Dinner's ready....

Dinner's ready.... by kirstyfish
Dinner's ready...., a photo by kirstyfish on Flickr.

Clever Mummy. And a Picnic to boot.

Every Day Life...

 It's been like a Meeeegggaaa long week, it seems.
I feel like i have lived a thousand lives this week. But not a great amount has actually, physically, happend.
 There was a new shelving unit in yummy smelling pine that was mounted to the studio wall. It holds a million reels of ribbons and ricracs and pOmpOms and trimmings... and that makes me happy.
 There was some baking - but nothing too treat'y as i have been on a Month long detox of anti-cakes and anti-alcohol. Ugh - it's been killing me but i have dropped a few pounds and feel virtuous. These are banana and seed muffins.
 I did bottle up the Limocello that has been steeping in sugar and lemony zest for the past 6 weeks.
It is now basking in the freezer - waiting to undo all that goooooodness that i created in my Month OFF the bad stuff.
Little heart Ice Cubes? now how good does that look?
 There has been sewing and batch making a Host of Angels ready for Christmas.
New designs this year but all of them Limited Edition as it breaks my heart and soul to repeat a million of the same design.
 There has been stock-taking and button ordering (of course) and a bit of a tidy up in the studio.
 There has been walking and running and training and all that stuff. Of course.
There has been a car valet - MINI FOR SALE!!! seriously, if you want to buy my Mini, get in touch. Awesome car, much loved - needs a loving home.
 We have had sooo much busy garden antics. Every bird in the world has decided it is time to Fledge.
This was the cutest baby BlueTit (nesting outside my bathroom window) and he was getting himself all ready for the big fly.
 Been keeping them fed and watered.
Before i tool this snap the bird bath was FULL of fat fluffy baby BlackBirds. So cute! i never knew baby birds could be so sweet. Leaving them out an apple as a treat.
There was an incident with a boy (long story)
There was another incident in which a man suddenly became Married (an even longer story)
There have been hospital visits and village drama.
There will be a Sister with a new car coming to visit.
There will be cooking, eating, running and sewing over the weekend.

And for all my week's dramas, there has always been my friends.
What would i have done this week, without you all? xxx

Forgive-ness.

365/22 iheartVD week-1 by kirstyfish
365/22 iheartVD week-1, a photo by kirstyfish on Flickr.

Would it be wrong to ask for forgive-ness... even if, when you did what you did, you knew you shouldn't be doing it in the first place?
Like - you knew the whole of it was wrong on every level, but it wasn't as wrong as some things can be, you know SO wrong. So you do it anyway and then just hope for the best and hope you don't get judged too harshly...

Not me. You know. A friend, say...
?

It wouldn't be Monday Morning without a shop Pimp, now would it?

 What a Windy day?
I don't know about where you are but, here it is Blowy and i'm feeling a bit Dorothy, scared that if i step outside i will have landed in Oz!?
 "Ding Dong the Witch is (which old Witch?) the Wicked Witch
Ding Dong the Wicked Witch is dead....."
 *new* buttons (what else?)
I have been making up packs of Button Brooch Party Favours which are just so cute and muchos fun. I'm not greedy though. I'm not the sort of person who would keep all these to herself.
They are too fun not to pass on.
1.25inch / 3.4cm - a great big size and i would LOVE to see what people have been making with these.
Personally, i'd love to see used on knitwear or as bag / purse fasteners. The are so vibrant. A real statement button.
 This new blue stripe is gorgeous and just makes my heart ache. So nautical :)
This is what i have named 'Denim Blue' - i love it.
I am listing these in single colour sets and in mixed colour sets.
 And i have always been a complete girly polka dot fan... but i find myself loving these stripes so much more?
Every colour i have in Stripe i have in Spots - 10 colours.
 Raspberry, Strawberry (pale) Sky Blue, Denim Blue, Purple, Vanilla, Mint, Orange, Aqua, Red
In both designs.
 And Button Tags.
I know. I win no awards here for complex craft design but.... not everybody has a big stash of buttons to glue onto tags (can you believe that?)
And also, i have been packing these into stacks of 10 as cute party favors.
Imagine a party bag filled with button tags? a button brooch? chocolate.....
*kirsty dreams of greatest party bags in the world, ever*
 In other excting news:
The GARDEN ROOM - Hair and Beauty salon, Upper Boddington
now holds a small stock of PaperFish products.
You don't need an appointment to pop in - you can just go round and shop, if you want.
They are holding:
Cards & Gift Tags
Lavender Patchwork Hearts
Purses and Tissue Holders
Button and Felt Brooches
and the range will be extending soon. If you're local - pop in for a last minute gift?
Egad, i had such a busy week last week - so much on my mind.
I managed a RRRRuuuuuNNN this morning so now i need a bowl of fruit, a big fat coffee and 2 hours under the sewing machine.
Have a great Monday xxxx don't get blown away and avoid all Witches.

"What has changed?" asked Ali...

 Since starting Running n all this? Is that the question? What has changed since this sporty revival?
There is so much history behind 'changes' isn't there? And what has been before, is always part of what comes next....
I have trained in Yoga on and off for years and, back in the day, did several years of Shotokan Karate.
Before having my daughter i was Scuba Diving, Rock Climbing & Gym training, at every available opportunity. Rock Climbing is the biggest BUZZ i have ever had. I have never come close to that feeling since: Looking up a Rock Face and believing "i will never make it up that Rock"
And then you reach the top.
The adrenalin is awesome. I DID THAT.
 There is something fundamental in a living being - in our bodies, that is designed to want to train harder, run faster, lift heavier, breath deeper, think calmer, walk further... it is the survival instinct. The instinct that babies are OVERWHELMED with - "i must survive"
So, as an adult, for me - i must have hit this wall with 2 BIG arrows on:
Go left and Fail
Go right and survive
The easiest thing to do seemed to run and train because these were immediate 'fail safe' / feel good achievements.
"What has changed?"
I have huge calf muscles
My legs are generally more shapely than before (but not as hot as MrsB's!)
I feel fit and healthy
I have more energy throughout the day.
I am calmer - and i am sleeping better
It is easier to sit and work / challenge my mind - knowing my body has had it's challenge for the day
I have a soft suntan from being outdoors
My skin is shiny
I feel like a stronger Mummy - like i can 'protect' and 'provide' better
I feel more confident about the way i look
i no longer feel like 'everybody is better than me' - i feel like iam 'in the race' (whatever that means)
as my body gets stronger i feel generally stronger and more capable
i can EAT!!!! whatever i want to! - i have never eaten so much in my life
...maybe there is more that is changing?... more change yet to come?

Years ago i told myself "There is nothing that you cannot do Kirsty, if you really want it" and if you want to adopt my mantra too, feel free.
We can all get what we want out of the life we are in.
But nobody ever said it would be easy.

Failure is not an Option.... Running might be...

 Iam 36yrs old. I had never run outdoors in my life.
About 8 weeks ago, i decided that i wanted to.... or, it was more organic than that.
I have long long since been a keen walker and could take in the Countryside - whatEVER the weather - for miles.
But i felt a sort of lift in my step. Literally.
My body was whispering   "i want to run"
 And i had always viewed Running as something terribly serious and very Grown-Up.
"i Run you know, yaaaa i go running"
and all that kit! i would look at Runners and an inner voice might say
(twat - what are you doing outside running with all that stuff on)

And i was scared... to be SEEN... with a sweaty red face and bouncing huge boobs - in public.
It all seemed so undignified.
 And i am now, one of those twats - out running - with a red face and with kit!
Not only that, i am telling people all about it!! What is wrong with me?

It is this:
I live in a very small community of friends and neighbours and family.
Daily, i am asked "going to the gym Kirsty" - "Trying to get fit Kirsty" - "you don't need to lose to weight" - "i couldn't run, not for me all that sweating" - "you're overdoing it Kirsty"... people seem to love telling me what i should / should not be doing.

I am both running and weight training at the moment, 5 or 6 times a week because i need to.
I feel exhausted and weak.
I feel 'walked over' and out-of-control with too much responsibility.
I feel desperately alone and like a complete failure.
I don't have low self-esteem, i have no self-esteem. 
 Weight Training & Running can only be positive things for me right now.
There is no competition and no goals.
I couldn't care if i lost weight or gained enormous huge thighs.
I only care how it feels - in those hours and minutes and seconds where my body shouts:
"Stop Kirsty - it hurts. No more running. The weights are too heavy. You're too busy to go for a run"
and my mind kicks in - my grit and determination to feel like a worthy person
"you can do it Kirsty. You are doing it Kirsty"
There is only me, with myself, just to train.
There is nothing else in my head for that hour or so.
It is such a.... relief!
And when i get home there is only one over-riding feeling: Achievement.
The knowledge that, whatever happend in my day and however negative i feel about myself and my life right now - what i did in my training today, was 'an achievement'.
I did that. So i must still be here.
To validate Oneself.


*NEW* Cath Kidston Fabric Pack

 So.... for the Fans of Cath Kidston and her amazing fabrics:
A pack of 5 large sheets Double Weave Cotton.
1 Cherry, 1 White Bird, 2 Florals and a Stone spot - all of these are my Favourites. Lord knows why i am selling them on!
 only available in the FABRICS section at:
my lovely store for buttons & bits that seems to be an endless list of updating and tweaking.
 In my http://paperfish.etsy.com/ store i have been listing these very cute
Button Tag Packs!
 Weeny Button Tags in packs of 5 that make awesome little gift tags for childrens gifts or to stick on a bottle of wine for a host gift. Also great to pop in party bags as favours for the more grown-up party bags.
 I have been making lots of Greetings Cards which has been great as i never get a chance to work with paper and fabric. I love how every card can be different and it doesn't matter. The freedom to make what i want, instead of stuff in 'batches'
 I love imagining 'who' will receive the cards and whether or not they like them.
It makes me feel proud. And it's always nice to receive a card from a friend.
 Tags lying all over, drying out...
They look so funny, like they are breeding at an alarming rate!
I have been doing very little of late, except go Running, Weight Training and Crafting.
Although i did go and see HANNA at the cinema the other day.
have you seen it advertised?
Good for those of us who are interested in Children and the innocence of children and childhood - that great painful chasm between the innocence and adolesence.
Good film but a 12A??? it was a bit Gory....
Maybe i'm a wimp? (But oooohh, Eric Banna...)
x

A Little Alice...

 "There is a place. Like no place on Earth.
A land full of wonder, mystery, and danger!
Some say to survive it: You need to be as mad as a hatter.... which luckily, i am"
 For Alice Fans...
 ...and Smurfs.
 I'm more of a Moomin Girl myself.
Neopolitan Ice-Cream for Dessert?

I have a great deal going on in my little mind.
I worry too much.
I wish life were more about Living and a little less about Surviving

i made a little button bouquet...

 Playing in the Studio at the weekend and,,,,,..... tada!
I made a little Button Bouquet.
 I could become very addicted to these.
I grabbed some thinner PINK floristry wire and made some smaller spotty stems.
 Then i taped the 7 stems together with parcel tape before covering that in ribbon to give it a sweet finish.
I am thinking this would make a nice little gift for someone if i hang a little gift tag from it?
 If i pop round to somebody's for a cuppa?
or as a thankyou?
I need these all round my house now....
 And a P.S
I am having a Limited Time SALE Offer on bags of 100g pastel / popsicle button bags.
I mixed up a few 100g bags full of dreamy Spring like shapes and colours.
Sort of perfect for making buttony lavender hearts
or your own stacking / stem projects
or yummy popsicle accessories
i love this mixture.
Normal price £7.50 for the 100g
SALE Price: £5.50
Coolio x
(p.s i just lost a blog follower :( i am either boring, or too commercial or a bad blogger, hahaha)

Bountiful Button Brooches...

 So many cute Button Brooches, all piling into the PaperFish Shops.
 I think it is because i have attended so many children's parties since we started school in September?
 Or, maybe, because i the run the bar for so many weddings at our local hall...?
 And definately because these have flying off the PaperFish Craft stall and from my wee retail outlet.
 That is why i have been making so many Button Brooches.
They are so easy - i'm not trying to show you i am any great design genius... they're buttons, made into brooches.
 They make the most awesome little gifts for yourself. I think i have become addicted to wearing them (gulp)
but even better than that, they are fun and FUNKY party favors / favours.
Every party i have sold these for have said they are "really unique" and "fun" and something they loved taking home. Awesome feeling :)
 But the Button Brooches are things i have whipping up in batches when i find a spot in my day (and a clear surface to dry them out on)
I have been sewing lots AND making some well needed and long overdue THANKYOU cards.
For a few people who i need to say belated thanks to.
They are very quick and easy to make - well, you know me! But they are sweet and say what they are intended to say xxx

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