Weekend Learning's

Happy Monday sweet potatoes! So it is two quick weeks till this working year is over for old Coco. I cannot wait. Not only has this year flow by, but I think my followers will be in for a big shock next year. But that is for a later post. This one is about this last, and lovely weekend. This is what I learned,

• Friday was our annual Santa Drop off at our Interbrand Creche. I love doing it. We collect important daily items for the little ones and wrap them in a shoe box. When I am there I am so happy and engulfed in love. But when I leave my heart is broken. There is so little generosity in this world… what will you be doing for the less fortunate this Christmas? 
• “Generosity” n. The quality of being kind and generous - showing a readiness to give more of something than is strictly necessary or expected. (I usually place rare words on my blogs. I believe the act of being “generous” is scarce.)
• “What is done in love, is done well." - Vincent Van Gogh. 
• Now those of us who live in Joburg know The Patisserie in Illovo. There is a certain Banana Bread item on the breakfast menu that is just to die for. You have to go give it a go. Served with sour cream and hot berry and fruit compote, it is to die for. The Patisserie was also just voted Best Coffee Shop in South Africa for the second time in a row, now that’s got to tell you something. 
• "Il y a des fleurs partout pour qui veut bien les voir.” - Henri Matisse. (There are flowers everywhere to those who really want to see them).
• I love summer. No wait, I love summer in Africa. I love how hot it is one day, so hot you hear those crickets and the heat rises off everything and makes a mirage of heat waves. Then the next day its pouring and storming with rain and the wind is so strong it blows me away… its pretty magical and exciting. 
• “Don’t kiss me if you’re afraid of thunder. My life is a storm.” - Anita Krizzan
• Sometimes a girl needs a little sunshine in her life. In my case, that comes in beautiful yellow roses. When you bye roses still in bud, waking up daily to their scent and watching them bloom… Really, nature brings me pure happiness! 
• Have a lovely first week of the last month of 2014 you lovely peeps! Make it count! "Celebrate the people around you. Every breath is a big deal.” - Kid President. 

Xoxo

PS. “We live on a blue planet that circles around a ball of fire next to a moon that moves the sea, and you don’t believe in miracles?”

How lovely, thank you Dior. 

Leave a Comment Anita Krizzan, Dior, Henri Matisse, Illovo, Interbrand Sampson, Johannesburg, Kid President, Rare word meaning, roses, The Patisserie, Vincent Van Gogh, weekend

Weekend Learning's

"Don't forget to stop and smell the flowers, or shove them in your nose!"
A picture from my #100HappyDays, hope you're happy too!

A three day weekend for me. Yes I am a lucky one. Why you ask? When you work at a fantastic company like Interbrand Sampson de Villiers on the day that you started you get the day off as a sort off anniversary to say; "Thank you for joining our team." What a great blessing this job is. Thank you everyone at Interbrand. I am grateful. And even more so as I was also promoted to Senior Designer and can finally talk about it! Yay me! This is what else I have learned;

• “Allow yourself to be a beginner. No one starts off being excellent.” - TheDailyPositive.com. I am loving this site! 
• I think I might be mildly obsessed with tea. With a few 8 flavours at minimum in my kitchen I have one for every opportunity. Lovely tea, solves everything. 
• After visiting the bookstore twice in one week this quote came to life for me; “Books are no more threatened by Kindle, than stairs by elevators.” - Stephen Fry.
• Doing a quick 5.5km's in the am with 5kg weights, piece of cake. Just know you're going to walk like a moose stepping on sticky marshmallows… ouch.
• Red Chamber in Hyde Park is still one of my favourite restaurants in Jozi. The food, the service, the seaweed. It's to die for! I always leave full, happy, and with takeaway. 
• If someone wants you in their lives they'll put you there. You shouldn't have to fight for a spot. 
• I cannot stop listening to the new Kings of Leon. Ill admit I was a little dismissive but as usual they won me over with their smooth redneck hollers and vibrant feel good melodies. Again I am hooked. The new album is called Mechanical Bull just FYI. 
• “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.”

Have a pretty week my heart shaped cupcakes and remember, if you love someone tell them… because hearts are often broken by words left unspoken. 

Xoxo

PS. "Forgive me if I make you everything for I know not how to love in halves." - Tyler Knott Gregson

Mmm how about them apples...

Leave a Comment Interbrand Day, Interbrand Sampson, Kings of Leon, quotes, Red Chamber, Stephen Fry, Tea, The Daily Positive, Tyler Knott Gregson, weekend

Weekend Learning's

It was a cold front weekend, a Mad Hatter's weekend, my besties birthday weekend. It was fun. This is what I learned;

• No matter how good it feels, if you work over eleven hours on a Friday, it totally screws with your weekend plans. Dammit. 
• There comes a point in your life when you realize who matters, who never did, who won't anymore, and you always will. And in the end you learn who is fake, who is true and who would risk it all for you. 
• Midori in Sandton is a lovely Spa where you can get your hair and nails done. They're so Hi-Tec they have iPads at every corner showing products and offerings and so chic they serve their Nespresso cappuccinos in Le Creuset mugs, divine.
• I may have been the Queen of Hearts at the Mad Hatters Tea Party on Saturday but the truth is in my heart of hearts I only want to be one girl in one specific heart forevermore.
• "Every experience, no matter how bad it seems, holds within it a blessing of some kind. The goal is to find it." - Buddah.
• Something that puts a smile on my face? After receiving a rose bush for my birthday and going away on holiday it almost died because I did not look after this poor living thing! Since being home I have been pruning, caring, cleaning and of course watering the little bundle. As thanks in the last few days she gave me two little cerise flowers. Lush with petals and a deep yellow blooming center, it was almost like a confirmation that with the care and effort one puts into life, small gifts, but oh so lush and deep with meaning, will be returned. Metaphor or not, I feel blessed! 
• "Some people are old at 18 and some are young at 90… time is a concept that humans created." - Yoko Ono
• Celebrating spring day with my colleges was stunning. Yes I work hard but I am so lucky to love my job and adore the people I work with. Not many people I know can call their business their second family, I do.
• “I always find myself caught between saying too much and not saying enough” - unknown

It is officially spring! Go blossom! 

Xoxo

PS. "You are the moon of my life. Guide me home." - Tyler Knott Gregson

1 comment Buddah, Interbrand, Interbrand Sampson, Le Creuset, Mad Hatter's Tea Party, midori, Nespresso, Queen of Hearts, quotes, spring, Tyler Knott Gregson, weekend, Yoko Ono

Weekend Learning's

Leslie Ann O'Dell, epic art... divine and disturbing.

Hello peaches. Last weekend of the first month of 2013, can you believe it! Utterly unbelievable. Life is flying by and I can hardly keep up. It is true what they say; the older you get the quicker it goes? I better keep living it to the fullest or I might miss a moment. This is what I learned.

• This first point needs a little more than to just be a point. Friday was my Interbrand Day. What is this you ask? It is the anniversary of the day I started at this wonderful company… my second home. Five years! Yes that is right, I have been here at Interbrand Sampson for five long, hard and magical years. It was an emotional day and I am glad to say that I have no regrets for the people and things I have given up for my career. I love my job, my work place and the people. Proudly Interbrand Sampson!
• Getting a new pair of glasses is too much fun! I'm loving my new rims. And having your eyes tested is an important thing. You really should start looking after yourself, we're not getting any younger kids!
• "As you dissolve into love, your ego fades. You’re not thinking about loving; you’re just being love, radiating like the sun." - Ram Dass
• I love Leslie Ann O'Dell. Some of her art is above. You know Coco loves macabre. She's not totally sick but a little dark and disturbing… quite moving, lovely.
• I am obsessed with Peppermint tea. I thought I hated it. I tasted it once two years ago and cringed and now I cannot get enough… pass me another tea bag you tea pot!
• Extend the life of your mani by waiting two full minutes between applying your base coat, polish and top coat. I like mine to last 7 days… that’s the test, and when I do it myself it does.
• If you don't have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?
• I forgot how much I like Summer days in Greenside in the sun with my friends listening to music. Blissful.
• "You don't love someone for their looks, or their clothes, or for their fancy car, but because they sing a song only you can hear." - Oscar Wilde. I love this... lala laaaa.

Have a divine week darlings, or whats left of it!

Xoxo

PS. All you touch and all you see is all your life will ever be.

How much do I love this? A LOT!

 

Leave a Comment Interbrand Day, Interbrand Sampson, Leslie Ann O'Dell, Oscar Wilde, quote, Ram Dass, weekend

Weekend Learning's

Real Dreams do come true to those who wait. Karma... she is good and true.

A whirlwind of a weekend. It spun me around with such haste I almost lost my balance. I loved it. This is what I learned;

• The only people who truly know your story are the ones that helped you write it… my friends and I prefer brushes and balloons of powder paint.
• Friday lunch with my favourite office friends is a great start to the weekend. It is a break in the day where I can chat with like-minded people about branding and design and feel both inspired and stimulated by my career and the strong and successful creatives I work with. I am luck in this respect.
• Interbrand Sampson has gone live on Facebook, Youtube,  LinkedIn and Twitter. Follow us for great branding, marketing and design posts. Watch this space, our blog goes live on the 1st of November.
• I do not know at what point I let go of you and us but when I saw you I felt nothing and I realized you are just a ghost in my memory.
• Female DJ's are as rare and unique as female designers, our little Ash aka DJ Audacity blows my mind with her awesome every time.
• Having a Partner in Crime is a rare commodity. When that special partner is your boyfriend he is a Dime a Dozen, Coco is a lucky girl ^_^
• If it is important to you, you will find a way. If not you'll find an excuse.
• 'Sapiosexual' (n.) A person who is sexually attracted to intelligence in others. Tick.
• The best feeling comes when you realize that you're perfectly happy without the people you thought you needed the most.
• When you realize you just drove an hour only to be met by a locked gate (I know...) and no way in and begin your journey home, in the direction of the rising sun and realize you are most grateful for this opportunity to have your Favourite to yourself and a whole hour to talk rubbish… you know that the memory will way over exceed the bump in the plan and you are most grateful… this is love.
• "Have a heart that never hardens, and a temper that never tires, and a touch that never hurts." Charles Dickens.
• I like the dark meddling feeling Halloween brings at this time of year. It is meant to be the one time of year when the world of the dead opens to the world of the living. I am sure this scares a lot of people. Personally, I wish it were true. What I wouldn't give for one day a year to speak to the loved ones I've lost...

Have a spooky week, where a black dress and Happy Halloween, be sexy scary.

PS. I want to be everything you always needed. Because you are everything I ever wanted.

Kisses... thank you TKG, again and again.

Leave a Comment boyfriend, Charles Dickens, DJ Audacity, Halloween, IBSAfacts, Interbrand Sampson, quote, Tyler Knott Gregson, weekend

Weekend Learning's

Love these motivational posters! found {here}.

A short weekend. They always are right? At least I am finally starting to come out of this virus. This is what I learned; 

• Friday afternoon branding debates at work, Interbrand Sampson, really stimulate the creative juices. I love my job, even on a Friday afternoon. 
• Edamame beans are totally my favourite thing to eat at the moment. I could eat them all day long.
• There is nothing sexier than firetruck short red nails in a winter rush through fresh blonde locks. Prrr, the power of a strong woman with great taste. 
• Im back in the Lomography game! With a fresh handful of new spools and a pang of inspirational persuasion from the stars in my designy eyes… the streets better watch out!
• I truly forgot how painful a knee roasty is. Being a bit of a tomboy when I was young I was always covered in them. Having one a little larger than a R5 coin on my knee, I was quite proud of my war wound… till I got in a boiling bath and roared blasphemies I should visit confessions for… sorry higher powers… I forgot what pain was… ouch!
• I am fiercely loyal to those I love especially my family. We might not share the same parents but we're family none the less. Yes you my four. X
• GreatDane is quite wistful during the day. I think it might actually be better than the scrawling evenings we normally find ourselves crawling in there. The lamps look especially luminous in the afternoon city sunlight. 
• Disappointments are just God's way of saying "I've got something better" be patient, live life, have faith. 
• This weekend last year, one of my dearest friends passed away in a motorbike accident. I remember you my amazing friend. I let the petals of a flower float away on the breath of the wind and hope it carried them to where you were dancing. Life is too short to think you have everyday to wait for people who don't care. I wish I had one more precious day with someone who did. 
• I have to quote another poem from Tyler Knott. Now don't cry my dears; "I want my hands black with the ash of missed memories as I burn them down around me. I want the smell of fire to permanently stain my hair so long as I never have to watch another of your trees grow without me again." - Tyler KnottGregson. 
• I definitely have Birthday Blues. What is it about turning a year older that makes you want to reevaluate your life and pack up your crap and your pup and move to malaysia? Stupid ID book.
• That raw realization when the person you're missing doesn't even care if you exist anymore… I get this in the middle of the night sometimes. It doesn't matter how old one gets, at the end of the day, we all still just want to be wanted. 
• I keep a box of tissues on my desk. No I'm not actually a sickly person, and no I'm not an emotional person either! (even though you might think I'm an emotional basket-case by my Leaning's…  Sorry) But when it comes to my blog I am. My blog is my baby! Sometimes the comments I get on twitter about my blog bring me to tears. I just have to mention @MegPascoe @Nicki_Dadic @Moemasfood for last weeks comments. When you're sick and feeling fragile, sometimes those small little tweets are all you really need to remind you that pouring your heart and soul out onto a public platform is worth it, people out there DO actually like it, thank you! 

Be inspired my loves, have an amazing week!

xoxo

PS. "I prithee send me back my heart. Since I cannot had thine; for if from yours you will not part, why then, shouldst thou have mine?" -John Suckling

*sigh...

1 comment Edamame beans, Interbrand, Interbrand Sampson, John Suckling, lomography, The Great Dane, Tyler Knott Gregson, weekend

Weekend learning's

Beautiful creatives, a happy weekend on the dance floors in Cape Town.

This weekend I went to the Loerie awards in Cape Town. Interbrand Sampson was nominated for two of the jobs I did. No, I did not win, but I won in other ways. I learnt you do not have to win an award to win in life. Losers justification perhaps, but an award wouldn’t have made it that much better. This is what I learned.

• My Cellini bag (new) fits a lot more in it than previously thought.
• The people I hang out with in a working environment are just as nuts as me. We spent a good 30 minutes discussing the colour of my bag *being Coral, and how it would taste. Wrapping it in plastic added another dimension to the flavour. (like I said; nuts)
• I am not really into the whole bus shuttle thing. Taxi’s are the way to go.
• The apartments at Cape Quarter are to die for! Thanks guys for letting me have the VIP room ;)
• I have people in my life who I am so close with, it is only natural to call them family. In fact, sometimes ‘sister’ is even a lesser friendship than what we have. Two peas in a pod.
• I love old school lifts with big buttons and a trelly door you have to manually close before they move, I want one in my house. Vintage awesome!
• Shocking news just reminds me how much I love my family, death can be cruel in her timing.
• Some people will do anything to get into the circle, even doing things morally wrong. I do not like these people.
• When the weather is bad there is nothing better than a blankie, a strange reality omnibus and a packet of Big Corn Bites with a wonderful friend.
• Only David Hasselhoff could pull off strangely thin legs and sequin jacket ensemble. And I still like the Baywatch theme song.
• Meeting a little work community where the people are cool and friendly reminds me of my old job. I miss that office family... This will change things.
• I still hate dancing in a circle but for a birthday ill whip it!
• Saying goodbye to a city I love gets harder and harder.
• Lost luggage really is painful. Can you not use the words “misplaced” and “if we find your bag”. Panic attack stuff!
• The people who want to stay in your life will always find a way.
• Loeies and Cape Town, till we meet again...

Xoxo

PS. Mamihlapinatapai- refers to "a look shared by two people, each wishing that the other will offer something that they both desire but are unwilling to do."

I am a pea without a pod in the dust bowl.

3 comments Cape Town, Cellini, David Hasselhoff, friends, Interbrand, Interbrand Sampson, Loerie Awards, weekend

What I ♡ this week...

A lesson learned.

After almost permanently destroying my face in a freak accident I have been avoiding my blog for a bit. Not because I did not want to just because it was painful to look at a computer screen... through one eye. But not being able to do anything but sit and think really makes you search for enjoyable things to keep you entertained and happy. The pain medication also might be helping in this respect but I don’t find being high as a kite a negative... Some curious things I am enjoying at the moment include;

• Arnica pills. They really do help speed up recovery.
• Winning the office draw for the Durban July at my office. I might have lost teeth at the actual Durban July but I managed to win the draw in my work pool. You win some you loose some, thanks Igugu!
• New wooden floors with new under floor heating. This must be one of the greatest inventions of all time!
• The sound of my puppy’s paws chittering up and down the hallway. It is a unique and laughable noise which I love.
• Sanctum products. I will be doing a post about these soon. I am so going organic! The smell is delicious and feels just as good!
• Wolves July Mixtape. I made damn sure that I didn’t injure my ears, so at least I can listen to the awesome download, thanks Wolves, I howl you. Click {here} to download.
• All the love. When something happens to you, it is amazing to see who REALLY cares. And hurts to know who actually couldn’t be bothered. Those people have been voted out of the tribe. Cannot say I am sad to see you go.
• The Bang Bang Club premier. Check it out {here}, its going to be epic. I can't wait to lay my eyes on some of the hotties tonight,  Ryan Phillippe, yum! South African movies make me happy.
• Madiba’s Birthday on Monday. Cheesekids helps you to contribute, click {here} to help contribute just 67 minutes of your time this Sunday for Nelson Mandela’s Birthday.
• Last but not least my Loerie nomination. Interbrand Sampson is a two times finalist with two of the jobs I designed. Most exciting time of my life.

Xoxo

PS. “Rawwr” means I love you in Dino saur.

2 comments Cheesekids, Durban July, Interbrand Sampson, Loeries, Madiba, Nelson Mandela, quote, Ryan Phillippe, Sanctum, The Bang Bang Club, Wolves