vovo telo

I went to visit some friends in Port Elizabeth this weekend, Matt & Mary. They have opened a bakery and coffee shoppe in one of the older parts, called Richmond Hill. Mary is also an architect, and together they transformed this little residence into a chic space with ambiance and a little stunning garden! (done by Matt's mom)

Matt owns & runs the shoppe, enjoying the bakery, but he is just passionate about his coffee...The breads, freshly baked every morning on the prmises, are divine, but sell out quite fast. The other pasteries are just as fabulous! I had a decadent chocolate croissant with an awesome cappuchino!

I just LOVE the old and new of the interiors - really chic with a rustic edge - I think the entire place has such a nice feel and atmosphere!

Thanks to Matt & Mary for saving this beautifull old residence and giving it a new lease on life! And I believe that this super building has become a catalyst for other owners in the area to upgrade and renovate. That's great hey! And somehow it is attracting many patrons who never frequented this area! CONGRATULATIONS guys!!!

HOOORAY for HANDMADE!

... and of you don't want to buy handmade... then make it yourself!!! No Woolworths pressies this year for anyone - sorry for you! = ) Check the pledge site out - it's very cool! http://www.buyhandmade.org/

PIF...

Pay It Forward (via http://www.siagrafica.com/somersaulting.html via Sandra, via Camilla, via Bibbi and so on...) - here are the rules:

I will send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange. I don’t know what that gift will be yet and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week, but you will receive it within 365 days, that is my promise! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog.

{I especially like the but you will receive it within 365 days part!}

Image to be credited to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/shamus/

More bunnies!

I am very happy to share my latest bunny acquisition. I bought it through a friend at my pottery class, her daughter is studying art at Stellenbosch and this extraordinary origami silver bunny was created by her friend, a 3rd year jewellery student, Gussie van der Merwe. Needless to say I was very chaffed with myself, and my bunny, when I spotted Gussie in the latest House & Leisure under the Mr Price student competition, designing salad servers – of course I think Gussie’s salad servers are the best! So congrats Gussie! And hope to meet you some time in the future. And I have already decided that I will be wearing the bunny to our exhibition opening on 30 November 2007 http://fluffexhibition.blogspot.com/, were I have mostly made bunnies (konyntjies) out of ceramics and bronze.

red sea...

I went on a diving trip a few years ago in the Red Sea. Thought these pics were quite amazing - I am not the auther of the photographs, but am lucky enough to have copies. I must say I never thought of myself as a diver, but it is another world downthere - and the quietness is just awesome. At least when I swim in the gym I can also cut out all the noise, but the view is nowhere as nice... = )

Barbara Wildenboer

This is a monument to Olive Schreiner (March 24 1855 – December 10 1920) was designed by Artist Barbara Wildenboer and is located in Kalk Bay, Western Cape, South Africa. It caught my eye and I thought it was really awesome.

The inscription read: “During the first decades of the 20th century Olive Schreiner spoke & wrote passionately in support of the Women’s Enfranchisement League which met in homes and halls throughout the city, including the English Church schoolroom that once stood here. Though the acclaimed author of The Story of an African Farm was a major force in the worldwide struggle for woman’s suffering, by 1912 she had quit the League because it refused to campaign for the vote for all woman in South Africa. White South African woman received the vote in 1930; black woman and black men, had to wait until 1994.”

probeer is die beste geweer...

I took these photographs earlier this year when on holiday in Namibia. We were on our way from Windhoek to Sossusvlei when we came across this sign, literally in the middle of nowhere. For those who don't understand Afrikaans - the sign (directly translated) says: "TRY".
The letters are 3-dimensional and not just flat sheets. The colour is due to the rust on the metal. I am assuming that this was done by a farmer with a sense of humour in this amazing landscape. We had to came to a screeching holt when we saw it and had to back-up to take the pics. I just thought it was an awesome installation!

Limited...

These awesome (limited) prints designed by my graphic artist & illustrator friend Alta Stegmann (alta.stegmann@gmail.com) started off as illustrated affirmations... but they have somehow taken on a life of there own...

I find them so inspirational and beautifull, and every time Alta designs a new batch I just can't help myself but I then need to purchase more prints for myself or just to give away as gifts. They make awesome gifts as they are light and flat - so they really travel well!

And what makes them really special (apart from the obvious) are the quotes woven into the designs. (I think the images are possibly too small to read the quotes - but they are really great!)

One of my favourites are on RELAX (see above) - "deep summer is when laziness finds respectibility" s.keen. So hope these brighten up your day!

sneak...not so sneak...preview

A sneak preview of the piece that I have entered for the Regional Ceramic Exhibition 2007, titeled “Bare Hares on the Lawn (BHOTL).

The exhibition opens on Sunday 07 October 2007 at 18h30 (and runs until 14 October, daily viewing between 09h00-21h00) at Artscape Theatre Centre Chandelier Foyer (1-10 DF Malan Street Foreshore, Cape Town).