Q's So Cute It Hurts

Cookies, cookies, cookies

This is the sweetest season of the year, making your list ~ filling it up with holiday gifts ideas, packaging ideas and decorations ideas.

 

Handmade gifts are the best kind, particularly when they're edible and prettily packaged. This year, if time permits i would love to make holiday cookies as gifts and hope that they turn out as pretty as they are delicious. And although i am not a good baker, i do want to try something new ~ baking cookies and pretty them up with lovely packages, and offering them to family and friends. I think baking cookies is much more than a small gesture ~ it's a personal one, showing the best sentiments of the season.

 

I treated myself to a gift in the form of a cute holiday cookie cutter set from Wilton. I love the size of these cutters ~ really mini ones. I can't seem to stop looking at them. It makes me happy. I think im gonna try to keep my cookie recipe really simple. I'd love it if you'd share your most favorite cookie recipe.

 

Who can resist an attractive assortment of freshly baked holiday cookies? Set some out with a tall glass of cold milk, and tempt Santa. teehee  Wishing you a merry happy relaxing weekend. Good times and happy friday! Love to you and yours. 

Bias toward the Pretty

 
I hope your weekend was lovely. I mostly just stayed in as i have nowhere to be ~ sometimes im grateful to have times like this during the weekend. I worked on the beginning of a very lovely new project; i am calling it "So Cute It Hurts" embroidery tale clutches. A new project specially designs for a shop update in the coming New Year. More of it later as i progress deeper into this project ~ this is and will be an interesting creative pursuit for me during this holiday season.

 
I've been exploring with different ways of creations and trying to expand my creativity with different styles in sewing. Through this learning process, i've realized that sewing in itself has many areas of life to it. There are many different ways of creations to one particular something and sometimes it helps to have a few reliable shortcuts ~ bias tape is among them! Made from strips of folded fabric, bias tape, is a multitasking trim that's practical and yet fashionable. It's really fun to try something new ~ making my own bias tape! I believe that no matter what your medium of choice is, the exploration into something new will always inspires and enhances your favorite creative style.

 
You may ask ~ why make my own bias tape since store-bought bias tape is widely available? But i find them mostly in a small selection of solid colors. I didn't want to limit myself with just plain hues on my embroidery tale clutches project. Thus, i created my very own polka dot in bright color bias tape. I found inspiration in making my own tape and ensuring my project turns out to be the way i want it. It is definitely a great way to use up some fabric scarps, and i always like it when i find projects that work for that.

Have a lovely merry happy week and lots of love to you and yours! Keep warm dear friends!

What could be prettier

...than your initials, artistically rendered on a beautiful personalize gift or item?

 
These days, i've been playing around with monograms and initials hand-embroidery. It makes me feel an appreciation for something tradition. According to the encyclopedia Britannica, it defines monogram as "a design or mark consisting of two or more letters intertwined". To me, a monogram can be a combination of initials, intertwined or otherwise just a single decorative letter.

Monogram and initials are one of the best ways to embellish items we cherish and would like to hand down from generation to generation. I really enjoy experimenting around with different mediums of monograms and initials from hand-embroidery to stamps. There is simply something magical about it, it expresses the mystique and the beauty of letters, the joy of fine design and and my enduring fascination with names. Such a romantic process and gesture.

My monograms and initials inspiration comes from all kinds of text ~ printed materials, computer fonts, friend's lovely handwriting, books, clip-arts or vintage samplers. It's really crazy fun, i tell you. Here are just a few of my monograms and initials source of inspiration to entice you.

Wishing you a wonderful merry happy weekend. And for those of you out there getting all that snow, I must admit I'm kind of jealous ~ teehee. Lots of love to you and yours!

Smocked with a passion

Sorry for checking out bit early last week, several other projects {all at the initial designing stages} are consuming almost all of my carefree time. I'm hoping to find a nice balance soon. Hope you had a good weekend. I certainly did ~ lots of hunched shoulders sewing away.

 
As busy as i've been, i am happy to say i spent a good portion of the weekend working on and finishing my first ever "So Cute It Hurts" smocked sundress ~ admiring it in my little studio made this creative space even sunnier. Never before have i even come close to sewing something anyone could wear. THIS sundress is yet another very exciting accomplishment for me. Yippee and hooray!

 
 
I believe there is a mantra for all things handmade: "It's all in the details". Never is that more true than for this dress. A few ingenious details can transform a basic something into something truly special. Because so many of the different needlework techniques are subtle, they can be combined together to make a dress to look simple until the eye picks out those all-important details. I love, love, love this little smocked dress. The finished dress fits 12 months to size 4. Fasteners are out of the way, so curious little ones aren't tempted to toy with or nibble on them.

 
When this little sundress acquire history together with the other items that are too precious to give away ~ like the little blanket she came home from hospital in, the overalls she wore while learning to crawl, her pajamas she fell asleep in at night ~ there is a solution more creative and less cluttering than a box in the storage ~ a baby memory quilt that is sure to become an heirloom.

Sometimes, the most ordinary items can be used to create extraordinary result. Have a lovely merry happy creative week! Lots of love to you and yours

Have a heart for

...lovely things with an emphasis on ~ packaging!

 
I am sure anyone would really appreciate a good package : both receiving and sending them. Lately with the holiday season around the corner, i've been thinking alot about a cheery makeover on "So Cute It Hurts" packaging ~ finding creative ways to package. It is as fun as coming up with what goes inside. I wanted also to offer homemade treats wrapped in papers or bags that echoes my heartfelt sentiments. I've received several of the most loveliest packages, you know, the kind that make you immediately bust out your camera to take pictures before you open it up? And i wanted to create this exact feeling in "So Cute It Hurts" packaging as well.

 
I've been experimenting and trying to master the basics of wrapping a package ~ learning from books on the prettiest ideas, hands-on with lots of ribbons and paper crafts recipes and thank you to Martha Stewart. Through this learning process, i realized that one of the many secrets lie in its nearly folded ends. My packaging ideas and designs run from tags, ribbons, stamps to eco bags.

Here are just a few of my favorite recipes and prettiest packaging ideas ~ it's incredible and amazing how creativity flows through your system when your heart is really in what you are creating, everything just comes together for you.

 
 
Have a lovely merry happy mid-week! Lots of love to you and yours as always!

Smockin’ about

Happy Monday, friends!

It's good to be back after a long weekend. I hope you found some time to relax. I certainly did ~ sewing, comfort food, and lounging {i'm a big fan of lounging} in my comfy lounge pants.

 
A while back i talked about how i, in full adventure dorkiness mode, wanting to make something wearable. I've always had a thing for smocking dresses or blouses...well at least since kindergarten. Thus, when i found Jamie's Honey Girl Sundress pattern, i decided it was due time to reinforce this notion into my rotation.

Something that's satisfying over the long weekend is making my very first "So Cute It Hurts" toddler dress using Jamie's pattern. I'm not that skilled at it and it's always good to attempt very simple patterns in order to refrain from getting too frustrated ~ challenges are always good but i didn't want to select a pattern that is so far beyond me.

 

 
Although this little sundress is still a work in progress, the smocking is a very exciting accomplishment for me ~ i've also to credit Jamie's smocking tutorial for this one. I used fabric designed by Kokka Japan. I practiced and learned more to use the right tension on the thread and the right stitches. Really crazy fun and the satisfaction of being able to smock successfully just washed away any stress and wee bit frustration. I am looking forward to finish this cute little dress.

 
Making this cute little smocked sundress also makes me realize that even now, it seems unbelievable to me that by pulling together a motley collection ~ the different soft threads, the sharp needle, the pattern, the intangibles of creativity, and imagination ~ i can create something that will hold a piece of my soul. But i can and so can you.

Have a lovely merry happy week and love to you and yours!

Contain your joy and love

....in my first-ever "So Cute It Hurts" wedding clutch!

 
As with any first time project, there was a learning curve and some uncertainty at times. There is definitely a bit of wonkiness here and there, but i actually really love those parts. The best part though is completing a project in sections ~ the front, the back and the lining. The benefit is that if one section is frustrating you, it can be put aside and you can move on to something else until you're ready to finish. I worked on this wedding clutch little by little until each and every part was ready and sew it all together with stitches of matching thread color.

 
This lovely clutch will add a charm to any weddings. I added the same eye-catching classic embellishment of old classic "feel" with classic embroidery ribbon and folklore stitches ~ giving it a present that symbols a new union on a beautiful something old. Just the right size for lipsticks and a few other essentials, this clutch can be carried by any bride long after she has laid down her bouquet.

A very cute "So Cute It Hurts" wooden button embraces the back of this lovely clutch. As i lay it on my cutting mat, gazing on it for a while, i felt a warm satisfaction flowing from my heart to each part of my body. This clutch is a very exciting accomplishment for me. It also makes me want to SEW MORE.

 
It's the beginning of a long weekend here in this city of brotherly love. I'm looking forward to sewing and scheming, comfort food and lazing around. I'm signing off early this week but before i do, i would like to give thanks ~ i'm thankful for the generous and encouraging friends that visit me here on my bubble space. I love and enjoy sharing new work, inklings, findings, feelings and thoughts on things with all of you.

Have a lovely merry happy thanksgiving and a wonderful cheery restful weekend! Love to you and yours!

Dreams, hope, faith...

and go forward!

 
Although these words might be overly used these days...i do believe in them. As a believer, these words are essential to me especially on days when i'm feeling overwhelm. I've always found inspiration and solace in hearing other people share their experiences in traveling a similar path. Although i am still working towards living that creative life ~ i am a believer in the idea that you can have what you want in your life.

During these pass weeks, i took some time to re-visit why i started all of this to begin with? The love for creating, especially sewing, andi realize the more time i spend with this bubble space i've come to enjoy sharing it with all of you.

Just the other day, i was watching Oprah show and heard this sentiment "When you learn, teach. When you get, give" {Maya Angelou} and immediately i felt a connection to this sentiment with this bubble space.

 
With that said, i would love to share this amazing story of a woman name, Tererai Trent ~ a story that holds a strong value to this sentiment "dreams do come true". Tererai is a lady from rural Zimbabwe, living without running water and electricity and had no hope for her future. In 1991, a visitor changed her life forever. Jo Luck, from Heifer International, asked every woman about her greatest dream. And Tererai was told "If you desire those things, it is achievable" ~ she wrote down in a scrap piece of paper and earthed her dreams in a tin. Tererai accomplished each dream, one by one and in December 2009, she will realize her greatest dream of all ~ a doctoral degree.

Isn't this such an amazing story? It's so inspirational that i had to share it here with you. Even though life still has a life of its own and even though uncertainty can feel a little intimidating and even though our dream hasn't happened yet, it can feel more than frustrating and even devastating. Hearing these stories calms me down, i feel hopeful that dreams will happen. We need to somehow learn to give into the unknown of it all and trust the process, life will eventually somehow flow in the direction it is meant to be.

With that i hope we don't loose sight of what these words means and how vital they are for all of us no matter what path we are traveling. Love to you and yours!

Cotton candy.Cotton time

I'm sorry that it has been pretty quiet with my Cotton candy. Cotton time column. Not because i want it to be, but because i was going through a little rough time and i felt like i've lost my way. I am so glad im back on track and back to focus.

 
I'm so excited to share this month's issue of Cotton Time, a wonderful magazine that deals with everything about creativity from fashion to crafts and even decorating/design. I absolutely feel positively smitten flipping-through the pages of not only wonderful projects but gorgeous photography! If you want a super inspiring, beautiful magazine filled with holiday crafts and projects ~ then this month's Cotton Time is for you! I can't wait to try out a few projects and ideas. Yay!

There is nothing about it that i do not find sweet, lovely and charming. The primary focus is to promote and inspire creativity. It's ALL good.

 
{Images by Cotton Time magazine November 09}

It's all about getting people in touch with a hobby that can bestow peace and pleasure, but also in the end, a functional item with value. Simply beautiful! Have a lovely merry happy mid-week and lots of love to you and yours!

Swimming in the fish bowl

 
The style and the essence of the images today might look familiar to you if you're a regular reader of Marisa's inspirational blog. Yes, my "in the fish bowl" e-course teacher {guide}. Sadly, i have come to the end of my journey on this e-course and i would like to share with you ~ my experience in the fish bowl {using this little approach "Less is more"}.

From the very beginning of my journey when i started "So Cute It Hurts", Marisa inspires me to live my dreams ~ making a living with doing what i love. She believes in dreams coming true for all of us and she is very passionate about helping others in getting closer to their dreams or taking their dreams to the next level.

 
The whole experience "life as an artist online" was very uplifting and enlightening. Marisa created a very safe and supportive community for all us in the fish bowl. I was introduced to creative discipline for the very fist time ~ being very clear, pure at heart and fully embracing and believing in me, myself and i. As my journey in the fish bowl unfold, i did have a lot of these moments and i believe Oprah would have put it this way "The Aha moments". It became clearer and louder to me as to why i started this creative journey to begin with ~ my love and the need to be creative in my life.

Just last week, i was feeling really down, vulnerable and doubtful. Over the weekend, i took Marisa's teaching and went back to re-visit and to find the answers to these very questions and sentiments ~ why i do what i do and why i want to be in business for myself? Finding the answers to these questions have grounded me and took me back to focus. I've learned that these questions are worth coming back to often when you feel you've lost your way.

 
Marisa is a great teacher and a wonderful mentor offering genuine kindness, insightful and inspiring experience, love and support. A genuine positive voice that lingers in me as i continue my creative journey.

Before i go, i want to thank you each and everyone of you for all your positive thoughts, encouragement, love and support your sending my way! Have a lovely merry happy day and a wonderful week! Love to you and yours!

{Images are from my new "Artists thrive" Canvas Wall Art by Marisa of Creative Thursday}