Author Archives: zefiart

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About zefiart

Blogger, DIY-er, poodle lover, graphic designer, dog groomer, recycler, artist, wonder woman in my spare time.

welcome vince vega!

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You all know how much I missed having a poodle in my life since Lainee died. I still miss her like I miss all the poodles I’ve loved in my life.

In the beginning it was too painful to think of getting another poodle. Then, as time went on, I felt the absence more and more, till I began to look for another poodle to share my home with.

There are tons of gorgeous dogs looking for a home and I felt bad when I saw them on FB and didn’t go get them, but I’ve had a love affair with poodles since I was 13yrs old. Yes, poodles are my life and I make no excuses for that!*

I have a good friend in Athens who breeds and shows toy poodles. She’d offered me a boy right after Lainee died, but it was way too soon for me. I contacted her again before Christmas and we discussed options. While I was in Holland she made a decision to re-home a boy she calls Vegas with me.

I like the name Vegas, but it didn’t quite feel right… so now I introduce him as Vince Vega from Pulp Fiction (love Travolta!) and call him Vegas, Vince, Vinnie and BunnyBoy – cause when he runs and leaps about he looks just like a bunny!

So, who is Vince Vega?

He is a 2 year old silver dwarf, a russian import, a greek grand champion, and I am honoured to have him. His pedigree says he’s a toy, but he grew over the measure.

Under FCI, there are 4 poodle sizes – toy, dwarf, miniature and standard. A toy is up to 28cm at the shoulders. Vegas is 30-31cm. So, he has been reclassified and shown as a dwarf. You can do that in FCI, not in Australia or the USA from what I know. There, there is a gap which oversize toys fall into and disappear, unable to be shown.

Also, he didn’t get along with the other male in the pack. And he leaps about like a jumping jack on steroids and injured his perfect knees. Hence – he needed a home where he could live his life as a pampered pet instead of a show dog.

He is still going to do his duty as a stud dog, but he will be my constant companion on walks, at cafes and restaurants and at the beach. YAY.

And guess what? There have been no more sleepless nights now I have a poodle on my bed with me again!!!

z

  • Where did my love affair with poodles begin? At 13 yrs old when I read Jacqueline Suzanne’s book Every Night Josephine. The book I had was the one with the cover on the right. Wish I’d kept that book…

back to the old grind

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Well, not exactly. Not yet. I’m still in Athens. But that doesn’t mean issues haven’t already cropped up.

For one thing I realised I can’t get electricity connected to our property till we have an official road. I THINK we can get temporary power in order for construction to continue, but in order to get a regular connection we need a gate/entrance to our property where the electric company will build housing for the electricity meters… Right now all we have is permission to drive through a neighbour’s land to access ours… not a real, legal road.

Sigh.

And that’s the Paros issue I have to deal with soon as I get back.

There’s also an Athens issue.

The tenants in the upstairs apartment I finished renovating last year let me know that their electricity bill says they are being charged for a 140m2 house – which is the size of the entire upstairs, not the smaller apartment I created when I separated it into two. Turns out I had to go through a few more steps which I was unaware of in order for that to happen.

I made some calls… Apparently I need an electrician to give me a certificate for both upstairs apartments (even the one which is currently lying idle cause I have no money to fix it). I thought I’d done that, given you can’t rent a place without a certificate of some kind from an electrician, but it turns out thats a DIFFERENT certificacte. I need 2 OTHER certificates.

Once I have those, I can apply to the power company for a new meter. They will then give me a connection number (before or after they actually install a new meter?) I take that to the municipality with the certificates from the electrician, and get some paperwork from them which I have to give to the electricity provider of my choice in order to amend the size of the apartment and thus the base charge per month…

If that makes sense.

The only good news about this is that when I get the certificates, I can do the application online, and once I get the connection number I can give it to the tenant and they can chase up the rest of it. I (sincerely hope) I dont have to be in Athens to do that myself.

I am really looking forward to going home…

z

another trip comes to an end

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At the airport, sitting at Gate D82 (miles from anywhere) waiting for my plane to Athens.

Its been a great holiday. A nice balance between doing nothing and doing something.

The last couple of days were spent catching up with family, visiting a wellness centre* and going out for dinner or lunch. There was meant to be a visit to a museum in Den Haag, but of course its Monday and none of us remembered that museums are closed on Monday.

Ok, so this one isn’t totally closed, it opens at 1pm today but I had to be at the airport at 1.30pm. Hmph.

Next time. Gotta leave things to do on another visit. Which will be in springtime so I can see the tulips. And do more stuff outdoors.

This trip was full of rain, clouds (ironically the sunlight is so bright here right now in the gate lounge that I can barely see my computer screen…) and miserable weather in general. It wasn’t too cold however… until we came to Den Haag where it seems its cold, colder and coldest. Its already in the minus most nights but during the week they are expecting double digit minuses… This morning, when we went on our aborted trip to the museum, its was -1 degrees C and there was snow on the wind.

I’m going back to Athens just in time for a cold change and snow on the mountains. Nice. All this time its been warm on Paros and brave souls have been swimming. I mean 19 and 20 degrees… sheesh. I’d be tempted to swim too!!!

*So about the wellness centre… we went there to have a sauna and we had a ton to choose from. In fact, we tried every type of sauna known to man. Turns out the best ones are the common ones – the dry heat and the steam. But there was a lovely heated outdoor pools we had a pleasant swim in, and an icy cold indoor plunge pool we also tried. It was great! I can’t bring myself to turn a hot shower to cold but I can dip in a freezing pool. Go figure.

Lets see what Athens will be like in the cold.

z

another second hand shop, more fun!

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If only I didn’t have to think about carrying things back to Greece… I wish I had a workshop… I wish I lived in the Netherlands where I could go thrift shopping to my heart’s content.

Who knows. Maybe when I have a workshop of my own on Paros I’ll find a ton of thrift shops in Athens and I can go fill boxes of stuff for upcycle projects, buy tons of old furniture begging to be remade, and have it all shipped to Paros.

I am holding onto that dream.

Till then, I visit second hand shops and mostly drool at the possibilities…

I didn’t even look at the records. I’m a vinyl collector. I have a very small collection, and a record player which will record to the computer, but its not somehting I use often. Or at all, really. Still, I had to take a pic of this. Seemed appropriate somehow.

The photo doesn’t do this painting justice. It was gorgeous. They colours vibrant yet soft, the brushwork beautiful. I’d have bought it if I lived here.

A stack of old wooden ice skates. These would make amazing decor in the right place.

Oh come on!!! What a great item to display in a grooming shop window! I absolutely love the 50s package artwork.

Multitudes of board games. In dutch obviously, but what a selection!

And here is my tiny haul. I always buy knobs and handles when I find them.

Last time I was at this shop I bought 4 small porcelain knobs with a blue delft pattern. Two of them are the decorative ends of my curtain rod on Paros, and I gave 2 to a close friend for a cupboard he made from old doors.

This time round I found 3 matching knobs which look interesting, Two crystal knobs, a brass knob, a faux bronze handle and a chandelier crystal. And some hooks, I always love old hooks or things that can be made into hooks. Like the window thingy – I am already seeing that hanging in my studio with my work aprons hanging off it.

There was an old doll stand, always handy for my makeover dolls. And some little galvanized metal tags I just loved. I’ll use them for something.

I really miss my workshop in Tasmania where I had drawers and boxes for all kinds of things I’d collect anywhere I went. If I needed a hinge there was a box of them, some new, most old. If I needed a knob or handle, there were boxes of them too. Decorative bits, yep. Had them too. I had a selection of old wire items, a collection of old taps, old tins… All the basics like screws and nails of all sizes, hand tools, power tools, clamps, bits of timber, old drawers, baskets, old light fittings… basically, you mention it, I probably had it.

If I was making something or re-making something or if I wanted to make something new, all I had to do was go through my stashes and find the bits I needed to create it.

Collections of ‘stuff’ have to begin somewhere… and I’m starting mine all over again.

z

new years eve in terschelling

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It sure was a different New Years Eve for me. Inge and I were invited to spend a couple of days on a friend’s boat, which is currently docked in Terschelling, one of Holland’s northern islands.

I’m not usually a big NYE celebrator, but couldn’t pass up the opportunity to visit somewhere new and do something different.

We were on the Flora, which has 16 cabins and usually does bike and sailing tours on the canals in the Netherlands. We joined a group of longtime friends who have been meeting and sailing together for the last 40 years, give or take.

This was our cute, cozy cabin with its own tiny but comfortable bathroom.

Here are some randon shots cause I just like to do that.

One of the guests had the cutest little dog with him. Would you believe she is 11 yrs old? She has the face of a puppy.

Speaking of dogs (you may not have been, but I am always speaking of dogs), there were so many dogs in town… and in pubs and restaurants. My kinda place. I loved it!!

A little past the port is a little museum of sorts. They had a small display where they fired off one of canons yesterday. They also blasted the fog horn a couple of times, making me jump out of my skin.

If you’ve never been close to a fog horn before, trust me… it rattled all the bones in my body.

The island of Terschelling is 3 times the size of Paros and has 1/3 of the population. We only visited the port town, of course. Walking distance. It was too cold and windy to venture too far.

Today we visited the beach (from afar), got blown to pieces, and retreated into the pub/restaurant to warm up. Like most islands, the winds are ferocious.

We had to visit The Whale, apparently a world famous pub. Or so im told.

To be revived with a french coffee. I’m a convert. No more Irish coffee for me, baby. Grand Marnier all the way!

Tomorrow, we head back to Zutphen, the comfort of home and my laptop. Blogging on a mobile is a pain.

z

it was sunny today

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But only for a few mintues. Long enough for me to have to move the laptop over a little on the desk so I could see it better!

However, it wasn’t raining, so it was a good day to go for a long walk, discover some new areas and take some photos to share.

Like this cute gate…

And this gorgeous little path.

And some pretty moss growing on an old tree.

I followed my GPS back to Inge’s house and took some little detours along the way. I had gloves. I was ok.

And just when I was getting a little hungry, I ran into this tent selling olieballen in one of the cute neighbourhoods.

Warm and sweet. Just what I needed… Well, a coffee would have been good, but that had to wait till I got home.

In case you’re wondering, olieballen are kind of like donuts and here is a recipe.

Here is another interesting tree trunk… I can imagine seeing this as a kid, when I was sure fairies lived in trees. I’d be watching this little ‘door’ very carefully!

Of course, no post on Holland can be complete without a windmill, so here is one I discovered on my walk.

Providing this video works, here it is turning and squeaking.

Also, its nice to know you don’t have to live in a mansion (or even have gates) to have lions out the front…

Last night I ordered some Cowboy Magic – turns out it may have been invented by someone in the USA, but they make it in the Netherlands! Talk about immediate delivery. I got it this afternoon!

Beware dogs of Paros, I have a detanger and I’m not afraid to use it!!!

Tomorrow we head out to the very north of the Netherlands to spend New Year’s Eve on a friend’s boat. That should be very interesting. And pretty cold I’m willing to bet. But it should be great fun and unlike any other NYE so far in my life.

z

a week in the netherlands already

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Its already been a week and yet it seems like no time has passed. We’ve had some visits with family (Inge’s family), a big Boxing Day dinner, a couple of dinners out, the Christmas Markets in Cologne, and some local shopping.

Town center in a small village called Vorden.
You know how much I love old buildings, the crumblier the better.

Today we visited Vorden cause there’s a cute little shop there we like to visit now and then. On the way I spotted a 2nd hand shop housed in what looked to be an old church.

No need to remind anyone how much I love 2nd hand stuff!

There was some great stuff in there Including some gorgeous antique chairs and beautifully worn old table, but of course its impossible to carry big things to Greece on the plane, and shipping costs would break me. So, I picked up a couple of very small things I can fit in my suitcase.

Inge asked why I would want a book of dutch poems. I said I’m buying it for the illustrations, cause they’re cute, and I will upcycle the pages. Plus, I don’t actually like poetry, so not being able to read the poems might be a bonus!

And this little thing. I got it mainly cause its a recycled tea sack from India, but also cause I just loved the colour.

Yes, tea stain is a colour! (to me anyway).

However, it actually has a use:

So what if I didn’t upcycle this myself? It’s still recycled waste and quite cute too!

There aren’t that many 2nd hand shops in this area and the only other one is closed till after New Year’s… There was a huge one I visited on a previous trip, but it has unfortunately closed since then.

Well… I’ll have other chances, but to be honest, I plan to avoid the op shops in Amsterdam cause I know I’ll want to take another container with me to Greece…

z

christmas markets in cologne

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Its been many years since I was at a German Christmas Market! I think the last time was sometime in the late 1990s when I visited Berlin and Lubeck. I’d never been to a Christmas Market anywhere till then, and the huge one in the center of Berlin blew me away.

So, after a few years of planning another visit to Germany at Christmas, I finally made it. This time it was a quick drive from Zutphen in the Netherlands to Cologne in Germany, and the famous Christmas Markets there.

We booked a hotel in the inner city of Cologne and walked to three separate markets for the fun of it. Each market was a little different and all markets are a lot the same. And all are full of colour and excitement and Christmas spirit.

One market had a band and we happened to be there when they played some rock’n’roll Christmas songs.

One market had a merry go round for kids.

One had an ice skating rink. I’d love to have ice skated, but with the crowds drinking above and cheering the skaters (and fallers), I didn’t think it was a good idea. Plus, since it had been drizzling all night, the ice was very wet. No thanks.

All had tons of Christmas lights, decorations, and atmosphere. And lots of people.

There were so many pretty, colourful items for sale in the many booths.

There was tons of food on sale! And people everywhere were enjoying the drinks and food on offer.

A rain-drenched display of chocolate coated apples and other chocolate treats.
Roasted chestnuts, of course.
Fresh nougat sold by the slice or chunk.
Forget Green Eggs and Ham… how about green cheese?
Reibekuchen - fried potato and onion… sort of like hash browns, I guess.
This was something I’d never seen before – fish being cooked by open flame.
Nuts galore… all sugared. Yum.
No German Christmas would be complete without bratwurst.
And gingerbread!
Decadent hot chocolate to warm you up.
I chose to warm up with Gluhwein.
Inside one of the drinking tents.
Not drunk. Just having fun!

All in all, a lovely evening. Topped off with a visit to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner.

I did take some videos but for some reason they don’t want to work properly, so the photos will have to do.

z

back in the netherlands

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Its been a while since I was in Holland last…. I used to go every year when I lived in Greece, and on every trip to Greece once I moved to Australia. This is only my second trip here since I moved to Paros 5 years ago).

I have always loved Holland. The first time I went there I felt almost like I’d come home. I’ve often thought about living here but there were always reasons not to. I even applied for a job here after I’d finished high school, and planned to go to art school here, but I ended up going back to Australia where I spoke the language and could get AUSTUDY (a government payment which enabled me to support myself while I studied. Sure, I had to get a part time job as well, but it made life so much easier to have a steady fortnightly payment.)

I often wonder how different my life would have been if I’d decided to live in Holland instead, learned dutch, attended art school here, got a job at Greenpeace… The road not taken. If I had my life to live over again, I would definitely take that path.

People sometimes ask if I would do things differently if I had my life to live over. Of course I would. I’ve lived this ilife, made these mistakes. I would want to try different things, make different mistakes.

I’m really quite excited about this trip. I had planned a trip a couple of years ago but postponed it due to COVID, so this time I’m going to do the stuff I planned to do back then: visit Germany and the Christmas markets in Cologne, drink gluwein, hot chocolate and freeze my toes off.

There is nothing like a white Christmas and the markets though there is no snow and only rain, rain, rain (and some hail thrown in for a change since I got here. I doubt I’ll get the white Christmas I’m hoping for, but who knows… I would LOVE to be able to ice skate on a lake or a canal again, but its been years since there’s been enough ice over Christmas to do that I’m told…

Other than that… I was in Athens to see mom for a couple of days, and she’s well. She’ll lbe 91 in January and has had to give up driving which makes her very sad. Still, she’s healthy and her mind is intact so I am thankful every day for that.

Before leaving Paros I’d had a lot of social events to go to, which was fun, and some grooming to do. When I return in January I’ll have a tons to do, no least of which is following up with the container positioning and worrying about whether I’ll get water and power to it by summer. Ain’t looking too promising… Meanwhile the excavations have finished, and they moved on to the concreting this past week.

For now I’m happy to spend the holidays with good friends and just relax in the warmth while it rains outside.

z

there will be signs

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I’m not a sign writer, but this year I made two signs that I’m not sure I shared on here.

Given they turned out reasonable, I figured I’d share them with you now, just for something to do.

This is the one I made for my place, to put outside when I was running art studio open days or sculpture workshops. For now it’s just sitting in a corner of the living room.

The other one I made was a little fancier – This was for one of my cousins for her air bnb.

Both signs are small, no more than about a ruler’s length across. Both are made from bits of recycled wood I collected from somewhere. I did them by printing the writing in the size I wanted onto A4 paper, rubbing the back with charcoal and tracing the letters onto the wood.

Then it was a case of painting the letters on with a brush and acrylic paint. And as steady hands as possible.

It’s not the most efficient way to make signs.

Please don’t ask me to make a sign for you. It’s art, not professional!

z

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