handmade weekend part 2

On Sunday, I ventured out of the house in the moments between rain storms and went to Craftwerk at the St Aloyisius Social Club. I almost didn't make it out of the house at all, thanks to total DIY FAIL on the part of my stupid, stupid neighbours. They apparently decided a little while ago, the same week that the economy collapsed and the weather got colder, that they're going to sell their flat and move to France, where they have another place. For some reason, this has necessitated their having to whitewash the front steps and repaint the metal bannister going up them, which is fine I suppose. But they've also decided that it means they have to repaint the door, which has taken over a fortnight for them to finish, meaning that it's been left open every day, causing huge chilly drafts to rush up the staircase and under our door. In fact, what they really ought to have done is replace the old door with a new one, since the one we have is well on its way to being totally buggered because THEY ALWAYS SLAM THE FUCKING DOOR.

On Sunday the lock had somehow jammed into a deadbolt that couldn't be opened from inside or outside. Luckily the stupid stupid neighbours were in their flat and the man (who is most to blame for constantly slamming the fucking door) got his tools and fixed the lock so I could leave the house. He had the cheek to act all huffy and put out by me asking him to do so, though. How do I hate my neighbours, oh let me count the ways. I know it's incredibly wishful thinking, but I really hope they manage to sell their flat soon so we no longer have to put up with the stale stink of his cheap cigarettes, her screaming neuroses and their general unfriendliness.

Craftwerk was really good, though. There were loads of great stalls, and I saw lots of lovely things, but restricted myself to only buying postcards and mini-prints (and one brooch for a friend), so I managed to come away without having spent loads of money. However, this time around I also came away with handfuls of business cards, so I now know where to go when I do have some money to spare, and I can tell you all about them. Zine/comics people: take note, will you? People can't spread the word if they don't know where to send their friends. In fact, there were too many to list here, so I'll be posting links to all of these websites in a later post as well — if you want some fun and pretty ideas for your Christmas shopping, keep an eye for that.