Shiri Me!

Travelin' Rabbit

2009-10-24T23:51:00.000-07:00

In my fervent quest to create my own animals, I have produced another lovely creature - Travelin' Rabbit.

Actually, it's so simple right now that it could be a rabbit or kangaroo (missing its pouch) or rat or any number of things.
Be on the look out for additional members of this wild kingdom. :)

PS. Isn't the vintage-inspired color combination gorgeous?

Masterpiece Rabbit

2009-10-16T22:51:00.000-07:00

You know how you spend a lot of time trying to figure out what you're good at and what you could potentially make a living from? Or, at least, some pocket money, if not a real living. I've been trying out different artistic mediums all my life, more so in the last 2-3 years than in my 22 years of existence... but you know the story... artist since very young age.

I've always been one with many interests. I could no sooner choose one medium to stick to and make it my career than I could with food, politics, lifestyle, and all those important life details. Then I discovered -- stumbled upon more like -- Stephanie Congdon Barnes and... well... the rest is a temporal history. (At least until the next medium comes a-knockin'.)

I don't know if you've seen Stephanie Congdon Barnes's work but her animals and other items are gorgeous. Down to every detail she is brilliant beyond brilliant. If I could, I would purchase each and every one of her masterful creations and put it on display. Her work -- the attention to details, the intricacy, and her talent for hiding finished seam work -- is deserving of gallery/museum attention!

I'm just saying. The gal knows what she's doing and has been for a while. Nothing that great gets conjured up in minutes or hours.

And... if you're anything like myself, when you cannot afford something but really, really, really want it, you think to yourself: I'm not a shabby seamstress/artist, I've got a sewing machine, I know how to hand-sew, I've got the materials, I'm gonna make it myself!

Several hours later... The finished creation. I've sewed rabbits before (a total of two) and even attempted a teddy bear, but I must say, a person's skill can evolve so drastically. It certainly took me by surprise. A welcomed surprise.

The pattern-making took a good hour to figure out. Lots of sketching and tweaking and enlarging. Then the actual sewing took another 8 hours or so. I really surprised myself with this rabbit. My previous stuffed toy attempts were no where near in quality, craftsmanship and dedication.

It's amazing what you learn about yourself and your capabilities when you're forced to make something yourself.

Now I'm dreaming up animals galore! LINEN animals galore! I can't wait to get started with my own menagerie of sculpted/tailored animals.

Hostess Gifts For A Friend

2009-10-16T22:26:00.000-07:00

Earlier last month I stayed with a friend while visiting Madrid. I had planned on having some hostess gifts prepared before visiting, but, as has been the trend lately, I didn't get myself organized. So... it was only until a little more than a month after returning to the states that I've gotten around to making a few things to say "Thanks". Call me timely.

I didn't know what she needed or would use, so I made some things that most anyone would enjoy. Practical. Pretty. Simple to make.

For my friend, I made a set of coasters using gorgeous scraps of oilcloth (easy to clean and fairly durable... I mean, what damage could a cup do to it?).
I also made up a set of mismatched (though the colors kind of match, right?) cocktail napkins from leftover scraps of fabric in my fabric stash.

AND, I sewed up a tea towel/dish rag using an extra piece of this toile fabric I bought from etsy.

All in all, I think it's a pretty nice gift. The colors and patterns make for a bright and cheerful gift! Great for Spain!

Many apologies for the blurry photographs!

New Layout

2009-09-27T15:57:00.001-07:00

What do you think? I had forgotten a lot of basic html and css coding (what little I knew to begin with, that is) until recently. Upon witnessing the mess of a blog this was becoming, I knew Shiri Me! needed a cosmetic face lift. It still needs some work; must do some more research on coding to get it right. I'm loving the color scheme. Was inspired by Cosa Verde's website.

Am back for Fall

2009-09-09T10:00:00.000-07:00

Have returned from my third and final summer trip - Spain! - and will now attempt to sort out my life. Doing a bit of "spring cleaning" this fall, searching for a part time job as well as establishing some volunteer/intern positions for "professional development", AND, most importantly, get cranking on the crafting. I hope to have some things to show you soon.

So You Think You Can Dance?

2009-07-25T00:24:00.000-07:00

I don't know how many of you watch this U.S. reality dance program, but I've recently fell in love with it again. (And you should check it out if you haven't already done so!)

(One of my favorite dance routines this season)

The dancers this season were quite good (though I'm no dance expert) and while I really would have loved to see the Top 8 all win, that is just not possible. I was quite saddened to see Janette go. Really, quite possibly, she was one of the best dancers I've seen on reality dance shows like this one (and I've seen my fair share). But, then again, she'll probably end up having a wonderful career anyhow. My art teacher always said, those who never won anything for their work usually come out at the top in the end (in response to my jealousy over my younger sister's initial luck with awards for her artwork). I like to think the same will happen for Janette.

Meanwhile, my heart is now with Jeanine, as she is also my favorite. I simply cannot believe that she is only 18 and so accomplished; you can just see it in the passion she displays, her grace (well, sometimes), her happy smiles, and overall technique. I hope she wins and, if not, I definitely hope she has a successful career in the arts.

I'm BACK!

2009-07-22T02:56:00.000-07:00

Back from China and Macau! What a trip! Will post pictures soon... soon as I locate the cords for the camera... Can't wait!

Want some comfort for the soles of your feet?

2009-05-31T01:41:00.000-07:00

If you're wondering why I've been writing lately, I've decided that just because I do not have anything art-related (my art, that is) to talk about, doesn't mean I should let this blog die completely. I've been sick lately so it's definitely delayed my art-making. I've finally found my digicam and recharged my battery, so I hope to get to snapping some photos of things I've been making lately. My aunt also gave me several yards of light blue linen so I'll be able to make lots of cushion samples. Yay!

But... back to the topic. Have you ever heard of Cydwoq (pronounced Sidewalk)? They make the best shoes ever! Lots of people have said so online but I didn't trust them until I forked down the large sum of money to purchase a pair. Initially it felt uncomfortable, but by the second wear I wore it down enough to make it oh so comfy. It's definitely a shoe meant to be walked in. The above picture is the one I bought. You can find it here.

It's been bitterly cold in San Francisco as of late, but I've been finding myself trying to get out so I can wear them!

A tip to keep them lasting for years and years, have a shoe repair person make some rubber soles on your sandal soles and get it replaced every year or two. Resoling would cost you a lot more and the leather soles would wear down after much use. I haven't gotten mine rubbered up yet, but I plan to soon.

Don't ruffle my feathers...

2009-05-19T20:04:00.001-07:00

Or something like that...

I've been in ruffle and pleat heaven as of late. I'm currently working on creating a few prototypes of linen cushions featuring ruffles, pleats, and other "architectural" details. I'm really excited and hope to share with you soon.

Until then, I'm lusting over this gorgeous dress on etsy, from lisarietz

It looks like something I would totally wear on a sunny day out or to the office... if or when I find a job that requires I be in an office... I'm perfectly content with just wearing it whenever, just 'cause..

(Unfortunately, it's out of my price range. If only someone would guarantee me a job by the time I return from my summer trips in August... hinthint... winkwink.) :)

Anyway, if you're looking for a little break from work or whatever, go check out her etsy shop! If anything, there's a lot of beautiful photography of her clothing, worthy of a magazine spread.

Travels in my head

2009-05-18T13:30:00.000-07:00

I have a long vacation coming up. Two, actually. First China, then the east coast (Providence, Boston, New York and Connecticut). Next year, I would like to expand my east coast trip to include such places as Pennsylvania, Maine, Washington DC, and who knows what else? I really cannot wait. It will be a long overdue vacation. From the studies of my life.

No one can spend almost two decades in school without ever taking a break. And the summer breaks enforced by the public school system is just simply not enough! :)

But, in the back of my mind, I'm already planning additional trips. Long sojourns really. Two, three month types. I'm not sure which boss will allow an employee to be gone for such a long time... but I reckon I'll need to find a job that will let me accumulate my vacation days or will simply let me go and just not get paid. That, or I find a temporary job or wait until I'm between jobs. We'll see.

Where to, you ask? All over Europe. ALL OVER.

A former housemate -- from my college days not long ago -- just returned from a semester abroad in Copenhagan. Then, she spent three months afterwards traveling Eastern Europe. On her own, I might add. No real planning and just staying with strangers for free. Sounds like an exhilarating adventure!

I, myself, am a self-proclaimed stubborn planner. Can't go anywhere without some kind of plan, however vague or complicated. Need one. And maps. Whether it's a general map in my head or the real kind that you hold out. Or even the scratchy kind I drew. Need some kind of picture. To guide me, y'know. Not that I would ever dare get lost. Maybe for a minute.

So. In my mind, I'll be traveling everywhere. I've always been fascinated with Italy and sometimes France (no snootiness, please) and Spain (sometimes, not always). And England would be easy because they speak English too! Though different and with an accent. And lately I've been mesmerized with Scandinavia -- Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, did I miss anything? But mostly Denmark and Sweden. We had a foreign exchange student from Sweden who lived with us! So I'll have a contact there. (Actually, we also had a foreign exchange student from England... but that was a while back). Though the movies have turned me scared to the idea of traveling to Eastern Europe, I'm now resolved to at least try and visit some parts. Especially now that my friend has arrived safe and sound and had little to worry about, though she, a young pretty woman, traveled on her own.

I'd also like to visit Austria and maybe Switzerland. Is that part of Eastern Europe? Oh! And I can't forget about Greece.

So maybe I won't be able to visit all of these places at the same time. I'll definitely find my way there. Somehow. Sometime. I will. Perhaps I'll spend two weeks here during one year and two weeks there on another year. I'll get there one way or another. And on a steep budget! :)

I have a growing collection of travel books and language guides.

*Sigh* In my mind, I am traveling all the time.

Where do you like to travel in your head?

Kindness gives me the Giggles

2009-04-23T00:33:00.000-07:00

I don't know what was in the air today but it made my heart swell with happiness, giddiness, and genuine kindness. You'd think with the weather cooling quite a bit today, a far departure from the past couple of days, that my kindness would've taken place yesterday instead. But, nope, the gusts of winds did not do anything to hamper my day. I rather enjoyed it!

I started out with a startled jolt at 7:30am and then, while laying on my bed for a few minutes, wondered why on earth I was awake so early when I had another hour of scheduled sleeping. I finally got out of bed at 9:00am and rushed to get ready for babysitting this morning. I must say, it's been such a pleasant work day today. And in such a long time!

I really love the two girls I babysit on Wednesdays but sometimes -- well, most times -- they can be quite a handful. If one isn't a sourpuss then the other one is! And, let's face it, I haven't had that much experience monitoring two young children. So it is always an educational day at this household. But today, of all days, turned out to be such a pleasant and relaxing day. Rather than dragging me to-and-fro from game to game, we spent half the time just sitting on the elder girl's bed reading Laura Ingalls Wilder's "Little House on the Prairie". (I must admit, I've never read the book before! But have heard much about it, mostly from my former art teacher Sarah.)

After babysitting I decided it was too nice a day to waste by going back home right away. So... with my leisure time I decided to hop around from thrift store to thrift store in the hunt for some good apparel treasures. And boy did I return home with some!

Before I get to that, I did want to share the strange swell of kindness I experienced today. So many pleasant experiences in one day! First off, I was still reeling from the high I experienced after finally getting a customer representative from Southwest Airlines to reinstate my "expired" points so that I could get my free plane ticket. It was such a distressing experience that the good feelings I received from solving that problem was able to last me for quite a few days. And I'm still grinning.

Drawing upon that happiness and sense of content, while I was on the 43 bus on my way to the first thrift store -- the Crossroads on Irving Street -- an older gentleman in a wheelchair talked to me. He didn't look particularly clean and his clothes seemed rather raggedy, not that it bothered me. He tried to talk to a girl who sat near me reading a comic book; she never bothered to look up or respond to his inquiry about what she was reading. He talked to me instead after a long pause and I felt comfortable enough responding. It was so spontaneous. I'm usually quite apprehensive about speaking to strangers on the bus. I can easily strike up a conversation with a sales associate while shopping, or feeling the comraderie with fellow lost tourists staring up at a map, but on buses and trains, I like to keep to myself.

Anyway, it was mostly small talk and the bus engine was so loud I couldn't hear half of what he said. I remember that he was taking two classes at City College -- Cultural Anthropologie and Mandarin Chinese. Apparently he had just completed a midterm for his cult. anthro. class and he felt pretty confident about it, which seemed to be a surprise for him. He mentioned the difficulties of nailing down the tones for Mandarin; it took him one and a half years. It was very general talk but it made me so proud of myself for responding to him and just being my pleasant self (which, actually, isn't all too natural for me). I don't know. It just made me happy to know I didn't ignore this fellow who only wanted to converse with someone on the bus. I only mentioned his appearance because usually that's the first thing we notice and it usually determines whether or not we respond to a particular person. His disability and his gruff looks were not in his favor, except today.

I finally arrived at my first store and found a nice purple purse to purchase. I was browsing through a rack of skirts -- my sister wanted to purchase one for a baby red egg party -- when a kind old woman (grandmother) asked me if I thought the pair of shoes she was holding up was worth the purchase. She turned the shoes upside-down so I could see the price sticker. $27.xx for a pair of gently used Nike's. Now, we all know Nike isn't well known for their particularly admirable business practices. Mostly because they don't have any admirable business practices. BUT - they do know how to make quality athletic shoes. So, I told the woman that was a good deal. OH! - the fun part is we spoke in Chinese. At some point we moved from Cantonese to Toisanese. I'm more comfortable in Toisanese and as soon as I realized she also spoke it I switched my language, or, er, dialect.

She asked if there would be a discount and I said no, but that I had a birthday discount I hadn't used and she could have it. So we went up to the counter and I gave her my discount. I had saved it for a month in case I found something to purchase (which later I did, at another store), but I just felt like giving and sharing today. (I know! What am I breathing in today?! Happy dust?!?) She was very grateful and kept thanking me. I'm not very good at accepting kindness so I just shrugged it off and told her it was no problem. We talked for another five minutes outside the door. I hadn't realized that she waited for me while I made my purchase. That was nice of her. She talked about her children and grandchildren and how none of them really spoke Chinese and how my Chinese was very good. She also asked if I was married but I exclaimed, "Married?! I'm only 22! Only 22! Why would I be married already?" She just said, "Why not? It's just the right age." Maybe in her time I thought. Maybe in her time.

It was just a pleasant and lovely and unexpected encounter. It's been a while since I've assisted any Chinese old ladies, but it's always such a joy when I do. I also love it when they compliment on my Chinese speaking abilities. I have major issues with Mandarin and Cantonese, but when it comes to Toisanese, I can kill. For an American-born Chinese person at least.

We finally departed and I kept looking back to see where she went. She said she was going to take the N-Judah across the street. I had to catch the 43 up the block. But I kept turning back to see if I could still see her. But I couldn't find her. Oh well. It's a shame I'll probably never see her again. Or recognize her for that matter. 3 out 4 of my grandparents are still alive but I don't generally get to enjoy this type of small talk anymore. It was nice to speak to a grandmotherly person. Maybe that's why I was so ready and willing to share my discount. She felt like family I guess. I don't know. Something was in the air for sure.

I went to my second thrift store of the day and found a nice blousy-cardigan. My stay in the Haight/Ashbury area was short. Didn't feel like wandering through the street. Plus, it got cold all of a sudden.

I decided to catch the 71 bus all the way downtown and enjoyed my stay there. I'm always downtown so it does get old sometimes. But there are so many stores there that I still have much to discover. I didn't find anything discounted enough to suit my at-the-moment feelings, so I decided to try and catch the 38L to a third thrift store. On the way to the bus stop an African-American woman, who was using her cell phone, dropped what looked to be a dollar-bill on the ground and I picked it up and gave it back to her. I tried to call her first but despite being only one feet away she didn't hear me. Or maybe she didn't know I was speaking to her. I had to tap on her shoulders, which I hate to do, and I gave her a slight startle. She thanked me and I returned with "no problem" and went on my way. It was just a dollar, I could've kept it and probably wouldn't feel too guilty and yet I was so quick to give it back to her. I really don't know what was going on today.

Was I just nice to the first guy because of my indoctrination to the plight of the disabled? Was I only friendly with the grandmother because she reminded me of what I missed of my own grandmothers? And was I so quick to return a dropped dollar bill because it wasn't a bigger bill? Is the altruism I felt today completely genuine or is it slightly affected by the fact that I am socialized to sympathize with someone in a wheelchair or the elderly? I can't say yes or no, but I have to admit, it was a grand day and I wouldn't trade it for a million bucks.

But back to my apparel finds... I bought a lovely small crocheted purple satchel purse for $10. It looks clean for something that is used and old. I also bought a blousy-cardigan from Splendid in a raspberry-magenta color for $22 (I received 10% off today for not taking a plastic bag to celebrate earth day, though I do that all the time anyway). I was on the hunt for clothing from Splendid, Michael Stars, C&C California, Rebecca Beeson, etc. It didn't prove super fruitful but I did see a few nice things in several thrift stores. Just wasn't enough to convince me to buy 'em all. I like these brands because they're made in the US of A (though that doesn't mean it's entirely sweatshop-free) and generally all-cotton. Good quality cotton too. I'm talking Pima Cotton and Supima Cotton. Wished there were clothing made from Egyptian cotton. And I wouldn't mind more clothing made from Bamboo. Anyhow, have been on the look out for cotton dresses especially because of the expected hot, hot, HOT weather in China this June-July and need the breathability that comes with cotton fibers. My greatest find was a pair of gold metallic cutout flats from Corso Como (made in brazil) at the Goodwill store on Fillmore Street. They only cost me $4.49 when they retail for almost $200! I have the exact same pair in a green and that still cost me somewhere in the ball park of $30-$50 after discounts. So... that was a steal. Clearly, somebody there didn't know their shoe brands because I saw shoes in worse condition with a lower brand name priced at $14.99. Mm-hmm. Goodwill could really use my brand-savvy recognition skills. Haha. Words from a true shopaholic. :/

To end the day, do something nice for someone else just because. You never know what it might bring to another person's day and at the very least your own kindness will bring you all sorts of surprises about yourself. Maybe even the giggles.

Taking A Break

2009-02-23T23:06:00.000-08:00

Am in the process of turning in my fellowship application. Has been an anxious time. Just want it over with.

Meanwhile, I am thinking I need an overhaul of the site and will be back shortly to change things up! BTW, I have no computer graphic skill so don't expect fancy webpages. haha. But I will indeed be working on changing the look a teeny tiny smidgen. I'm not quite satisfied with it yet. And then regular posts to appear and regular items in the shop.

Will be working on getting this done in the coming days and weeks. Will be a long process but a necessary one.

Work In Progress

2009-01-05T01:49:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year folks! I hope you've all had a wonderful holiday and I hope the rest of this year will be a good one. My one and only resolution this year is to post more often. And with more photos! To be more specific, I hope to post at least once per week. That's mighty ambitious for me!

This is currently a work-in-progress. A very preliminary sketch of what I hope will be a wonderful cut out. I have some other projects in progress and will post more when the time comes.

4-5 weeks of school to go!

2008-11-17T13:47:00.000-08:00

I am poorly neglecting my blog and have lost my readers, but I will soon be able to devote lots of time to my crafting and art-making/-doing and blogging! My camera battery died and my charger is back home so I shall have to borrow a friend's camera to take pictures of my latest work.

I have a design that I am hoping to turn into a paper-cut and possible screen print mini poster. Will definitely take pics of the sketch in progress! It'll need lots of work!

Meanwhile, I've discovered the fun-ness of snap buttons and have been experimenting with wallet-making. I know that there are already lots of wallet makers on etsy and elsewhere on the Internet, but I've enjoyed making mine as my store bought wallet was breaking at the seams! I am embarrassed each time I take it out to pay for a purchase.

Until next time...

A New Era

2008-11-08T03:40:00.000-08:00

I am late with posting about the election, but here I am.

I'm generally political in the off-and-on kind of way. When I feel like it. When it matters to me. When I'm touched, compelled, inspired.

For some reason, this election did not move me in the way that it moved others. Not because I cannot understand the significance of this election. Oh, no, I get that - big time. Message is loud and clear. And it's not because I don't care about who is president - it's definitely an important job. But... a lot of my "apathy", for lack of a better word, is because of the way I was raised. My parents grew up in a time when questioning the authority could get you into trouble (1950's - 70's China) and if you had any opinions about the government and the way that things were, you kept them to yourself. My parents, based on snippets of conversations overheard, are still somewhat distrustful of government officials and fear the repercussions of going against the government.

My family, in general, do not express emotions or feelings or any such things of an intimate nature. I suppose I still fight through that every day. One moment I am very stubborn and refuse to shut up about voicing my politics; another moment I would rather ignore what is going on.

While I may not cry tears of joy, or jump around the street in exaltation, quietly, inside my mind, I see the beauty of millions of voters coming out to voice their politics.

Oh, if only you could be there for the celebrations on my college campus! Oh, if only I could've been there! At least a thousand people paraded through the street that night, whooping and hollering, and raising a large flag. People on their cars. Honks and a peaceful, spontaneous march through the campus. Apparently, quite a bunch of them marched up to the chancellor's house at the north end of campus and he came out and made a little speech right then and there, alongside his wife. What a night.

I am only sad that I could not have been there for that momentous occasion. I was there physically watching the news like everyone else and quietly I was excited to know that my choice for president was that of many others as well, but spiritually and emotionally I could not get myself to be there - my heart did not connect with the hearts of others... and so, after years of political apathy, I'm still working on it.

Today is a new era for our country. (I'm still a little jaded by the last few years, but, maybe, just maybe, there's a tiny glimmer of hope).

so it goes...

2008-10-07T00:54:00.001-07:00

patience does reward itself!

drum roll please...

presenting my very first knitted sweater! i probably could've chosen an easier sweater to begin with and preferably one that came with a more coherent pattern (sorry wenlan), but, hey, it's finally finished at last! and i even made a hat too.

the sweater is the best friend cardigan from wenlan chia's "big city knits". one warning: the patterns are at times vague and confusing and there is a pdf file online with errata that you might want to check out before making one of her designs. but hey, i love a challenge and learned to improvise! pretty soon i'll be writing my own patterns.... :D

i only recently discovered a site that sells wenlan's twinkle chunky yarn at a discount. if you love her yarns like i do but can't bear to pay the $19.95 price tag for 83 yards, do check it out: fabulous yarn. there are so many discounts involved with that site - i only wished they carried more brands.

i've already bought yarn to start another project from the book. but that'll have to wait until my flurry of midterm examinations are over with!

Some things take time

2008-09-23T02:40:00.000-07:00

As I am learning right now... while in the middle of a last minute cram session before my first midterm of the semester. My LAST semester, mind you.

I could only wish to have the patience to bake such wonderfully appealing bread. Until then, I live in the wonders of cooperative living! Mmm... aren't they just delightful to look at? I do not think I've ever seen anyone bake bread before (minus foccacia and banana bread).

My patience has been tried ever since receiving my first screen print kit. I've used it several times and have made plenty of items (must remind self to show photos at some point), but nothing has taken longer than this unfinished print. This is my first attempt at a print and will be in very limited quantities, but I hope someone somewhere will enjoy it. It's still missing one element and it's a very simple print. Explanation to come.

But nothing pushes the envelope more than trying to knit a sweater! With cable! Using the vague and somewhat inaccurate patterns by Wenlan Chia, no less! I know, I know... amateur knitter attempting difficulty task. I think I've heard that fable somewhere. ...Oh, right... it's me. :) Despite the wonks and kinks, I believe there is hope for this sweater yet. (It had better because this silly hobby of mine is costing me lots of moolah! Wenlan's prices for yarn are not exactly for the faint of heart.)

Despite all the other challenges to my patience, there is a silver lining. Just look at this gorgeous shoe rack! From Ikea, painted purple because it's the paint lying around in my room and I didn't feel like looking for other paint. I think it looks pretty nice and really brings out the colors of my shoe collection (my other shoes are back home with the parentals). I, um, have a, sort of, minor, problem,... with spending money. *shrugs shoulders* What can I say? Appearance matters to me and the appearance of my room has been atrocious of late. But, hey, at least my shoe rack is a dandy alternative for my eyes.

Stay tuned folks... I'm already in the sketching stages of a new print/cut out (or both, really, cuz I'm ambitious like that!). I'm also trying to get some dolls made (got the parts cut out but never sewn up... hmm.. that must be fixed). I'm also in the process of purchasing some fabrics in hopes of making a few bags (SANS pattern - I'm not a pattern gal; they're great to have when you're completely lost, but patterns generally confuse me more!). Oy! What a run-on sentence I weave. For shame.

It's way too hot!!!!!

2008-09-04T17:32:00.000-07:00

School's already started. Almost two weeks to be exact-ish. The weather went from cold summer to hot, hot, hot fall. what's up with that? Global warming, I'll just blame it on you. (and my ignorance of weather-ness).

I'm still quite alive, miserably so. Given my schedule, do not know when I'll be back and updating regularly. If you've noticed, I've also commented less on the blogs I typically visit. Sorry... I still read it though!

I did make a cool little book bag for myself after reading skinny laminx's blog post about bags. I so have to take pictures as I'm quite proud of it and have been putting it to abusive use!

I'm almost done with the print art I've been working on. I'm almost done carving out the rubber stamp and just need to mix some paint for it. Cannot wait! I've also got some little screen printed card samplers (nothing fancy) that I've been meaning to post about and add to my shop. But, alas, folks, I've been too busy with school and the cooperative house and my managerial position in the house... and soon to add volunteering to do anything crafty related. Well.. I still craft, but not sharing it. Many many heartfelt apologies.

Now if the darn weather would just give me a breeze I'd be almost content. And maybe turned down the heat a few notches. Not asking much. I just don't want to walk around campus like I'm in the middle of a dehydrated heat stroke!

hello

2008-08-07T12:35:00.000-07:00

Just stopping by to say hi, in case anyone still visits. Hi!

My latest "distraction" has been my good friend's dental school application. He e-mailed me a copy of his personal statement, and well, let's just say it was not a bestseller. And he knows it and that's why he's enlisting help from his friends. It's never easy to request help or accept it, but in this case I think it was a smart decision. Dental school is not an easy thing to get into and, of course, you'd ideally like to get into a good one with good training. Am I right?

So I've been busy helping my friend draft out an outline, rephrase sentences, and providing a much-needed structure. (I know with my own experiences in writing such darned things as personal statements that, sometimes, it's difficult and frustrating to write when there is no direction.) A research paper is easy because someone is telling you what to write about, what to look out for and what to accomplish. Y'know?

Anyway, I hope this blog picks up again in the fall semester. That is highly unlikely as I will be finishing up my last semester of undergraduate study. And, as is fate, I have a bunch of tiny courses (avg. 2 units per course) in my schedule as opposed to 3 or 4 bigger courses. Oh well. AND - I'll be back here at Glide once a week to volunteer with the case manager. AND - I'll be sharing the responsibility of being workshift (fancy schmancy name for house chores) manager at my cooperative house. So... I've got a plate full on me.

But, do not despair, I will certainly make time to write and blog and post lovely photos again!

Meanwhile, I've been working on getting those dolls all sewed up and getting those prints (wip I've mentioned countless times before) all printed up.

It'll be fun. I'll barrage you with lots and lots of catch-up photos!

So tell me, what art projects have you been doing? And how have you given back to your community?

Lotta Jansdotter + Screen print samples

2008-07-26T00:14:00.000-07:00

I am sooooo incredibly late with these photos of Lotta Jansdotter. She was here in SF for a printing workshop of sorts in June. It was nice to finally meet the woman behind the books and the famous designs. I haven't looked through all the photos yet but here's two!

Here is a photo of some simple mushroom cards I created with my not-so-new screen print kit. None of them are perfect but I've found the imperfections unique. They're just screen print samples. They're so cute! I'll be putting them up in the shop as individual cards, along with envelopes. And meanwhile, I've been perfecting my skills on a print I mentioned earlier. Photos to come!

WIP update

2008-07-24T13:08:00.000-07:00

i created a sketch a while back that i never got a chance to show anyone. i didn't know what to do with it and i was getting tired of stationery (speaking of which, i printed some cards to try out my screen printing kit and have been meaning to post about those - nothing fancy), so... what else could i do? the easy answer (though it took some time for it to occur to me) was to produce some prints! yay!

so with my paycheck in the bank (i'm going to miss receiving a paycheck btw), i went to the art store and purchased several different kinds of lovely cream/ivory cardstock. got me some canson and two other brands. anyhow, i'm still at work right now so i'll have to wait until later tonight to commence the printing part. i enjoyed cutting the paper though, with my trusty paper cutter (those things they sell for scrapbooking, those watchmacallits).

i'll have photos for you in a day or two. it's taking a while because removing screen filler is difficult! i still dont have all of the screen filler removed but i'll make do. there's enough space to fit my design.

anyway, sorry again for the lack of lovely photos! :(

Updates to come... and yes, I'm still alive!

2008-07-23T13:31:00.000-07:00

My summer internship has been intensive. I am really starting to understand why a full time job (regardless of how interesting it may be) can be sooooo sucky. It drains the energy out of you (even if you don't have to do hard labor...).

BUT - and here's the but - I will slowly try and get myself back on the map! I've been doing so much before the internship began and never got a chance to show and tell. And that was very bad of me. I guess I shall have to work on it. Anyhow, to keep things interesting, I'll do mini posts of some of the projects I've been working on and the many WIP (works in progress) that I have. I'll even show you photos of my parents' living room! It's a complete mess!!!! :) I've taken over.

AND - I've also begun cutting out the parts to the dolls I've been meaning to stuff and sew. I'll also get around to that. Maybe make one per night or every other night. Slowly, but surely, they'll be appearing in the shop.

S

50th Post!

2008-07-10T13:19:00.000-07:00

It has been a tremendously long time since my last post. I have been incredibly busy at work. I am an intern at Glide Memorial Church. If you've never heard of this church and its foundation, or if you've never heard of Cecil Williams and his wife Janice Mirikitani, then I suggest you go on over to Google and search for them. They are amazing people and this church has done some wonderful things to help the homeless, the working poor, and anyone who's had their luck taken away.

I have the pleasure of working in the social case management office with Harry Williams (no relation to Cecil), the case manager. I work with him during his meetings with clients and my tasks are numerous. I do anything that he would normally do by himself. And my hours are from 9am - 5pm. I usually get home so exhausted that I have been neglecting this little blog of mine. However, I've been keeping up with a few blogs and reading when I can. I haven't completely neglected the blog world.

This weekend will be the 1st annual Renegade Craft fair in San Francisco, which I'll be attending. I can't wait to meet Lynn of Satsuma Press and I hope to snap lots of photos and buy lots of goodies! :) And hopefully this weekend I'll update with photos from the Lotta Jansdotter printing fest last month, as well as updates from my own personal crafting.

What have y'all been up to?

my, my, my

2008-06-25T14:32:00.000-07:00

i have been neglecting my little blog here. and my shop as well.

i've many new things to share and many new photos i need to take.

all will come in due time.

just popped in to say, i've been busy with school and internship/work. but my summer class will be done in one week. so i will have more time to devote to this little blog of mine.

trying new things

2008-06-03T13:15:00.000-07:00

in case you haven't noticed, i'm always presenting you with something new i've done or made. rarely do you see a repeat of the technique or item. except maybe the bears. and the stationery.

right now i'm still in the stationery phase of my creative endeavors. i'm looking for low cost, low technique way to put my designs onto paper. as a college student (for one more semester!), it doesn't make sense for me to try to take on bigger things that usually require lots of time, money and equipment - none of which are available in large quantities in my case. but this doesn't mean that i shouldn't try to learn new things and experiment within my means. and the fun part, in all of this, is trying to make something look nice, but handmade, when your resources are few.

i'm up for the challenge!

earlier in the spring i started with just scanning an image and printing it with my home printer or using a copy place. which is always easy and handy to do. but it didn't provide me with the texture that i so crave in stationery.

this past weekend i decided to carve out my own rubber stamps (being inspired by lotta jansdotter's new book and all). i discovered soon after that it is hard to hand carve a design with fine lines. that did not deter me. please, shirley is much courageous than to simply give up. i managed a sketchy pussy willow design that i'll put up soon. it came out alright for a first try.

two nights ago i decided to carve out my logo (the bunny with bird on its back). i changed it slightly to make it more carve-able and i must say it came our rather lovely. i'll definitely have to put up pictures of that.

and yesterday i bought some clear embossing powder and heat tool to use those stamps to create embossed stationery. i still need a bit of practice with the heat tool but i love it! i've created texture! and definitely hand made, well, hand carved, at least. and i finally bought myself a paper trimmer (though i had really wanted a paper guillotine trimmer), so i can buy paper in large sheets and in bulk (much more cost effective) and cut it to the desired dimensions.

i'm enjoying the process and while i would love to shoot straight into professional hand made mode, i can only stick to what i can do and what i do have and make it work. so, sometimes my end product looks slightly crooked, just slightly, and sometimes my design looks too hand drawn (which i love actually), but hey, with anything in life, there's a little push and shove, a little give and take. and i'm taking it with me.

meanwhile, with all this learning and trying new things, i'm excited for the arrival of my own screen print kit by speedball (the same company who made the rubber stamp kit i used). i cannot wait! at least with screen printing i have higher hopes of printing with my fine line drawings. carving rubber stamps is fun and all, but i dont think it's so great for fine lines. i nearly ruined my stamp carving when i carved really near the outline. yikes!

i'm currently on campus (i had a morning class) doing some research for a paper and catching up on missed reading assignments (oops... wonder why i "forgot" to do the reading...), so photos will have to come at another day.

so what new things have you tried lately?

oh, and btw, any suggestions for other low cost ways to print stationery (aside from the mentioned rubber stamp and screen printing)? i'll take what i've given. :D

i'm here!

2008-05-28T22:15:00.001-07:00

it seems i've been neglecting my little blog here.

finals and then a quick trip to new york occupied much of my time. i am happy to say i had a fun time in new york, got to see a bit of brooklyn and even walked across the brooklyn bridge! (it's a different experience compared to walking to golden gate bridge over here in the bay area). AND i passed a pass/fail class, received one A- and two A's! yay! still waiting on one more class. hopefully an A too.

i started the first day of summer school yesterday and will be starting my internship in two weeks' time. so busy busy busy. however will i find the time to make things for my shop?

finals finals finals

2008-05-14T23:28:00.000-07:00

need i say more?

two ten page papers due friday. it's almost midnight on wednesday. have not started much, if at all.

yikes!

what's my problem with school?

sometimes i wonder if i should have gone to an art school. but quite frankly, i wouldn't have known what to major in. fine art? graphic art? digital media? craft?

ugh.

luckily, i have my trip to nyc to look forward to. i just need to get these darn papers out of the way and hope that i get A's for all my classes (which i think may be achievable this semester... yay!).

i'll be back with more art. reading all these blogs, blog-surfing as i call it, has been such an inspiration. i can't take it all in at once. there is so much i want to do and try, but so little time. if only i could be paid to just make stuff all the time. for myself. for my own pleasure. man, that would be a fine day in the usa! :)

Presenting the lovely Lissie Doll and many cool pictures!

2008-05-05T23:30:00.000-07:00

As promised, here is the onslaught of photographs of my latest projects from the past month.

But first, let me introduce my new Lissie doll! Isn't she just the sweetest? And her hair might become a trend I say. After all my final exams and papers and projects are completed and after I'm back from a weeklong trip to NYC (so, probably late late May-early June), I'll have a few of these dolls in my shop. (This image was taken at night so it does not do her justice. I'll take better pictures later.)

And this is Lissie's friend Olive, who will make an appearance in the shop too! A one-off though (because, don't tell her, but she was just a practice doll... shh! Olive will be jealous that Lissie is the one I want to replicate). :)

And now... lots and lots of pretty visuals!

I helped a housemate make this gnarly camera case for her friend Beth. It's a picture of her dressed as a man on one side. I will never ever attempt this again! haha.

And more stationery! I really love these colors and I love this simple floral design. They're sort of meant to be pussy willows. What'dya think? Should I attempt to make a few of these for the shop?

a lamp made of lotta jansdotter fabric. love the colors. and really needed to update my lamp from the cheapo mesh it came in.

look! i can do other things too! sorry about the horrible pictures. i can't decide if i want to keep this (when it's finished) or sell it.... hmm... the perennial problem of the artist and his/her artwork... to keep or to sell...

i tried my hand at making a shirt/vest with no patterns. i modeled it after another sleeveless shirt i had but found i needed to add some thick side panels because i grossly underestimated the differences between the stretchy material of the original and the non-stretchy-ness of this material. oops! but it looks nice on me and the darts are form fitting. :)

yee! look at the pleats!

i didn't make this but i had to share a great find. this is a barney's bag that only cost me $12 with some broken handles. i took it to a shoe repair shop and they fixed it right up for $18. not bad for a $400 type bag. :)

anyone who has lived with me for the past two years knows that i'm a bargain hunter and huge fan of designer clothes. and where i live we have this great store called jeremy's department store. it's kind of like a Ross Dress For Less or a Marshall's or a TJ Maxx for designer clothes. They're mainly store returns, things with holes or a missing piece or out of season overstock. I love being able to find things that once retailed for anywhere from $100-$700 but I only paid anywhere from $1 to $50. i generally avoid spending more than $50 for any item and wait for the price to be marked down. but it's tricky because it good be snatched up by someone else the next day. i once got a pair of Sonia Rykiel shoes for $11 when her shoes are $700 and upwards. they're the best shoes ever and all they were missing were some adornments on the toes. it left an icky leather patch of glue behind but i just took a pair of thread rippers (sorry, the correct term left my mind) and took the leather patch off and they're almost as great as new. i'll have pictures of said lovely shoes next week. i could start a separate blog with just the findings and results of my shopping sprees. i really ought to call them my 'spending sprees'. :) :) :)

and who knows? maybe i will start a blog just on my shopping adventures. like the aqua silk halter top by emilio pucci that i got for $1, or the silk blend brown tank top from barneys for the same price.

oh.. if only i were slightly rich....

meet my bunny; winners; MY SHOP's OPENING

2008-04-21T20:28:00.000-07:00

I've finally got my act together and opened my new shop at etsy! Please do hop on over and check it out. And, please, by all means purchase up the lovely note cards if you are so inclined. :D Please leave feedback! :) I am so excited and happy to have finally opened shop.

- - - - -

i forgot what name i gave this bunny... so for now, it's just bunny. :)

i don't like bunny's long arms... it's almost freakish. but whatev... it's my creation, so therefore i must love it unconditionally...

and for the drawing... since there were only four comments, it wasn't too difficult to draw two names. haha. using a random number generator, dre and tania are the winners. i'll get your cards out to you soon (and soon can mean this week or next week or even later... haha).

dre, email me your address so i can get that to you soon.

card-testing + giveaway

2008-04-15T02:02:00.000-07:00

Boy, do I love packaging things up nicely! If my job were to design packaging materials and to put together packages done up nicely, I'd be a happy gal. I sometimes find more fun in wrapping presents and putting together little packages than making the things themselves. Are there folks out there who share the same sentiments?

Cutting to the chase, I just printed out a test batch of my lantern cards with my trusty old hp inkjet printer - sorry, no fancy schmancy digital art printer. Below are some photographs featuring the stylish 'do of my test batch cards. Tell me whatcha think cuz your opinions (at least on this matter) do matter!

And, of course, with every test batch there are some kinks and some wonks and some funky stuff going on. In other words, not all the cards were printed out perfectly. Darn printer for wasting good paper and ink! Hmmph! But you, my dears, get to benefit from the icky printing problems. I am giving away two sets of my test batch cards - one of each color with matching envelopes (the matching is up to you). The only major glitch in the cards is the blurry printing on one of the lamps on the papaya colored card.

Cards are printed using Paper Source cardstock, in chartreuse and papaya, with matching envelopes of the same source, in pool and strawberry. How you mix and match is up to you! I'm no dictator here.

The giveaway will be open through until the end of this week (meaning Sunday, 11:59pm Pacific Western Time, cuz I'm on the west coast of the americas). (I needa go buy some stamps... sheesh.) Please leave a comment on this post only. Two names will be drawn in whatever method I choose. May be random, may be not. And please, comment! It's free stuff! :) (Friends and relatives are allowed to participate too. The more the merrier!)

Psst... I finally took some photos of my latest projects. Will upload that later this week. Yay for visuals!

need to look for my photos?

2008-04-14T23:26:00.001-07:00

i've now created the label "my craft and art" or something like that for any post created that includes at least one photo of something i've made or done. this way, if you are curious about what i've made recently or what i've made in the past, you dont have to search through the archives. just click on this label and it'll take you to all the posts that actually contain photos of my work. (unfortunately, the ramblings contained within those posts are still there.. so you'll have to sift through that - i'm not gonna make it that easy for you...) :D

now i'm off to do "homework"

a note to safety, friendship, and update

2008-04-11T22:43:00.000-07:00

firstly, a note to safety. last night at midnight, a random (perhaps not random, but i'm just going to assume is random) man called me on my mobile phone, pretending to be someone i knew. his first words were: guess who i am? throughout the conversation he spoke with a whisper (i still don't know why he had to whisper - i guess to mask his voice). and the "conversation" (if you can call it that) could be categorized as lewd and lascivious. those are big words to basically say, a perverted sex-starved jerk-oid. after some time i decided that it could not be anyone i knew and hung up. you might ask: why didn't i hang up earlier? but to be honest, being in a college campus, it's not unusual for stupid, lame, sometimes drunk guys to make the same types of calls. so... i spent the best part of the first few minutes trying to figure out in my head if this was someone i knew playing a lame joke. however, after hunging up the phone, the man proceeded to call me several more times non-stop. as it was late and the folks next door could be woken up, i put my phone on silent. i think, in the time of an hour or so, 30 calls were made by a withheld number. i still do not know who this person is, but let me tell you that this stalkerish type of call, whether intended to be a joke or not, is very frightening. and it is absolutely unnecessary for people to behave in such a way. there really ought to be laws so that such behavior is punishable by a hefty fine, community service, AND jail time. i'm sorry, i seriously thought my safety was threatened and compromised.

earlier this afternoon, when i relayed this experience to a couple of people who lived in the same house i'm living in, they did not seem as concerned. again, in all likelihood it was just a prank call, BUT - where's the decency? where's the friendliness? where's the hugs and the i'm sorry this happened and hope it won't happen again? where's the comfort for the poor girl who had to endure 30 calls from some unknown man who may know where this poor girl lives? one "friend" even postulated that most likely my number was obtained by a company who sold my information (that really ought to be illegal by the way and punishable to the extreme by the law - not that our goverment is worth a rat's ass). as if this assumption calmed my nerves. if a company sold my phone number they could have easily sold my address as well! sheesh. yes, thank you very much for that guess. it really helped me feel safer.

all this to say, when someone feels their safety is threatened, especially in a situation where law enforcement or the letter of the law will not be helpful (or indeed useful), it will help to be nice and sensitive and gentle to the person who had to experience such a horrific night. (but of course, the lovely folks on this blogland would not need such a reminder about friendliness).

now... to update on crafting, sorry, still no pictures of my latest projects, of which there are many... but... i visited the local paper source and bought some pretty cardstock and envelopes. i'm going to turn the lantern image below (and a new image now in progress) into notecards! since i don't have the finances for a fancy schmancy digital arts type printer or the finances to have things professionally printed (in bulk though and i don't plan on printing in huge volumes), i'll have to settle for the local copier. it's certainly a lot better than my inkjet printer. and we all know that the ink on inkjets are not waterproof. at least the ink at the copier's is. haha. but i promise you i'll make them look nice.

with that said, i hope i get less busy with school soon so i can open my shop!

take care and be safe. (i apologize for the contents and language of today's post. it was a most upsetting day).

let's all be brilliant and bright!

2008-04-02T22:51:00.000-07:00

one paper done, two more to go and don't forget the quiz!

i just finished a quick-ish sketch of some beautiful old-timey ethnic-like lamps. will definitely have to look into doing something with the image. it's just oh so scrumptious. (the lamps are based off some images from the anthropologie catalog for this spring).

i've also made a few new things (new to me anyway) and i think it's fab-o-luss!

don't mean to be a tease, but will share those photos soon. perhaps next week? (when my last paper, for now, is completed and turned in). i promise. i swear. i mean it. :)

ta ta ladies (and gents)!

blogger is being dumb so no photos after all.... maybe later i can upload it when blogger decides to cooperate.

the big 2-1

2008-03-31T12:57:00.001-07:00

i seem to have neglected my blog. many apologies.

today is the big 2-1 but celebrations will have to wait as i have three papers and one quiz for this week. and spring break was too short.

i've been crafting still and will show pictures soon.

so how is your week going?

in the sketchbook...

2008-03-16T23:51:00.000-07:00

vintage flowers by shirley lei (C) 2008

not long ago i purchased a discounted hardcover moleskine accordion page sketchbook of sorts. from half price books (my fave local used and discounted bookseller).

it was the best investment i could ever make with my $1.95 (i'm still aghast that i managed to get a hold of it and that no one else had purchased it as it is easily $10+ in retailers.) but hey, no complaints here.

so here i share with you a few of the sketches that adorn this wonderful little keepsake.

by shirley lei (c) 2008

by shirley lei (c) 2008

by shirley lei (c) 2008

wouldn't some of these images make nice stationery designs? i am obsessed with stationery! :D

tell me how your day went. i'd love to hear. and i'd love to meet new people.

a week in my life...

2008-03-10T22:52:00.000-07:00

As a student, I spend about ten minutes a day thinking about school work and then I shove it aside for better, more interesting subjects. My mind is quite picky about the contents that swirl in my memory bank and, quite frankly, I really don't care about education or intelligence. *GASP* Did I really say that? Hmm....

Meanwhile, a typical week involves some bit of shopping, crafting, putting things in
neat little arrangements and finding cute things, for as very little money as possible!

Here's a sampling:

above is a hairclip i turned into a pendant. wasn't so hard at all! and next to it is a bright satin flower i made with a button in the middle for added effect. i'm in the process of sewing on a pin to attach it to the purse below as a brooch. lovely!

here's the purse. i found an easy little tutorial (will have to find it again for linkage). took me two hours at most. the cutting and thinking took long. the sewing, maybe 15-30 mins tops! am thinking of making more... and fyi, the blue/brown fabric came from an urban outfitter's curtain i bought on sale.

there were a bunch of jam jars going old and modly in the back of our refridgerator (this is what ensues in a house of 40 women with 6 fridges! things get lost and forgotten!) and i thought it'd be neat to put my pretty (and random) things inside it. the left holds my bits of pretty ribbon and the left holds my spool of raffia as well as a couple of necklaces. prettiness.... *drool*

fortunately for me, the nearest paper source (www.paper-source.com) in berkeley has a little box containing samples of letterpress invites, stationery, etc. from their projects. so, ever since i made this discovery, i visit every so often (it is across town, no where near the university campus) and collect quite a bunch! they're free after all and make great inspiration. sometimes i also re-use them in my projects (e.g. the vintage boxes in a previous post, matchbook notebooks in a very, very old post). i might use some of them as end papers/inside covers in futuer notebooks. i need to use up the pretty papers i've bought so i can buy more! :)

and lucky for me, near paper source is a crate and barrel outlet that sells really nice kitchen and home things for a lot less than their retail store. and i was able to pick up a couple scrap pieces of marimekko fabric for 25 cents each! would've bought more... not sure why i didn't. i'm thinking the red cherry blossom print will make a nice purse (using same design/technique as purse above).

forgive me but i just had to post about these condom wrappers. they look so modern and lovely. i'm sure it's a gimmick to get us young folks to purchase them. i've never heard of the brand but i guess i'll have to check them out. hee hee hee.

and finally, another picture of me. it's a bit blurry but i rather like the pose and the outfit i wore. the black free people sweater came from our house's free pile (a free pile in the cooperative sense is essentially a pile full of things you don't want anymore but don't want to throw away and am willing to give away for free). the green cashmere sweater came from a discounter called jeremy's department store (it's j.crew and i got it for $15! love the feel of cashmere - i've since added more cashmere pieces to my wardrobe). and the dress (not a skirt) is an ella moss piece also from jeremy's. love that dress. one of my fave. can dress up or dress down easily. and of course, i'm not a college student if i'm not in my flip flops! :)

take care folks. up soon will be pictures of my lastest endeavors in art. just quick watercolors and a sketch in my sketchbook. i would show them to you now but i'd run out of things to share with you, now wouldn't i? (although i am really excited about one of the designs and i hope i can do something with it - turn it into stationery or something - I LOVE STATIONERY!)

i love writing letters too! would you be my penpal?

toodles!

Tagged

2008-03-02T21:03:00.000-08:00

So I've been tagged twice now but have not had the time to respond to it. (I've also been sick recently and busy with projects and papers for school -- sorry about neglecting the blog community).

So, let's see... 7 things about myself...

1. I LOVE girly panties! I have enough to last me at least 2-3 months. Never worry about doing laundry! haha.

2. I do not like change. I abhor change. Any tiny thing that changes that is not to my liking irks me to the point of death. It just bugs me. I like my comfort zone and change sometimes goes against my comfort.

3. I've secretly always wanted a career doing something public. Crafting, painting, possibly being a social worker are all great careers and all, but I've spent the majority of my life doing work that people cannot see (unless you are there at every moment). And it's nice to have people see what you do, in such fields as the entertainment industry (always wanted to be a singer despite my tone-death voice), theatre/performance art, activist (does that even count as a career? haha), etc etc.

4. I am a simple eater. Although I do enjoy the occasional "fancy" meal, I much prefer eating simple everyday items. I love a great deli sandwich. I love sweetened oatmeal. I love orange juice (passion fruit, mango, guava too!). I love plain white rice (yes it's empty carbs but it's heavily rooted in my Asian upbringing) with my meal. I like scrambled eggs, bacon/ham, and toast with jam for breakfast (none of that fancy schmancy "ethnic" breakfast that my co-op house used to serve). I take so much joy in eating really simple meals. Having food that is comprised of few ingredients. If I'm eating eggs, I'm eating eggs. If I'm drinking orange juice, I'm drinking orange juice. If I'm eating rice and tofu, I'm eating rice and tofu. Not too many other ingredients or spices or garnish. (Now I'm getting hungry)

5. I collect postcards. Not a traveler myself due to financial reasons, so it's a simple joy to add a postcard to my collection. It's more enjoyable when there's meaning to it and not just a pretty picture so often times I ask people who contribute to pick something that means something to them. At least indirectly I can garner meaning and sentiment from the postcard, some way to relating to it I guess.

6. SHOES! SHOES! SHOES! Need I say more? I cannot relate to Carrie Bradshaw's (Sex and the City) character too much, but I have an obsession for shoes, just not the money for it and I cannot justify supporting an already overrated big-profit industry. (But I love how shoes look on my feet -- you may think of yourself as butt ugly in the face or a little chubby in the hips, but shoes always make a pair of feet look gorgeous!)

7. I am currently obsessed about the color robin's egg blue. Or Tiffany's blue. Whatever. I love pale shades of blue (and green to some extent) right now. It's so serene, so elegant, timeless and classic. Oh... I can just imagine a strand of bluish-ivory pearls. Do they even exist???

I'll get back on the 7 I am to tag. But if you read this and have not been tagged yet, consider yourself tagged and write on your blog 7 things (that we do not know) about yourself.

Happy Week!

scrumptious crafting

2008-02-24T15:18:00.000-08:00

this is me...

and this is my room... (excuse the mess - i'm too young and busy to clean! :))

and these are the valentines i made for friends. tiny little pocket-size notebooks. and below it are the latest books made. this time using raffia as binding. such a simple thing to make and yet so pretty. paper from papersource.

and these are my latest sewn goods with my newest fabric purchase. one's a wallet, the other's a messenger type tote bag. teal fabric from urban outfitters curtain. printed fabric from auntycookie and cheekybeaks.

including a notebook with cheekybeak fabric!

and what have I been up to this past week? making beautiful vintage-y, victorian-y boxes of course! inspiration from martha stewart living magazine, feb 2008 issue. can find the article on her website. the materials used: lovely quotes from martha's templates printed on thrifted paper, repurposed wedding invitation cards from papersource (the berkeley store has a box full of free printed samples, from which i help myself), papyrus cards and envelopes (who says i need to use it for letterwriting?), cheapo and reused ribbons. the velvet ribbon monogram can be achieved using velvet scraps (preferably on some thickness), rubber stamps and an iron without steam.

and i know we all love to journal so i thought i'd show snapshots of my latest one. i've been using my lovely journal from paperiarre as a visual diary for inspirational purposes. taking scraps of fabrics i've purchased, business cards, pieces of stationery, mailing labels, etc. anything that's visually inspiring is glued into this journal! :)

and finally... i've decided on this particular sketch for possible stationery or cards or whatever. not sure yet. and i kind of like the squared graph paper in the background. what do you think? what uses could i have with this design?

happy sunday!

new photos later today!

2008-02-21T10:36:00.001-08:00

a much needed update. it's getting a bit drab in here. will update with some photos later today. just have to get around to taking pictures of my latest crafting habit. (it's becoming an addiction)

happy belated valentine's day

2008-02-16T10:44:00.000-08:00

i hope you all had a great valentine's day. i'm not much of a mushy person and am no good at public displays of affection. i can only do it secretly through notes and emails and making things. expression is expression, right?

i for one had a lovely belated valentine's day. neither i nor my friend were available on v-day, so we celebrated it late instead. by far one of the most romantic nights of my life. candles. wine (hansen's soda for me since i detest the taste of wine). sushi and beef teriyaki (yum - i just love plain white rice). strawberries (how typical!). alicia keys in the background. dancing.

there's no better way to spend v-day than with my best friend, W.

hope you all have a great weekend. it's really sunny out today and i'm heading home for a family lunar new year celebration/reunion. i'm down to 100 smackeroos so i'm glad to refill my pockets with much-needed moolah! :)

toodles!

Still here, alive and well

2008-02-12T23:52:00.000-08:00

I have not abandoned you my dear readers. Alas, my university life has taken over me.

I did not seriously think taking 18 units (5 more than my usual comfortable 13) would be such a strain on my schedule. But add that with 5 hours of workshift (chores, essentially) at the cooperative house I live in AND the few hours I put in babysitting and helping out a man with a disability is well, a bit over the edge. I have problems with time-management as it is. But who knew I'd be away from the comforts of my room so often?

I am really accustomed to a shorter class schedule that allows me many leisure hours to nap and watch tv and eat and just squander aimlessly. Today is a typical day for me now. Up at 8-ish, get dressed, do the dishes, get to class, quick lunch if there's time, work after, do dishes again (dinner dishes are the worst - house of 40 women, who like to cook!), too tired to do the reading necessary to keep up with the lectures and/or any homework assignments.

This week I have the pleasure of composing THREE papers. I have never had three papers due at once. Granted, they are of varying lengths from really short to somewhat long. So it's not like I have three term papers due. Haha. And this week I am helping out a mother whom I babysat for last semester. She just had a new baby and he is about 3 weeks old. Now I get to say the youngest child I've helped with was 3 weeks old. Though my previous record of 4 months was still not bad. Parents seem to trust their children in your care a lot more if you can say you've spent a substantial amount of time with a really small child. For some folks, 2 years is still quite small. Well, now, I think 3 weeks is even smaller! (er.. younger).

But I digress.

President's Day is coming up. No classes on Monday. And one professor unofficially (hush-hush) canceled our Friday lecture. So, I ought to have some time to do a proper crafty update. And maybe get around to opening shop. Very little to add though. Must find time to produce! craft! make!

:)

Have a happy week! And here's to an early Valentine's day. Not a believer myself but I do enjoy a day dedicated to love, not Hallmark.

to tide you over...

2008-02-07T00:45:00.000-08:00

here is a glimpse of my WIP (work in progress)...

notebooks made with a type of japanese-inspired binding. been experimenting with softcover notebooks that contain fewer than normal page numbers and bind with silk ribbons. right now it's still in the "looks-like-a-kid-made-it" phase. until i perfect my technique, you won't be seeing these bad boys on sale... hee hee.

meanwhile, i am working on getting my shop started. so stay tuned for that. hopefully it'll be up later today. i've had a long day and am too darn tired to upload all those photos for each and every listing. haha.

visuals for the visually minded folks

2008-02-04T22:43:00.000-08:00

Pictures! Just a few snapshots! Not of my room yet though. That'll have to be for another time. :)

notebooks made using repurposed tea boxes (a gift to the house from a previous resident who lives in london) and repurposed brown kraft packaging paper

pretty notebooks made with pretty papers
both kinds of notebooks will hopefully be in my shop (whenever I get around to creating it)

a silk flower brooch i just made today. used silk scraps mom got from the sewing factory. had a friend help me singe the ends (i hate fire). and added a few beads. might whip up a few to add to shop (again, once i get around to creating one - haha)

pouch: jo-ann's fabric and disney twill tape

my favorite julia rothman mug from urban outfitters. lovely house drawings.

a sketch enclosed in a valentine's card i wrote for a friend

progress

2008-02-03T23:21:00.000-08:00

still in re-decorating mode, mainly my "office" space, which is basically my writing desk. every other part of my room is pretty much redecorated. now, on to tackling the mess i've left behind, for the reason that i have no storage space. just lots of empty floor space. i guess you could call my room my storage area. haha. one big box, right?

i think, to work around the fact that i've used copyrighted images, i'm going to just make the pictures really small or else blur it out a bit. so no one will recognize the images but you can see how i've decorated my room. (i promise, once i have a real job, i'll make it up to the folks by buying their work -- scout's honor).

meanwhile, i've moved on to a different book binding - the japanese style. i don't know what it's called because, typical me, i don't research anything and i never try too hard to learn anything the proper way because i'd much rather do it my way. *takes a breath* that was a long sentence.

once i clean up a bit i'll take pictures of my latest projects and of my room too and post it up. hopefully that'll be soon. like, this week. in fact, i'd prefer in the next couple of days.

i don't know about you but i can't work in a cluttered room. i need my own space. in fact, i had to rearrange my furniture for better fengshui, chi, aura, what have you because i work on my bed a lot and it was getting closed in in the previous arrangement.

anywho, i have a 9am class tomorrow and since i can't seem to get there on time, i'm going to try and sleep on time tonight.

toodles!

ps. msk - thanks. i know i have another 10 years to go. your own life story keeps me going.

:(

2008-01-31T01:05:00.000-08:00

am i just unpopular in blogland? why the lack of commenting? (comments are really the only way i can tell someone is reading my blog and actually figure out who is reading it). me sad. :(

meanwhile, i've made some other things and my room is currently in re-decorating mode! i've put up a lot of pretty pics too (but i cant show you that part since i've used copyrighted images -- i know, i know, shame on me, but c'mon, i have no money and cannot afford to pay $20+ for an image that is essentially ink on paper). at least not now. i'll afford it when i'm better employed. as in, i'm not forking money over to university regents who get to make 6 figures and live happily ever after for doing nothing out of the ordinary. (i'm half sarcastic).

photos soon!

i like creativity, but...

2008-01-25T21:29:00.000-08:00

It can be so overwhelming.

I love that I am interested and passionate about something and that all that I can think about is this something (being creative, in this case), but I really need to slow it down a bit and prioritize. As in, I really should get around to cleaning up my room a bit, start focusing on my classes and begin reading the assigned texts, etc etc.

Meanwhile, here are some snaps of my latest work.

The image above is my latest painting. It isn't all that great. I haven't done my best work in a long while, well, almost three years I'd say. When I stopped taking art lessons because of college.

These are the two "designs" I've been working on as mentioned last night. The mushroom flowers aren't too inspiring just yet. It's been so cold and rainy out that I haven't ventured into the garden to look at the mushroom flower that I had painted on our garden mural for a better likeness. But I do like the little houses.

I created these items using the molly bird fabric by kristen doran of cheeky beaks. They look lovely, dont they? But in trying to figure out what to do with them I realized it is kind of difficult to find other fabrics to mix with. But, I managed, as you can see. Made a notebook cover, a small tote (I think I'll make more of these in the future to sell), and a pouch using my "signature" band closure. I'm sure I'm not the first to make pouches that close like this but it's definitely something I've been doing and did not intentionally copy anyone. The orange fabric on the tote can from a tea towel by tikoli. Brown fabric from Jo-Ann's.

Using up my scraps of Lara Cameron's fabrics. Must replenish supply. Haha. It's now my knitting bag. The contents?

Like any crafter, I have a stash of just about everything. And I am a yarn lover. But with my expensive tastes, it's hard to know what to do with that cashmere yarn or virgin wool or merino wool. Mmmm... Was originally going to knit up a fun monkey backpack from the Stitch n Bitch books, but decided to use it on something more timeless -- like a blanket! I am impatient and like to feel like I'm making progress and I get bored of yarn really easily, so I decided to make it more "patchwork-y" and knit in blocks and use different colors and fibers and it's a great way to learn new stitch designs! (This project will take me 10 years! haha)

I think I'm going to do a quick painting using the house design as shown above. Will post pictures of that later.

designing

2008-01-25T00:34:00.000-08:00

I've recently (as in, last night and just right now) made a couple of rough sketches of possible designs that can be turned into stationery (the letterset kind), possibly notecards too (there's just so many notecards out there already though!), and one day, with some money in the bank, textiles. I dream of the day I can turn my designs into textiles, to be made into all sorts of goodies!

Meanwhile, I have to remain realistic. I am 20 (turning 21 in a matter of weeks) and finishing up my last two semesters of college (graduating early, remember?). And hopefully make use of my B.A. in social welfare doing something that hopefully makes a difference on somebody's life. (I know, high expectations, right?). I didn't take a four year journey learning about family, childcare, social services, psychology, race and education, etc etc for nothing after all. But my heart lies in the arts and crafts and I know I'll find a way to make them both work.

Now... back to design talk. My first design is still quite hideous (pictures soon, it's night right now so photos would look horrible), but it's based on the "mushroom flower" I painted as part of our forrest/wildlife themed mural in the garden of my co-op house. I hated it when the other girls called it a mushroom flower. It wasn't my intention. I was merely following the outline of some other flower I had seen and wanted to paint it. But now, I realized that this "mistake/misunderstanding" might be of use. And my second design, that I just did a few moments ago is of Asian-inspired houses situated atop little rocks. This is heavily influenced by the "blue and white" porcelain style drawings my art teacher M. Sarah Klise (link at left side bar) enjoyed very much and would find opportunities to incorporate into our lesson drawings, including her fondness for stripes!

I'll have to work on a few more sketches to get it right and then figure out how to turn them into stationery letter sets. The easy way would be to print them off my printer (what 20 year old has a printing press in her dorm room? or the funds to mass produce anything?), but I do not like the quality of that. Any suggestions for an inexpensive way to produce small quantities of printed material? I'll have to find a place that wouldn't charge much to print for me or something. Or else I'll have to find some creative way to make use of a copy place like Kinko's. The quality is still not what I would like it to be (not professional enough for my taste) but at least the ink won't smear or smudge like printer ink would if you spilled water (that's my biggest pet peeve about printing straight from my computer printer - ick!).

Photos coming soon, I promise!

hola!

2008-01-24T14:53:00.000-08:00

just popping in a quick hello, bonjour, hola, ni hao! hope everyone is doing well.

my classes began this wednesday (yesterday) and all is going just well. one of my sociology classes has a paper worth 60% of my grade! i nearly died of a heart attack as i flipped through the syllabus. it's cruel and unsual punishment and very unconstitutional. but.. what can i say? the guy's old (62!) and quite frankly, if i do well on this paper then i am pretty much set. with that said, i can't slack off on this paper, now can i?

anyhow, i have my asian american studies class at 5pm and as the first day i hope it does not run all the way to 8pm! ridiculous if you ask me. i'm likely to fall asleep.

meanwhile, i've made a couple of new things with kristen doran's (link on left side bar: cheeky beaks) mollybird fabric and i'm waiting on the lady bug and little owls fabric pieces i've recently purchased. and she just came out with a slightly new design called 'dandelion' and it's sold by the meter, not by the piece! it's quite close to the lady bug design so i think i'll wait another time to purchase more fabrics from her.

i think this weekend i'll stop by the local designer fabric store to purchase some new fabrics. i love mixing light weight cotton with the medium weight cottons/linens that i purchase online from my fave aussie textile designers! i need to start working soon so i can afford my hobbies and my hopefully soon to open mini "business". it's not really a business. more like... another hobby of mine. :)

pictures to come soon of my latest projects!

ps. has anyone found any US based textile designers who do hand screen printed work? the only US based designer that i know of thus far is yuko of patapri (link on left sidebar).

until next time...

2008-01-21T00:49:00.000-08:00

lesley has received my swap items and she has taken a beautiful picture of them.

i also have another PIF to do but with classes beginning this week, it'll have to be pushed until this weekend or later next week. but i hope to have that done soon so i can concentrate on building my stock and learning new crafts.

pictures are here!

2008-01-18T20:10:00.000-08:00

So it just occurred to me last night as I was on the phone with my friend (the one who came back from a trip to Asia), that I do not have class on Tuesdays. With the MLK jr holiday on Monday and no class on Tuesday, I don't have to begin classes until Wednesday! That fact brightened me up a bit. Don't know about you, but no student (in their right minds if you ask me) looks forward to school (at least not the stringent academic part). Guess I'm not much of a student -- but what artist is?

Anyway... I've made a couple of things during my trip to Davis, CA (near the state capitol) but my battery needs to be charged. We'll save that for another entry.

Meanwhile, here are the long-awaited pictures of things I've made since the last entry of my projects.

I made a bunch of notebooks. Some as gifts and others I will be putting up in my shop once I get my act together and open one on etsy!

I made a few barrettes to test out my new hot glue gun and the flower petals I purchased. Might make a few to put in my future shop as well. Very cute for kids and adults!

Can't seem to remember where I got the "pattern" but made a child's dress in under an hour. Love it! Too bad it's not for me to wear.

Look, it's my Valentine bear to be buddies with Mr. Bear-bear (as seen in a previous entry). I think I'll name the Valentine bear Mr. Love. So... I present to you, Mr. Love and Mr. Bear-bear - lifelong friends. Perhaps I'll use up my scraps to make a few bears for the future shop too. Ideas, ideas.

For a PIF swap with Lesley, I received this neato notebook cover (holding a small rhodia notebook) made from Kristen Doran fabric. I'll post up pics of what I made for her once she receives the item so it won't spoil the surprise in case she reads this blog. :)

And here's a weird monster felt plush based on the monster stationery products by paperchase.

alrighty... until next time!

Sorry, no photos...

2008-01-15T21:31:00.000-08:00

My best buddy will soon be back from his trip to Hong Kong and China (and Thailand apparently). I cannot wait to get his call and equally I cannot wait until we see each other, which should be soon as the spring semester is coming up next week. Yikes! I am not ready to leave the comforts of home for college again...

Meanwhile, with Lara having few shop updates lately, I've found a new love in Kristen Doran's fabrics. They're so lovely! The trouble with this is that all of these designers (that I have discovered on this blogosphere thus far) are located outside the United States, making shipping a pain in the butt and currency conversion sucks with the USD decreasing in value (I never thought I'd see the day when the USD is slipping away - haha). I have yet to find similar textile designers in the US - why is that? Am I not searching hard enough? Please let me know if there are similar designers (i.e. independent textile designers who sell fabric in reasonable prices) in the States!

I just adore handscreenprinted fabric. There's so much more substance than your typical fabric store fabric.

Ah well, call me a fabric snob. (I'm also a yarn snob too!). HAHAHA! :)

And I promise to upload new photos soon so you won't be bored reading this!

chinese rambling of no importance

2008-01-12T05:03:00.000-08:00

i just though it would be fun to see if i could type in chinese characters on this blog. and it looks like i can! but in order to read it you'll have to have enabled chinese script on your own computer... i really need to refresh my memory as my chinese is fading away at a rapid speed. it was just this past summer that i had taken my second year of mandarin... well, what do you expect when you speak a completely different chinese dialect at home and what do you expect of your knowledge of chinese grammar when colloquial speech throws proper grammar out the window? oh well...

so here's a bunch of nonsensical chinese for you (for those who can see it):
三個人念書。這三個人也畫畫。這三個人也跑步。三個人有三個朋友。

translation: three people study (books). these three people also draw. these three people also run. three people have three friends.

haha. call it random early, EARLY in the morning craziness. it's 5 am pacific western time and i have yet to sleep. yikes!

anyway, this crazy random mix of words and sentences actually make me want to make some baby-related items. perhaps a baby book of sorts... or a collage... i don't know. there just isn't enough time in a day to do all the art and crafts i want to do. and my painting has been pushed aside for a few years now (ever since college took over my life), but i've lost the inspiration and will to paint. i need to find something to make me want to paint again.

crafting will have to do for now.

hmm....

2008-01-12T04:40:00.000-08:00

So I have been a very lazy girl on the update front. I've been neglecting this blog and the virtual world in general. I couldn't get my laptop to receive wireless internet and as my ethernet cord can only go so far, I've been spending less time on this darn thing. Meaning, less time spent with my virtual friends. :(

Meanwhile, I've turned my parents' living room into a makeshift "studio". By studio I mean scraps of fabric are littered all over the couch, rolls and pieces of pretty paper on the couch seats and the coffee table. Bits of thread ends from the sewing machine all over the floor. Glue, scissors, bobbins, etc. everywhere! And of course the trash that results from the many projects I engage in.

This is why my parents must convert the spare bedroom/toolroom in the basement into a studio of sorts for me. (Though lighting is poor and sparse). My father did offer to put a table in the living room for me (don't know where he'll find the space) but it certainly beats the short coffee table! haha.

Anyhow, I'll post up pictures of my latest items soon as well as the two PIF's I received this week! I LOVE getting real mail. Who doesn't? (And please don't tell me if you don't.)

Have a great weekend.

new year

2008-01-01T17:32:00.001-08:00

Hello 2008!

I usually look forward to a new year, new changes, new everything. But it seems with the passing of my grandfather late November, everything has been plain, simple and somber at home. Which is understandable, in keeping with tradition and as part of the mourning process. No celebrations. No visits to relatives or friends. The adults (meaning, the parental unit) follow it more strictly than the children (meaning, me, the unmarried "adult").

And I usually make all of these resolutions and set goals and plans and do all sorts of things like that. But, I think, for this year, I'm just going to focus on doing well in my classes and moving forward with my art and craft and see where it takes me. Manageable. Practical. Simple.

Meanwhile, I've been neglecting you my dear friends. And I have loads of photos to share! (of things I made from my last post until now).

My proudest creation is this bear. I found a pattern online after deciding not to purchase a bear and just make my own! Isn't he the cutest? I've just been calling him Bear-bear. :)

I think Bear-bear looks hot in every direction. Watch him strike a pose! Haha. He is made with all natural Lara Cameron fabric.

I made a few other things with her fabric as well. After seeing Lara's post of the cute little baby shoes, I thought I'd have to give it a try. Especially since there are a couple of friends with babies. For the blue felt shoes I used the pattern by Heather Bailey. For the other shoe (yes, I only made one shoe), since I can't sell things produced from a copyrighted pattern, I decided to create my own after analyzing several different patterns.I'm still working out the kinks, figuring out how thick it needs to be and what materials to mix together (in this case, felt and linen does not go too well together - see the bumps along the edge?). heehee. Plus, I don't have a baby to test out my shoes for fit! haha. oh well...

For my friends, this year I've decided to make a few things that I hadn't do yet. Below is a wallet, a potholder for the mom of a friend I stayed with for a few days, and a pouch that holds a notebook I made (shown in an earlier post). Then, of course, a pillow! (I used Amy Butler and Joel Dewberry fabric - still have a stash I wanna use up).

Here's my favorite item other than Bear-bear! I finally attempted at a quilt using mainly Lara Cameron fabric, as well as some Etsuko Furuya and Joel Dewberry. Really pretty though. But if you saw it up close and personal... you'd see the flaws. For the back I used a clearance flat sheet bought from Urban Outfitters (I know... I know...). And for the battting I purchased some bamboo batting - it is so SOFT and totally worth the extra cost. I consider this a present to myself. :)

I have other things to show but I'll save that for next time.

And I almost forgot. Here's a glimpse at my new haircut. It's cute but so hard to maintain its shape. I wake up with hair ends curling every which way. Bobs just don't work for straight hair. sigh.

Happy new year and keep it simple!

break from studying

2007-12-14T18:29:00.000-08:00

i finished the dreadful paper and i hope i did well on it. i've completed one exam, 2 more to go. ugh... studying is such a drag.

on the fun side, lots of photos!

first are my purchases from a short time ago that i never had a chance to show:

i bought this adorable and useful messenger-size bag from a housemate who was helping raise funds for some group against sex trafficking. i was more than delighted to help out and shop at the same time! this bag is made of recycled rice bags.

these lovely peony letterpressed cards are from satsuma press. they are delightful. i love these large color prints and i was happy there was something i could afford!

i remember reading someone's blog about a letterset by poppies for grace so i found some at beyond pink and blue online and am delighted by them. i'm a teensy bit disappointed by how they were printed - they looked like ordinary stationery, but they did use good quality paper (nothing flimsy). i just don't know what to do with them!

badges, buttons! i don't know what to call them, but they sure are pretty. i immediately recongized the japanese fabric when i saw these. it's amazing how much more aware i am of the materials that artists and crafters use, especially if they're well known stuff. so that was nice. a bit pricey at $8 each (okay, i'm a student so everything is pricey), but worth it i guess. my cousins didn't seem to think so. (they're even stingier about money than i am!) feisty elle is the designer brand and you can head on over to feistyelle.com for more goods.

now i'm going to show you things i've been working on, when i'm not studying like i ought to...

i started this pillow - what will be a pillow anyway - a long while ago but never had the time to finish it. i was trying to find some way to make the bright neon-ish yellow fabric seem less glaring by mixing other prints with it. i don't know if it'll look so nice once it's completed... but we'll see i guess...

then i received my package of fabric goodies from lara not too long ago and had to have at it with the fabric! i just couldn't let them sit there without making something with them. (i really wish i had my sewing machine with me for instances like this). i quickly hand stitched a little wallet/pouch, which i'm now using to store my feisty elle badges. the front with the flap looks a little funny since the ginkgo print is upside down... haha... but it still looks rather nice. and the japanese print on the inside is a nice crisp surprise.

for a secret santa exchange at my house i decided to make some stuffies since she seemed to like plush toys. i wasn't able to finish the giraffe (not photographed) but i'd like to present to you: ellie the elephant (based closely on lotta jansdotter's elephant soft toy for babies - i couldn't find a better example of a cute elephant so i borrowed lotta's design), hoot the owlie-owl (hmm... i'll have to revise this design if i want to make more in the future), and woar the whale (so cute!). i'm thinking i should make more of these stuffies but in a bigger size. what do you think? currently these are about 4 inches in length. and i love the brown butcher paper that i used as gift-wrapping. reminds me of lynn's giftwrapping as seen on her satsumalynn blog.

alrighty! back to studying for this girl! :)

end of semester

2007-12-07T19:25:00.000-08:00

Final exams and papers have taken over my academic life!

I'll be on hiatus for quite some time.

I received a generous extension on a paper I am having difficulty completing, but I hope to be done with by tomorrow afternoon and send it off to my GSI (graduate student instructor, aka teacher's assistant). Then I have final exams Thursday, Saturday (in the evening hours too!) and Tuesday. Then I'm off to the San Fernando Valley area (near Los Angeles) for a few days of shopping and eating and seeing the socal sights! :)

I'll be back home on the 23rd of December and hopefully I can go straight to work on making a few personal projects (which I will post up pictures here) as well as create a small inventory of items to test out and see how well they sell.

Happy Holidays everyone!

little flippy notebook

2007-11-26T13:39:00.000-08:00

two posts in a row! who would've thought? not much to update but i did make a quick notebook last night as well as just an hour ago. (when i really should've been studying or working on my term paper... ah well... when you are inspired, what can you do?)

so... i do have class in a bit so i shall leave you with pictures and will add text later. enjoy!

another book... the one i made just a while ago...

Prettiness for my eyes

2007-11-25T17:54:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone,

Many apologies for not being on my blog lately. I have had some family things to deal with -- we've recently "lost" our paternal grandfather and with finals and term papers due as well, it has been hectic, to say the least. I will return messages from my previous post soon, so please bear with me! And thank you Kaija for posting photos of the little notebook I made for you. I hope you enjoy it.

Meanwhile, I've been snooping around blog-land and etsy for goodies to purchase for myself... and I am in love with these cute, bright objects.

Here's a pretty birdie print from joom

As well as a really lovely pillow. They have so many lovely prints! I wish they printed fabric!

I really, really want this duvet and sham set from patapri! Wish someone could get these for me... ;)

marta from m.writes wrote such a lovely post about letterpressed calendars. It would be just lovely if I could afford them all! But what does a girl need with more than 1 calendar? especially one that I can't even write notes in (now those I need more of). but I did have just enough money leftover from eBay sales to purchase this calendar (the rest were unfortunately above my range as a college student):

you can find ilee's stuff here.

A long while back, Lara posted some photos of goodies that arrived in her mail and this print was one of them. I loved it so much that I want one too! But no money so I'll have to wait until I babysit some more and than deposit straight away to the bank! :) :) :)

synesthesia by green chair press

With school and work and family, it will be quite some time before I get the chance to make more goodies to show. Do not fret, I am waiting on some .jpeg photos from my sister who helped scan and photoshop some doodles I made recently at a house council one night. It's a typical Shirley doodle of grass and flowers, but I'm looking to printing them into notepads and sheets of notebook paper. Obviously, I am working on limited equipment and have only my hands and a computer printer but PaperSource sells this adhesive (PVA = polyvinyl acetate) that's good for making notepads. Who knows? Maybe my winter fairies will supply me with the funds to purchase some tools and supplies to make professional-quality products! In the meantime... we'll all have to make do with what we've got. Now, isn't that true?

Thanksgiving!

2007-11-21T12:10:00.000-08:00

Somebody, anybody, tell me: is Thanksgiving a holiday known (not necessarily celebrated since it's so rooted in American history) throughout the world? Just curious.

I am back home for the Thanksgiving holiday and am enjoying some time off (mental time anyway) from school -- despite impending doom of research paper. Yikes!

I think, for my latest project, I am going to make cute girly barrettes. My dad is taking me out shopping later today (I have so many coupons to use!) and I will drop by our nearest Jo-Ann's. I prefer going to an art store but this fabric and artsy crafty store will have to suffice. Will show pictures soon!

That reminds me... I need to purchase a hot glue gun... :)

Rest, rest, rest and shop, shop, shop!

Kaija/Paperiaarre; PIF; More Eye Candy

2007-11-14T20:03:00.000-08:00

First off, I'd like to thank Kaija of Paperiaarre for her beautiful book! I love the concept of PIF and being able to share our work with one another. And I love that we're all just doing it because we want to. My pictures are horrible as they were taken in the evening (when I'm free-est) but here's the book Kaija made for me:

1. This is the lovely brown cover. I believe it's the same material as her coptic bound journals with the stenciled artwork in her etsy shop.
2. Here's a peak at the inside cover. The tree is a stenciled card she included (I love the presentation and it was fun to open). I've glued it to the notebook because I thought it fit really well with the journal and gave it some more pizzazz.
1
2

Please do visit Kaija's blog.

Okay, I still have many spots available for PIF as I've gotten lucky and will be the recipients of artwork from a couple of other artists whose PIF I was able to join. I cannot really afford anything right now so PIF is a great way to share my work in exchange for receiving the beautiful works of others. So, please leave me a comment and I'll whip up some nice pretty things for you. For now I have 5 spots available so join in the merriment. The only condition is that you have to Pay It Forward to three other people (read my post regarding PIF for more info if you are new to this concept).

I've finally carved out some time to take photos of my most recent work. I hope you enjoy it. Let the drooling commence! :)

The first pillow is fabric by Amy Butler (the name of the fabric just left my head right now). The second set of pillows is fabric by Etsuko Furuya (cream) and Chestnut Branch by Joel Dewberry. I'm really trying to get myself to appreciate the brightness of the amy butler fabric. Just... so green and bright...

I made a few notebooks for fun. (Well, to procrastinate from doing homework but still wanted to feel somewhat productive). I think my skill is improving. I'm doing better with the details and the threading. I have yet to find any online tutorials for basic bookbinding yet and cannot afford to take bookarts classes right now. So, I'm going to have to stick with whatever I am doing that is holding the pages of the book together. It's more like a pamphlet style.

Below are images of the front, back, inside (I enjoyed adding some fun surprises to the inside covers of 3 of my books - the lush velvety paper, the japanese shiny crane paper, and the hippie tie-dye-ish paper) and a peak at my more "refined" threading skills. haha.

I hope you enjoyed this post. More to come in the coming weeks.

Until next time...

2007-11-13T01:11:00.000-08:00

I have made a couple more pillows/cushions and a few more notebooks (with the new fabric and new pretty paper I purchases this weekend)! Will have photos up sometime this week. (Ah... the busy life of a college student).

In the meantime, I still have two spots available for the Pay It Forward thing. Feel free to sign up! I'd love to share my work with you. :)

eye candy!

2007-11-08T19:13:00.000-08:00

a scarf two years in the making... there just isn't ever any time in a student's life for knitting...

the best attempt at photographing earrings i made. my favoritist pair!

my halloween costume: can you guess who i am?

artwork for a possible holiday card... not sure how i'll go about that. might just print off my printer and send to family and friends...

a cushion made with lara cameron's fabric!

you can sort of make out the purse and notebook cover i made - i just adore lara's fabric!

another cushion. the orange fabric is actually made out of a tea towel by tikoli but what am i going to do with a tea towel? haha

the inside flap of the notebook cover that won't fit any book i have... um... yes...

i created another fun cushion today when both packages of fabric came by post. will put up pictures of that once i get around to it. i love love love it! i was cautious and decided not to buy much but now i feel like i can be a bit more adventurous and trust that i'll like whatever i buy. i bought a yard of fabric by joel dewberry (i know nothing about fabric designers) as well as some japanese fabric by etsuko something or other...

anywho, enjoy the eye candy. don't drool now!

no takers?

2007-11-04T23:03:00.000-08:00

i'm sad there are no takers for the pay it forward thingermabob. oh well. guess i'll just have to randomly choose fellow bloggers to send something. was gonna do so anyway.

i just finished making a few items using the fabric i bought from lara so will have pictures up once i'm less frazzled and harried. :)

until then...

Pay It Forward

2007-10-28T22:54:00.000-07:00

I need to figure out how to edit photos. I've tried shrinking the photos on the website hosting them, but they don't seem to have much effect here. Oh well... I'm sure I'll learn. I see an "add image" feature for posting entries, so I'll learn to use that. I really do not like adjusting to new blogs. haha.

Anyway, so I stumbled upon this neat idea through a comment written on Lara's blog (kirinote.blogspot.com) and here I am keeping my promise by posting it on here:

Pay It Forward (via Kaija, via Deanna, via Sia, via Sandra, via Camilla, via Bibbi and so on) - here are the rules:
I will send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange. I don’t know what that gift will be yet and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week, but you will receive it within 365 days, that is my promise! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog.

(I'll have to figure out how to embed links so you can visit the respective blog of each person under 'via'.) heehee. Still learning.

Handmade Notebooks!

2007-10-27T20:43:00.000-07:00

Make that amateur handmade notebooks. haha.
I finally have photos up. Uploading onto a photo hosting site is soooo troublesome. But here they are!

Thank you Lara for your support. I think I'll be making notebooks as one of the items I'll be selling with my sister. Hopefully I'll have enough time during Thanksgiving and Winter break to build up an inventory.

My first attempt at making the inside covers. Did not go so well...

My second attempt... much better... but I think I'll need to invest some money in a medium-sized thingamabob (temporary memory loss) to cut the papers evenly instead of by hand with a scissor.

This time I attempted to use a vellum/tissue-like paper. The glue shows... guess I'll have to do it differently.

This notebook started it all... Bought it from urban outfitters for $4 (www.urbanoutfitters.com)

That's it for now! I also make jewelry, but also amateurly. Without the jewelry findings I don't know where I'd be.

Can't wait to do my first run at selling my crafts as merchandise! :)

new adventure

2007-09-28T19:35:00.000-07:00

seems like my sister and i will try out making some crafty and artsy things in the next few months and see if we'd like to try and sell 'em. i think it will be a good experience for the both of us. people have always told us we should try and sell our pieces - why not now? none of us have received much training in the things we make and do, though we have taken several years lessons in acrylic painting, but neither of us do that for a hobby. i like to make paper goods for the most part and the occasional plush toy or doll. my sister does great manga/japanese anime, water colors, and felt objects, among other things. sisterly collaboration! how fun!

another fave site

2007-09-26T20:56:00.000-07:00

I found this site while site hopping and i love the bags and the fabrics they use. makes me want to draw my own birdies. i'm still in the process of trying to create a few simple images and transfer them into cards. might use moo to print them or some other service to print my own cards to see how they'd turn out. i certainly can't afford to go to a publisher or big printing company. gotta do it the cheapo d-i-y upload a photo to a photo website kind of thing. haha.

Anyway the website i'm referring to is Prickly Pear. They have a lot of really nice handmade totes and bags and pouches. It's really neat. You can visit them here: http://www.pricklypear.biz/

I'll have to take some pictures of the notebooks I made this past month.

Now how does a girl get some foot traffic into her site so she doesn't feel so lonely?

Toodles!

Pictures!

2007-09-19T22:57:00.000-07:00

As promised, I finally have some pictures to show of some crafty things I did in the past year. During Valentine's Day, I decided to make a few valentines for close friends, as well as regular note cards. Here are a few snapshots (I apologize for the blurriness):

I made all of these note cards on blank peach-cream folded notecards I had purchased on clearance from Papyrus using bits and pieces of craft supplies from Castle in the Air (4th Street Shopping, Berkeley, CA) and littles bits I find around the house - ribbons, cut-outs from magazines and catalogs, etc.

Below is a little rag doll I made out of discarded clothing I found at my co-op's "free pile" in the basement. The skin color fabric came from a really huge nightie, the dress came from the sleeve of some hideous tunic and the stuffing from cut up pieces from the skin color fabric (I had no cotton stuffing available). And the hair came from some yarn I had with me. It's a wonder what you can do with the bits of resources around you. Didn't even have to venture out to purchase supplies for this doll.

new things take time

2007-09-05T17:44:00.001-07:00

I am still trying to get used to this thing. I like my xanga a lot. Only because I am so used to it. Though I hate the new fancy features on that site. I prefer simplicity. Speaking of which, I'll have to learn how to change the layout on this. The dots are a cute touch, but not the colors. I'm not much of a fall person. prefer spring-y colors.

As promised, I will have pictures up soon! Once I learn how to use this thing and add html... hmm...

Shir Me!: First post!

2007-09-05T17:43:00.000-07:00

kirin notebook by lara cameron - check it out!

First post!

2007-09-04T18:56:00.000-07:00

Yay! This is my first official post on blogger. I have used several blogging sites in the past and to this day still maintain one on xanga.com, but I've decided that I need a new one, to showcase my artistic side. I was really inspired by the blog KirinCo (sp?) (will have to find it and add it to my list of faves or whatever you call it here), so here is mine! I didn't realize how many crafty blogs there are around here.

I think my former art teacher showed me a bunch of links to crafty blogs, and it's probably still archived under all my old e-mails. Ah well... as long as it's still there, I'll find it again.

Anyway, a little about me. Name is Shirley, decided to call this blog "Shir Me!" using the first syllable of my name and then just added the "me!" part for fun! I was dallying with Shiri (nickname from a former friend), ShirLei (after my own name, Shirley Lei), but came up with Shir Me! (I like the 'small' hint of self-centeredness that this name gives). What do you think?

Continuing on... I'm currently a third year studying social welfare at UC Berkeley and if you ask me, I don't know what I'm going to do with my B.A. in social welfare because you need AT LEAST a B.S.W. (not a B.A.) to hold a job as a real, semi-real social worker. I guess I could be a counselor. Poo-poo. Although I'm all for social justice, liberation, freedom, equality (gender, racial, what have you), rights for the underprivileged, and what not, my first passion lies in the arts. Not so much fine art, but the crafts. Some may call it the 'lesser' of the arts, but I think it is a fine type of art.

So you've got a bit on me, in the days to come (when I am not busy managing a household of 40 women - myself included - at my cooperative house, or attending classes and attempting to catch up on zillions of hundreds of pages of reading), I will be putting up of same artsy fartsy things I've created in the past year. I wish I were home right now so I could take more pix of things I've created this summer. Oh well. Your eyes will just have to feast on less for now.

Toodles!