Goodbye 2008

one day i'll be here!

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with only a few hours left til the new year it's usually about this time i think back and reminisce. Boy 2008 sure came with some surprises! On top of my head, here are a few of the things that has happened or i've discovered in 2008.
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- I married the bear who still to this day surprises me with gestures of unconditional love and support (i love you baby)
- Olive Farm was born
- Some friends have made the big move over East and i miss them terribly. Waaaah! Sals & Avi! Judith come home and make me tea!
- Since becoming a wifey i've discovered that i'm not that bad a cook haha
- I can sew... who knew?!
- My relationship with IKEA has become... serious
- I'm still and always will be a daddy's girl
- More than ever i value the circle of people who surround me, mainly due to their generous help during the wedding. True colours always comes out during big events and these guys are trully golden.
- The time i've invested into Olive Farm, tho long and tiring, have been worth more to me than any other type of 'work' i previously done.
- Maybe... just maybe... i'm ready to be a mummy =)
- I'm learning on a daily basis to put God before everything
- I've never been so happy
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I hope you all have a fabulous NYE, filled with laughter and loved ones. I look forward to what God has installed for me (and you) in 2009.
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If i had to wrap up this year with one word it absolutely would be - LOVE

Life Documentaries

After reading several hundred more blogs I've come to the realisation that the ones i keep coming back to over and over again are those who thoroughly give a run down on their everyday lives.... and of course include pictures.

I, on the other hand, am walking a very fine line between 'here is what i do' and 'here is who i am'.

I've come across blogs where the author has absolutely no hesitations in revealing all their dirty laundry which i believe is very entertaining. However to be honest i don't have the energy to turn my very normal day into a magical story about how the light from the window hit my glass beads in the most perfect way which then caused it to disperse millions of colours all over my studio walls giving me the inspiration to create crystal tiaras.... and then actually take photos of the process. Arghhhh! its all too much.

*sigh* nonetheless if i, and many others, keep coming back to 'those' blogs' then they must be doing something right. I think it's time to let the guard down and show the real livvy. The one who has no shame in taking photos of food at restaurants and stays up til 2am cutting broken hearts outta felt.

It might not be as pretty and entertaining as some others.... but at least it's me.

Veggies are good 4u

hmmm lovely veggies

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Look at what i found on my quest for felt inspiration. This etsy store UmeCrafts sells all different types of felt patterns and tutorials. Some really unbelivable stuff, worth checking out. I doubt i'll ever have the patience to create these little beauties, so i thought it would be a great reminder for ppl to eat their veggies.

Fallen off the band wagon

takin it easy at steresonic

Around this time of the year is when things become really crazy for me, social wise.
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In a span of 8 weeks there are at least 6 or so bdays, music festivals, xmas parties, not to mention family shindigs.... and last but not least the question of how i'm going to spend NYE is still floating around in Livvy space. This is probably the worst time to get distracted as im finally adding items to my etsy store and need to keep updating and promoting as much as possible however distracted is exactly what i'm feeling.
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I've neglected this blog, my studio is becoming a safe haven for junk and clutter, im not feeling the creative juices as much as i used to and even typing these words is too much effort. Yup... distracted and LAZZZZZZYYYYYY!
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So, in an effort to pull me outta this slum i've gone back to basics which involves me, a pencil and sketch book. Hopefully this will start things up again and i'll be back better than ever!
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This is normal right?

My Dad

is a butcher.
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He wasn't always a butcher... it was a career which he stumbled on accidently however he's stuck with it for about 10 years now. He does what most Dad's does, like tell ridiculously un-funny jokes, man the BBQ at parties, protect us from mum, and gave us girls money for petrol whenever we were broke.
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Yup, Dad has always played a huge part in my life, especially when it came to encouraging us girls (i have 3 sisters) of pursuing our dreams. I wasn't really sure what he would say when i told him of my recent endeavor with Olive Farm since i previously had a pretty decent job however after listening intently to me going on and on he paused for a moment before saying something on the lines of 'I knew you had it in you'. Awwwwww *sniffles* Such an awesome guy =)
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In honour to the guy, whom my sisters and i affectionately refer to as the 'old man', i made this gorgeous lil lookalike mini doll to put on your keys, hang off your bag or to simply sit next to your computer as you think of your own Dad. I decided to have him dressed in his butchers uniform out of respect to his profession.
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Meet my Dad, the Butcher.

I have an addiction....

to BLOGS!
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It's almost 2am and i can't seem to pull myself away from the comp due to the discovery of one awesome blog after another. ARGHHHHH! In the background i can hear my dear hubby snoring away and though my eyes are getting droopier with every word i read i need to feed my addiction.
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This all started with me telling myself that i'm doing the responsible thing of educating myself on all things etsy, which lead me to visit about a million stores and whenever i stumbled on a seller i was particularly impressed with and discovered they had a blog.. well i just had to pay em a visit, didnt i? and now i'm hooked!
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And its not like i just scroll through them aimlessly, i seriously find myself reading every entry as if somehow i will find the hidden secrets to their talent and then glory will be mine *insert evil laugh* muahahaha!
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At least we know one thing... the world is filled with an amazing range of creative souls and knowing im one of them (or tryin to be) makes me all warm inside.
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What i should be doing!

Olive & Lollie

Before i get too ahead of myself let me tell you the story of how i even got here. Back in my Tafe days i met this gorgeous girl Laura who i clicked with automatically. She and i worked on assignments together and pretty soon started to catch up regularly after school hours. To say the least i absolutely believe that we are soul mates. In my opinion soul mates don't necessary need to have all that 'love' connotations attach to it. Soul mates can be two people who connect on a spiritual or soul level.

We've been besties for years now and have dreamt/talked about opening our own label one day. We came up with the name Olive & Lollie and had the ambition of creating beautiful girly designs but as usual work, family, loved ones kept us busy and so we only dabble in Olive&Lollie casually. Well lately we've been itchy like mad to get creative and have decided to design a girly clothing range that is separate from Olive Farm and her upcoming store Lolliette.

Today she popped over and we started making gorgeous roses from different ribbons and handsewed them on a singlet finished off with some lace. It's just a trial run to get the mojo happening but already we were squeeling with delight over the results.

close up of the roses

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I can hear all the girly girls just sigh
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Gorgeous Laura modelling

Thanks babes for being you =)

Meet Ella

Ella is a new addition to Olive Farm. She was accidently created while i was working on a few sketches. I love giving backgrounds to all my fictional characters, it brings them to life and makes them easier to market (well i think anyways). So here are a few things you didn't know about Ella -

She enjoys eating paddle pops, collects the sticks and uses them to make birdcages.
Her favourite colour is red and she can't leave the house without accessories in her hair.
She doesn't watch much tv but can spend countless hours reading in bed, especially on a rainy day.
Ella is still searching for her soul mate and singing love songs out loud helps her hold on to that hope.

I've also changed the style of font for my name. Its alot easier to stitch and looks cute on her bottom =) i think im going to work on a few more diva's (her nickname) before creating her a boyfriend.

Rainbows at Stereo Sonic

Music festivals, gigs, or dance raves have always been a fave of mine. Forget the music for a second (tho some of the performances have been out of this world eg Daft Punk) and focus on the people. I adore seeing what cool outfits ppl come up with, the event is usually a visual overload of a million colours and i love it! My friends and i always pick a colour for the event and wear matching singlets with our lil logos sewed on or some other design to make us stand out from the crowd, thus easier to find eachother in a tent of like 300+.

Stereo Sonic Music festival is less than 2 weeks away and we've decided on Orange as the colour of choice. Eddee and i plan on doing something alil different (will update later) and thinking about the day inspired me to create this ultra girly rainbow headband which i will wear on that Sunday.



I'm also thinking of creating more for my upcoming etsy store and will probably experiment with different colour arrangments.

To all the Perthians going to Stereo... keep your eyes open for rainbows =) I've also decided to take photos of randoms wearing standout outfits, so be prepared to be snapped haha

My Weekend

Aren’t weekends meant for relaxing and taking it easy?

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Well not for me!!

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Just this weekend I went to a craft fair, spotlight for supplies, ikea for a new work bench, the beach, watched dvd’s, went out for dinner with friends, and reorganised my entire studio… not to mention the hours I spent putting finishing touches onto my flower brooches. pheeeewww! I’m exhausted from just writing it all down.

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my pretty brooches

However I am glad that I utilised the free time with Ed as I definitely would have had difficulties loading the furniture from Ikea into the car. I loveee my new workspace and will post up pics as soon as I tidy it up a bit. I secretly really enjoy seeing pictures of other people’s studios because in my opinion it says a lot about the person. I’ve viewed some who are really super duper organised (almost too clinical) and there are those who have crazy splashes of colour everywhere. I believe it’s important to work in an environment that you love and that will automatically transfer onto your what your doing.

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Also I had a fabulous time at dinner with friends at Italian restaurant Giardini in Leederville. We were all there to celebrate beautiful Anh’s birthday. The best part of the night for me was when we went for coffee and cake down the road to this new café Greens&co. The interiors blew me away! Practically everything was from Ikea (as you can see I have a shameless love affair with Ikea) and the space was hugeeee, with the walls covered in music posters. I can’t wait to go back again.

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dinner at Giardini

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Greens & Co

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Maybe I’ll take it easy next weekend… hmmm.

Home is where the heart is...

My husband and I live in an adorable villa, in a block with 6 other houses. From day one I’ve spent all my energy turning the empty shell into what is now a comfortable home. The house is small enough for just us two but has enough space so it doesn’t feel crowded and we each have our own areas. I’ve taken over the spare bedroom and turned it into my studio and Ed has completely dominated the living space in front of the TV since getting a PS3 for his birthday.

My desk faces the window and I like to open up the curtains and let fresh light and air in as I do my work, as well as play music from the laptop. Across from us there is a family comprising of 3 people, mum, dad and a little boy about the age of 3. They’re a little shy but everyday mum and little boy go for a walk and I can always hear him shrieking in fits of laughter reminding me of my nephew Xavier.

If I’m not running around picking up supplies I can pretty much sit in my studio all day working. I tune out when I’m in the zone and so I try to get as much housework out of the way as possible so I can focus on Olive Farm.
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Yesterday afternoon I created these cute little houses which I’ve decided to turn into key rings.
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*no place like home*

Aside from finishing one of my pieces, my best part of the day is when I look up from what I’m in the middle of to see my husband walking past the window from his day of work and know that in a few minutes I’m going to get a kiss hello.

The Big Reveal

I have to say that this blog has been sitting in cyber space untouched for at least a week and if it wasn’t for the unconditional support and encouragement from my husband I probably would have left it there for much longer.

The truth is I felt a little silly writing about something I haven’t even done. I kept telling myself once I opened my etsy store I would start blogging and then I realized after reading a lot of other blogs from etsy users, that the best parts of their stories were about their journey, creative thought process and the inspiration behind their work.

There was also another part of me that said ‘%$#* it! I don’t need to justify why, just do it Liv!’ but I’ve only limited her to 1 red bull a day and she’s calmed down heaps since then haha

Well as you now know I am the creator/designer of the accessories label ‘Olive Farm’.

Previous to this venture I was and still actually consider myself a visual merchandiser. I studied Interior Decoration in Central Tafe, Perth WA and like most artists before me arts and crafts seemed to followed me for as long as I can remember ( in fact I’m surprised I didn’t come out of my mum with a sketch pad and lead pencil). As a little girl I would draw on everything, including my legs when I couldn’t find anything else and once my dad found out he spoilt my sisters and I by making us thick books out of butchers paper, which he stole from his fish & chips shop. I also recall me drawing lovely pictures on the wrapping of peoples orders which was discouraged by my dad when he caught me, though I seriously believed, at the time, my art was appreciated by the customers.

It came to no big surprise when I told my husband, family and close friends about my desire to create Olive Farm as the artistic juices were practically spilling from my head. The only thing I kept wondering was ‘why in goodness name didn’t I do this ageeessssss ago?’ however i've let that go and im now concentrating on the future.

Anyways I hope you tune in once in a while to see how things progress. For now I’m working late into the night most days, trying to create as many different pieces I can to showcase a variety of delicious little bits and pieces for when I finally DO open my store.

Wish me luck =)