Q's So Cute It Hurts

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}

sweet and savory

 
After falling into a rabbit hole, and what feels like a "long" and "emotional"  struggle to keep the positivity intact, i think it's safe to say that i have been able to climb out. Yep, it was the kind of sickness that played games with me physically and mentally. I am slowly climbing back up, not too much, although, i am working on it. Thank you so much for all the wonderful sweet wishes and positive thoughts, friends. You guys are too sweet. I couldn't have asked for a better treat and it makes me feel better.

After getting myself together slowly, i managed to salvage the remainder of my strength by sewing and scheming ~ my quilting blocks. I'm still scheming about. It's fun ~ i always really enjoy that  part. And it worked wonders as a mood elevator.

Below is a sneak peek at some blocks i finished. 

 Stay warm and lots of love to you!

on the mend...finally...I think

Sorry for checking out for a bit there, i just spent my last week and weekend sick in bed with one of the nastiest colds/flu viruses in recent memory. It was the pits, completed with body aches, fever and one of the worst sore throats ever.

I was having a hard time and found myself feeling a little bit of sadness mixed with a tinge of depression. The sad part, simply put, has something to do with the recognition that i only learn to listen when my body tells me "enough". Sometimes it slips my mind that nothing really works without our health. The depression [that goes hand in hand with sadness}, has something to do with how i feel about my day-job as a programmer ~ unproductive and uninspired. That longing feeling for more time and more space to spend on my creative dream continues to yearn on ~ calling me. Maybe it was all these feelings that finally boiled down to this nastiest colds/flu. Either way, i didn't get much in the way of crafting done. It was good to have to stay away from the sewing machine for a while because it reminded me of how much i really enjoy sewing and seaming away. This slowing down, also reminded me of the comfort joy in "appreciating the tiny little things and the people around" ~ sometimes it just slip pass my fingers.

Sitting here in this slightly chill morning sunshine quietly sharing space with you here on my little bubble space was also one of the things that i needed most. Being here with you and connecting myself in this creative world keeps me calm, gives me a little more faith and believes in myself and allows me to carry on.

I also wanted to say thank YOU to each of you who commented so kindly about my wedding ring pillow. It feels good to have made a big check beside that item on my list. I'll be back soon with more crafty news.

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

"Something Old, New, Borrowed, and Blue

....and a silver sixpence in her shoe."

The often unquoted last line of the traditional bridal saying gives a hint at its origin from a charming old rhyme. Each item in this rhyme represents a good-luck token for the bride and a happy marriage. I wanted to incorporate each of these items in my wedding ring pillow creations and hence the result...

"Something old" always symbolizes continuity with the bride's family and the past. I tried to create this feeling in the pillow embellished with an old classical "feel" of vintage handkerchief with classic embroidery ribbon and folklore stitches. "Something new" means optimism and hope for the bride's new life ahead. This ring pillow will be that something new.  

"Something borrowed" is usually an item from a happily married friend or family member, whose good fortune in marriage is supposed to carry over to the new bride. I added my sunrise new Czech heart shaped glass beads in hopes that it will being good forune in the marriage.

 

Finally "Something Blue" has been connected to weddings for centuries. A lovely blue monogram of the bride and groom initials. I've also done a few experiment with adding lavender fragrance to the wool stuffing. With success, this wonderful wedding ring pillow carries a touch of lavender fragrance in it's stuffing adding a fresh and relaxing scent.

I don't know how i managed to get sick (yet again), but i am down for the countless time of this nasty flu/cough/fever situation. Being sick is just not so fun. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that doctor prescribed medication combination with tea plus many long naps and rest will contribute to some form of recovery. 

I hope to see you soon when im feeling much better. Till then i wish you a wonderful merry happy start of the week! Yep no hugs today as i wouldn't want to transfer any of this nasty situation to you. :) Love to you and yours!

Seems like little Chloe is in the Halloween spirit

 
.... teehee

I wish Halloween is a huge event here in this city of brotherly love but unfortunately it's not. If it is, i would be looking forward to pumpkin carving and tricker-treaters ~ it's fun to see what comes a'knockin'!

Once again i took the liberty to seek the help of the ye olde wizened ~ Random Number Generator! Emails will be sending out soon to the chosen ones ~ Koralee, Gina Kim, Dana, Kate and Emily. Girls watch your mailbox for a package from little me... i hope these little teaspoons treat you well.

 
There was such a variety of thoughtful comments and recommendations! I feel really lucky to have such a well-rounded generous friends. I like black tea and green tea, but i'm definitely open-minded to all other varieties. Thank you so much for playing along!

Have a lovely merry happy day and love to you and yours! Be safe friends!