scarlet letter

i'm in love with this video...

in other news, i got a new sewing machine and i've been making heaps of pouches.


its kinda addictive. the one above was actually made from scraps of a pillow case i was making and another pouch. anyhoo, decided to do some "boy" pouches. will be doing the upload on sunday as usual! so go see! (:

*sheryl

the passing of "common sense"

my mom sent me this email today, i thought it sobering and very pertinent, so here, read this.

Enjoy. This is from the Times of London.

"Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, 'Common Sense', who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:
Knowing when to come in out of the rain; why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn't always fair; and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouth wash after lunch; and a teacher, fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.

It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust. His wife, Discretion, his daughter, Responsibility, his son, Reason.

He is survived by his 5 stepbrothers; I Know My Rights; It's My Culture; I Want It Now; Someone Else Is To Blame; I'm A Victim.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing"

tilt-shift video

Bathtub IV from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

via howabtorange. really quaint and charming. (:

edo notebook series

ahem. like i said, i was reading the last concubine. and it is a book based in japan, before tokyo was the capital of japan and it was known as edo. and i really liked the whole feel of the story - the setting, characters, plot, that yesterday when i sat down to scrap, the japanese paper prints were calling my name. so hand-cut felt leaves, kimono prints and paper blooms, with buttons and rhinestones. whimsical and woodsy. (the blue notebook isn't actually part of the series, i just happened to alter that too. so yea. opps!) :p

lists

no blog post should be without a picture. so here.

thats a pair of earrings i recently made. will be uploading a bunch of accessories on squiggletown on 17 may. i'm contemplating etsy. but i like a flexibility i get with a blog. and i dont like the idea of needing to use a credit card for etsy (seeing as how i don't really have one). haha. um. yea. so i guess i'll be sticking to blogger.

currently listening to les mis and falling in love with the story all over again. i think andrew is sick of hearing the cd play in the car. haha. but its such a beautiful story. and the music is enchanting. if they come to singapore, i would love to watch them. well. that and miss saigon.

would you believe it, but i'm looking forward to school. working is okay. in fact, its probably what i'm going to do for the rest of my life. but knowing that, makes me want to cling to studying and burning the midnight oil to do so. i'm honestly at a loss as to what to do next. this coming trimester will be my last and then i'll graduate. its like the closer you get to completing something, the more you realise it actually isn't that bad (thats what i say now. check back with me in 3 months when i have my term papers due and ask me if i still feel the same) and i think its also because this trimester i'm going to have lots of same classes with people i've missed having classes with. so it'd be really good to catch-up. (:

the last weekend i had a sudden burst of crafty energy - more specifically beading. i forgot how great instant gratification was - me making something and being able to wear it straight away. been wanting to craft too. been wanting to try hand-binding books. not too sure about needing to buy waxed thread and needle tho.

still contemplating getting a new sewing machine. think i'm just waiting for my bank account to miraculously appear with $500.

been lagging behind qt and newspaper reading. thats bad. so much for being a journalism student. ha! ohh! but i've been reading - novels. i just bought 3 from times. the last concubine, my favourite wife and a thriller - something about a phantom plagued ship. i cant remember the title. will get back to you on that. i liked the last concubine. finished it almost in one seating. made me realise how enjoyable reading is - its like watching a movie except you're the director because you're imagining how it'd be like. and i think it'd make a pretty good movie. its a bit like memoirs of a geisha, except there's a lot more historical facts thrown in with the fictional mix. (did i mention i love ancient history?)

over the weekend, andrew and i (well, mostly andrew) made huat kueh. its a bit like cupcakes but its steamed. its a chinese cake. i haven't tasted it before till i made it. grandma had a mix so she asked me to try it. it turned out really pretty. like little flower blooms. will have to find the picture to upload it. grandma says its nice, so i'm happy.

i know. this post is rather choppy isn't it? its like i'm throwing my thoughts out. need to start using my organiser again. its lapsing into the murky darkness of my bag. haha. okay. should go and start making those lists.

ohh. btw. its andrew and my fifth year anniversary today. seems so long. he got me this gorgeous campo design pen studded with swarovski crystals. its purple. i've been in a purple mood lately. anyhoo its my birthstone, so if i get tired of the colour i can use that to reason with myself as to why i got it in purple. i actually got one for my mom in silver for mothers' day. andrew and i went shopping together. it was really sweet cos it was his idea to shop for mother's day presents. ohh! which reminds me. i actually have a tonne of photos for that day. we bought them sweets from sticky (the mothers' day mix - it said i ♥ mommy and had hearts in blue and pink). then to accompany that, i got her the campo design pen and he got his mom a necklace. (: isn't that sweet? yea, i thought so.

alright. to the lists!

leaves, jam jars, glitter, post-its, chalkboards, eyelets, canvases, watercolour

watch geninne make a stamp!

Stamp Carving from Geninne D. Zlatkis on Vimeo.

i've always wanted to try carving on rubber instead of lino. havent been able to find large-enough slabs of rubber to carve on tho. but my oh my, the skill she has is amazing. her hand is so steady and her drawing immaculate. makes me want to go out and buy large pieces of rubber and start carving! (:

ohh. and for something fun, click here!

playing catch-up

this lovely lovely precious moments princessy figurine is from mom for my 21st. slightly belated but very much appreciated nonetheless. i recently got a present from my grandma too. so here's a collage of some of the presents that i got and really like (mostly because i got to choose all of them myself! haha)

click on the polaroid pile to see who got me what. my grandma's present is the most recent, its a marquis cut blue topaz. i've always wanted a coloured gemstone ring. andrew got me the grape prima crocs, lysa + caleb, mel and jel got me the jansport (i took a leap of faith with the colour - PINK. usually i play safe and get neutral tones like brown or blue. so i decided to get things outside my comfort zone, like black totes and pink haversacks. haha) and last but definitely not least, the beautiful diamond cross necklace from my dad. its almost one caret and each section looks like a tiny poinsettia and all clustered to form said cross. its really pretty. especially close-up. and i'm really really grateful for these presents. i feel like its a nice collection of things for a coming-of-age birthday. (:

aunty bear bear got me these uber cute tupperware keychains. apparently its exclusive only to tupperware agents. i love tupperware! the other day i packed a picnic for andrew and i and used tonnes of tupperware in a multitude of shapes and colours.
i think andrew was overwhelmed - not by the act but the amount of tupperware. haha.
i think he envisions that our house will be filled with tupperwares and ikea jars.
(i don't think that notion is too far off)
anyhoo, they are just the right size for a daily dosage of vitamins.
so in it goes.
1 in my bag.
1 on my table.
1 in the chevy.
so our mini road trip on sat. we drove around, bought every burger - andrew's favourite snack as a kid, and me, always seeing it as a kid but never getting the chance to eat it. so that day was the first day i ate it and its super yummy. and addictive. i envision a burger themed birthday party and this would make for great snacks!

good ole brownies topped with walnuts + choc chips (i say topped because andrew doesn't like walnuts in his brownies so i top them so he can take it out easily, instead of rummaging through the brownie. so why even put it in there, you ask. well. mom and i like walnuts. and i always feel there needs to be balance in food - crunch/fudge - you get the idea.) brought 8 to school for mom and her colleagues and served it with vanilla viennettia ice-cream.
you know what was really sweet. when andrew took a bite, he said he reminded him of sec 4. cos that was when i first made them for him. he said it was the exact same taste! amazing. except of course last time i didn't make them in cupcake form, i made them in bars and put them in ugly disposable take-out boxes. haha. i've learnt. cupcake brownies in brown paperbags. (:
he and i both remember meeting early before flag raising at the umbrella table behind the classrooms, making sure we got to see each other before school started. (knowing that i would get to meet him was what motivated me to get up every morning. it still amazes me how i could wake up for school. its was so early!) then i would sneak him the box of brownies and he would put it in his school bag and sneak bites of it in class. haha.
ahh.
reminisce.





okay. fast-forward back to present day 2009.

altered this notebook (this was what i was talking about yesterday) for my mom.
and am super inspired by elsie's new camper kit. i really love her style. the colours are so retro!


haha. ALRIGHT! finally a more substantial post. (:

rhinestones, sequins, feathers, speech bubble-shaped objects and coloured pencils