My August / September / October

Oops! I forgot to do my monthly update a couple of months in a row! To be honest, not much happened in August and September. Winter subsided a bit earlier than normal this year though, and my mood lifted enough for me to start looking forward to things again.

As soon as the sun started to appear again, I enjoyed as much time in the park as I could, walking, reading and viewing the Spring flowers.

Husband and I went out several times with our foodie friend, and we ate a lot!

Last weekend I went to PAX, the video game and tabletop game expo. I had quite a laidback time, spending a leisurely couple of hours playing games from the convention's library, and looking at the upcoming indie games showcase. It was so laidback that I didn't buy anything, and didn't even take any photos!

I refreshed my altar to reflect the new season. I wrote more about it on my spirituality blog here.

And recently I participated in my fourth art exhibition as I wrote about here.

I have another art project in the works, and if it comes through, I'll be sure to let you know!

Selections from Instagram

My Painting in "Stay Safe" Exhibition

I'd just like to let you know that my painting is part of the Stay Safe exhibition at NOIR Darkroom until the end of this week. Stay Safe invites a visual discourse from female-identifying and non-binary artists. I was lucky enough to be selected and made a painting especially for the exhibition. It's one of the most heartfelt I've made.

Find the details at NOIR Darkroom's website.

I actually turned up to the opening night this time, and here are some photos I took of the amazing work:

Please note: some of imagery below may be triggering.

Madfest Anime Festival 2018 and Haul

About a month ago, I went to the Madfest Anime Festival. I have attended every year since it began in 2016. In the previous two years, it was held in mid-November, but this year it was moved to mid-September. I think there are pluses and minuses to this timing. It's not too close to other festivals that happen in November, such as PAX and Supanova. On the other hand, the weather isn't as likely to be good. The day I went was dull, grey and rainy -- not very good conditions for cosplay photography! I did see a couple of people braving the rain to take photos, but I did feel a bit sorry for them.

The lineup featured all of the usual: community performances, celebrity appearances and signings, merch booths, creators' corner, and movie premieres (for an additional ticket price). Last year I wanted to build up my plushie collection, but this year I was mainly interested in stickers and crafty things. These things are found in the creators' corner and this year it was huge! All of the little yellow squares on the map below are creator stalls. I was determined to see them all, but I felt like I spent most of my time in that section! However, it was really great to see so many makers getting the opportunity to share their creations.

This year the festival was held in a smaller space -- and it made a big difference. The moment we walked in the door, we were hit with a wall of people and it was quite daunting. There was a much smaller space to sit and only a couple of food stations compared to the spacious area and large selection of food stalls last year. That was a little disappointing. The creators' corner area, too, was very crowded. It took a long time to squeeze through all the people to see each stall. There were some that I wanted to buy products from, but I gave up because of the wall of people in front of them.

I'm not good with crowds, and I needed to take regular breaks after every couple of aisles to reground myself. I'm familiar with the noisy and frenetic atmosphere of conventions, and I was prepared for it, but I still found it overwhelming. I started to get a feeling, too, that I was just there to buy stuff. However, I did enjoy looking at the cosplay costumes, the displays, and being with a group of people who have the same interest as me.

Having said all that, now for the haul! Links to the creators' Instagrams are included where possible (You don't need the Instagram app to view them, links are to a browser version of Instagram.)

https://www.instagram.com/kokoscope/
https://www.instagram.com/zombeevee/

https://www.instagram.com/artofkatieelle/

https://www.instagram.com/missaree/
https://www.instagram.com/asongofbeads/
https://www.instagram.com/milkymanastore/

https://www.instagram.com/trinketsbyblu/

https://www.instagram.com/chelsea_megs_tcc/

https://www.instagram.com/artofaliss/

Hello Spring!

After a colder than normal Winter here in Southern Australia, Spring is finally here!

Last year I wrote about looking forward to dressing in pastels (though let's face it, I do that all year round!) but this year I'm excited about my garden again! A earlier this month, I wrote about how my garden is a total mess, but I want to change that. I dredged up the plans I'd made a couple of years ago and I want to start putting them into action.

There must be something about seeing the fruit trees burst into bloom:

Oranges still warm from the slowly strengthening sun:

Daffodils peeking into life in the park:

Dashes of colour everywhere:

And the flowering trees, old friends that I pass every day on my walk to work:

There's also stowing away my woolly Winter cardigans and scarves, and of course, the fact that it's no longer dark when I get home from work. This year I've become very enthusiastic about my garden again, and I've already planted some new plant friends which I'll show in a future post soon!

Happy Spring! And enjoy Autumn if you're up there in the Northern Hemisphere!

Hobonichi Art Diary 2019 Unboxing

Just like I did last year, I purchased the yearly art diary from Hobonichi. The diaries went on sale on 1st September as they always do, but this year the sales system was different. Hobonichis have become much more popular in the last few years, and the company have had problems with their website crashing, so they divided up the sale over 3 days. Certain products in their range went on sale on different days, and customers had the option to hold their order until the end to enable them to buy everything they wanted and have it sent in one parcel.

I was a little intimidated by this system when I first heard about it, but there was ample information about how it worked (in written, video and manga form!), and it all went very smoothly. I have to commend Hobonichi for this. But let's get on to the unboxing! Get ready for lots of photos! (P.S. Stay tuned for a slightly disconcerting surprise at the end!)

This year the items came in an amazing bright orange-coloured box with a graphic pattern on it.

The quote says:

Don't ever lose hope. It's far too important.
You know how a pinch of salt
changes the whole flavor of a dish?
Your hope is that salt.

This year I decided to buy more than just the book itself. Previously I'd thought to make my own covers, but after 3 years this still hasn't happened! A couple of Etsy sellers are making nice covers, but they weren't any more cost effective than the official Hobonichi ones, so I decided to go straight to the source. I also got a few washi tapes and other things.

I purchased the Peach Sky cover with a Cover-on-Cover. The Cover-on-Cover is a clear plastic cover which slips on over the top of the standard cover, which is made from fabric, and protects it. There is a plain plastic cover, but I purchased the Forest Secrets print.

This years' free gifts were a multi-pen (the standard gift), this time in a beautiful cream colour, and a Not-Scary Bear paperweight. He looks a bit scary to me! But I think it's a reminder not to judge by appearances.

The book came with a cute poster which says "Happy Nothing Special Day!" I'll hang it up on my wall so I can see it when I'm getting ready for work in the mornings.

As I mentioned before, I want to purchase covers for my Hobonichis from now on, and that means my previous books from 2016 onwards, too. My first book was the A6 size, before I switched to A5 size. The shop had an adorable cat cover which I needed to have! The design is called "I Forgot When It Was, But I Sure Had Fun", designed by Ryoji Arai. I'm glad I purchased it, because it sold out on the first day!

I also purchased a couple of washi tapes, and some A6-sized plastic folders which I will use to hold planner stickers. The folders are designed by Nao Sakamoto and are really adorable! The Kitta stickers are decorated strips, and are a bit like a cross between stickers and washi tape.

Lastly ... the disconcerting surprise! Hobonichi have accidentally sent me a second book! It's the English language A6 planner, plus the free gifts that come with all books. I didn't order or pay for this! And I'm not sure what to do -- if I should contact them and try to return it, give it away or use it. What should I do?

Confession time : My Garden is a Mess!

Yes, it's true. My garden is a complete mess. Husband and I have just hit the 5-year anniversary of living in our house, and the garden isn't what I wanted it to be at all. Not that this is a 5-year celebration post. That would be a bit sad.

I wanted to explain though, why I haven't posted any garden updates for a long time. I've become less interested in looking after my garden in the last year or so, but a garden is something you can't just give up on -- there are consequences! Last Summer I didn't water the plants as much as I should have, and while some did okay, others didn't thrive. There were other times when I was more enthusiastic about working in the garden but life got in the way. I was busy, I was sick, I sprained my ankle (twice), I did my back, it was pouring rain all weekend. I don't want to sound like I'm making excuses -- it's just life.

Anyway, let's look at the shame.

This is the view I see when I leave the house in the morning and come home. This stand was supposed to be a greenhouse, but I took the plastic off last Summer as it seemed to be just cooking the plants. Some of the plants are doing pretty well, others are expiring before my eyes:

Here is our backyard. (Technically it's off the side of the house, but it's where the space is and functions as a backyard.) The fruit trees are blossoming like they're supposed to, but the lawn hasn't been mowed in months and the orange tree really needs help.

Some of those oranges are ready to be picked and are just weighing down the tree, and those yellow leaves mean it needs to be fertilised. Mowing underneath it would help the fertiliser to penetrate and prevent the tree from competing with the grass for nutrients.

This rosemary bush grows incredibly well -- too well. It's become all tangled up in the long grass and a bit weighed down. It could do with a trim, too. On the other hand, the flowers are lovely and attract bees to the garden. The dead stump has been there ever since we moved in; we've yet to find a way to get rid of it.

This is technically the back yard. It's a narrow strip that runs along the back of the house. It's where I sprained my ankle when I was gardening a few months ago. It's the area I'd like to deal with first as not only is it an ugly view from my bedroom window, it's the only way to access the side yard and it's an actual safety hazard.

The lavender bush I planted last year is growing very well and I'm very happy with it. However, it's getting a bit crowded out with grass and that bush on the left is encroaching on its sunlight.

This is at the front of the house -- in full view of anyone walking past! The garden bed here is a strange mix of vigorously growing plants, and ones that have just dropped dead and been replaced by weedy grass. It really needs a good mulching and a few nice plants put in to replace the dead ones.

At least there are some dandelions among the grass. I've been deliberately leaving them alone wherever I see them. There aren't enough yet for me to feel comfortable harvesting them, but perhaps this Summer I can make some dandelion leaf salad and fritters from the flowers.

I hope this post goes some way to explaining why I haven't blogged about my garden in such a long time, despite my professed love of gardening, as well as motivation for me to start improving things this Spring season!