Flower ring

This weekend has been quite productive for me in the designing and jewelry crafting department.  I managed to complete 3 beadwork necklaces!   I'll post photos in the days to come when I can get nice shots.  My resident photographer is having final exams so I don't want to distract him!  

After dinner with the family today, I sat down and starting playing with my beads (as usual) and came up with this flower ring.  I really like it because it's simple and very attractive so plan to make a few in different colours!  Yellow, pink, orange, white,  red....

Photograph by Rebecca Yam

Have a great week ahead and remember to have a grateful heart!

Back to Work!

Thank you my dear friends for your support of my baking during Christmas and Chinese New Year.  I really enjoyed baking for you!  I am now back in my studio working hard for several events coming up.  Here's a little teaser for you...

I absolutely love these crackled crystals gemstones in such light spring colours

I decided to make something with it.

So I got together size 11 Japanese seed beads in silver and white.

I then made a netted base for the necklace.  Actually as you can see, the base can be the necklace, it's already so elegant and lacy looking!

Anyway, I started adding the crackled crystal gem chips and here's a sampling of what one part looks like.  You'll have to come back to visit in a few days' time to catch the completed piece!

During the Chinese New Year holidays I managed to complete a few necklaces.  Here they are:

This is a freshwater pearl necklace with magatama glass beads (which look like drops) and Japanese glass seed beads.

This necklace is made up of Swarovski pearls in three different sizes and Japanese glass seed beads. 

Here's my favourite for this week!  A bold necklace using a variety of gemstones, organic beads and Swarovski pearls.  Rather dense and will be a stunner with that plain evening dress.

Until I post again, have a great rest-of-the-week and remember to exercise to stay fit!

Chinese New Year

As you will already have noticed, this year started quite hectic for me with the new blog design, disappearance of my resident photographer (has tons of projects, presentations and has to study for exams!), baking for Chinese New Year and now the family will be travelling to Malaysia to visit relatives and friends. We'll be back next Wednesday.

I can assure you I'm working hard in my studio and will pack my beads in a bag to bring to Malaysia!  Right now I'm working on freeform necklaces and bracelets for an event in March.  I'm also working on two seminars in April to be held at my place with my friend Melissa Chor, an image consultant, so do check back regularly for more updates. 

In the meantime to all my Chinese friends, have a wonderful Chinese New Year break with your family and friends!

New blog look

Thanks to Michelle of Shabby Creations, I now have a beautiful new blog design!  The ivory and gold matches my jewelry room at home.  I still haven't had time to decorate my room with all the Christmas and Chinese New Year baking but I'm determined to complete it once the holidays are over! 

I've added a new section to my blog called "Rings and Brooches."  Check back in a week or two and I'll have a few pieces up to show you. 

Again, thank you for your continued support and encouragement.  I have appreciated your comments and feedback. 

Chinese New Year is in the air!

This week, in the midst of working on a large sized necklace, I spent a day baking pineapple tarts for my friends to sample.  It was quite therapeutic for me to grate the fresh pineapples, cook them into jam, make the pastry dough and finally fashion them into little hearts.

My unique little heart-shaped pineapple tart.

Here's 28 pineapple tarts packed in a plastic tub complete with Chinese New Year ribbons filled with auspicious greetings

  A friend asked me to make up some gift packs of 4 pineapple tarts for her clients.  I used these small plastic containers so the tarts wouldn't get crushed.

The rest of this week will be spent on baking more cookies for friends and relatives as we prepare to celebrate Chinese New Year on 14th February (celebrations go on for 15 days).  I will continue working on my necklace as well as prepare my jewelry room for visitors during the first week of February.  Also look out for my new blog design coming soon!  In the meantime, have a great week ahead.

Photography by Rebecca Yam

Still working...

It's been a good week for me in terms of work.  I managed to complete more jewelry pieces than expected.  Will post photos early next week.  If you're planning on having jewelry made to match your new Chinese New Year outfits, do let me know as soon as possible.  I will be busy baking and preparing to go to Malaysia to visit my husband's relatives and friends.

In the meantime, here's what I made yesterday.  Heart-shaped pineapple tarts!

Photography by Alethea-Faith Yam

First week back at work

It's been great getting back to my beads.  I've been shopping, packing and sorting out my new treasures.  This week I made about 14 necklaces, some pearls and many Swarovski crystal ones.  I'll post photos when my photographer has completed his work.  Once I price my new jewelry pieces I'll load the photos on the appropriate pages for sale.  Right now it's just for you to admire!

Here's a brooch I made on Monday with Citrine gemstones, Swarovski crystals, aluminium beads and Swarovski pearls.  It's about 2 inches in diameter.  I'll work on some pins as soon as I get my supplies in.

Here's a really nice Victorian style ring I made using Swarovski bicones and size 15 Japanese glass seed beads.

A lovely necklace using Agate,

Carnelian and lots of freshwater pearls.

A Crystal gemstone nuggets and round beads

necklace for my friend MC to look at! 

This centrepiece bead was made with 8 triangular pieces and sewn together to form the ball.  Lots of work for this one but well worth the effort.  I'm now making a necklace with 3 of these balls.  Check back in a while!

Until next week, have a great weekend and remember to spend it with your loved ones!

Photography by Rebecca Yam

Starting Work

After a few weeks off work, I'm back at my studio table organizing my beads and findings, shopping and looking through fashion magazines and websites for inspiration, ideas and tips for 2010.  This week I'll be working on new items, rings and brooches!

Thank you to those who've already placed their custom orders with me.  I'll be working on them as soon as I settle down.  I'll also be decorating up my jewelry display room for the Chinese New Year buys.  Will let you know when you can visit.

I'll be working on more necklaces/collars similar to this.  They will look gorgeous on a simple evening dress.  If you'd like something like this let me know.

Orders will take 6-8 weeks to be completed.

Blessed Christmas and a Very Happy New Year!

My family and I spent 4 days in Ho Chi Minh City.  We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and plan to go back.  Lady Inspiration came back with me so I'll be sitting down to make some new designs.  I will only start work on orders next week.  In the meantime, here are some photos of our trip.

The first thing that greeted us was the thousands of motorcycles on the road.  This is the normal mode of transportation for the people.  Some motorcycles had 2 adults and 2 children on it!  Weaving in and out of traffic takes a cyclist with nerves of steel!

We saw people carrying fridges, glass panels, doors and this man carrying steel bars!

In Ho Chi Minh City, the power cables are external.  We saw this man laying more cables!

More cables...

At the crossroads where the cables seem to be a mess.

We saw a lot of street vendors who were working really hard trying to sell their wares.

Street food stores are very common.

The locals everywhere seemed to be sitting on the sides of the streets eating their lunches and dinners, oblivious to the traffic and smog around them.

Ho Chi Minh City has some French influence so some of their older buildings are distinctly different.  Here's the Central Post Office.  Really quite beautiful.

Our tour of the Mekong Delta.  This was the suspension bridge we had to cross to go on land for our orchard and factory tour.

At the honey farm.

We rode on the pony and buggy to get to our cultural destination where we listened to traditional southern Vietnam music and tasted their tropical fruits grown on the farm.

A street vendor peeling fresh lotus seeds from the pods.

Cheng Nam and Cecilia, our very hospitable and gracious hosts during our stay.

Goodbye, Ho Chi Minh City!

The month of December...

I've been baking, baking, baking for friends.  This year I made more Christmas fruitcakes, cookies and American carrot cakes than last year.  My daughter commented that our kitchen looks like a bakery! 

In total, I must have baked more than 100 tubs of cornflakes, coconut, rum and raisin, chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin and coffee cookies.  Many were packed as gifts for family and friends.

American carrot cake with lots of pineapples, currants, walnuts and carrots!  I told my daughter that this is a healthy snack because of all the fruits and vegetable we can get in this moist, dense cake.  The Philadelphia Cream Cheese frosting is not too sweet, just a thin layer and topped with a few Hershey's chocolate chips!

In December we decided we needed to learn how to run properly (without injury) so joined my physiotherapist, Gino Ng, in his running club where he teaches Chi running. It was my first experience in running.  It was amazing!  No knee or ankle pain!  It was also fun running in a group from Amoy Street to the Esplanade.

 Gino was a former national triathlete, 2-time Singapore National Triathlon champion (2000-2001), National Duathlon champion (2001), 9-time winner of the National Vertical Marathon (1998-2001, 2004-2005, 2007-2009) and was also placed 4th at the 2001 Asian Duathlon Championships in Hong Kong and made several podium finishes in the Asian Cup Triathlon Series events over the years while holding down a full time job as a physiotherapist.  Check out his website at http://www.sportssolutions.com.sg/.

Gino has also been a source of encouragement to me in my journey of injury and recovery this year.  If not for him, I would probably have just given up and given in. Thanks, Gino!

This year we're thankful that Alethea has grown up as a young lady as well as a beautiful dancer. Come January she'll be starting Year 3 at School of the Arts (aka SOTA) where her art form is ballet.

Alethea with her classmate Janice (who's also from SOTA), at rehearsals.

Beautiful lines and extensions!  (Proud Mum speaking)

Alethea with her Dance Station friends and director, Ms Rosalind Ong at the Barker Road Methodist Church's Christmas concert. 

To rest from the year's work and season's busy-ness, I will be taking a break from jewelry designing until the beginning of next year. Thank you to all my old and new friends who have supported me this year.  I have really enjoyed making jewelry for you! Looking forward to a new year of more colours, textures and designs!  May this Christmas season make us more aware of what is important in our lives and lead us to cherish our relationships. Blessed Christmas, everyone!