American Designer Pre-Order

Wow, 4 months since my last entry. And I still have readers bumping into my Feel Station. And to summarize, the 4 months were all spent at Fabric Fanatics.

Here's some updates on Fabric Fanatics. Pre-order calling for American Designer fabrics. See below for sneak preview. :)

(ok, I promise to write more bout personal life on next entry.....)

Michael Miller's Collection

Alexander Henry's Collection

Kokka's Collection

Robert Kaufman's Collection

What is Japanese Fabric?

Japanese famous brand KOKKA fabric

What is Japanese fabric?
Japanese fabric design is so cute, whimsical, fairy tale-like, happy, colourful and famous for multi-colour printed cotton and linen fabric.
There is also kimono fabric, which is also very rich with colours and floral design but what I offer in my shop are craft fabric, with cuteness and zakka feeling.


What is the standard measurement for fabric?
Fabric is usually measured in yard for US metrics.
Malaysian is not very familiar with yard because we always use meter.
Actually 1 yard = 0.91meter.
A fat quarter is 1/4 yard. Refer the below chart for better understanding.

Fabric international measurement

Where can I buy Japanese cotton and what is the standard price for Japanese cotton?
If you google Japanese cotton, you will find a lot of shops selling those beautiful fabric.
And the standard price is around : USD3-5 for one fat quarter.
You can try to find for more variety and price range at Etsy and Ebay.
You can also buy them from several Chinese website (from China, Taiwan, Hong Kong) but you will need a Chinese bank to deal with them and they usually do not accept Paypal payment. Unless you know a middle person who can order those fabric for you. A middle person is willing to do a transaction on your behalf by charging a commission fees of 10-20%
Easier choice is buy from my local blogshop. Here's my shop : http://fabricfanatics.blogspot.com
I accept local bank transfer and also Paypal (credit card).

Price for authentic Japanese cotton are more expensive than normal cotton fabric because of the cute and rare printed design on cotton and linen material.
I have check at our local largest fabric shop Kamdar and Nagoya, but they do have a very limited choice of Japanese fabric, price at minimum RM18/meter. Design are mainly floral, very similar to normal cotton fabric. I could not find any cute or 'zakka' design fabric.
If you are staying around Klang Valley, you can also stop by Craft World at SS2, they are selling a looooot of beautiful imported cotton and linen fabric, English, American and Japanese fabric. And their price starts from RM17 per fat quarter. Cut from bolt (what is bolt? refer pic below) is a minimum 0.5 yard.

In Malaysia, so far, I only found cute printed Japanese fabric at craft shop (Craft World) and other blogshop selling them. But unfortunately, many of the blogshops are Work At Home Moms (WAHMs) who does not play by the rules and sell them for overly cheap. Yayyy for the buyers but sad for other sellers who are trying to stay on the business ethic side by maintaining the standard price. But buyers be cautious, some might not be authentic Japanese fabric.


What is the difference between cotton and linen fabric?
As you can from the picture below, linen has rough grain and texture. It is also thicker (medium to heavyweight fabric). Linen is not suitable for making clothes but most suitable for making bag because of the sturdy thickness, it does not need to add another layer of inner lining fabric for protection. Other ideas on using linen fabric : purse, wallet, apron, table cloth, home decor craft, pencil case, laptop casing, tote, brooch, hairpin.

Printed Linen

100% cotton is very soft and lightweight fabric, suitable for almost all sorts of fabric craft. It is suitable for making clothes/dress too. But I would not recommend for making baju kurung, because in my opinion, for making baju kurung, silk+cotton fabric blend is still the best material because of more comfortable (not too hot while wearing).

Printed cotton

fabric in bolt

To buyers:
I hope this will help a little on fabric knowledge and also choosing the right fabric for your lovely hobby. Happy crafting!

To sellers:
I hope you know what you are selling and please don't spoil the market by simply labelling it as Japanese cotton. And if it's authentic Japanese cotton, please follow the standard international price and do not spoil the image and authenticity of Japanese cotton. Let's compete in a healthy market.

Fabrics New Arrival

Last week I received a loooot of fabric from my supplier and I just finish taking pictures of those beautiful fabric. I already upload most of them in my shop. Local Malaysian can buy them from my catalogue, price listed in RM. Fabric Fanatics.
Readers from other country can check them out at my Etsy shop : http://www.etsy.com/shop/Kiiss



Get them fast before they sold out. :)

New Cards

More cards made during the weekend. Ready to send to host for AFA swap.

For 'Strings attached' swap.

For 'Fun and Funky Polka dots' swap

I just couldn't stop painting poppies. They are just so fun and easy to paint.

Art in Your Pocket

I'd been asking around, not many artist/crafter in Malaysia knows about Artist Trading Cards, so far, none. I am not sure why this fun art exchange activity is not popular among the artists and designers in Malaysia.

For those who is still wondering what is ATC, here is the definition I found from Wikipedia.

Artist Trading Cards (or ATCs) are miniature works of art about the same size as modern baseball cards,^[1] or 2 ½ X 3 ½ inches (6cm X 9cm),^[2] small enough to fit inside standard card-collector pockets, sleeves or sheets.^[3] The ATC movement developed out of the mail art movement and has its origins in Switzerland.^[4] Cards are produced in various media, including dry media (pencils, pens, markers, etc), wet media (watercolor, acrylic paints, etc), paper media (in the form of collage, papercuts, found objects, etc). The cards are usually traded or exchanged rather than sold.

Recently my art nerves suddenly surfaces and I'd been digging back some of my ATCs. Most of them are dated in 2005. wow....5 years ago. Wow...I can't believe it! 5 years. and I'd not been creating anything (except the two bird illustrations and mixed media). Shame on me :( I'd been riding on the craft horses and forgotten about the smell of acrylic paints, sticky fingers with glues, messy table full with papers and ephemeras.
This year my one and only resolution is create more art.

ATCs I created, mainly collage and rubber stamping.

Artist Trading Card - Restored

Recently I restored my infatuation with Artist Trading Card (ATC) by signing up a few ATC swap at Swap-Bot. What is ATC? Read it here : very thorough introduction to ATC.

Here are some of my previous ATC, made by me, for my own pleasure and collection. Back in my hometown, I have a few more dozens of ATC sent to me from other artist. I am looking for a way to store them, but they are slightly larger than business card size, so I can't keep them in business card file. Right now I just tuck them away in my craft drawer, some inside metal boxes, some became my bookmark.

I love vintage style collaging and mixed media.

Chinese pin-up girls. I collected alot of those ephemeras and images.

The tea ATC is my personal favourite, there is real Chinese tea leaves inside the handmade tea bag.

Do you notice that I use a lot of butterfly and wings images? They are my favourite.

And stack of ATC blanks and cardstock, some I cut out from cereal boxes and some sent to me from my swap friend.

So tonight I have an ATC challenge to complete, alphabet theme, D and E. Hmm...what to make?

Shiori Ningyo Bookmark

Finally, I finished making 25 (+1 extra) shiori ningyo bookmark for my customer. Shiori means big sister, ningyo means doll so it's a Japanese big sister doll bookmark, suitable to give to friends, students and small children to encourage them to read and do well in exam. All those papers are washi chiyogami paper imported from Japan. It is very difficult to find in Malaysia, even though we can find them in some craft shop but is very very expensive, selling for ~RM8 per piece of A4 size. Usually I got them from Etsy and Ebay, best place to look for rare craft material. Malaysia still lack of craft material and supplies.

So, I spent 5-6 hours making them, while watching drama (A Chip of the Old Block-super super funny TVB drama), my speed was slow by half if I were crafting while watching something on the laptop but that's how I like to work. :p

I really love washi paper. They are so beautiful.


Kimono....
Aiks...no head??


Here they are, all pretty with yukata and hair bow, ready to go to their proud owner in the USA.
Hope you all will have a fun time there and meet great children!!

If you like to have one, I am selling them for RM5 each.
But need to re-stock my washi paper now.

Cute Fabric Promo for Malaysian

Many of you know that I have an established shop in Etsy and they are all priced in USD. Today I am giving this privileges to fellow Malaysian to purchase them in RM and with a promo price!!

Below are the two hot selling Japanese linen fabrics from my shop.

Material : Thick Linen (20% linen, 80% cotton)
Imported from Japan.
Price : RM40 per meter/RM20 per half meter (minimum purchase half meter)

Happy Musical Panda

Matryoshka (Russian Doll) Family Beige and Black

Interested? Email me or drop a comment. :)

Check out for more fabric from my Etsy shop.

Xmas Swap

More likely is New Year swap. Actually it is a Santa Xmas swap hosted by Agnes. My partners sent on time but those suprise swap packages were sent to my house in Ipoh. I couldn't go back to unwrap them until the New Year weekend. Hence, the late post on what I got from my swap partner..sorry. Anyway, I had fun, and I love everything I got, not the matter of price but the heart and the fun of joining Malaysian hosted swap.

Lots of goodies from Suyen. My mom already took the sweets from me. :p

And another pack of goodies from Tampin Girl.

And oo...a surprise Xmas card from Agnes. How thoughtful of her to make a card and send to every swap participants. <3

Fun!!!

2010 Movie List

Movies watched:

January
The big screen

• Avatar
• Bodyguard and Assassins (already in favourite list)
  
• Sherlock Holmes

DVD/Downloaded

• Pandorum
• Jennifer's Body (very stupid movie)
  
• Orphan (watched for the 2nd time, for Isabelle Fuhrman)
  

Happy New Year!!

I am waiting for Kin Fai from Melaka to reach KL and will go back Ipoh for this New Year weekend, so I'm taking some quick time to write an entry.

Finally, I'd bought a domain and successfully migrate my design blog KiireyBlog to wordpress. So, please check out www.kiireyblog.com, comment, subscribe, follow or bookmark the blog. I spent many many hours and late nights tweaking the codes and setting. It's kinda torture for someone clueless about web programming like me and I don't have much extra bucks for hiring a designer or programmer. With this blog, maybe I will blog less here (not that I write a lot anyway). But after I changed job(last month), I already have more time to spend on the things that I like to do so hopefully I could write more.

And here are some things that I sent out for Agnes's Xmas Swap, I got 2 swap partners and hope they like everything :) I even gave out my best seller fabric.

They already received my swaps, so I will show them off here. I will post what I received soon. Both packages from my swap partners are still at my Ipoh home, waiting for me to unwrap. Can't wait Can't wait. And they will be my New Year gifts instead of Xmas gifts.
Hmm...I am thinking of hosting a Pink theme swap for Valentine's Day. Anyone interested? Hmm...maybe not because CNY falls on V-day, everyone will be too busy. :/

Ho Ho Ho~~~

I will be going to Phuket next month, any suggestion for must-see, must-go place?

Kiirey.Blog

Link exchange, anyone?

I am sorry to say that I am no longer active with my personal blog, because I'd found a different focus and passion to work on, which is to write on Kiirey.Blog. This blog is about everything uniquely and beautifully handmade. I will feature one local and one international artist/crafter/designer (from Malaysia) everyweek, host giveaways and swaps, annouce giveaways from other blogs/shops, giving tips on creative indie business, tutorials and many more gift ideas and beautiful inspirations. This is a small effort to promote all indie artist/designer/crafters.

Support indie :)

Colours

One of my reader complain that I didn't blog enough. So, here's some beautiful macro flower shoots for my beautiful and creative readers. :)

Will blog more later.






More flower pictures here : http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=122094&id=584625208&ref=mf

It has been 2 months...

It has been 2 months since I last blogged :( Why am I so lazy and disorganize? What have I been doing in 2 months? Feels like I'd just threw 60 days away.

So here's a little update from me.

In the past 2 months:

1. I'd quit my new job and found a new one. 2 months? That was horribly fast. Well, you won't want to know what it's like.
2. Been to 2 bazaars, Arts for Grab and Joujou and Shugi. One went great and one not so great.
   
   Pekmun, Deb and me at Arts for Grabs.
   
   
3. Addicted to Facebook games...silly idiot facebook games but I'm addicted. WTF is wrong with me? Wasting so many precious time on these silly interactive games and gaining nothing out of it.....love and hate it at the same time, I can't make up my mind.
4. Doing my best at my new job and the new job is doing it's best to wreck my little pathetic life. (ironicly, you can refer back to #1)
   
5. Loading up my fabric shop with lots of new imported fabric.
   

In the next 2 months:

1. I'm going to attend graphic design class for the next 9 months. Yea, part time course for working adult and it aint cheap too. But just a small price to pay for knowledge and ambition.
2. Start a journal. Inspired by Keri Smith from her book, How To Be An Explorer of The World. I haven't read this book but I'd already inspired by the book cover and the idea. Most probably will grab this from Amazon.
   
3. Go to downtown and take more pictures with my UWS, LC-A and Smena 8m. (total I have 5 cameras now, including 2 digital cams). Places in mind are Sekinchan, Kuala Selangor and...hmm..any other good suggestion. Will be a great source of inspiration for my journal and blog too.
   
4. Continue to work on Kiirey.
5. And not forgetting start a new job.
6. Blog more...yeah, right.
7. Stop playing facebook games.....yeah, right.

Ho boy, this sound so much like a year end resolution.
I just love writing list.

Another true dog story movie

that will definitely make me bawl like a baby. The trailer itself already made me cried (ok, I have an ultimate soft spot for true stories and dogs and this one is true dog story, so it's a real killer).




From Wikipedia :

In 1924, Hachikō was brought to Tokyo by his owner, Hidesaburō Ueno, a professor in the agriculture department at the University of Tokyo. During his owner's life Hachikō saw him off from the front door and greeted him at the end of the day at the nearby Shibuya Station. The pair continued their daily routine until May 1925, when Professor Ueno did not return on the usual train one evening. The professor had suffered a stroke at the university that day. He died and never returned to the train station where his friend was waiting.

Hachikō was given away after his master's death, but he routinely escaped, showing up again and again at his old home. Eventually, Hachikō apparently realized that Professor Ueno no longer lived at the house. So he went to look for his master at the train station where he had accompanied him so many times before. Each day, Hachikō waited for Professor Ueno to return. And each day he did not see his friend among the commuters at the station.

The permanent fixture at the train station that was Hachikō attracted the attention of other commuters. Many of the people who frequented the Shibuya train station had seen Hachikō and Professor Ueno together each day. They brought Hachikō treats and food to nourish him during his wait.

This continued for 10 years, with Hachikō appearing only in the evening time, precisely when the train was due at the station.

Hachikō died on March 8, 1935. He was found on a street in Shibuya.^[1] His heart was infected with filarial worms and 3–4 yakitori sticks were found in his stomach. His stuffed and mounted remains are kept at the National Science Museum of Japan in Ueno, Tokyo.

Movie release date is August 2009 (USA). I hope it reaches Malaysia shores. But I didn't see any poster or trailer.:(

Ooo..how I miss Nici. :( :(

A little update

Ok, will update a little on what's up with me lately.

1. Joined new company as QA Engineer (yea, still an engineer, how dry....)
2. Creating a blogshop selling fabric to locals. I guess I should bring on the effort on this since there's a few request on my fabric after I blogged about them. Hold on yea, there are on their way, no easy putting up another website, after so many late nights on Kiirey, I'm kinda lazy lately.
   
   
   
   Tadaa~~
   
   
3. Went to Tanjung Sepat, for the food and scenery. Lovely place, I love the beach and jetties. More pictures on film (lomo) but I shot some with my good ol' digital camera too. So, here's two of my favourite, while waiting for the lomo to get processed (already sent to shop...can't wait >_<)
   
   
   
   The sunset
   
   
   The jetty
   
   
   
4. Reading Tony Parson's Man and Boy. I bought The Time Traveller's Wife too. I hope I can finish that before the movie comes out.
   

That's all. :D

If Life Were A Soundtrack

If your life were a soundtrack, what would the music be?

Here's how it works:
1. open your library (iTunes, winamp, media player, iPod)
2. put it on shuffle
3. press play
4. for every question, type the song that's playing
5. new question -- press the next button
6. don't lie and try to pretend you're cool (thought I'd highlight that..don't judge me!)


opening credits:
The Housemartins - Caravan Of Love (love this song!! I think I will enjoy this as my opening credit. Nice~~~)

waking up:
Michael Buble - I've Got The World On A String

I've got the world on a string
I'm sitting on the rainbow
I've got that string around my finger
Oh, What a world, what a life - I'm in love

first day at school:
Shanice - I Love Your Smile (yea, I remember laughing and grinning silly a lot)

falling in love:
Boys Like Girls - Thunder

Your voice was the soundtrack of my summer
Do you know youre unlike any other?
Youll always be my thunder, and I said
Your eyes are the brightest of all the colors
I dont wanna ever love another
Youll always be my thunder
So bring on the rain
And bring on the thunder

breaking up:
Harry Nilsson - Without You (hmm...this is spooky, how come all the songs turn out to be so suitable??? But then, my breakups are not this sad :D)

prom:
Oasis - Live Forever (I looooove this song, I looooove Oasis. I never went to any prom.....)

life's okay:
Eminem - My Name Is (er.....kinda dumb)

mental breakdown:
The Fray - Absolute

Is this all we get, to be absolute
Quiet but I'm sure, there is something here
Tell me everything cause I want to hear

driving:
Yael Naim - New Soul (very happy song...)

lalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalala

flashback:
Squeeze - Up The Junction (very happy songs...not that suitable..hmm)

getting back together:
Dido - White Flag (hahahaha...surrender to each other charm, so getting back together?)

wedding:
Sheryl Crow - Run, baby Run (hahahahah, this turns out to be really funny too, runaway bride?)

birth of child:
Bruce Springsteen - Secret Garden (hmmm)

final battle:
Beyonce - If I Were Boy

death scene:
Saving Abel - Addicted (arr???)

funeral song:
Carpenters - Superstar (eerie song)

end credits:
Michael Buble - Everything (yup!! and it ends with my favourite song)

My life is great. :D