Brownies & Buskers, Burgers & Beer

A golden Autumn day begged for adventure, the perfect day for a date with a beauty.

Stepping off a busy city street into the graffiti-lined alley way, we were greeted by raspy-voiced buskers with metal-stringed guitars & homemade digeridoos, the mellow scent of coffee & the hustle of a makeshift flea market. The row of shiny sports bicycles & a line out the door of this intimate coffee bar could only mean one thing - we were in for a good time.
A tall cap with one for her & a soy latte for me, plus a brownie bite each - of course!
We pulled up a milk crate in the shade between two buildings, taking in the scene around us whilst waking our bodies with a superb brew. Strangers sitting side-by-side - artists, business men, mothers with their wee ones & 'the ladies who lunch' - all enjoying the eclectic atmosphere. Tapping our feet & sipping our coffees, we chatted about life & love, journeys & adventure, we made plans with friends to jam soon & made our way back onto the bustling streets.

We walked through the CBD taking in the changing scenery as Autumn makes her mark on the stark land. Leaves turning rouge & amber almost ready to flutter & fall to the pavement, shop fronts filling with wintery-scenes, & cafes displaying "Come in, it's warm!" signs. Families with their toddlers in tow make the most of the warm afternoon sunshine as our days begin to shorten & the crisp air settles in.
Not long now, takeaway coffee will be a faithful accessory, as well as the resurgence of leather boots & knitted scarves.

As the sun began her downward journey, we pulled up a stool to share a beer & burger. The perfect vantage for people watching. A young European family nearby relishing in the moment of their daughters first bite of burger. A man on crutches nimbly manoeuvring through the mall. Our waiters wearing hot-pants & bandanna's singing in the kitchen whilst creating our meal. We quietly enjoyed each others company, no words were uttered for quiet a while. A simple moment.


I crave these 'date days' with Sam. She's the best company - funny, talented & undeniably attractive.I adore documenting these moments with her. To share them here with you.
To reminisce them together in the future. 

197 Days of Drabbles - a shameless plug

Remember last year when I spent 4 weeks on secondment with the Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts as part of my degree (jog your memory here & here!)


Well, it is now Sam's turn - creating a project to span the entirety of her final year of university studies.
A creative, innovative & well, theoretical* project to culminate her studies & ulitise her skills - whilst interacting with a wider audience (You can even get invoved! YAY!)

I urge you, pop on over to197 Days of Drabbles, check out her project, plus...this is where you can help out, submit a prompt**- be it a word, sentence or more - to be creativly interpreted & published as a drabble or short story.
In October, Sam will be selecting her favourite written piece to be developed further, & performed as a live theatrical showpiece at the culmination of her third year studies! Amazing, right?! She's a talented one!

So, help a girl out! xx



*yaknow, because univerisity isn't all about getting up to mischief!
**it's easy-peesy - just sign in using your Facebook account, submit a prompt anonymously...& then forget about it!

Paper Love

Considering today is the day of love, I thought it appropriate to share with you a little of what Sam and I did on our first anniversary, a couple of weeks ago.

As a "good morning!" surprise for Sam, I scattered 'love notes' throughout the house...

After a relaxing morning, drinking coffees in bed and enjoying the unusually cool weather, we were met with a minor family crisis. We spent much of the afternoon and early evening driving through the country, dropping people here and there. By the time we arrived home, we were exhausted and longing for bed. Together we whipped up a quick pumpkin, beetroot and fetta pizza and an inventive cookie-dough-come-pudding for dessert. We were in bed and asleep well before midnight (which is incredibly unusual in our house).

We awoke the next day refreshed and excited to be spending the day, at home, together. We decided to extend our celebrations by creating a piece of art work for above our bed. Although we couldn't afford to do or buy much for this anniversary, it was the perfect gift to each other.

After scouring Pinterest for inspiration, I suggested a few ideas to Sam - all of which she loved - and we got to work creating a framed series, featuring a 'finger-print heart', for above our bed...

What do you think?

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Today has been very low key - plenty of pottering around the house, scouring Ikea catalogues in preparation for our next trip, and eating hot chips with our very first batch of home-made tomato sauce (all very romantic). There's no need for a dozen red roses or boxes of chocolates around these parts, just plain ol' 'lady love'!

 

Did you get up to anything special for Valentine's Day?  I hope you had a lovely day, no matter how you spent it or who with! xx

 

Paying It Forward - a giveaway, of sorts

So, remember when I said I would quietly accomplish my list of dreams and desires for this year?

Well...it hasn't lasted long.

I was intending to leave this little project on the shelf, for a month or so perhaps...but hey, what's a girl to do all with this time she's been given? - Create, of course!

I have noticed a new trend on the social networks of late - a pay-it-forward of sorts - You may have seen it also? If not, here's the low down:

2013 Creative Pay-It-Forward: The first five people to comment on this status will receive from me, sometime in the next calendar year, a gift - perhaps a book, a gift card, a candle, music, homemade something- a surprise! There will likely be no warning and it will happen whenever the mood strikes me. The catch? Those five people must make the same offer in their FB status. 

I have always enjoyed the notion of the 'pay-it-forward' (most likely spurred on by the watching the movie as a child) and so I am again drawn to the idea of passing on a little joy to, well, you! I want to bless you with a gift - something special, handmade or hand-picked by me, just for you - that will arrive sometime in 2013. But I want to shake it up a bit - I am leaving the number of participants open, for one week.
Whoever comments from today until next Sunday (February 10, 2013) will receive a gift from me.


So here's the low down if you want to be involved:
* Leave a comment below with your email or subscribe to Love love, lady via Google Friend Connect (on the side bar)

* You must continue this P-I-F - post the guidelines on your blog/facebook/twitter/other social media account

* You can choose to pay-it-forward to as many people as you desire - be it 5 people, or like me, as many people that comment below!

I'm really excited to bringing a little happiness to you, when you least expect it - and perhaps share these creations and recipients with you over the coming months!!

Wishing you a swell week,


Sar xx

Wet Weather

Today has been miserable. 

Grey, cold & drizzly - the constant, pathetic, drizzly rain is the worst.
Confined indoors with windows closed and lights on, as it's dark like dusk.

We've spent the day in bed, still in our pyjamas, the cats & Tig curled up at the end.
Countless coffees & hot chocolates have been consumed, as well as fresh choc-chip muffins.
We skipped out on the morning news, opting for Private Practice & Friends reruns.

Stir-craziness comes easily - especially when I must forfeit my daily walk.
So, I picked up a couple of needles & a ball the colour of turquoise.

Keeping my fingers busy.
 

Sneak-Peak

My creative juices have been flowing (and bubbling) since my trip to Brisbane, resulting in less study, and more photographing/drawing/dreaming/creating. So, it is with great excitement that I am giving you a sneak-peak into my next BIG project.

 
A project that allows me (and you*) to connect with everyday people - artists, baristas, photographers, stay-at-home mamas, students, musicians, teachers, to name just a few.

There'll be some slight changes (so slight, you'll probably not even notice them for a while, meanwhile I'll be tearing my hair out trying to understand html codes!) around here in the coming weeks - so, bear with me while I get the fiddly stuff done.

I hope you'll be as excited as I am right now when the BIG unveiling rolls around on December 1st!! x


Photograph by Sam
*More details on how you can become involved coming!

Absence makes the heart grow fonder...

I am alive and well. I promise to be back, with lots to say and show, next week. For now, I am focusing all my time and energy into this secondment (and dealing with some severe homesickness).

I hope all is well in your corner of the world.
X

The Exploration Project

So Spring is finally here, and I feel like a new woman! I am revelling in the warm sunshine, fresh Spring fruit and veg,and am wholeheartedly ready for the annual 'spring clean'! So in celebration of all things fresh and new I have a project lined up for the coming Spring months (perhaps, I will continue through the Summer! We'll see!)

In attempt at fostering a more creative lifestyle, I am 'challenging' myself to capture moments within my every day that I find intriguing/beautiful/inspiring/creative; heck, there might even be some ugly stuff showing up here too! I am constantly noticing everyday objects, scenes and events that I find interesting, and later on wish I had captured that moment.
So, once a week, I will post a few images from the past 7 days, and I welcome feedback, comments, questions, suggestions, etc. I'm always looking for new ways to broaden and explore my creativity, and I would love to use this as a place of exploration; of my own creativity, and that of others. I'd love to 'hear' your ideas for projects and projects you're involved in, constructive criticism, or other blogs and sites which foster creative thinking in you!
I'm excited!

So here's my first instalment of The Exploration Project:

Sunday: Fresh squeezed organic 'Orange, Carrot, Apple and Ginger' juice and organic Cacao milkshake from our local organic market and cafe - Amazing!

Monday: Spring blooms peeking through our fence. So beautiful, however I'm not sure what they are.

Tuesday: The fridge is stocked full of beer, just begging to be enjoyed on a warm afternoon...hopefully soon, as I realised the James Squire is nearing it's use by!

Wednesday: New shoes.

Thursday: I finally put a new calendar up...Better late than never!

 Friday: Delicious dinner; Maple-glazed wings, with an orange and fennel salad & Turkish bread. We adapted this recipe from this lovely lady. *Check out that whopper fennel!!

Saturday: Caught these two soaking up the sun by the back door this morning.
x