Katheyl

Reading Landscape by Kyle Kirkpatrick

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Love these elf-ears inspired earrings! How whimsical!

medicatedmaniac:

I’d wear this all the time.

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How did you start your new year?

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We did eventually make it for the Christmas markets in Nürnberg and Salzburg!

I’ve been unwell since late November and things got worse after my last market. I got so ill that I could hardly get out of bed for 2 days. It was really scary ‘cos the symptoms were nothing that I’ve ever had in my life!

Fortunately I got better after a second visit to the doc, who prescribed me a cocktail of antibiotics and other meds.

Despite feeling better after all the medication, the husband was adamant that we stayed in town ‘cos I was still very fragile. He couldn’t risk me getting infected again while I was still trying to recover. I was, of course, very disappointed since it would be the 3rd year missing the market at Nürnberg, and the 2nd time for Salzburg (I’ve always been sick during winter).

Thankfully I got better along the way. And after watching me like a hawk for the next 2 weeks, the husband finally decided that I was well enough to make the trips. Can’t tell you how relieved I was!

And I’m so glad that we managed to visit the 2 markets in the end! Nürnberg Christmas market is most famous one within Germany while friends have been raving about the one in Salzburg.

I very much prefer the market in Salzburg. It’s within the old town which is already very charming on its own. I remember how much I love the cobblestone streets, tight alleys and quaint buildings when we visited last year. The market itself sells really pretty stuff that were unlike the ones I’ve seen in Munich and Nürnberg. I certainly wouldn’t mind visiting it again next year if we’re still in Europe.

With these 2 wishes fulfilled, the next item on my list would be to visit the Scandinavian countries. I don’t think it’s gonna happen that soon, given the weather now, but it’s definitely high up on my list for the coming year. Meanwhile, I shall look forward to my home trip!

As I grow older, I’d start a new year thinking about how fast the year would past and how we’d be welcoming the following year in a blink of an eye.

I still feel the same this year.

2011 marks the second year that I’ve been away from home. I can’t say that I’ve really adjusted to the life here, especially the weather which is practically killing me during the cold seasons. But I guess I’ve slowly learned to deal with the differences and inconveniences.

My cravings for all Singaporean food fare start to sink in this year, which I guess it’s quite an achievement (to be able to last this long). I found myself plowing through websites to get the right recipes and I had also spent more time experimenting new dishes. Of course the husband has the honor of being the guinea pig of all my experiments.

Speaking of the husband, he’s been nothing but awesome. It hasn’t been easy for him at work (the cultural differences and practices at work and lots more) but he’s always around when I need him and doesn’t mind putting up with my nonsense. I’ve always looked at him and marveled at the amount of patience, strength and resilience that he has, and even more so since we moved here. He is definitely the key person in making my life here a much more pleasant one.

This year also marks the start of our new venture. The husband had always wanted us to do something together here (like how we used to do archery together in Singapore) and so we did! It’s been a fun and interesting journey so far, learning stuff that I have never imagined myself picking up.

As for my own humble business, I’ve met some of the goals that I’ve set for the year, though I could have done better. But given the limitations which are beyond my control, I guess the result is not that bad afterall. The highlights of the year include getting featured on the websites of one of the popular local magazines, participating in the first Hello Etsy (where I got to put faces to names that I’ve known online) and also the opportunity to participate in the second Hello Handmade market.

It’s also through this little handmade business of mine that I got to know more people in this part of the world. This year, I’ve forged closer friendships on one hand and also discovered the true and disappointing side of some people on the other.

Leisure wise, we had managed to cover a couple of places which I’ve always wanted to go - Paris (which is now my least favorite European city after the trip), Rome (to fulfill my dream of seeing the Colosseum) and Hamburg. We had also revisited Berlin and Salzburg (I’m absolutely in love with their Christmas market there!) and also covered several Bavarian towns. We have yet to visit the Scandinavian countries so we’ll definitely try to do it next year.

Family wise, there’s plenty to cheer and be happy about! There’s a wedding brewing right now, and engagement news of one of my sisters. We also received good news from my BIL just before the year ends. My family means the world to me, so if there’s only one wish that I’m allowed, it’s definitely for them - to stay happy and healthy always.

So we are just a few hours short of moving into the new year. I’ve yet to think about what I wanna do in 2012, partly because I’ve been so busy and then becoming so sick for the whole month, and also because of some uncertainties that we hope to resolve in the coming months.

Meanwhile husband and I are just gonna be having a quiet evening together since I’m still trying to recover from this nagging bug attack. 2012 is going be an interesting year for us and I’m curious to see how it unfolds :)

Our Christmas sale is still on!

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Please excuse me for the blurry photos of the market I was participating yesterday. I had reminded myself to bring my camera while I was lying in bed the night before. Ended up I still forgot about it in the morning ‘cos I wasn’t really in the best of health.

Note to self - never procrastinate if you have a bad memory :P

Anyhow, the market was fabulous! It’s the yearly Glockenbach Weihnachtsmarkt and it has been around for the past 7 years or so. I decided to give it a shot this year after hearing many good reviews about it and friends have been prompting me to go for it.

The rent was rather steep, given the space that we had. I opted for the smallest area since I just merely wanted to try things out. And boy was the space tiny! We were literally placed side by side, shoulder to shoulder.

I brought 2 tables of 70cm x 70cm each but could only use one of it :( (I was kinda hoping there would be a teeny weeny bit of space to accommodate just a few more centimetres). So I had to improvised my display and make the best out of the situation.

The response turned out to be what everyone had told me. The crowd was wonderful and there was a constant stream of visitors flowing into the hall. It kinda reminded me of the Hello Handmade market I was at in October. Of course it wasn’t as packed as HH but it was still a good turnout.

My neighbours were fabulous too. On my left was a lady selling vintage items and prints (silly me had forgotten to get her namecard!! Argh!) and the one on my right has a shop in Schwabing and sells beautiful Japanese fabrics and stuff (I’ve got her namecard somewhere but right now I’m too tired to dig for it).

All of us were pretty much kept busy for the whole day. It was fun, with a few funny anecdotes here and there. If only I was feeling better to enjoy the whole atmosphere (and the food from the cafe ‘cos they seem yummy!).

I’ve been unwell for the last one week or so and I was getting worried that I wouldn’t be able to make it for Glockenbach. I rested as much as I could but still wasn’t sure if I would recover in time. There would be days that I felt alright and some that I felt I was really going down.

To make things worse, my throat infection went on to give me a really bad dry cough. I could barely sleep for the last few nights ‘cos I would cough myself awake. Needless to say, my poor husband didn’t have quality sleep because of my incessant (loud) coughing :P

In addition, I was anxious about getting well for yesterday and ended up not being able to rest properly (oh, the irony!).

My husband was trying to make me drop the idea of going to the market yesterday but I begged him (“It’s the last one of the season!”) ‘cos I really wanted to be there. Like all good husbands, he gave in (reluctantly though :P). He went on to prepare some snacks for me so that I would have stuff to nibble on throughout the day, and also made me drink a glass of honey water before accompanying me to set up at the market.

I feel really guilty that he had to come home without dinner but had to prepare dinner instead. He would also made me drinks to make sure I’m properly hydrated and my throat’s soothed. Then he had to put up with my coughing at night and also getting up in the wee hours to give me medication ‘cos I was too weak to get out of bed.

Now I’m worried that I would pass the bug to him given that he hasn’t been having quality sleep.

With all the markets finally over, I’m hoping that I will recover soon. Remember what I said about travelling after I’m done with the markets? That’s a huge question mark now given my state of health. I’m still hoping we can make it to Salzburg this coming weekend (Looks like we’re not going to be able to make it for Nuremberg for the 3rd year). The chances are a little slim (especially when the husband is really strict about me getting 100% well before we go anywhere) but we’ll see.

Wish me lots of luck in chasing this bug away!

Our Christmas sale is still on!

Shipping is on us when you purchase any item from our Botanical Collection!

I’m 3/4 done with the markets of this season and can I say I’m so glad?

While it’s been fun participating in the markets, it’s also super tiring at the same time. But I’m glad that I’ve met lots of interesting people and also got some really cool stuff.

I don’t know how it started but my brooch collection has been steadily growing since last year when I participated in my first Christmas market. I’m generally too lazy to accessorise myself (even though I make jewelry) but somehow I just can’t resist brooches! I guess it’s mainly because most of my outfits are rather plain so these little things help to brighten things up effortlessly.

The sweet bird brooch is from Maria while the cute deer one is from Andreea, both ladies whom I’ve met last weekend. I just had to get those 2 ‘cos they were running out fast!

Then I bought these cool pouches from my neighbour, Steffi, who has been a really sweet and fun companion. Now I’m torn between which one to give away as a present.

So there’s just one more market on this Sunday before I can finally have a good rest. I came to know about it last year and had badly wanted to visit, but I was involved in another market and too tired to drag myself there.

It’s gonna be a big one with about 55 sellers. A few crafters that I know will be there as well and I’m definitely looking forward to meeting more new people! And of course getting some shopping done..hehe..

I just hope this bug that has been lingering since Sunday will be gone by the weekend. It’s threatening to bring me down so I guess I don’t have much of a choice but to go to the doc tomorrow (I’m not looking forward to braving the rain and cold to get to the clinic).

My health has always been poor during the cold seasons and I really wonder if I would ever get used to this crazy weather. It also makes me wonder if this is the place that I want to stay for long. I’ve always said I prefer the heat and I still stick to that, especially after being here. Give me those 30degC days anytime, with humidity thrown in and I won’t complain.

Oh well, time to go gurgle some salt water again to relieve my sore throat….(sorry for the rather messy post and abrupt ending as my head is threatening to explode..baaaa)

Last weekend had been a pretty interesting one when I did my second Christmas market of the season.

The weather was fantastic and so were the visitors. There were some glitches but I was determined not to let them affect me. I strongly believe that positive thoughts will generate positive outcomes :)

And that sure happened. I’m thankful for the kind gestures that I had received over the weekend:

1. The kind owner of the cafe came to my rescue with a spare lamp as the lighting at my booth wasn’t that good (and I didn’t bring any additional light sources. My bad :P).

2. This sweet elderly couple was very sympathetic with my lighting situation after I’d put up the lighting, which was really glaring and unflattering. They were trying to help me think of ways how I could display the lamp so that it worked best for me. They left subsequent and wishing me the best of luck. They came back again on the second day of the market and swung by just to say hi to me. :)

3. I had a really sweet neighbour on the second day of the market, Mona. She makes really lovely brooches and I just happen to love brooches!

She came to my rescue with loose change when a customer gave me a big note and I was racking my brains to think of how to get the change. It was a really sweet gesture ‘cos the day was still young and she might need the change for herself later on. She was also my German translator whenever I had problems understanding what the customers were saying.

I really enjoyed her company throughout the day. At the end of the market, we did a swap and I got 2 brooches from her. It was TOUGH deciding which ones to get since I love them all! The one on the right is so Harry Potter-ish!

I’ve still got 2 more weekends of markets to participate before I take a break and do some travelling! Already up on our list is Nuremberg and Salzburg since they have wonderful Christmas markets. I’m hoping to squeeze in one or two more but that may be a bit too ambitious ;)

Well, we’ll see! :)

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