23 days and minusing

There's lots to clear on the wedding to-do list. It's hectic!
I'm sitting here taking a break from sewing dresses for my bridesmaids.
In my head I still have bow ties to make for the groomsmen and hubby-to-be, buntings to start on, more circles of glitter paper to cut out and stick together, programme notes to design/print and some more errands to run.

DIY weddings are just what they make out to be.. lots of hard work. I'm staying positive about making the deadline!

But thank God for friends and family, who took the time out to help at our craft parties.
What would we do without them? It's all the more special and meaningful now.




This is a sneak preview, a side of our hand-stamped wedding invites. All ready and been put to mail!

Disappearing act

I am sorry I've been MIA on here.

I'm just absolutely swamped!

God has been good to me.

Amazingly good.

I'm thinking of putting my shop on hiatus come mid of next month, so I can actually sit down and be serious about wedding preparation!
Poor Jian, he must think I'm not keen on marrying him.

And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; 
the unclean shall not pass over it. 

It shall belong to those who walk on the way; 
even if they are fools, they shall not go astray. 

No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it; 
they shall not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there. 

And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; 
everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; 
they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Fox Dress

Up on Etsy :)

In sober anticipation

Decided to re-visit a previous design of my fox print. 

You might remember this from months ago:

Prints were too small and way too laborious for orders. Not in my favourite cut either.
So I up-ed the size of my little foxy faces and went with a sky blue fabric, rather than a cobalt for a lighter / breezier feel.

I normally start my designs by coming up with swatches.

If I like what I see, I go on ahead and start cutting up my dress patterns. 

If not, I go back to the drawing board to do more  shaving & fine-tuning to my stamps.

I also pre-wash my fabric, as colours stay on better with that.

Compared to all the other dresses I've made for sale, this one really is labour-intensive. 

Every detail to the fox (it's general face, ears, vest, eyes, nose), is individually hand-printed on.

This is a dress that definitely does not happen with a snap of a finger.

But, hand-printing (though not in a rush of things) can be very enjoyable, and very therapeutic. 

Plus, the end result of your sweatshop labour totally pays off.

Once my prints are finished, I let it air-dry and seal off with a hot iron after.

Now, is the part where I wiggle my fingers in glee:

I turn my canvas into a dress!

Someone once thanked me for making wearable art. That statement to me, is still just - wow. Absolutely floored.
I mostly make my clothes for me. I would never think for anybody else to like them too! 

In appreciation of God, who's put me in this position & thank you everyone for your support. 

It's been quite unbelievable where I am today. 

Fox dress will be up on Etsy once my issue with Paypal resolves ♡

Delay by Design

So I've quit my day job, which finally leaves me time to work on Etsy, wedding plans and an illustration work I still owe.
As if another lesson for me to learn, Paypal doesn't want to cooperate with me.
So I'm finishing up on previous orders, and putting my shop on hiatus till my issue with Paypal resolves.
Thinking of coming up with some new items for the shop maybe in the meantime.

But, all this non 9-5 job time allows me to enjoy the outdoors.
I've also discovered that I really enjoy skateboarding (minus the part where it makes one calf larger than the other).

Saturday was such a gorgeous, relaxing day.

He turns 27

Happy Birthday, Papi <3

Gifts of Lessons

"Do not let your adornment be merely outward - arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel -
rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God" 

 1 Peter 3:3-4

Sk8er Boy

Apologies for the terrible lack of updates. Been so busy with various commitments that it's only today,  I've finally gotten hold of all the orders I was owing.

Hung out with Jian earlier this afternoon. Convinced him to model for me. Turns out, he's so easy/fun to shoot. Plus, it's too cute seeing him skate again.
Singapore made him lose his laid back Aussie-ness. Skating lights some sort of fire in his eyes.

& to add to the list of getting on top of things: Galaxy shirt's now up in the shop! :D

Metagalatica, Void of this Age

Been a pretty hectic month of April. Since picking up a new full-time job, I've never been busier.

Did fall rather ill in the week, dizzy spells and leaky nostrils, but all that's behind me and now I'm better.

Worked on a few more things this week:

Cosmic Space Shoes for women 

Cosmic Space Shoes for men 

In fulfilling the request for more male-oriented products -
We'll be having galaxy shirts now!

Etsy soon.

It's the Dance

An illustration I came up with for my church's chinese kids' camp,  themed "Honour Your Parents".

She has three names

What I love most about churning up these dresses is that, every dress looks absolutely different.

Aside from sizing, it's the same cut & the same concept. The printing process makes each dress completely unique and stand-alone, surprising me each time.

Printing Process

I start off my moustache dress by first cutting out my patterns piece by piece, then overlocking their sides with a serger to prevent them from fraying.

After I've all my pieces ready, I let them sit in a hot tea bath of my kitchen sink for half an hour or so.

Once they turn a beautiful blush, I wring them out and let them dry overnight.

I then press them the next morning.

I generally use our dining table for my printing work as it's the largest table in the house. It is also in the area with most light. I'm looking forward to the day where Jian and I get our own place, and I'll finally be able to set up a workroom of my own. It can get a bit disorientating when I don't have a fixed working space, but I manage.

The mos are printed on with fabric paint, with a little stamp I've made out of linoleum and cork. 

One can honestly make and create many a thing with just a bit of ingenuity.

The printing goes on throughout all my pieces.

Once completed, they go back to the iron to get sealed in after being let air-dried.

Lights, at this stage of the process, normally sits and watch me work.

Then, voila! 

My pieces are now all printed and ready for sewing.

My Cat Colleague

If you were to ask me what's the most difficult thing to deal with working from home, I will swiftly say without a doubt -
My cat colleague.

Lights is a downright meanie when she wants to be.
She's so moody and her behaviour's just unpredictable!
One minute, she's the sweetest most affectionate little thing.
The next, she runs over to you from all the way across the living room, and nips you at your ankle over absolutely nothing!
Everything is one big game with her.

I bring out fabric to work on the floor, 

Lights thinks: TIME FOR SOME TUNNELING!

I bring out my sewers pins

Lights thinks: TREATIES!!

 

I leave my measuring tape on the floor

Lights goes at it viciously like it's a snake

I mean, I'm glad she enjoys being around me when I work, but seriously!

In between having to stop work half-way cutting up my patterns and chasing Lights around with a spray, catching then scruffing & disciplining her,
my cat colleague cuts my work efficiency by half.

Packaging

Finished up an order for a galaxy dress tonight:

Along with a pair of gold multi-faceted earrings:

 

Felt like I haven't put in much effort in my past packages and so, decided to act.

 

I've also churned up some home-made stickers to act as seals:

 

& tomorrow, they all go to post! 

Which, is my favourite bit :) 

It's a strange feeling. My work getting to go to different parts of the world I've never been.

It's almost a moral crime. Sounds silly, but I'm a little bit jealous of these packages for their travels.