Daiso, the Japanese haven

I love Daiso.

I have found cute deco tapes, porcelains, zakka fabrics and even those rare make-your-own-fabric-buttons there. The layout of the store, however, is not the best. Items tend to spill out from cardboard boxes, and porcelain plates and bowls tether treacherously from weak-looking shelves. And there are A4 posters plastered all over the entrance, displaying faces of shoplifters. Obviously, the interior is hardly as cute as they items that they carry.

Items are a little pricey as well. And lately, the store increased the prices, which was hugely disappointing to my Daiso-loving friends and I. So I browse, but I hardly make a purchase. =D

But today! Well, today was different! A purchase, or rather, 3 purchases had to be made!

Some yummy-looking felt. Love the colours. But I was pretty disappointed as pink was no where to be found. The lovely girl behind the counter saw how much I wanted pink (well, I was pretty crestfallen =D ). So she spent some time checking the inventory shipment details on a rather slow computer, and informed me that new shipment will be coming in mid-May! Eeeeekkk! Pink polka dot felt, here I come!

And on the very same day, with polka dots swirling in my mind, I got red Twinkle Toe sockettes with black polka dots. Actually, I got 3 pairs: One for me, one for my sister (which one of the two sisters, one may ask. Well, they may argue amongst themselves to get that pair) and one for a lovely friend...

Note: If you think there is something rather strange with my right foot, well, you are right! I hurt my foot sometime ago, and it's always swollen, with a capital S.

Piecushion

This is a pincushion which I made earlier this year.

It's simply a ball sitting on a Richard Gordon porcelain pie dish. The dish was found at a thrift store a year ago. It was in pristine condition, and I fell in love with the pastel green colour (my favourite colour by the way!). It's stamped "Cutie Pie" at the bottom. A cute play on words!

I thought the fabric choice was most appropriate! The wonderful combination of colours makes me happy =).

Mushies!

So I admit that I have a strange obsession with mushrooms! As long as they are cute and yummy-looking, my heart will melt.

This one is made of felt, and took quite some time (in the early hours of the morning) to complete.

It is capable of being loved and hung! =D Its tushi has a heart-shape red felt sticking on it. Hehe.

I have yet to name this little mushie. No definite name right now, but somehow "Bubblehead" keeps popping up in my own head!

And this is a better photo of my tiny matryoshka, Parsley!

Completed using the sewing machine (I am proud of myself for working it out! =P), and its face is handsewn.

They are not perfect, but I love how adorable they look to me!

I am quite easily pleased =)

Parsley the Paisley

It has been incredibly frustrating not being able to upload photos into the computer. I am still waiting for the USB cable to arrive from overseas. And just today, I finally decided to turn to my mobile and its camera.

I used the 'solarize' function to cover up the poor quality of the 'ordinary' setting.

Well, well, well!
It didn't turn out too bad! =)
My beloved matryoshka plushie. It's the creation of a rough sketch and an intense love for matryoshkas!

I am so in love with its blushing cheeks.

If I had to name her, it would be "Parsley". Just because it is made from paisley fabric, which well, sounds like parsley =P.

Far Far Away, At a Distant Land

... There Are Beautiful Fabrics to Be Explored, Seen and Loved...

I have always adored Heather Ross' fabrics.
I think they are simple, but always so adorable! How can something so ordinary like a bicycle or a caravan make me smile?

The key is being adorable!

The gnomes are making my heart melt!

Mind you, I have none of her fabrics. I have toyed with the idea of getting a credit card or Paypal to source for fabrics overseas. But at the moment, being a student presents a slight problem with that...

And now, her newest design is out, and hitting U.S. Etsy stores.
And being sold like hot cakes.
And I continue to admire at a distance, far far away...
Quite a distance I should say, considering that I live all the way on the other side of the world, Far Far Away!
So don't mind me while I sit in front of the computer monitor, salivating all over the keyboard. The computer hardware is probably going to shoot some sparks soon. =D

Back in Aucky

It is so good to have my own computer back in place, and where it belongs - in MY apartment!
The past two weeks have been such a mess, with me bunking in lovely friends' homes, texting/e-mailing/ringing up property agents. I now deduce that the latter are all tortoises, except for one! Whom, by the way, the one who helped me secure this new apartment.

Property hunting was such a stressful process. In choosing my apartment, I had to take many factors to take into account - the cost of rental, how far the apartment is away from the university, how safe the location is, how far it is away from the single supermarket in the city (walking with 2 cartons of soymilk, 3 kiwifruits and some meat is horrendous in hilly Auckland!), etc. etc.
And finally, I got It.
It - My new apartment.
Double the size of the previous apartment, with some basic furnishings, rent inclusive of hot water - And still cheaper than the previous apartment. This is a gem found after countless of property viewings, phone calls and bad-naming property agents!

The unpacking began on Saturday. And on the very same day, I realised that I left my camera USB cable in KL! Oh no! Hunting on the streets of Auckland for that single cable was simply useless. A salesperson thought the only way to get a replacement cable is to contact Panasonic directly! Oh, the cost!
So now I am currently awaiting for my dad to post the cable here ASAP! It feels so strange not to post pictures online. =(