Planner Love

I have always loved stationery of all kinds since I was a kid and when I discovered the world of planners, oh boy! It was like unleashing a kid in a candy store... There are just so many that I love and want.. haha... Although I did kinda justify each one that I bought, which may be many to some and few to some too :P It really depends on how you see it.

I take out the pages to stamp the images I want on them. It makes it easier to stamp the image clearer to place the page on a flat surface. 

At the moment, I am using ink pads from Papertrey Ink and Hero Art. And yes, my stamp pads are the mini ones because I figure it takes quite a while to finish using them anyway and I will invest in the standard size ones when we move to a bigger place.

Here's a close up of my December monthly view. I used different colors for different activities. And oh, I made the laminated divider myself, stuck washi tapes on them and wrote down the sections with  a washi pen. That way, if I need to change the sections, I just peel off the washi :) Easy peasy.

How do you stamp your images? Right on to the pages in the planner or do you take them out like me? Do you use different colors too? 

Hope to read your comments and do follow me on Instagram or Facebook and do go over to the Sweet Shop as well to get these awesome planner stamps (and all the other stamps) at a great discount. Go now! Have fun! 

Woo hoo! A Promotion!!

My sweet friend Alison of Mettaville and I (Evelin T Designs) have decided to have a joint promotion for our dear friends. We hope that you will enjoy browsing through our stores and pick up an item or two :)

We hope you will enjoy this little promotion that we came up with and buy some of your favorite items from our stores :)

Enjoy!

Sparkle sparkle Sweet Blog Post

Blogging over at the Sweet Blog today :)
Do check it out.. it's all about sparkles...

I don't blog as much as I do right now but I am on Instagram a lot and if you fancy some pretty nail wraps like the one on my thumb, check out my jamberry page :)

The Creative Blog Hop

Hi! I have been tagged by the very sweet Amy (of Tsuruta Designs) to participate in the Creative Blog Hop in her post here. I am so honored to receive Amy's email to ask if I would participate in this hop. I discovered Amy's blog sometime back in 2008 when I first started card-making. She is one the nicest, sweetest crafter I know and I love her crafting style. She is also a momma to two kiddos.

From what I understand, the idea around The Creative Blog Hop is to learn a bit more about other bloggers by answering four questions, so here we go...


1. What am I working on right now?

Currently I have been illustrating a lot (besides my usual DT duties for Sweet Stamp Shop and keeping up with my Project Life) and organizing my 'craft area', which seems like a forever thing to us crafters, doesn't it.. haha.

I have also uploaded all my illustrations on Society6 and they can now be available for purchase in the form of iPhone cases, tote bags, mugs, duvet covers, art prints, wall clocks and all. It's fun to see them on so many daily items and I do hope that people will take to them :)

If what you are interested in are my illustrations as art prints and greeting cards, then you can get them right here in my store! 

And I have loved Totoro for a looooong time now, since I first watched My Neighbour Totoro in college (eerr... did I just revealed my age? hehe) and I have recently started illustrating them during my free time too.

I am also a calligrapher and if you need a poem or verse written out in Calligraphy, I am your girl! I also do custom envelope addressing, wedding suites, etc... just send me an email.

2. How does my work differ from those in my genre?

hmmmm.... I love to fussy cut stamped images and I watercolor them. I love adding glossy accents and gold splatter on my cards. However, my cards would still end up looking simple and clean. I don't pile a lot on my cards or Project Life pages but I do love dimensions so you can most likely find me using pop dots or some sort of layering to create dimensions as well.

I have also been illustrating for the Sweet Stamp Shop since June and have a few stamp sets released by the Sweet Stamp.

And because I calligraph as well, at times I write my own sentiments on my cards.

3. Why do I create what I do?

When I first started creating, it was to start being creative and to get in touch with my 'artistic' side after many years of not illustrating (I have been illustrating since I was a little girl and for as long as I could remember.. up till college).

Crafting was a place of solitude and relaxation after a day of work in the office. And then I started crafting more, making hand bound journals, wire bound journals, postcards and selling them at craft markets. That was when I left the corporate world. It was trying and definitely a tough journey but I wanted to persevere on and build my crafty business up so that one day, my darling Ryan can have a piece of something to remember his mummy by. I was teaching bookbinding workshops too before I took a break, moved to Los Angeles, got pregnant and gave birth to my darling Ryan.

I hope to teach Ryan to pursue his dreams no matter what they are and be grounded in life.

4. How does my creative process work?

I don't really ever think if I have a creative process... haha... My days are really packed nowadays. Anyone with a toddler can attest to this :)

It used to be, 'I start my creative process with a hot cup of coffee, browsing the internet/look at my craft supplies and start creating...' but these days, I grab whatever opportunity and time I have when I have it which is usually during Ryan's nap time or when he's asleep. If I have any ideas during the day, I will jot them down in my planner and work on them when Ryan is napping/sleeping.

I find that the most effective creative process for me at the moment.

I super love my planner now. It keeps me organized and I love keeping things all in one place and as much as I love technology, I love old school things like paper, books, and writing (with a pencil/pen). I guess there must be a little 'old school' in every crafter since we all do love paper, don't we? hehe.

And that's it about me.. thanks for reading through it all. I hope you had a cup of coffee or a snack when you started :P

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The last part of this blog hop is to TAG 3 more people and these are the creative ladies who has inspired me with their crafts.

They will be posting next Monday, September 15th.

Jenn Shurkus

Jenn lives in Providence Rhode Island, with her kitty Mister Harley and her boyfriend Chris. 

She’s been papercrafting for over 10 years, and has played multiple rolls in the papercraft industry as an independent store manager, designer and teacher. With a degree in graphic design she is also Copic and Ranger certified. 

She is part of the Simon Says Stamp Design Team as well as the  Lawnscaping Challenge team. 

Past rolls include senior instructor for A Muse, Design team member for Creative Imaginations, Sweet Stamp Shop and Stampotique. Jenn loves to show people new and clever ideas to design their cards and projects. 

She has a flair for the “artsy-fartsy” without going over the top. She designs her projects in the way to inspire, but not intimidate. Jenn is eager to share her creative passions with others and encourage their artistic growth. 

Check her out at her blog.

Alison Koh

I've always loved creating things with my hands since I was a kid. When I was 9, I glued two pieces of small wood together to make a standing frame, pasted a hand written "Happy Mother's Day" paper on it and gave that to my mom. In school, I loved art classes the most. 

From painting to making jewelries, sewing and bookbinding, I love tinkering around whatever my hands can get hold of and what I feel keen on trying. 

Currently I make handbound journals. I have been writing journals since I was young and they are my best friends! I learned bookbinding in 2010 with the intention of having my own special handmade journals to write in. From there it blossomed and now I'm selling them in my Etsy Store and Felt Shop.

Did I mentioned I love taking photos too? Look me up on Instagram and Facebook and oh, come visit me sometime on my blog where I share my life and adventures in beautiful NZ, where I am currently living with my wonderful husband and adorable white cat Kiki. 

Suzanne Bier

Hi, everybody! My name is Suzanne Bier. I live in northern Virginia with my dear husband and our sweet (and spoiled) dachshund. 

I've been stamping and coloring with Copics for almost four years, but have been crafting for as long as I can remember! I’ve designed for The Greeting Farm, Your Next Stamp, Whimsy and Stars Studio, Unscripted Sketches and colourQ. I finished a term with Sweet Stamp Shop in August and designing for Some Odd Girl Stamps. 

Most of my posts are about cards, but I still like to use other crafts and techniques into my projects. Before I started scrapbooking and stamping, I drew, cross-stitched, painted, sewed felt ornaments and stockings, and knitted a little. 

I’m so glad that Evelin asked me to be a part of the blog hop, and I’m looking forward to sharing more about my creative process with all of you! I’d love it if you’d visit me at my blog to say hello!

How do you store your stamps?

This is how I am storing the stamps I am currently using, especially those for DT assignments. I am putting them in this little wire basket that I got from Daiso (oh, how I love Daiso finds.. haha).

It's working really well for now and it is the perfect size to put on my table when I am crafting. Do share how you store your stamps too :) I would love to know.

And I know I don't blog as often as I would like to but if you would like to see pictures of my crafting, do follow me on Instagram or Facebook. I am mostly over there :)

Sweet Post : Journalling Cards

I am sharing some journalling cards I made with stamps from the Sweet Shop over at the Sweet Stamp Blog. Do pop by and give me some love? :)

Here's on of the cards I made.. there's more over at the Sweet Blog (pssstt... and a free shipping code)

A little update : I am pretty swamped right now preparing for Unique USA happening on the 9-10 Aug at the Penthouse of the California Market Center. Will be sharing a post about it and also giveaway for the tickets to the event.... come back here on Monday to participate in the giveaway!

My Photography 'Corner'

Some of you may know that I currently live in a tiny one bedroom apartment and space is always a constraint. It takes a lot of organizing and 'clever' storage to keep everything in place. 

My craft table doubles (or triple) as well, my crafting area, my photography corner and our dining table. And so far, that's how it's working for us... well, until we move to a bigger apartment (soon! *fingers crossed*)

This is how I stage my photo-taking. Behind me is Ryan's play area.. haha.. and I have to squat in that small area to take my pictures, which is fine and having to clear the table constantly is a good thing for me too. I do try to clear my table after I use it each time anyway :)

See how I just prop up the patterned paper as the background. I change my 'background' to suit the cards I make. I try to use colors that will make the cards stand out and so far this has worked out well for me.

I usually use Photoshop to tweak the exposure, brightness, vibrance and color balance after I take my pictures because we don't have much natural light flowing into my space. The next place we move to, big windows is one of our requirements.. haha.

Hope you enjoyed this little sharing and little peek into my apartment :)

Sweet Blog Hop : On Cherry Street

Hi there! Did you come over from Chrissy's blog or is this your first stop? If this is your first stop, do hop over to the Sweet Blog to start from the beginning so that you don't miss out on any sweet inspirations :)

But wait, before you go anywhere... I would like to share one of my projects that I made with the Magical Kit from On Cherry Street with you. This kit is so chockfull of goodness and I have already made 3 cards and 2 Pocket Life pages with it and I still have leftovers from the kit.

I added alphabet stickers and a strip of wash tape on this 4x6 card 

I painted these wood veneers and added glossy accent to it :)

and for this card (love the calligraphy? I wrote it.. haha), I added wink of stella for added bling and glossy accents too. By now, you know I do love glossy accent too, right? haha..

I hope you are inspired to create more with your Magical kit and if you haven't got one yet, you should drop by the Sweet Shop and get one!

Next stop in this blog hop is Heather's blog. Click on the link and head on over to check her projects out. She's awesome!

Till next time! Craft on :)

Sweet Post : Distressing is Fun

I am blogging over at the Sweet Blog today. Join me as I chat about distressing... it's been a while :)

On Cherry Street Post : Hoppity Hop!

I just love these cute little frogs and how well they go with the Magical kit from On Cherry Street :)

Check it out on the Sweet Blog today.

Overnight Oats

I've been seeing so many pictures and articles of overnight oats recently that I decided to try making some too. I googled some recipes and they seem pretty easy to make.

They are so delicious and healthy, even my hubby enjoys it.. yum yum!

Go ahead and google some recipes to try! 

Sweet Post : Mix 'n' Match

Pssst... I'm blogging over at the Sweet Blog today.... Hop on over there and leave me some love, will ya?

On Cherry Street : Kit Release!

Hey hey hey.... gooooooood Morning to you! You are going to want to head on over to the Sweet Stamp Shop and check out their On Cherry Street release. It's the newest kit on the block and it really does pack a punch!

It is designed for scrapbookers with carmakers in mind. How awesome is that?

Hop on over to the Sweet Blog right now and be inspired by the projects the Design Team has come up with. 

This is one kit that you will definitely want to have in your subscription :)

July Sweet Release Part 1

Hallo there sweeties! It's a brand new month and that means a brand new release from the Sweet Stamp Shop :)

This month is all about magic and glitter and everything fun! 

This is one of the projects I made (and I will be sharing more in the coming blog posts) but you will want to head on over to the Sweet Blog to check out all the fun projects and possibly a sweet discount code? :)

Princess

Enjoy Calligraphy

(I calligraphed this set! yippee!)

Dragon

Royal Wish

Foodie

Awesome release, right? Yes, I know it is... :)

Project Life : Week 15 + 16

Today, I am sharing parts of my Project Life Week 15 and 16. I used some of the journalling cards that I watercolored, scanned and printed and also the stamps that I illustrated for Sweet Stamp Shop.

Can you spot my journalling cards?

This little dancing/juggling bear is one of the illustrations I did for Sweet Stamp Shop. I hope that you will see be inspired to use these stamps for Project Life and not only just for card making. They are also pretty cute when used in a planner or organizer (something I will share in a future post).

By now, you have realized that you need them in your stash too, right? :P Head on over to the Sweet Stamp Shop and buy now!