Are we there yet....? Are we there yet....? Are WE THERE YET....? + A FABULOUS Give Away over at the Junk Bonanza....!

Hello out there to all of you Shabby Vintage Thrifting Junkers....!

I'm SO GLAD it's Friday tomorrow because for a short week it's been a KILLER ....That being said, I'm not here to moan about my day job rather, I'm here to celebrate not one but TWO awards bestowed upon me by two of my FAVE blogging friends....My SWEET little thrifting buddy over at Thrifting Brisbane & the GORGEOUS Chania at Razmataz have honoured me with the 'Versatile Blogger Award'....Now I need to share FOURTEEN little known, somewhat interesting or just plain curious facts about myself....!!

Ok....Here goes....

1/   When I hang the washing on the line I HAVE to use the same coloured pegs for various clothing items eg.  For skirts I'll use white pegs, work pants I'll use red pegs....Wooden pegs are neutral so I can use those with any coloured peg....Mr SVJ enjoys pushing my buttons by changing out my pegs for odd coloured ones....NOT funny Jan....!

2/   Symmetry is VERY important to me....My furniture while shabby & chippy is centred 'just so'....A crooked picture will drive me to distraction & ALL of the items in my pantry MUST face the same way....And YES....Mr SVJ enjoys moving things about....He says the 'squark factor' makes him smile....And I thought I was odd....  :o) !!

3/  I walk the 15 minutes to the station each morning along the footpath taking great care not to step on the cracks ala Jack Nicholson in Good As It Gets....!!

OK....Enough OCD....

4/  I was a gymnast in my early years & dreamed of competing at Olympic level....Alas, my boobs developed early which put the kybosh to this however, I'm pleased to say I'm STILL as flexible now as I was in my teens (I'm in my 40's now) & can still bend over backwards & do the splits....!

5/  My sneezes & hiccups SCARE people....NO JOKE....They are VERY loud & rather raucous....And they HURT my throat....  :o(

6/  I SNORT when I laugh....SERIOUSLY....hahahahahaSNORT....SEE....!!

7/  I'm a BIG Elvis fan....When I was a young girl I fantasized someone who knew Elvis would hear me sing & I would be whisked away to sing backing vocals for the King....I've been to Memphis for Elvis week twice & one January for the birthday celebrations....!

....Phew....HALF way there.... :o)

8/  I have a BIG crush on Stephen Dorf....The first movie I ever saw him in was 'Always remember I love you' & it makes me howl like a BANSHEE EVERY time I watch it....!!

9/  I LOATHE winter & the snow yet I would LOVE to experience a white Christmas with all the trimmings....!

10/  I've been to France for two weeks yet TOTALLY missed out on going to Paris....I still can't believe THAT....!!

11/ I spent ALL of my 20's & a great portion of my 30's skydiving....Although I'm not currently active in the sport (Mr SVJ still jumps occasionally), there are certain days when I look to the sky & feel a yearning in my core that gives me a lump in my throat....There is no greater freedom nor will you ever have more control over your destiny than in those 40 odd seconds.... ** sigh **

12/ I wake up EVERY morning at 4.30am & run for 30 minutes on the treadmill (aka tready)....The ONLY day I don't run at 4.30am is Sunday when I go to the Market....I either run when I get home or AFTER the Hard Rubbish....If I'm away from home I ensure I do some form of exercise though & tend to do extra sessions on the tready when I'm back home....!

13/ I have a VERY sensitive stomach & dry retch when I watch Funniest Videos when they UNEXPECTEDLY without a DISCLAIMER, show clips of kids throwing up & with 'icky' noses....What's WITH THAT....???

14/ Im going to the Junk Bonanza for the FIRST TIME this September & am so excited I can hardly wait....!

THANK HEAVENS....I didn't think I'd ever finish....!!  I know I need to pass this award on however, it's after 11pm so I will pop back tomorrow to take care of this....!!

I just wanted to add that Jill over at the Junk Bonanza blog is hosting a FABULOUS give away on behalf of the VERY TALENTED Beth at Beth Quinn Designs....Beth will be a vendor at the Junk Bonanza this September & she has VERY GENEROUSLY offered up this exquisite piece to tempt us all....!!

Be sure & pop over to Beth & the Junk Bonanza & say HI & let them know I sent you....!!!

Cheers for now,
Tamarah :o)

Blog Launch January 1st 2010

Well here I am ready to start the New Year with my very first blog post....LOL....Up until 6 months ago I didn't even know what a blog was for heavens sake....Then one day I stumbled into one quite by accident while searching for vintage millinery items....WOW....The lovely Heather at Pretty Petals had me at 'hello' & I was hooked....!!

Since this discovery, I've become a 'lurker' on a number of blogs & have enjoyed reading them so much that I've been itching to launch into the blogisphere myself & join in the fun...!!

I'm hoping my blog will keep me focused this year as I've set myself a number of goals....While I like to think I'm a motivated 'go get it' kinda girl, I'm a perfectionist which means I'm also VERY capable of procrastinating myself into a corner for fear of not achieving said perfection....!!


One of the areas I want to work on this year are my productivity levels at home....Last year ('09) due to work & family stress, often when I arrived home at the end of the day I'd spend the majority of the evening on the couch in front of the telly....! So wasteful & so NOT what I want to be doing....!!!

To avoid this from occurring in the future, it's my intention to blog every other day about a project I'm working on....I'll take before & after pics to keep myself accountable & to give myself a record over the next 12 months as to my achievements....Hopefully my photography will also improve as a result of this regular activity....!!!

Now for a short term goal I'm working on.....Friars Town Antique Fair is held near Castlemaine (in Victoria) over the Australia Day weekend in January....It's the largest event of it's kind in Australia & this year I'll be attending for the for the first time as a vendor....While I'm by no means a dealer of 'antiquities', I am a keen finder of 'vintage treasures' & a 'junk enthusiast' to boot....I've been collecting & working on vintage pieces over the last 6 months for our home & as stock for the fair.



My long term goal (dream/wish/must do 'thang') for this year is a trip to the US around August, September for 4 - 5 weeks with Mr SVJ. I want to attend the biggest & the best of the Flea Markets & shows while Mr SVJ is off doing some NON vintage 'stuff'. Thanks to the amazing Sue at Vintage Rescue Squad, I'm going to be using her 2010 calendar as my travel guide to ensure I attend the BEST venues....!!

Now to get things rolling I need to sort out my office....The above pics were taken yesterday & if you click on each one, you'll see it's quite the disaster area....As it's a long weekend here in Oz, I intend to utilise the extra time to organise it thoroughly....I'll post my 'after' pics on Sunday....!!


Well that's it for now....I look forward to sharing my progress with you.....!


Cheers, Tamarah