So that is where my energy went!
Titled, "I forgot how to cat". Classic.
I laughed.
Also, wishing a very happy Fathers Day to those celebrating it in Australia.
Cardi.
Sunday, 1 September 2013
Nothing serious today.
Just thought I would share a couple of really funny things I saw at cheezburger.com
Friday, 30 August 2013
One more.
I wanted to mention that I saw these tie-dyed hair elastics on Etsy and I thought, BONANZA!!
It looks like a rainbow exploded and turned into hair ties. Purdy!!!
Also, for my Mister:
It looks like a rainbow exploded and turned into hair ties. Purdy!!!
Also, for my Mister:
Hope you can forgive me :)
I love you!!!
Speaking of pretty timber...
I was just browsing through the Jeterforks store admiring his work and I saw a few really beautiful things that I just can't understand why they have not sold yet. I'm going to link them all here to force you guys to look at the pretty.
Flame box elder is soooo pretty! I have a spiral in this wood and in person it is just gorgeousness.
Pheasant wood looks amazing. It really does look almost feathered. If it wasn't almost the exact same shade as my hair I doubt I would have been able to resist this one.
Black and white ebony. Who doesn't love a bit of black and white ebony, really? If I hadn't been hanging out for round topped four pronged jeterforks this one would have fallen into my cart a long time ago. Same goes for this verawood and this bubinga really.
Pretty, pretty wood!
So, if someone would like to treat themselves and buy one of these please feel free. I don't know why they are still available to be honest and they keep winking at me. *Puts hands over eyes*
Nooo! We have to pay for underlay for the floor. Sorry forks. I can't buy you.
I get far too much joy from enabling people, so let me know if I tempt you.
Have a fantastic weekend.
Cardi.
Obsessed with pretty timber.
Over the last four or maybe even more years I've been a member of a few different hair forums, but although I admire beautiful hair and appreciate tips on hair care, what has maintained my interest has been all the discussion of pretty hair toys and also the varied group of people I have chatted with along the way. I am proud to call some of these people my friends, even if we have never actually met.
Hair toys is a sort of generalized term which includes all sorts of common and uncommon things which are used to hold hair in styles or even just to decorate hair. I mostly like things that are practical, comfortable and don't cause any damage, but my real passion is only for the beautiful timber that is used to create the wooden hair forks and hair sticks. I wonder if I were well again if I should switch completely out of my science based career and test out my skills in carving and wood-working? It's unlikely to happen at this rate (hurry up please research!) but my dear Granddad, may he rest in peace, was a carpenter, and I wonder if somehow I have wood-working in my blood? Probably a silly notion, but it's nice to think I could share one of his qualities.
Because I have such an appreciation for the look of beautifully finished wood I have become fascinated by the different types of woods and I like to collect the most beautiful wooden hairtoys that I can find. I am certain that had I not discovered wooden hairtoys, I would have eventually ended up obsessed with beautiful wooden pens, bowls or other knick-knacks, but I really like it this way because I can wear the things I like so much every day.
I have a couple new photos that I have taken of beautiful wooden hair forks from Designs by Baerreis that arrived yesterday afternoon. I had no idea maple in particular could be so pretty! I think my new zebrawood three prong Ursula, (the striped one) is the nicest of their work that I own so far, and I am delighted by the patterns in the maple nautilus (four pronged fork). I was pleased to see how nicely they were shaped and I like the shape of the three prong fork even better than the example photo in the shop. The rounded prong gaps are really lovely. I was happy to see that both woods were finished very nicely too.
One of my favourite references for the different looks and types of woods is HobbitHouse. I LOVE HobbitHouse and if the guy behind it ever reads this, thank-you, thank-you for all your hard work. I have learned so much from this site that it is simply incredible. Plus I like to look at all the pretty woods and enjoy the discussion about the accuracy of photographs by vendors. I especially like the fact sheets and colour change discussions. They are very informative. I like to imagine that the creator of that webpage would understand my passion for beautiful timber.
I have been slowly collecting bits and pieces for over four years now. I like to think I am quite choosey and that the sellers I return to are very talented and deserve the repeat business.
One of my favourite things in wooden creations is burl. Burl is the result of damage to the tree that kind of forms a little "tumour". Once the tree or branch affected is felled, and the wood worked, burl will show up with whorls of grain and some voids. My absolute favourite woodworker is amazing in how he works with burl and fills the voids beautifully with things like crushed precious stones before finishing his hair sticks or forks. I suppose now would be a good time to link the new Elymwold fork I have headed this way:
See how he has filled the eucalyptus burl topper with turquoise to beautifully close any gaps in the burl? Then added strips of black wattle which shimmer copper-bronze in the light, and another stripe of silky oak inlaid with silver? All on top of a glossy gabon ebony fork! Yes, I know it's probably not exciting to anyone who isn't a "grainiac" (wood grain maniac), but to me it's more gorgeous than a whopping great big diamond ring. I hope this piece in particular can become a family heirloom and be passed down for who-knows how long. I need a "happy dance" smiley on this blog. I don't think I have ever seen anything quite this amazing before, even my birds-eye maple glass bead topped Graydog hairstick will take second place to this work of art.
There's a reason this crafter is my all time favourite. This should not diminish how highly I think of other vendors I mention.
And last of all, but certainly not least, I can't stop thinking about the black and white ebony and bocote Jeterforks on the way. I just know they are going to be in my absolute favourites list. Two years between orders was far too long. I kept on looking and admiring constantly, but was trying to cut back on spending in general after moving house.
Mr Jeter's work is always perfectly smooth when he's finished with it, even when using rough or ridged woods. He really takes very good care. Your hair will always be safe with these forks and I will happily recommend them to anyone. I like the fork shapes and Mr Jeter is incredibly helpful. Like Elymwold, he has always been very happy to shorten forks where needed, which is a wonderful kindness and encourages me to buy beautiful things I would otherwise have passed on. The head curve is always perfect and consistent and I find that with the tung oil and beeswax finish the forks increase in beauty with age. If you live in the U.S. the shipping is free too. Bargain!
So, I hope you're all tempted and maybe you can pick yourselves up some pretty wooden things. I probably (definitely) have enough already, but I make an exception when I see something amazing.
I promise photos when the elymwold and jeterforks arrive and I'm still slowly working on clearing out some other stuff that I liked before but has been gathering dust since Elymwold started making forks.
So yeah, I just rambled on about timber and hair forks for ages. Well done if you managed to read it all without falling asleep. You might be a grainiac just like me.
Cardi
Hair toys is a sort of generalized term which includes all sorts of common and uncommon things which are used to hold hair in styles or even just to decorate hair. I mostly like things that are practical, comfortable and don't cause any damage, but my real passion is only for the beautiful timber that is used to create the wooden hair forks and hair sticks. I wonder if I were well again if I should switch completely out of my science based career and test out my skills in carving and wood-working? It's unlikely to happen at this rate (hurry up please research!) but my dear Granddad, may he rest in peace, was a carpenter, and I wonder if somehow I have wood-working in my blood? Probably a silly notion, but it's nice to think I could share one of his qualities.
Because I have such an appreciation for the look of beautifully finished wood I have become fascinated by the different types of woods and I like to collect the most beautiful wooden hairtoys that I can find. I am certain that had I not discovered wooden hairtoys, I would have eventually ended up obsessed with beautiful wooden pens, bowls or other knick-knacks, but I really like it this way because I can wear the things I like so much every day.
I have a couple new photos that I have taken of beautiful wooden hair forks from Designs by Baerreis that arrived yesterday afternoon. I had no idea maple in particular could be so pretty! I think my new zebrawood three prong Ursula, (the striped one) is the nicest of their work that I own so far, and I am delighted by the patterns in the maple nautilus (four pronged fork). I was pleased to see how nicely they were shaped and I like the shape of the three prong fork even better than the example photo in the shop. The rounded prong gaps are really lovely. I was happy to see that both woods were finished very nicely too.
One of my favourite references for the different looks and types of woods is HobbitHouse. I LOVE HobbitHouse and if the guy behind it ever reads this, thank-you, thank-you for all your hard work. I have learned so much from this site that it is simply incredible. Plus I like to look at all the pretty woods and enjoy the discussion about the accuracy of photographs by vendors. I especially like the fact sheets and colour change discussions. They are very informative. I like to imagine that the creator of that webpage would understand my passion for beautiful timber.
I have been slowly collecting bits and pieces for over four years now. I like to think I am quite choosey and that the sellers I return to are very talented and deserve the repeat business.
One of my favourite things in wooden creations is burl. Burl is the result of damage to the tree that kind of forms a little "tumour". Once the tree or branch affected is felled, and the wood worked, burl will show up with whorls of grain and some voids. My absolute favourite woodworker is amazing in how he works with burl and fills the voids beautifully with things like crushed precious stones before finishing his hair sticks or forks. I suppose now would be a good time to link the new Elymwold fork I have headed this way:
See how he has filled the eucalyptus burl topper with turquoise to beautifully close any gaps in the burl? Then added strips of black wattle which shimmer copper-bronze in the light, and another stripe of silky oak inlaid with silver? All on top of a glossy gabon ebony fork! Yes, I know it's probably not exciting to anyone who isn't a "grainiac" (wood grain maniac), but to me it's more gorgeous than a whopping great big diamond ring. I hope this piece in particular can become a family heirloom and be passed down for who-knows how long. I need a "happy dance" smiley on this blog. I don't think I have ever seen anything quite this amazing before, even my birds-eye maple glass bead topped Graydog hairstick will take second place to this work of art.
There's a reason this crafter is my all time favourite. This should not diminish how highly I think of other vendors I mention.
And last of all, but certainly not least, I can't stop thinking about the black and white ebony and bocote Jeterforks on the way. I just know they are going to be in my absolute favourites list. Two years between orders was far too long. I kept on looking and admiring constantly, but was trying to cut back on spending in general after moving house.
Mr Jeter's work is always perfectly smooth when he's finished with it, even when using rough or ridged woods. He really takes very good care. Your hair will always be safe with these forks and I will happily recommend them to anyone. I like the fork shapes and Mr Jeter is incredibly helpful. Like Elymwold, he has always been very happy to shorten forks where needed, which is a wonderful kindness and encourages me to buy beautiful things I would otherwise have passed on. The head curve is always perfect and consistent and I find that with the tung oil and beeswax finish the forks increase in beauty with age. If you live in the U.S. the shipping is free too. Bargain!
So, I hope you're all tempted and maybe you can pick yourselves up some pretty wooden things. I probably (definitely) have enough already, but I make an exception when I see something amazing.
I promise photos when the elymwold and jeterforks arrive and I'm still slowly working on clearing out some other stuff that I liked before but has been gathering dust since Elymwold started making forks.
So yeah, I just rambled on about timber and hair forks for ages. Well done if you managed to read it all without falling asleep. You might be a grainiac just like me.
Cardi
Wednesday, 28 August 2013
Why, Etsy, Why??
I buy things from Etsy more than I buy things from anywhere else, so when I say these things I am saying them as a frequent shopper and an even more frequent browser.
Etsy, your latest changes are NOT an improvement in my opinion.
I don't like the interface as much anymore. I find it annoying having to click on a tab to see what the shipping is or if the seller will even ship to my country. Sometimes the shipping amount will make or break a transaction, so to make me search for this instead of it being right there is not helpful nor conducive to me trying a new vendor.
I HATE the changes to feedback. My ability to gain positive feedback has been wiped out. How can a vendor trust me when I tell them that they should take a chance and mail something to Australia, without being able to base that decision on my 100% positive feedback from multiple vendors. My loyal patronage has been wiped out and I am now only as trustworthy as any random new account.
Also, I don't want everyone to know what I have bought, but I LOVE to leave positive feedback for those who deserve it. Why can't I leave anonymous positive feedback? Why do I have to have my account name and profile picture displayed any time I want to leave honest reviews? Also, grouping sales in feedback is disrespectful to people's privacy. Maybe that person who bought 5 things at once (not me in this case) doesn't want everyone to know about it, but still think the vendor deserves a good review for their fantastic service and well made merchandise?
Also, vendors aren't going to like getting less than 5 stars. This may lead to vendors refusing to sell to people who don't believe in 5 stars for anything short of perfection. There is too much space for hurt feelings. There are some vendors who do indeed always deserve 5 stars (sometimes more), but there are others I am happy to buy from that probably would only honestly rate a 4 or 4 and a half, but that I am still happy to buy from repeatedly. I don't want to insult these people or hurt their businesses, so I will leave them a 5, but is this really honest? Also, making me wait until a designated date to type reviews? Why? If something arrives before that, I want to review it then, as a way to let the seller know it arrived and I am happy.
I don't like the idea of having my account name and profile picture, and a link to my profile proudly displayed next to feedback. Why is this necessary? Is the aim to make it possible for sellers to hunt down buyers? Why else? I'm good enough at contacting vendors on my own, thank-you.
Now, if it weren't for fantastic Etsy vendors who always deserve 5+ stars, like Elymwold (beyond amazing work and best customer service ever), Jeterforks, (years of fantastic service, and stunning work) and 60th Street, (consistently beautiful work and care for customers as much as their work), I might be annoyed enough to stop shopping at Etsy.
I feel patronized when I am typing a review and a little, encouraging "Great, keep going" pops up underneath. What am I? Six? I mean, really...
Anyways, I don't think it will make any difference but I just thought I would put that out there.
Probably a case of TL:DR here, sorry. As an apology, I offer you photos.
Etsy, your latest changes are NOT an improvement in my opinion.
I don't like the interface as much anymore. I find it annoying having to click on a tab to see what the shipping is or if the seller will even ship to my country. Sometimes the shipping amount will make or break a transaction, so to make me search for this instead of it being right there is not helpful nor conducive to me trying a new vendor.
I HATE the changes to feedback. My ability to gain positive feedback has been wiped out. How can a vendor trust me when I tell them that they should take a chance and mail something to Australia, without being able to base that decision on my 100% positive feedback from multiple vendors. My loyal patronage has been wiped out and I am now only as trustworthy as any random new account.
Also, I don't want everyone to know what I have bought, but I LOVE to leave positive feedback for those who deserve it. Why can't I leave anonymous positive feedback? Why do I have to have my account name and profile picture displayed any time I want to leave honest reviews? Also, grouping sales in feedback is disrespectful to people's privacy. Maybe that person who bought 5 things at once (not me in this case) doesn't want everyone to know about it, but still think the vendor deserves a good review for their fantastic service and well made merchandise?
Also, vendors aren't going to like getting less than 5 stars. This may lead to vendors refusing to sell to people who don't believe in 5 stars for anything short of perfection. There is too much space for hurt feelings. There are some vendors who do indeed always deserve 5 stars (sometimes more), but there are others I am happy to buy from that probably would only honestly rate a 4 or 4 and a half, but that I am still happy to buy from repeatedly. I don't want to insult these people or hurt their businesses, so I will leave them a 5, but is this really honest? Also, making me wait until a designated date to type reviews? Why? If something arrives before that, I want to review it then, as a way to let the seller know it arrived and I am happy.
I don't like the idea of having my account name and profile picture, and a link to my profile proudly displayed next to feedback. Why is this necessary? Is the aim to make it possible for sellers to hunt down buyers? Why else? I'm good enough at contacting vendors on my own, thank-you.
Now, if it weren't for fantastic Etsy vendors who always deserve 5+ stars, like Elymwold (beyond amazing work and best customer service ever), Jeterforks, (years of fantastic service, and stunning work) and 60th Street, (consistently beautiful work and care for customers as much as their work), I might be annoyed enough to stop shopping at Etsy.
I feel patronized when I am typing a review and a little, encouraging "Great, keep going" pops up underneath. What am I? Six? I mean, really...
Anyways, I don't think it will make any difference but I just thought I would put that out there.
Probably a case of TL:DR here, sorry. As an apology, I offer you photos.
Yeah, she doesn't like the Etsy changes either!
A kitteh washing a doggie. I bet they don't care about anonymous feedback.
And three happy window shoppers.
Hope everyone is well, and watch out for some sale listings at "The Island". I've made enough back to pay back what I spent on those gorgeous new Jeterforks, but now I have to drum up the money for my Elymwolds. I think I'd happily sell most of what I own to pay for those forks. They're so amazing!
Hope I haven't scared anyone away for good with this one.
Cardi.
Tuesday, 27 August 2013
Ever-changing collection
Well, I have had one very fortunate day when it comes to finding out about beautiful things before they were listed. I don't have magic powers or anything, I guess I just asked very nice people at the right times! I feel pretty lucky. Also grateful. I already think I own the most beautiful Jeterfork ever made. That's this one. A really beautiful swirly cherry wood.
Today I think I have even managed to top my favourite grained Jeterfork with two more incredible pieces of wood. One black and white ebony and one bocote. I have been searching for the perfect black and white ebony fork for years, and to find one from one of my top three favourite vendors and at such a great price? Well, I was over the moon! Here's some pics of the new ones:
I can't believe how fortunate I was! I hadn't made a purchase from Jeterforks on Etsy for myself in just over two years, (mostly because the cherry wood one was so awesome I felt I couldn't top it) and I can tell these forks will be worth the wait. I'm particularly happy about the high contrast topper on the black and white ebony and the fascinating swirly grain in the bocote fork, with the knots on the prongs. Joshua from Jeterforks is one of best three hair fork vendors out there, and I have high standards. He's extremely helpful too.
Also, I have reserved a couple of amazing new Elymwold forks, but I don't have listings to link the photos from yet. Nigel from Elymwold is one of the nicest people ever, and if you are serious about wanting to reserve something just send him a polite conversation and ask. You won't regret it. Even with no customs, Nigel is very happy to tell you if he has something non-custom available.
Now, between my Elymwold beauties and my natural wood 60thstreets and my carefully chosen, amazing Jeterforks, it is going to be difficult to use anything else, so it feels like the right time to shed quite a few of my less used items. Paying for new things by selling the old unused ones feels much better than just buying new things. Also, with time I now know exactly what I want and most of my new items are forever keepers. Going for quality instead of quantity now. I can reduce my collection and have more forever items. Sounds like a WINNING situation to me. Hopefully I can find homes for some of the things I'm willing to let go, (even if it is only because I'm allergic to dymondwood now.) I'll miss all the happy bright colours when they are gone, but I can console myself with amazing burl and wood grain.
Hopefully I'll end up at least even, or in the front after this last lot of purchases. That would be fantastic. I just hope everything arrives safely at their destinations. That's most important to me.
In other news Mr Cardi changed my ring-tone to the "Can't hug every cat" song and I laugh every time my phone rings. Thank you Darling!
Hope everyone is having a good week. I'm going to have to stop shopping for a long time now, but I'll be happy to point out all the gorgeous things I see to everyone else.
Cardi.
Today I think I have even managed to top my favourite grained Jeterfork with two more incredible pieces of wood. One black and white ebony and one bocote. I have been searching for the perfect black and white ebony fork for years, and to find one from one of my top three favourite vendors and at such a great price? Well, I was over the moon! Here's some pics of the new ones:
I can't believe how fortunate I was! I hadn't made a purchase from Jeterforks on Etsy for myself in just over two years, (mostly because the cherry wood one was so awesome I felt I couldn't top it) and I can tell these forks will be worth the wait. I'm particularly happy about the high contrast topper on the black and white ebony and the fascinating swirly grain in the bocote fork, with the knots on the prongs. Joshua from Jeterforks is one of best three hair fork vendors out there, and I have high standards. He's extremely helpful too.
Also, I have reserved a couple of amazing new Elymwold forks, but I don't have listings to link the photos from yet. Nigel from Elymwold is one of the nicest people ever, and if you are serious about wanting to reserve something just send him a polite conversation and ask. You won't regret it. Even with no customs, Nigel is very happy to tell you if he has something non-custom available.
Now, between my Elymwold beauties and my natural wood 60thstreets and my carefully chosen, amazing Jeterforks, it is going to be difficult to use anything else, so it feels like the right time to shed quite a few of my less used items. Paying for new things by selling the old unused ones feels much better than just buying new things. Also, with time I now know exactly what I want and most of my new items are forever keepers. Going for quality instead of quantity now. I can reduce my collection and have more forever items. Sounds like a WINNING situation to me. Hopefully I can find homes for some of the things I'm willing to let go, (even if it is only because I'm allergic to dymondwood now.) I'll miss all the happy bright colours when they are gone, but I can console myself with amazing burl and wood grain.
Hopefully I'll end up at least even, or in the front after this last lot of purchases. That would be fantastic. I just hope everything arrives safely at their destinations. That's most important to me.
In other news Mr Cardi changed my ring-tone to the "Can't hug every cat" song and I laugh every time my phone rings. Thank you Darling!
Hope everyone is having a good week. I'm going to have to stop shopping for a long time now, but I'll be happy to point out all the gorgeous things I see to everyone else.
Cardi.
Monday, 26 August 2013
Busy Weekend
Wow, this weekend has been so busy, I've not had time to even think about blogging until now, but everything is settling down now.
I'm particularly pleased to have scored six large bottles of the original Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition Conditioner at a local bargain store. No silicones and not heavy, but really moisturizing. I love that stuff! Ever since they changed the formula I've been trying conditioner after conditioner with disappointing results and sticky build-up, so it is really happy news for me to have enough to last some time now.
There are a few things I really want to review in the next week. The "Tangle Angel" hair brush, Redken Diamond Oil, the intense version, and I really should mention how much I like Jeterforks and Baerreis hair forks too. Hopefully that is something to look forward to and will make up a bit for the break.
If you don't know already, Designs by Baerreis are having a 30% off sale at the moment, which is unheard of to me in the last four years I have been watching hair-toy sellers. Here's their shiny new internet store Gallery26, and if you can't help yourself, the coupon code is 303030. I am wearing one of their hair forks as my own strange celebration of the sale. I feel so silly having ordered two forks last month for the first time in over a year. Oh well! Here's the pic:
It's a "finny" in padauk wood, holding a pencil bun. I'm also wearing a pair of the earrings I bought from MaryGraceJewellery just over a week ago. I'm very happy with them too.
The sale ends on the 28th of August, I believe. I'm still watching the Elymwold store in awe of all the beautiful customs that everyone had ordered too, and I'll try to link anything particularly beautiful that I see.
Hope you all had a great weekend.
Cardi.
I'm particularly pleased to have scored six large bottles of the original Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition Conditioner at a local bargain store. No silicones and not heavy, but really moisturizing. I love that stuff! Ever since they changed the formula I've been trying conditioner after conditioner with disappointing results and sticky build-up, so it is really happy news for me to have enough to last some time now.
There are a few things I really want to review in the next week. The "Tangle Angel" hair brush, Redken Diamond Oil, the intense version, and I really should mention how much I like Jeterforks and Baerreis hair forks too. Hopefully that is something to look forward to and will make up a bit for the break.
If you don't know already, Designs by Baerreis are having a 30% off sale at the moment, which is unheard of to me in the last four years I have been watching hair-toy sellers. Here's their shiny new internet store Gallery26, and if you can't help yourself, the coupon code is 303030. I am wearing one of their hair forks as my own strange celebration of the sale. I feel so silly having ordered two forks last month for the first time in over a year. Oh well! Here's the pic:
It's a "finny" in padauk wood, holding a pencil bun. I'm also wearing a pair of the earrings I bought from MaryGraceJewellery just over a week ago. I'm very happy with them too.
The sale ends on the 28th of August, I believe. I'm still watching the Elymwold store in awe of all the beautiful customs that everyone had ordered too, and I'll try to link anything particularly beautiful that I see.
Hope you all had a great weekend.
Cardi.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)