Fabric Covered Buttons

Aren't they the sweetest? While I was browsing at Etsy today, I found this wonderful shop that offers fabric covered buttons, and only them, seriously. BlueManatee Button specialized on one thing and one thing only to be craved about. Well, the owner seems to have another shops selling craft supplies, gifts, and even tutorials, but the button shop is one very special dedication, I must say. Just take a peek at these babies, and oh, I love the fairy tale set.

They're not expensive either!! Well, if you're a big cheapskate or have an abundant pile of scrap fabrics lying around, you can always rely on our favorite bloggers for your own DIY fabric covered buttons.

from the always resourceful HowAboutOrange.

from the entertaining crafter, Lollychops.

from (hey, have you checked out her hand carved stamps?) CraftPudding.

Happy button covering.

Room I am currently obsessed about.

If you thought it was Cath Kidston's wallpapers, guess again, because it's PiP Studio's, an Amsterdam based home products store. I spent my whole day browsing their beautiful site.

I thank ishandchi big time for showing me Helena's girls' rooms.

I wish I were Helena's girl.

Hello, Blogosphere!

Seriously, why does baby has to be sick on national holidays? The reason of my prolonged absent was of course, Baby G needed my full attention again, she had diarrhea, lost of appetite, and fever. I felt extremely worried and exhausted at the same time. I am currently suffering a flu. sigh. so...

What national holiday, you asked? It's Ied 'ul Fitr day!! I'm not a moslem so I can't give you any trustworthy information about the origin of the celebration but I'm sure Wiki can. :) It's huge in Indonesia (where the majority of the people are moslems), almost like Christmas and Thanksgiving rolled into one.

I don't know much about the philosophy, but like all non-Christians living in US and other Chrsitian inhabited countries, I do know a lot about the culture and the festivities. You can't
ignore all those gorgeous Christmas decorations and songs and foods, can you? Same here, I'm carried away too. Basically it's about the joy of loving and forgiving. So people, after the annually fasting duty (yes, they do fast the whole month before!!) naturally reunite with their families and loved ones, asking for forgiveness and forgive those who may have hurt them all year round. But none was done without good food, merry singing, and gifts. Sound familiar? We're not that different at all, aren't we? :)

Yes, that Ied card is free to download and print, give it to someone you know celebrating (although a little bit late). I just think that veiled moslem girls look a lot like matryoshkas.

My first Wordless Wednesday

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Ok. I can't help it. It's officially not wordless. I try to keep up with the blog trend but I think I failed. It's Baby G, with a headband, in case you were wondering. Shhheeesh, now can this post go back to wordless again?

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All About Rice Babbies.

No, I'm not encouraging you to be a cannibal eating rice with babies (uugh) nor I'll be talking about farming, because I believe that's not my expertise either. But I do enjoy rice in my every meal as much as I enjoy ...dolls! Yep, that's what I'm talking about. Rice Babies is a name of a blog and an etsy shop of Kellie, an art teacher by day, doll maker by night, and a 24/7 mom of two boys. What? Do the boys play with pretty dolls? Relax, ladies, she has a lot of nieces and other customers, so her boys are doing just fine with dinasours and superheroes.

Kellie started out the business by, being an art teacher, she saw plenty of blond hair with blue eyes images coming up now and then from the hands of litte girls who don't possess those quality. (As a matter of fact, my mother in law just bought Baby G a doll that looks like Sherly Temple, and I let her play with it, so this issue knows no boundaries! I even experienced this!) Kellie then determines to have all girls growing up seeing more of themselves, so she started to make custom dolls under the name of Rice Babies. She's so nice to let me bother her with (silly) questions, so I'll let you know her and Rice Babies better. Here go..

If you have to choose (say, I put a really sharp knife on your most expensive fabric), which one will it be, being a full time mom, a doll-maker or a teacher?
I would have to choose being a full time mom over anything, because with my kids I am actually all three mom, teacher and they help me stay creative. My kids inspire me to create and also to be the best me I can be everyday.


What is the best part of being a mom-trepreneur?
The best part of having your own business is having creative control and also flexible working hours.

What's the most challenging thing you have to face in this business?
The most challenging obstacle I face, is the same reason I made my dolls, there weren't enough choices for Asian dolls. My market is small and so it can be hard to reach people looking for what I offer. I have made dolls for halfies and a few other non Asian dolls, and its always fun, but I would like people to know my dark haired beauties are out there.

How do you juggle your time and thoughts between your princes and doll-making?
I juggle everything by putting my kids first, when they are happy and healthy, I have more time to create. I daydream and sketch ALL the time. I sew and design as I lay in bed at night, if I need to I get up and make it when all are asleep. Like most moms, I am a so called "mid night crafter", when the kids are asleep, I get to sew, and design.

As a child, what doll do you spend a lot of time with?
As a child, I had a prized doll, a My Friend Mandy, I recently saw one one the Wee Wonderfuls site.


What's the most funny/embarrassing moment as an art teacher?
One of the funniest moments as an art teacher was a day when I was teaching my students to make dino bones out of clay. It was close to end of school so all the kids were excited and talking a lot. I told them to raise their hands but I wouldn't answer any question until after the demo. I answered the question of a boy who had his hand up for the longest. He said, "how come sometimes when you talk , you sound like a cowgirl?" I laughed, and replied , "because I am originally from Texas".

What's the best reaction you have ever received from satisfied customer?
So far I have been touched by all my reactions, but a comment one lady made, was the point where I decided that however slowly, people will find my dolls when they need them. She said "I would have loved to have had a doll I could play with that looked like me as a child. Not dressed in a kimono or cheongsam, either, just a little girl doll wearing every day clothes that happened to be Asian or half Asian like me."
It was an awesome feeling.

I agree with the cheongsam thing, it's a really big misunderstanding, really. So, thank you Kellie for your time and passion!! I hope more Rice Babies are in the hands of tiny little girls of any races anywhere in the world. Want on yourself? Your welcome to take a look around the shop!

drip. drop.

April has long gone, but there's always an excuse to get lost in the melancholy of rain. You can always tell that I'm a big sucker for rain (no, not the Korean artist, the water-y thing falls from the sky, he's fine, but..oh well, you know what I mean). Yes, you can tell I'm a fan from the blog header, even if you're a reader from the very first babalisme's post, here's my header back then..

Rainy, eh? So, if you're in the mood of some shower, I just found this great site with a huge dedication to melody, Lullatone . Shawn, the owner, is a very nice young man (now I sound like an old granny) and he has this very cute little baby, Niko! You should drop by sometimes. Also recommended is Lullatone's raindrop melody maker game, trust me, you wouldn't stop!! I think it's a good game to play on rainy day (or not) with the kids too! I play and listen to this all day.

here.

Am I not getting you in the mood enough? Well, let's feast ourselves into these raindrop beauties.. and a little shopping of rain related stuffs doesn't hurt either!

mobile rain in various colors by leptitpapillon
raincloud print by GollyBard

how cute is this little raindrop felt from CocolocosFeltDesign?

Raindrop girl, anyone? What a doll! by thepoppytree

Phew.

I'm so much exhausted (and excited as well) after Baby G's birthday party I caught a flu, yes, now I'm a TB positive mom who also have a flu. Great. I wear mask everyday worrying if I can pass those horrible things to Baby G. So, I'm still processing photos of the party, you guys might want to be patient for a while.

And I just came to realize that, Baby G's, technically, graduated to toddler stage!! Yaaay!
She has taken her first steps, been toilet trained (poo only, pee still misses occasionally), and babbled her first words (bab-bab for balloons and mamam for makan, Indonesian for "eat"), but I must admit there are some things I miss from her baby stage. That's life, afterall.

Being a mom, successfully (hey, at least she grows taller!) over the baby phase, I'd like to conclude 5 things I love the most from little babies;

1. Their smiles, and the fact that it takes an effort to make them smile, it just make the smiles much much more precious.
2. Their smell. Have you ever wonder, even if you use the same baby products on toddlers and older children, they don't smell the same way again. mm...
   
3. Their dependencies to you. Someone's life solely depends on you and you only, at least for the first months. I never feel this much important in my life.
4. Their faces. I'm not against adoption, it's a very important option to save many children's lives, but nothing beats a resemblance. You look at a face and how much it looks like you and/or your spouse. It's so magical!
5. Their chubby arms and legs and tiny little fingers.
   

If you have one or two, or even three, you'll know what I am talking about. If you haven't got any, please consider having one after reading this. :)

Baby G's Invitation sent out!

Finally!


The material used are heavy stock paper to print the invitation, double sided, and pink colored tissue paper for the envelope. I'm not very good in writing a process, so I hope you'll get the equation helpful.


This is what I made with the tissue paper leftover. Full tutorial here. The party itself will be held on Sunday, so I'll be back with more photos. Busy, busy, busy.

PS. My brother has just welcomed the newest member of the family, exactly 1 year apart from Baby G. I am so full of joy!

Woodland Embroidery!

Finally created! Let's stand up for Amy!! Dearest Amy has embroidered the pattern (remember it? My first embroidery pattern!) for her Granny (God bless you, Amy! ..and Amy's Granny, you are so lucky to have her as a granddaughter!).


Amy's work is obviously not a work of a beginner, no? I am really honored that she chose my pattern for her skill, she's great!! And look at that tiny leaves on the tree!! Such detail! I wouldn't have done that even if I can embroider. So, do any of you have been inspired lately? Send your creations to me, it will make my day and suddenly there will be rainbows on my backyard! Seriously!

Thanks again, Amy!

Flashback and a little chat.

Let's see, today I, myself, went to the doctor, I have this cough that has stayed for as long as I can remember (I am exaggerating it, I think it's 1 or 2 months). I thought it was nothing serious, I never smoke and I live in a smoke-free house, I can exercise, eat, and sleep well, I can still regularly do daily activity, well, I just cough a little. But there's something about airline regulation of putting on an oxygen mask for yourself first before helping your accompanying children, isn't it? I want to be healthy, for my sake and Baby G's sake. So I went. And he diagnosed .. (probably) TB, tuberculosis.

.. isn't it like, the plague that could kill hundred or thousand people and children in 18 or 19 something? I was mortified! I was never expected something so serious! The doctor said I have it from someone else, might be anywhere, in the park, at the mall, anywhere. I will know my lab result tomorrow, so I really am praying it's not that serious.

Speaking of illness, I have some pictures the moment right before Baby G was sick. After she was sick, I had no urge to take any photograph at all. She was all laugh and play, and.. I remember what my mom used to say, "Illness (in babies and children) strikes like a lightning and goes away like a snail". I think it's some Chinese proverb, but it's true. She was a little miss sunshine one morning and later on the afternoon she couldn't barely open her eyes! Sigh... anyway, yep, she started to walk and yep, it's her father a.k.a the hubby.

The lotus got nothing to do with the story, but it's so pretty I have to share it.

OK, don't be blue by all this illness chitchat. I have saved the great news for last. I won a chickdowntown giveaway a few weeks ago, and it just arrived. It was a very very "it" acid wash jeans, I am keeping it for my (more fashionable and has better gene) sister. My post baby bod won't allow me in something very "it", darling. So, if you're into fashion or like me, a fashion fool, but really enjoys staring at fashion pictures, head on to chickdowntown. Great service indeed, and they're having a free shipping promo (and yes, they do ship your item in that sophisticated white box with black satin bow!). Chin up, ladies, this is good news! Happy Tuesday!

Where am I?

Well, here I am, I'm not going anywhere at the moment. Why the sudden disappearance? You know the notorious swine flu? Well, Baby G suffered another mutation of the flu and has just recovered today. It was her first serious illness and yes, I was very very worried and stood by her 24 hours a day, even when she slept, I kept my eyes wide open. So, I'm sorry if I had not been available in the blogging world, I hope I were missed (hey, did you miss me??) but now I'm back, hopefully, to my regular routine.

Having known how hard it is to persuade a child drinking her medicine, I make this treat (or bribery?) coupons for moms to use. I think it might work for older children, but of course you can always give this on every occasion. Winning a match, do chores, birthday, or just simply being cute. For those who thinks ice cream and toys are the worst treat for children, the two other coupons are left blank for you to write anything.

download.

Enjoy your weekend.

Baby G's Birthday Inspiration..

..still, with no luck on finding a theme, I know ideas can be abstract, but this is too much. I have an array of beautiful things across the net to keep me inspired, I just need to sum them all into a word/sentence! What would these be??

blossomhillcottons' Flickr.

allsorts' woof woof pupkin.

JennyLees' Flickr

simplythisthatandtheother's strawberry shortcake cake.

And as tempting as it is, please don't say a strawberry shortcake theme, because I don't want everyone to think of that freckled red haired girl with big hat, she's adorable, but no, I'm not into character party at this point, Baby G is too small to relate to that.

Tagged!

This is my first time getting tagged, so it was kind of amusing and exciting, really, because I don't know if I get this right, so..um.. I was tagged by Rheaa from by_Rheea (hehehe, pun really intended!) So here are the rules :

1. Link back to the person who tagged you.
2. List six little things that make you happy.
3. Tag six bloggers and let them know they’re “it”.

Yep, I have done the first rule, so I'm going to make a list. Happy, huh? mm..but I like to make some note, that on this list I try to exclude my family and friends, because obviously they make me happy and is the very foundation of my whole being.. so mom and hubby (and Baby G too, someday), if you read this and you're not on the list, doesn't mean that you don't make me happy..OK, now to the list..

Bittersweet comedy. I laugh at certain and particular kind of comedy, of course pranks, racial and dirty jokes, and the slapstick ones are excluded. That's why I never seem to like the character Ashton Kutcher try to portray on Punk'ed, or is it the real him, either way I never like it. Btw, the picture is of Flight of the Conchords.

Dreamy spaces. swoon, no explanation needed. From JoieDeVivre via SweetiePiePumpkin.

Disneyland, I have this little kid inside of me that never grows up.

Nice people, random kindness, and the whole things of being nice. Just nice. I received a lot of sympathetic emails and comments when Bronnie died, and most of them comforted me like they knew me, in fact I live miles apart and a total stranger, but it doesn't stop them from being nice. Thank you everyone, your every bit of words made my day brighter than ever.

Design things and stuff. Aren't they the prettiest? candle holders courtesy of bonboog.

Handmade things, crafting, and all those stuff. You know it. The picture is of Renegade Handmade store, yep, opened based on the craft fair with the same name at Chicago, you can always visit its online counter part if you reside outside Chicago.

Is it 6 already? Aaaww... I wish I had more things to list!! Shut up, big baby, now unto the next task, tag away 6 people!! Ha, I love this. OK.. OK.. Carrie, Natsumi, Diana, Joelyne, Anna, and Tuppence!! They are 6 different ladies with different field of expertises, so I guess it must be fun to find out what makes them smile.

Today's to do list..

• pancakes for breakfast .. done. I'm too lazy to mix my own dough, I bought "the box"
• baby food for Baby G..done, but she didn't like the Gouda cheese I added in, so we hit "the jar"
• daily design works.. horoscope/zodiac illustrations, quite exhausting to figure out 12 different poses..
• play with Baby G
• another baby food for G, skip the Gouda add the usual cheddar
• snack for Baby G
• put her to an afternoon nap
• back to work
• write a blog..hey, I'm doing this! Consider this done!
• go out for dinner ..my husband is planning this, I think we'll hit another jar for G.
• put Baby G to sleep

Well, ... I wish I could put on one of these on my today's to-do list, but...sigh, OK, I hate to explain my incapability, but of course, I always love to share things!! Here are some of the best paper craft tutorials I'm dying to try.

remember this? the awesome Tuppence has written a tutorial for the cute bag.

design*sponge's paper scarp craft will make you think twice to discard any gift wrapping leftovers.

...and so is spotted sparrow's paper bow tutorial.

Simply delight the little ones with this paper magic trick from anise mouette.

Sprinkle some..

...Momfetti!! Such cute name for a blog, no (confetti, get it?)? And her real name is a real blast, Tuppence!! How dear is that? I wish I were named Tuppence now! sigh. OK, back on the real post topic, dear Tuppence has made a wonderful creation with my deerio-shroomio pattern (remember it?). It's a snickerdoodles-sized take-home bag (wow, that's a mouthful, try to say it 5 times, fast!). Look how cute it is.

And that's not all, I'm really glad she emailed me, otherwise I wouldn't find her precious wonderful blog filled with sewing and craft tutorials, pretty daily photographs of her family (and her neurotic cat), and much more! But I do wish she will post the tutorial of deerio bag up there for everyone to follow, *wink*.. Not the seamstress/crafter type but you crave for her sewn goodness? Yep, she has an Etsy shop, ooh, thank God for Etsy.

As if that's not great enough, she's having a giveaway right now until 11th of August (eep, quickly now)! Yes, Giveaway! Go on, win a diaper clutch (non-mommies can keep it until they need it or just simply give them to any moms you know) and tell her I sent you, that increase the chance of winning....er, kidding, just say hi for me, will you?