Well it has been secret squirrel city here at HQ the last week or so, the excitement just bubbling under the surface....what is she on about this time??? ...well read on...
...sometimes in life when bad things happen, good things follow...well this is one of those things !!
A few weeks back our house in New Zealand suffered some water damage in a storm that dumped an extraordinary amount of rain in a very short time. Thankfully the insurance has got it all under control. However, we have been non stop in touch with builders, roofers and so on trying to decide the best plan of action and make the right decisions. Our lovely tenants have moved out today to relocate their business further north (this was already happening pre-storm anyway), and we have a new set moving in next week. With all the to and fro-ing...eventually one thing led to another and Mark decided that perhaps it would be so much easier if he went back and had a good look at the house overall, and have a bit of a catch up while there with friends and family.
So I told him go for it, have fun, say hi to everyone for me and see you when you get back....however, he was pretty keen for me to go with him so we could both decide what to do. He prefers to do things with me, rather than on his own (awwww), but I'm thinking of 20 reasons NOT to go (call me weird)...but life is so much easier if one of us stays here at HQ!
I said I would go if we could organise demo days in a few shops, next thing we were planning a Melbourne stop off prior to NZ, and then a blink later and the whole trip was booked! Well I guess that's a yes then! We're off.
I've been up late most nights this week talking to a zillion kiwi people, booking appointments with them, planning accommodation with friends and family up and down the country, organising shop demos and classes, as well as keeping up with the normal demands of PAHQ. It's not been easy, we are an elf down, as the lovely Emma is on holibobs in Portugal at the mo! I think this is why Mark wanted me there now - his personal assistant is on board to manage the 'PA on-tour' diary/ itinerary !
For those of you who don't know our story, I was born in England, but raised in NZ since I was 5. Went to school and uni, got married, had kids in NZ and then with the kids aged 1,3,5 and 7, we left New Zealand 13 years ago (this week actually) to go to England for a 3-5 year working holiday. Mark has been back to NZ once to sort out some business issues, and I have never been back so I'm feeling quite emotional about the whole thing! Well if I'm honest, I'm trying not to think about it yet. Once I'm on the plane it will hit!
If you are down under and wondering which shops I might pop up in, below is all the info you need, it would be lovely to see you, all the shops concerned can provide you with more details, so contact them direct.
Shop 1: Crafter's Cupboard, Melbourne, AU
Friday May 23rd : Crafters Cupboard, Berwick (am class, afternoon/evening demo)
- Book online or
- call Jennifer on 03 8790 5287 or
- email customerservice@CraftersCupboard.com.au
Shop 2: Art of Craft, Mt Maunganui, NZ
Thursday 29th May: Art of Craft, 4 Aranui Drive, Papamoa (demos all afternoon/ early evening)
- call Dianne or Jason on 07 5720595 or
- email admin@artofcraft.co.nz
Shop 3: Craftables, Auckland, NZ
Saturday 31st May: Craftables, 9/ 36 William Pickering Drive, Albany, Auckland (demos from mid afternoon)
- call Paula on 09 414 4100
- email paula@craftables.co.nz
A huge thankyou to these retailers for agreeing to have me in store at short notice. I can't wait to meet you and share PaperArtsy products and techniques with you all.
If you are coming to the demos, what will you see? I will be working with a wide variety of our stamps, stencils, paints, Grunge Paste, Treasure Gold showing many ideas and techniques and you might even get to be hands on and have a go yourself!
