Deck the Halls!

Lately, I'm into something new, something I wanted to do since late last year - to learn how to wool felt. I bought myself a reindeer kit to get myself started, however I ended up hoarding it and didn't manage to attempt. In view of this upcoming holiday season, I thought it'd be a good time to clear my stash. And yes, I've finally attempted!!! If you guys have been following me on my Instagram, some of you probably have seen a couple of my wool felting posts. Took me some time to get a hang of it and I'm still learning to get hold of the technique correctly. 

Though the pictorial instructions on the kit seem relatively easy to follow, I faced difficulties in getting the reindeer in shape. Then I got to realize the kit is probably a little challenging for a pure beginner like me. I should have started on something more straightforward and simple before moving on to more difficult ones. But heck, Christmas is here and I couldn't wait to get the reindeer done. At the end of the day, after struggling through I manage to finish off this bugger...

Apparently I had made this reindeer a little smaller than what was expected. I'd think it looks good for its size and to make it more adorable, I made him hug a Christmas tree with a jingle bell. Too cute! Just for that I had to make something to house him. And I made a hall just for this reindeer, my virgin wool felt!! Can't think of a better way than to deck the halls!

I used one of the boxes from Tim Holtz's vignette boxes as the hall. Painted a layer of crimson red over and finished with a touch of gold paint at the edges to tone down the already rustic look of the box in order to cater for this holiday season. This would seems like the hall has been refurbished. Decking the halls with boughs of holly wasn't easy. Certainly I find Graphic 45 St. Nicholas paper collection the perfect choice for this project (I still love working with Graphic 45, undeniably). Together with all my previous Alpha Stamp Christmas stash and Petaloo pine corn picks, everything just fit well into the theme. I had indeed spent hours digging through my stash to find these holly-related elements. And finally I managed to get the look I want.

How can I miss the little reindeer? He gets to sit in a bed of vintage Christmas flower soft bed!!

Added branches at the sides with some holly leaves hanging down to complete the entire theme. I thought it'd be nice to add some creature in the midst of a landscape and there it is, I found a miniature deer charm!!

And so forth, this hall for the reindeer is just this small, handy enough to hold. I hope you guys have been spending some great fun time in decorating your halls for this Christmas. I had so much fun (from juicing my creative brain cells) in decking this small little hall.

Here is a list of Supplies I had used for this project:

• Graphic 45 St. Nicholas paper collection (6" x 6" pattern & solids, 8" x 8" paper pad)
• Tim Holtz Idea-ology (vignette boxes, Christmas word band, mini plaquettes)
• Tim Holtz Alterations (Sizzix mini holiday greens thinlits)
• Ribbons (black & white checked flat braid, golden brown sweeper fringe, advent calendar tag ribbon set) 
• Flower Soft (vintage Christmas)
• Holly Elements (gold holly berries mix, holly & berry picks, pine corn picks, dark red holly berries)
• Acrylic Paints (Golden quinacridone crimson, Daler Rowney pale gold & rich gold)
• Charms and other stash (miniature deer, fleur dresden, 1/4" mushroom plugs, jingle bells, miniature Christmas brush tree, metal branches, wooden 2D trophy antlers, reindeer wool felt kit)

Magic Wonder - A Winter Faeries Fairy Box

For the past weeks while I was re-organizing my stuffs, I came across this half-done prepared (gessoed and texturized) filmstrip shadow box together with several primed fairies and flourishes hidden underneath my working desk on top of my craft mat. It was a long time overdue project; a project that I had planned and prepared way in advance supposedly to be completed in May for Gypsy Soul Lasercuts as a Guest Designer. However, things happened and almost all of my WIPs went into a halt instantly. Flipping through my notebook where I did all my project line-up scribbles, this is so much I had missed. 

Life shouldn't be full of resentments. For the very least, I had indeed a good long rest (mentally, physically and spiritually). I just need to get myself started somehow and those scribbles I had made months back is just what I need to rejuvenate my creative brain cells. Pardon me for the nag (I've a tendency to talk a little about my life) for life has been tough on me. The process of creation has always been a hibernating moment that will set me free from the real world. This has been one of the ways that I can be really be myself without any form of masquerade in order to maintain my inner sanity. So, I shall end my story here and present my completed project...

Presenting... 

A Winter Faeries Fairy Box, showcasing a little magic wonder for this Christmas!

My initial plan was to create some sort of gardening fairy scene but that's back in May; still stuck at the back of my head. Since Christmas is round the corner, I wonder why not doing up some wintry scenes? And yes I should. Since I've been hoarding a bottle of Aleene's True Snow for almost a year, it's time to try and use it. I transformed the filmstrip shadow box into a huge snow box that carries various miniature wintry scenes within the box, with a snowflake balcony on top. 

I planted 2 Christmas trees within the 1st and last box to keep it really simple. Unfortunately, I had quite a hard time trying to capture them within my camera due to the flourishes I placed on the outside. Sometimes the kind of work I do is just not camera friendly and you need to view them using your physical eyes. This is so much I could capture and I hope the pictures are not straining your eyes too much. If your eyes are really sharp enough to penetrate through the pixels of these pictures, you will get to notice some little magic I had added within the wintry scenes. I added some florescent glow-in-the-dark powder onto snow and trees! They do "light" up beautifully at night, subtly I should say.  Again, unfortunately I couldn't capture them 'cos the details are so hard to capture and only human eyes can view them.   

The entire media application, from creating the glittery snowy effect, building the snowflake balcony to building up the wintry scenes within took me close to a week to complete. It's the drying process in between that's taking up a lot of time as I was trying to garner the the kind of winter effect I want before I seal them with iridescent fine glitters. Oh yes! glitters! This was indeed a very glittery project and I used close to 3 different types of glitters throughout.

I decided to exalt one of the fairies to the centre of the box, in front of the frame of which she carries a sign - believe in the magic of Christmas. 

I built a mini glittery snowman and place him onto a pile of snow filled with tiny snowflakes.

And someone left an ice skate there as well...

Lots of snow, glitter and flakes at the back of the snowflake balcony! I'm afraid the picture is not doing much justice - the ultra fine details are just meant for the human eye. I found an ornate rectangle frame which I moulded out from a silicon mould which I was trying to test earlier this year. Oh well, it seems I needed some sort of wordings and I decided to affix some woody letterings onto it to complete the entire project. Finally the magic wonder was done!!!

A little different away from conventional Christmas projects I've done previously, but I do hope this can give a you guys a refreshing idea in how to create a piece as such. Give it a try, you never know Christmas is not more than just snowflakes and fairies!

Here is a list of supplies I have used for this project:

• Gypsy Soul Lasercuts (filmstrip shadow box, small garden fairies, flourishes 2, stackable label set shape) 
• Prima Marketing Art Basics and Ingredients (heavy gesso in white, modeling paste, light paste, soft gloss gel, 3D gloss gel, art sugar in white)
• Tim Holtz (stackable snowflakes die, Christmas word bands, ice skates, woodland mini trees, perfect pearl PPP17714)
• Martha Stewart Mother of Pearl acrylic paint
• Clear Snap Smooch accented ink in silver fox
• Lindy Stamp Gang delphinium turquoise mist
• Melissa Frances Mica Flakes in white
• Aleene's True Snow
• Iridescent ultra fine glitter powder
• Acetate sheet
• Paper clay
• Own stash (various tiny and mini snowflakes, jewels, glitter garland, letterings, paper balls for the snowman, fluorescent glow-in-the-dark powder)

A Harvest Gnome - Give Thanks

It's Thanksgiving today; day of harvest and giving thanks! For this year thanksgiving and just in time for today, I made this very last minute Thanksgiving project - A harvest gnome using wine cock.

Please do not underestimate this little gnome for he knows how to give thanks in every situation. Life might not be as wonderful as we seem to be. For this harvest season, just Give Thanks and life will be grateful...

As little as he looks like, he's just small enough for me to hold him with my hand. He's just a handful big. 

 A stump of his harvest. Happy Thanksgiving!

Fairy Bright Star Ornaments

Christmas is coming!!! Yeah!!! Can't wait for it to come soon!!! Somehow or rather Christmas is a day which I always look forward to. Not 'cos of the year end long holiday that will reach a new year, it's more of a joy that I always embrace. This year has been a little tough on me, the joy of Christmas simply erase all those unhappiness away.

Bygones be bygones. Here I'm sharing a couple of altered star ornaments using Graphic 45 Raining Dogs & Cats and Once Upon A Springtime papers. These ornaments are diecuts from Tim Holtz Star Bright and Stacked Snowflakes dies. 

Who don't love fairies? I do adore them dearly.

Updates and What's Brewing

It has been nearly 6 months past since I updated on my blog here. Alas! Finally despite all the hurdles; trying to strike a balance in my life and finding peace, I managed to set aside some time to login and do some blogging and updates here.

Life has been rather difficult for me especially during the past 6 months where I decided to focus on my health and managing various issues in my life. Working as a part-time service crew selling sandwiches and coffee have certainly molded the way how I look at things, from a very different perspective. Humbly and without any prejudice, I got to appreciate the essence of what it takes to be serious about the job I'm holding onto. Even I'm just there clocking hours to get my hourly pay, inevitably very quickly I was part of the system where everyone is fighting and working so hard to earn a living, making ends meet. I was once highly paid, sitting comfortably in my office flying around the world to get businesses done, and those days where I worked as a waitress to pay off my tuition fee was over and done. Never did I expect nor see myself back to the similar situation again after 2 decades past. Should I lament or feel sad about it? I struggled and faced difficulties to readjust myself to the choice(s) I made. I've yet to throw the towel, since I've been very accepting and humble on the various circumstances I've been put into. For the very least, I'm still getting to enjoy the very fundamental liberty as a human being God has given - the freedom to live. I still have the freedom to make choices in my life.

There's always problems and issues in life that will never go away. It can be very tiring to keep thinking about them, hoping they will either resolve themselves or go away. Too much energy wasted and it can be emotionally draining if I kept focusing on my problems and not doing things I should be doing. Rather, I'd want to take all my problems with a pinch of salt and stay ignorant about it. Sometimes waiting can be one of the best solutions momentarily; impatience kills and make people irrational. However, waiting can be a painful process. In order to maintain my inner sanity and keep my creativity alive, and without any fear, I'm making a comeback, ready to create and share. This seems to be one of the constructive ways to channel my energy to the correct source without feeling so void and dejected about my various circumstances.

As a fresh start, with full of hope and excitement, I'm starting to clear some of my crafty stuffs, gradually organizing my social media, and getting back to some of my WIPs. I have also listed some of my past projects for sales in my Etsy store, in hope to earn some revenue. Do feel free to pop by my store and take a look. Any sales will be a form of encouragement and motivation for me to continue to create and share. To extend my appreciation, I'm offering a 10% discount with a minimum purchase of $20, simply enter "10OFF" during checkout.

This Poo Fairy can be purchased at my Etsy store here.

Taking what the Poo Fairy said, it's time to let go. We all know how it feels to be all bottled up; staying overly constipated is just unhealthy, not to say, on an emotional level. Farting it off, the instant relief of gas out from your bowel will just make you feel great, your tummy will get smaller, and you will also get to feel as if you are a few pounds lighter. Burden's off your tummy!