Fun, fun, fun!

Oh I had such a blast in Melbourne these last couple of days – but I’m glad to be home with my wee little Punk now.

 

My trip consisted of discovering a new favourite store, meeting some lurvly bloggers, seeing an awesome live show, stocking up on Dr Pepper & so much more.

Miss Jess is ever so much braver than she claims to be, moseying up to never-met bloggers & introducing herself, while I lurked uncomfortably in the background, Nic is satisfyingly tall (like me) and ridiculously nice (you really should have that seen to hon), Liesl was an unexpected surprise & a wealth of knowledge, Jodie is….. well. I don’t know what to say about her… ‘employee of the week’ comes to mind, or provider of chocolaty goodness… and Kate is famous. Truly (I think she might even be, officially, some sort of accessory to murder… but I’ll let her tell you about that… if she’s game…).

The actual Stitches & Craft show, for me, was a bit disappointing – so many underwhelming Nanna crafts when you first walk in puts a bit of a dampener on things, but upstairs is like another world, devoid of weird crystal embedded quilted animal pictures, and much more interesting. I was thinking last night on the way home that I might not go next year – then I realised that I would have an 7 month old and would doubtless be staying home anyway… which made me want to go again.

The definite pluses of the show where meeting all those lovely ladies & a quick stop at a nearby oppy where I picked up a three little pigs cup & a raw silk beanie, the definite minuses were the changed venue and the fact that, despite hanging around like bad smells & being three of the only five customers left in the place, Kate, Jess & I missed out on winning any ‘Craft Happy Hour’ prizes – as crappy as they may have been.

I am so very happy with all the goodies I hauled home though, a monster from Jodie, a gorgeous red tea towel from Nic, a sweet bearded bloke gifted from Jess, cups for all from Typo & a wicked red flip clock, a gazillion gifties for the wee Punk & the afore mentioned store of Dr Pepper.

As always, the story of my trip can be told with all the extra stuff I have now (which is just as well, because I kinda sorta forgot I had my camera – bad blogger – and only have it to take photos of now…)… ah stuff. How I love thee….

My Place & Yours....

....'My Collection'.

a) Isn't that just the best theme?!

b) How great is Kate for choosing it?

c) Are you playing along, with Pip?

d) Does "junk" in general count as a collection....?!

I love stuff.

We have an agreement, do stuff & I. It "is" & I collect it. All of it. I could fill this blog, day after day, post after post, with things I "collect". I could bore - uh... entertain you, for hours, regaling you with stories of things I've "collected" in the past.

"Hoard" is perhaps a more.... fitting word. And I don't rightly know why I do it. My Mother does it. My Gran does it. I don't know fo' sho' but I'd bet my Great Grandmother did it.

Probably about the only time I'm grateful that we've moved so much these last few years is when I am trying to make a dent in the "clutter". Each move saw me jettison various odds & ends that I thought I'd never be able to live without. Some of those things I don't regret - like VHS tapes I couldn't play, other things I do (I really, really do....) like my complete set of Frankie issues 1 - 14.

My collections seem to just creep up on me. I get a little something here, a little something there, and then, suddenly, there are too many somethings for it to be a coincidence any more.

Atari games.

Toys.

Handbags.

Hats.

Teapots.

Converse Sneakers.

Cookbooks.

Children's Books.

Viewmasters.

Records.

Pyrex.

Pin Up Girls.

Board Games.

Anything Really.

I have always felt I was born too late. I feel I should have been living it up in the 50s, the 60s or the 70s at the very latest. As such I am drawn to anything old, anything vintage, anything "retro". That is why I have rusting tins that used to contain sticky tape sitting around the house. That is why I have boxed opera binoculars sitting on my counter top and that is why I am going to die, without a doubt, under a pile of Australasian Post magazines that fall on my head when I'm 83.

Having said that - about being born too late - I do have a great love for a lot of things from my childhood & I have been squirreling so much of it away that one could perhaps stage an episode of ALF or Punky Brewster in my house without having to bring in many props.

I don't think I could ever channel my energies into properly collecting anything, let alone one thing only. I can't see me keeping anything in "mint" condition - I love to use everything I have & enjoy it (or now, in the case of the books & toys, let Punky enjoy them). Nor can I see me on an endless quest to find the perfect green Bakelite radio (although if I happened upon it, I wouldn't say no...), or parting with too many dollars for it. I just LOVE going to an antiques & collectibles store & seeing half my house in there with price tags up to a hundred times more than I paid. I love seeing things that are (apparently) worth a small fortune that I picked up for $1 because I liked the look of it.

I just wouldn't be able to commit to a one obsession obsession. There are too many gorgeous things, cute things, nostalgic things, NECESSARY things out there, to stick with just one....!

(.........and don't even get me started on RED things....)