Simple thought...

"Sorry," one of the many beautiful works by Sara Wood.

Another day at the office

So yesterday i shared with you a little bit of my office and the big green backyard. Today we had a visit from a bee catcher, he wore the white suit and all (how cool!) This little bee hive turned out to be a flippen massive one and had to bee moved ;) Thankfully no bee or person was harmed during the move. The bees, as well as part of their hive have been relocated to a bedfordview apiary (a fancy word for bee farm).

1 HOUR. . .

This little shark guy is one of many in my office, i have to say its pretty cool having all these little characters positioned around the studio.

1 HOUR. . .

As i swivel my office chair around to take this next little snap shot, you will notice the view i have is pretty cool!

1 HOUR

so i have dedicated ONE WHOLE HOUR to balloonvine as i feel that the neglect has gone on long enough. the next few little posts will be of everything in the next hour of my work life. . . i want to make it as exciting as i can so here goes. . . first thing my work space this is super not cool but i will share. I look after this little cherry tree which in Carnelian (have no idea what that is) helps to increase motivation and empowers self determination, it improves memory (which is not my strong point) and balances energy. The tissue with the doodle was a little gift from one of the animators he doodled me :) a glass of water to rehydrate ALWAYS, my collection of pens and pencils that i never really use and last but not least my lap top.....

A stern warning

I spotted this very stern warning on the label of a South African wine bottle, i had to have a little giggle although the warning is very serious, you must always remember DO NOT drink and walk in the road, you may be killed!

Simple thought...

"daily reminder", a typographic woodburn by becky murphy

Awesome places...

Neighbourgoods market braamfontein.

So this is exciting stuff happening right here at my finger tips.... i have just downloaded this awesome photo app to my ipad, i can now awesomfi any photo where ever I am and then upload it straight onto balloonvine...... WHAT!! ya, no jokes! so now i can confirm that my blogging ability just amplified a zillion times over and i am going to be all over this.. starting....NOW!

So every weekend until now and hopefully forever Braanfontein will house the neighbourgoods market. If any of you are familiar  with the old biscuitmill in Cape Town, you will be happy to know that there is the same concept happening in good old Jozi.. Flip Yeah! Do yourself a favour and take a trip into Town, hit Juta Street and walk!

Awesome Art by Popsaart!

When i first caught a glimps of this piece of art, i was like.. whoa damn! The artists name is Pappy Onwuagbu, he is 24 years old and has made good old Jozi his home. Pappy started off by drawing stick men with circles as muscles, as he stated "i love muscles!" He then trained himself up to a point where his characters no longer even resembled stick men but rather proper forms that took ownership of the paper that they were placed.

"The magical finger piano" by Pappy Onwuagbu.

"This painting is about a Zulu boy who hides the last remaining leopards from poachers in his magical finger piano, he releases them once the poachers are gone. In return they will have to train him to be a fierce and stealthy warrior like themselves." ~ Pappy Onwuagbu

Simple thought...

"Our story will always read LOVE," a letterpress poem art print from Sycamore Street Press.

Go green!

A while back I stumbled upon this little gem in Parkhurst. Firstly, Parkhurst has to be one of the trendiest spots in Jozi, with a over flowing hand full of awesome restaurants, coffee shops and original shops. Getting back to the gem though, as soon as I entered their doors i was overwhelmed with feelings of PURE joy and excitement! I think i passed out.. maybe.. possibly.. not sure. They laser cut the bejeezers out of anything and come up with the coolest original ideas that could make any mind explode. The shops name is simply....

Glam up those nasty electric fences with PERSPEX birds

Add a little querkyness with this magazine holder

BEST design/shape ever created in my eyes

Need i say more YO!

 Go take a look for yourself the green grass shop is at the end of 4th Avenue, Parkhurst.

Are you lost???

This past weekend I had rub my eyes and double take a moment.. if that makes any sense! We were driving along a very busy, main road in Johannesburg on Sunday morning and true as BOB a flippen old dude was cruising along with the traffic on his HORSE and carriage, NO JOKES! Yes, he obeyed all the rules of the road and stopped at the robot, South African term for a traffic light .... but really!! So glad i could catch him in action!

Here they come...

There they are...

I have to admit though, although the road is very main and very busy there are plenty of plots and small farms not too far away... but still i got excited ok!

The BIG blue African sky...

I was driving home the other day and to my excitement the sunset was off the hook awesome AND i was able to catch is on digital... yes please!!

Flip how beautiful!!!

Simple thought...

"You Can Go Your Own Way," on an antique map from Amy Rice Art.

Well said by good old Fleetwood Mac

Dully's who?

This post is slightly outdated as its not winter anymore but eish is all i can say. Dully SLASH Dullstroom interesting face number ONE Dullstroom is home to the three endangered cranes and particularly the scarce wattled crane.

1x Wattled crane

Only 2 hours from Gauteng, en route to the Kruger National Park. Picture a log fire, a misty morning, a trout stream. Not a dream - it's Dullstroom whoo hoo!!!

Anyway, so my whole family headed on up to our farm for a Christmas in July. It was flippen awesome having everyone there. The farm is actually about 30min away from Dully's but its still part of Mpumalanga and a nice little day trip for some pub hopping.

Interesting fact number TWO: The village, situated at 2100m above sea level in the Steenkampsberg range, dates back to the early 1880's, when Dutch settlers came to the area. The town got its name from some guy named Wolterus Dull, chairman of the Dutch immigrants. The "stroom" (stream) refers to the abundance of water in the area: The Crocodile River, which runs through the Kruger National Park, has its origin in Dullstroom.

Amazing little sweet shop

All year round Christmas shop

Too pretty!

For those who have never ventured to the quiet little town of Dullstroom... WHERE THE HECK HAVE YOU BEEN! Do yourself a favour and take a weekend off and hit the highway you wont regret it.

I am off to the Joburg Fringe arts fair this weekend in Braanfontein, will have it all well documented and ready to share. Have an awesome weekend peeps!

 

Really cool spot

We have this really cool spot called Braamfontein , it's filled with quirky, off the wall happening little spots and for some reason majority of Jo-burgers are slightly frightened by the fact that its part of, or too close to the big city! Lets get something straight here, it ain't that bad nor is it super scary in actual fact its flippen AWESOME! A couple of weeks back, we ventured that side to the opening of a friends cafe called Velo cafe. We parked on Juta street, got out of our Vehicle...... and walked people.. yes we strolled the street Juta I tell you!

A live band just jamming away in some little atrium with people sitting in a little cafe to the one side and awesome shops selling artwork, vintage clothing, custom furniture, lamography cameras and so much more on the other. We carried on walking until we came across our final destination, Velo cafe and man was the place buzzing, the sandwiches are to pass out for, the atmosphere is electric and of course the area is great to explore.

Do yourselves a favour and take a stroll that side of jozi, it really is delightful!

Velo Cafe

Juta Street

Awesome Artwork

Street full of colour

Holy macaron!!!!

My friend Breetle stays in Cape Town (lucky fish) and when she came up to Jozi this last time she surprised me with a pretty parcel all for ME! I had heard so much about these colourful, delicate tastey's and boy oh boy are they something special. That shattering yet chewy cookie sandwiching the smooth gauche filling, is a combination of textures and flavors that is like no other type of cookie. it’s a unique confection and stands in a class by itself, like a separate species in the genera of cookiedom. AAAHHHH macaron in my face!

They came in this beautifully presented little box from a delicatessen in Cape Town called Daniella's DELISH! 

My first little orchid

Now, I know orchids are not a local flower and yes they originate from Asia BUT I am a South African and it belongs to me so there!!  This has to be one of the most pretty little plants around and ever so popular. Flip I loved my orchid it was the easiest plant to look after, you only need to water it once a week, it bloomin flowers for SIX monthsish and it grows even better when spoken to with words of endearment, yes I spoke to my plant! I tried to capture the process of the buds opening, I think I did an OK job but I'll let you make your own judgement on my brilliant skills.. JOKES!

Taaadaaaa..

Simple thought...

I have been super SLACK with posting lately but I would just like to say......

"Thanks For Finding Me," an illustrated greeting card from Brooklyn's King Popcorn.

Simple thought..

Black Spring raise your fist to the sky...

Shew wee it has been a while since my last post, in fact its a whole new season!! Its finally the AWESOME blooming buds, sweet jasmin, thundershowers to come SPRING. Spring day is slightly different this year, there has been a movement on FB to take a stand against the mutilation of one of South Africa's big 5, the Rhino. The plight was simple, tie a black ribbon to the right side mirror of your car and wear black instead of brightly coloured clothing to show your support against this destructive and senseless war against this magnificent mammal.

Some interesting fact on the rhino...

1. Depending on the species, rhinos can live to be 35 – 50 years old.
2. Rhino horns are made of keratin, the same material that makes up your hair and fingernails.
3. The closest living rhino “relatives” are tapirs, horses and zebras.
4. Rhino pregnancies last 15 – 16 months. Yikes!
5. A rhino’s skin is much softer than it looks, and is actually quite sensitive to sunburns and insect bites. (That’s why rhinos like rolling in the mud so much – it helps to protect them from the sunburns and insects.)

Reasons why Poaching is so out of control and the devastation it has caused to the species ...

A total of 333 rhinos were illegally killed in South Africa in 2010, including ten critically endangered black rhinos, according to national park officials. The yearly total is the highest ever experienced in South Africa and nearly triple 2009 when 122 rhinos were killed in the country.
Kruger National Park was hit the hardest losing 146 rhinos to poaching in 2010; the park is home to the largest populations of both white and black rhinos in the country. Rhino poaching across Africa has risen sharply in the past few years, threatening to reverse hard-won population increases achieved by conservation authorities during the 20th century. The first alarming spike occurred in 2008 when 83 rhinos were lost. South Africa responded by intensifying its law enforcement efforts, and made approximately 162 

The recent killing increase is largely due to heightened demand for rhino horn, which has long been prized as an ingredient in traditional Asian medicine. It has been claimed recently that rhino horn possesses cancer-curing properties as well as the ability to cure impotence; despite there being no medical evidence to support the assertion. Each horn weighs around 10kg and currently fetches over US$ 20,000 per kilo on the Asian market.

Help with the fight against rhino poaching and protect the South African black and white rhino's from extinction!!

Winter wonderland South African style

Good afternoon on this very chilly Tuesday. The cold front might have passed through Jozi yesterday, leaving people posting FB statuses of snow falling in different parts of the city.. much excitement and disbelief by all i can imagine! Lets just be honest now, nothing compares to the snow that landed in Dullstroon SLASH Dully's today as the cold-front made its way through the small town, up towards Limpopo. I received some photos from my friend Laura today of complete 'whiteness'. I could not believe it, total awesomeness and beyond!! Dully's is about a 3 hour trip outside of joburg so if your up for throwing a few snow balls, making snow angels, snow men or just seeing proper snow then take the trip. OH how i wish I wish a could make a snow cone right now.

Simple thought..