Trad. English Wellies.

I have been looking for a good quality pair of wellington boots for a while now so what better opportunity and place to purchase, while in England.

So I did some research before getting this pair.  I do this with all things I need to purchase.

It was only natural for me to think; England, 'Hunters' brand, also as it seems a bit of a trend at the moment... but as I phoned around and started looking into brands and quality Hunter is probably the last place you'd want to go spending.

The well known Hunter brand used to be made in their homeland until recently the flux in trend, maybe the recession, etc has moved production to China...  the quality has markedly decreased as the prices still remain high and ridiculously overpriced.  I don't know how many reviews I read with people saying that their Hunters started splitting only a few months after purchasing, the quality is just not the same as it used to be, they will not repurchase, and recommend another stated brand.  

I understand that if you are a city dweller just looking to have something fashionable to wear only a few times when the weather turns sour this maybe acceptable and totally fine but I am not just another 'trendy' 'fashion for fashion sake' 'looks oriented' 'look at my shoes' kind of lady.  

I believe in quality.  I believe in getting what you pay for and deserving a product worth the money spent.  Comfort, thought, care, customer service, pride existing in a brand with its own history, etc.  And the product better last, or I will not be a happy camper.  

So out goes the Hunter wellies.  In comes Aigle, Le Chameau, Muck Boots, and Barbour (pictured above).  Depending on your needs you can get ones with neoprene lined, leather lined, with zip, without, with reinforced soles, steel toe, accessories, red, purple, blue, black, green, brown, black, and the works.  But with the brands above, as they are more interested in the utility side of the boots like for use on the farm or hunting, some more on the side of equine use they usually come in more subdued and traditional colors like green, olive green, black, navy, brown.  Barbour has a very limited collection to choose from (I mean, either for men or for women, trad green or black or navy), but I preferred these over the others.

  

I personally chose Barbour Wellies as it wasn't as overpowering as some of the other more heavy duty ones that looked like robocop on a farm.  These also didn't have a separate and rigid sole which I felt were too stiff and not as comfortable to walk in, and being separate from the rest of the rubber body of the boot I felt the sole may detach or split or spring a leak in the future.  These have great traction underfoot, the sizes come proportional to calf size, for female or for men, excellent support through the foot, flexible and supple rubber outer with a smooth insulating lined inner.  There is also an adjustable clasp on the side if needed.  They are simple, well made, comfortable as heck, thick enough, perfectly sized so I can wear a wooly sock in the winter or get wellie inserts, the width is perfect for female narrower feet as well as the ankle and calf is not too large (and in proportion to the foot), and simple brand logo that is not in your face.  Oh, and the price; very reasonable at somewhere like 59.00 (GBP) or 93.00 (CAN), 88.00 (US).

This will be great for walking the dog, going about, getting muddy, and wet when I go exploring wilderness.  They were just meant to be.

When you go on their main website there will be no wellington boots shown so you need to go over to 'Buy Online', then click under where you will be redirected to their online store (it says 'click here'), then after being redirected go under 'Footwear', chose women or men and there you have it.  Again not much selection but it depends on what you are looking for and need.

www.barbour.com

On a side note; I have always wanted waders since I could remember as a kid, I can't think of anything more practical for exploring rock pools and turning up creatures in the ocean (esp when it is freezing when I don't want to get totally drenched).  Everyone makes fun of me and laughs when I mention this but I guess it just makes me me:)  Hahaha.

Christchurch Priori

The Priori at Christchurch, Dorset England.

We wanted to go up to the top as the views would have been amazing but as the place was run by senior volunteers there were no abled bodies who could takes up the winding stair case.  Better than someone having a heart attack so maybe next time.

The place was steeped in history and the stories were fascinating!

The dates went back to before the 1800's.  AMAZING!

Befriending one of the wives of the clergy while there, her husband was able to let us into the crypt.  Down the stairs we go, ooo-spooky...

Beautiful!  I rather like places full of history and identity as I believe it truly creates the character of the area and people.  Being from Japan and having travelled I am not too keen on places without deep and extensive historical grounding.  Some substance underfoot, I find more connection and pride.

Mental Fog

This is a piece called Falling Through.

Although I am not feeling like I am falling through I do feel like I am in a mental fog.  Some days are just more difficult; to see the optimistic side of life, to feel refreshed and more yourself, clear, able to go out with ease, go get groceries, and be happy to interact with society.  

I can feel the pressure in the air, I mean the weather certainly hasn't helped the last two days, but this may just be my excuse, I whole heartedly believe that I am the sole generator of my inner and outer state of being, and it is me who needs to define my life; this is extremely difficult to do when there is a constant and hyper aware high speed stream of analysis, criticism, thought, emotion, reality, experience, sense, and all of them jumbled up together trying to create some sort of working order within one body and one existence.  But then is this too an excuse?  I am just trying to find reason and balance in my state of flux.  

This is not a good feeling, and I'd rather be something, somewhere, someone else; anything but this place I am familiar getting stuck...

Maybe this is another developmental stage, or am I in transition, gosh, there have been way too many transitions in my life, my body does not take change as well as it used to.  I don't really know where I am going with this...  

Hmmm, my brain does not shut off, it's a pain in the ass, I understand I am very intense, maybe living in cities doesn't help, but wherever I go I will still be me so why would location matter?  Nature and wildlife is still soothing to the soul.  I will probably set up shack in the West Coast adjacent an ocean with my own studio and little haven on earth, and a dog.  

I can picture a whack out recluse female artist sort, umm, not the future I envision, so I can tweak a few things here and there to round the edges, or just be full out Georgia O'Keefe!  What an excellent artist and a fascinating individual, her biography interests me.  

So, I realize many artists mainly the well known ones are dead, have died young, have had mental illness, distress, contorted life, family dysfunction, relationship issues, and the whole lot; GREAT, that is good for me to know.  Maybe balance and stability will never be with in me, maybe I just need to accept the fact that it is not in my nature to lead a 'normal' lifestyle; job, marriage, kids, location, and all that jazz.  This is okay, I can deal with that.  

Compassion, care, thought, meaning, purpose, spirituality, heart, giving, and 'world peace' are essential for me though... LOL, world peace... lets not get carried away, I'm just kidding.  Where's the LOOOVE people!?  

Well, I believe life can be good.  Hope is very important.  The artists way is a roller coaster path to take, but isn't any life always surprising?

Few random facts about me.

My favorite color is the spectrum of blue pigments.

I love music that moves my soul.

My music is usually cranked up high while I paint.

For me the painting is more about movement and body.

I love to dance.

I can not live without the feeling of being 'in the zone' or feeling totally free while I am creating.

I speak more through body language, facial expression, gestures, posture, interaction through dance, touch, senses, than actually speaking.  I like to express myself through music too.

I am as compassionate as they come.

Passionate as they come.

Determined as hell and ambitious.

Superficial 'stuff' is exactly that; things, junk, stuff.  

I loath materialism and superficiality.

I am of values morals and honesty.

I am hypersensitive to everything.

I am very interpersonal.

I constantly analyze myself and how I relate to the world and people around me.

I love honest people who communicate their thoughts and feelings.

I hate bullshit.

Users, fakers, liars, players, cold hearted mean people can stay in their sad pathetic world.

I am forgiving.

I am a person for giving chances.

I am more tolerating than humanly possible.

Patient, yes, but there is always a limit.

I am independent.

I am a deep souled individual;multi faceted, multi dimensional, broad minded.

I am accepting.  

I do not judge, discriminate or allow prejudice; I have experienced too much of it in my life and I would never in my dreams treat anyone as I have been treated.  

I love wildlife.

I am a Gemini; which makes me the tinker bell, the most curious, with twinkle in her eyes, the quintessential tomboy, tough little bird, multi tasker (major), rapid fire mind/intellect, clumsy, eager to play, full on experience, hurtle head over heels into the abyss of love, neurotic, her mind becomes a whirl of every possible opinion others might have of her, needs to be stimulated mentally, picky, adventurous, she is the nerviest creature in the zodiac, etc 

a few things from the astrology book; Sextrology by Starsky and Cox.

The type of guy I like in terms of celebrity looks: Brad Pitt, T.I., Keeanu Reeves, Denzel Washington, Hugh Jackman, etc.  

I floss my teeth every night, and am obsessed with oral hygiene.

I have a phobia of phone calls.  

I am arachnophobic.

Hopeless romantic at heart

DREAMY PERFORMANCE

I am a sensitive hopeless romantic at heart.

I often float in dreamy imagination and wish the excitement would only happen in reality.  As reality is, love is hard to come by and not of fairy tales, romance novels, or teenage rapture.  I do though love a romantic man, one who can lift me off my feet and enthrall me.  I have yet to really experience this but I am a hopeless romantic and keep on believing.  

MEN IN TIES

This is a piece I did ages ago called MEN IN TIES.

Men in suits, men in ties, men in powerful positions, men in charge, etc...  to that I'd say WOMEN IN PENCIL SKIRTS and HEELS!!!

I have a vision, I know what I want, what I need, what my standards are, what clientele I want to target, the height at which I operate, where I want to be in the world, my goals, dreams, values, morals, beliefs, passions, powers as a woman.  I need to stick to it and not be sidelined, I am determined and a firecracker when it comes to life purpose and the way I see fit (for me).  

Never under estimate yourself and the knowledge you've gained over the years of yourself as only you can know yourself the best; this I know is true.  I've backed myself up all my life and I've never been a clique-y group-y person and yes it can get lonely and sometimes insecure but at the end no matter where you are, what you are doing, with whom, when, why, you always have yourself and the foundation, the roots which run deep within to define and make up who you are as an individual.  That power and strength is priceless.  

This is why I say BEING Marie Tomeoki.  It is as raw as you can get, the true essence of your soul, heart, mind, and self.   

I am a sewing queen!!!

This is what happens when I am hell bent on improving my sewing skills and/or just curious as to what I can create when I get my hands on some fun textiles.  

This is genuine traditional Isle of Skye Scottish quilt which I got from Scotland; gosh come to think of it, it reminds me a lot of my uniform skirt from high school...uggh, well, back to the point, my dog Clover is a pedigree Cairn Terrier and the breed originates back to the Isle of Skye, hunting the piles of rock (cairns) for vermin and other fascinating wonders!  

I decided to make her a bandana; poor pooch.  In the heat of summer all she needs is a good stripping and bath, not a damn woolen scarf bandana thing!  

So as boring as this may be and as crazy as you all may think I am I have documented the process... biggest DORK!  yes... complete geekoid...  AND I have no sewing machine so it's all done by hand:)  My mom would be proud, oh and maybe that class in seventh grade in Indiana did help some with sewing skills; I think the name of the teacher was Mrs. Hornbacker, home-ec teacher.  

Two pieces of fabric inside out.  Hem edges so the fabric wont unravel.  Sew them together.  Create beveled edge so it reduces bulk for later step taken.  

Stick some nice graphics on there, remember that everything needs to be done inside out so none of the seems will show.

Keep small hole open so you can flip the thing inside out.

Flipped out the right way.  Clover graphic on corner; yes I did that by hand too, every freakin' thread!

This is the little obsidian heart stone bead side...........

You will need the iron.  You will iron your head off, since you need to do all the seams, edges, everything.

This is the end result; the side with Clover graphic, I didn't bother taking the other side.  LOL.

Clover did not appreciate my intricate workmanship.  Sigh.....  Maybe in the winter she will change her mind.

I am sick of tartan, next creative project?