Brrrrrrr

Its really cold here today, so really have done nothing much except stay warm. Here in NZ we are celebrating the Queens Birthday ...which just really means everyone gets an extra day off work.....poor Queen no one is particularly worried about her birthday !! Sorry Queen ...some kiwis are! Do you remember shaking my hand by chance when I was marching girl aged 10? I was the one at the bottom of the 'J' that spelt out JUBILEE...I was very excited and very proud! You asked how I was...I said 'I am fine thank you' in a nervous small voice. But I did tell a lot of people that I had shook your hand and that made me a minor celebrity for 5 minutes. So dear Queen I wish you a very happy birthday!! I would watch my back though because young Willy and Harry are becoming very popular and might want to push you off your perch soon. But you do appear to be very resilient so I think you will be ok! I am a little sad though that Susan Boyle won't get to sing for you now that she lost out on her own crown...and we know what pretty voice she has, I think you would have liked her.

I want to pack these bags!!

Look at these cute suitcases from nanacompany on Etsy... I have always had a thing for suitcases for some reason, I think its that gypsy in me that just wants to keep packing and moving! When I was young we shifted house 25 times by the time I left home at 15!! I KNOW... but we did mainly stay in the same town. x

Happy sad day!

Today a Waipawa man was sentenced to 5 years in prison for defrauding a community out of 20 million went to jail My parents lost over $300,000 which was put aside to help my niece Matisse who is waiting a life saving transplant in the states. Some people lost everything... their whole life savings ... very very sad. On a lighter note I just got a call from an old school friend I haven't seen since I was 16 as a result Of her watching the news and seeing my parents on there... lol what a blast from the past! Unfortunately it was right at story time so the kids wouldn't let me talk for too long... will definitely have to catch up with her... soon. Very happy! Oh yeah and Stickytiki is about to get even BETTER...stay posted!

My little corner of the world!

This is my patch, my little room in the house where the creating gets done. It is away from the computer, it is small but it works. The kids come in there to help me but know that it is my special space and are always careful with my things. My little drawing desk is teeny tiny and it does give me back ache..it is made for a child and... I am small but not that small, I am going to look out for another one. I will go in there soon as I have so many ideas and need to get them out. I also need to focus on creating as yesterday I sent a letter (the one that took me a year to write) that will take on the powers that be!! I have finally made a formal complaint about a misdiagnosis involving one of my children that turned my world upside down and that will have huge repercussions on them later on in life if I don't do anything about it. So I did it... and although I am a realist in what I am taking on... at least I haven't done nothing, and hopefully some else wont have to go through what we have because of it! x

This is an email I just got about Dear Deer Tree!

Yep...got it and had it put up within the hour. I LOVE it...I loved it when I saw the photo, but when I unrolled the sheet and saw the leaves and animals I was so glad we bought it - it's beautiful!!! I even took down the dots to put the tree in the main room (since I think I enjoy it as much as Talia does) and will put the dots up elsewhere today or tomorrow. My husband is thrilled because I need frequent change and he hopes my moving the decals means the furniture will stay in the same place for more than 6 months :-) Such a lovely feedback puts a smile on my face! x

New Camera ??

I am needing a new camera: At the mo I have a cybershot 5megs so she is getting a little old and really just doesn't cut it for the product shots. I have and old EOS 5 film camera with a 100 macro lens that I have just sold on trademe for $650.00 ($500 for the lens and the camera is sitting at $150 so I will get at least that). I could have kept the lens and gone for a digital SLR camera, but I find that they are just to bulky to take everywhere so like my old one sit around for a few years without being used. Soooo does anyone have one of these G10? I looks like the ticket, wide angle lens to take product shots, should be able to keep kids and decals all in focus!! And if I can get rid of a few other bits sitting around the place we should be paid for! Oh but the roof needs fixing! ...ummm camera or roof??

Bring on Summer!!

Kahlo and Ja Ja with their cuzzies! Summer 09 My little summer princess! It hasn't stopped raining for 3 days now and our roof it leaking...I MEAN LEAKING!!!! We have about five containers of various sizes scattered around the bedroom, so we go to sleep with drip drip drip drip.....Loving it! I found these pics of the kids when I was trawling through my hundreds of photos today and thought they might brighten the day. Bring on lake Rotoma, bring on summer! On a high point .... summer is coming The roof will be fixed when it stops raining. And I finished a very important letter that has taken me a year to write..! x

The Fabulous World of Social Networking?!

The Scream by Edvard Munch I must say I am feeling a little bogged down with all this social networking...on one hand I love it because I have got to meet all of these fabulous people (you know who you are!) But on the other hand it just takes sooooo much time and I start to feel my life is controlled by it. Maybe I just have Mondayitis! Both of the little treasures are back at daycare to day, one of the staff had bought in a mouse to show all the kids (eeewwww...I am not a mouse fan). We had a great weekend baking, catching up with friends, painting and just snuggling up in the warm....it is freezing here. Oh and I have discovered something .... If you have a heat pump...CLEAN IT!!!! They work much better, says she who hadn't cleaned hers for over a year and wondered why it wasn't working that well! x

'Children of the world' Babushka dolls

We have designed these gorgeous 'Children of the World' babushka dolls exclusively for Lola and Ben NZ. I have hand painted them to reference to different cultures, so a little imagination mixed with a little realism. They are like our other decals made with a really fine fabric adhesive that will stick to almost any smooth surface without damaging your painted walls. They are printed with Eco friendly inks to be kinder on the environment and little hands. All of my kids love these ones, and Kahlo keeps saying 'these are beautiful mummy'. Jasper has already decided to give some to his little (girlfriend) for her birthday. I have put some on Kahlos white dresser...they look very cute. So for a girly room that you don't want to go overboard in these are perfect...who doesn't like stacking dolls! Lola and Ben are doing free delivery world wide on these at the moment....so get in quick!

This is me!!!

Ok I hate having my photo taken... but today I had to because I am meant to getting a photo of myself to Kylie (from Cackleberry) for her new shop... we are one of the friends (Yay)!! Anyway today was freezing and I was rugged up warm!! So here I am, a little awkward (look at the hands), but Si was far enough back not to do too much damage, the light has given me a bit of a glow....and the tree looks great. So to all of you who know me just as this word (stickytiki) here is the face...well one of them, you can see a pic of Si below...our kids are far cuter!! x

More hundreds and thousands!

Look at the cool picture we have been sent!!! Talia's mum said ................

'Talia woke up from her nap and saw the dots on the wall she wiggled out of my arms and spent a long time touching and "talking" to them. They're a huge hit! ' This is awesome it is such a great shot...we love getting photos like this, keep them coming! Thank you Talia's mum (what a great name)! Today was mad here, we have heaps of orders to get out, which is great I am in no way complaining. but I also had to get the house clean for round two of the photographs for the magazine (will let you know more when it happens). Plus I had Mr Ja Ja at home really very unwell! So house got clean enough, photography got half done (we have another go tomorrow), orders done and little girl was sent home because she too is not herself!! Yep a relaxing life I lead! So kids in bed (big one in Australia) and time to do some work (twitter)....no work, really,... well maybe just see what everyone is up to. x

Finally... 'Dear Deer Tree'

Phew finally have this one done. I painted it about 5 months ago and it has been waiting to get Si's techy magic on it!! I am so excited as I think the kids find this one really magical and because there are so many ways to put it together it makes it a really interactive piece of art!... And because it is hand painted once on the wall looks as if you have painted on there yourself...really you could get away with passing it off as your own work of art. We print on a really fine fabric (almost like an ultra fine canvas), we use Eco friendly inks and package our products in Eco friendly packaging..we are trying to do our bit. And because our stickers are reusable so long as they are looked after (not too much dust on the sticky side) they will last for years. On a personal note: the main model in the photo...my little Ja Ja is at home today with a tummy bug, little sister had to be spirited away to daycare and my big boy went on a plane by himself yesterday to Australia to stay with his dad. His grownup sister, brother and new nephew are going to be there too so they will have a ball...the house is already too quiet without him. I will save money though! x

Our little Miracle Girl in the 'Miracle league' in Cranberry at the weekend!

Matisse Reid is our little miracle girl. Matisse is my niece, her mum Jodee is my sister. Over two years ago Jodee and her husband packed up their four kids and moved to Pittsburgh thanks to the kind help of the NZ public and government, and massive fund raising. Matisse needs a lifesaving transplant and spends most of her life in pain. When they first left and we all said goodbye we thought that in two years they would have been back in NZ with Matisse's new tummy... but it was not to be that way. They have now had six false alarms thinking that Matisse would get her transplant, but unfortunately each time for very different reasons this was not meant to be. Matisse need a child's organs which makes the whole situation doubly awful as we know what this means! Life over there has meant major adjustments for the family and because of the green card laws they are not allowed to work so the money they have raised is used for living... and this is running out fast. There are many many families living in the States like Matisse's who need to make sure their child gets well but also need to earn their keep... what can they do???? x

Stickytiki's most co-operative model

Yesterday we had a photographer over because there is a feature being done on us and the house for a magazine. A whole tribe of skateboarders turned up (my eldest sons friends) to get in on the act..there was some fabulous shots of them done. My little girl turned her head the other way when the camera was pointed in her direction..I know how she feels really!! But it was our four year old 'Ja Ja' who stole the show. He just did as he was asked, went where he was told and looked too cute (biased I know).....but look at that face!! Will let you know when the mag is out..very exciting!! x

Hundreds and Thousands in the USA!

LOL... I just got a lovely email from a very cool lady in the US who ordered some Hundreds and Thousands all the way from NZ. And when they arrived promptly put them on her car...LOVE IT!! She said she gets lots of attention now!! Fantastic we love quirky stories like this! So even cars love Hundreds and Thousands! x

Hey Hey work all day.....

Dad taking small ones to daycare. As the song goes... (Otahuhu allstars ) work all day there's bills to pay... got no time to play!! Well in fact that is not true, I LOVE my job soooo much it means I want to work, but I just do hate those bills to pay. Beautiful day here in the Bay like really blue and sunny, just what is needed to bring Napier out of its slump! Huge and fitting send off for Len Snee yesterday, a man greatly respected and loved! The funeral of Jan Mollenaar is tomorrow. I spoke with one of his close friends this morning who as you can imagine is terribly sad for the loss of his friend and even sadder the way he went out. I hate to see anyone sad but to see a man (I mean real bloke man) close to tears breaks my heart... I guess it is because men don't cry so readily... us girls know how much of it is a release being able to cry, and you usually feel better afterwards... you guys need to cry more, IT HELPS!! So this morning after that had the photographer round who is taking photos of us for mag... turns out it is not one page as I thought... 6-8 pages ARRRGH I will really have to have a good cleanup. They want quirky... well they have come to the right place, there is nothing flash about our house, but quirky it is! x

Skaters RULE!!

Here are my two little cherubs showing off there skateboards with their new 'EPIC' stickers. My big boy and a few friends have designed their own skate brand and we made them some stickers for their decks...GO EPIC expect to see them around if you are into skating. The kids are also wearing their new leg warmers from Belly beyond, well Jasper immediately put them on his arms and called them arm socks. As you can see they lost interest in being photographed quickly..well Kahlo always had one eye on the TV, at least Jasper gave us one shot of actually looking at the camera. Just had a dear friend from Wellington around for coffee looking very dapper in his suit. He is here for Len Snee's funeral (the policeman shot in Napier last Thursday). It will be a huge funeral...very sad! We are having a great week here at Stickytiki and have some exciting new designs coming...cant wait to get them out. x

Magazine fear!

I don't know who to attribute this image to as I found it on the net ages ago...but I LOVE it and this large scale installation work is what Stickytiki is aiming for a little down the track, so if you have a shop or business that needs a full wall covering give us a call and we can do something really COOL like this for you. OR if you have a favourite photograph and think 'wow that would look amazing as a full wall decal...we can do it!! Best of all with our product it can be rolled out like wallpaper without having to use the messy wallpaper paste...and if you shift house you can take is with you and put it back up!! Genius...stay tuned! We are busy little beavers here at stickytiki, printing out new logos redesigning some of our decals and of course adding to our range. I have had a call this morning from a magazine that is coming to do a feature on us and the house..ohhh I am scared I hate having my photo taken, but hey I just have to 'suck it up' as my friend would say. Fortunately the photographer assigned to do it is a friend (Told you Napier is small!!) so I can get her to photo shop wrinkles out, maybe plump up the lips etc! No updates from Mr F this morning..might have to give him a call. x

Today at Stickytiki HQ...

We have been busy making Pohutukawa trees and Space Odyssey 1968 murals, we have a big order to go to Aussie...YAY!! Now our HQ is rather cold at the moment as we are just waiting for our heat pump to be installed, so lots of warm clothing is the call for the day. Have had a brisk walk with the dog and now down to business, orders to get out, food to eat and life to live..you never know what is around the corner as we found out the other day. x Space Odyssey 1968...starring Zav and Kaeve.

It's COLD in Napier today!!

Napier is cold, its grey, and there is an air of sadness and that comes after such a dramatic event. I have felt exhausted all weekend when in fact I did nothing much, like everyone else... except wait. And as we all knew what was coming was the death of Jan Mollenaar, he was never coming out alive. And as I sat in bed yesterday morning and my three little darlings bought me in a cup of tea and eggs on toast for mothers day, I felt an immense sadness for Jan Mollenaars mother as her mothers day came with the death of another son! I felt sadness for the families of Jan Mollenaars victims and for this whole tragic event. Now I am never going to understand how Jan Mollenaar flipped like he did, but what I do know is there are people that loved him... one is my neighbour who was friends with him, and while he quite obviously hates what he did, he loved the person he knew and we have to be able to show these people compassion too. x

The world according to Mr 'F'

I have this friend, we will call him Mr F. Now Mr F is a very well known Napier figure and he is unique... I call him kooky. I like different people... normal is boring we need our differences that is what makes life interesting! Well Mr F is NOT normal, but not NOT normal... does this make sense?... A little off beat, a character, strange (according to some people... ones that don't know him in my opinion), eccentric... ummm kooky actually suits him best I think! My other half calls him 'your girlfriend' because we go to all the art house movies together, meet for coffees, walk the dog..and kids sometimes, AND talk on the phone! A LOT! Now let me paint you a picture of Mr F... He is 40 +, he is a bachelor... not by choice but by some cosmic force that makes it difficult for him to meet someone special that understands or can deal with him for too long! He wears the latest rags but is not a fashion victim (he will shop at Hallenstiens or spend a large wad at a designer store), he knows everyone, and if he doesn't know them, they know OF him, he knows when all the gigs are on, and what everyone is up to. He works sometimes and we are never quite sure where the money comes from... well that is not entirely true, I do mostly know and it is NOT dodgy! He can be very annoying (like us all) and he can be your best ear when you need one. When he calls and it is not convenient (often)... I tell him so BLUNTLY and he doesn't get offended! I know some people are not entirely sure why we are friends, but I don't actually care... everyone needs a friend like Mr F. Now the reason I got onto this is: Mr F has been phoning, txting the last few days giving me a running commentary on developments with the Napier gunman (who of course he knows). We are not exactly sure where Mr F gets his information from... he doesn't have a computer, but he has contacts!!!! So the latest!!!!! Mr F phoned me 30 Min's ago to tell my friends staying that they can pack their bags (they don't have any as they left their house for work thinking they would be going back as unusual at the end of the day), the gunman is dead and has been since last night... lets see if the all knowing Mr F is right! to be continued...

SLEEPY NAPIER!

Yesterday morning after I dropped the kids off at daycare and school, I took my dog for a walk. It was a beautiful bright blue Hawkes Bay day and as I wandered along I thought how lucky I am to live in such a glorious place, that my kids got to be real kids in a place small enough to have that community feel. My usual walk is to go up one of the many sets of steps that led up Napier Hill, one of them being Chaucer Rd steps that leads up onto Hospital hill (these are really steep...a form of torture!). For some reason that I now just see as instinct I decided I didn't need to torture myself today as I run up and down enough stairs at home...running after children. So I took a brisk stroll along the boardwalk looking out to sea, thinking of my sister and her family that live in America and how are desperately homesick they are....and how lucky we are! If I had taken the route I had set out to, I would have walked right into the chaos that was about to hit Napier. I arrived home around 10.15am (coffee time) ready to get on with the days work. The phone rung and my girlfriend told me to get in the house and lock the doors as there was a gunman on the loose in Ahuriri (where I live) and that people had already been injured! OMG... this was unreal!! Now I know that there was actually no immediate danger to me it was terrifying at the time, because no one seemed to know where this guy was. As they day unfolded kids were picked up... no one was allowed near the hill, everyone hunkered down! I have two lots of people staying that cannot get to their houses as they are too close to this guys house... within firing distance! The feeling in Napier today is one of unease, we realise how small this place is and how affected we all are. The policeman killed is family of people I know, One of the injured police is our local constable that works two blocks down in our little part of Napier. One of the hero's of the day is someone we see on our walks. And yes even the guy who is responsible is a friend of my neighbour, friends and associates... yes Napier is small and at a time like this everyone is affected. My son J (4) said to me ' mum my friend and I saw a man running down the street with a gun shooting policemen'!... at their daycare yesterday they were not allowed near windows, and worst for me is that my 12 year old, had only and hour earlier walked past this guys house and was close enough to hear the shots that killed someone! Today there seems to be no resolve for all the family's involved and I include the gunman's family in this...he is after all a son to his poor mother and my heart goes out to her as well, we bring them up as best we can but no one can anticipate a person's outcome and what their limits are! I caught and old INXS song today the lyrics go ...'the devil inside, the devil inside every single one of us has the devil inside'.......

LOCK DOWN!!

What a morning, had just finished a lovely stroll with my do Silver, when a friend rung, and told me to stay inside a lock the doors as there was a gunman on the loose, in Ahuriri which is of course where we live! SHIT... freaking out thinking next moment a gunman was going to come flying through my doors! I phoned my little kids daycare, they were already in lock down. Phoned two friends who lives right on the St where it is all happening, and cannot get hold of them, hoping they are off at work! I can still hear the helicopters flying over! At 12.00 got a call from J and K's daycare to come and pick up the kids, they just wanted everyone out! Got them and saw police blocks on a street two blocks up! Now have them both at home, like nothing has happened. My big boy is still in lockdown at school! My neighbour said our local Ahuriri policeman has been shot... not sure what is true at the moment, will keep you posted! x

The sun is out in the Bay!!

The Golden Oriori by Israel Tangaroa Birch 

Just got an invite to Israels opening at thermostat gallery in Palmerston North. Look at this glorious piece above, I am pretty sure this is the piece he won the Norsewear art awards with (that's a big deal to those who don't know!) I studied with Israel and he has gone on to to extremely well in the art world, his artwork is unique and inspiring. He also donated an artwork to our art auction which sold for $5000, I think the person who bought that made a great investment as I am sure Israels work is selling for a lot more now. Israel is a lovely guy who has a gorgeous family and deserves to well, so if you are in Palmy check out his show it opens on the 8th May.

Hundreds & Thousands

Brrrrr it was freezing here this morning, but with beautiful bright blue skies, really a gorgeous Hawkes Bay day!! Have had to make a few phones calls to get the surrogate grannies and the real ones to do some knitting for us. Little girl is pictured here with this beautiful pink jacket my friends mum knitted her, but now it is getting to small... there is really nothing like a handmade cardy, hat or jumper. I bought the little ones these awesome woollen slippers from the local craft shop... so much better than these mass produced things. Today Stickytiki is sending out Hundreds and Thousands (they are proving to be one of our most popular items) and the Giraffes are off to Aussie to visit Cackleberry kids for their new shop opening!! Shhh... will give you more details soon! Ok, I really have work to do, a thousand designs waiting for Si to do his magic to. x

LOVE ART, AND BITS & BOBS .....

Girl and Ceramic Pig (2008-2009) Oil on Canvas 

  From there to here (2006-2009) Oil on Canvas

  Bench Seat Conversation (2008-2009) Oil on Canvas 

Continuing on with love, art and bits & bobs.......I just LOVE THIS WORK!!!! I have just been sent an invite from Gary Waldrom to his latest exhibition at Milford Galleries in Dunedin which opens on Sat 9th May. Unfortunately I live in Napier so cant go! I have known Gary a few years now but have admired his work since I started painting. One day I plucked up the courage to contact him about a Charity Art Auction my friend Megan an I were holding to raise money for my nieces transplant. Not only did Gary donate a piece of art but he painted my niece and the painting sold for over $10.000 ! The painting is absolutely beautiful and he captured her so well that when I saw it I cried Gary has become a dear friend who often phones to ask how my niece is getting on (she is awaiting her transplant in the US), his work is spectacular and I am hoping to own one in the future!! If you are in Dunedin get to Milford Galleries and check these works out they are worth giving time to. x 

The Phoenix Foundation

Last night I took a trip down memory lane and went back to one of my old haunts 'The Cabana Hotel' in Napier. This place has a very colourful music history and for those of us who grew up in the bay, was very much where it all happened when it came to band culture. Well now I'm all grown up and although the Cabana had reopened its doors a year ago after its closure in the 90s (leaving Hawkes Bay woefully lacking a good live band venue), I hadn't ventured back there...until last night. The Phoenix Foundation who I would describe as 'indie rock' (correct me if I'm wrong!) drew in a spectacular crowd of the more mature age group, when I say this I mean 30s up, so our group felt right at home..and of course every second person was someone from the past that we used to bump into every Thurs, Fri and Sat night, few more lines, few more kids and far less time to party! But party last night they did! Now I'm no a expert on music but I know what works and I know what I like and these guys fitted the bill, and judging the crowd and the dance floor everyone else felt the same. They are musically smart, quirky and just damn good. So if you have never seen these kiwi geniuses and they come to a town near you....make and effort...go and see them,.... buy their albums, after all it is NZ music month lets support them! And the Cabana still rocks after all these years!! Here is a link to one of their songs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mz5qUPpuAFM

LOVE, ART and bits & bobs!

OK so I am loving this fabric I bought on Etsy yesterday...LOVING IT!!! As you may have read from earlier posts (all three days of them!) My little girl (Kahlo) is named after the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo. Now Frida is often referred to as a Surrealist artist but in fact she didn't like to be slotted into this category- she would say 'I paint myself because this is what I know '...well maybe not exactly those words but ones to that effect! Being an painter myself I can relate to this, and especially for women, we become consumed with ourselves..why not we live with ourselves constantly , how would I paint about anything else! Anyway I am getting off track I now feel like I am explaining myself, like I used to when I was studying.....explaining why my images were so deeply personal. All this has got me thinking about images and bits and bobs we surround ourselves with, what they say about us, do they really represent who we are, or are they just objects! Here at Stickytiki HQ we have heaps of love, heaps of art and heaps of bits and bobs. To be continued...meanwhile look at these other cool Frida finds on Etsy, I am not the only one obsessed with her! BTW: Fabric getting made into a quilt for Kahlo's bed (her talented Grandma is going to make it!)