Magnums Butlers.....Read On!

I belong to a wonderful organization called: The Sunshine Coast Business Women’s Network, which gives me the opportunity to meet many wonderful and interesting women engaged in a huge variety of businesses. A few weeks ago at one of the breakfast meetings Josephine Ive (photo above) was sitting next to me, and during the pre-breakfast chit-chat I learned she has a business (Magnums Butlers) which provides professional training services to butlers and valets and much, much more. I found this so interesting, that I asked Josephine if she would do a “question and answer” session on my blog about what she does, how she got started, etc.

BTW…I love her byline which is:

“The Science Behind Gracious Service”

1.How did you start in this business?

Trained as a classical Chef, ran my own catering business in UK before dropping in at the deep end as a Butler (fortunately my father had been a butler, so he was able to give me a few tips).........decided I liked it so much, gave up my business to become a full time butler with the Lord Chancellors Department, aka High Court Judges, in England. Did that for 7 years before immigrating to Australia. The rest is history as they say, started Magnums, got my first overseas butler training contract with Oriental Hotel in Bangkok and it has just gone from there.

2.Where did you grow up and where do you currently live?

The South coast of England, Highcliffe to be precise, beautiful place on the edge of the New Forest. Now live in Coes Creek, another beautiful area, enjoying being between the sea and the Blackall Ranges

3.What is your favourite country to travel to?

Tough question. As I love traveling to do my work, but probably three countries, Thailand, France and Zambia

4.What is the hardest part of your job/business?

Marketing overseas, both difficult and expensive.

5.What is the most fun part of your job/business?

Creating intellectual property, seeing students blossom with new found knowledge, skills and confidence.

6.How do you get business, customers or clients?

Word of mouth, website, social networking.

7.What "new thing" have you learned in the past week?

That it is OK to admit that you are overwhelmed and tired by your workload, and it is OK to step back for a couple of days without feeling guilty.

8.How do you relax and unwind?

Share quality time with my partner, watch a totally absorbing movie or do a 30 minute Latin dance routine.

9.What is your favourite:

Colour: Watermelon red

Food: Roast Lamb

Drink: Champagne

Song: Parisienne Walkways by Gary Moore

10.Anything else you would like to share?

I am passionate about good service.

I love butler service for its elegance.

I can’t stand ‘passionate insincerity’ of which there is so much these days.

I still miss my first golden retriever Tessa and my calico cat Krug.

If I had the money I would have my hair professionally ‘coiffed’ every day!

I love sourcing unusual gifts for family and friends, and the all important gift wrapping, it’s a therapy for me.

by the way...how do I get my very own butler?

Yikes....Change is good....I think!

Yikes....My blog has suddenly become "super-sized"..... everything is bigger, brighter and bolder. Well, the fun colours and brightness I love, as it reflects my overall view of my blog postings.
However, I have no idea where the massive photo (see above earrings shot) came from and how to get it back to "regular" size....
Perhaps it's time to dust off the 3-d shades and hang in there...I'm working on it!

August Birthstone-Peridot

Peridot in Myth and History

When Hawaiian natives first discovered peridot in the black sands of volcanoes, they believed the clear, green gemstones were the tears of the volcano goddess, Pele. Egyptian jewelry featured peridot, "the gem of the sun," as early as two centuries B.C., believing it connected them to their goddess, Isis. Peridots are said to have been a favorite gemstone of Egypt's most famous queen, Cleopatra.

The Romans admired the stone for its constant color which does not change in artificial light, calling it "emerald of the evening." Peridot is found in Medieval Christian churches and shrines and was also popular during Europe's baroque period of the 17th Century.

When a new source of peridot was discovered in Pakistan in 1994, finer than any samples that had been found before, the gemstone was popularized for modern use. These Pakistani stones have been called "Kashmir peridots," linking them in name with the famed Kashmir sapphires that are so highly prized.

Want to know more about Peridot?
http://christophersjewelry.com/peridot.htm
or
http://www.galleries.com/minerals/gemstone/peridot/peridot.htm
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peridot

Beautifil Skin Oil and FREE Earrings!

Every once in awhile I remember to spread the word “Loud and Proud” about my beauty therapy product called: “Beautiful Skin by Renee”.

For whatever reason, orders have been pouring in this week and I’ve sent bottles to the far corners of the planet…could be north American summer skin needs nourishment or here in the southern hemisphere, the cool/cold winter days have left our skin dry and in need of support.

Beautiful Skin by Renee is Pure, Natural, Clean and Concentrated.

I’ve been using my oil for about a dozen years now every day, morning and night.

Go to my Beautiful Skin by Renee Website and check it out:

http://www.beautifulskinbyrenee.com/

Special Offer for orders before Aug. 7th, 2010.

FREE....Pounded Circle Sterling Silver Earrings...by Renee Blackwell Design

(see photo above)

Tara Reid

OK…I barely know who this particular “celebrity” is…but when I stumbled upon this photo of Tara Reid, I must say, I really, really love the dress…here are my 5 reasons why!

1. Awesome Colour

2. Great Cut and Drape

3. Adorned with colourful beads

4. Could be worn over tights, leggings or jeans

5. Playful and fun…

ps…yes, I know her teeny-tiny butt is sort of showing in the second shot….

We will all just have to live with the pain…lol!

More info. on Tara Reid at:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005346/

Dreams....

Most people never run far enough on their first wind to find out they've got a second. Give your dreams all you've got and you'll be amazed at the energy that comes out of you.
-- William James

Guest Artist-Lynne Meade Porcelain Potter

I have a real love of good pottery, potters and ceramic artists. Here is the first of two interview/guest blogspot featuring two different amazing and talented women, both potters. Each with a unique style, personality and gift of beauty to offer the world.

This first one features Lynne Meade from Oakland, California who I chanced to meet while I was in the San Francisco Bay area in June.

Please check out her website at:http://www.lynnemeadeporcelain.com/

The Interview

1.Tell me about your ceramic work.

I make carved porcelain vases, vessels, tiles, and tile murals. They work is fairly intricate and time consuming. But I find it very calming to do.

2.How did you get started and how long have you been working as a potter?

I started working with clay when I was 8 years old. My mother bought me a box of modelling clay with many colors. I started making little animals out of it. Then one day I took a shoe box full of the animals to a local consignment store. I think I sold them for 25 cents each. Pretty soon I got an order for 25 of them that someone wanted to use as party favors. I was hooked. The summer between high school and college I called a pottery studio near my home and asked for a job. I ended up cleaning the studio in exchange for sitting in on classes. When I got to college I knew I wanted to be a ceramics major. Much to my father's dismay. I think he thought it was a joke. It was as if I said I was going to major in under water poetry reading. But I persisted and got a degree in art with a concentration in ceramics.

3.Describe your workspace/studio.
I work in my garage. When I was house hunting I always asked to see the garage first. I knew that was where I would be spending most of my waking hours. My garage has 2 large windows overlooking a beautiful canyon. My work table faces the windows. I think I also have the only garage in the neighborhood with cable TV.

4.What are you most proud of as a potter?

I am proud of the work that I have done, the breadth of knowledge that I have about the material, the rapport I have developed with many of my customers. I love when people come to my booth at a craft fair and tell me that they have a few of my pots in their home and want another one. They tell where the pots are in their house and how much they still enjoy looking at them even after so many years. I strive to make things that will still be interesting to look at even after years of seeing them. I really want to make things that become classics. They don't go in and out of fashion. They stand the test of time.

I am also very proud of my ability to create opportunities for my work. It takes a certain persistence and determination to create a career out of nothing but my imagination and skill.

5.How often do you work?

I work every day.

6.How do you sell/market your work?
Marketing is the constant challenge. It's like a puzzle. You piece things together and just hope they work. I do three - five craft fairs a year. I sell through a couple of web sites and catalogues. I sell through a few stores around the country, mostly west of the Mississippi. I have an esablished group of local customers who just call out of the blue needing things. I do a couple of gallery shows each year. It's just a patchwork of methods.

7.What are you currently working on?
I have started a new line of sushi sets. I have several ideas for new designs, but there is never enough time to get to all of them. There is a constant list of ideas in my head. As soon as I get one idea done, three more come up and I know it will be months before I get to them because there are so many others ahead of them in the line.
8.What is your favorite: Color, food, smell, taste and sound?

I would say that blue is my favorite color. But green is a close second. I love fresh vegetables and salads.

Vanilla oil!!!!!! Chocolate!!!!!!!!!!! Waterfalls and fountains.

9.What other interests and hobbies do you have?

Oddly, I play softball. I'm not sure why I like it so much, but I'll play anywhere, anytime, with anyone. I meet a lot of people playing ball that I would never meet otherwise.

10.What is one thing your friends don't know about you?

I think I'm pretty much an open book.

11.How would you like to be most remembered?
I would like to be remembered as a good mother and for my work. I work incredibly hard for very little financial reward, but I am so happy with what I do. I tried to give it up once and I felt completely lost. I became another person. Very sad and incomplete. Now I wake up with so many ideas and projects in my head that I can't wait to get up and get started. Every day is exciting and gratifying. Even when I over fired the kiln and ruin a weeks work, I'd still rather be doing this than anything else.
12.Add anything else you feel ....

I also love teaching. I teach one day a week at a city run art department. I enjoy my students and love watching their progress. They inspire me as much as I hope I inspire them. Being a potter can be very isolating. Teaching is a very social activity. Most of the time I want to talk about pottery and people aren't really interested. It is wonderful to spend one day a week with people who not only put up with my endless need to talk about pottery, they actually are thrilled to hear it and ask all kinds of questions.

Before I started teaching I often felt like a little bit of a freak walking around in overalls, covered in clay. I felt like a stranger in the world. Once I started teaching I felt like I had found my long lost tribe. The people who are actually like me and understand me. I was a revelation.

Vintage German Button "Flower Power" Earrings

Vintage 1940's era German Copper buttons, set in sterling silver. This wonderful pair of earrings works well for those who like to "mix their metals"...in other words, wear gold and silver together. (The copper in the buttons actually looks like Rose Gold).
$75.00 (Australian Dollars)
Interested in buying?
Contact Renee at: hazelwildretreat@yahoo.com.au