Keep Calm and Drink Wine

Hello sweet bloggers,

Here is a card to show you after a long while. I have been making cards and I wish I could find time to take pictures and blog.

The sentiment is from a set of clear stamps and the image is from a clear set by Hero Arts. Added rhine stones and my silver Sakura pen helped finish it off. By the way, the nestie on which the sentiment has been stamped has been upcycled from packaging material.

Wish you a happy Sunday,

Monica 

Back

Hello dear bloggers,

I have been wishing to blog but life got in the way again. And my mum is visiting so that kind of fills up our life in a nice way. We also managed to go to Bali over the spring break and it was lovely.

I made this card in a real jiffy with pretty store bought stickers. I know I could have made the roses at home yet I find it a thrill to stick something right away on a card and be instantly gratified. 

I was so impressed with this bougainvillea plant in the hotel where we stayed.

This is the view of the paddy fields from our room.

Sunset from our room...

Aleeza being treated to a fish spa for her feet.

Down below are pictures of the Bali safari.

See you soon,

Monica 

Dearest bloggers,

Here are pics of Aleeza's birthday on 7th February this year. It fell on a Sunday and we actually invited two friends over which was a big change from last year which was quite big. 

Here is a close up of the balloons on the wall mounted with ordinary scotch tape.

Here is the foyer of our apartment - we chose hearts since Valentine's is so close to Aleeza's birthday on the 7th.

Here is a pic of the girls walking to the club close by our home.

Down below is them goofing around...

Here is a gift given by Zeenya's close friend to Aleeza and what I wanted to share here was the tag that was handmade. Isn't it impressive? 

Happy crafting,

Monica

Hello

Hello sweet bloggers,

Been away so long and did not even realize it. Yet missed blogging so!!!

For a change, I am posting a handmade necklace that a close friend of mine made some time ago.Isn;t it beautiful?

Down below is a picture of an old card that I may have posted earlier sans stamping.

I will enter this card in the following challenges:

http://carabbiemomentsofcraft.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes with a - music
http://inspirationdestinationchallengeblog.blogspot.sg/ - always anything goes

I hope I can come and visit soon.

Lots of love,

Monica 

Blogging again

Hello dear bloggers,

Here is a quick card that was made with washi tape, diecut and ribbon. Does it look too stark? The grey birds are actually silver in real life so it looks less sombre. 

 My girls and I went to the President's estate a few weeks ago as it was an open day and this papaya tree took my fancy so here is a picture with this cute tree. In real life, I am not a big fan of papayas though.

Down below is Aleeza's art work which I may have shared earlier. The colours are so vibrant, aren't they?

Wish you a happy Saturday,

Monica 

Pictures of my charity table at the community fair for "Initiative for Peace"

Hello sweet peeps,

Here is my card to show you which was one of the many I made for "Initiative for Peace" which is a an effort of the school that my older one goes to. It is a global peace mission which tries to bring peace to troubled nations. And as I write this, I do hope there is more peace and calm and tolerance and compassion and forgiveness and love in the world. 

I almost sounded like a priestess there, didn't I? However, I do wish that I had a magic wand to bring peace everywhere including my heart to start with. Lol.

Over to my card now which is made with very little yet it looked quite nice when it was ready. The ribbon and button are from my stash and the sentiment is store bought to aid quick card making considering I had to turn out over 40 cards in less than 10 days. And yes, this card sold. 

Down below is my little angel, Aleeza helping me out at the charity fair when she could have actually had lots of fun trying out the various activities for children. Well, that is the price you pay when you have a mother who loves her art dearly. Sorry for the picture quality but that is the best we could manage. I am very grateful to the school for letting me have a table to sell my cards. The poster you see on the table was made by Aleeza. It was made with love so I had to display it. Thank you, Aleeza.

Wish you a nice everything - be it health, craft making, card making, sleeping or eating,

Monica

I will enter my card in:

http://paperminutes.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes
http://www.ttcrd.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes

Hello

Hello bloggers,

Here is my card to show you which was made a few months ago as a good bye card for one of Aleeza's girl scout leaders who was moving out of Singapore. The Ek Success stamps were sent by a friend to me from Jakarta. The papers are from Terry and my stash as well. I have coloured the image with my dear Prisma pencils. The side of one of the designer papers has been punched with my butterfly border punch to enhance the good luck factor since I consider butterflies to be lucky. The pink ribbon and baby pink rose are from my stash while the bow is hand tied. 

I will enter my card in the following challenges:

http://www.craftysentiments.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes
http://fattastictuesday.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes with a twist
http://lemonshortbreadchallenge.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes

Wish you a nice everything,

Monica 

Where oh where have I been???

Dear sweet peeps,

This is my first post for February and I am in total disbelief about it. Life has been so busy that yet again blogging has taken a back seat.

Here is my card made with die cut flowers which I assembled together and put a seed in the centre. I do love these bright and natural seeds. They look even prettier in real life and their shine amazes me. A friend on Facebook told me that they are similar to lentils and can actually be eaten. The tag here has been recycled while the ribbon and sentiment are from my stash. Since it was Chinese New Year time here, I thought of giving it a cherry blossom look. A bit bright yet they look like Sakuras. This picture was taken before sunrise hence the quality such as this.

I will enter this card in:

http://abitmoretimetocraft.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes
http://diesruschallenge.blogspot.sg/ - red along with die cuts
http://digistamps4joy-sa.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes with a tag

Catch you soon,

Monica 

Back here

Hello lovely bloggers,

Here is another card to show you today which is kind of recycled. The printed paper is actually a paper napkin. I dressed it up with ribbon and could have added a sentiment but then sentiments restrict my cards so I left it organic. 

I will enter this card in:

http://craftingwithanattitude.blogspot.co.uk/ - anything goes

http://crafty-girls-creations.blogspot.co.uk/ - anything goes

http://www.throughthepurplehazechallenges.blogspot.co.uk/ - anything goes

Wish you a happy weekend,

Monica 

First post after Christmas break

Hello dear bloggers,

A very happy New Year to all of you. May it bring peace and calm to us and the world around us along with good health and laughter.

Yes, I finally told myself that blog I have to. So here I am at last. Our holiday to New Delhi was very nice - meeting my mum, relatives and dear friends is always a pleasure. Not to over look the good food, shopping and awesome customer service that India offers. Indian hospitality still takes me off my feet and it sure shows on my waistline. Lol. I managed to take the girls to the late Indira Gandhi's (the first lady prime minister of India) memorial and show her home to them. Inspite of all that the media painted her out to be, I still think she was a great lady.

Down below are some photos of our trip. We attended an Indian wedding and the girls were really excited to dress up in ethnic finery. From Indian standards, I am totally under dressed for the occasion. Lol.

Here is a little bit of Christmas for you from India. Yes, India is big on Christmas and loves the commerce that goes along with it. Lol.

Another Christmas decoration at a mall. Sorry for the lady with a Zara bag in the photo but it sure makes it look organic, doesn't it?

Now to my card down below - the rose has been painted by yours truly and the leaves are from the stem of a silk flower. They were too pretty to throw away so here they are. The sentiment has been die cut using a pretty brochure.

I will come and visit you all as soon as I can,

Monica 

Lots to show here

Hello lovely peeps,

Some of you asked what my other half cooked for dinner the last time I did a post. Well, he made this veggie fried rice (vegetable biryani) with loads of onions, garlic, ginger, tomatoes and veggies. Along with this there was raita (spiced up yoghurt). Yes, it was pretty yummy.

Before I forget we are off to New Delhi for our annual vacation so I will see you next year. 

Here is a quick card made with ribbon and a store bought sentiment put up with 3 D foam dots. Sticking the 'oh so pretty' but thick ribbon on cardstock was quite an experience. After putting loads of weight on the card, it finally decided to stay on. Lol. 

Here is a picture of brown paper bags that Aleeza drew on totally free hand and coloured them as well. This was her labour of love for all for her fave teachers in school. She did not seem pleased with the tree but loved the penguin and the wreath. Sorry about the picture as it was a rainy day and that was the best I could manage. I know the tables could have been avoided.

The box below has been totally upcycled from a Body Shop container.  The rectangular piece of paper with the sentiment is actually the front of a Christmas brochure. I waited one year to use it in order to make it look new. Lol. The washi tape at the bottom was to camoflage the the commercial text at the bottom. What went in were my handmade cards. 

I will enter my card and upcycled box in the following challenges:

http://brownsugarchallenge.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes

http://craftrocketchallenges.blogspot.co.uk/ - anything goes

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year,

Monica

Back after 10 days

Hello sweet peeps,

Today was one such day when I said to myself, "Enough is enough I NEED blogging." So here I am not cooking dinner but blogging. Hubby got home at a decent hour so asked him to take over the kitchen and he seems quite happy there. Ofcourse we don't know what he will turn out but from past records, he is a pretty good cook. So meself just needs to STAY CALM AND BLOG.

Here are pictures of my cards that I made at a 'Card Buffet' I attended at the scrap booking store in the city. We had a choice of the designer papers that we could use and I picked out the one that was covered in images. I cut out the images and stuck them on the card, using nesties, washi tape and a a die cut lamp that I found in one of the little boxes there. These are absolutely FLAT cards and Zeenya actually had words of appreciation for them. Lol.

I like the sentiment on the last one - it may not be good for consumerism and the economy yet for the environment it certainly is.

I will enter my cards in the following challenges:

http://lauralcraft.weebly.com/dragonfly-dreams-challenge - Christmas

http://glitternsparklechallengeblog.blogspot.co.uk/ - Traditional or non-traditional colours

http://thegloryofchristmaschallenge.blogspot.de/ - anything goes

Happy crafting,

Monica

Pictures of my charity card sale on November 18th

Hello crafting soulmates,

Here are pictures of one my cards for the charity sale. The silvery paper was made my Aleeza. She spread glue on a recycled paper and sprinkled glitter on it and this was the result. I managed to make over 40 cards in a week.

This was my table which I decorated with black and red to follow the colour scheme of the venue which was a gymnasium on the 38th floor of a building

Down below is the sunset from the venue - pretty, isn't it?

I will enter my card in the following challenges:

http://crafterscafeblogchallenge.blogspot.sg/ - die cuts or punches

http://scrappers-delights-challenge-blog.blogspot.co.uk/ - Christmas, anything goes

http://allsortschallenge.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes

Happy crafting,

Monica 

Pretty much recycled here

Hello sweet peeps,

Here is a Christmas card mostly made with recycled paper from a wedding card. Yes, I have a really nice friend who saves up old Indian wedding cards for me and I store them and store them and then finally think of using them. Here is one of those instances when I actually used up the paper! The stamp is from my stash as is the ribbon. I added the rhine stone to make it look glam and by the way, the embossed emblem beneath the snowflake was part of the card. I stuck a snowflake on the emblem as inside the emblem was the bride and bridegroom's initials. Are you impressed?

I will enter this card in the following challenges:

http://stampedblessings.com/ - anything goes (no digis)
http://christmascardchallenges.blogspot.sg/ - anything goes, Christmas
http://cagichallenge.blogspot.ca/ - anything goes with sentiment


Wish you a great day,

Monica 

I think I need what this card says, lol

Hello lovely bloggers,

It was Diwali last week with lots of celebration in school and soon is Thanksgiving followed by Christmas and Valentine's and Chinese New Year. So the party goes on. Lol. 

I am coming along surprisingly well with the order of 40-50 cards for charity (Women on a Mission, Singapore).

This card was made when we visited Sydney a few weeks ago. Yes, I carried stamps, card stock and a few distressed inks along with my Sakura gold gel pen. There is lots of gold on the flower which could not be captured on camera. In real life, it looks quite pretty. And yes, I have used clear stamps from Hero Arts. The sentiment was part of the set and I love it.

I will enter this card in the following challenges:

http://brownsugarchallenge.blogspot.sg/ - no patterned paper

http://crafting-with-friends.blogspot.co.uk/ - anything goes

http://creativecornerchallenges.blogspot.de/ - black, white and one more colour

Wish you a happy weekend,

Monica 

Another Siberian theme card for WOAMS

Hello kind peeps,

I am making cards at top speed and have made 20 already for WOAMS (Women On A Mission Singpaore). Another 20 or 30 to go as per what I can manage.

This card was made with handmade paper from India bought in San Franscisco some years ago. Truly global is this paper, quite like me, lol. I had to put dots with stickles on the reindeer to cover up a stain.

The striped paper you see has been recycled from a pastry box. The silver cord was donated by a dear friend in Jakarta.

I will enter this card in:

http://www.2creativechicks.com/ - anything goes
http://pictureandscrap.blogspot.sg/ - Christmas
http://craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge2.blogspot.co.uk/ - anything goes with a Christmas theme

I am happy to be blogging again and have a feeling that I will be more regular from now on. 

Happy crafting,

Monica 

I am back with great news!

Hello sweet bloggers,

Yes, I was missing again and this time it was on a week's vacation to Sydney, Australia. I felt the energy much better this time around even though one evening was quite an experience when Aleeza and I got chased away by a "not so normal" person. Apart from that, it was mostly sunny skies and lovely time in the Royal Botanic Garden and just walking in the city. I also managed to visit the "Mind, Body and Spirit Festival" and bought amazing rose quartz tea light holders and a salt lamp. 

Now for the good news - as I was surfing Facebook, I stumbled upon a not for profit page called, 'Women on a Misson Singapore'. And I sent them a random Facebook message about making cards for charity. The lady there (who seemed a very nice person) got back to me in no time suggesting I could partner her and make cards for their big event on November 18th. This is an organization where the ladies go on serious expeditons and raise funds for women's charities. So to cut a long story short, I am doing a range of cards for them with a theme on Siberia as that is where their next expedition is.

I am very excited to say the least! Now the real work begins which is to make 40-50 cards before November 18th.

Below are two cards that I made yesterday they were quite appreciated by the team at WOAMS. So off I am...

Down below are pictures of Sydney - as you can see, I have great modelling there after a long walk from our hotel to the garden. The girls would rather be shopping but their father insisted they take some fresh air.

More happy pictures - they seem pretty done with the long walk. Lol.

Aleeza chasing a bird at the park.

I will enter this card in the following challenges:

http://crazy4challenges.blogspot.sg/ - Christmas

http://mfpstampshop.blogspot.ca/ - monochromatic layering

See you very soon,

Monica