Hi! Sorry for the absence. I’m sure my mum (who visits my blog daily) must be wondering by now what I’ve been up to!

Last weekend, we went on a South West trip to film a documentary for the Shire of Kulin. Kulin is a small town situated in the Upper Southern whealtbelt area of Western Australia. It took us 4 hours to get there and it was quite a picturesque drive with rolling hills, open farmlands, cattles, sheeps and horses throughout. I even spotted some alpacas!

While Richard was filming, I wandered around taking a few snapshots. I think the pictures kind of sum up the classic Australian farming lifestyle!

I’m looking forward to returning to the town next month. We’ll be filming Kulin’s famous Tin Horse Highway so I’ll post more pictures then. I hope you are all well! xox

This weekend I finished up a crate of Little Mo goodies, ready to be delivered to the Montage Pop-Up Shop. I’m so excited, 3 more days to go!

I also spent a few hours cutting up price tags from old card stock for my Little Mo jewellery…only to realise that I could have bought ready made tags at Officeworks!

I think I’m satisfied with my overall packaging, it looks minimal and natural like how I want it to be. But maybe you can let me know your feedback, do you think it works with my art?

I find that it can be a challenge trying to run my business as environmentally friendly as possible. Whilst I’m passionate about the cause, I’m also limited to the choice of materials that I can use for my stationery and gift range. Usually I have to think twice before introducing a new product in my shop. I have to find the right materials to use, preferably sustainable and recycled. When it comes to packaging, I also have to avoid fancy packaging, plastics and extra paper materials.

In saying that, this has led me to hoarding a nice collection of stamps! They’ve proven to be my best friends for all my eco packaging needs, particularly my Little Mo shop orders. Some of these stamps were bought at flea markets, holidays trips or given to me by lovely friends from snail mail packages. I love each and every stamp!

I know you’ve waited for our holiday pictures for so long and it’s taken me this long to edit them! Between the two of us…I think we took about 2000 over photos! I’m not sure how I’m going to condense all the stories I’m about to tell you of our trip…but here goes!

Germany was our first stop in Europe. My mum and step dad lives in Stuttgart, in the state of Baden-Württemberg so we spent most of our time touring the Southwest of the country before making our way up north. Southwest Germany is beautiful for its mountain landscapes, lush Black Forest and half-timbered towns. The region is also famous for its cuckoo clocks and needless to say, we wasted no time in purchasing one for our house:) I’ll share pictures in my next post.

Rich found that the longer he stayed in Germany, the more he grew to love the sights and its people. We agreed that Germans are hands down one of the funniest and friendliest people!

Since we were always on the go, we would start our day with a freshly baked pretzel from the bakery. I like the pumpkin seed ones the best.

One of our holiday highlights was a road trip down to Bavaria with some friends. The sight of the Bavarian alps were just incredible!

Now, being in a country where it’s famously known as the ‘Country of castles’ (there is around 25,000 castles in Germany) you could say we were spoiled with choices. Hence our trip to Bavaria because there was only one castle that we REALLY had to visit; the Neuschwanstein Castle.

Built in the 18th century by King Ludwig II, Neuschwanstein Castle is also known as the “Fairy Tale Castle” and is said to have inspired several Walt Disney castles. The castle was breathtakingly beautiful and to see it up close and walk through the rooms that Kind Ludwig II visioned himself, was an unforgettable experience!

On one of our day trips out of Stuttgart, we visited a university town called, Tübingen. The Neckar river runs through the old town which makes this scene look postcard perfect! We strolled along the river and park, before venturing into the medieval town centre. We bought fresh raspberries from the marketplace and for most of the afternoon I had sticky red fingers.

In Esslingen which is just on the outskirts of Stuttgart, we hiked up the steep cobbled hill to check out the town’s castle. Once up at the lookout tower, we were treated to an amazing panorama of the village and the vineyard. Walking down the cobbled road later proved to be a challenge itself!

Aside from castles and alps, Germany is also famous for its wide range of beer, sausages and currywurst (hot pork sausage seasoned with curry ketchup). The serving size in this country is ridiculously huge and most of the time I was contented with eating one meal a day!

Next stop Berlin…in my next post!

Heya! I thought I’d write one last post and share with you my first roll of film from my Diana Mini before we leave for our trip!

I was a bit nervous when I collected my film because I’ve heard of horror stories from other lomo photographers about their first roll being a total disaster! But wow, I was pleasantly surprised to find how much I loved my photos for all its quirks and imperfections. I was lucky that most of my photos turned out well (thanks to my film enthusiast husband).

The first few photos I took overlapped or overexposed too much because I didn’t realise that I had to wind the counter all the way till it stopped, before taking my next shot. But some of the accidental exposed shots came out lovelier than I expected! The beauty of the Diana Mini is you can take endless multiple exposures, usually 2 or 3 is good enough. This one had 5 images overlapped! So do it at your own risk!

After I realised my mistake, I started winding the counter properly! Here are a few of my favourites.

Nothing beats a blue blue sky

On a good day during my lunch break, I like to take my packed lunch and sit out at the park or by the beach. I think this is the best view to look at when I eat my sandwich!

My first long exposure shot with the train and cars passing by. All I remember is shouting “one alligator…two alligator” while holding the shutter open.

With me that night was a very hungry and cold husband who modeled in for me while I played with my camera!

Last weekend we celebrated my birthday early and I requested a massively candle-lit cake

Niina brought back a suitcase full of toys from her recent Hong Kong trip

It was a great night!

Film stock used: Fujicolour Superia 200

Today my day with Autumn started out like this…

I took out Olivier’s moleskine and worked on my last contribution for his book. I painted a blustery scene amidst the blue sky since we’ve been having some of those lately.

I used my new watercolour brush pen and watercolour kit. I think it’s one of the best things I ever purchased…besides my Diana mini and imac:)

Then I walked to the post office to mail off Olivier’s book.

And on the way home, Autumn wished me goodbye through the trees.

I took out this Eco Lifestyle Handbook from the local library a few days ago. It’s quite an interesting read with lots of eco tips for your home, garden, business and well being.

Here are some of my favourites:

- Use fresh herbs or flowers ideally cut from your own garden to fragrance your home than synthetic air fresherners. Indoor plants act as natural air conditioners and can remove up to 87% of indoor pollution in 24 hours.

- Wash your fruit and vegetable in a bowl rather than under a running tap. Re-use the bowl of water on your garden plants.

- Once a week have a candlelit dinner to save energy. Use vegetable-based candles.

- Grow mint in pots around windows. Mint is a natural insect repellent. Make a package of cloves, eucalyptus and peppermint to hang in kitchen cupboards and drawers as a deterrent.

- Every time you boil an egg, make sure you save the leftover for your house plants. The nutrients released from the shell of the eggs during cooking are particularly beneficial. Let water cool before using.

- Bake your own bread. Go back to a simpler time when bread was made of flour, salt, water and yeast. You will be able to avoid additives and preservatives found in shop-brought bread.

- Substitute pulses (legumes) for meat. Add them to stew, casseroles, soups and sauces. They are high in fibre, helps to lower blood cholesterol and is a good source of iron.

- Buy free-range, organically raised meat and poultry products. The animals will have been raised humanely and on untreated feeds, resulting in chemical-free food. You can also be assured that the soil from these farms is treated well, reducing the impact on wildlife habitats.

- Avoid products with “meat protein” in the ingredient list, it means you’re buying heavily processed food.

- Water is the best toner for your skin.

- Buy local and handmade.

- Plan a green picnic or a healthy and green holiday. Enjoy nature!

My first chilli pod!

Remember when I was given a baby chilli plant for my birthday last year? Well, it started fruiting! All I can see is just one pod…but I’m hoping and wishing that there will be more to come!!

Some photos from our winery adventures. We had so much fun!

We went up to Swan Valley, got a map from the tourist centre and drove through the wine trails stopping at the local wineyards. We stopped at some pottery shops and the chocolate factory, bought chocolate (obviously) and some fresh local produce. We even found a Little Mo pond for me to sketch!

The wine tasting was wonderful on that summer afternoon…I don’t think I remembered much after that…other then we found this lovely spot to sit…and unwind from all that wine drinking!

Oh I got a bit lucky, I had a surprise present from Big Mo. I could get used to this!

Fresh from our garden!

Some random things that kept me occupied this weekend.

Fresh basil from the garden. I took a handful and made mushroom and ricotta pasta for dinner.

Sun parasols. This was a wedding gift from one of our guests and now that spring is here, it has started blooming again:)

Fresh strawberries for tea.