Hair Ideas

I really wish that I can just do my own hair and not deal with trying to find a hairstylist you can trust, cause I'm tired, really tired of bad places.  Living in Asia had it's problems, the biggest was language then was my hair type, I am always told off for my fine hair and it's dryness.  I try, I do, but that's just the way it is.  Oh and the fact that my hair has curl was another issue, so many stylists just straightened it in order to cut, strange.  

I once walked out of a salon with half-cut hair with my girlfriend which we then drowned our sorrows in a big fat sundae.  But later that night after fixing it myself and hitting the town I was complemented on my hair, which made me giggle.  

Before leaving Korea I finally found someone who was a friend and knew exactly what I needed and wanted and would do a fantastic job, and for the first time in years I was also able to have a conversation with my hair stylist, what a joy that was.  Now that I'm back in Calgary the search begins again and now that language is no longer an issue I thought this would be a lot easier, well....  I finally got a haircut and I was not happy.  The cut took five minutes of cutting, no wash and cost me $50!  I was in shock and horrified, I know I'm no longer in China where you get a massage with your cut, or in Korea where I get tea but wow, I've never been charged for an awful service.  The cut was terrible I wanted layers but the girl just did one layer with a blunt cut then straightened it.  I did want a touch up on my color and the other girl in the salon offered but saying that I want blonde color, I think she was color blind and I backed out.  The girl that did cut my hair spent most of the five minutes on her cell phone ~ what's up with that?

So, I'm off to LA and meeting YJ who has also not bothered to do her hair and normally waits until she's back in Korea, but also thinks it's time to get it done.  And why not do it together at a salon she's been recommended too.  I am hoping that they have skills and not ruin my trip.

Let's hope guys ;P

Boots, Shoes, boots, Shoes ~ me love :)

Gosh how I  love shoes and boots.  It was tough living in Asia where my feet are considered museum quality for it's huge size, every time I asked a sales clerk if they stock my size they immediately looked at my feet to see if it was true! 

Well, now that I'm back in the land where they are normal, in fact my size seems to be so popular they are sold out :(  I'm still a happy camper, and next week I'm off to LA, so the choice is even more so, I'll be like a little kid in a candy store :)

In the picture clockwise from the top right: Betsy Johnson "Lillian Ankle Boots" $110, Steve Madden "Ruffle-Fringe Pump" $99 Colin Stuart "Ruched Suede Boot" $128, Colin Stuart "Cuffed Boot" $129.

I've tried on the Betsy Johnson boots, they were super high, made my feet look tiny and my oh my they were super duper funky little monkies :)  The store didn't quite have my size, I think I take size 11 in boots!!!

Naughty Xmas Doodle

naughty xmas doodle, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

I love the new pen that I bought, but now that I'm trying out the software Sketchbook Pro, I'm so over the moon that I can sketch and draw just like the real thing, that I don't know when to stop!

I just found Shantell Martin's fantastic work, and now I'm missing Seoul terribly!

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

Mum gave me a "marshmallow hamburger monster" for Halloween, instead of eating it I took it for a walk ~ yep I don't have a pet!

I love how the photos turned out :0

Naughty Boys!, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

They were talking about my "marshmallow hamburger monster"!!!

Late Night Snacking

Late Night Snacking, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

I'm a secret late night snacker! I admit it!!! But ssshhh..........

Revamping my dresser :)

Revamping my dresser :), originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

Why throw away your old furniture? I know it's not easy to paint, and can be somewhat a pain to sand and get the paint nice and flat without any drips or brushstrokes, but hey the end result is so worth it.

I've seen this particular dresser on a couple reality TV shows, where they threw the set out and bought new stuff. Not that I really like this dresser, but it was the first furniture I ever bought with my first job here in Canada. It's also moved with me to every apartment while I was in college. However I took off to Asia for the last ten years, and it wasn't used much in my absence until now. So the well traveled dresser is now holding my collection of clothes as well as decorated with numerous items I've either bought on my travels or things I've made.

I'm so happy with how it's turned out, and surprised to see just how many blue items I had, as I'm normally a red or curry colored kind of gal! LOL

I need your help ~ pretty please :)

So, I've been a bit busy lately which has been fun, however I need your help to vote for my entry posted below. 

How to help:

October 10th public vote begins until October 24th.

Go to the Aarting website to vote.  

Or you can vote for "Chav" which was a collaboration with my cousin Luke, if you're unfamiliar what a "Chav" is, check out the video doooooooown below.

How do you feel?

How-Do-you-Feel, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

Sometimes things can feel like an emotional roller coaster. But not today, today is a great day! How do you feel?

I love Etsy

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade cheekynado.etsy.com I love Etsy and I'm trying to get motivated to make and sell my own items. There is so much to see that you could spend hours and hours just looking and being inspired.  Above is from my collection of favourite items.  J'adore!

Whale Island

Whale Island, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

I've been using this idea for a while now, especially on furniture. I entered this into Illustration Friday, which is a cool group on Flickr. Each week there's a new topic posted and you have a week to upload an illustration to the group. There's also a website.

You can't see clearly, but the whale is just under the aircon, as well on my table.  I did some drawings just on plastic as a way to decorate without hurting the walls, but it was also my inspiration while I worked.

My living room in Seoul, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

Holding on!

Holding on in colour!, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

I am addicted to playing around with illustrator anyhow this is a self portrait. Also I'm in love with this blue, I've been using this color in my work a lot, it's different to my usual choice, as I normally go for reds or "Curry Colours" as one instructor put it in art school.

Here's the scan.

The Old House

The Old House, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

A neighbor found photos of our house and the land. His family has been here for decades, I think it was his grandfather that built this house, I'm not so sure. But it's pretty cool to see how it used to be.

We are not sure of when the house was built some say it was built 1900 but others think it was 1910 or possibly a decade later. Anyhow it's still standing but it does need a lot of work. I'm a bit worried about the winter as I've been spoilt by my last apartment with it's warm floors as Korean homes are heating through the floors. But this house.... the insulation isn't finished and many walls are open as we are still going through renovations.

It's a cute home that my parents fell in love with.

Pink Party

Pink Party, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!

I haven't been sketching this week, but I have been fooling around with Illustrator. I should learn more, such as being able to convert this to JPG straight off from an Illustrator file as the quality gets lots a bit the way that I'm doing it. The lines look a bit pixelated. 

Have a smashing weekend :)

A Drawing!

My Nado!, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz Draws The Line!.

Seeing that I named my blog "Shazzbazz Draws The Line" I should post a drawing or two here and there. I did this last January for an Art Show curated by Mary Song, "Minority Report" in Seoul.

It's pen on a wooden table that was given to me by my school which I painted with acrylic. Unfortunately I had to take the legs off due to shipping charges being too crazy, and I'm glad I did as the legs had a few lodgers!

Decorating and Recycling

I have this on my desktop, I never liked blue in a home until now.

I love interior design and people's wonderful imagination in how to use their spaces.  Many of you may know that I've been posting a variety of links to websites/blogs that I frequent that feature interior design.  Well I'm still addicted maybe more than ever!  

I love how you can reinvent and give life to something old to be new again.

I'm still job hunting however I can't stay at home in Stavely and work in Calgary as it's just too far and I have much respect for those that do, but I am not looking forward to winter.  I can't and don't want to imagine myself driving each morning in the snow, and apparently the road into Stavely from my house is notorious in the winter months which is probably why everyone drives such monstrous pick-up beasts!  So the plan is according to me landing a job in Calgary or even Fort McMurray that I will purchase a place with the help of my family.

Which is why I'm feeding my addiction for interior design.  However I envy the flea markets that numerous bloggers blog about, Calgary is somewhat limiting, I know some Calgarians have good taste but my goodness some just don't.  I've been researching realty and eeeek many homes are so bland or just filled with flowery wreaths that decorate every nook and cranny.  I've been looking at Craigslist and Kijiji and wow, the things people sell are sometimes a cool bargain and others need to do some research before posting.  I saw a sofa and loveseat for sale for CDN$300, "What's the prob?" you may ask, well it was hideous, brown and flowery in a not so nice way. (Check out the Ugliest Couch Contest some have interesting shapes.)  I remember when I first came to Canada in '91 that stores where trying hard to flog em.  Gosh and to think I sold a nice white sofa for $20 and a grey one that I bought brand new and used for two years for $75!

I took this photo to show how ugly and uncomfortable these beasts are but yet they're popular in Korea, as well as the arrangement.  This house was huge, the space was empty.

Anyway we should recycle furniture more than we already do I've heard of some cities having a recycle furniture day or I remember in Hong Kong that every Chinese New Year many families would refurnish their homes in the hopes of cleaning out the bad luck well my friends and I would go on scavenger hunts to all the garbage dumps and come home with new furniture most expats arrived in HK with just a suitcase and now had fully furnished homes thanks to the garbage.  I knew of a few people who created businesses from this.

When I see Linda Crispell's home I just melt and get inspired.  Hope you do too.

I'm max

I'm max, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

I've posted before about "Where the Wild Things Are" and how I used it in the classroom. I miss my kids and maybe I should become a true elementary school teacher. It allows me to reach my own inner child too as you can see above :)

Argh!

I don't know if anyone else has these issues when they are trying to log into their blogger account. It takes three or more times for me to sign in, I am always automatically directed to the "Create a blog" page which is so annoying.  

Oh dear maybe it's just me getting old and falling behind technology ~ LOL 

Calgary Craigslist find: Tulip Dining Set

Calgary Craigslist find: Tulip Chairs and table, originally uploaded by Shazzbazz draws the Line!.

I'm so excited to find this set, I've been following websites like Design Sponge or Decor 8, I love what people have done. You can check them out in my favourites on Flickr as well as other things that tickle my fancy!

Also I really am inspired by artisans like Thomas Wold who created the amazing "Fractured Fairy Tales"

Or Danny Seo the "environmentalist lifestyle expert" who finds a greener creative approach to everyday living.  With some simple ideas to create some unique and fun alternatives.  Like painting your old fridge with chalkboard paint which serves two purposes like covering the ugliness as well as being functional art or lists.

I used to collect the Readymade magazines when I lived in Korea, as "What the Book" is an awesome store that you can order books online (for those in Seoul, Korea) with them as they're connected with U.S. Amazon.  So really for a Canadian gal like me  getting mags or books there was cheaper as some publishers still refuse to see that the Canadian dollar is just about on par with the U.S. dollar or is sometimes stronger but yet the pricing is still higher for Canadians which sucks!!!  Anyway the main point here was the fact that I was telling you to go get a Readymade mag, you won't be disappointed, or click and check out the website!

Well that was the highlight of my day the other part was me stuck in the South of Calgary with an overheated engine with steam pouring out of my hood.  Got that fixed just before my hour long drive home, luckily it happened here and not on the highway!  Once I got home and made myself a tuna sandwich as my brother recommended last night, well I broke my tooth in half :(

It's a sign of good things to happen, he he he he!  Happy weekend all!

So uhm, I didn't quite post the next day ~ oops!

So I left the last post at Ho Chi Minh City.  Well I went to Hong Kong kind of alone as United Airlines wasn't so kind in my request for my parents and I to sit together; yeah right, if one end of the plane to the other constitutes as together then I shouldn't complain!!!  Once in HK, my parents tried hard to change their flight to Canada and allow them to stay two days, but thanks to Oasis Airlines closure there was no way for them to get another confirmed flight and was best to stay on course :( so we said our goodbyes and parted our ways.

It was a sad and lonely bus trip to Fotan where Cherie lives.  I was so hoping that my parents could make it there with me as it's another place for them to visit as I had lived there for a couple of years and seem to be always drawn back to HK.  Anyway I got to Fotan and was to pick up the key from my old school, however they were away for a two hour lunch, so there I sat at the Mac Donald's next door for two hours!!!  It was interesting I even got chatting with a university student, so that was cool.

I stayed in HK for three weeks it was supposed to be a week and then to L.A. with Young-joo however she had some visa issues and had to return to Korea, so I was stuck in HK, but that was okay, it meant a longer stay with Cherie :)  I was a bit lazy too, as I had my own room for the first time in a month, so I slept a lot.  

HK was fun, I got to see more of Wanchai than I did when I lived there.  I met up with Vicki too which was cool.  I  love and hate HK for many things, and this trip made me see the better side of the city, and IF I ever move back I am definitely not living in the New Territories again, I want to be on the island.

I still had to fly to L.A. to get my connecting flight to Calgary, as my Air Canada ticket was carved in stone and I couldn't change it at all :(   I remember last year I was stuck for ten hours at LAX coming in from Maui to Calgary as the flight was delayed, well I thought no way am I going to sit for the four hours layover I had in the same gate again.  So I took off to Venice beach for a bit, which was awesome, if only I knew the last time just how close the beaches were to LAX!  I just relaxed on the beach did some people watching and took a taxi back with the best driver ever, he was from Tanzania and really made my day :)  But that was soon shattered to see that the same delay was about to happen, what are the chances of that???  I was flying the same flight as last year and again there were delays!!!!  I took how many flights on this trip and AC still can't get it together!!!  AARGH!

I finally arrived in Calgary just about midnight, then it's a two hour drive home :(

Anyway life in Canada has slowed down a lot, I mean sloooooooow!  I did get roped into drywalling and painting in the house, even when I visited my brother for a week in Fort Mac my mum and I were landscaping.   My friend Hee-jeong came to visit from Korea, she was to spend three months here, but it got cut short due to her dad's health, but luckily he's not too bad now that she's back there.  So now I'm home alone in Stavely still living out of a backpack, my shipping made it here okay but is now is storage awaiting the next phase.  JOB!  HOME!  In the meantime, I enjoying the creative energy that has recently hit me, I'm painting plates, sketching, painting furniture and playing with shrinky dinks (LOL)!!!

Wish me luck with the job hunt and the reversal culture shock!

I Know, I'm Sorry :)

It's been a long time since I posted I do apologize about four months!!!  Hi-ya!  Well as you can imagine lots has happened as well as the meaning of my blog which I will get into later.  So I last left off at "Moving Sucks" and let me tell ya it most certainly did!

The shipping company came in and packed up everything nicely for me, it's here in Canada, but I'm living in a small room in my parent's place so until I get my own space again can I unpack my stuff, for the moment I'm still living out of my backpack!

It was hard to hand over my keys as it meant much more than that.  I was lucky enough to find new tenants who wanted to buy most of all my stuff giving me some extra cash as well as saving me from the heartache and stress of selling each piece.  But I will miss my apartment however I'm looking forward to my next space as I'm determined that I will no longer rent, but instead own my home!!!  Damn I had better get a job!

Well as you can guess I'm now back in Canada with the folks but they themselves took a big leap this year along with my brother as they met me in Korea like I mentioned in an earlier post.  

It was fantastic to introduce my Korean life to my family who embraced more than I had anticipated which was awesome.  My friends were worried to meet them as they were nervous as the cultural barrier of how to speak or act around elders was really evident but once my friends met my family they realized how down to earth my family really is.  It was awesome!!!

We only stayed in Seoul, if there was more time I would have liked to take them to Daegu and introduce them to my first school and Mrs Cho who has helped me so much in Korea.  After all 대구 was my Korean hometown ~LOL!

Well even though it was great to be with my family it most certainly helped with the harsh reality that I was LEAVING Korea and all my wonderful friends.  It made it a lot easier as I'm still teary eyed knowing that I can't just call up Nado, or go to Hongdae in some club or gallery and meet up with Valthino, Sanae, Joo-young or other friends to party all night.  Or have a girly chit chat in Itaewon with Maryon or be involved in some art show thing with Mary!  I love them all and will miss Korea for it's people and the wonderful memories however I will be back for a visit as I left a piece of me there!!!

So that was that however another part was just beginning as my family and I were off to Thailand together.  I realized that it was the first time that all four of us were together on the same flight, the last time was when we first went to Canada for a holiday when I was 16!

WE had a wonderful time, mind you I think everything caught up with me the first night in Bangkok I was really ill, I've never thrown up in a restaurant, but I think I was under a lot of stress and now I can relax, but my body really went South!  Luckily the next day I was fine and ready to kick some ass as Bangkok's tour guide to the Palace and beyond ~ he he he!

We stayed in bangkok for three nights then flew down to Krabi where we stayed in a small resort that was absolutely the best ever!!!  Sure there were bugs but hey that's what you expect when in the jungle!

We had such a fantastic time going on a picnic with our longtail boats whizzing pass so many islands then picking our own private beach to eat baguettes and drink beer ~ that's the life!  The resort was so friendly and comfortable it was fun to eat dinner with everyone at one large table as well as go sea kayaking with everyone, however my parents opted out instead they took the dogs for a stroll along the empty beach that our resort was nicely located on.  The best place that I stayed in.

Andrew left to go back to work, but the three of us went onto to Siem Reap which I have been trying to go to, and I'm so happy that I got to go with my folks.

We visited Angkor Wat which was amazing, my parents weren't so sure what I was talking about but once we were there they were in total awe!  We had a great time with our driver who was the same age as me but his naiivety was quite cute.  He drove us around for the three days we were there, at only $30 a day I thought it was higher than what was advertised however it was a steal for what he provided for us in the end and what that money represents to his family.

The next day we were off to Vietnam by bus however we had to stop over for a night in Phnom Phen then the next we took another bus to Ho Cho Minh City.

We didn't stay too long in HCMC in fact as soon as we got off the bus we walked straight into a travel agent and booked the first flight to Hanoi.  We got to our hotel quite late, but weren't too pleased being on the top floor of the tall skinny hotel that has no elevators, so carrying all the luggage wasn't the most fun to do in Hanoi!  The next day not only did we find a better place to stay in but we also booked a two day tour in Halong bay.  It's about a three hour drive from Hanoi but Halong bay was worth everything.  However I was most disappointed with the pollution as the junk boats dunk all of their garbage into the sea!!!  :(  We took off to Cat Ba Island, but I wasn't too happy with the place, it was certainly quieter than the other places we had seen in Vietnam, but some of the worst food!!!  We didn't have good food until our last night in Vietnam but that was in HCMC as our flights to Hong Kong was from that point.

*Will write more tomorrow! I promise :)