I’ve realised lately that I’m in a good space and working on what I actually want to do now. How do I know this?

I’m temping and getting on with it but my mind is full of jewellery ideas I’d like to work on, photos I want to be taking, and blog posts I want to be writing.

When people ask what I do I tell them I temp 6 months of the year, as well as all the other stuff. Because that’s true. I have officially gotten to a point in my life where I can live on half of my temping wage while I’m temping, and spend the other half of my wage during the 6 months of the year I’m not officially employed.

My birthday, an unusually beautiful and sunny one (spring time in Wellington = rain), was spent nursing a hangover of both the food and alcohol varieties, having high tea with some of my ladies, and working. I couldn’t wait to have a few hours to myself so I could edit some photos, write some words, and sketch some ideas.

The crazy giftmas season has kicked in and orders have shifted into high gear. It’s been quite overwhelming juggling 40 hours in the office, social engagements every night, blogging every day, and filling all the orders in time. But I’m still really happy, I want to give up less than ever. And it’s a really great space to be in.

Over the past few years I’ve struggled constantly with the idea that maybe I’m just doing the jewellery and blogging thing because I couldn’t think of anything else. But I’m pretty sure that as long as I’m crafting and sharing my thoughts I’m where I want to be.

Money or no.

[Title courtesy of Cartman]

Viognier with Vigor. Another of the many themed gatherings I’ve attended lately. Another one centered around booze. (hurrah!)

It was the first time I’d ever tried Viognier and I’m sad now that I’ve been missing out! We tried 5 or 6 last night and they were all quite different but lovely in their own ways. The bottle I found by Anchorage was very fruity smelling, like melons and apricots. An excellent cheap option, and vegan to boot.

The winners though were wines by Coopers Creek and Terrace Heights Estate (THE). And us, for giving ourselves the chance to try a whole range of this full bodied “white wine for red wine drinkers”. Extra points to Jo for the idea and hosting, and to Laura who bought her cranberry white chocolate ice cream along. SO GOOD.

Honestly. People who say they would get bored if they won lotto and quit their jobs? Get a hobby and/or some friends you losers.

Shop

In shop news, orders need to be in by the weekend for shipping overseas by xmas time! After this weekend there will be a 2 week make time on custom jewellery until the new year while Super Laser Cutter Guy moves cities. As always email me (kim at cupcakesandmace dot com) or send me a convo on Etsy with any questions.

The rain could not keep us from Carlucci Land for long.

Despite the biting wind and our hangering bellies (we went straight after work and stupidly neglected to bring snacks) we battled through 18 holes of mini golf on a crazy course covered in metal sculptures we were encouraged to interact with.

Sure it’s not a very manicured or maintained place: the greens have been reused from old tennis courts and are covered in bits of trees; there’s an angry rooster which was, thankfully, safely tucked away in the shed while we played; and the course is full of potentially unintentional sinkholes.

We had a great time though. It took six of us around two and a half hours so we didn’t finish till just before closing time. Probably because we spent so long on the shit talking aspect of the game.

There were mandatory scorecard nicknames (Sexy Jesus TYVM) and 66.6% of us got into the hole in one club!

Extra notes: Lots of interesting putting stances from Laura, brandishing of putters like croquet mallots and hockey sticks from Pia (and the penis statue she found in the bush), hip thrusting from me, backfiring of the shit talk for Brend, winning in a totally understated way by Fi, and Tim not losing despite every indication that he was going to.

• Louis vs Rick. CAPS LOCK IS HOW I FEEL INSIDE RICK.
• People say stupid things on twitter. The Oatmeal draws them. Best.
• Wow, I seriously love the way Melissa refashions clothes! This house-dress turned skirt is awesome.
• Still not sure who to vote for? This Guide to the Election might help. (unstoppable robot armies!)
• I love the gay lifestyle. Gay coffee and cereal for breakfast! Gay dog walking! Gay bowling!
• Brilliance emailed to me from Jason this week: Attractiveness of Harry Potter characters over time; And the angel said unto him.
• Artists re-imagine their childhood drawings in their current style.
• I’m slowly getting used to the Google Reader changes, but the insane amount of vertical space they’ve stolen is dumb. Jason created a script to reclaim some of the space.
• Who are these people on street fashion photography blogs?! It’s messing with Chelsea Fagan.
• I’m loving Natalies blog, Extra Large as Life. We have very similar tastes so all her finds make me add things to my wishlists and pinterest boards. Recently she posted photos of her awesome self in nothing more than a cropped tee and undies. Not an unusual thing to see on the internet right? Except it is when the person in the photos isn’t catwalk model sized. I’m thankful for people brave enough to put themselves out there in a quest to normalise bodies of every size!
• I’m kinda in love with Nicki Minaj and her crazy style. So discovering this video she did with other awesome people (John Waters and The Lonely Island) made me very happy. The Creep.
• All burgers must be cooked like this from now until forever.

Crafty Projects

• Whittled twig hairpin tutorial.
• DIY bow mary janes.
• Freezer paper t shirt stencils.
• Super easy (and soft) t shirt necklace.

Breaking news: Wellywood sign explosion.

It never ceases to amaze me that people can move this fluidly. <3

Joel McHale shows why he won the Sexiest Man Award. (wait for it…)

It was Brendan’s one request that while visiting Mum in Ngaruawahia we see the Hamilton Gardens. I hadn’t been for years but remembered them being quite spectacular and well themed.

The weather was awful but we were only in Hams for two days so we braved the rain with my friend Kezz to take a look. The rain really packed in by the end of our visit so we left soaked and hungry. Worth it.

Having been introduced to good whisky by Brend and his Dad I’ve come to enjoy it without a mixer, or even ice. The way it should be consumed when the bottle is single malt and well aged, but the way it’s hard to drink when it’s blended and cheap.

Our friends like a wee dram of the good stuff as well. And so the Whisky Club was born. Every so often the host of the next Whisky Club gathering will buy a bottle or two of nice whisky to share, we all contribute $10 to pay for a share of the bottle, we gather, and we drink it. There is no room for wine, beer, or cider in whisky club. Not before all the whisky is gone anyway.

Yesterday was supposed to be a triple header of fun times. Mini golf, followed by a visit to Denny’s (my first time!), and concluding with Whisky Club. Unfortunately Wellington’s weather had different plans, as it is wont to do, and we had to cancel on mini golfing. The Denny’s plan remained intact and we grabbed the biggest booth in the place and filled the table with burgers, fries, pancakes, margharitas, coke floats, cakes, and breakfasts.

I pwned Denny’s. Chilli cheese fries to share, a millenium burger (meat + meat + cheese + bun. Making Ron Swanson happy), a pomegranate margarita, and a small stack of pancakes to finish (had to make Leslie Knope happy too). I have serious doubts about how I would have managed to get home if Jo hadn’t been driving. Way too much food. Maybe it was Denny that pwned me.

An hours rest between Denny’s and whisky gave me just enough time to digest a little and make some room for alcohol. On the table was Jura, a whisky we had seen on a show only days earlier and ordered from Whisky and More (who are awesomely discounted and have super fast shipping).

Jura is the smoothest whisky I’ve ever tried. Let’s just say it didn’t take long to go through the bottle between 8 of us…so we had to bring out the personal whisky and rum stash.

Can’t wait to do it again soon.

In other fun gathering news, a couple of weeks ago Laura and Tim hosted a mid-week Simpsons party! We ate Ribwich, pizza, all you can eat seafood buffet, twinkies, pickles, cheese slices, floor pie, and donut cake. We drank skittlebrau (occasionally through red vine straws). It was great.

I found this in my drafts last night. A post I wrote in April 2010, and yet not much has changed. I lost a bit of interest in clothes but still dress pretty much the same. I wore the mentioned glasses with photochromic lenses all over Southeast Asia, but my newest pair were scored free from one of Clearly Contacts facebook deals.

30.04.10

If you started reading Cupcakes and Mace last year when I actually wrote you’d know I’m a t shirt fiend. Also a sneaker fiend. (I also love cake and movies but we’re talking about aesthetics right now ok.)

A while back it was suggested on twitter that I probably have about 45 black t shirts in my wardrobe and while I thought that was a bit hyperbolic I wasn’t sure what the real number was.

It currently sits around 25.

Note that that does not include t shirts of other colours, or black shirts in other styles. It is purely black t shirts with prints. The kind you get from Threadless and 1-day tee, and I have no intention of stopping. It’s a shame I don’t have more amazing skirts to wear them with, but that’s another value the tees add – a great excuse to buy skirts!

The sneaker collection has not grown much. I found a bright white pair of high tops with blue gingham around the top and yellow straps, they were on sale too! How could I resist. And my chucks are worn in enough now to wear regularly without needing plasters every time I put them on.

Add a new found addiction to buying glasses online, and a recent upsizing of my tunnels and you can see where all the money I don’t spend on food goes. Goggles 4U and Zenni Optical are online glasses retailers I can recommend first hand. Buying glasses in New Zealand is an expensive and slow business. Go to optometrist > pick glasses > pay around $600 for glasses > get glasses a few weeks later. If you have your prescription though, you can pick from hundreds of awesome frames, pay around $40 and have them delivered to your door in less than a week, even though they’re coming from somewhere like China or Pakistan. Carazy. Most recently I got this red amber pair from Zenni Optical which sit and fit perfectly.

And this grey pair with grey photochromic lenses (they get darker in bright light) which are winging their way to me now.

You can also see that I have turned into one of those stupid hipsters everyone hates. I have tattoos, 1/2″ ear lobes and big nerd glasses; I pair t shirts and pencil skirts with tights and high top sneakers; I act like an adolescent even though I’m in my mid twenties; I don’t have a real job and instead spend my time going for coffee and listening to pop music covered by metal bands.

I’m a walking cliche. And I’m awesome.

Whether you use the American date system or the normal one (ha!) doesn’t matter. It’s 11/11/11.

These days I’m temping in an office with people I used to work for 5 years ago. Spending my days thinking about blogging and jewellery and food. My sister has been visiting for the past few days with her friend so I’ve eaten out for lunch and dinner for the past three days.

The weather has been windy, scarily so, but today the sun has finally come out.

11/11/10

November 2010 I was 25 and looking for a house to move into with Brend and flatties Kate and Jason. Our old dump was falling down around us and we didn’t like having to live with an extra single person (and I don’t think single people really liked living with our coupled up selves either). I was temping at the same place I’m temping at now. I was getting excited about going to my first midnight movie screening and booking a bach with friends for new years.
Kate and Jason had been on their honeymoon to America and Brend and I were serious about our own travel plans.
I had started doing Couch to 5k with Kate, which was a disaster because, as I later found out, I have hypermobile knees.

11/11/09

Back then I was 24 and blogging almost every day. I had quit my job in June and was being supported by my ex while I worked on the jewellery business. We had a little apartment of our own in Mt Victoria and had been living there almost 3 years. I had been a pescetarian for almost 3 years as well. My how things change in two short years!

I met a lot of new people in October and November 2010, almost everyone I’m good friends with now! Thanks to twitter I secured myself a larger group of best friends than I ever thought I’d be lucky enough to have. I spent November gossiping with them, replacing dead phones, and stressing about the ex’s workplace being downsized to 4 days a week.

I also spent a lot of time stressing about where our relationship was going. I was well ready to get engaged, and he, well, wasn’t.

11/11/06

Before blogging! Before twitter! Before Facebook! Before I joined Flickr! I was 21 and was 3 weeks into a new job. Wellington had been my home for almost four years and Sol and I were living without flatmates for the first time in a shitty little basement bedsit that had windows but no light.
I was getting involved in the internet in an obsessive way around this time thanks to My Chemical Romance, the MCRmy, and MySpace. I also bought a bass and amp with my birthday money and started trying to play.

Where were you?

This stuff is so good. Prior to the Asia trip my body couldn’t handle caffeine, I always figured it had something to do with my colitis, and while disappointing it just meant I couldn’t have coffee or coke like EVERYONE ELSE.

But, something magical happened in Vietnam. I tried the coffee and it was so delicious that I decided it was worth the stomach pain…and then there wasn’t any stomach pain. In fact since going to Asia my stomach has been the least sore it’s ever been in the past 10 years! I don’t know how or why, I just know that my medication is actually working really well. (I’m probably eating about 80% less dairy products as well.)

So, back to the coffee. It was delicious. In Vietnam your coffee is served with sweetened condensed milk in the bottom of the glass which you mix in to your liking. You can have it hot, ca phe sua nong; or over ice, ca phe sua da. We drank it over ice in the hot hot Vietnamese weather.

Vietnamese coffee is incredibly simple to make, a lot like plunger coffee. You’ll need a Vietnamese coffee filter that comes in three parts: the main pot, the lid, and the screw down damper; a glass; Vietnamese coffee; and sweetened condensed milk (though I have my hot coffee black now).

• Put a tablespoon or two of sweetened condensed milk in the bottom of your glass.
• Put a heaped tablespoon or two of coffee (Trung Nguyen is a good brand. You can get it at Yan’s in Wellington) in the filter and shake it down so it sits evenly. Screw the tamp on so it’s snug but not tight.
• Sit the filter on top of the glass with milk in it.
• Put a small amount of water in the filter and wait 20 seconds for it to swell the grinds.
• Fill the filter with water and place the lid on top.

• Coffee will drip through fairly slowly. It seems like everyone does it slightly differently depending on how strong they want it, so don’t worry too much if it seems like it’s going too fast or slow. If it tastes not quite right you can adjust your method next time.
• When all the water has dripped through take the lid and put it upside down on the table. Now it’s a tray for your filter! :D
• Stir the condensed milk into the coffee and then pour it over the ice if you’re having it cold.

Yum.

On Saturday I took my very first trip on the Overlander, the train that runs from Wellington to Auckland. Mum is in Hamilton so our journey wasn’t quite as far as Auckland, but still a good 10 hours.

Thankfully I’d had a bit of train practice in Asia. In Asia we bought cheap tickets and ended up with a) seats with no leg room, b) hard sleepers, which are planks of wood with thin covers and bed bugs, or c) plastic chairs. There was none of that in the Overlander. Lots of leg room, some bigger couches in a lounge at the back of the coach and clean enough toilets. Though in typical train fashion the door to the toilet was extremely awkward to get through I’m not sure that anyone much bigger than me would have been able to manage it.

Our carriage did come with the requisite “conspiracy theorists” though. Grow From Here on twitter was kind enough to explain to me how odd people are assigned on public transport: “they are allocated by the travel people – sometimes you get screaming kid instead- or paper rustling snarler”. Pleased to say I only had to deal with a guy explaining to me how an Egyptian prince and a Jewish Princess were married way back to broke a deal between feuding families (etc etc on and off for 10 hours). Cool story bro.

But thankfully no screaming children.

Waiting for 7am to check in // My favourite stretch of highway with views to Kapiti // You can see the South Island in good weather, that faint shape in the distance // Ohakune for a pie and coffee break (shit coffee good pie) // Art in Ohakune // Crossing one of the tall viaducts // The windows were annoyingly reflective // What NZ does well – farms