Crabbers

Suddenly thought of my late pet hermit crab, Crabbers. He was a beautiful shade of purple. I used to ask for sand from my friends who went to islands or beaches for vacations so that Crabbers could dig into it in its own crabitat with its other friends (I had 4 or 5 other crabs).

I used to bring it to classes too, when I was in college! What was I thinking. -__- Those were the crazy days. Now that I'm *ahem* older, I'm getting more sensible. *grins*

Crabbers, posing for the camera on my couch.

Blessed

A book given by my former colleague and friend, June. I like what she wrote for me. :)
This is a post to celebrate people who have supported me ever since I have started this business - friends who care, friends who bought beading magazines for me, friends whom I can talk about beading with all its slang and terminology (and also friends who got lost in all those jargons), friends who have helped me deliver goods to customers, friends who give constructive comments and criticism about my designs and business, and friends and dear customers who visit this site.
This means YOU when you read this. ALL of you.
I couldn't have done it without all of you.
And I couldn't have done it without God as well. :)

Nate, the 3-yr-old Drummer

Let me share this with you. Here is a boy I know who adores music. Every time during musicians' practice, he will be there with his red toy guitar strumming away. He has lately taken an interest in drums - in this video, he was jamming with the youth - Nigel, Timothy and Adrian - till he dropped one of the drumsticks. Lol. Here's his progress! :) One day, he's gonna be an excellent drummer.

Listen to Them

When I'm not exasperated or frustrated, I remember what my little students say to me or to their peers. Funny and cute conversations happen every day during school hours.. it's just whether I'm tuned to the right frequency to listen and try not to laugh out loud. Hehe.

Today I picked up quite a few at work. Honestly, I'm amazed that I managed to, because ever since I taught the 5-year-olds, I seemed to have lost that ability. There's just so much to focus on, their work, academics and whatnot. It's so different from the year before last when I was with the 3-year-olds where academic was not of utmost importance yet ('cause they can't write at that age).. that was the year I really enjoyed listening and talking to them.

Today, 6-year-old Ethan came to me with his new books about the solar system and the universe. By the way, that's like, his utmost passion. He can tell you lots of facts about stars, planets and the universe! And so, he found out that the sun will eventually die one day and shared his discovery with me today when I was busy fussing over the other kids.

I took some time to sit down to listen to him as the other kids did their work. He opened his book and started to tell me, "Did you know that one day, the sun will explode? And then at that time it'll touch Earth."

I answered, in a panicked tone, "Oh dear, it'll touch Earth?! Then what will happen to us?!"

Ethan looked at me for a moment before giving me his answer, "Oh, we'll already be in heaven at that time!"

I thought that's a brilliant answer. :)

He then continued to tell me that the sun will not explode yet, not in dunno how many billion years before I stood up and told him that it was time to do some work.

May this joy and my pair of listening ears never depart from me.

Chinese New Year 2010

Gong xi Gong xi!

I'm back with a rawr. Blessed Chinese New Year to all Chinese friends out there! I had a great time celebrating it in KL, seeing some of my friends and catching up with long lost ones.

My CNY celebration involved lunch at Chili's, dimsum (twice!) at SS2, 'writing' with sparklers and lots more. Here are some of the pictures taken during the CNY week.

Lunch at Chili's Midvalley

Gallivanting at Midvalley.

Dimsum with former school friends.

Watching an acrobatic lion dance at One Utama.

Enjoying CNY cookies! The one in the picture is given by one of my students. :)

Reliving my childhood - playing with sparklers! Photos by Jon Woo.

I've got ideas for new designs!

One of my students whose favourite planet is Saturn told me this today when he saw what I drew: "Aunty Wai Yee! You should draw more lines because Saturn has more than one ring around it!" Whoops. :p

Swirly heart. One of the easiest to draw. :)

Haven't been playing with it for many years.

My beads have been neglected for some time due to work. However, I have been able to come up with a few creations. Tried a bit of wirework. Pictures coming up soon!

Thank you to patrons who still ordered and purchased from me, despite my blog being inactive for a little more than two months.

Updates coming right up!

Post Production Blues

It's finally over.. all the bi-weekly rehearsals and the performances at Panggung Bandaraya. I'm going to miss them, especially the cast and crew who have grown to become friends. My heartiest gratitude too, to all you dearies who went for the performance! Thank you for your support. :)

Here are some pictures for you to see..



The view of the seats in Panggung Bandaraya from the mezzanine floor.


The altos of Two From Galilee. :)


Amanda - the babe who helped me man my stall.


Beading class on stage before showtime!


My friends with the Three Wise Men. :)


The lovely wardrobe mistresses who became my customers too!


That's my stage name - Leah!



Me with the youngest cast member of Two From Galilee!


One of the HUGE multimedia ads which was shown before showtime - CHATTERBEADS!

Now, it's back to the beading table/dinner table and create more beauties. :)

Singapore Day 1 & 2

There were LOTS of lovely pendants on long chains in Orchard, Singapore. LOTS of butterflies, birds, swirls. I've finally succumbed to the trend. :p Found the best birdcage pendant in Far East Plaza!

I like how it is designed - it's only half the cage. The other half is open. Sorta symbolises that the bird is free to stay or to fly out. :)


I am pretty happy with yesterday - managed to cover most of the places I wanted to visit. Many thanks to my tour guide Jon! :D


He was pretty much tired because I disrupted his sleeping pattern. :p Thank you for spending a day with me! :)

Fried Mars Bar. Absolutely delicious. :) I'm tempted to go town for more!

The view of the port from Vivo City.

And finally, back home to celebrate my cousin's birthday. :) That's my cousin in red, niece who insisted on blowing the candle together with my cousin, my cousin-in-law and my aunt (mum's sis).

My purchases on Day 1! Birdy umbrella and Golla camera pouch. :)

Joan of Joan Bead Shop was so sweet to recommend me places to get beads. :) I haven't gone to Chinatown yet, Joan.. but will soon! Today my other cousin will bring me somewhere else to look at beads. Waiting til later in the evening!

I'm Singing in Public!

Haha. I knew that title would catch your attention. ;) Well, I'm not the only one singing in public, but together with eighteen other talented singers in a performance which will be staged next week. Here are the details:


BE OUR GUEST is a feast of lush choral music and other vocal selections selected from the realm of pop, jazz, folk, rock, gospel and Broadway. Spend an evening with us, enjoying selections such as The Winner Takes It All from Mamma Mia, Nella Fantasia from the epic movie The Mission, Baba Yetu from Civilization IV, Ralph McTell's Streets of London, Wind Beneath My Wings from the film Beaches, a West Side Story duo, a medley of Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway hits from The King and I, South Pacific, Oklahoma, Carousel, etc., a Sweeney Todd suite and our very own favourites.

Theatre Venue : Auditorium Perdanasiswa, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur

Dates and Times : 8.30pm on Sat 30 May & Sun 31 May 2009. Doors will open at 8.00 pm

Tickets : RM 58 & RM 78 (inclusive of RM 3 AXCESS fee) via AXCESS Hotline: +06-3-77115000, AXCESS website at www.axcess.com.my and all AXCESS outlets.

Student Tickets : A limited number of Student Tickets at RM 25 for students aged 21 years and under. A valid student ID and/or national identity card stating the date of birth must be produced. (Student IDs will be checked for each person being admitted on a student ticket).

Access for the Physically Challenged : Seating for the physically challenged is limited to the Stalls only and access will be via the rear entrance of the theatre. Please contact AXCESS directly for more details.

Parking : Free parking available at the Auditorium Perdanasiswa carpark. Additional parking is available at the carpark of the University of Malaya Library, directly opposite the auditorium.

Visit us at www.thecanticlesingers.com for more information and for the multimedia show trailer. Email us at thecanticlesingers@gmail.com.

There was a write-up in The Star newspaper yesterday about our performance: Click here to read.

Hope you can come and support sikit! :)

Taylor Swift's Love Story

Never knew the lyrics were so sweet.

We were both young when I first saw you
I close my eyes
And the flashback starts
I'm standing there
On a balcony in summer air

See the lights
See the party, the ball gowns
I see you make your way through the crowd
And say hello, little did I know

That you were Romeo, you were throwing pebbles
And my daddy said stay away from Juliet
And I was crying on the staircase
Begging you please don't go, and I said

Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone
I'll be waiting all there's left to do is run
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story baby just say yes

So I sneak out to the garden to see you
We keep quiet 'cause we're dead if they knew
So close your eyes
Escape this town for a little while

'Cause you were Romeo, I was a scarlet letter
And my daddy said stay away from Juliet
But you were everything to me
I was begging you please don't go and I said

Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone
I'll be waiting all there's left to do is run
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story baby just say yes

Romeo save me, they try to tell me how to feel
This love is difficult, but it's real
Don't be afraid, we'll make it out of this mess
It's a love story baby just say yes
Oh oh

I got tired of waiting
Wondering if you were ever coming around
My faith in you is fading
When I met you on the outskirts of town, and I said

Romeo save me I've been feeling so alone
I keep waiting for you but you never come
Is this in my head? I don't know what to think
He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring

And said, marry me Juliet
You'll never have to be alone
I love you and that's all I really know
I talked to your dad, go pick out a white dress
It's a love story baby just say yes

Oh, oh, oh, oh
'Cause we were both young when I first saw you

I wish.

Green Camouflage

While photographing the earrings outdoors, I saw this little green winged creature. Hiding from me? Good try.. haha. :)

I HEART macro photography though I often take unsharp images! Wheeee!

Robbed on the 1st Day of 2009

Yep, you read it right. A man who pretended to be Telekom guy came in to 'fix' my land line which wasn't working.

He had this whole big scheme planned out. Three days ago, I realized I couldn't connect to the Internet. My modem's DSL light was not blinking at all. Sensing that my phoneline could be down, I picked up the phone and true enough, there was no dialtone. Called TM Point the next day and made a complaint.

I realized my next door neighbour's phone was not working too. So was my back door neighbour's phone. So, naturally, I thought something went wrong with the telephone pole which was right behind my house.

Yesterday, a man on motorbike (I didn't get his number plate! Argh!) who claimed that he was from Telekom came into my house and my neighbours' houses to check the telephone wires and sockets. I summore showed him the fax machine in my room which wasn't working. He opened all the sockets and disconnected all the wires.

Then he said that he'd leave to get his equipment. As he came out of my room, he turned back to tell me to reconnect the wire into the socket.

AND THAT WAS THE MOMENT I DIDN'T SEE HIM STEAL MY MOBILE PHONE FROM THE DINING TABLE! GERAMMMMMM..

After 20 minutes he didn't come back. Our sockets were still undone, with the wires exposed. It hadn't occured to me that my mobile phone was missing. Until I needed to sms my friend. I looked everywhere for it and I couldn't find it. Used mum's phone to call mine and discovered that it was switched off. Then only I realized that it was stolen.

Checked with next door neighbour and back door neighbour - they lost 2 mobile phones, a digital camera and a bunch of house keys.

It was quite puzzling how that impostor knew that our phoneline was down. THEN THEN THEN.. the REAL TELEKOM GUY IN HIS UNIFORM APPEARED! GAHHHHH!! If only he was earlierrrrrrrrr.. He was up on the telephone pole when I saw him. When he saw me, he told me that someone has deliberately cut our phonelines!

Told you he got it all planned. Sigh. Emo maximoos.

Anyway, my number remains. Was at Digi Centre getting a new simcard, now complaining on my blog at SS2 Mcds. Sorry if any smses or calls went unanswered yesterday. :s

Hope you'll be warned if you encounter something like this. Don't be fooled by impostors. Ask for identification, even though if it's the real guy. Forward this to your peers if you have to.

P/S: I completely disagreed when I proofread my police report. The thief was addressed as 'Beliau'. WTFREAKKKK!! THAT CRIMINAL SO TOTALLY DOES NOT DESERVE TO BE ADDRESSED AS BELIAU! Hmmmph!

Talking Beads?

Kenny asked me this during the fair in college:

"Chatterbeads.. hmm.. your beads can talk wan ah?"

I gave him that -__-" look. Haha.

I thought of naming this site Chatterbeads because of how I can talk nonstop about beading with another bead enthusiast friend when I first started this idea of online business. I wanted names like beadology or beadophile but they were all taken (some by people who just put up ONE post only). JL insisted that I should name it noobbeads (because he claims I'm a noob at everyhing). -__-" I refused.

I thought about a name that would reflect on me and the first thing I thought about was how excited I can become when I talk about beads and my poor friends would be swimming in jargons like eyepins and headpins.

Hence, the name Chatterbeads is bestowed upon this little site of mine. :) Welcome.

To-Do List

I'm still alive! Wheee!! Just finished 40 bracelets I was commissioned to make. Phew! Thanks, Cindy and Yvonne, for giving me the opportunity. :)

Charlotte, your birdy ear studs are ready! And I'll get to work soon with the chrysanthemum earrings for your friend before tomorrow. :p

I need to get started on new designs.. Cineleisure flea market MAY be my next challenge in mid December. No promises yet, don't wanna disappoint you. ;) Will file you in once the application's approved! Excited excited excited..

I realized I have a LOT of overdued projects.. let's see. There's Guats' wedding necklace which I am very honoured to make, and Aunt Kim Lan's pearls waiting to be strung with crystals into necklace and earrings, and Aunt Katherine's precious stones waiting to be wire-wrapped. Also, Kay Yi's bracelet and earrings waiting to be repaired and I gotta count the price of June's custom-made bracelet. Did I miss out anything else? Oh yeah, gotta shop for amber-coloured stone to match Carol's pendant/earrings. And Krystle's dainty musical earrings and Christin's blue sunstone bracelet by Sunday.

I promise I'll update soon! Holidays coming soon.. CAN'T WAIT!

Beads String

FINALLY I've got my hands on the Swarovski Beads String and Colour Chart! I've always wanted a colour sampler and was thinking of actually collecting them slowly until I have all the colours. Sorta like collecting stamps or collector's items.

I don't have to collect one by one anymore! Yay!

If you're an avid beader, this is very useful when you want to look for colours that will match your desired colour scheme. This 46cm long strand consists of 128 pieces of 4mm Swarovski bicones. A colour chart accompanies it; a guidance to tell you the names of the colours. And they come in a very presentable organza bag. :)

Visit Beading.com.my to get yours today before they run out! You can read more about this item at their blog.

New Poll!

I'm kinda kaypoh and curious about how all you lovely readers on my blog came to know of this beading blog. So I set up a poll to know the answers. :D Hope it doesn't take much of your time to participate in the simple poll. It will be there for about a fortnight. :D

Thanks! :)

New

Remember I mentioned that I don't have anymore ceramic beads? The timing couldn't have been any better.. I found the blue chrysanthemum ceramic beads that some of you adore! Was so excited. :) Not just blue chrysanthemums; I have blue sakura and blue bamboo too, which are also as orientally stunning!

Along with the ones above, I found these beauties too, more colourful than the ones above. Reminds me of our ceramic dishes with printed Chinese flowers. :D

And these.. are just yummilicious and cheerful. :) I have been wearing a pair of these to work in the past week. The kids love to poke the beads with their little fingers.

These are just..
new beads,
new charms,
new findings,
for new IDEAS.
:)

Autopilot

I wanted to make myself a mug of Anlene chocolate milk, but without thinking, I went on autopilot mode and absent-mindedly made 3-in-1 Nescafé. Didn't realize I actually made coffee instead of chocolate milk until I brought my mug to the computer.

-_______________-

Aiyo.