What work looks like these days...

I'm starting to get the hang of things with interior photography and staging.

Of course, it helps that the apartment already looks good to start with :)

It's the first time I'm doing this truly on my own, and it took half a day to shoot this 2 bed apartment.
No flash, just natural light. Here's where I get my inspiration from.

ps: Still not used as being called 'the photographer'. Cool or what! Lol.

*click on pics for larger view*

Daisylions

Daisylions, originally uploaded by ♥ cherylthinktank ♥.

I was having a bad case of crappilitis moodilitis today. So I decided to take a walk.
It did the trick.

Toasty

'Toaster' by Plus Minus Zero

'' You toast a single slice of bread in a single-slice toaster. At a small table; at a big table; in a small kitchen; in a big kitchen. While pouring yourself a cup of coffee, you butter the toast and take a bite. Once you’ve spread jam on your slice of toast, you toast another. There’s a wealth of happiness in the smallest things. There’s the same feeling of happiness in a single-slice toaster as there is in a slice of toast.''

I'm sold. Now can someone please get me a single slice toaster?

Coasters for Miss ET :)

I've actually completed these quite sometime ago. Because it was a hey-just-surprise-me-project, I could not reveal it earlier! Now that the coasters have crossed the ocean safely and found its new home, I can finally share some pictures with you. (^ -- ^)

I decided it had to be 'quintessentially English', but at the same time a little quirky. Then eureka! Why not a giant biscuit as a coaster? I went to work straightaway, sketching it out on paper then tracing it on the fabric.

Embroidering it was the most time consuming part. Since I love doing it so much, I didn't mind it one bit!

My sister brought my embroidery hoop with her when she came to visit me last year in August.
Makes hand embroidering so much easier.

Making the small knots was pretty easy, and strangely satisfying...!






Behold, the finished product:

I made another biscuit, but a different flavour this time.

Even has 'chocolate coating' at the back. (> - <)

Here's something I've only just found out 2 years ago...

In the US, what we call 'biscuits' in England and Malaysia, the Americans call 'cookies'. Even if it's just the regular rich tea ones. A New Yorker who came to visit us a few years ago, got really puzzled when we served him our 'biscuits'. What he was really expecting was this, and according to him only Popeye's does it best.

They look suspiciously a lot like English scones, which can be made savoury too. Now I'm really curious as to what Popeye's food tastes like, all that comes to my mind is plenty of spinach and a sailor with a permanent wink.

If it's true what our friend from NY proclaim, Popeye's would make 'da best chikin and biscuitz in da world, man. In da world!!'

Rhosilli Bay, Gower

More photos!

Blogger is acting up tonight, and I'm afraid I'm really tired now. Gotta get up early for work tomorrow, so will post more when I can.

x Cheryl

Swansea

I'm so excited! o(> - <)o
We're off to a short and well deserved break over the weekend in Wales.

I've never been there before so I'm really psyched up right now! The weather has been gloriously sunny for the past 3 days (despite being a little chilly), sadly, this is not to last...

The next 3 days we will be expecting quite a bit of rain and the temperature is expected to drop to 7-8 degrees celcius again. But we are hopeful, even if only for a few seconds of limited sunshine, I can capture it with my camera and share that with you! :)

The accommodation we've booked is a really pretty one. The best part being our travel companion, Ms. E, who is really wacky and fun to be with! She's even found some recipes online we can try in case the weather got too bad and we are stuck indoors. How do you like the sound of pan-roasted scallops with tomato and herb salsa? Hmm, I'm salivating already. ( ' ' ,. ) I hope scallops are plentiful and cheap there!

I've been a boring camera geek for the past few weeks or so. Think I'm slightly obsessed and addicted to Flickr! (> . <) I do not wish to bore anyone with it, and promise to take a few nice pictures and caption it properly.

Lots of nice things have been happening but I've gotten quite lazy about blogging. Not entirely sure why, I sincerely hope it's just a phase. I don't keep diaries or make scrapbooks 'coz bleargh, just the thought of it bores me to the bone! This blog may be the only thing in my life that comes close to that, and sometimes even if it's just one photo and a very short caption, it's enough to make me smile and be filled to the brim with gratitude.

I'd like to live my life like that everyday.

Happiness should be simple like that. Don't you think?

Snapshots of my kitchen

There's plenty of light that comes through our kitchen, this time of the year.
I love it.

New flickr account

I just realised I have a free Flickr Pro account, it came with our broadband/telephone account.
*slaps forehead*
Hey, if you are on Flickr, add me! :)

From fickle, to crazy

The weather, not me lah. :D

Woke up this morning, and look what we saw outside -

Snow in April, how strange is that!

We had 3 inches of snow today, but everything melted away by midday.
It's starting to snow tonight, and according to the weather reports
this may go on for the next few days.

Spring wear will have to wait, now it's back to my stinky winter coat.
(-____-)||

Teaser

Who can guess what this is gonna be? :D

Special delivery

My 7th aunt (yes, seven!) gave birth to a baby boy about a month ago,
that would make him my, err.... *counts fingers and toes*
18th cousin on my mum's side of the family?
(@___@)

This is for him - a soft toy, diaper pouch and a pair of itty bitty booties that may or may not fit.
Booties are reversible, in case anyone finds them too red ;)

Note to sis - Has it arrived yet? :D

Links to my past projects:

Pressie for baby Natalie, *click!*
Pressie for baby Cameron, *Part1* ,*Part 2*, *Part 3*

Our Sunday in pictures

ps Vyan: These were the flowers we planted! :)

Growing up is…

Arriving on time.

Keeping your promises.

Picking your battles.

Standing your ground.

Knowing how to say sorry.

Knowing when not to say sorry.

Knowing nobody is sorry, but getting over it anyway.

Telling the difference between giving up and walking away when it's not working.

Stumbling, and in one breath say ‘Whoops that's wrong start again.’

And most importantly,

having the courage to just be.

On my way to work

Updo

While waiting for the right time to catch my train to work.
A few snap shots to remember a good hair day ;)

Spring colours

Pink and green eyeshadow to match my new t-shirt.
'*( ^.^)o *batbat*

Kuih Tako

I found this Kuih Tako Segera at an Asian grocery store in London last month. Suddenly I was a kid again and I remember taking this cold, custard-like dessert out from the fridge. Gently peel away it’s soft green leaves, inhale all it’s pandan-ey and coconut-ey goodness before taking a bite. Mmm, sweet and crunchy water chestnuts in the middle! Simply delightful.


Despite mentioning 'water chestnuts' about 10 times on the box, and misspelling it as 'cheatnuts' twice, there isn't a shred of the said nut. (It's a nut, no? :P) We had to buy that separately. It came in a can and tasted quite alkaline to me but hey, beggars can't be choosers!

We threw away the pandan essence sachet as the green colour was shockingly lurid -- I didn't know whether to dye my fabrics with it or just use it like paint. We had real the leaves anyway, after a quick blend and sieve it turned out fine both taste and colour wise.



Couldn't figure out how to fold the leaves into small and square containers! Ended up pouring the mixture unto 3 different plates and eating it with a spoon.

We use to be able to buy kuih tako in real pandan containers. When its folded correctly you won't need staples. These days things are so articifial. No more leaves, it comes in hard plastic stapled together. Looks very unappetizing to me, not to mention slightly melted plastic can't possibly be good for you.

Maybe I'll try the real thing one day, no instant mix, just using natural and fresh ingredients.
Does anyone out there know how to fold these little pandan thinggies?

Here's a link to another favourite Nyonya dessert of mine, Onde-onde. *click!*
Another link when I made Dried Nyonya Curry. *click!*

Maybe

What Desmond ate last Sunday.
*click picture* for larger view

Hello internet-using-people. How are you today?

I have a confession to make. My lack of posting lately has been deliberate. :( I’ve been trying to cut down my computer slash internet trolling time, to as little as possible, sometimes to just 15 minutes a day but only to look for work related emails.

Besides the general feeling of blahness, there is also work. Nicely busy, is what I normally say. Things are finally chugging along, and I’m relieved to be finally seeing the end of this tunnel.

With the extra time freed from the evil computer, I’m moving back to the basics. Sketching out new crafty ideas and then making it. Getting acquainted with the SLR with all it’s nifty little buttons. You know what? It isn’t so scary after all. A really cool photographer swapped lens with me just for the rest of the week. (she called my lens cute. Eeek!) Hers is a wide angle one, and boy oh boy, I can’t wait to mess around with it!

I’ve also been sleeping well, which could be due to me being caffeine free for 2 whole months now. (raise both fists in the air triumphantly *woot! woot!*) Decaf didn’t turn out as bad as I thought, but now I know I can't handle even the slightest bit of alcohol or caffeine, my ego feels quite bruised. (-___-')

Marks & Spencer Decaf Coffee is my favourite and I can drink up to 3 cups a day without feeling guilty. Or feel my heart pumping like a scared little mouse that just narrowly escaped death. I have a bottle of Decaf Diet Coke in my hallway, and heaven knows what that tastes like. I just hope it doesn’t suck. (> . <)

Nowadays I'm asleep by midnight and up at 7am, omg is this what normal feels like?
*flex arms* This auntie feel so powerful and healthy! Heh.

Right now I’m feeling very excited because we’re making holiday plans for the next few months. Here are a few favourite sites of mine when planning my travels:

www.hotelclub.com

www.tripadvisor.com

www.leestravel.com

I take tried and tested reviews very seriously. As a kid, I hardly got any pocket money so until today, I get extremely angry when I’ve paid good money for dodgy products or services. Which explains why I don’t buy into cinema hype, crappy songs or anything fake like that. Bah, humbug!

What I ate last Sunday. *click picture* for larger view

And so. I did a quick recap and realised it’s been more than 2 years since I’ve started this blog. Two whole years? (And three days to be exact.) Holey chipolatas! What started out as a design blog, has turned into a craft blog, occasional food, travel, and girlie blog. And now, I’ve started meddling with photography. I’m tempted to just stop blogging. Or maybe just focus on craft. Maybe I’ll just turn this into a photoblog?

Hmm. Maybe. :)

Fickle

What weird weather we are having today.

Since 8am is was cold, wet and cloudy. A few hours later it was snowing, but only for 5 minutes! Then the clouds decided to break away for a while, and that gave us some sunny blue skies.

It’s only 30 minutes past noon and we are back to cold, wet and cloudy.

Will be off in a few minutes to do some photos for work, so I’m praying for a few more hours of sun.

Sock dolly - Part 2

Wahey, green bloomers!

Part 1 here. *click!*

Bokeh

With ye 'ol faithful Sony Cybershot


With the Canon!

Check out the work of an uber talented photographer, Anna Kuperberg. She has a blog too!
I spent the afternoon ooh-ing, ahh-ing and grinning at the screen.
So warm, whimsical and amazingly beautiful.

Sock Dolly - Part 1

What to do with new but unwanted socks:

(Click on pics for a larger view)

you turn them into wide eyed girl dollies!
:D

I haven't sewn on her mouth because I couldn't decide what it should look like.
A loop-sided smile? A big grin? Mouth forming a small 'o' to complete the surprised look?

Stay tuned, she needs a dress and a pair of pants next! :P

Focus

Desmond's woolen scarf. Click on pictures for a larger view!

Ordinary things take on a different dimension with the new camera. The spoon in my coffee. Mug containing the coffee. Plastic lid casting dramatic shadows from a study lamp. Even stray human hairs on the table look more interesting than usual. (Oh, eiww.)

There's still so much to learn. I'm starting with the manual first. Here's a few practice photos:

Tulips from the Covered Market in Oxford

The birds in our garden really love these. Don't know what its called.
The proof is in their the poop, left on our wooden fence. (-_____-||)

2008 Year of the Golden Rat

To fresh beginnings, change, joy and smooth journeys.

To good health, good fortune, love and togetherness.

To hope...

To faith.

May all your wishes come true.

My dslr

The wait is over. It has finally arrived!
Thank you everyone for your kind comments and helpful tips.
I think I found the right one for me in the end. :)

*Yipee-yai-you-kai-yay* Cheryl the happy camper!

Sweeney Todd

.. was a bit of a let down for me. The singing was strange, the pacing horrendous. I do however like the storyline, maybe the broadway version is better. Oh well. Anyhoos. It didn't put me off meat pies, in fact it got me craving for them! *salivates*

Pics of our ready made steak pies from Sainsbury's, served with steamed vegetables.

Tension

I can tell it's nearing that special time of the month when I start craving for red meat.
It's the only time that ever happens.

Was just about to carve this baby up when I notice it looks a bit like The United States...

Can't really see it?

.
.
.
.

How about if I do this? :D

Shoulder bag - Part 2

Floral fabric is 100% cotton, purchased on our way back from Lake District.
Red fabric is 100% linen, from IKEA.

p/s: I've gotten my bobbin case replacement (yay!).........
but the lens is lost somewhere in post (no yay).
We've received our full refund and have placed another order
with a different reseller since last Saturday.
Wish me luck!

*crosses fingers, toes, eyes. wtf.*

Shoulder bag - Part 1

Starting with paper templates and making measurements.

There's something wrong with my sewing machine,
the bobbin case keeps rattling about then whole thing jams up.
I've contacted a local shop for a replacement of the bobbin case, mine is so badly scratched.... :'(
Argh, I'm so annoyed because this means I can't sew anything with it until it's fixed.

Top bit of the shoulder bag, without the base.
I'll post pictures of the completed bag tonight!

Hubba hubba

The camera body arrived last Wednesday. The lens arrives today.

*edit*

The lens has not arrived, much to our annoyance. We've made a complaint and have been refunded the shipping cost, but we're still puzzled as to why it is taking this long, considering the reseller is based in UK. (We placed our order on Tuesday, 22 Jan 2008)
Hopefully it will arrive in the next day or two, if not, we will have to claim a refund from Amazon.
Hmm.... I am not a happy customer :(

*/edit*

Someone please grab hold of me, I can barely contain my excitement!

\(> 0 <)/