Top Secret Project #1

Well, hello! The last few weeks have been a little bit nuts. There's just been way too much ... life ... going on to be doing much crafting. But it's mostly been the good sort of life, so I can't complain too much.

Here, finally, is the reveal of Top Secret Project #1:

Yup, it's a ring cushion! Yup, I got married! Surprise!

It was a very small and no-fuss wedding with very few of the normal accoutrements, but for some unfathomable reason, I became fixated on having a ring cushion. And on making it myself. And on incorporating all of my favourite crafts into it. I had very little time, though!

I mulled over a few different designs in my head before making a crocheted backing (which I showed off a few posts ago). I wanted an embroidery on the front, but didn't have time to execute it, so Boy** suggested that I buy a vintage piece. The doiley I bought had a lovely piece in the corner, but when I cut it out, it didn't fit in well with the crochet piece I'd already made. I fixed that though, by sewing it to a brown fabric backing and edging the border with some lovely lace. I added some beads and flower bits from my stash, and some ribbons to tie the rings on to. (A blue one for Boy and a pink one for me, of course!) Lastly I stuffed it lightly and hand-sewed the crochet square to the back.

So there it is.
I had thought of re-purposing it as a pin cushion after the wedding, but I did notice that the vintage fabric really showed up pinholes from when I pinned it together to sew it. So perhaps that's not such a good idea after all. I'll see what I can do.

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** Or should that be Husband now, instead of Boy??

Review of Yves St Laurent Teint Parfeit Complexion Enhancer

I wrote this review a while back and submitted it to a reviewing site, but I never heard back from them. I hate to waste a piece of writing, so I thought I'd post it here instead.

The Yves St Laurent
Teint Parfait Complexion Enhancer

ABOUT MY SKIN:
skin tone: very fair
issues: combination T-zone; occasional pimples; redness; dark circles

TEXTURE & SMELL: The Complexion Enhancer has a creamy consistency, which is easy to spread with either fingers or a sponge, etc. It isn't too thick or too runny. There is a very faint powdery, 'makeup-y' smell which I thought was pleasant.

COVERAGE & APPEARANCE: This product is advertised as an enhancer and bronzer rather than a foundation, so it doesn't cover up blemishes, but I wasn't expecting it to, so I'm happy with it.
The shade I have is No. 3 Champagne, which is a little dark for my skin, but I only apply a small amount and it looks fine. The cream itself sinks right into my skin, leaving bronzey-coloured sparkles. On my fair skin, it gives a 'sun-kissed' look. It doesn't conceal my dark eye circles completely, but the sparkles reflect light, which reduces their appearance. The enhancer comes in at least 8 shades, so there is one suitable for every skin tone.
I would not use this as a makeup base as the advertising suggests, as the sparkles sit on the skin and this would just knock them off. I found the enhancer stayed throughout most of the day. Re-application was only necessary after I added another product such as re-applying my sunscreen.

OIL CONTROL: I have fairly oily skin, and have never had any breakouts or other problems with this product. As the enhancer is quite creamy in texture, I think it would be suitable for dry skin, too.

VALUE: I was given this by a friend who received it as a free sample. (Hence why I ended up with a shade that was a bit dark for my skin tone.) On Strawberry Net it retails for $42.50 for the 30ml tube, which is more than I'd normally pay for an enhancer. However, the tube has lasted me well over a year, so I think it's good value for money.

CONCLUSION: I used this product nearly every day and was very happy with the result. It was great for an everyday enhancer when I wanted a quick, no-fuss makeup routine, and for special occasions I just added a little more. I would definitely spend the extra money to buy it again.

January 2012

THEMES FOR 2012
CREATE....................MEDITATE....................MOVE....................MAINTAIN

As I mentioned in my last post, I'm reviving the concept of yearly themes. I'm resetting it. Re-doing it. Renewing it. Some people choose a single theme word for the year. For me, that's too restrictive. Others choose a set of goals to work towards. Also too restrictive - my attention wanders a lot, and I have no idea if I'll still be interested in achieving those goals in 12 months, or even 3 months. So I compromise - I choose 4 words/themes, but leave up to interpretation exactly how I live up to those.

This year is mostly similar to last year. I've made two changes. I changed 'de-clutter' to 'maintain'. Moving house last January forced me into a radical purge, so I feel this goal is mostly taken care of. This new word ... maintain ... could mean so many things (and that's just the way I like it!). Maintain a de-cluttered state, maintain a clean home, build on things I've already achieved in all areas of life. Don't lose sight of what's really important.
The other change was one of terminology. I was hesitating because I had a problem with the word 'Actions'. It sounded too cold and business-like. So I'm changing it to 'Things I'd Like To Do' or just 'Things'.

I also learned a couple of points about formulating the Things from last year's experience:

1. Don't pile on too much stuff. I only had 4 themes, but I had at least 5-6 actions to achieve each month. That's fine if some of them take 10 minutes, but if I start to feel overwhelmed, then I'll procrastinate and it won't happen. Life can and will get in the way - sickness, seasonal busyness, etc. Less is better than more. I can always add on bonus actions later.
2. Think ahead. There's no point planning a heavy exercise schedule in a month that's normally scorching hot, or going on a picnic in the middle of winter.
3. Well, this isn't really something I just learned, but it's good to remember - formulating SMART goals. So many new year's resolutions I see are too vague and therefore doomed to failure. For example: 'go to the gym more'. 'be nicer to other people.'
This post has some good advice for formulating better new year's resolutions. (No longer available.)

On to the Things for January:

* Finish both Top Secret projects. (CREATE)
* Make list of potential baby projects. (CREATE)
* Continue to meditate every day. Try 1 new recording every week. (MEDITATE)
* Play Zumba or Dance Kinect game twice a week. (MOVE)
* Find previously cancelled projects and throw away/recycle them. (MAINTAIN)
* Make a list of non-keep books to read. Start reading one. (MAINTAIN)

2011 In Review

I try not to apologise when I've been absent for my blog for too long. I don't want to be That Blogger. (How long is too long, anyways?)

Nevertheless, 2011 was a crazy rollercoaster of a year. At the start of the year, I had a feeling that many things would change. And I was right.
I moved house (not by choice).
I started a second blog, making public my health and fitness journey. I'm a very private person, so this was a big step for me.
For 4 months, I 'lost' Boy. (He had a job where he worked night shifts and we only saw each other for about 1/2 hour a day. Thank goodness he quit!)
I lost a grandparent for the first time. He was the first person I've known well who has died. My family and I were actually there when he passed away. That changes a person. I'm still working out how it changed me.

I lost my craft mojo completely during this time. No craft = no blog content!

And now it's 2012. Looking back at this time last year, I was excited and optimistic about my Actions system for achieving my goals for the year. Sure, things like moving house got in the way, but I was doing really well up until April - when my Opa was diagnosed. After that, I didn't feel like doing anything. But I'm hesitant to chuck the system completely, just because the rollercoaster threw me about too much the first time I tried it. Most of what I want to do is the same - be creative, get healthier and less stressed, keep being my real self.

So I'm going to give the system another go. Look out for a post in the next few days!

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2011 Statistics [2010 statistic in brackets]
Books finished: 70 (76)
Items sold Etsy: 3 (32)
Items sold Artfire: 1 (2)
Opportunities: 0 (1)
Opportunities followed through: n/a (0)
Blog posts: 51 (82)
Craft items started: ~11 (23)
Craft items finished: ~8 (14)
Zines written: 0 (½)
Art journal pages completed: ? (3)
New techniques learned: 1 (3)

Notes: I closed my Etsy shop during the year due to lack of sales, and my Artfire one was forcibly closed when the free account was withdrawn.
It's hard to tell when an art journal page is 'finished'. Many would argue there's no such thing! I did very little work on my journal during the year, so I'm going to assume zero.
The new technique I learned was Gingham Embroidery.

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As for the craft, I'm working on two projects at the moment, and they're both Top Secret! One, I can't tell you about for a while yet. But the other, I can show you a picture, I just can't tell you what it's for yet. Here it is:

Oooh, the mystery!
I'll end with something I posted last year, but I still like it:


Trust the Universe. It will bring you what you need.

The Month of November

Normally I try to post at least once a week, if not with updates, but at least a little interesting tidbit. The number of times I've wanted to post about my crafty progress, but didn't due to lack of photos, I can't tell you! Even in the middle of summer when I get home from work, I have a window of about half an hour to take photos in good light, slightly longer if I take them in the toilet. And who wants to do that?! (It must be something about the frosted glass that diffuses the light evenly??) Guess which of the following photos was taken in the loo? So now that confession time is over, a very short summary of my activities over the last month:

Boy had a birthday with a '0' in it at the end of October, and his fondest wish was for a Doughnut Cake, so I made him one:

No-one can say I don't look after my man!





I didn't do much for Dias de los Muertos this year, except for the one most important thing. My Opa (grandfather) was diagnosed with lung cancer in April this year, and passed away in July. I dedicated an altar to him. I decorated it with some of his favourite foods, and bought him a tie because he liked to dress nicely.

This year has been such a strange year. My Opa is the first person I've known well who has died. I'm 35 years old. I have a feeling it's quite rare to be so old when that happens to a person for the first time. I've noticed some changes in myself since he passed. Perhaps I'll talk about it a little sometime soon.



I mentioned in my last post my latest obsession - gingham embroidery! My first project is nearly finished already. It's a small table mat:

I scrounged through my fabric stash and I only had one small piece of gingham! How could this be?? But it was enough to make a small project to start off with. I wanted to lay out the design beforehand, but where to get a template from? I had a brainwave and printed out some downloadable gingham scrapbooking paper from the pastels section of this site here. I printed it out in black-and-white. I had to enlarge it by 200% so I didn't go cross-eyed, but then it was perfect. Most gingham embroidery uses white thread as the main colour, sometimes with a contrast colour as well. I chose orange. I designed it during my lunch break at work. I decided to use the full thickness of the 6-strand embroidery thread, because the squares of the gingham are so large (either 8mm or 10mm, I believe). Using the full thickness means that much more thread is used up in one go. I was worried at one point that I'd run out of thread, but I think I'll be OK. I've worked on it like an embroidery-crazy woman so far, and I'm nearly finished already! Then all I will have to do is sew on a calico backing and it'll be done. I already know where I want to put it.

And never fear, I've ordered some more gingham in 3 different colours from ebay for future projects. I'm starting to think I'll need more white thread, too. Lots more!

BB Creams: What Are They?

I'm obsessed with beauty products at the moment! I've started to draw up an inventory of all my bath and beauty products, and it's taking a while! I've had to look, not only in the shower and bathroom cabinet, but in my cupboards, at my computer desk, at work, through all my handbags, etc! I'm getting there though. So far the big trend I'm seeing is with bath products. I'll buy them on a semi-regular basis, but last winter I used hardly any up. In the new apartment, there is a bath, but it's set up a bit differently to the old one, and I just don't find having a bath to be as relaxing as it used to be. So I've more been having a shower at night instead of a bath. However, that does mean I can use lots of lovely-smelling shower gel, so can't complain there. But I don't know what I'm going to do with all my bath bombs!!

I mentioned BB Creams last week and, yes, the obsession continues. After trawling through various reviews, I decided to hedge my bets and order a gift set of 4 mini size creams from Baviphat, a South Korean brand. I can't wait til they arrive! (Also got some essentials - face wash and nail polish topcoat - well, essentials for a girly, anyway!)

The world of BB Creams is a complex and (for a noob like me) confusing one. But it's also an exciting one. As far as I can tell, to qualify as a BB Cream (BB stands for Blemish Balm), it just needs to be a face cream that does more than one thing in one cream. For years I've been thinking, how annoying to have to apply moisturiser in the morning, and then sunscreen, and then foundation and whatever else you want to put on. Why can't they come all in one? I was so thrilled when I found a tinted sunscreen a few months ago, it was bordering on silly!

BB Creams are doing all that and more, and they've been doing it for a while. Most of them are formulated for oily skin and are tinted to hide pimples (as the name Blemish Balm implies). They can also have any combination of sunscreen, anti-ageing, whitening, brightening, moisturising, soothing, and others I can't think of off the top of my head at the moment. They have various textures, levels of coverage and colours of tinting. Just like any other beauty product, they can have various ingredients, from mushroom and peach through to caviar and gold dust!

How confusing!

Though, when I think about it, my sunscreen could be considered a BB Cream, I mean really. As well as being sunscreeen, it's tinted and has anti-ageing AHAs in it. I'll just get my label-maker and turn it into a BB Cream myself!

Why this sudden obsession with beauty products? I don't know. I've always liked bath and skincare products. I've liked makeup on and off over the years. I went from flat-out refusing to wear any as a teenager, to not being able to leave the house without mascara on a few years ago. For a few months at the start of this year, I had a problem with chronic eye watering which meant I couldn't wear any eye makeup at all for 2 months. It was insanely frustrating at first, but I got used to it. Now I'm a bit more relaxed about wearing makeup.

I started reading a new fashion blog recently; she has a lot of reviews on Asian beauty products and BB Creams. In one post, another blogger interviewed her - in answer to the question: "why do you wear makeup?" her reply was short and simple: "to hide".

How sad is that? She's a beautiful girl with a sought-after figure. And that's what she thinks of herself. It just goes to show. I had a think about it, and I realised that I'm the opposite. When I'm feeling bad about myself, I don't wear any makeup, or I wear less. I want to sink into the background, not draw any attention to myself. When I'm feeling good, I want to enhance the way I look. So I'm chalking this whole beauty product obsession up in the 'good things' category!

Here's a picture of my BB Creams; come to me quick!

{Ditzy Tuesday} Embroidery

I have a sudden and all-consuming obsession with Gingham Embroidery, also known as Depression Lace or Chicken Scratch. (More about it and why it's called that here.)

1. Chicken Scratch blue on white, 2. Chicken Scratch tan and brown,
3. Chicken Scratch red and white, 4. Chicken Scratch black and white (Link not available.)


It all started on Sunday afternoon, when I was at Boy's parents house and happened to glance over at their side table and see an embroidered mat. Suddenly a flood of creative juices left me in a daze, and since then the ideas have been flowing non-stop. I love it because it's retro and whimsical, but the grid gives it a base of order and stability. Co-ordinating the threads with the colour of the fabric is fun. Not to mention that you can embroider directly onto the fabric without having to transfer the pattern first, which I always find highly annoying. It's put me off embroidery in the past.

I only found a small piece of yellow gingham in my fabric stash, but it was enough to plan a small rectangular doiley. I drew up the design earlier today, and I'm looking forward to starting it when I get home from work tonight. I haven't been so obsessed about anything for a while. It feels good!