scrapabee

Hello again

2009-10-18T23:51:00.008+08:00

Come meet Little Missy's latest love - Nici!

It has been two months since I last blogged. I have been working very long hours at work recently, been extremely productive. But I can't recall the last time I scrapped/sewn that could considered fun. I feel kind of sad for making very little crafting,scrapping and blogging. I missed those days when I scrapped and sewn quietly at night while the girls are asleep. The chats I had with my online scrapping and crafting buddies. I'm honestly too tired to do my personal stuff or blog properly when I get home. Most time, I veg-out by reading my e-mail and surfing websites to gather more mental clutter that I will never have time to use at work.

Life is about a journey. With 2 young kids who always need a lot of my time and energy, I find that my me time has virtually vanished. Big Missy will be in P1 the year after next and Little Missy will be in Nursery next year. Time flies! Nevertheless, I am thankful that I am able to bond with the girls, together with hubby daily every night before bedtime, be it reading or making small with them and lastly, put the girls to bed.

Ok, some random pictures to share here.

Big Missy is five and yummy cookies!

2009-08-30T23:23:00.008+08:00

We celebrated Big Missy's 5th birthday just recently. It was also the National Day celebration in her school. She loves watching Disney movies and she chose Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and The Ariel cake for her birthday this year. We brought along Little Missy to the school for some fun and she will be going to Nursery next year, same school as her Jie-Jie. How time flies!

Goodie bags for her classmates

Recent cookies craze - Chocolate chips and walnut cookies. I added extra raisins and these are real crispy and yummy and they were all gone within the day! I managed to yield about 35 cookies based on this recipe. But my cookies are pretty chunky, you could probably make a lot more if you dough them smaller.

A day at the Museum

2009-06-02T11:04:00.013+08:00

We are back to the National Museum of Singapore again. Just love the place! It is a great place for the kids to explore and for camera-toting moms too! Chris, myself and our girls were there for the Children's Season 2009: Little Feet Theatre by Veronica Gonzales (Italy).

"Like most people, Veronica Gonzales has 2 feet… but her feet are special as they amazingly transform into characters of their own, performing to the rhythm of music and stories that are filled with fantasy, love, poetry and humour. Little Feet Theatre has taken audience by storm in Europe, Brazil, Korea and more…and it will certainly intrigue you all!"

It was such a nice and entertaining play, catch it if you can! And many photos of Shervon and Big Missy at the Museum.

and it took me so long to post one of the many layouts done this year

Blackforest Blueberry Chocolate Sponge Cake

2009-04-15T13:22:00.002+08:00

Last week was our anniversary and I baked L his favorite black forest blueberry chocolate sponge cake for the first time. I used the simple sponge cake recipe from Yochana's blog. I was advised to use the optima chocolate sponge cake mixed flour for new bakers. But I was lazy to get out of the house just to get that. So, with my limited ingredients at home, I came up with this.

The cake turned out really good! It was yummy and very soft inside. In fact Yochana's recipes hardly fail. And I guess I will try to bake more as I'm not intimidated by the whole baking process now. I'm going to use butter instead of corn oil in my next bake to see if it's of any difference.

Here's the modified ingredients for my own bake:

Ingredients:
4 eggs
110 gm sugar
80 gm cake flour
20 gm cocoa powder
60 gm butter/cornoil
1 tsp vanilla essence

Method:
1. Whisk eggs and sugar till light and fluffy
2. Fold in the cake flour lightly, try not to deflate the eggs
3. Pour in cornoil, vanilla essence and stir lightly
4. Pour into a 8" round cake tin and bake at 170C for about 45 minutes or till a skewer comes out clean.

lovely things

2009-04-14T14:36:00.009+08:00

As usual I'm slow in updating my project. These mini diaries were made from last year. I am so pleased with the end result - covered linen with word definitions, the ivory cream pearly colors here . The kind of simplicity I like. I am carrying two of those in my bag now and given the rest to my lovely bunch of girlfriends, P, E and G. Someone asked if I still scrapbook. Yes, I still do periodically and I do have some layouts to share but my scanner has died on me recently. I will try to take some pictures and post them soon!

And recently a custom made pencil case for S's girlfriend whom is affectionately known as duckie. Hehe cute! Luckily I still have a wee bit of the duckie print fabric left and made her one!

love for non-bake oreo cheesecake

2009-04-01T23:13:00.007+08:00

I am so happy to have found this non-baked Oreo Baileys Cheesecake recipe! Thanks C for the heads up. I love cheesecake and this recipe is really easy to follow and is sure a keeper!

Non-baked Oreo Cheesecake
Ingredients [A: base, B: Filling, C: Swirl]

A: 1 small packet of Maltesers candies + 12 Oreo cookies
50g butter, melted

B: 1 block of Philadelphia cream cheese, softened
1 tsp vanilla
25-30ml Baileys
200ml whipped cream
½ cup caster sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
¼ cup boiling water
1 and half tbsp gelatin powder

C: 1 tbsp butter
50g dark chocolate

Steps:
1. A: Use food processor to crush Maltesers candies and Oreo cookies. Mix the crushed Maltesers candies and Oreo cookies crumbs and butter together with whisk. Press and evenly in an 8 inch tin. Place in freezer.
2. Sprinkle the gelatin power into boiling water evenly. Leave to ‘bloom’ for 2 minutes. Stir to dissolve.
3. C: Melt butter and chocolate in 30 sec bursts to become chocolate mixture. Stir to combine.
4. B: Use a mixer or whisk to whipped cream till stiff peaks form, chill.
5. B: Use the mixer (no need to wash) or food processor to mix Philadelphia cream cheese and sugar on high speed till smooth, beat in lemon juice and vanilla.
6. Stir the gelatin mixture (over a period of time, some gelatin will settle to the bottom) and add into the Mix prepare in Step 5.
7. Fold in whipped cream to the new Mix prepared in Step 6 to form white batter.
8. Pour ¼ of white batter into chocolate mixture, stir and mix to form chocolate batter.
9. Mix in Baileys with 3/4 of white batter.
10. Pour about half of the ¾ white batter into tin and add half of chocolate batter, swirl to combine.
11. Add the remaining white batter and top with spoonfuls of remaining chocolate batter, swirling to marble patterns.
12. Chill for at least 2 hours or overnight until firm before serving.

be wise

2009-02-26T14:07:00.004+08:00

Just finished with the knitted cardigan for little Missy! I was inspired by a yellow cabled cardigan from an online store and I love seeing Little Missy in yellow you see. I knitted the button band and sewed on the buttons before doing the sleeves though it's a little short for her. I love the outcome of this and its color although the piece is quite lumpy and holey. :p
I must say I enjoyed the knitting process, its was relaxing as I took my time to complete this piece without giving myself much pressure to complete it. I learned to knit when I was in high school. It was pretty easy to pick up the knitting sequence again after all these years. But oh I work like a tortoise in this department. I procrastinate too much while working on a knitting project. And you can say I lack patience when it comes to knitting as I very much prefer to work on smaller and quicker projects. I really wish to knit hats and scarves for myself, the hubby and of course our two precious. Who knows I might pick up the needles and start to knit and purl again!

My owl badge has been featured in the March 09 issue of CLEO magazine. So thankful to B, the designer and Ann for contacting me, liking my work and the lovely feature!

refreshing

2009-02-12T09:31:00.003+08:00

I first tried this great tasting cold dessert at my sister-in-law's wedding ten years ago at Spice Garden Fort Canning (under the Tung Lok Restaurant Group). Since then, I've tried making my own version and this simple recipe is a keeper in my family. If you decided not to make it yourself, I strongly recommend Ji De Chi (记得吃）. It is one place in Singapore (a few outlets located at Bugis and Liang Seah Street) that sells good desserts!

Ingredients:

1. 2-3 ripe mango

2. 250g sago pearls

3. 100ml Evaporated mil

4. 100ml fresh milk (i.e. Meiji)

5. Mango juice (i.e Marigold Peel Fresh)

6. Pomelo flesh

7. 3-4 tbsp sugar

8. 150ml water

Preparations:

1. Bring 150ml of water and sugar to boil until sugar dissolves. Leave syrup to cool.

2. Slice or cut mango into cubes.

3. Peel pamelo into small pieces.

4. Put sago pearls into a pot of boiling water, keep stirring and cook until transparent. Pour cooked sago pearls into a sieve, rinse running water and drain.

5. Mix syrup, mango cubes/slices, sago pearls, evaporated, fresh milk in a bowl. Finally add pamelo and mixed well. Serve chilled.

Enjoy!

the persimmon

2009-02-10T15:32:00.012+08:00

Nice food, nice company, nice place, cosy ambience. Celebrating little Z's 2nd birthday at Persimmon by epicurious. This is a Euro-Singaporean Bistro & Bar just besides the cosy + stylish boutique The Link Hotel Singapore.

reception counter

check out that 'vase'!love the vintage mosaic tiles

I had pan-fried Dory Fish new with

Chinese olive and long bean relish

yummy cake!!
going home and a tired looking big missy

cheeky grin from little missy

2009-02-04T11:18:00.008+08:00

Happy Chinese Lunar New Year! The festival traditionally begins on the first day of the first month (Chinese: 正月; pinyin: zhēng yuè) in the Chinese calendar and ends on the 15th.

The preparation for Chinese New Year is so exciting just like Christmas! There are so much happiness and joy, of course with all the yummy goodies. There are also lots of CNY traditions to follow. My favorite key traditions I adhere to are buying new clothes, shoes, pajamas for the family (Can't say whether it's an excuse for me to indulge in shopping or not). However, one of the traditions that I find really silly - not to buy shoes within the 15 days of new year? Something to do with fortune and wealth stuff? I bought 5 pairs of shoes till date and just 2 more from yesterday! I'm a shoes addict, that's it. :D

One must have New Year tidbits like Pineapple tarts, Kueh Bagkit and Pineapple tarts or otherwise, or it really wouldn't be the New Year. The favorite things to do over CNY is of course as simple as it is. A season where all gather together as a family with lots of love spread over this season! Hope you all have a great Chinese New Year that symbolize the start of a fresh new year with good health, family harmony and wealth!

she loves shark fin!

on the eve

Day 1

the girls simply adore looney girl

Handsome little Z!

Day 2

Little Missy doing her signature pose

Homemade "Yu Sheng" (by mother-in-law) topped with abalone! YUM!

Aunt J's family

Portland love

2009-01-16T11:20:00.003+08:00

My swap package arrived all the way from Portland just two days ago! Beautiful goodness from Alex - the designer, founder and owner of Cecilyink. Alex contacted me via etsy last month and asked if I'm interested to do a trade with her. She is one of my favorite etysian and I love the color combination of her modern and elegant design. I am now the proud owner of these - card file, 2009 desk calendar, badges. She added some rock candies plus other fun goodies in the package too! Her packaging is beautiful and I'm still drooling at all the lovelies she sent. Head off here if you're interested to get some of her lovely products! Fine cards + fresh style.

2009 desk calendar

Badges - love all the colors

Card files - organized by category:

• 4 birthday cards• 4 thank-you cards• 4 sentiments

Beautiful thank you tag

In return, I sent her 2 linen pencil cases, linen pins, patterned papers from making memories (knowing she's a paper lover!), handmade journal and a couple of tags! Thanks for the swap - that was so much fun!

This would be my 2nd international swap. I did my first international swap with R from iheartlinen. Time flies and it was more than a year ago. So glad to have known so many wonderful blogger pals all across the globe!

Resolution for 2009

2009-01-08T01:21:00.001+08:00

Work has kept me rather busy in 2008. Every experience that I have lived has made me more wise and more aware. I always like to take risks well and enjoy life to its fullest...

My resolution for the new year - I will be a better blogger, crafter, scrapbooker, getting more organized, spend more time with family, having a cleaner house, and more...

Inspired by the 2009 words here. Some of my favorites: Achieve, Accept, Aspire, Balance, Beginning, Blessed, Capture, Confidence, Communicate, Cosy, Create , Determined, Devote, Dream, Endurance, Endurance, Enjoy, Explore, faith, Family, Focus, Fresh, give, Goodness , Grateful, Grow, happiness, harmony, heart, hope, Imagine, Inspire, Journey, Joy, Kindness, Laugh, Learn, Life, Live, Love, Memory, Moderation, Momen, Nature, Observe, open, Opportunity, Optimistic, Overcome, Passion, Patience, Peace, Perseverance, Plan, Play, Positive, possibility, Potential, Prioritize, Pure, Quiet, Reach, Read, Ready, Reconnect, Reflect, Rejoice, Relax, Respect, Relationship, Revitalize, Rhythm, Rise, Seek, Self-Assured, Self-Discipline, Serendipity, Share, Shine, Simple, Simplicity, Simplify, Smile, Soft, Strength, Strive, Success, Surprise, Thankful, Thrive, Time, Today, Together, Tolerance, Treasure, True, Trust, Truthful, Understanding, Unite, Value, Vision, Vitality, Walk, Warmth, Welcome, Wisdom, Worth.... I will be doing more layouts using some of those words definitely.

Daddy returned from his business trip just last week. We went to pick him up at the airport. Big Missy refused to nap and waited till 10pm when she finally got to see her daddy, with the present that she has been longing for!

So here goes.. at the Singapore Changi Airport...

happy new year!

2009-01-04T20:44:00.000+08:00

Not too late for the new year post I guess. I have plenty of things I'd like to accomplish in 2009 but not going to list them here yet as I'm still grinning from ear to ear with my newly acquired 'toys'!

love this illustration - my laptop skin courtesy of Fujitsu from last year. And nope I didn't use it on my laptop, framed it up on the wall as artwork instead!

our mini christmas party

2008-12-23T12:11:00.017+08:00

Yay, two more days to Christmas! I received some custom orders from R, H and B for their Christmas event and pals. I started working on them right after a party that we hosted last Saturday together with our cousins and friends. I stayed up till 4am to complete the orders and I was completely zonked out at 930pm the next day! Saturday's party was fun fun fun, potluck session with yummilious home cooked and store bought food - mum's bee hoon and fried rice, choco fondue, aunt's agar agar, mini muffin madness, canape from Coffeebean, logcake and honey baked ham from Bakerzin, sushi platter and many more! Of course, the kids enjoyed hitting the pinata!

Hope you all have the most enjoyable X'mas celebration with your loved ones. Merry X'mas and Happy New Year to all!

our 6 feet tall christmas tree!

a treasure chest to store X'mas goodies for the kids!

sushi platter

healthy salad

the muffins

chocolat grand logcake from Bakerzin - it was really good!

the pinata most loved by the kids!

big missy and sher

tanya, big missy and sher

girls in their pyjamas but the mums are still mahjong-ing lol
lovely Ashley and Desiree

first of decemeber

2008-12-01T14:59:00.000+08:00

It's only 24 days to Christmas and counting down!

Many of my to-do list:

Stock up more goods at casualpoet and my etsy shop
Taking pictures of my completed totes, art projects and scrapbooking layouts!
Finalizing the details with The Anadaman
Sending parcel/gifts to my overseas friends
Finalize the details for pre-x'mas gathering on the 20th Dec
Sew cute little bags for the little guests
Handmade cards for friends
Last minute Christmas shopping
To complete the curtain for the girls' room
Preparing for a mini scrapbooking class this Saturday

girl by the window

burp cloths for a girlfriend's newborn

a different ink color for the pins and there are green,
orange and blue too

joy piece

cute as buttons

2008-11-16T15:10:00.009+08:00

I spotted these cute BUTTONS recently and I just have to get them! Super cute wooden buttons with adorable images printed on them. Gonna make them look even prettier on totes and pencil cases!

I am so looking forward to X'mas and winter by looking
at them. :)

and there are iron, sewing machine, needle and thread...

Our little missy has just turned TWO last week! We bought a 'laugh a lot' care bear cake for her. We love this super friendly and bubbly little girl of ours! She is definitely getting cheekier and cheekier each day :D

a rainy evening

2008-10-21T12:06:00.004+08:00

Has it been a month already?! I've been really busy at work especially with the upcoming regional meeting. Two of my cousins are getting married this month! We attended one last Saturday, will be attending another one this week and our friend's wedding on the 1st Nov! With Little Missy who is becoming quite a handful nowadays, I really need a good massage as my whole body ached since last week. She refused to be carried when we are out of the house and she can scream like she's in a horror movie! I have almost forgotten about the terrible twos phrase if you ask me. So I have been busy hunting for dresses and shoes for my two lovelies. More shopping done at ON, Gymboree, TCP. None for myself for now but I have to get a piece of nice evening dress by this week.

Looking at this, this, this, this or maybe going back to this, this and this if I could afford to stay in one of their lovely estates!

Thanks to those who emailed and inquired about my work. I neglected my little shop for quite a while but there will be some new stuffs very soon. My new craft supply should be in the mail anytime from now!

All the cousins had a great time catching up at my cousin's wedding last weekend. The kids too, had fun playing with their little cousins!

my lovely nephew and niece

It's drizzling outside but I am off to the hair salon for a nice hair makeover!

mid month

2008-09-14T01:57:00.009+08:00

Gearing up to sew more stuff for the shop and for causal poet. I can't wait to see the wonderful stuff R brings back from Taiwan for CP! I am hoping that the regional meeting will be held in Taipei this year so that I can go on a shopping spree again. I really enjoyed the food and shopping there especially for their wide range of the beauty skincare products. My mother-in-law is heading to Hokkaido this December with my sister-in-law's family again and they are spending 12 days there! Our family can't join them this time round due to hubby's busy work schedule and my new job commitment, so sad! But I am in the midst of preparing a long shopping list for them!

Back on my sewing machine, I am working on a new batch of passport covers, cellphone pouches, more of the appliqued pencil cases, bigger pouches, totes plus some other cute stuff. I will update after I photographed them.

Plus some pictures taken at the Singapore Zoo, a couple of weeks back..

little missy is turning 2 coming November!

Mid Autumn Festive 中秋节

2008-09-14T00:32:00.017+08:00

Today is the mid-autumn festival and here, wishing all a Happy Mid Autumn festival, 中秋节快乐！

I'm not exactly a huge fan of mooncake but I do like the snow-skin mooncakes with champagne truffles from Raffles hotel. They are one of the most sinful and best tasting mooncakes ever. The traditional mooncake is filled with lotus seed paste and they are pretty distinctive in appearance. The salty yolk in the middle, which I think represents the full moon is what I absolutely love!

Like last year, we brought the kids downstairs and joined the neighbourhood for the Mid-Autumn festival celebration with candles, lanterns light up. It seem like more people are buying lanterns for their kids nowadays. I saw lots and all kinds of electrical lanterns and they are really popular. But please do not give me 'modern' battery operated lanterns. Cute designs they have but they kind of drive me up the wall with the never ending, loud music playing when they are turned on, lol. I still prefer the traditional paper lanterns, they are one of the best parts of my childhood that I remember. Really brought back fond memories of the Mid Autumn festival and the wonderful time I had when I was a kid. I'm going to explain to Big Missy why the Chinese celebrate the Mid-Autumn festival - the legends of Chang E. I think it would be interesting and most educational for her but be prepared for tons of whys from her too!

Here are some pictures taken earlier, not fantastic but love seeing how she enjoyed herself.

postcards

2008-08-27T15:02:00.000+08:00

Sending out postcards is one of my favorite things to do when I am on vacation. It's an inexpensive way to let people know I was thinking about them on my travels! The sending and receiving process is always fun, heartfelt, personal and genuine. I also enjoy collecting postcards featuring inspirational images & poetry and especially love this passport range by Making Memories which I've gotten them at JLMSB.

4 already!

2008-08-17T13:45:00.011+08:00

It's been sometime since I've posted here. Life has been crazily-busy at work and home, trying to get things wrapped up. I had the privilege of collaborating with really great people. So thankful for all the potential business opportunities. . Also busy catching up with the Olympics on cable tv. It's grand opening was just spectacular and the performances were amazing. Busy it is but every day is a great day for me.

Big Missy just turned 4 on the 7th August, 2 days after mine and 2 days before Singapore 43rd birthday! We cut off her long hair before school started. She is looking more refreshing and of course it is more manageable - no more tying of Big Missy's hair early in the morning for me. :p

She chose and picked two Strawberry Shortcake cakes this year - one for school and the other for home. No more DIY goodie bags this year. I wish I had more time. The kids loved the goodie bags and the yummy chocolate cake, they helped themselves with 2 servings!

Next up, will be making some gifts for the coming teacher's day!

the cake for home
goodie bags for the kids

with her lovely classmates

We went to the zoo yesterday. It was such a great weather! Later...

happy birthday

2008-08-05T09:15:00.005+08:00

I was inspired by the scene of these pictures and happily picked a few of my favorite pieces. Today, I turn another year older. I hope a little wiser as well. I am a happy woman waiting eagerly for these clothes plus a toy camera given by the girls' dad. :D Two days later will be Big Missy's turn and we are all ready for a mini celebration in her kindy It is going to be her first time celebrating her birthday with her kindy friends and she is so excited about it!

Hope

2008-08-01T15:24:00.003+08:00

hoped, hop·ing, hopes. v.intr.

To wish for something with expectation of its fulfillment.
Archaic. To have confidence; trust.

v.tr.

To look forward to with confidence or expectation: We hope that our children will be successful.
To expect and desire. See synonyms at expect.

n.z

A wish or desire accompanied by confident expectation of its fulfillment.
Something that is hoped for or desired: Success is our hope.
One that is a source of or reason for hope: the team's only hope for victory.
Archaic. Trust; confidence.

a meaningful gift - customized Ipod/cellphone case

snuggling in the cover

Happy August everyone! It's my favorite month of the year.

so lovin' it

2008-07-27T17:07:00.007+08:00

I managed to achieve what I want. Life is good, everything else too...:)

18.07.2008

2008-07-18T22:44:00.012+08:00

My kids love this - cornflakes cookies. I have to give it a try even though I don't bake. I mean I can't bake! I have little to share about when it comes to baking. Maybe I was not given the flair for baking. The baking terms, measurements freaked me out. Someone told me that cornflakes cookies are called Honey Joy in Australia. I love that name, it really sounds happy! I will be making these for the coming teacher's day and present them in some nice containers.

Have you seen the food photos on flickr yet? Those pictures are so well taken, inspiring and mouthwatering looking. What a blessing for one to be able to be doing what you love to do and preparing daily meals for your loved ones.

Our simple dishes for dinner

egg soup

More work in progress - tape, stamping, ink
...

I am honored to be invited to contribute to Bloesem’s World Tour project. You can read the whole report here and here. Thanks for the invite Irene, I hope to see you in Singapore very soon!

art therapy

2008-07-13T14:25:00.001+08:00

She loves art therapy

Big Missy's drawing/painting pieces

Bits and pieces I've outgrown. I think there are more.
It's probably time to get them a new home!

Patchwork lamp cover which I did for the orange room back then. The room looks so much cosier with it.

I have received some delicious Making Memories papers in the mail on Friday! More layouts, cards to be done. Almost done with the items made for Casualpoet and I'm looking forward to see the new look/stuff in the shop.

my fair ladies

2008-07-11T21:54:00.007+08:00

Two little ladies monkeying around in the house. Okay, our little Missy's hair is taking a long time to grow while her sister's hair is getting way too long. I will be bringing big missy for a hair cut after her birthday. But guess what she told me, but mummy having long hair is nicer! Vanity begins at a very young age huh?

back to school

2008-07-07T15:15:00.002+08:00

I have finished this batch of custom pencil cases order for a UK customer. These will be in tomorrow's mail. I hope she likes the colors, stamps and texts I picked.

quiet afternoon

2008-07-04T15:17:00.013+08:00

It's Friday. My kind of a quiet and undisturbed afternoon while the kids are napping - a cup of Earl Grey and munching my all time favorite butter sultana cookies from Marks and Spencer . Then continue to do some scrapping. I just realised it's coming to a close 3 years from the time I started scrapbooking. Time is gone way too quickly.

Have a nice weekend everyone and Happy 4th of July to my friends in America!

Sentosa Island

2008-07-01T13:57:00.014+08:00

Here are the pictures taken during our recent trip to Sentosa Island. We reached there after lunch and left the island close to 830pm as we couldn't get the 7.40pm show tickets at Songs of the Sea. I think the girls would have enjoyed the captivating music and stunning flame burst!

It used to be called the musical fountain and free admission for the public but now you need to pay to watch it.

A nice contemporary restaurant offering signature seafood cuisine

Big Missy at the Luge

Palawan Beach

She is truly a water babe

Satisfied looking little missy who just woke up from her nap.

We had a nice evening at the Fort Siloso beach

a moment of happiness

2008-06-25T12:12:00.034+08:00

I'm very happy and excited to share that my linen goods are now available at casualpoet 隨意詩人 - an arts and cultural concept store. I was so thrilled when R gave me the link to her online shop. If you have not heard of casualpoet, you must check them out now. The products they're stocking are right up my alley - from home goods, stationery, records, books and zines and they are stocking a lot more! I went to place my goods in the store yesterday, coincidently it was also their official opening day. Casualpoet shop is located at 273B New Bridge Road, 3rd floor of an old shophouse. It is a small and cosy shop (and a mini-cafe) stocked with beautiful natural looking goods by designers, artists, publishers and record companies from all over the world. I was reading the Lines & Shapes book and I think it is really cool. I will be placing more new stuff at casualpoet shop over time, just love going back there, for more inspirations and hopefully less shopping!

love how they displayed the goods

looking more complete with the new labels. :)

Singapore Science Centre

2008-06-20T02:42:00.016+08:00

Two weeks ago, we headed to the Science Centre together with a long time girlfriend and her son. Big Missy is going to be 4 officially and we have, in the last 5 months, entered the "Why?" phase. Lots of questions being asked when we were there.

There are lots of interesting interactive exhibits going on but most of the exhibits might be too difficult for young children to grasp. Instead, they will definitely love the outdoor exhibits Water Works!

Water Works

'imagine yourself here' - cute wall illustrations on 'why water is important?' Big Missy was seated on the red chair.

Big Missy loves watching science fiction movies. It must be under the influence of the hubby. As an avid Science fiction fan, he often plays old DVD titles: Aliens Vs. Predator, Star Wars, Harry Potter & Jurassic Park for Big Missy. Can you imagine how excited she was when she saw the 'dinosaurs' at the exhibit?

polar bear is looking so real

Happy Fathers' Day!

2008-06-15T23:11:00.003+08:00

Happy Fathers' Day to all you Dads out there! We had an absolutely crazy family time at Sentosa today but the weather was scorchingly hot there! The most enjoyable time we had was at the Luge and Skyride. Of course L and myself had much fun reminiscing old times, chatting about how we used to visit the island before the kids came along. The last time we visited the island was 7 years ago!

I'm off to sort out the hundreds of pictures taken today, will post them here soon.

lookie

2008-06-12T23:44:00.002+08:00

I have to post another entry today. I'm so thrilled to see my crafts featured on one of my favorite blogs - Bloesem, thank you Irene!

WIP

2008-06-12T19:09:00.000+08:00

A really quick post to share some of my WIP pictures!

passport covers

side by side

I made lots and lots of pencil cases, I think I did about 25 (I broke my sewing record). These are all waiting to be stamped!

New designs for the pins that I'm loving right now - texts, birds, tree...

More pictures over here. I'm happy to share some great news coming end June! Now, back to scrapbooking!

simply sewing pleasure

2008-06-07T01:02:00.001+08:00

I haven't been so productive for a long time. I have put aside my sewing and scrapbooking for quite a while to spend more quality time with my family, bringing the girls for some outdoor activities, plus other commitments. And now I am back on track. Let's do some maths. I have sewn 15 pencil cases, 10 passport covers. 6 photo album covers, still making lots & lots of linen pins and other WIP. Since I'm in a crafty mood right now, I will also be making more tote bags and quilts! Kind of miss quilting actually. I am going to work on smaller size quilts though - baby, doll quilts or stroller blankies? We'll see. I also hope to squeeze sometime to make baby gifts for a couple of girlfriends who are giving birth real soon!

I made this quilt last year and I'm still lovin' these prints

On a scrapbooking note, I like the new SEI - Poppy! Love how the colors are looking so bright, spring & summery

I have got some requests for customized linen photo album covers. So being crafty me at the moment, I made a few more for the shop.

snapshots

journey

featured

2008-06-05T14:10:00.008+08:00

My pencil case, passport covers and pins were featured on two very lovely sites - Indie Parade and Craftershock - thanks for the invite! Check out the gorgeous handmade projects made by other talented crafters & designers here and here. I spotted many of my favorite artists - totally eye candy!

books, art and craft

2008-05-29T13:02:00.007+08:00

Bedtime reading has become a part of our daily routine. We have completed the Sight Word Readers six months ago and Big Missy is able to recognize most of the sight word. She is also doing some simple reading on her own. Little Missy also enjoys the reading sessions and at 18 month, she is able to speak a few words like mummy, daddy, jie-jie (elder sister), di-di (younger brother), mah mah (grandma), ah yi (our baby sitter), dog, apple, dirty, book, please, ball, bye bye, hello... And when you call her, she will always acknowledge it with a Huuuhhhh?? Too cute!

Our favorite books at the moment. Readers and books from Scholastics, Dr Seuss, Inch by Inch by David Mallett, Cock-a-doodle-doo! by Giles Andreae

Two weeks before the school holidays was the teachers-parents meeting session. I was looking forward to see some of Big Missy's artwork. The moment I entered her classroom, I noticed her work even before seeing her name on it. The one right in the center with the colorful tree trunk was done by her! Good to hear from the teachers that Big Missy knows her work well and is able to do her work independently in the class. I was told that she is an imaginative and creative girl who loves art and craft. Oh, she surprised me by writing her full name just recently!

We went to this Creative Art Corner at Toys'rus for some stenciling crafts. Big Missy chose this little house and she had a blast creating the pictures using the included stencils and paints.

Right from the oven after painting

Is August coming so soon? It's only 2 months away and my baby is going to be FOUR! Seriously, I do not think I have the energy to sew another round of goodie bags like last year and I am in the midst of rushing out some custom pencil cases, covers orders. So we might be doing something simpler for her birthday this year. :)

all is well now

2008-05-26T00:05:00.007+08:00

So glad the whole family is finally well again. The kids haven't been sick since beginning of the year. Just 2 weeks ago, Big Missy was suspicious of having HFMD but it was an false alarm. We separated the sisters for 3 days until the doctor certified it was not a case of HFMD. Little Missy was not spared too. It started with cough, runny nose and persistent fever with high spikes at night. Since she has a whooping cough with thick green nasal discharge, our family doctor advised to start her on antibiotics as it might be due to some bacteria infection. After taking the antibiotics for 3 days, her condition did not get any better and the fever continued for another 4 days! She totally rejects milk and solid food! Can you imagine how thin she is now, so worrying! We finally went to our paediatrician and he suspected that Little Missy's case could be just viral infection. The antibiotics has no effect on the particular strain of bacteria in her and that explained why she is not reacting well to the antibiotics. He sent some nasal discharge for lab test to determine if its viral or bacteria infection. At the same time, I was sad to hear that he has to start Little Missy another course of antibiotics as he is concerned about the prolonged fever that has been going on for 2 weeks. I am not a fan of antibiotics but I decided to go for it knowing that our PD is not one who prescribe antibiotics easily and he is very careful when prescribing them for very young children.

Thanks for asking my friends, all is well now! Little Missy is reacting very well to the new medicines. No more fever and runny nose. Coughing is less too. Happiest thing is that she's asking for food now! I am going to give her Probiotics after she has completed the course of antibiotics since they are the best way to replenish the good bacteria.

faves

2008-05-21T23:18:00.000+08:00

Sharing some of my faves on Flickr!

1. Yousuke Shimizu, 2. blow now, 3. .buttering you up..., 4. junior deluxe, 5. .start today..., 6. Vintage tent blouse, 7. sneak peek, 8. Framed Photos Headboard, 9. Camera camera case "Degi-came" spring green, 10. Loyal Loot Log Bowl, 11. crafting 365 - day 59, 12. small bowls overview, 13. Afternoon Tea

Colorful Summer

2008-05-14T12:34:00.010+08:00

The definition of sum·mer^{1 taken from here}

2. A period of fruition, fulfillment, happiness, or beauty.

I love the American Crafts spring and summer range especially their paper pack but they are sold out too fast. Still, I managed to grab some of their foam and plastic shapes! The birds, the beetles, dogs, piggies are adorable! Thank you JLMS for the generous supplies! Do check out the store if you have not, they often have great sale every now and then!

Clothes pegs - dressed them up with patterned papers, Love Elsie frames, linen tape, AC foam shapes

All papers are from Jenni Bowlin! Always love her product lines.

I love any kind of words definitions!

Happy Mothers' Day!

2008-05-11T22:30:00.005+08:00

Big Missy passed me this Happy Mother’s Day card earlier. She did this card in school and it's my very first handmade Mother’s Day card from her. How sweet is that?!
I definitely love being a Mom and it is my favorite job in the world. I love how my girls woke me up with a kiss and the many cuddle sessions. I always think that I am surrounded by many outstanding Mothers out there - my close girlfriends and the blogger mothers. The kind of Mom's who inspire me to be a better Mom. To be more patient, to be more understanding, to be more loving!

So, here's to you, fellow mommies! All of you are doing an amazing job. Happy Mothers' Day!

it's the Go Go Bambini!

2008-05-09T01:02:00.006+08:00

We decided to bring the girls out for some indoor fun at Go Go Bambini located at Dempsey Hill. It is an enormous custom-designed interactive playscape with 5m high spiral slide for active play including climbing, sliding, bouncing, balancing, crawling and more. The girls enjoyed themselves throughout and mothers too! More like tired I think, lol. Oh, I thought the big tunnel-slide within was kind of scary! I got some light bruises on my elbows when I slide down the tunnel-slide. Getting old maybe! :p Anyhow, do watch your kids if you decided to try it. It was fun really. :)

Next, we had dinner at Ben & Jerry's cafe. Such a nice ambience for any occasion, any company. This Ben & Jerry’s outlet also houses CA california, a deli that serves really nice sandwiches, under the same roof. I love their little cosy fireplace too! I've forgotten to take a picture of it though, next time then!

The girls in the cool looking ice cream van

No nice indoor shots of the playscape due to the poor lightings. Good thing that we managed to take some nice and decent shots of the girls!

Ballpit area - They spent the most time here

Look at these sandwiches :D

Chris had this. I almost wanna eat that sunny side up egg!

I had this - turkey ham with mango!

right on

2008-04-30T03:11:00.007+08:00

Hello! Yes, I'm still around. I know I haven't updated my blog in eons lol. I am still sewing on and off but these days I'm feeling a little tired, dreamy. I just want to sit back, relax and putting all crafty stuff aside. Oh yes! I so wish to go on holiday. :) I love resort, resort, resort and so a Spa Retreat is just perfect for me mood now!

Ballerina pencil case

Some handmade notebooks. Awesome tutorial at Photojojo as recommended by Ali.E when I read about it last year.

a beautiful day

2008-04-20T15:48:00.000+08:00

Caught this live on Etsy front page for the first time! What a beautiful title! Poppy twist..skyblue kiss. :)

I really think I've a fascination with birds and trees. I can never get tired of them. You can see them everywhere on flickr, scrapbook layouts and sewing projects. Inspiration is everywhere. Yes, I love Nature, its beautiful!

More pins! Really enjoyed making these cute stuff.

another year later

2008-04-09T22:54:00.002+08:00

Today marks the 14th anniversary for us. L was outstationed since last Saturday but we will be seeing him in the airport coming this weekend. So looking forward! The kids and I did something fun earlier - baking! Frankly, I don't enjoy baking and I don't think I am a good baker. I still very much prefer scrapbooking, crafting, sewing or cooking anytime. But today, I just want to bake something really simple for the kids. They loved playing with the dough and making shapes out of it. All we did was some simple butter cookies topped with raisins and cashew nuts. Oh, I totally forgotten about taking pictures bleah. By the time the mess is cleaned up. I'm physically exhausted haha. But I'm very sure that I'll be baking more of those yummy cookies soon!

These glass bottles were from Big Missy's baby time. I was going to dump them when we spring cleaned our house earlier this year. So glad I did not. I used some bird rubons from Hambly and a strip of linen tape. These bottles came without the caps and look how the linen button fits perfectly on it? The bottles are now sitting on my table holding all kind of stationary i.e. paper clips, staple bullets, mini clothes pegs, etc.

Another pin set - bird + cage

Eye shadow colors - I like the gold with the yellow and a little green eyeliner under lid.

something old something new

2008-04-07T20:17:00.006+08:00

I haven't been updating my shop recently due to the many custom made projects on hand right now. Here's the pencil case I've listed recently and this is on its way to Belgium. :D

New range in the shop. Cute pins! More of these cuties will be listed in the shop in the next few days.

full of colors

2008-04-04T23:10:00.009+08:00

I have been busy playing with lots of colors lately. Not scrapbooking or crafts related. Mineral Makeup that's it. I don't put on tons of makeup when I'm out. Just some light powder and blush, I am good to go. I am totally in love with Silk Naturals products. Of all the mineral makeup brands I've tried so far, I can say that SN suits me most. I love the natural look it gives and they are very long lasting too. Most importantly, a little goes a long way! I love buying blushes and I can never get enough of them. Go take a peek at SN's blushes if you are a blush lover like me. Putting on eyeshadow is not a daily task for me either but I just couldn't resist getting some samples from TheSheSpace, the ex-owner of Twisted Fayte. Gorgeous colors and pigments! I have some fun ideas for storing these little baggies. Yeah, it's time for an altered project! Stay tuned!

Love green, green, green

Darker green for the smoky effect

The blues and pinks are gorgeous!

Can't resist getting some of the purples

artwork by big missy

2008-03-27T16:12:00.004+08:00

Here are some of my favorite art pieces done by big missy. I am amazed at what she is drawing and her progress. Her drawings are looking more 'real' each day as compared to those she drew earlier. Right, I am definitely keeping and filing all her drawings and frame/line up some of those we like. I know she will enjoy her art lessons which she has been requesting for. We have shortlisted a few schools and we are putting her at RUS Art Studio. Long wait list I must say!

This is Mommy. Love love this!

And this is Dad. I thought it's Elmo!

Owl maybe?

lazy afternoon

2008-03-25T16:19:00.010+08:00

I did something fast and quick for the girls. Having little girls are fun! You can quickly whip up some cute and fun hairclips, barrettes & pony holders for them.

While waiting for new scrapbooking products to arrive, here are two layouts which I did recently. See that tortoise? Coloring done by Big Missy who insisted to paste it on the layout. I think it doesn't look too bad after all. She proudly told me that she did this layout of her little sister!

delightful loot

2008-03-20T15:10:00.003+08:00

Everything I ordered came in the mail! I must say it was a super heavy huge package that I've ever received. Books, magazines, fabric, cute stationery, sewing, crafting supplies, linen tapes together with my stamps, ink and orders from cb2!

Cute little fruit flavour tea tins from best of pal!

I bought these commas plates from cb2. I am a big fan of Crate&Barrel. I'm so happy that they have cb2 with a wide range of affordable, pretty and modern home deco goods. I wish they have a store here.

Lovely lovely mini linen tapes from R. Don't they look yummy on the plate? I was sooo looking forward to see them in person. Thanks pal!

Very cool looking adhesive measuring tapes!

Photo clippers! Very nice presentation for photos, cards and little memos. I added some Making Memories & 7gypsies stickers around the photos, loved! Best purchase ever during their sale.

I actually ordered this hanging candle holder but it broke during the delivery. That's okay, next time then and more excuses to shop.

photo extracted from cb2 site

Till then! :D

Sunshine after the rain

2008-03-17T17:54:00.015+08:00

We love the McDonald's at West Coast Park. It is a great place for a good Sunday family outing. Many families are there for picnics, cycling, rollerblading and the kids love the huge playground! So off we went to the park last Sunday - such cool weather after it rained. After an hour of fun, we had tea break at McDonald's - yummy ice cream sundaes, strawberry milk shake and lots of french fries! We took lots of pictures too, thanks to the great weather and natural sunlight!

Little Missy, 16 month old now

Happily waiting for the food

Little Missy's favorite baby bites biscuit

first taste of french fries

We will be visiting the park in the next few weeks or so. We're going to teach Big Missy how to rollerblade! We're gonna have lots of fun. :)

layouts

2008-03-04T18:31:00.020+08:00

CHA 2008 has just ended not too long ago and I haven't bought any new releases as yet. Nothing really caught my eye so far. But some brands, my personal favorites that never fails to disappoint are Hambly, AC, Heidi Swapp, Fontwerks, Jenni Bowlin. Some others include the latest lines 'Get Happy' and 'Cogsmo' by Cosmo Cricket, some Cherry Arte. I also read about ChatterBox who is making a comeback in the scrapbooking industry. I'm looking forward to see some of their new products. Esp the flocked papers. I thought their Filigree papers are looking a bit KI-ish.

For now, I am working towards the 'old is new' motto. Trying and hoping to use my older stash and making them look 'new' still! :P

The Vintage Journaling Set, labelers, Bent Arrow Journal Spot, 'Venue' (love that font) are stamps from Purple Onion Designs - another personal favorite!

Thinking back, first day of school was a blend of excitement, anxiety and curiosity for all kids and we, parents as well. It is also a momentous occasion that marks the beginning of our little ones learning journey that will never end. Big Missy did really great on her first day of school and I was glad all went well from then till now, into her 3rd month. She was so excited over a recent excursion organized by the kindy to McDonald's kitchen & West Coast Park. You could tell the excitement on her face when she passed me the consent form! Haa which kid doesn't like McDonald's huh? :D

Not usually a purple fan but the birthday girl loves purple. The one and only piece of purple linen I found in my fabric stash. So here's a little handmade present for little E who just turned 4!

Oh when L told me about the latest release for Nikon D60, I almost forgotten that owning a digital SLR is on my wish list lol. Anyhow, it has been a really long time since I wanted to get one but my current camera is still serving me 'really' well. If I remembered correctly, it was early last year or end 2006 when I went hunting for a digital SLR and fell in love with the Nikon D50 (no longer in production) and that was the biggest regret of not getting it then! Maybe the D60 is worth considering? We'll see! :D

portfolio and some little bits

2008-02-29T16:31:00.007+08:00

Today's the last day of Feb, 29th - the leap year. I wished I had been born on this day. Then I would be so much younger. :D

I am always amazed by the different styles of work produced by the featured artists at Trunkt. I came to know about the site last year and I was wondering how it works. Trunkt is not a shopping cart service nor a place to sell your individual products. It's place where you can show a portfolio of your products/arts to potential customers from all over the world.

I think it is a good way to promote your products. However, the site is juried. You need to go through an application process, get reviewed and be accepted into the site before you can showcase your portfolio. Also, they're actually looking for some good quality images on their site. As a newly opened shop owner, I went ahead and applied for an Artist Portfolio three weeks after I listed my items on Etsy and my application was accepted! So thrilled to be one of the featured Trunkt artists. Check out the site if you have not seen it.

Also, totally honored to be featured here by a fellow etsyian who hearted me. Loved all the stuff she picked, including some of my favorite sellers and items!

I love the mushrooms within a wooden mushroom case for a packaging idea.

I'm guilty of shopping again. I joined a spree and bought some of these. Eyelash fix, hair curling sponge, Shiseido blackhead peeloff mask, Care Pre-makeup Cream. These products are highly raved products by Taiwan Artistes and on show Queen Nu Ren Wo Zui Da.

I've finished some zipper clutches and passport covers since last week. I will start listing once photos are ready. Also, hoping Flickr will be up soon!

Later! :D

a quick fix

2008-02-21T10:20:00.003+08:00

The last thing you want to do is spend all weekend stressing out in the kitchen. I have some really simple meals that can be thrown together at the last minute, perfect for a simple & quick dinner! We like having home cooked steam pumpkin mushrooms rice for dinner and it is really fuss free and easy to prepare.

Here's my own recipe if you are interested to whip up a simple and healthy meal come this weekend.

The Ingredients:

1. Japanese Pumpkin (They are so much sweeter than the normal ones!)
2. Sausages (I recommend those traditional chinese sausages as they taste more fragrant)
3. Chicken
4. Mushrooms
5. Small onions
6. Soya Sauce
7. Oyster/Char Siew Sauce from Lee Kum Kee (I tried using the latter last week and it tasted just as good!)

Steamed Pumpkin Rice with Mushrooms and Chickens

Directions:

1. Add small onions, the above ingredients (except for the chickens), oyster sauce. Pan fry until fragant for a good 1-2 minute. You don't have to fully cook these as you will need to transfer them to the steam cooker later.

2. Add washed uncooked rice (2 cups rice for a family of 4) to the wok and continue to pan fry for another minute.

3. Transfer everything from the wok to the steam cooker.

4. Add uncooked chickens (cut into pieces) to the steam cooker before the rice is fully cook and there you go. Easy?

Packing the goods.

Also, thanks Angie for the invite and featuring me here

happy things

2008-02-19T02:00:00.002+08:00

Instead of doing simple design on linen (still love that simple classy look), I did some cute little stuff using my japanese fabric. I wanted to work on this idea for the longest time. It started from the time I did my journal covers. Instead of journal covers, I worked on my linen zipper cases. I really love the simple storyboard idea in terms of scrapbooking and crafting! All thanks to the reading sessions with big missy, I was greatly inspired by her collection of books - all those cute illustrations and storyboards especially from the vintage childrens' series, real gem!

I am going to sit back waiting for a super good mail day! :D

All these zipper cases are available here.

owl and tree

rest and relax

home journey

little girl wandering in the forest

hello!

2008-02-16T01:20:00.002+08:00

I'm loving what I'm seeing on the internet for clothings lately. Especially from UO!

I love this trench coat, it's a Japanese design

Cool design on the back!

I did a couple of layouts since last week and here's one of them.

Yup, I've been really really busy and trying to juggle with a lot of new changes going on right now. Also, trying very hard to blog about all the latest news and happenings. Thanks to all my blog readers for taking the time to read my entries. Say hello if you do visit again! :D

Here's a super big smile from big missy!

long weekend's over

2008-02-13T01:22:00.000+08:00

Yes pal, I'm on the front page of Etsy treasury! :D

A pity that we didn't take a lot of pictures for this lunar new year. What can one do when the kids were not being cooperative in front of the camera. I had to keep telling them not to move in front of the camera especially when taking some decent family shots. More like I'm not in a photo-taking mood haa! My pre-chinese new year run in probably drained a little more energy out of me than expected. Having had 5 consecutive days of home visits and reaching home late was no joke! Now, I want to work on something fresh to recharge my 'batteries'. :)

girls looking so engrossed here

the cousins

baby Z - his dimple is too cute!!

the Chin family visited us

We love to play Zingo!

featured

2008-02-10T12:54:00.000+08:00

What a great start for the new year! I have received some lovely news recently. First off, the owner of Mixed Plate informed me that she has chosen one of my linen pencil case for one of her Friday Favorites! So happy and excited! Pencil case featured over at Mixed Plate - very cool site. :) Happy Sunday!

the featured pencil case

simple on the outside, cheery inside

another pencil case

.......

2008-02-04T12:23:00.000+08:00

A quick post to show 2 new items in the shop. I am off to complete a few layouts for now after days of sewing! Wishing all a Happy Lunar New Year in advance and see you in the year of Rat!

update

2008-02-01T09:28:00.000+08:00

This is another white linen patchwork tote for the shop. I just love white and grey linen. I like the contrast, the clean and neat look. I made one for R last year for our swap and I really loved it. I've always wanted to make this for the shop someday. Many told me white is pretty to look at but it gets dirty easily. Yes, that's so true but how not to love when the colors are looking so cheery and fresh here, just perfect colors for the coming Spring!

short words are so lovely

its hard to photograph the words but the ink has intense color on the linen in real life

the shop

2008-01-31T23:15:00.000+08:00

Hello! So good to be back on the lovely blogging land. After days of sewing sessions, I can now sit comfortably and blog about what I've done so far. Obviously not new to the lovely Etsy site, one of my favorite places for my daily reading since beginning of 2007. This place is addictive where you can be overwhelmed by a pool of talented artists, amazed by the beautiful, creative handmade items. Tons of inspirations and get prepared to burn a hole in your pocket from just shopping there. :)

A year later, I joined the other Etsians and sell my handmade crafts. Most of my work are associated with simple patchwork on linen & hand stamping. I love stamps! Acyclic or rubber. I find that the stamps are just as beautiful stamped on linen like they are on papers. A good pick me up and shopping for linen, stamps, scrapbooking supplies always brings me great joy, esp hunting for cool looking stamps. It was really fun to hand stamp on linen! It's just like scrapbooking and I love creating some sort of simple storyboard for my layouts and crafty stuff. After trying out and experiencing with my stamps stash, I've finally achieved the look I wanted to get- going simple on linen works for me. :)

Some passport covers from last year and I am making more for the shop. These are available in the shop now. :)

cozy couch passport cover

vintage robot passport cover

and the cycle home story continues...

and a grey/white linen tote

I will be listing the rest of the stuff and blog about it in the next few days, stay tune!

orange love + a winner!

2008-01-23T15:47:00.000+08:00

It's the busiest time of the year again. Our family is gearing up for the coming lunar new year (and that includes spring cleaning for the house). But it really is the best time of the year as there will be lots of yummy food and new year goodies to look forward to!

Indeed, it's an Orange & Grey room! I was contemplating to go with either green/grey or orange/grey. Actually, I wouldn't mind going for a green/orange/grey combination but that might be too overwhelming. I mean having three colors in a small bedroom? Well, let's just say my family members are far more conservative in their decor/color tastes & green is not in their favorite list. In general, the elderly Chinese (maybe it's just Singaporeans) are rather conservative with having bold wall colors in the house and most do try to avoid bright, bold green due to auspicious reasons. Something to do with luck & health I think. Anyhow, I couldn't find the green tone that I wanted so I went with my next favorite - orange/grey and that's the coolest color combination I've seen. Lovin' the warm and cool effect.

We have got a winner! My apologies for the long wait. I've got big Missy to draw a name (everyone's in!) and she picked...........

Kloth and Bolt!

Congrats KB!! Please email me your mailing address. You can locate my email under the profile page. Thanks to all who left a comment, appreciate it! :D We probably have another guessing game soon again!

previously was in scarlet red

and now, the grey panel - placing my artwork, layouts on a chest of drawers. The drawers are now organized with my scrapbooking supplies.

the orange panel for the kids' area.
Cards, scrap of fabric hanging on wall like artwork
the quilt I made sometime ago is now a home decorative item

a happy big Missy who has been saying 'that's my orange room!' Everything has to be done in her orange room :)

I'm managed to squeeze some time to make something for my shop. I am waiting for some orders to arrive for my wip projects. Shop coming very soon.

Later....

retail therapy

2008-01-17T15:28:00.000+08:00

One of those days where you manage to enjoy a little retail therapy. Not papers, fabrics but shoes and simple dresses that I adored. I'm pretty much ready for the coming chinese lunar new year! I'm a happy woman now :)

a little giveaway..

2008-01-14T14:38:00.000+08:00

We spent our weekend re-painting the kids' room. I was thinking to paint the room in such a way that one corner is for the kids and the other corner would be my workspace since I do not have an extra room for myself. I was thinking along the grey + either 1. green, 2. orange or 3. turquoise color combination.

Since it is the beginning of the new year. I would like to do a little giveaway - If you like the orange linen clutch (yes, I made 2 of the same design) from my last post, come join in the fun and guess which wall color combination I went for? You'll have until Fri, Jan 18th at midnight (PST) to leave a comment. This is my very first giveaway on my blog and I hope you will enjoy this little handmade gift from me. Come say hello folks! :D

After painting, I managed to rearrange and reorganizing my work desk, scrapbook and fabric stash. Sigh, I sure have a lot of stuff. (I probably give out some RAKs soon). I can't believe the room is looking so neat and organized now and I am so enjoying it. I can sit in the room the whole day (I wish!). The smell of the new wall paint plus the burning lavender aromatherapy oils filled the room. Of cos, the most fun part would be decorating the room. I picked a few of my favorite layouts and got them framed. They're going up on the wall soon plus a couple of DIY wall art frames like these...

Card with green leaves/trees given by my dear friend
How not to frame this cute little card?

Isn't it a good idea to frame one of your favorite fabric? :)

Abstract tree piece with alpha stickers 'tree' on it.
I am loving all these white frames against the contrasting wall colors.

Till later...

love for linen

2008-01-08T17:15:00.000+08:00

It's the first day of the week again. Big Missy is adapting well in school except that she kept forgetting to bring her jacket home. She either left it on the school bus or in the class. And she has been taking really long nap ever since she started school - from 130pm - 5pm or even later! Our little Missy is learning to talk. Words from her include, mummy, daddy, ah-yi (auntie), jie-jie (big sister), gor gor (big brother), baby, ball, arllo (hello), dog, ah-no (Elno, our dog). I love it when she calls mummy. She goes, 'maaa-miiiiiiiiiiii' Awwww sweet!

I did not stop sewing. Here, my love for linen continues. I've been getting requests to do custom made bags, pouches & other commissioned projects lately. After much consideration, I think I probably sell some of these plus other projects which I am planning to do very soon for my little shop. So, stay tune and do check back. :)

commissioned linen clutch

orange stripes lining inside

commissioned patchwork

school is fun

2008-01-03T18:00:00.001+08:00

Big Missy is all ready for school! She is in the Nursery class this year. We have to change our lifestyle for the new year. That is, no more late nights, no more waking up late in the morning. I must say she is doing really well. I had no problem waking her up at 630a.m and getting her prepared for school for the past 3 days except that this poor girl was down with fever and cough since the 2nd day of school. I accompanied her on the first day of school and I could see that she is enjoying herself in the class with her new friends. She followed the teachers' instructions well and was very attentive in the class esp during story telling time. She even fed herself with a bowl of porridge all by herself! That's quite different when she is at home! So proud of my baby. :)

just reached the school

Iooking like a little jappy school kid

waiting for brunch to be served
she likes the place

these especially

love her in her new school uniform

with this precious expression

class's over and running about

2008

2008-01-03T15:46:00.000+08:00

Happy New Year All! Time flies, today's already the 3rd day of 2008. I thought we should all have high hopes and set new goals for the new year. Have you set yours? All things are possible, everything is fresh, new and full of possibilities. I certainly hope everyone has been having fun so far and have a colorful 2008 ahead!

big missy likes holding little missy like this while watching their favorite tv program.

playing peek a boo with her little sister
shooting the everyday at home (supply from OPAAT Dec kit)

Merry Holidays!

2007-12-25T23:45:00.000+08:00

Wishing all a Merry Happy Christmas! Hope you enjoy the day with your loved ones!
- From our family to yours

the finale...

2007-12-18T11:38:00.000+08:00

My Favorite Memories is closing down. A huge and difficult decision for Shari but I can totally understand her position. It is indeed a challenge to juggle working and being a wife and mom at home. I wish her all the best and happy that she can spend more time with her family. It's kindof a bittersweet feeling for me as I've met many wonderful people over at the message board. It's hard but let's keep in touch.

Final layouts for the MFM gallery.

green, orange, turquoise, red polka dots &

a favorite photo of us

just love the cool looking KI lace cardstock

Lots of things I wanna do and get for the coming X'mas. Some of those on my wish list right now: a happy life, a holiday trip to Japan (shopping for more fabric and crafty stuff!), good health for the family, etc... Bits & pieces on this page by tearing, cutting, adding small embellishments together with the black and white border stickers and love elsie noel stickers which are my current faves.

baby little missy, she is now 13 month old

tagged

2007-12-13T23:24:00.000+08:00

Long due!

4 THINGS ABOUT ME - tagged by Rashida

Job's I've had:

School holiday jobs when I was a teenager - worked in Tangs Studio, Kenneth Cole, InWear Matinique (this label used to be quite popular in the early 90s in S'pore) I loved and enjoyed working in the retail fashion industry. Well, except for the long irregular hours. Also worked in Gleneagles hospital as a laboratory assistant. Now, an Engineer at work.

Places I've Lived:

Singapore

Foods I Love:

Japanese cuisine
Fried Hokkien Mee with lots of lime please.
Hot spicy food like Laksa, Tomyam
Pasta

Websites I Visit:

Etsy
Flickr
Bloglines
Ezines, home deco sites

Places I'd Rather Be:

London
Japan
San Francisco
One of the estates at PangKor Laut Resort. I stayed in one of the villas and it was a heavenly experience. Love their spa.

Movies I Love:

Pretty Woman & Sabrina

TV Shows I Watch:

I’m not a TV person actually but I do follow Hong Kong drama serials on SCV.

W H O . W A S . T H E. L A S T . P E R S O N - tagged by Agnes

1. You hung out with?: P & J

2. Saw you cry: Either I was alone or my hubby

3. Went to the movies with you?: Hubby

4. You went to the mall with?: P & J

5. You went to dinner with?: My colleagues, dinner at NYDC

6. You talked on the phone to?: Big missy

7. Said ‘I love you’ to you and really meant it? Big and little missy

8. Made you laugh?: Big missy

W O U L D . Y O U . R A T H E R?

1. Pierce your nose or tongue? Neither

2. Be serious or be funny? Funny

3. Drink whole or skim milk? Whole

4. Spend time with your parents or enemies? Parents

D O . Y O U . P R E F E R.

1. Flowers or candy? Candy

2. Gray or black? Dark gray

3. Color or Black and white photos? Color

4. Lust or love? Love

5. Sunrise or sunset? Sunset

6. M and Ms or Skittles? M&Ms

7. Staying up late or waking up early? Staying up late

D O . Y O U . P R E F E R.

1. Sun or moon? Moon

2. Winter or Fall? Both

3. Left or right?: Right

4. 10 acquaintances or having two best friends?: Two best friends

5. Sunny or rainy?: Sunny

6. Vanilla ice cream or chocolate ice cream: Chocolate

A B O U T . Y O U

1. What time is it?: 1530 hrs

2. Nickname(s): Lene, Jubee, Basil....

3. What is your birth date?: 5 Aug

4. What do you want?: Too many but happiness and good health top the list

5. Where do you want to live?: Tokyo

6. How many kids do you want?: 2

7. You want to get married?: Yes

U N I Q U E

1. Nervous habit: None

2. Are you double jointed?: Nope

3. Can you roll your tongue?: Yes

4. Can you raise one eyebrow?: Yes

5. Can you cross your eyes?: Yes

6. Do you make your bed daily?: Only when I'm not rushing for time

7. Can you draw? Yes

R A N D O M

1. Which shoe goes on first? Right

2. Ever thrown a shoe at someone? Nope

3. What is your craziest experience ever? Wakeboarding , Parasailing and Snowmobiling

F O O D

1. Do you twirl your spaghetti or cut it? Twirl

2. Have you ever eaten spam? Yes

3. Favourite ice cream: Macadamia brittle, Triple chocolate & Strawberry from Häagen-Dazs

4. How many kinds of cereal are in your cabinet? 1 - Nestles Honeystar and that’s for big missy

5. What’s your favourite beverage? Peach tea

6. Do you cook? Yes

IN . T H E . L A S T . M O N T H . H A V E . Y O U ?

1. Bought something - Yes

2. Sang - Yes, with big missy

3. Been hugged - Yes

4. Felt stupid - Yes

5. Missed someone - Yes

6. Danced crazy - Nope

7. Gotten your hair cut – Yes and permed

8. Cried - Yes

9. Lied - Yes

People I Tag: Rashida of I Heart Linen, Marisa of Quilt Otaku, BP of GoingBackToBasics , Melissa Deakin of Savoring The Details, Sri Sams of Color My World, Dallas

handmade gifts

2007-12-06T14:40:00.000+08:00

I started on my handmade christmas projects last week for our friends and baby sitter's family. I probably love my sewing machine so much that I couldn't stop sewing. :) I've sewn a lot of small bags - mostly zipper & drawstring pouches. I have a couple more to finish before I post them here once and for all.

Hand embroidered little bird and tree.

Design taken from a Japanese craft book. Yum so love the greeny tree

Lined with green polka dots

Joel Dewberry

For our baby sitter - she loves drawstring pouches. She's the most capable homemaker I've ever known. Modern, pretty and young looking 40-ish lady. Friends who met her will agree with me. We are so lucky to have her.

the 601

2007-12-03T11:49:00.000+08:00

It's finally here, fresh off the oven. 601 Great Scrapbook Ideas, the latest idea book in the scrapbook industry is now available. A total of 265 pages with hundreds and hundreds of layouts by artists from all over the world. In this book, the pages are broken down into 5 different topics.

1. Everyday Life
2. Hard to Forget
3. Princess
4. Prince Charming
5. Open Heart

The book

The published page - Fun Time.Be Yourself

The contributors index page

Mine's on page 49 - everyday life

Thanks to Memory Makers for giving me this opportunity to contribute to this great idea book. Beautiful pages with different styles, ideas and techniques used. I strongly recommend the 601 Great Scrapbook Ideas book if you are looking out for fantastic scrapbook inspiration. Just pure eye candy.

Some pages created for One Page At A Time kit club. My 6-month DT term is ending Dec this year.

I heart this photo of big missy - she was singing baa baa black sheep in the park. I was of a title for this page and this black cardstock (KI Memories) with the word 'black' on it - life saver! lol. That's how the title came about. :D

So You

A wedding page for my swap partner Dallas

big missy's 1st day in childcare centre early this year.