Noteboek

By Evelien Lohbeck in Netherland.

Eco Craftiness

I put together some pieces of scraps into this creature. It was fun starting with almost nothing in mind and see it take shape.

Now, what exactly is it? Your guess is as good as mine. Ha!


A while back, I also made this gift tag entirely out of junk mail. Thought it turned out looking rather cool.

IF - Clandestine

For Illustration Friday.

KBCC #9

It was another fun Saturday afternoon as the KBCC group gather once again for some crafting.

KBCC #9 Niko 009, originally uploaded by e79.

We kicked off with a Christmas themed ATC exchange. Well, we did have some beautiful cards and as usual, the variety is always so fascinating.

Next, we started our craft for the month. Ee Wei taught us how to create these Yuken Teruya inspired artwork from the core of toilet rolls.

We also had a special guest from Japan, Rin. She is here for an exhibition together with Kelvin.

Over apple crumbles and ice-cream, we wrapped up KBCC #9 on a high note, all ready for a great year ahead and more crafting to come.

Minilogue

Minilogue - Animals from ljudbilden on Vimeo.

Inspiration

40 inspirational speeches in 2 mins. Perhaps something that some of us will enjoy in this gloomy times. For the movie buff, the challenge is to identify the films these came from.

Via Overthinking It. Head on over for a transcript.

Mobile Garden

Mobile Garden is a fascinating exhibition of the wonderful origami creations from Kelvin and he is also joined by his Japanese friend Rin Ioka.

Some of us friends from Pauseability were at the opening. We had fun making origami chrysanthemums, and for each one made, 10 cents will be donated to SPCA.

The show is on at Forth Gallery and will end on 30 Jan.

Tape That

With imagination and deft (and probably bruised hands), it is a wonder what one can create with just cellotape. Here's a collection at the Nerima Art Museum in Tokyo, Japan by Ryo Sehata.

Cellotape art
Uploaded by ITN

It reminds me of the tape sculptures by Mark Jenkins. He even has instructions for doing your own.

IF- Voices

He was quite sure he heard voices.

For this week's Illustration Friday's theme - Voices

Drift

Haunting Melody

Theremin - a musical instrument that I have not heard about till today. Invented by a Russian physicist, it is played without actually touching it. The whole experience and sound of this instrument is so unusual and somewhat haunting.



This clip is from Randy George.

One can even get a lesson on how it works from Thomas Grillo.

Trendy

Get your own - Open publication

Enjoyed reading through David's report of 5 key design trends which intuitively I concur with. Interesting words he has coined for them: cooltural, rationaissance, responsibiz, sensuctive and breaking boundaries.

Tiap Tiap

My mother had these metal snap-on buttons in her sewing kit. If memory didn't fail me, they were used on the collar of her blouses.

We called them tiap tiap buttons because of the sound they make.

It was fun using them in creating this Snappy Bird brooch.

Poskad Show

I finally got to visit Pamera Poskad, the postcard show that some of us participated as a group.

Besides seeing our wonderful pieces nested among the many other creative pieces, the sheer range of works was very inspiring too. This was also a truly international event too.

We were thrilled that our works were displayed next to famous artists like well-known photographer Russel Wong.

The show is on till 20 Dec.

Book Me

This Is Where We Live from 4th Estate on Vimeo.

This stop-motion animation is amazing. Made from 1000 books and three weeks of filming, it is absolutely breath-taking to watch. From Apt Studio.

IF - Rambunctious

Rambunctious rambutans for this week's Illustration Friday.

Retro Music

I find this clip of Nancy Sit from the 60's simply charming to watch.

Emoticarolers

Dollars and Cents

Are there some unusual things you do with coins?

I cannot remember when I started to categorize my coins in my 2-compartment coin pouch. It was after having to fiddle around for a while to find the coin that I needed that I thought it would be cool, and perhaps more efficient, to separate them. So, all the 10 cents and 1 dollar coins are now in one compartment and the 20 and 50 cents in the other. Has it helped? Not sure actually. Ha!

And if I come across old coins in circulation, I would save them and put them in this old "piggy bag" that I had as a kid. Do doubt if these coins will ever be old enough to gain enough value to get me on my dream vacation though.


DK did the same for the 1 dollar coins he has been given and have now a good collection. If you can guess correctly the number of coins he has, he will even give you a pair of movie tickets.

Take on Me

For those of us old enough, we would know this familiar song from A-Ha. Here are 2 funny takes to enjoy. The original MTV with more literal lyrics.


And this other version from the singing dictionary Dictionaroake

Of course, here's the original.

IF - Similar

Over the previous weekend, a friend mentioned to me about the "same same but different" print on a tshirt. This digitally created piece has that feel doesn't it?

For Illustration Friday's theme Similar.

IF - Balloon

For Illustration Friday's theme Balloon.

Creating Together

What a busy Saturday at Pauseability!


The KBCC crafting club met and we tried our hands at making blushing blooms from drink cans. It was fun.


It was also time for those of us who are participating in a postcard art exhibition to pool our artwork together for submission. Look at the variety!

Click on the photos to enlarge.

Irony of Speed

Worth slowing down to just listen for about 20 minutes or so.

IF - Opinion

For this week's Illustration Friday topic - Opinion. What's yours?

Shine

An interesting short film that was made as a hair-product commercial.

Somewhat cliched and overly sentimental but a different way of product branding for sure.

IF - Pretend

Masak-masak is the local term for child's play or toys. In Malay, it means to cook.

In simpler times, children would play pretend with whatever they can get their hands on. Chipped and rusty enamel bowls, bricks, old glass bottle and a huge dash of imagination could cook up quite a storm.

This handdrawn piece was digitally coloured and collaged.

For Illustration Friday's topic - Pretend.

A*Live November

We had the largest number of first-timers joining us at the ATC trade session. Hi-5 to the 5 friends! 14 people made quite a crowd at Pauseability.

Besides trading our cards and catching up, we also tried our hands at an art activity:

Mr P was hidden in a bag, everyone got to touch it and then draw an impression of what they thought was in the bag. We also added some touches to one other person's creation. The final collection of work came out rather beautifully, and the variety spoke volumes for all the creativity in all of us!

Click on the photos to take a closer look.

Paperazi

It was fun trying out a few paper craft ideas and lining them up as parent-child sessions at Pauseability for this school holidays.

There are pop-up cards, teabag fold, mini book and origami bauble.

More details at Pauseability's website. There's also an eFlyer available.

Man in the Net

This is a very interesting projection of where the web might go in the next half of it's very short life of 5000 days. Certainly food for thought.

Very Nice

Like Mark Twain, I am pretty sure all of us could live for two months on a good compliment. It doesn't take much to give a compliment; just do or say something nice always brings on a smile. Then when we appreciate that nice deed, the joy multiplies.

In July, Melissa started Operation NICE to encourage everyone to be proactively nice. What a great idea! The creative energy she has put into this Operation is amazing. Kudos Melissa!

IF-Wise

Handdrawn in pen and ink for this week's Illustration Friday's topic - Wise.

Mankind is No Island

Love the way the message is put across. Powerful and poignant. Love the use of text as a visual and also how they are worded. Love the music. Interesting to note that the shots were all taken on a cell phone.

Via swissmiss

Chalk Dust

When I was still a student, we had chalkboards or more commonly called blackboard, even though they were really green. These have all been replaced by whiteboards today.

One of the things those of us who were rostered for duty had to do was to clear the dust from the duster used to erase the blackboard. We would either slap two dusters together or pound one on the wall, creating little dust clouds.

Small bits of chalk were also a weapon in some teachers' hands targeted at those not paying attention in class. On a number of occasions, these were also our ammunition for a class chalk war.

Chalk also came in handy for keeping our white-washed canvas shoes pristine.

Well, those were the days.

Here's an artist that has created wonders with chalk. Enjoy!

Love Revolution

This is such an ingenious piece of art by Kamikara. I certainly heart this. And it is made of paper!

IF - Vacant

A vacant bedroom that remembers when it wasn't empty.

For Illustration Friday's topic - Vacant.

Squirky Pauseability

Our few minutes of fame! Pauseability was featured in TeeVee land on Okto channel last week.

Here's a virtual way of visiting Pauseability - that little squirky corner of Singapore. Enjoy!

Fresh: Calendar 2009

Finally completed 50 copies of my illustrated calendar and they are ready for sales.

This is for the months of Jan to Jun 2009, each month's illustration is originally handdrawn and then printed. Each booklet is stitched and the cover stenciled by hand with tender loving care. The combination of colours for the cover and the thread are all different.

Available via Etsy and also at Pauseability.

IF-Repair

For this week's Illustration Friday topic - Repair.

It's About Time

A thought-provoking book that was originally written in Swedish by Bodil, a much needed thinkologist herself just as she advocates in her book.

Going Places

Even though Singapore is tiny, we do have some unusual little nooks to explore. In these past 2 days, I visited just 2 such spunky places.

The deco of this cafe was unusual - girlishly pink and teeny in appeal. Still I felt absolutely comfortable there. And the beef stew at Miss Clarity had kick.

And Casual Poet can sure transport you away from the bustle, and right in the middle of busy Chinatown no less. This little oasis of rest and inspiration is certainly a great pause-stop.

Craftholic - The Flower Edition

The latest issue of Craftholic is out! Grab you copy at Pauseability.

Get your own - Open publication

Work in Progress: Calendar 2009

Get your own - Open publication

Am working on an illustrated calendar. Likely to be just for Jan to Jun 09 for now, and left as line drawings.

Take a look and give me your comments please. Thanks.

By Design

Love this design by Seongyong Lee.

IF-Late

For this week's Illustration Friday's topic - Late.

Date's late?

Update: TeeVee Land

We had a teevee crew in Pauseability on 14 Aug and finally, the show is scheduled for screening on the new channel Okto this Thursday, 23 Nov, at 9 pm.

Yups, 23 Oct, Thursday, 9 pm.

The show is Squirk, and as I understand it, there might be a viewers' contest to win some Pauseability vouchers.

Stand Tall

Taller Than Trees from Joseph Mann on Vimeo.

Love this animation.

Incidentally, I have only recently created a giraffe Christmas card.

Mee Suah

Betsy, the creative mind behind the Crafting Club, is holding her first solo exhibition this November from 1st to 24th at The Arts House. It is called Mee Suah.

Mee Suah is a traditional noodle that comes dried. As a child, I remember that they came in paper boxes and each little bundle tied with a string. There were some birthdays when I had it with egg.

Ho Ha Ha

Collection of more here.

IF - Strings

This week's topic on Illustration Friday is Strings. This is my rather literal interpretation.

Was also reminded of a series from a while ago.

Flower Power

Last night, when we met for our monthly ATC live trade session at Pauseability, we had the theme "Flower Power". There were many creative ideas and beautiful cards were made and traded.

Next month, we meet on 13 Nov and the theme is "Fall".

Featured

It's nice to be featured at Monday Artday ATC.

Solemates

These handmade tabi shoes (foot bag? 足袋) from Sou Sou sure look cool. Rustic and elegant. The strapping system is intriguing.

There are fun ones too with fabulous fabric designs.

Worn by ninjas in the past and now by construction workers in Japan and also a fashion trend in recent years too.

Bottoms Up

Via Pushing Buses

IF - Sugary

Aww ... so sweet!

For Illustration Friday's theme - Sugary.

Butterfly O Butterfly

Rita will have her second sharing session at Pauseability and we will be learning to make origami butterflies.

This will be on 25 Oct, Sat, from 2 to 4 pm. For just $10 with all materials provided. Do join in the fun. Register early.

Small, Gentle, Graceful

In the words of Asa Arnehed, these small, gentle and graceful movements are filled with meaning and so well captured by her artistry. Facinating.

Song by El Perro Del Mar.

Via Auburn & Ivory

Child's Play

These interesting houses in Japan have been designed to stimulate the senses and force inhabitants to use balance, physical strength and imagination. They have uneven floors, oddly positioned power switches and outlets, a dizzying array of colors, and more.

It is designed based on the philosophy that a home that keeps its inhabitants young and healthy should provide perpetual challenges. Unusual isn't it?

Then again, I can just imagine what a lovely playground this would be for any child. Reminds me of how this kindergarten is designed.

Happy Children's Day!

Car Skin

Not one to rave over cars, even with the recent F1 night race in Singapore, but this car truly fascinates me.

And if this skin keeps cars cool in tropical Singapore too, it will be a sure winner.

IF - Packed

45. The sardines were packed as tight as the coach section of a 747.

For Illustration Friday's theme - Packed.

KBCC - Print

KBCC September edition - Print-making today was fun as was the company, as usual.

Since Children's Day is around the corner, it was so nice to return to a craft we all have tried our hands at as a kid. It sure brought out the child in all of us.

Stay young with crafting!

Power of Love

A Little at a Time

A small amount can make a big difference. Kiva leverages on the internet to expand the possibilities that microfinancing opens up for those who are poor.

Beyond the Shadow

DK has written a wonderful piece about shadow and art.

This is one of the videos she listed and there are many other fascinating and clever pieces as well.



She also had this piece that shows the wonderful combination of Science and Art.



Read Esoterica by DK.

IF - Cliques

Birds of a feather flock together.
For Illustration Friday's theme Clique.