JJ - Kimono Monkeying Around

My new design for a drawing journal and this was my first attempt with it.

The fabric used were all recycled scraps. Made the knotted button too, using the handle from an abandoned paperbag.

Kimono girl was added to spiff up the set. Made that with a *new* tongue-depressor and scrap paper.



Then I also monkeyed around with these postcards I just picked up. Added the specs and moustache. Got problem?

*JJ = Journal Junkie (looks like this might be a regular feature on this blog)

IF - Fierce

For this week's Illustration Friday topic - fierce.

7/11 Special

Giving a discount of $11 for journal making at $29 (usual $40) and $7 discount for teabag and iris fold class at $29 (usual $35).

Offer available at Pauseability till end of July.

Craftholic - The Paper Edition

The 3rd issue of Craftholic is out and it is all about paper. You can see it online or grab a copy at Pauseability.

It's wonderful having our very own local craft magazine. And it is free too. Great job Nanao!

Update (2 July): Now on Issuu as well.

O so Fun!

Created this little animated advert for Rita's forthcoming sharing at pauseability. Since learning origami recently, she has been enjoying them so much that she wants to share the know-how she has picked up.

It will be held on Sunday 20 Jul (20 07 2008 cute date ya?) from 4 to 6 pm. More details at pauseability's website.

And on the topic of flip-book animation, here's a cool video.

This video via swissmiss

Journal Junkie

I love recycling paper into journals and these were made in the past few days.

The cover for the colourful one is made by weaving strips of an old Chinese comic I found at the thrift shop. It is from the mid-90s and the riot of colours on each page made it very eye-catching when woven into the cover.

The one at the bottom left corner is more sculptural and was inspired by the weeds I noticed growing in the cracks on pavements. The green textured paper "weed" came from some scraps that were leftover from scraps that were first used to make the cover of green-coloured sketchpad. Thanks Stephanie and Rita for some of the paper used in these journals.

The yellow one is a variation of an envie journal - 12 pages of envelopes. Entirely recycled.



And of course there is Roost. No prize for guessing the source of the recycled cover.

So, which one of these junkie journals tickles your fancy?

IF- Hoard

He always thought he was merely hoarding the conversation.

For Illustration Friday's topic Hoard.

I've Been Blogged

Whoo-hoo! How exciting to be featured on another blog for the very first time. Thank you so much Meghan of Little Dickens Design!

Please do leave a comment at her blog.

about Face

Issuu is one cool website where you can publish your own work and I love how you can flip the pages.

I just had to try publishing something and here it is. Pardon the unpolished attempts of faux haiku. Click on "Open publication" to see it in full size.

The lovely font is from Miwaza.

First discovered Issuu via swissmiss.

Rest Room

Amazing example of how advertising started a social movement that created a cleaner Maharashtra in India. In one village, it even got them painting their whole place pink.

Talking of cleaning, here's another dirty job well done.

IF - Punchline

Found it a real challenge to illustrate the topic Punchline without words.

This is not the best but I hope cat-erpillar did tickle you.

For Illustration Friday.

ATC for All

In our latest Artist Trading Card Live Trade session at Pauseability, the 10 of us tried out two sets of round robin creation. It was a lot of fun and what we created were very lovely to look at.










What I love most about ATCs is that it is such an accessible way to create and share art. Earlier, 6 year-old Yi Zee was in the shop and she created these wonderful pieces. I love her simple and beautiful observation of the orange withered leave.



Do join us on 10 July for our next trade session. We are also planning for a 2-week "ATC on Parade" exhibition in August. Exciting!

Watching the Clouds Go By

As we rush about, it is quite likely that we don't have time enough to just watch the clouds go by. Even if we do look, we might get bored very quickly. Too slow? Nothing much happens? Even children don't seem to have time to just look at the clouds and imagine.



How the sun glows just a little brighter before disappearing into the horizon. Music and video from the talented Lanuza.

The idea of watching clouds reminds me of a Chinese song from the 80s.
女孩，为什么哭泣?
难道心中藏着不如意？
女孩，为什么叹息？
莫非心里躲着忧郁？
年纪轻轻，不该轻叹息，快乐年龄，不好轻哭泣，
抛开忧郁，忘掉那不如意，走出户外，让我们看云去。

My translation:
My dear girl, why are you in tears?
Feeling unhappy my dear?
My dear girl, why do you sigh?
Worry clouding your eyes?
You are young, let's not sigh
Such happy years, let's not cry
Throw away the worry, to all gloom say goodbye
Out the doors we go, together let's go watch the clouds go by!

Take 5

Created 5 new journals recently and listed all of them on etsy.

Most materials used were recycled/upcycled. Happy that they are each different from the other. What do you think?

Walking on Air

JK Keller makes some fascinating art. This video is called Bumper Jumpers.

Cover Up?

Just made this new "Green with Envie" with all recycled paper materials.



Should I cover up the print on the front and back cover? Please leave your comment.





Update 10 June: Listed this item in etsy.

Money Money Money?

If you saw someone offering free money while walking down a busy street, would you step forward to take it?

In a recent experiment in London and Manchester , out of 1800 people only 28 did. It also revealed a difference in the attitude of man and woman (all except 7 who claimed the money were men) and that the older one gets, it appeared we got more cynical.

The picture you see with this post is a cake made in Russia. Wonderful artistry!

And here is another one.
Sew long for now ... haha!

Beautiful Love Song

I'm Here - a sad and hopeful love song. I like the singing and the ukulele accompaniment.

The singing by Seeso is in Tagalog, and with him is the talented couple Bosko and Honey.

Woven

Here is another something I made using recycled materials. Weaving these strips made from expired flyers created a nice cover for a journal, both visually and to the touch. Added paper beads created from a magazine page as buttons too.

This is now available at my etsy shop.

After a long dry spell, I recently made 2 sales at etsy and that was a good boost to my morale. Not so much the sale, but to be able to share my handwork is such a delight.

IF - Baby

For Illustration Friday's topic Baby.

Riddler

Why is 8 afraid of 7?

Because 7 8 9 ...



This song and video from Barenaked Ladies is funny. From the kids album “Snacktime” and animation by Emmy-nominated Nancy Lennert.