new mini doilies, which do you like?

new mini doilies, which do you like?
Originally uploaded by Snowfern

made a few more doilies for practice, and possibly for sale. each takes slightly more than an hour to tat up (excluding time to wind up the thread).....and the life sized coaster took me all of yesterday and today. more because i randomly made up the design as i tatted, and made quite a few mistakes i had to undo.

i'm thinking of making some place settings and also possibly a tablerunner, tablecloth, etc...but those would be incredibly time consuming and i'm really not sure if it's worth the trouble if i were to sell it. costwise it's almost negligible, i mean, SGD2 for 200m of polyester thread LOL. but the workmanship oh man oh man. and so tiny too, means i have to be more careful since mistakes would be hard to fix.

oh, and i finally listed my cupcake cases sampler set on my artfire. will list more when i'm less tired. i hope i didn't mess it up....

wrist and hands are better, but i still cannot exert much pressure or the pains start throbbing up my arm again. at least i am still able to tat!

i miss clayplay :(

i hit 50!!

i hit 50!!
Originally uploaded by Snowfern

thank you all so much for your encouragement and support, my customers, my flickr friends, CDHM friends, TeamMIDS friends, and of course Stephanie aka Petitplat who started me on this mini-making obsession, i've already thanked you countless times, so what's one more, eh!

i can still remember the shock i went into when thehappyqueen requested to purchase some of my works....

the constant encouragement and support from Joanne who also produces gorgeous blythe accessories and furniture....

Christine who challenged me with quarterscale requests....

my cousin, who also got caught up in some of my mini-madness...

and of course, my lovely bf who got me started with a huge dent in his wallet LOL!

there are many other notable persons whom i wish to thank, but i'm not sure if they'd like to be revealed here...so i'll just shout out a collective THANK YOU!!! i don't think they're even reading this really...so....well...i -am- rather shy as hard as it is to believe....

ok i'll admit it, my memory's really wonky and everything's been sort of a blur since i started selling....all the excitement! every sale still gets me all smiley and happy...

here's to more sales, and to my hand healing up fast please (it's back in a brace after my 3 hr cook/clean fest since the fridge broke down yesterday)........just wanted to share my excitement!

long leave of absence from minis

ok after i post this i shall ban myself from the keyboard and all other activities that require the use of my right hand.

mom bought even more crabs yesterday and told me to cook them before rushing out, i reluctantly did so because i hate the idea of food spoiling/wastage....but i paid for it dearly. cleaning and cooking the crabs placed such a strain on my barely healed hand/wrist that it started throbbing very painfully all day yesterday, and it is clear today that it will be a long time yet before i can go back to mini-work.

i am mad as heck and almost tearful, but feeling mostly resigned to the fact that i -must- leave my hand alone lest i destroy it totally. probably will take a trip down to a chinese acupuncturist since western medicine is not helping.

sorry to drag everyone down, but truly, i am miserable without my minis. so i guess this is my application for leave of absence? i don't know when i'll be back proper, but i'll pop in once in a while when i'm super sure i'm ready to work minis again. :(

miniature tatted doilies

mini tatting
Originally uploaded by Snowfern

i used to tat alot even when i had no clue what i was tatting. it's just so simple. a shuttle (or maybe 2) and string. i had to stop "life-sized" tatting due to its strain on my wrist, but i promptly forgot about it.....

so when i was on my almost-month-long hiatus, i got so mind-numbingly bored i picked up the shuttles again while watching all 200+ episodes of "Friends" on DVD. bad idea. it delayed the recovery of my wrists LOL.

i had originally planned to put these up for sale, but i have no idea how to price them. a quick check on ebay didn't help either as there wasn't that many tatters out there, less so for mini doilies. well. they will be up for sale probably after this weekend, or when i get some good daylight for photography, whichever comes first.

here's what they look like under some of my older works....



have a great weekend ahead!

lessons i've learnt on downpayment issues

in their boxes getting ready to be shipped out
Originally uploaded by Snowfern

i feel quite silly today.

since i've never had a customization request on Etsy before, i was unsure as to how to request for a downpayment, and since my very kind and patient customer offered half upfront, i assumed automatically that by just putting up an etsy listing first, i could settle the payment issues in convo (i.e. allow customer to commit to purchase first)

but in my rush to get bf's presents wrapped and other chores around the house, i'd forgotten to state that it's possible to just pay half the amt via paypal AFTER committing to the purchase! i simply sent off the mail and scooted off to other commitments..luckily she was very understanding and didn't seem to mind paying in full....for that i am very grateful!

see. i knew i wasn't cut out to be a businesswoman > < this issue plagued me throughout the day, i felt so embarrassed even while out at a birthday celebration (HAPPY BIRTHDAY DERICK!), which was also awesome and definitely overate, boy i don't think i've enjoyed a buffet this much and this coming saturday i will be going for one more :O i'm not really very sociable, so this week will cover all my social needs for at least half a year :E

ok so just to remind myself:
1) don't automatically assume customer is aware that it's possible to pay -less- than the amount stated in listing
2) better to just put up 2 listings, one for downpayment and another upon completion
3) this way it eliminates problems that might crop up (thanks TeamMIDS for helping me out!) by being more specific in the listing (which i wasn't eeks)

probably had too much sugar. i'm still buzzing :O it's bedtime though, g'nite world!

I'm back with a vengeance....and cupcakes!

i had another sale this weekend, which surprised me cos i didn't sell anything the week before and thought the worst of my situation, i.e. not only is my hand irreparably ruined, nobody wants my stuff anymore! OH WOE IS ME, the DRAMA QUEEN!!!

so this was indeed a very pleasant surprise. anyway, on top of the items she's purchased from my etsy store she's asked if i made plain cupcakes and halloween themed cupcake casings. of course i do!

since she wanted a 'swampy-muddy' cupcake, i also suggested that it be a little uneven and maybe even overflowing, she loved the idea and here are the 4 different cupcake prototypes. i'm waiting for her response to continue. :)



i made the cupcakes such that they 'overflow' and even have space for the casings to fit in nicely. and i am loving these orange and black cupcake cases! i haven't yet found purple paper suitable for the cases yet, will have to hunt for those tomorrow...


remember my half scale pies? i finally got round to finishing the cherry pie. i quite like it, although i have never in my life tasted a cherry pie before :O


while staying away from straining my hands, i got so bored i arranged a few things in the cabinet i made....it's not done yet i've got lots more to store in there :E


finally, i made something for halloween. it's not complete yet cos i'm stumped. i tried to make a quarterscale cookie jar, a scary frankenstein, but it turned out ...rather cute (??!!) this is actually my 2nd attempt, i'll take photos of the first one which is even cuter (IMO) which proves that although i watch way too many scary flicks, i am unable to reproduce the horror i view through my eyes and in my mind....:( why does my mind simply 'cutify' everything HUH HUH HUH????

i've got to go wrap my bf's present now. :) i will be joining his family for dinner, to be honest, i'm not sure why i'm nervous after 4 years together and CNY visits and other social situations...but i still am...:S good thing they're nice people or i'd be terrified, not anxious :P

IT'S SO GOOD TO BE BACK!!!!!

non-clay minis on my break

basketcase yotsuba
Originally uploaded by Snowfern

i know i've been away for quite a while. so many things have happened, my brother's wisdom teeth surgery, middle bro is moving this week, and my wrist/thumb injury...it just didn't bode well for miniclay play. i tried working with some bigger items though (the mini rolling and conditioning simply freezes up the hands) and here are just some of them. :P

here's the baskets i made using an online tutorial i stumbled upon while surfing a few weeks back. I LOVE THEM! i'm not sure what language it is in (finnish maybe?) but the pictures speak for themselves.

http://linnanukkis.vuodatus.net/page/kori

i used some wire twisty packaging thing i found at daiso and some ecru coloured crochet thread i had leftover from my thread-related-craft-days....

also, made some acrylic items for the cafe...it's undergoing a major overhaul furniture-wise as i've found that the white paint i have just isn't suitable for the modern-retro look i was going for...here's just a teaser pic ;)



i kinda messed up on the sliding door bit, so it will only fit 1 door properly...but i don't care i think it looks cooler this way HAHA


also made a lamp out of a cheap $2 LED flashlight from Daiso..it's kind of big but it works out fine :) can't afford the USD$50 alternative right now ; ;

also made some one inch scale display stuff and some half-inch scale furniture for a half-inch scale bakery display...but i don't have much foods to fill it yet and hope to do so this week!