Thursday, October 6, 2016

Stacks On! Tsum Tsum Greeting Card *^.^*

We all know how cuuuuuuute Disney's japanese Tsum Tsum range is!
So i totally had to revisit the totally kawaii Tsum Tsum greeting card book - which i had previously used for Alice and White Rabbit playing card... and actually use it following the way the patterns were originally intended =)
But of course, i couldn't possibly just copy a greeting card exactly as it is prescribed in the samples - where is the fun in that!
The fun is working out how to do things within your limitations naturally LOL
Having left this until the last minute for a cute little bub's birthday, i could only get my hands on a limited selection of coloured cards to slice and dice.

i chose individual characters that "go together" somewhat and what i could make do with the colours i had - a Mickey, Donald & Pluto stacker.
I would have really loved to do a Lilo & Stitch but the colours didn't extend that far.


Turned out pretty cute with the slight misalignment of the stacking.
The "card" part is just Mickey's head.

Here it is standing - kinda looking very much like the flat photo =P


Side profile



This took about 2.5 hours (omg!) and can most probably be much quicker if i started with a knife that was actually sharp!
And it's not a good idea to use a chunky, fat box cutter even if its sharp. Small hands (well, not that small) and a chunky tool do not mix. Hand was not very happy after using that.
Pick a good slim Stanley knife or slender box cutter/retractable knife and the world will be your Tsum Tsum filled oyster.

Very cute and turned out awesome if i do say so myself.
Totally going to make more cut out tsum tsums just for the hell of it =D

Tuesday, August 16, 2016

Designer Sunnies and their Gigantic Cases!

Argh!
Why does every designer brand and associated eyewear manufacturer make gigantic hard cases?!
With the amount of moolah they charge for said eyewear, the least they could do was make boxes that fit the darn things nicely instead of a 'one size fits all' lazy bum approach.

Case in point this time around -
the Dior So Reals are very slim yet the box is huge and squarish which means its a struggle to get it to fit into most moderately sized handbags and if you can get it in, it almost fills up the entire bag!
(Safilo have now started accompanying sunnies with the much slimmer black boxes, unfortunately, these still came with the giant white box)

*grumble grumble grumble*

Anyhoo, of course this is a good opportunity to custom make a box for the slim sunnies.

Presenting:


The custom case isnt tiny but follows the shape of the sunnies much better and fits more snugly than the original.
The side profile shows the uneven trapezoidal shape i made these in to follow the different slants of the front and back side of the sunnies. This shape is new to me so was an interesting challenge.

A little bit of casual neon polka dots on the side...
 


I made a large flap opening that opens up all most of the way for easy access that minimises the risk of squishing the sunnies or having to slide its way in which may inflict painful scratches.
The 'back' wall is lower for easy pick up because you know... its all rush rush rush lol

The inside is lined in emerald green scrap silk satin which you may remember i had also used as the lining for the 'wa! pucca flex sunnies soft case'.
The inner side where the front of the sunnies sit is padded - just like a silk pillow for the precious =)


With the finished case, i could have probably made it slightly smaller height-wise.


It was only after making this custom case that i found out the new black slim boxes were coming with newer models. The black case is slim and is the profile is actually a long triangle - which means its long and pointy at the bottom - probably not the best combination with soft leather lining in some bags.
Interestingly, the black cases are so slim that now you get the reverse problem where some sunnies like the Diorama barely fit in there - actually squishes the sunnies abit. You also have to slide it in and out to get it as on the top lifts up to open. Scratch central, anyone?
Oh vey =S


Friday, June 17, 2016

Alice and the White Rabbit Playing Card

Its been a little while since the last time...
so lets make it a good one!

i picked up a cute japanese craft book for making greeting cards based on Disney tsum tsum range.
totally kawaii!

Anyways, i took one of the card designs and appropriated it into my cartonnage - fabrics instead of papers.
Just a tad more challenging due to the tiny cuts that can be made on paper compared to fabric.

i turned this card design into a vertical top handle clutch purse/bag.
I used a push lock to secure the opening - first time using a push lock!

Here it is!
Adorable playing card design featuring Alice and the White Rabbit!


 Simple leather top handle with silver tone hardware

 My own little signature at the back

 Of course, how can i not include a giant mirror! Its totally what every bag needs to have built in (where possible)

Tiny little stitches... hand embroidered felt pictures...


Thursday, March 10, 2016

Mini LalaLoopsy Dotty Gale Winds Mod

How adorable are the mini lalaloopsy dolls?
With their swinging legs and large button eyes. And im probably late to the game... as usual.

For the longest time, i had been meaning to do something with a couple of Lalaloopsy minis i bought.. for fun.
It was either going to turn into a bag charm or key chain/key ring.
And then it took even longer to find tiny eyelet screws... yep, it was hard.

i chose to try my hand at slight customisation on Dotty Gale Winds. Purchased on sale. In case i messed it up.
So this is what Dotty looks like from factory. Already very cute with her pigtails and sparkly red slippers.
Picture comes from LalaloopsyLand Wikia
This one is fairly simple mod.
First step was just to drill a tiny hole in the chosen position in her head and put in the eyelet screw so she could be hung.
I attached key ring rings to form a small chain and a larger one for attaching to an actual key.
There! as simple as that. Key ring done!

custom dotty gale winds

Being factory, a lot of the details molded into the doll (her dress in particular) are not that noticeable. Its really just a giant blue dress.
She needed more details ... or for the details to stand out more.

There are a lot of kids out there that customise their minis with acrylic paints and those are usually 'total' makeovers. Honestly, from what i can see, from a certain distance, they look fabulous. But as you get closer, the texture of the acrylic paint is very obvious and for me personally, i didnt really like the idea of changing the smooth texture of the plastic and ending up with a sandy finish. Plus, have to source some sort of sealer to keep the paint from chipping.
So i chose just to highlight some of her details and instead of acrylics, i just used nail polish o^_^o

The finished result:

Painted Nail Polish lalaloopsy

painted nail polish
 The wavy stripes on skirt of the dress were difficult to keep clean as the brush was crap and the plastic was super smooth, it slips! Hard to control.
painted nail polish


pailed nail polish

I only used 4 different colours of nail polish.
Dior Tuxedo - navy blue stripes
Dior Diorling - gold buttons
Winmax glittery silver #11 - middle layer petticoat
Dior Perle - middle layer petticoat (over Winmax)

Winmax is a cheapie from Daiso.
The quality of nail polish made a big difference to the ease of getting this done.
Winmax and small fiddly details do not go hand in hand. In the end the coverage of the Winmax was too splotchy and way too glossy, so i went over it with Dior to give it a opalescent finish that is matte.
Dotty's sock frills shows the original Winmax glitter.


Now here's to hoping it doesnt chip as easily as nail polish does on nails! The overall texture and finish is much closer to the plastic than acrylics and you get the bonus of being able to use glitters and metallics that are harder to get in normal paint.

If i keep detailing mini lalaloopsys, i might need to expand my nail polish 'collection' =)

Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Cute Little Furla Spy... now even cuter!

Its been a little... (or a long!) while since the last post... life got in the way unfortunately.
Its a new year so time to get stuck back into things :)

Here is a small start.

I picked up a leather Furla mini spy backpack on sale - very cute.
This is a stock image of it
Its a cute little thing with a very minimalist design with a chunky pale gold chain handle.

Now as if this wasn't kiddy enough (the SA asked if i was purchasing the bag for a child lol, nope its for me), I added two pom poms and here we have it.

Customised design and even more kiddy... i mean, cuter!







Great result and took less than an hour to do. Well worth it.
If i ever want to dress like an adult with this backpack, i can simply snip the poms out.