Well, I am back! Not for long, I have a trip planned for New Orleans soon, a quick jaunt, that has been in the works for over a year, my poor husband, or lucky husband, I know he loves himself some alone time. Then from there I am on packing detail 24-7. I have already broken down half my studio, it’s interesting how when you have space you are able to fill it so quickly and weird, me being a minimalist and all. I have not made up my mind where we will be moving, which is the most difficult decision of all not knowing where we will be headed. I think it would be easier if I didn’t have one very, very expensive and regretful move cross country under my belt. My next move I feel needs to have a lot of ‘pro’ boxes checked. Honestly, if I was able to get my old apartment back in Los Angeles I would move back there in a second, but I tried to offer the tenant moving money and he basically told me to kick rocks barefoot. It was a prime location, with many amenities and the rent was below market value, I should have sub-leased, hindsight is 20/20, right? Sigh. He’s never moving out. I saw so many beautiful neighborhoods in the Bay area thanks to my lovely tour guide Maybelle (love her), but I haven’t had much luck on Craigslist, maybe one of you lovelies may have some alternate suggestions? I loved Berkley (which I didn’t think I would, so much for pre-conceived notions), Lake Merritt was beautiful and unexpected, Rockridge had the most charming little shops, Hayes Valley (so out of our budget) was like a little slice of Paris in the city. Michelle, my co-professor on Souvenir Foto and one of my favorite people took up the Seattle part of my tour, thank goodness! What’s not to like about Seattle? It has everything San Francsico has at a fraction of the price. Wherein the bay area we would live like paupers, bohemians, in Seattle we could have it all (maybe even a view of the water!) There is that weather detail to contend with, but seriously nothing could be as harsh as the weather I experienced here in the South East; either intolerably hot and humid (add a bunch of bugs into that equation) or super stormy and rainy. I think Seattle would be a piece of cake. Please note, I am a Californian born & bred so I have had no prior experience with weather extremes, this was all new to me. The people in the South are warm and friendly and I do currently live on one of the prettiest plots of land this side of the Mississippi. So it has not been a total bust. I am isolated, very isolated (axe murderers, please note not that isolated) and that doesn’t work for me. Who knew I needed interaction with people? I didn’t. I miss civilization, I loved seeing people walking on the streets and driving their cars this last trip, it was delightful. I am up for hearing any advice or taking in any tips, this move will not be taken lightly as we have plowed through a majority of our savings and well, we kinda, sorta need to make a very good decision, no oops allowed.
Speaking of moving, I of course will not want to pack a bunch of inventory for Besotted Brand as I want to make sure my offerings are pristine and I don’t trust a cross country move to be conducive to that. I won’t be ordering anything new or replenishing until we land in our new abode and I can set-up my studio (we are moving in May). The good news is that I have many, many new offerings, plus an entire new section being added (that I am out of my mind excited about). I think you will be pretty excited about it as well! I am going to be giving a lot of way before I go and I am going to start with some alphabet sets! I have the one above and an alternate version that I will be sending off to one lucky winner! In order to enter to win please answer the following question by Sunday, April 1, 2013:
What are three unique/odd things about you?
I thought since I am in social butterfly mode, it might be nice to get to know you better. Some unique/odd things about me are that I am legally blind (without corrective eyewear), you see how that doesn’t stop me from venturing into visual fields such as design or photography? I cannot go to sleep at night without reading a book, impossible. I was once nominated by Vogue + W magazine as having one of the top 10 cult fragrances in the world. Your turn!
1. I am obsessed with organizing and yet I am a total slob. Been that way since I was a kid.
2. I have traveled all over the world and I took my first trip when I was 6 weeks old (to Japan)
3. I have to read everyday. Usually when I’m eating!
I’m also legally blind! I wish I can have laser surgery one day :) I hope you find a good home soon!
Odd/unique things about me: I can make my stomach do waves, I both love math and reading books but I didn’t have high grades in school because I’m always reading a book instead of listening, and I once participated in a pole dancing recital! haha
I don’t even know how I stumbled across your blog but I really enjoy reading what you post! I wish you had an about me section so I knew more about who I was reading about!! :)
Let’s see, unique things about me:
1- I have had LASIK eye surgery and it changed my life!!
2- I eat my artichokes with Mayonaise
3- I’ve never been to Canada
:)
This eyesight thing is a theme today! I can’t see very far either, my glasses are the first thing I reach for in the morning. But if I need to look at something real close, I take them off and I can see the fibers in the paper.
Odd things…
-I collect all kinds of found natural objects, anything from seashells and pine cones, to animal bones.
-I have lived in Labrador for the better part of a year. Loved it.
-I prefer to do most things by hand, be it chopping a ton of veggies for a soup, sewing something, or doing dishes.
Came across your blog recently and it’s been so inspiring!
Odd things about me:
1. I can sleep whenever/wherever I get the chance.
2. I eat ice cream no matter how cold it is.
3. I see dreams that could very well inspire surrealist movies and paintings.
1. I used to race go-karts when I was little…that career was short-lived after I was in a big wreck (that my mum got on tape!)
2. I once lived in Italy for two years. I worked at a study abroad center and as a nanny. I even ended up taking classes on tattooing over there too.
3. I come from a family of stunt people/drivers.
I love your blog. I’m not sure if I missed the post about why you’re moving…is it for work or a choice. I live in the Bay Area and it’s pretty awesome. Would love to see you local.
My Odds / Uniques
1. My pinky toes are double jointed and can bend 90 degrees to the left and right.
2. I’m a creature of habit (not quite OCD).
3. I go to bed at night reading and smile when I think about the first sip of coffee in the morning.
First of all, thank you for your blog…it’s so inspiring. Second of all, I myself just moved from Chicago back home to California and am loving every minute of it. I hope you can find peace and clarity over the next couple of months. What a beautiful adventure.
ANYWAYS:
1. I don’t like my collarbone being touched…if one side is touched, I have to touch the other, until I feel even… It’s an obnoxious compulsive thing that really makes necklaces and seat belts difficult.
2. I get the hiccups at least once a day. Still haven’t found a cure.
3. I’m not from the south, nor am I from England, but if I am having a conversation with someone from either of those parts of the world, I have no control over it, I start talking in their accent. I CAN’T HELP IT. It’s quite embarrassing actually.
I didn’t discover your blog until recently, but I’m pretty much obsessed now! I am now a cult user of BB cream thanks to you! :)
1) My husband and I moved from Minnesota to Aberdeen, Scotland this past November for his work. It was the first time I had been to Europe and only the 2nd stamp on my passport.
2) Because of our move, I haven’t driven a car in almost 5 months (and probably won’t until we move back to the US in a year and a half), which is the longest stretch since I got my license at age 15 (North Dakota…somebody has to drive the grain truck!) :)
3) I can’t watch a movie or a TV show without something to do with my hands, whether it be crocheting, doodling or coloring. It drives my husband crazy and makes watching movies in a dark theater almost torture!
This isn’t a contest entry because I happen to already own some alphabet stamps, but I just had to share: I live in Seattle and I love it like I never thought possible. The quality of my life is so much higher here than anyplace else I could be–it’s cheaper than the Bay Area, but still a city filled with interesting people and jobs. I even like the cloudy weather!
I will say, though, that if you are used to sunny days, you might find it hard. The constant cloud cover is much harder to deal with than the rain. Solar radiation is very low compared to most parts of the country. An annual winter trip to a sunny place, even just for the weekend, can make a difference, but it’s still not the same.
Hey! What a coincidence -you are one of my favorite people too! :)
1. I love to move. Granted all our moves have been corporate sponsored, so I have only packed boxes twice in 25+ years, but we have lived here the longest (almost eight years) and I am itching to move so badly. Two summers ago, when we had reached our previous “longest in one place” time I repainted the entire house and put up new window treatments, shower curtains, etc., just to get a little change. I am hoping and praying we will be out of here by this time next year.
2. I am super organized with my surroundings but cannot get my time organized to save my life.
3. I have never been able to successfully menu plan.
What a fun idea!
1. I do not own a microwave.
2. I have a cowlick right at my hairline, centered above my right eye. My father has one at the exact same spot. So does my nephew.
3. I have driven my car over 200k miles.
1. My right ear is dented in the back
2. I love cleaning out stuff
3. Ummm. No clue
Hi love your blog! Good luck with the move we too have a big move coming up later in the year, packing up after four years in Colorado to move back to the UK!
Three things?
1. My left index finger has a chunk out of it where I caught it in a door jamb when I was six!
2. I always, always, always have cold feet, always!
3.I’m married to the loveliest man in the world and next year I get to watch him walk our beautiful daughter down the same aisle we walked down a lifetime ago to marry the man of her dreams! Cue happy tears!!
Hi Miss B! That is so exciting that you are moving! All of those places you mentioned sound like amazing places to live. I actually haven’t visited any of them so I have no useful advice, unfortunately. However, I’m going to be visiting San Francisco in 3 weeks for the very first time and I am beyond excited for that! Some of my favourite bloggers are from San Fran area so it’s kinda like my Graceland. :P
Three unique things…hmmm…
1. I live in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada which you may not know is the Slurpee Capital of the World. Yes, that’s right – we drink more slurpees (from 7-11) in Winnipeg than in any other city in the world. Which is odd mostly because our winters here are ridiculously cold (can be -40F sometimes) so you would think this would deter us but nope – we still drink our slurpees, even in the winter time.
2. I have met Queen Elizabeth II. I don’t really remember because I was three years old but I do have one photo to prove it! She visited my city and my parents and I were in the crowd and one of the Queen’s ladies in waiting came over and took me up to meet her. Unfortunately my one-on-one meeting with “Liz” didn’t get me an invite to Kate and William’s wedding but I’m sure my invitation was just lost in the mail. :P
3. I collect greeting cards. I buy all sorts of pretty cards (whatever catches my fancy) to just add to my collection and never use. They are like little works of art. I am especially fond of letterpress cards, so those are some of my favourites. Also, any pretty vintage greeting cards I can find usually go into my collection. I also collect pretty notebooks, just buying nice ones and keeping them to never be written in. When I die someone will probably find me in my house with greeting cards and notebooks stacked up to the ceiling and my 45 cats meowing for food. :P
I was just browsing through all the interesting comments and thought it was bizarrely awesome to see someone else from Winnipeg who reads one of my favourite blogs. How could I not say hi? :P Woohoo!!!
Hi Tristan,
I am happy to hear that you are moving back to the west. I love the pacific northwest, I grew up in the Portland area and Seattle was a fave to visit. I heard this and truly believe that the best journey you take is with a love one. I now live 3 hours south of Portland in a rural area with my husband. I do miss occassionally the vibe and conviences, but when we go up to visit family and friends, I can’t wait to get back to my home!! I been lucky to be a winner of one of your bestowals, also proud to share that I own several besotted stamps, my favorite being the monogram you took from my wedding invitation. Wishing you all the best in your moving adventure!!
Oh I just moved house (for the 9th time in my 25 years!) and did not enjoy it. You’d think I’d be used to it, but no.
This is such a fun idea – I love learning unexpected things about people.
1. I cannot drink coffee – gives me migraines, almost as instant as ‘sip = migraine’. You can imagine how confronting this is for some people who cannot function without their coffee hit! Lol.
2. Whenever I meet someone with an accent I usually start talking back to them in that accent, which is probably why people always ask me where I’m from – even in my home country (Australia).
3. I wear sunglasses a LOT, including inside. My friends are used to it (they tease me and call me superstar) but my eyes are really sensitive to light (because of my migraines) so strangers probably think I’m hungover all the time!
1- I could eat chocolate cake for breakfast & not feel guilty about it!
2- I can’t do a cartwheel
3- driving in the car is my right brain time. I dont like to talk, just think.
I’m not able to house one more alphabet stamp but I loved reading everyone’s response. I’m sorry your move didn’t work out for you but you must look at it as something you had to do to get where you are. Live and learn. I have wanted to live on the east coast, close to NYC for over 30 years. I am a native of So. California but we are hoping to move east this summer. I am not sure if it is is permanent move as two of my kids will be on the west coast (one in LA, one in SF) but it is something my husband and I need to experience. No regrets sort of thing.
Good luck in your hunt for the perfect place to settle this time!
Not a very unique person…
1 – I can’t stand it if someone looks at one of my new magazines before I do. I am a magazine junkie!
2 – I do not take my eye makeup off every night. Shame on me!
3 – Odd but at 60+, I am still waiting to figure out what I will be when I grow up!
1. I have never been known by my given name – I picked up a nickname whilst still in the hospital as a baby and it has stuck for life. This has caused a few problems with passports, marriage certificates etc!
2. I’m in my mid-forties and I can’t drive a car. I have never learned and neither of my parents can drive either so I believe it is genetic (my brother drives but only really, really slowly).
3. I have a double-jointed thumb and like to draw a little person on it and make it belly dance to freak the kids out : )
Have a great day x
1. When I enter my home after work I have to clean kitchen and living room to the bits – before I even change into my house-cloths and start preparing dinner and even say hello to my hubby :) I know this is crazy
2. I can touch my nose with my toungue
3. I love blogs but I never read the whole stories…always skip a part to which I will come back if the end is interesting :)
What a lovely little set (and what fun to read all the responses)!
Okay, here it goes . . .
1. The first two songs I learned to sing were Jesus Loves Me . . . and The Gambler.
2. Flying makes me nervous, but not because I’m afraid we’ll crash . . . I’m afraid I’ll get sick while the seat belt sign is on. That would be so humiliating!
3. One of the last blind dates I was set up on, the guy told me the thing that makes me MOST attractive is my proficient vocabulary. Super.
Hard to know what is considered odd, since I (at least) have grown used to my quirks:
1. As a little kid, I would sing “opera” by running around the house singing ‘Mia, Mia, Mia Faaaaarroww!”
2. When I see colourful things I love, I have the urge to put it to my mouth. Case in point: skeins of geranium-pink wool.
3. I can pick things up with my toes.
p.s. Seattle is lovely, I lived there for a few years. But as an east-coast Canadian (cold winters, but generally sunny) I found the grey on grey weather very tough. Just a caveat!
(I enjoy your lovely blog – thank you!)
Three unique things about me:
1. I (literally) traveled around the world in 365 days a few years back and have had some type of experience (i.e., gone to dinner, attended a party, seen a movie/show, etc.) in all 50 states of the U.S. of A.
2. I have the uncanny knack of just nailing “the.perfect.gift.” for almost anyone for any occasion.
3. I am obsessed with handmade paper of all types and qualities and colors and patterns.
Oh, good luck with the move. I hope you find what you are looking far without too much stress. It is the worst going to a place and not knowing ‘the place’..
As for three quirky things about me:
1) I can speak exactly like Gollum from The Lord of the Rings (my Mum is convinced she will NEVER have grandchildren! :D)
2) I was at the midnight release of ‘Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix’ in Oxford and stood in line for three-four hours next to ‘Hagrid’ and ‘Dumbledore’
3) I have won over 100 drawing contests as a child.
1. i can spot a cat anywhere when i walk in the street – it can be in a window in the10th floor of a building, under a car,5 km away, i always say,there´s a cat and sometimes i don´t even look (ahaha scary) before i say this!
2. i saw the film ‘Carrie’ when i was 10 but until this day i cannot sleep in a bed that has some kind of space underneath it because i always imagine the hand of the girl crossing the ground
3. When i was in my twenties i had a terrible fear of heights and i decided to beat it because i wanted to deliver a surprise strawberries box to the guy i was in love with ,which lived on the other side… and it worked (well now i still don´t like to cross bridges,especially walking but i can do it ).
p.s hope you can get a sight of a great house to live in very soon!
dear Tristan, I don’t know if these facts are strange, but I’ll try too:
I was born in Kola Peninsula, wich is like coka-cola, and some times I use this likeness for fun, but really in old-old russian it means “sun”. It is about 300 km above Arctic Circle, Lapland region. You can sight savage reindeer there, and Santa Claus that officially lives in Rovaniemi, is 600 km on the south from us…
Once I was in Egypt on a vacations, and I’ve met my future husband. It was the first sight love, and we are together in love for more than 11 years! I fill so happy! As he is Italian, we mooved in Italy.
the third one is not that interesting: unlike you I only use the same fragrance for about 15 years, because I can’t find anything that I like more. It is Herba Fresca of Guerlain. The common sweet smell gives me sence of hunger … So, by the way, if you are so experienced in this question could you advice me any name?
sorry for mistakes.
Thank you,
Lilia
Only 3? Being so odd (weird, according to my kids…) it’s hard to narrow it down. So, I’ll share one odd/unique thing about me in 3 different areas:
Physical – I have a brown spot in one of my very blue eyes
Intellectual – I spend a great deal of time lost in thought (as in Earth-to-Mom..Earth-to-Mom)
Behavioral – In order to share bits of my past with my grandchildren (people, places, events, experiences), I tell them bedtime stories about my childhood in a series I’ve named “The Adventures of Cousin Doris”. I turned Doris into my sidekick and a comic heroine (sorry, Doris) – Don Quixote and Sancho Panza? Anyway, I’ve captured their hearts and succeeded in passing along family history.
1. I have visual ADD even though I’m blind as a bat
2. I am a typophile, working with typography all day long
3. I was a Tahitian dancer for Disneyland
Love your blog – very calming and easy on the eye.
1. i get dizzy when i enter people’s homes for the first time. it is like my senses are completely thrown off by the new experience.
2. i am desperately scared of whales. they make my chest tighten in an instant. they are just. so. big.
3. sometimes when i look at the world i see things as a black and white photograph. it is just a second, a quick blink of my eye and then developed right in my brain.
Hello! Good luck deciding. Love SF but yes, it’s a bit pricey…esp after southeast. Adore Seattle, esp Cafe Campagne where I spent a day grieving, eating cassoulet and drinking soul-quieting house red wine after learning my cat had died (it was that problem with contaminated cat food 6 or 7 years ago). Either way, you can’t go wrong. Enjoy it…most of it, anyway.
3 unique/ odd things: 1. I’m a yoga instructor with a following, yet one of the most anxious people I know. 2. I am a raving liberal raised in a house of religious right uber-conservatives. And my first memory is of me at age 3, holding my grandmother’s pinky with my whole hand, and thinking: “I’ve gotta get out of this place.” 3. I practice Christmas carols on the piano year-round, reminiscing and preparing for our Sunday night caroling open house sessions each December, my favorite time of year. Truth: on any given day, my 4 y.o. dd can be caught singing Jingle Bells, Angels We Have Heard on High, or You’d Better Watch Out. ;)