Paper Crafters Get Together 2.0: FULL REPORT

It has been a tiring, yet very fulfilling weekend. :)

I was really looking forward for GT2.0, since it's been almost 5 months since our last GT1.0. I would like to consider it a success, and I had tonnes of fun meeting other crafters. I humbly thank everyone for attending, and for supporting this little get-together. Organising wasn't easy, but I've had help from other crafters and art enthusiasts, who gave me more supports than I've ever needed.

Eco-cent$ had been very accommodating in providing a place for us to hang out for the whole day. It was truly an act of kindness that is very hard to come by. Eco-cent$ imports pre-loved items from quality-obsessed Japan, and range from winter apparel to home goods. The quality items are generally sold at value & warehouse prices, suitable for the whole family. The owners are lovely ladies who support Arts & Crafts and they've been such a great help in making GT2.0 a success. For more info on Eco-cent$, you can visit their Facebook page.

As for the lovely 26th of February - I seriously thought my cheeks would be hurt from too much grinning and smiling the whole day. I'd the chance to meet some beautiful and talented paper crafters for the first time - Azilah, Aziha, Musfirah, Fatin, Nazirah, Iza and had great fun in reuniting with As, Lin, Tania and Nadia. I've also received supports from crafters of other crafts as well (felt, crochet, knitting etc), so thank you Mikko, Shikin, Sab,Fyd, Mizam and Norlie! (hope I don't miss anyone!)

For more photos of the event, here are the links:

Miyyah@Kertas Facebook Page
Azilah of Cupcake Craft & Handmade Cards
Sekoci Norlie's

For those who missed the event, no worries. Watch out for our GT2.0 CARDS AUCTION -  we decided to expand the fun online and auction all the cards made during the Paper Crafters Get-Together, so you'll have your chance to bid your favourite cards. It's not really about how much they worth, it's just for the fun of it (thanks Mangosteenskins for the idea!). The collected amount from the auction will be used for the upcoming get-together/ paper-crafts demonstrations. Details on The Auction will be given later. Watch the space okay! :)

Paper Crafters Get-Together - The Map!

Here's the map to Eco-Cents for Paper Crafters Get-Together tomorrow! (I'll provide the confirmed attendees with my number, just in case you'll get lost okay!)

** From Federal Highway - exit Subang Airport first.

I know I wouldn't be able to sleep tonight hehe - am just so excited to meet everyone tomorrow. Probably lots of grinning and less card-making, but who cares! :) See you tomorrow!

DIY Engagement Ceremony - Part V (Final): The Decorations

I can't usually think straight when my energy level is low. Especially at midnights.

The decorations, and the additional labellings weren't in the original plan, but I think I went a wee bit crazy the midnight before the ceremony, and started printing out some weird things. LOL. (I always do funny things at 12 midnight haha).

First, I printed the mineral water labels, and wrapped around all the mineral bottles.

The tissue and the stone was dad's idea, which I LOVE! We added a glass of water with extra flower from the hantaran. Just a quick, and simple table centrepiece.

 

Second, I printed the menu cards, and paste them right beside the dishes.

The sad part was, I totally forgot to take the pictures of the food. I wish I could show you how the food looked like! All the food were prepared by my awesome aunties. :). I made the menu labels using simple Photoshop design and laminate them so they could be recycled later hehe.

Third, I started gluing my extra quilled flowers on hairclips, for the little girls.

Erm. Okay. The last picture was of my wicked cousin haha, whom had hapilly demonstrated on how to wear a flower on your head LOL!

The hairclip experiment wasn't really successful, because I didn't use strong enough glue, that the flowers didn't stick very well haha. Well, at least I tried. :P

Phew. Finally, that's the end of my sister's DIY Engagement Ceremony! I have to thank my great assistants (my sisters, aunties and cousins) in making this a success. It's not the end yet, as we have a DIY Wedding to plan! See you then! :)

The poster is up!

Thanks Miezam for the poster! :)  Click HERE to go directly to the Discussion Board. Feel free to use the poster to spread the words too. :)

Pictures credit to:

Namizam of MiezCraftShop
Asma' of Simple Rhyme.

DIY Engagement Ceremony - Part IV: The Favours

A quick one.

These are the favours that were given out during the Engagement Ceremony. The first one was the Ma'thurat, (a mini book of daily prayers), which we bought in bulk, and altered the cover using black and pink theme.

We were trying to avoid using ribbons as much as possible (haha), so instead of using ribbons to tie the booklet, we used cotton string. We are aiming for simplistic design anyway.

The label in the middle was actually printed on a transparency sticker, so it was easier to peel and stick without worrying over the neatness hehe.

Our original plan was only to give these to the guests, but then my dad suggested that we included pears as well (his favourite!).

I have to thank Azilah for the inspiration on using the black netting on favours. Hers were simply superb and very meticulous on the details (especially the fluffily gorgeous flower). Ours were waayyyy more simplistic, and raw haha.

I love the striking green that pops through the netting. Yes, green wasn't in the theme colours, but I'm a green-biased person so I love it anyway haha. We added the same label (but a bit smaller in size) to keep up with the theme.

The design doesn't cost us much, since we save a lot by deciding not using ribbons.We figured that most will throw them anyway, so why wasting beautiful ribbons when you can replace them with cheaper alternative?

With this done, upcoming next, is the last part: The Decorations! Yeay! :)

Paper Crafters Get Together v2.0

IT'S BACK, AND YOU'RE INVITED!
Come and join us for a day of paper-crafting fun!

WHAT?
Paper Crafters Get-Together v.2.0

WHEN?
Saturday, 26th February 2011.
10.30 am - 5.00 pm

(it's a very laid-back event so you are free to come and go at any time)

WHERE?
Eco-Cent$
33B, Block L
1st Floor,
Taipan 2, Jalan PJU 1A/1,
Ara Damansara,
Petaling Jaya, Selangor. (otw to Subang Airport)
Tel: 012-2915181/ 016-6287820/ 012-2683843
(map to the place will be provided later)

WHAT TO BRING?
1. Your own craft tools and materials to share.
- Sharing is caring! If you don't have any, just bring yourself.

2. Your creativity
-You don't need to be a paper crafter to have one.

REFESHMENT?
Refreshment can be bought at Eco-Cent$ cafe.

No payment is required but advanced reservation is needed. Places are limited (20-25 participants only). If the number of participants exceeded, we'll try to arrange another session. To reserve a place, please add your name to the list in the discussion board at Miyyah@Kertas Fan Page. The list will be updated on daily basis so watch the space okay! :)

Feel free to discuss the event on the discussion board as well.

GIVEAWAY - For Someone Lucky (CLOSED)

THE GIVEAWAY IS OFFICIALLY CLOSED. RESULT WILL BE ANNOUNCED LATER. THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING! :)

2010 has been a great year for me - both in my personal life, and my blogging experience. I've enjoyed a fair amount of joy this year - great graduation, new job, new niece, amazing holiday, great get-togethers, interviews, write ups, reviews, fairs and bazaars etc. I've met so many great people, learned so many great things, and have enjoyed every single day of 2010. This blog for one, has been a life-changing experience for me, for through it I met some great friends. It feels amazing to find friends who'd rather buy paper and craft tools than some branded clothing or designers' bags, who'd go straight to stationery section every time we went into a store, who'd flip through every single craft books in a bookshop, and who'd spend hours brooding over some scissors, ribbons and coloured paper.

Additionally, I will forever be indebted to my readers (each one of you), for trusting me, and for encouraging me all this while. It feels good to have people appreciate your work. There're highs and lows even in my blogging/ crafting experience, but you were there for me, supporting me all the way, whether vocally, or in silence.

Thus, to commemorate the end of one beautiful year, Miyyah@Kertas has decided to hold its FIRST Giveaway! I've decided to give this away to ONE lucky reader.

*Picture Updated*

It's a qulling-adorned photo book/album (26 cm x  19.5 cm). The quilling design is done using 1mm quilling strips instead of the usual 3mm.

You can be totally selfish and keep the album to yourself, or use it as your photography/craft portfolio,or utilize it to display your wedding / family/ friends etc photos, or turning it to make a great scrapbook, or give it away as a wedding present or use it as a surprise to your other half etc.


Rules of the game (Please read this carefully before submitting your entries)

1. Anyone on earth can participate.
2. Be a fan on my facebook page and/or a follower of my blog.
3. Please leave a comment in this giveaway entry to participate. Get extra entries by having this giveaway posted on your blog (if you have any)/ share this giveaway on your facebook/ twitter status (for fb, please tag miyyah@kertas).
4. Don't forget to provide your email address together with the shared (blog/fb/twitter) links. Please ensure that you leave only ONE comment.
5. The closing date of the giveaway is on 16th February 2011, 11.59 MYT (GMT +8). 
6. The winner will be chosen via random.org, and announcement of the winner will be made shortly after.

GOOD LUCK!

DIY Engagement Ceremony - Part III: The Gift Boxes

I love repetitive geometrical patterns (and by now you should be tired reading that haha). I'm so into Islamic Arts right now, and been reading on the fascinating geometric patterns in Islamic Designs - the beauty of geometric ornamentation in stressing the importance of unity and order.

I've decided to do something that is not too complicated, and ended up on this design. :) Bought the box at D' Nata, Tropicana City Mall, Petaling Jaya (during Christmas sale!).

And these biscuit boxes carry the same design as well. You can find the plastic boxes at any bakery shops. I found mine at Bagus Baking Solutions at Section 13, Shah Alam. That's the nearest to my place anyway.

 

We used three different types of biscuits - all are store-bought: Almond Biscotti, Raspberry Viennese and Chocolate Chip Cookies. (The Biscotti was superb and dad's favourite- bought them at Chocolat World.).  I used my reliable CS2 Photoshop to create the simple tags (yeah, need to upgrade the CS soon haha), and cut them using EK Success Circle Scissor Plus (love the toy!). Enjoy! :)

Up next: The favours! :P

DIY Engagement Ceremony - Part II: The Butterflies

It started off as an experiment, but later I decided to feature the butterflies as part of the hantaran. The process of making them tested a lot of my patience (what didn't? haha). It took me almost 3 days to finish a butterfly (I only quill at night time), and took almost 2 weeks to finish all 7 (done leisurely while watching online kdrama hahaha). In order to have the butterflies stand on their own on the hantaran, I tied the middle part of the butterflies with a soft wire.

(The making of)

They weren't very neat, and I still have lots to improve on (they did leave bits of smudges in the end product), but I'm still happy about them. They're my first 3D quilling butterflies after all. The making of the 3D butterflies were a bit tedious, especially when  gluing the wings, but I'm fully satisfied that the glue was strong enough to hold the flippable wings together.Yes! The wings. are. flippable! :P

All the 7 butterflies were done using the same techniques, the same amount of paper, and yet, they still came out slightly different from one another - which I love! :)

Enjoy the butterfly feast okay! Up next - the boxes! :P

DIY Engagement Ceremony - Part I: The Hantaran

I've talked about Merisik in Malay culture before, and this time, it's my pleasure to share the uniqueness of Malay engagement ceremony. Unlike most parts of the world, the engagement ceremony in Malay culture is done in a much bigger scale, and it isn't just between two people. The ceremony (cum celebration) involves the whole of both families, and sometimes, friends. It's more like an official ceremony where two delegations meet and confirm (verbally) on the upcoming wedding - and celebrate the agreement with delicious food afterwards hehe.

I personally think that the uniqueness of Malay wedding lies in the hantaran (sets of decorated gift items that sometimes include a ring, fruits, cakes, biscuits, clothings etc which are exchanged between the two families.) The word 'hantar' means 'send' in English, and the additional suffix 'an' refers the word as a noun, which derived the meaning as 'the items that are sent'. Basically, hantaran are a must during engagement/ wedding ceremony, and were always exchanged in odd numbers. For example, if the man's family brings 5 trays of hantaran, then the lady's family will have to reply with 7 trays of hantaran, if it's 7 trays, then the lady's side will have to prepare 9 trays etc. All the hantaran decoration are hand-made, and usually use lots flowers (fresh/ artificial) and ribbons, and always in theme colours (Try image googling "hantaran" and you'll see what I mean).

For the past few months, I've been quite busy juggling between my day job and preparing for my sister's engagement ceremony. Seriously, my sister is a hopeless soul when it comes to the art of making hantaran, or any other types of DIY decorations, so I completely took over :P. We were going for a more modern design, and I couldn't help but included quilling on each of the hantaran. Yes! Quilling! On hantaran! :)

We gave out 7 hantaran, which include:

a fondant cake (home-made by my cousin, Najwa)

Urat Jati (literal translation= wood teak texture), a Terengganu delicacy by my aunt, Teh Lah.

 Sampin Songket (hand-woven fabric worn as part of Malay wear) and Songkok (traditional cap)

Baju Melayu (traditional Malay outfit worn by men - this one is for the upcoming wedding)

a box of chocolates (with quilling-adorned box)

biscuits (almond biscotti, chocolate chips & raspberry viennese)

a tray of fruits with sparkling red grape drink

I had a blast making these, even though it was my first time trying my hand at flower decoration. :P The 7 butterflies were a huge hit and stole the limelight of the hantaran haha. I'll write in details about the butterflies in the next entry! Watch the space for more details (Part II) on the DIY Engagement Ceremony, okay! :)

Alma Mater

 *gasp!*

Yes, I'm always the patriotic type haha.

It's the logo of my alma mater: International Islamic University Malaysia.

Quilling this one was like going back on a time-machine. It made me grinned (half-stupidly haha), and smiled back to the tonnes of memories I've spent there. I kinda miss my old unimates, and even though we are on each other's friendlist on facebook, we hardly met. Yeah, my coursemates were the we-are-too-cool-so-why-meet kind of people hahaha, so I don't really think reunion is anywhere around the block.

I was the busy bee. I was hardly in my room at night time - I was too busy attending meetings and meetings and meetings, and spent most of my weekends doing my facilitating works with my club. And when I wasn't busy attending meetings or club activities, I would be busy looking up the sky, waiting for the rain to fall. Seriously! - and at the very first hint that it's going to rain, we (my friends and I) would happily hop on the first bus to the nearest Giordano shop. They sold their oh-so-cool umbrellas at half price on rainy days, and we were collecting them oh-so-crazily haha. I guess that's when my love for rain started. :)

It takes a while (weeks!) to finish the whole logo, and as usual, I ran out of patience towards the end, and simply wanted to finish them all haha. Can't help it, I was quilling the coils at midnights, with eyes half closed. *Seriously need to monitor my quilling quality lately.* I was planning to quill my primary/ high school logos as well (told you I'm the patriotic type!), but those were much more complicated than this one. Later maybe, when I have the right guts. :P

Oh, here's the original logo of my uni (I know, my proportion is a bit off):