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Tuesday

For the love of abstract designs...


You-are-amazing-card

These days I'm totally into abstract designs. Like this lovely MT washi tape. I layered it over aqua cardstock and lined up the lines as best as I could. Then added a layer of Ranger Distress Stickles in rock candy for a glass glitter finish.


Love that it fit this fabulous crochet frame that my bloggy pal Jessi Fogan sent me. And I actually got my typewriter out for the sentiment. :)

P/s: Have you entered my Faber Castell Design Memory Craft giveaway?


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Monday

The zoo story


Zoo-day

So last Saturday, I did something crazy. Like bring 3 nephews + 1 niece to the zoo. All by myself. On a really hot day!


The four year old wanted to be taken out of the stroller every time we got to an animal enclosure because he couldn't see anything...so I just let him walk with his brothers...but of course, he went MIA many times...[my heart got a workout!].


The two year old spent half the time chewing on a biscuit and the other half of the time sleeping. And threw a massive tantrum when we were watching the sea lion performance....[if there was a cave, I would have been hiding in it...*LOL*].


Of course, there was the stroller malfunction at the carpark + the four year old screaming for me to turn on the air-conditioning + fuel tank warning signal coming on [always happens when driving my brother's car...grrrr...].... But we made it home! *High fives all around*


Inspired by the sketch at ScrapFriends. And using lots of fun embellishments from Purple Pumpkin [I just joined their design team...yay!].

P/s: Come play along with my guest Lizzy's challenge...it ends on Friday!


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Friday

Scrapbooking perspectives...my journaling journey.




I think the one thing people struggle with is journaling. And probably why many are hesitant to start scrapbooking. It just seems easier to put everything in a photo album. For me, scrapbooking is not about THE particular moment in the photo/s but the feelings/emotions associated with the photo in one's life. The story told through MY perspective. It took me a while to get here though....here is my journaling journey.


My favourite layout of 2009

Like most people, I started scrapbooking using a narrative voice. Photo, embellishments and simple journaling that gave details about who was in the photo, when it was taken and where. In other words. Boring.


Celebration

Then I decided to scrap the nephews for my brother. It became descriptive..."Sean and Ocean went to the playground and had fun today..." with dates and posed photos. These worked for a while because I was doing mostly minis and wall displays so journaling was minimal.


With grandma

The turning point came when I realized that I was spending all this time and effort recording my nephews' milestones and giving them to my brother and his wife, and they never once said "Thanks!" or even displayed them in their home. :(

This realization was a good thing though. It changed my whole perspective on scrapbooking.

Who was I scrapbooking for?

The one who peed on me

So I started writing to my nephews [and niece]. The journaling on their layouts are my thoughts and feelings about them. About how proud I am of them. Of their little accomplishments. Of the fun we have together. Of the times they made me laugh. That they were loved by their aunt. 


How do I look

Now my layouts have funny stories to go along with them. They are in albums in the living room where everybody has access to view them. And the nephews and niece will get their individual albums when I die. They would have to fight over the family albums though because I'm an artist and not a duplicate machine....[I don't do multiples of any layout so that everyone gets a copy. Couture layouts only. *winks*]

So the next time you get stuck on your journaling...think about who is going to inherit the layout. And write to them. [Really old layouts....my style has changed eh? Or I just got better at editing my photos? *winks*]

What about you? What's your journaling story?


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Thursday

The gangster gang has just recruited its latest member!


Wood-album-main-cover

Have you heard? The gangster gang has just recruited its latest member! 


Yes.  Terror at the playground when the gangster gang is around....[Dramatic music plays in the background...]


If you see these 4....RUN!



They tease you with their antics at the fire hydrant....



And taunt you with their goofy faces....



It is impossible to get a good group shot of the gangster gang...



Fortunately, they have to go home eventually and the playground is safe again! *winks*



Just sharing a mini wood album I made of the nephews and niece. There is a step-by-step tutorial at the Faber Castell Design Memory Craft blog. :)


P/s:  Have you entered my Faber Castell Design Memory Craft giveaway? 



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Wednesday

So I have a drawer full of "almost" completed projects....


Zeus-and-Zoe-album-cover

So, I have a confession to make. I have a drawer full of "almost" completed projects. "Almost" because they are essentially done but I can add a sentiment or a name to further personalize it [or leave it as it is...who really knows right? *winks*] when I need to produce a last-minute gift.




Like this chipboard album. Which was completed in 30 minutes.


The key to a quick project? Pull supplies from those within your reach [also known as the "too lazy to move your butt" syndrome...*LOL*]. Once you get a rough gauge of how your elements should be placed, just glue them down.



Sharing my latest project for Zeus and Zoe. :)

P/s: Come play along with my guest Lizzy's challenge! And don't forget about my Faber Castell Design Memory Craft giveaway



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Tuesday

When watercolour met washi....



Watercolour-birthday-card

"When watercolour met washi for the first time...sparks flew....it was a match made in heaven. "   
                                                                                     Confessions of a washi tape addict 


*LOL*...I'm really trying to use my washi tape in any way possible...why not with a stencil and watercolour? 


Playing along with the challenge at Moxie Fab World and linking to my bloggy friend Annette's birthday/anniversary celebration.

P/s:  Have you entered my Faber Castell Design Memory Craft giveaway? 


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Monday

The angry birds story...



Troublemakers

So littlest nephew J and niece S asked for a story the other day. It had to be about Angry Birds. I had to make one up...*winks*

Me: Once upon a time, there was a boy named Jeremy. He had 3 angry birds. One was....
Jeremy: Blue
Sophie: Red
Jeremy: Yellow
Sophie: Green
Me: Okay, so he had 4 angry birds...
Jeremy and Sophie: Yay!
Me: One day, a green pig came to visit. "Can I see your angry birds, please?"
Jeremy and Sophie: No!
Me: "Okay, how about we get your angry birds to sing for me?" asked the pig.
Jeremy: Okay!
Sophie: Okay! 


Jeremy and Sophie proceeded to sing all the songs they knew [they were singing for the pig, remember?]. It was highly entertaining for me....definitely one of our best days together ever! *LOL*

Playing along with the challenges at Once Upon a ...Sketch, the Studio and Scrap it with a Song. :)


P/s: Come play along with my guest Lizzy's challenge! And don't forget about my Faber Castell Design Memory Craft giveaway


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Friday

My current fave Faber Castell Memory Design Craft supplies and your chance to win them!






Hello there friends! Today I want to share with you some of the Faber Castell Design Memory Craft supplies currently rocking my creative world. *winks* And ONE lucky person gets to win the goodies in the picture, courtesy of Faber Castell Design Memory Craft! :)




Layout
1. Gelatos


I love these! They glide on like lipstick and can be used both as a wet or dry medium. The colours are vibrant and work on a variety of surfaces like paper, canvas and even wood.  




Journal page 

2. Paper Crafter Crayons 


These highly-pigmented wax crayons are awesome for creating wax resist effects. Or just to serve as a barrier to prevent colours from bleeding into each other when playing a variety of mixed media products. Melt them with a heat gun and you can get really cool wax drippings.  




 Travel tag 
3. Stamper’s Big Brush Pens



These lightfast India ink pens are great for stamping and colouring chipboard. I especially lovelovelove the white pen. I use it a lot to cover up my "mistakes".  And to stamp on dark backgrounds.  

Journal page 
4. Art Grip Aquarelles


These pencils are easy to colour with and the colours intensify once you add water for awesome watercolour effects. Love that they are waterproof once they are dry, allowing you to add layers and layers of colour to create depth and richness to your projects. 





If you would like to participate in this giveaway, please

1. LIKE the Faber Castell Design Memory Design Craft Facebook Page.
2. Leave a comment on this post telling me a little bit about you and which part of the world you reside in.

Entries close on Monday May 13 11.59pm (GMT +8). Please make sure your entry is linked to an email address that I can contact you via should you be the winner of this awesome giveaway. :)


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Thursday

10 birthday card ideas



Birthday cards are pretty handy to have lying around. Especially if someone's birthday has completely slipped your mind. And last-minute anxiety kills off the creative cells rapidly...*LOL* Maybe I can help? Here are 10 birthday card ideas. :)


Paper-weave-birthday-card
Old book paper weave with gelatos card

Happy birthday Amy Tsuruta!
Fussy-cut patterned paper card


Happy birthday Erin
Monogram card using braille paper

Happy birthday to me!
Paper scraps and stickers card





There you have it. 10 birthday card ideas. What do you think?



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