Author Archives: styril

Party Printables

Posted on by
2

Feeling really giddy today! Glad to hear that somebody is interested in getting a copy of the party styling kit I posted a while back. :D You can print these on letter size card stock or vellum board using your home printer.

Terms of Use:

  • For personal use only. Please do not sell digital copies of this file or print them out for sale.
  • Do not redistribute this file elsewhere. You may link to this blog post instead.
  • Feel free to customize the text (Ex: Happy 4th Birthday Juan!)
  • Appreciate comments if you downloaded. :D Thanks!

Blue Sailor Bear Set

Yellow Owl Set

 

Run for the Dream

Posted on by
3

This might sound a little weird, but one of the dilemmas I have is finding a recipient for the cards I make. :p Sometimes, all you want to do is scratch that crafting itch and do something handmade. I take it as a welcome opportunity then to make cards with a real person in mind.

Last year, I made a gigantic group card using illustration boards for a friend I met in the office. It’s a habit in our team to get a big card then ask people to sign it. With all the embellishments I threw to fill the card, it seems more like a big scrapbook layout. :P Was it over-kill?

This year, I settled for a real scrapbook and got a cute album as a base. It was a last minute endeavor, staring around 10 at night and finishing 7 hours later. The experience was a fun adrenaline rush. I cheated on some pages and used heaps of washi tapes from Quaint Desk shop for a quick design job.

Party Styling Kit

Posted on by
5

I haven’t posted about the party styling kit that I shared during the craft soiree since I’ve been meaning to keep them in a separate entry. It was a labor of love, sweat and moolah for 3-4 weeks! So I hope you’ll indulge me if I wanted to dedicated an entire post for them. :P

  • Sweat because I can’t turn on the fan in this summer heat while making the tassels.
  • Moolah because some of the materials don’t come cheap, especially the metallic crepe.
  • Love well… read on.

It’s no secret that I am a fan of themed parties. I never had one during my kiddie years but that doesn’t stop me from imagining different party concepts. I could spend the day browsing through Hostessblog and admire the little details people can think of in executing a theme. This site is the ultimate inspiration board for party styling.

It wouldn’t be a surprise then that I happily adopt the insta-party idea Alessa suggested in lieu of cards as my craft soiree exchange item. It was the perfect opportunity to try my hand on it. I made 2 designs for the party styling kit, a yellow owl and a blue bear. Each set contains the following items:

  • 12 Multi-colored tissue tassel garland with Jute String
  • 12 Food Topper
  • 6 Food Menu Labels
  • 12 Thank You Party Favor Tags
The biggest challenge in making this was surprisingly the tissue tassels. They seem easy to make at first but you’ll be amazed at how time consuming they can be. Twelve tassels can easily consume 1.5 hours. I remember saying.. what did I put myself into? But it was all worth it especially when you hang them up and admire how pretty and unique it looks. :) I was really happy that Marielle displayed them in CraftMNL workshop and April in her shop. Thank you both! *tears of joy*

If you want to have a copy of the party printables, just send me a comment below and I’ll post them up in PDF if anybody’s interested. :)

Source:

  • Owl from mestillw
  • Bear illustrated by ME! :D

Feels like Christmas

Posted on by
1

Got the idea for the blog title from Macy who exclaimed something like.. “parang Christmas lang” during the soiree. I still remember feeling giddy with all the amazing stuff I received. Alessa started the soiree by introducing herself and sharing lovely handmade silver charms. Each one is customized to bear your initial. So cute!

Each crafter is then called, taking turns in introducing themselves and distributing their craft items. Guess who got picked to go first? ME! Hahaha. I was super nervous! =)) I made a party styling kit in two designs, a yellow owl set and a blue bear set. You can read more about it in another post. :)

Here’s what my loot bag contains. Feels so much like Christmas :D And the best part is all of them are handmade.

Breakfast Charm Set from Anna. Love everything in this set. They also have macarons! And.. CAN YOU SEE THAT NUTELLA????

Stationery Set from April (http://www.designsofartisan.com/). Complete with envelopes and tags. 

Felt Creature Kit from Beam of (www.shopartwine.com). Diving in for the duck! QUACK.

Cute red bead earrings from Dyosaimma (lipadyosalipad.wordpress.com). =) She wasn’t able to make it to the soiree but she graciously gave these earrings to each one of us. Thank you ;__;

Cup Cozies from Kaich!

Melted Crayon Alphabet from Koko. Now it’ll be impossible to label their colors now. Hahaha.

Notebooks with designs drawn by Lorra (http://www.starsfordreams.com/). You’ll find inspirational quotes in broken English just like those Korean stationery sets that were popular back then. I just have to include her call card as well. Aren’t they lovely?

Brasslettes and Rings from Mansy (http://mansillianasunday.tumblr.com/)! She can make art with any materials! Galing. =) Each person can choose between 1 brasslettes or 2 rings but Mansy was also kind to give an extra ring to my sister for free. Such a sweetie!

Fish earrings from satin ribbons. Marielle from CraftMNL (craftmnl.com) takes origami to the next level!

From the friendship bracelet goddess herself, Mikko (http://itrydiy.me/). And that pillow box? She made it herself.

Upcycled statement accessories from Nikki of Junk Studio (http://facebook.com/junkstudiocrafts)

Tote bag and button pins from Noelle (wanderlustdrifted.blogspot.com). Her love for beach and surfing shows!

One of my favorite gifts! Fabric wallets from Pat. I’m eyeing them for storing my receipts.

Mini inspiration blackboard and Pacman Ghost Acrylic Necklace from Wiji (http://www.thecuriousstudio.com/)

FREEBIES from HeyKessy. This made my day. TwT

Wood Earrings from Kilusan. Actually, they made that lovely black weaved box! Their contact info is indicated in the picture. If you want custom made packaging boxes, you can contact them!

Craft Soiree

Posted on by
4

This is a super belated post! But it’s one of my summer highlights so a documentary here is in order. Besides, I’m just this ecstatic to share with you how my first craft soiree adventure went!

The moment I saw Alessa’s blogpost about the soiree invitation, I knew it was calling for me and immediately sent a reply to her. I initially thought of making cards as paper-crafting is my strong point (or maybe my only experience so far? Will need to branch out soon!) but she suggested a insta-party set. Ok, party styling kit it is! More about that in a separate entry.

My sister joined me in this adventure to help me make and carry my exchange items to the venue. She’s that supportive and caring. ;___; The place is predictably Pipino, Alessa’s vegan restaurant. We’re both interested to try out vegan cuisine so it’s a double adventure for us. Actually, make that triple since we have no idea how to get there! We half-commute and half-cab our way to the restaurant. As Manong Taxi driver doesn’t exactly know the place, my sister whipped out her phone and launched google maps to be our guide. Yay for data plans!

And now the rest of the story will be told with picspam :D

Pipino’s bright and artistic interiors. The high ceiling and huge window gives this place a light and airy atmosphere. Also love that chalkboard menu and faded red brick accent wall. :D

Promises for the Plant and Cupcake Stand. They have interesting cupcake flavors such as Red Velvet, Choco Banana, Green Tea and Banana Chia.

Bigger Chalkboard Menu!

Cork Board Bulletin where the Mio Alphabet project is displayed along with collerals from other activities/events that Alessa supports.

Some of the food we had: Low-fat and Cheese-less Vegan Lasagna and Macy’s Kahlua Cupcakes (SUPER YUM)!

Vegetable Curry with Tofu Chips

The first friend I met during the Soiree was April. :) I knew it was her since I stumbled upon her blog via Lorra a few days before the event. I started with… are you April? HAHAHAHA. How stalkerish is that? She gets a star stamp for flying all the way from Davao to join the event.

Lorra came in a bit later but she’s one of the people I’ve been dying to meet. :) Got to know her when she ordered from the shop. Imagine my excitement when I discovered she’ll be joining the soiree too! *squeels*

April (Designs of Artisan Blog) & Lorra (Stars for Dreams)

Pat (www.facebook.com/paveee) and the super creative Nikki of Junk Studios

Macy of Macy’s Fields (http://thebestkindofnice.blogspot.com) and Koko (Team Publisher of Candy and Summit Books)

Performing Artists Kaichy (http://kaich.tumblr.com) and Anna (http://facebook.com/anna.achacoso). I envy that divine lighting in the photo. Hahaha.

Mikko of I try DIY and Em.

Graphic Illustrator/Designer and Tattoo Artist Wiji of Curious Studio and Mansy of HeyKessy (http://mansillianasunday.tumblr.com). I keep on accidentally calling Mansy, Kessy. Sorry! HeyKessy is such a catchy name. :)

Macy shared when she started baking and where Macy’s Fields came from. Koko plugged The Friendship Bracelet Book published under Summit Media.

Lorra shared about her love for notebooks and amusement for inspirational quotes in broken English. Hahaha. :) Mansy in action!

Marielle before and after pic! Kidding. :) Here Marielle is showcasing her craft exchange item and plugging about CraftMNL. Go check it out!

Wiji showcasing her art and distributing her acrylic laser-cutout necklaces.

Alessa in serious business i.e. choosing from Wiji’s necklaces. In the second pic, Noelle is sharing her tote bags with surfer girl design.

Nikki sharing her pop art from recycled materials and Beam.. well being herself. Love that smile and energy!

Representatives from DMC who sponsored the materials for the bracelet-making crafternoon!

Class Picture!!! lol. Thanks to my sister for taking them. ;___;

These people are just AMAZING! :D I’m so fortunate to be part of the first craft soiree, meet creative crafters and be inspired by them. The good news is… Alessa is planning to host more soiree in the future! I hope you’ll join them! :)

Lasting Impression Purchases

Posted on by
12

As promised, here’s a run down of the things I purchased from Lasting Impression. Each trip to that place was a restraint exercise!

Utility Punchers! I went to that place exactly for these! Fiskars is brilliant for reinventing punchers to work with squeeze motion. They make punching completely a breeze! You can also easily tell on which part of the paper you’re cutting out.

(left to right) Fiskars Medium Easy Squeeze Punch 1″ Round Circle, Fiskars X-Large Easy Squeeze Punch 2″ Round Circle and Fiskars Corner Easy Squeeze Punch 1/2″ Corner

I often use the 1″ circle puncher for making folded paper flowers. It takes ages to be manually drawing and cutting these circles so this tool was a gift from the heavens! Sometimes I throw in a couple of folded paper flowers to my shop orders as freebies. Hahaha. :) I hope the recipients won’t throw them away. :P

The middle one was used for my food topper in the Craft Soiree exchange.

The round corner puncher is another great find. I have been pinning away for these ever since I started making cards. They make a world’s difference in giving your cards this professional finish look! Manually cutting the edge just doesn’t work too well for me. :P Triple yay for that corner chomper! :D

Fiskars Everywhere Punch System Starter Kit

This was one of my accidental purchase from the shop. I was desperate in finding a 2″ scallop puncher but it’s unavailable. The shop attendant recommended this to me along with the scallop die that can be loaded up with this kit. I have no idea how this system works but took the risk anyway and bought the starter kit and the scallop die. The two items can easily rack up to 1500+. Unfortunately, it’s my worst purchase. :(

The Everywhere Punch solution is ideal for making window cards where you want to create a design that’s not limited around the edge of the paper. For my purpose, I wanted to make scallop cutouts but have little use for “windowing”. The punched out paper will have 3 holes in it, rendering it useless. :( Not to mention, punching a hole with a plain bond paper can be quite a pain! Making a clean cut on cardstock is impossible! It’s actually easier to just use a cutter or x-acto knife.

I decided to return the scallop die since it was still sealed. Unfortunately, the starter kit stays with me to rot. :( If this is your thing, I’m willing to give it away for a discounted price. :P

October Afternoon Farmhouse Stamps

On my to-purchase list are doily stamps. This is the closest one from the shop so I bought it right away. Have no idea what to use the other stamps for though.:P But no regrets on this one! :) You’ll occasionally see them on my shop packaging.

VersaMagic Red Magic Ink, Versafine Habanero Ink and Uni-ball Signo White Pen

Some bright red and reddish-pink inks I got from the shop. They don’t have Colorbox but carry Tsukineko and Versa lines. :) They also have white gel pens! This was the last one in the shop at that time. SCORE! So lucky~ They’re quite useful in making fake card stitches. :D

Martha Stewart Crafts Doily Lace Punchers and EK Success 1-3/4″ Circle Paper Shapers

On my next visit, I returned the scallop die for the everywhere punch system and got these happy replacements :D The doily lace edge punch works beautifully for paper scraps. So instead of throwing away scraps from the guillotine cutter, I turned them to paper laces. Plus points for recycling!

I’ll be back for more goodies once my wallet revives. I hope you enjoyed browsing through these purchases. If you’ve been there, tell me what you got! :)

Craft Haul!

Posted on by
3

My sister and I were in adventure mode this Saturday and scored a few crafting materials that will keep me in happy high for a week or two.

Got these colorful buttons at 144 pieces per color! My sister exclaimed, “What are you going to do with 800+ buttons?!” I sheepishly replied that I can use them for paper flowers and card decoration. There were so many shades to choose from but I sticked with bright colors. They look like M&Ms 8D.

The next in the list was felt cloth. It was harder to look for them as most shops sell the usual fabric line-up like satin, geena, chiffon, organza, katrina, twill, and etc. The first shop we went to had limited selection and didn’t have the colors we wanted. Fortunately, the second shop has more colors. :) Obviously, we gravitated towards mori-themed shades. Hahaha. :)

Am super excited to try them out in my next crafting projects. Actually, I took a small square from the yellow one already and used it as a flower decor on my Mother’s day card. :D

A Crafter’s Happy Place

Posted on by
10

… but my wallet’s dismay! Let me tell you why.

After many months of pinning for craft tools and supplies on their online site, I finally hauled my lazy bum to Lasting Impressions last March. The shop area was not commuter-friendly so I was deciding between shipping or shop visit. As the items I want are heavy and expensive, I thought it’s best to go there personally for my first purchase. I arranged to meet up with Ran and we took a cab there.

I’m definitely glad I did. It was a craft disneyland as April puts it and I couldn’t agree more! (see her entry here! She has more pics of the place! :D ) My mouth dropped open when I saw the endless rows of shelves and stands displaying punchers, papers, washi tapes, stamps, inks, mists, chips, and everything you can dream of. I was giddy and I didn’t know where to start! Can you blame me?

Alphas, chipboards and flower embelllishments

Punchers

Background stamps and clear cling stamps

Stacks of Specialty Papers! :D

They sell washi tapes too!

Mists and Distress Inks

Let me tell you more about this place… This is the workshop studio where Iris Babao Uy usually hosts her workshops. She has regular classes (weekly if I remembered right) in this place and also uses it as a gallery to showcase her works. Iris’s signature style involves marrying mixed media techniques with traditional scrapbooking techniques. You can view her awesomeness at her blog.

I spent an hour trying to selecting and narrowing down what to purchase. It helps to have a clear list of items to buy and a strict budget. Will tell you about my purchases next time :D

Mother’s Day Card

Posted on by
1

Sometimes creating greeting cards make me feel like a kid, especially if you are giving one to you mom or dad during their birthdays, christmas, father’s day or mother’s day. It takes me back to elementary days where your weapon of choice during art class (HELE anyone?) were limited to oslo papers, art papers, crayons, color pens, paste and glitters. :) Ah, don’t you love those days when you can afford to do craft as school assignment? :P

So for my first “HELE” project this May, I made my mum a Mother’s day card. It’s a fancier take and I bet my 10-year old self would say WOW. Hahaha. Ok, enough self-praise. :p It’s actually just a simple window card that displays pictures of my mom from our recent China trip. :D You can read the details of this trip from my sister’s blog at My Tea Latte.