

So, ive been trying to make time for myself this week, and looking at some interior design sites/blogs, and reading some great books(and magazines - love!). Firstly i have read Shannon Frickes How to Decorate.Shannon lives here in Australia and has some excellent advice for people wanting to take the plunge into decorating. 

Basically anything i can get my hands on im reading at the moment - its like my brain has been posessed by the knowledge demon - if i was a little less tired though im sure more would be sinking in. Ive also been reading Terence Conrans Essential colour and Gilles Ronins Drawing for interior design....not sure how much that one will help as im pretty crap at drawing...realistically. I can do a pretty good stick figure, thats about it. So hopefully it will give me a little more perspective.

A blog i have been reading for a while now is Decor8. Visually its stunning, the authour Holly really has the best eye for colour....i could babble on about it but whydont you just check it out for yourself here.

Its been such a passion for such a long time, Its a little sad though when you walk into a shop, store, house, business, hotel,restaraunt and think mmmmm i dont think that goes, id change this colour - that seat should go there - no put a chaise there instead.....frustrating, funny and proves i should be doing something about it - so i have been scouring the web for something to suit. I work full time, have a 4 year old and she starts school next year. I need something that has weight, i can study in my time and is nationally accredited and recognised. I found the right place for me! I will be enrolling at CATC Design School in July! Wooohoooo! CATC I am a little daunted, i think maybe im too old, not bright or innovative enough - or smart enough to keep up with others - but you know i just have to get in there and try it! Nothing to lose.

Back at the end of the week!

D xo

Hello there..

I have been on a little hiatus recently - getting life sorted really.

Im sure others have come to a point in their life where they think...'this' just isnt working for me, something is wrong.
For me its work (or lack of any sort of advancing career in the job im in), time (again - the seeming lack of!) not having time to spend with family and friends, feeling mother guilt thinking i dont spend enough time with M, not getting the house clean enough and chores done because im working full time, the stress and pressure in having to work full time.....

You evaluate friendships, think of those you have always been there for - and ones that no longer seem to be there for you, the friends that are always there for you, asking if you are ok, sharing themselves with you - they are the lifelong friends. I have a small group of friends, selfless beings that even if they were having struggles and strains in their lives - i can always count on them being there, and caring. They are the ones i want to nurture, they need it just as much as me.

So - if you have some wonderful friends in your life - let them now if you havent recently....it may just make their day, and bring a much needed smile to their face.

As for career....i have taken part of a very scary, exciting step. With my love of interiors, all things styling and the overwhelming desire to design these spaces, i am embarking on a journey - starting with enrolling at Design school! I know! I feel old to be starting new study and contemplating a new entirely different career - but there comes a time where you need to admit to yourself that feeling something isnt right needs to be actioned. So, in i plunge. This is where i will be studying....

Wish me luck!

D xo

Patience is (isnt mine!) a virtue!

Im getting very very impatient!
1 - i havent sewn a single thing for so long now - im itching to - its just i now no longer have space or room to. So our back room that is currently the disgusting junk room /Mr K&Gs office is being turned over to me. My very own workroom.
Mr K&G is being relegated to the loungeroom - we will try to reconfigure it so he has a separate(sort of) area for his new (old) roller desk i bought him.

The problem in this house is storage (and its a teeny tiny house to fit our stuff neatly into) - we have none - so in that back room there are power tools and everything else that doesnt fit anywhere else - we are building a small deck and shed behind the garage to move it to - a more appropriate house for it methinks!. The Man Cave. All this takes time - we have bought our wonderful (but expensive) bed - the shed is to come soon i hope. Im just so impatient to have it all done with so i can start making again. I am also about to invest in a wonderful fabric cutter, another smaller cutter that cuts material strips (for binding and quilting) and a binding machine! The machine makes the single fold binding for you - so you dont have to stand at the ironing board for forever making it - and the cutter saves my hands and wrists from cutting so much. Im impatient to get into it - but happy to know it will all work out soon!

Have to voice my opinion and sorrow at yesterdays violence and protests - we live in a country that for the most part strives to be welcoming and multicultural - and the few bad apples go and spoil that. We are not a racist nation - but scenes like and the few poorly behaved make us look so. Violence is never the answer to a problem - no matter what.

New bed - New me!

So so happy! Today we bought a new bed - it was a very expensive bed - they type you look at when bed shopping and think 'oh my - thats heavenly but totally out of our price range...at just under $6000.00'.....untill you see there is a sale on - and they give you $2300.00 of a king size! Yay! Simmons bed - hurry up and get here cause we have been in a world of pain from our current bed! I cant wait til it arrives.
So now we have a King - im going to have to make some king size quilts! Daunting (and i may pay to have it quilted and bound) but it will be worth it.

We have had some household items on the wish list for a while now...a new bed, new lounge (we have a worn out 2 seater - i love to entertain so its not the best), a new boundary fence (and thats a whole lotta fence!) a Shed (mens shed really!) a new garage and a new laundry. Im glad to say we can start ticking off the list - we have been in our little house for 5 years now and will have at least another 5 untill we can knock it down and rebuild but it is sadly lacking in storage space or room to put anything.... So when we do come time to doing the laundry and garage they wont be expensive - just better than what we have now - which is shocking to say the least.
It makes you feel good when you start to achieve things, being materialistic isnt me - but if we have to live here id like to be comfortable, si i can relax which i find very hard to do.

The best thing about the shed being next on the list - it means our back spare room which is currently office/junk and tool room dump will be emptied out and become my much awaited sewing room! Its only small but it will give me so much more opportunity to get projects done. Cant wait!

So - i made a few things for Christmas this year - which i will be going hard core to sell by June this year - in time for christmas orders and posting!
The wreaths i made were fantastic - the very first tester one was the largest - it just fits in the hallway!I didnt give this one away as it was finished with tape, whereas the others take longer and are fully glued.
I made some small concertina decorations , some glittered balls (not shown) - a canvas christmas tree (complete with lights!) and a few odd paper tree decorations - plus my equal fave - frosted tree baubles - vintage style. I will be expanding the collection to add glittered balls (inside not outside covering) etched and patterned balls.

  This was a quick pic i took of the large one - it also has 3 hanging bells.

 This was the one i made for a craft swap - no bit in the middle as i thought it looked better without.

So - just a few things made that will be available to order and purchase this year from June onwards.

Christmas and our January holiday away

Christmas this year was spent both at my Mums, and in Merimbula,which is situated on the Sapphire coast, south coast of Australia. I have been there as a child though Mr K&G had never been, so that was the destination for this year. Unfortunately the place we stayed at, despite paying thousands and expecting something half decent -  wasnt. It was so dirty and smelly it was not pleasant. So we really tried to be out of the place (and ive decided to do a review - with pictures, on Tripadvisor.com to name and shame as they refused to acknowledge how filth the place was!) and made an effort to see the local sights - we day tripped to Bega - visited the cheese factory and bought some cheeses and butter! Unfortunately (they had listed 'Due to Health Regulations') there were no longer any cheese making tours which i think Monet would have loved so we then drove on to Tathra. What a lovely little town. It poured. Then stormed. Then hailed, then stormed some more! Was a great day though and learnt a little about the area. We also day tripped to Eden and Pambula - learnt some interesting facts about Edens whaling past and visited the aquarium (whish was very small but good for the kids to see) We also visited the Whaling museum which had a small cost for entry but was well worth it.

We spent 10 days in Merimbula, went to the beach a little (for summer its been really cold and blew a gale there the whole time) swam in the frigid cold pool at the 'resort' (hah!) and tried to relax.

Next year we are going to pay a little extra to go to a resort that has kids club - we dont have anyone to look after M here so we think we deserve a rest at the end of each year - plus poor M was bored and loved playing with some kids we met at the 'resort'. She is very active - mentally and socially so she deserves some more fun too!

All in all it was a mixed trip away - but made all the better for not being at work!
So now any suggestions on great places to stay (preferably NSW/Queensland) that has a great kids club would be appreciated!

This year sees a change for Koko&Gracie. 
Over the past year i have been very ill (story of my life) We wont dwell on it - but what it did make me realise is that i truly do have a passion for interior styling.
So - i will be focusing my talents on not only my staples - hair accessories and quilting - i will also be adding to the repertoir by expanding the collection and adding some homewares. Given i live in a teenytiny house on a hill - with zero storage, i will make some pieces up as examples then orders may be custom made.


I will also endeavour to blog more! Facebook sees too much of me when i really should be putting in here - some time management and life juggling will have to take place as im going back to training as well! Yes - after how many years i feel it is now time - bugger what the specialists say. I need to get a handle on my healt, and slowly getting back into training will be a help.


Off to the beach now, will be back later to update on our time off over Christmas and other stuff! 


x D

Well ladies and gents - its a new year - last year was a shocker so heres to a fresh start!