Quick Peep for Fall

Deer Girl and Her Bird Friends @ LiPeony

It's been a while since I updated and it's been busy busy! I've been helping my friend and her wedding this Thanksgiving and it's drawing mighty close! I'll have photos of the DIY things I did with help from my buddies. I'm in the middle of making tiny personalized tags for the chopstick favors and just finished creating the "money box" where people stuff monetary gifts for the couple. Wrapping fabric around a box is hard then it looks!

The uniqueness of this wedding is that its a blend of a traditional Chinese and white wedding. This is my first time as a bridesmaid it's definitely an eye opener on traditions and the actual cost and time that goes into it. There's the traditional tea ceremony where teas are exchanged with both sides of the family as a sign of respect and union. The banquet is usually around 8 different dishes (8 in Chinese sounds similar to the word "good luck") and each dish has it's own significance. For details this site explains what each dish represents Chinese Banquet. I hope to take some awesome pictures if I'm not too busy to running around.

Until then here's a little deer and fall inspired print. It took a couple hours of tweaking and putting it down and picking it up until I was satisfied! I hope everyone is having an awesome autumn!

Until next time... eat them turkey and be thankful =)

Crafts in Chelsea Wrap Up

Last Saturday I vended at Crafts in Chelsea which is a joint fundraiser between the NewNewTeam and P.S. 11. Needless to say it was a huge success! The school raised about $8,000 and imagine all the extra programs this will provide! That day was also unbelievably WINDY! There was reported 50mph gusts and I definitely do not doubt that. I was sharing a space with Linda from PurtyBird and in the midst of our stuff getting blown over, displays falling, items strewn to the wind we had a lot of frustrated fun. This was my first time really in a weather situation I found it very funny because I feel there's just so much I can do and I should just try to find the humor in the situation. Linda was the funniest and most awesome share. She was extremely helpful and very cool to talk to!

Fortunately around 12:30 we got moved to another space down on the street and it was a godsend. The wind was just a breeze, there was sunlight and it was warm. For some reason our first spot was this vortex of wind that never stopped. My display still needs a lot of work. I managed to buy some 5 x 7 binder sleeves and those are totally awesome. It makes it so much easier for people to flip though and look at my prints. They were also protected and didn't fly off thanks to the wind. I will have to buy more.That day I was surprised that many people brought prints. I ran out of my Animal Trio because people wanted to buy them for their nursery or for a baby shower.

People also brought my pins. I had taped them to my big orange box to prevent them from being blown away and that actually made it easier to browse and choose a pin. Maybe it was because of the extremely bright orange-red fabric of the box but it caught a lot of people's eyes. Also people love love bright colors. All my orange goldfish pins were sold along with my red panda pins.

Another thing I notice is that even though it's somewhat close to Christmas (maybe?) most of the people who brought stuff from me brought it for themselves. I guess it's present buying time isn't really here yet. Though I've been very busy doing custom orders which I looooove doing! So if you want some custom print (I've been doing families and weddings a lot) just pop a convo to me at LiPeony.

I also brought some awesome things at the fair too but that's for another post =D

Here's Linda from PurtyBird with her awesome felt monsters and scrabble tiled necklaces and glass tile magnets. People really liked buying small ticket items but when they did they usually brought more then one.

Here's a victory pose at the end of the fair of me and Linda! WE SURVIVED!

Here are some tips for surviving windy craft fair day (gleaned from NewNewTeam)!

1. If you are going to bring a tent bring some study weights to weight it down and also weigh down your table (s). (A lot of people bring in empty plastic cartons and fill it with water when they get to the fair)
2. Try not to put sides to the tent because it'll act like a sail and your tent can hurt someone.
3. Or better yet don't even bring a tent if you can help it.
   
4. Have lots of tape and clamps!
5. Find out the weather beforehand!
6. Have your displays laid flat (clamped securely if possible).
7. Have a container for you biz cards. You don't want those to fly away.
8. Remember if things get too hairy... breathe... you'll recall this day and laugh =)
   

Due to the success of my felt pins... I'll be bringing them back to my shop later this week =)

Until next time... don't get bloooooownnnn awaaaaaay!

Outer Space and Earth Adventures

Astronaut Chibi Girl and Bunnies @ LiPeony

Everyone was wondering what the "3,2,1 Blast Off" teaser by the Etsy Twitter was talking about. Apparently in celebration of the space program NASA and Etsy have teamed up for a CRAFT CONTEST! Basically creating an original work dedicated/inspired by space, stars, astronauts, spaceships and all that outer space goodness! The above little print is what I've sent in. This print was first drawn about a year ago but never got around to finishing it. While working on it yesterday I realized that I had to rework it from scratch as my technique evolved. You know what? I think it came out looking great =D .

The grand prize is a trip to see a real life space shuttle launch! Now that is super cool! Also your art is aboard the space shuttle too... I think. Double cool! I encourage everyone to participate as it's fun and really... I'm sure everyone has dreamed about being an astronaut at least once.. On earthly adventures. Tomorrow is going to be my first and probably last craft fair for this year at Crafts In Chelsea unless I muster something for December. November is going to be full of helping my friend prepare for her wedding! Its on 21st street between 8th and 9th avenue. Though I heard the weather is going to be mighty windy... le sigh. Good thing I've managed to buy 5 x 7 binder sleeves for my prints. I'm planning to put them into two binders so people can flip though them like a book as opposed to just laying them flat in piles which I've always done. I'm also in the process of making a banner out of felt and embroidery thread. I'll take some pictures of it when it is done. I'll be selling mostly 5 x 7 prints, frames, rest of my felt pins and cards. Hope me luck tomorrow!

Until next time... to outer space and BEYOND!

New York Comic Con 2010

This weekend I attend New York Comic Con / New York Animefest 2010 for the first time. It's located all the way on the west side and is a pretty far trek from any subway station. Though I am a sci-fi and know a bit about comics and superheroes (I grew up watching all the cartoons of the 1990's from Batman, Spiderman, Ironman, Incredible Hunk, Fantastic Four, X-men) there was a lot more to this convention that was outside my realm. When you first see the Javits Center where it is held you are daunted by the fact that it spans some 4-5 blocks and there are hundreds of people milling about. Once you go in there's a huge "Welcome Banner."

I went with my boyfriend and my little brother. Kids get in for free on Sunday =D. My little brother (10) loved it! Intel made up a huge chunk of the convention hall that involved gaming. The huge screen above streamed previews, live broadcasts of the newest things and also streamed live game tournaments like Starcraft 2 and Counterstrike.

The highlight for me were these replicated race cars that people could sit and drive in a racing game. I thought that was really awesome. The line was extremely long and my little brother gave up after half an hour of waiting. They also showcase their new computers which I must say looks very nice. I'm basing this on just how visually appealing they were. They were stark white with clear inside and had all these lights and stuff. I'm not much of a computer savvy person. In that same room were autograph and artist alley section.

To the right was another huge convention hall with all the vendors. There were a lot of big companies like Nintendo, Marvel, Square Enix etc with playable stations featuring some of their new games. My boyfriend was gaga over the new Golden Sun for DS, I had a taste of FF14 the online game and saw people playing some favorites of mine like Dead Space 2 and the new Spiderman game.

Here was main platform for Marvel I believe. They would give out free things like signed posters, replicas of the characters, t shirts etc. As usual there is a huge huge huge crowd clamoring for them so I usually just avoid them. Stan Lee was also present and was signing autographs and greeting fans. I arrived late so I didn't get to see him =(. A friend did get to shake his hand and he was totally amazed. The wii also showcased the new Micheal Jackson: The Experience dancing game. It was a big hit. Everyone wanted to try it. Several people went up on stage to play the game and dance to his greatest hits. At the end there's always a huge explosion of smoke and everyone cheered. I couldn't help but take a picture of this cosplay based on a lovable game called Castle Crashers which is highly addictive and oh so cute! Speaking of cute isn't this SuperPooch so adorable? He was the model for the small vendor that sold pet costumes. I also saw a Yoda Pooch somewhere =D.

Another amazing sight was this remote controlled R2D2. It moved, it had lights and had all the classic R2D2 sound effects. That was really awesome to see.

Here's some more Star Wars love. Everyone was lining up for the show in which people choreographed fights using light sabers and preformed them for all to see. That was pretty nifty.The highlight of my weekend there was being there with the cast and crew of V a sci-fi series on ABC. Though I haven't seen too much of the series. I'm a huge fan of Firefly and really happy I got to see Morena Baccarin =D . There were three cast members and producer and they were really interactive and entertaining.

Overall I really liked the experience though a few things were lacking. One was that the AnimeFest was delegated to a pretty small and seemingly unfinished wing of the center but then again it's the first year so it's not perfect. Another one was the autograph sessions times and people were nowhere to be found unless you ran to the crowded autograph section or went online. I would like a hard copy at the convention so I can plan while I am there. There was also some pretty bad "con funk" (aka people who seem to forget to take a shower or wear deodorant). Besides that it was fun. I will have to see who and what is going on next year before I decide to attend.

I hope you guys enjoyed the quick rundown on some things during Comic-con =D
Until next time... get out there and delve in the fantasy of superheroes ever so often!

Mooncakes

It's that time again, this September 22 is the Mid-Autumn Festival aka Mooncake Festival. My friend said something very important whilst we were in bakery where people were clamoring for boxes of these mooncakes. "Why do we celebrate the Mooncake Festival?" Being born and raised in the USA sometimes we are caught too much into mainstream culture that we sometimes forget our heritage's culture and traditions.

That is the first thing I asked my parents. "Why do we celebrate the Mooncake Festival?" My dad replied that in China this was when the rice had ripened and was harvested. The people who worked in the huge rice patties sometimes far away from their families would go back home and celebrate being a family. Coincidentally this is also the month when the moon is at it's fullest and brightest. The moon being whole reflects the time when the family is once again whole. During this time people would celebrate by baking things and eating things that were round... like pomelos and mooncakes. There are also other myths related to this day such as the Goddess Chang'e and the one about the Jade Rabbit.

Mooncakes are these pastries that are normally roundish. Inside has stuffing made from lotus seeds paste with a whole egg yolk in the middle. The outside is thin and flaky and the inside is generally sweet and thick Though nowadays they also make them with all sorts of filling such as red bean, mango, lychee, green tea... to name a few. The one on top is inscribed with the characters indicating the filling inside and the bakery it hails from.

It would be very rare to find mooncakes unless it was from an Asian bakery and they're fairly expensive it's about $20 a box. I was very happy I asked because I had learned the reason on why we have these traditions and holidays. If someone were to ask me why we celebrated the Moon Festival I'd say what my dad said... to celebrate family...

Until next time... have a happy Moon Festival day =)

Dumplings nom nom!

Dumpling time at my house and my mom just happen to be making some and I jumped on the chance to take pictures of her in action! Dumplings are fairly easy to make and keep for a long time the freezer. It takes about 10 minutes to cook'em up which is great for breakfast or a a snack. Also you can put in a whole lot of different stuffing. The dumpling skin my mom got the premade ones and they're about slightly bigger then the palm of your hands.

She got her little work station set up. On the top is the dumpling skin, a single cracked egg in a bowl, the chives and shrimp stuffing mixture and a lightly flour dusted pan to put the made dumplings on.

First mom puts in a nice spoonful of stuffing in the center.

She dabs her finger in the egg white mixture and spreads it along the edges of the dumpling.

Then she pinches them tightly.

Then folds the outside corner. I assume this is to prevent stuffing from coming out when you're cooking them.

And ta-da! Dumpling! There are many different ways to make dumplings and many types of dumplings. Which reminds me if you don't have the time to make these little delectable there's The Dumpling Festival in Manhattan this month September 25th! Check it out =D.

Until next time... keep on cooking!

DIY Wedding Invites

The real reason I've been extremely busy this last couple of weeks was doing a favor for my buddy and making her wedding invitations. The above is the final result. The blank pocket invitation was part of a DIY from AC Moore though there are other stores online and in stores that sell blank pocket invitations. This is when those coupons come in handy! They ended up being around $11 for 25 pack that consisted of the pocket invite, invite envelope, RSVP card, RSVP envelope, and two/three various sheets of printable paper for the invite itself and maybe directions etc.

The cherry blossom design was made by me and has soft petals falling down as per her suggestion. For this I printed the invite on bright white card stock that was 4.5" x 6.5" an odd size but with some tweaking was able to print it. Using double sticky tape (ones in dispensers aka tape runner) designed for photos and scrap booking we (me and my other buddy!) stuck the invite on pearlescent pink 5 x 7 card stock and that onto the brown pocket invite. (I highly suggest not using glue for this as it may cause the paper to bubble and warp as it dries). I also printed out the RSVPs and address on the RSVP envelopes.

There was this odd little slot on the pocket for like a card to slip into but to my dismay it was smaller then business card size. My friend saw this other invite with a cute calender with the date circled on it. So we made a calender and stuck it on covering the slits.

Last but not least my friend wanted to put a wax seal to fasten the envelope. She brought a metal stamp with the character "double happiness" on it. She brought a glue gun and the wax sticks that was a champagne color but against the slightly metallic brown pocket invite looked slightly good. This one was a challenge. The wax is melted into the glue gun and my friend made a dime sized puddle on wax paper where I put the seal (that was soaked in ice cold water) onto it and waited about 10 seconds and ta-da! Every time one seal was finished I had to dip the seal in cold water so that the metal seal won't adhere to the wax. (We made a lot of booboos here)

To me the best way was to have a nickel sized drop on wax paper and have the stamp cold from being in ice cold water. Gently press on the molten wax and count till 10 and gently remove it. Press one finger on the wax paper while removing it. Though it's recommended that the wax paper also be cool which would make it easier to remove the seal from the paper like maybe cold damp cloth underneath but I didn't get the chance to try it.

We gently removed the emblem from the wax sheet and put a glue dot on the envelope and the seal on it. We get the above. Not too shabby! It reminds me of the old fashioned royal sealed super important documents which is what my friend was going for.

Next up centerpieces? Table cards? Bouquets and Boutineers? OH MY!

Until next time... what's your DIY project?