Illustration + Design

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In/Out

^ toey.

Today I wandered around Newcastle, visited my beloved Blackbird Corner, bought some overpriced items at Blue Star Elements and generally pottered around and by the end of the day I must have walked like, 7kms. My feet would really appreciate a nice rub and a foot bath (*hint* C) and my skin has a lovely red hue to it after walking in the sun all day. Here are some of the things I purchased;


^ A Cavallini & Co file folder to cut up into envelopes, Cavallini & Co stickers, two sets of Courtney Brims postcards, double-sided tape, fabric to make bows.

I also spent a big portion of my afternoon/evening doodling on envelopes, like so;

^ I really wish I had a photography light box to take photos like this with better detail. I just saw a DIY light box tutorial, but I don't know if it would be anywhere near as good as the real thing.

How was your day? :)

Incoming mail;


^ Isn't this envelope just a visual feast? I didn't have any idea that it was from a Swapbot swap until well into reading the letter that accompanied the wonderful bundle of things. I keep getting it out and looking over it, so good.


^ A fantastic little envelope from Shona in the UK. She's only fourteen but she writes a wonderful letter.


^ This little envelope is actually from my own little sister. Last time I wrote to her (she lives a little more than an hour away) as one of my mail tag requests I asked for a letter written by her boyfriend, and the letter he wrote me was so good. It made me laugh a lot. I'd post it here, but I think it might embarrass him. When I first moved to Newcastle my sister said something like "Yay, now you live far enough away that we can play mail tag!".

Outgoing mail;

I'm taking a page out of Missive Maven's book with her pledge to reply to 100 letters in March, and I'm trying to write 3 letters a day until my replies pile isn't so hefty. Right now it's at about 25-deep, obviously not as huge as Missive Maven's 100, but still hard to get through!


^ A letter to Passion. The envelope is made from photocopied foreign newspaper and I picked it up here.


^ An overdue letter to Malu. Envelope made from a page from an astrology book that C gave me to cut up.


^ Finally sending out my giveaway package for Garci, full to the brim!


^ A letter to the lovely French Olivia.

The next two envelopes are quite similar and I included similar things, though the letters are obviously very different. I wanted to send something special to these two ladies as they both sent me AMAZING packages this week. Obviously my small gift in return reflects my meagre finances, but I hope they like them nonetheless. I love those Courtney Brims postcard sets, but I'm yet to buy a set for myself!;


^ For Sandra.


^ For Elissa.

Tomorrow is my last sleep in before university starts again :( Waaaaah. And I'm still yet to regulate my sleeping patterns for early mornings. Bed for me!

Listening to: Living of Love - The Avett Brothers (can't wait to see them in April!)
Consuming: Iced biscuits.

Soundtrack To My Week

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Distraction #74 - The Avett Brothers
Letter - Dan Sultan
Where You Sleep - Dead Man's Bones
Hold My Head Above The Water - Quiet Company
Death of an Interior Decorator - Death Cab For Cutie
Devil Song - theredsunband
Blackberry Stone - Laura Marling
Goeorgia Vs. Yo La Tengo - Yo La Tengo
Little Miss Pipedream - The Wombats
Whole Wide World - Wreckless Eric
Don't Ask Me To Explain - Of Montreal
Rubber Traits - Why?
Fun Park Fugitives - Darren Hanlon

Toes and Typewriters

^ Artwork by Jordan Clarke.

Well, today I made a little journey to Sydney (two trains and a bus there and back) to pick up a typewriter I bought for $10 on Ebay (well $9.95 really, as the guy tried to give me my 5c change). I left at 11.30am and returned at 7pm and just about all of that time was spent travelling! Argh. I wish I could have spent the day doing fun things in Sydney, like walking around The Rocks or going to Luna Park or the Botanical Gardens or the Zoo - I haven't visited any of those places in years. Sydney generally frightens me, but it has some nice spots. C rode to the shops this morning before I left and made me a packed lunch to take, ahaha. It was so cute (and tasty) and included a cute note.

Today's outfit - I'm winking atchu!;

^ Including my favourite dangly leaf earrings made by Faiza, a bow headband, new op-shop found red circle necklace, 'Holiday Knitting Bag' from markets in Tasmania, high waisted belted skirt I bought on my birthday last year plus the two clothing purchases I made yesterday - Witchery strapless singlet (it's really long and looks like an old fashioned bathing suit) and Expression cardigan = $8.

After catching two trains, I got on a bus which took me to the general area where I was picking up the typewriter and I found the house and knocked on the door repeatedly to no answer, so I decided to find a place to sit and eat my lunch. I sat uncomfortably on a pine barrier around a reserve and drank my juice box and ate my sandwiches and fruit and then I noticed that an old couple whose house was across the road were observing me and kind of giggling (I was basically sitting in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by busy roads sipping a juice box). I laughed too. Then they waved, and I waved back and then I left. Eventually a car drove in the driveway I was waiting at to pick up the typewriter and they were a funny old couple. I think they were Russian, judging by their accents, and the husband really was just the perfect picture of a burly old Russian man. I wish I could have drawn him, he had a rather marvellous face about twice the size of mine with great drooping bags under his eyes, a waddle when he walked and a huge hearty laugh. He told me his wife was born in China, and when I looked surprised (she had a Russian accent and didn't look Chinese) he said "Jesus was born in a stable and he wasn't a horse!", a joke that sounded like it had been told many times, and he laughed. They invited me in and gave me a drink, then asked me a whole lot of questions about where I was from and what my parents did and what I wanted the old typewriter for and then they gave me a lift to the train station, ha. On the train I watched an old Japanese woman fold bits of crumpled paper into origami and observed disgusted and fascinated as an old man cleaned his dentures. I saw a man meditating and two old men who appeared to be twins sitting together not talking and looking sombre who had just come from a funeral (they had funeral programs in their pockets). The rest of the trip was spent watching 'Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist' on my iPod (I just found a program to convert tv and movie to an iPod friendly format) and wasn't as impressed as I'd hoped to be, though there are moments of really good dialogue and their relationship imitated real life well in its awkwardness. Regardless, the music was good and it made the long trip fly by.

I'm going to Office Works tomorrow to search for typewriter ribbon as the one that's in there at the moment isn't very inky and is from 1968! It's a simple, easy to use old typewriter and it will be fine for just writing letters and playing around with (C loves the sound already, not) but once we've moved I'd love to be able to start collecting a few more flashy ones;


^ This picture also shows what my toes are (or were) doing and fits with My Teacups In Peony's Feet-Love post.



^ I'm pretty cut up about the lack of exclamation mark - I never realised how often I use that nifty bit of punctuation until I started typing on this thing.



Yesterday I went to run some errands and came back quite a bit poorer after purchasing two new items of red clothing from an op-shop, some stamps, rolls of paper and labels from the newsagents and pills and then Manneh took me to the mall and I bought some cute (extremely pricey) items from Kikki-K. Oh boy, it was hard not to spend a LOT of money there. Here are my meagre purchases;


^ A new fine-tipped gel ink pen (like the one that just ran out that Megan gave me in her giveaway), three types of tape and some brown paper covered with buttons = about $15, eep!

When I got home on Tuesday I was sitting at my computer and I heard this little screaming noise and looked around to see one of our cats sitting patiently and calmly in the kitchen doorway with a tiny live mouse in her mouth that she didn't seem to quite know what to do with. She wouldn't move until everyone in the house had come to see her catch and I think she really thought she'd be praised for catching it and protecting our house from it, but instead I just yelled at her a lot. She took it outside and let it go and it just sat there on its side, so she propped it back up with her paws and tried to push it away, to make it run away so she could catch it again. We watched on for a few moments and she played with her 'toy' until I couldn't stand it and had to catch her and put her inside. Later I let her back outside and she followed its scent trail and found it in seconds so I grabbed her again and she sat at the door meowing for hours and looking genuinely very pissed off at me. I think she might have caught it in our pumpkin patch. C kept saying things like 'It's nature's way", but I had to intervene and play god;


^ Don't worry, as far as I'm aware the mouse survived the ordeal with only a few scratches.

Well, in lieu of my new found typewriter ownership I thought I'd clog up this post with a whole bunch of photers of typewriters! Enjoy!


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Drinking: Preshafruit Apple & Strawberry Juice
Eating: Fried eggs on toast with sweet chilli sauce


Licking Stamps

^ These envelopes were made by making paper dyed with achiote, then pressing in leaves and allowing it to dry in the sun. Amazing, by Mleak.

Oh boy, it was another grandiose mail day. I should probably be replying to mail and not just awing at the things I receive;

I mentioned a post or two ago that I participated in the Knick Knack Exchange. A lack of funds prevented me from going all out for my partner sadly, and I never anticipated I would receive a such an incredible package myself. It was delivered by parcel post and left at our front door and C brought it to me while I was still in bed, it is a good place to open mail;


^ Four inconspicuous little brown paper packages all tied up with twine.




It contained: A lovely card made by a friend of hers, a big pack of die-cut cardstock, a 'tag pad', a sticker pad full of beautiful stickers that look just like stamps, a Burt's Bees lipgloss pack, a gorgeous box, a pack of cute alphabet cards, a huge bunny shaped box of Ferrero Rochers and a cute little Peanut Butter Cup egg. Oh boy, each little package I opened got better and better! Is it weird to say I almost cry sometimes when I open my mail? Ahah.

Sandra, my wonderful partner who blogs at Don't You Wish even did a post about how ridiculous the postage for the box was! So hefty! She said it was her first time sending an item out of the US. I am so very very grateful - I keep going through each item over and over. It's absolutely perfect. I plan to send something back her way to say a huge thank you for her beautiful generosity. Uhhmazing...

The postman stopped out front just after I opened the pacakge and I went out to collect the mail and he talked to me for a bit and asked me about mail art, haha. It was sweet;


^ Aska also said to mention that she really wants to send LOADS more postcards and would love more people to send them to - if you'd like a pretty handmade postcard, send your address to aska.doll[at]gmail.com and join her Facebook group - MAIL ART PROJECT.



^ Two gorgeous envelopes filled with great letters from Lauren.


^ Fantastic handmade envelope from Carla. The mailman asked me if the girl on the front was me, ahah.

Loading my blog makes C's computer not work properly, haha :D I am sorry about the over abundance of pictures, but really it's kind of your fault for sending me so much awesome mail, heh.