Reveal~

Ta-dah~

My favorite buy of the whole Italy trip is none other than this gorgeous artwork that me and Zim fell in love with at first sight. The art is by a french illustrator, Sophie Griotto. Her illustration is really stylish and fun and we thought that it really represented who we are (well sorta, in a way). I love dogs and wanted artworks that include dogs without being tacky and this completely fits the bill. Thus, after some consideration, (It wasn't exactly cheap) we decided to buy this and painstakingly hand carried it all the way from Rome.


Guess we ain't the only one who knows how to appreciate good art. The little monster seems mesmerize with the cool chick.
Happy~

Our only regret - Not buying more than one artwork. As we spotted it on the last day, we didn't have the chance to do our research on the price of the work. Thus, worried that we might be ripped off, we made the conservative decision to buy just one artwork (And again, it was pretty costly). When we were able to google the artist, we were unable to find any places in NYC that might carry her artwork and the only other website we found was a french website (and was slightly cheaper after shipping). Thus, I guess this would be the only art work of hers we will own. Still, I'm glad we took the plunge!

Black Friday Sale~

Yes, I'm guilty of contributing to the overall sales of US 11.4 Billion. Even though I was far away in Italy, I was able to indulge in a little online shopping and bought me a couple of items..

1. A Tory Burch Envelope Clutch at a 30% discount and a free canvas tote bag (that's honestly not the prettiest thing around. But it's still worth USD75)

I've been wanting to get a dinner bag for a while and thought I would be able to get one in Italy. But after spending what I spent, I figured I would be better off just getting it from US! (At least I feel less guilty. And nope, I don't understand the logic either.. but who cares~)

2. My new...

Kindle Touch!

I was pretty upset over the scratches on my Kindle 3 but was still tolerant of it. Until.. I realised that I was unable to read chinese books on that! Thus, I finally decided to go ahead with this purchase! Now I can read chinese books again! I just have to figure out where to get them...

Shopping in Italy

This is by far the best purchase we made since arriving in Italy and I'm absolutely in love with it!


Hee, will reveal when we get back to NYC!

Happy~

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Meet the Breeds 2011!

I managed to drag Mr Lim and another friend along to one of my most anticipated event of the year - Meet the Breeds! Little Sam wasn't allowed at the event so off he went to daycare. Anyway, here's some of the photos we took.A samoyed.
My favourite siberian Husky.
A russell terrier begging for ice cream.
A Parson Russell and no, it isn't Sam. But don't they just have the same expression?
My favorite dog at the event - A pyrenean shepherd. I think it looks like a raccoon. If I wasn't restricted by the HDB ruling of a one-dog policy, I will most certainly get this dog immediately! (And the best part of it was, Mr Lim seemed to like it as well.) Arrrrr...
The happy me and maybe-not-so happy Zim!
A corgi that looks like Yoda!
Zim with his favorite breed - Welsh Corgi. (He liked this breed because of Ein from Cowboy Bebop.)
Possibly the ugliest dog around - The chinese crested. I guess this is what I would call cute, aka ugly but adorable. I love the way the tongue sticks out. =P
I spotted a mop, a Puli.
One highlight of the event was the huge amount of freebies we got. And of course, that certainly made someone really happy.
By the end of the 3 hours we spent, we were OD with dog breeds. But still, I LOVE it! Thankfully we are able to attend the event again next year! Till then....

The Book Of Mormon

IT WAS AWESOME~ INSANELY AWESOME.. It has been a long while since I had such a great laugh. It was definitely worth the wait and I'm really glad I chose to be a bitch and buy a single ticket.

It's absolutely a true blue South Park Creators production and I'm sure they pretty much offended everyone (Well, chinese got a hit too!). Despite that, I Love love love it!!!!
I so love the musical that the groupie side of me took over. (It has been a long while since I did it!) I actually stood in line, in the cold for a good 30 minutes to wait for the cast to autograph for the fans! And of course, I managed to get a photo with the two main leads!!

Pretty much not sure which autograph is whose.. but whatever.. it's now a collectible! ^_^
Josh Gad as Elder Cunningham..
Andrew Rannells as Elder Price..
I even bought the soundtrack (which is currently on the top of my playlist). Here's a peek of my steals~
I immediately went online when I got home to book tickets for a next show. Unfortunately, the show is so popular that no orchestra tickets were available up till Jan 2013! Sigh~ I'm so going to try the lottery tickets till I get it!

Professional VS DIY..

I recently took a liking of having wall art and bought two pieces that I wanted on my wall - the Izak Zenou's Henri Bendrel drawing and the Christina Strain's drawing I got at comic con. The next step was to get them framed. Annoyingly, both pieces were of awkard sizes, making it horribly tough to find frames and matting that fit to a T. I wanted to get both pieces professionally framed. However, after a quick research, I came to learn that framing is ridiculously expensive (usually cost more than the drawing itself. duh right?). Hence, I decided to frame one of the two (the more expensive one of course) and DIY the other myself.

I made a quick trip to Michaels' and found a matting board and a frame.

The original drawing..
A good 20 minutes and USD40 later. Unfortunately, the matting board did not fit ideally and showed only 1/10 the autograph on the bottom right corner. Pity as this was the best fit I could find.Meanwhile, 10 days and USD200 (+USD15 for transport. -_-) later, I received the professionally framed drawing that clearly showed the autograph and nicely cut matt.
What you pay is what you get. While the photos above looked pretty similar, the difference in the quality was quite drastic. The cheap frame from Michaels' was pretty much falling apart while I was putting it together. The ill fit also showed. In contrast, the frame from the framing shop was sturdy and looked/felt good. Most importantly, it fit to a T.

Having wall art is such a chore. Oh well, at least they both look good on the wall!

Sold!

I closed my very first deal on craiglist and it was way more painless than I expected. (Especially after hearing all the horror stories from others) I was able to sell my snowboard bundle (board, boots and bag) at a pretty good price and more importantly, to a more deserving owner. At least, the items would be put into much better use in her hands (She's going to Colorado to snowboard, lucky bundle)!

A little bitter sweet, but at least I got rid of another item that I really do not need.

One more item off my to-do-list! ^_^

Final Sewing Project!

I attended my last sewing class and completed yet another project. I decided to save some $$ by using the leftover fabric (from my tote bag project) and here's the final product...

Guess what it is for...
Yes, it's a Kindle Sleeve!!!!
I'm really happy with the outcome, especially since I've been looking for a kindle cover for the longest of time!

Pity all good things have to come to an end, BUT, at least I didn't walk away empty handed! 3 really neat projects and a new skill! (A skill that is constantly improving too!) I'm seriously considering moving on to another series of classes, though that would have to wait. We'll see. =D

My latest obsession...

is the Herman Miller Eames chair!!!!
I love love love love it!!! The vintage and modern classic vibe. Nice..*Wide Grinz*

I could most certainly picture them in the dining room set in Senja. Awww~~

I WANT THEM!!! Now I just have to convince Mr Lim...

My second Sewing Project...

I embarked on my second sewing project~

After spending X hours fabric shopping at Mood, I found a lovely orange striped cotton fabric!

As usual, the little monster has to sit on the fabric. -_-
Work in progress.. Was initially thinking of using purple biased tape at the side but it just didn't look quite right to me. Grey seemed like a much better choice!
Ta-da~ The end product...
An apron!

I would have posed in it except that I was wearing my usual sleeping shorts and tank top (which would most certainly go the wrong way..) and Mr Lim (who was still in his work clothes) refused to pose for me. Oh well, guess this works anyway.

One more mini project to go!!

Happy Deepavali~

Mr Lim's good friend from Stanford invited us to his place for Deepavali!! Being a huge fan of nice spicy Indian food, I was more than happy to go!

And boy, I wasn't disappointed at all!! Look at all the Yummy yummy food prepared by the mistress of the house! (Too bad for Mr Lim though.. No spicy food for him)
Hee, to add on to the festive feeling, we dressed up in traditional outfits! I was loaned a tunic while Mr Lim got away easy as he was wearing a nice/formal top so all he needed was a 'scarf''. I really liked the purple/green combo though.

And of course, I cheated on the little monster when I fell in love with this little cutie - The Havanese, Vito!
Yummy food, great company and a cute little dog. That's life~

The sexiest butt in the world...

Love love love it~

The growing project on the wall..

From that to this...

And it's still growing!

My FIRST sewing project..

I signed up for a sewing class at The Sewing Studio and after two classes, I completed my very first project!

It started off with me heading to Mood Designer Fabrics (FINALLY! Especially after being such a huge Project Runway fan for the past 9 seasons!)and choosing the fabric - a cotton canvas. I'm absolutely in love with the prints and would love to make pillow cases out of it. (Too advanced for now, but we shall see..)
Laid it out for a shot and guess who just has to be in the photo?

Work in progress...

Anyway, after 4 hours of work/class (most of it went into learning how to use the sewing machine), it was finally done!

Ta-dah~
While I'm in love with the bag right now, a close scrutiny would reveal all the imperfections of my stitches. (It's practically impossible to sew straight!) But since it was after all my very first attempt, I'm still pretty proud of myself!

Moving on to my second project (a secret for now) and as I lay the fabric out for a shot, the little monster did the same thing and laid on it! Hee, guess he's hinting for me to make him something. Maybe a dog bed, but let's just take things one step at a time for now!

Etsy Potential Shopping Spree..

I am SO SO addicted to Etsy right now. (Insanely hooked) After spending countless hours on it, I've shortlisted a handful of items that I'm just ready to purchase this instant. But yes, I'm actually holding back. For now that is.

1. Dog Tail Leash Holder

I've already pictured this going near the main door by the glass panel in our senja flat. And yes, this is just for Sam's leashes...

2. Dog Chalkboard

I want the JRT wired version though. This is sooo going into our workspace (aka guest room) in Senja!

3. Dog Tag Protectors

Sam's tags are always clinging against each other and that drives the nuts out of me. (Not to mention that the tags get really scratched and rusty after constant exposure and rough and tumble) While I kinda like the idea of the tag cover, I'm not absolutely fond of the design. Thus the KIV..

4. Modern Pet Bed

Picture this atas dog bed for Sam in a little corner in our senja flat. Awww~ And the best part of all, I'm actually thinking of getting a grey couch for us to begin with, thus this is just an awesome fit! (yeah yeah, it's ridiculously expensive too. BUT, I really want it! LOL)

5. Modern Dog bowl

I love the modern and slick look of this dog bowl, and yeah yeah, I think it's going match my design ideas for our senja apartment. So this is definitely my on my to-buy list.

Excited! I'm holding back for now. BUT I'm pretty sure that by the time we head back in 2013, I would have all the items. =P