Where Women Cook

I hope that you've already heard about the Where Women Create Magazine.  That awesome magazine which features the inspiring stories of talented people around the country.  I was so excited to find out that they have another one called Where Women Cook.  

 Needless to say, it is all about the wonderful chefs and foodies.  Besides their behind-the-scene stories, it also includes some lovely recipes from the fabulous bunch.

Sundaes Best Hot Fudge Sauce by Katie Camarro

Happy Tuesday!  =)

Adorable Books

Children's book has always been my favourite thing and great inspiration of my work.  Especially the vintage ones, they are the best!  =)  To be honest, I don't really read them that much but I love to flip through the pages and admire the illustrations.

Happy Tuesday!  =)

Crafty Books

 I've found two new lovely books over the weekend.  First is the Sewn by Hand by Susan Wasinger.  As the title says, every project in this little book is created by hand and needles.

  The unique charm with hand sewn craft is always beyond words to describe.

 Another is Natural Patchwork by Suzuko Koseki.  This recent release is part of the Japanese translated series, Make Good Crafts + Life.  It covers twenty-six lovely easy to make projects with patchwork designs.  Same as the other ones in the bunch, there are many pictures and detailed instructions.

Happy Tuesday!  =)

Some Nice Books

Weekend was fun as we spent most of our time in the garden.  We finally planted our very own little apple tree which means all the plants originally at that spot were happily transported to the blooming backyard alongside with the lovely new additions.

There are few nice books I kept forgetting to share with you.  Two art books from Juxtapoz, one features photos and one features handicraft.  They are both very inspiring and it is always amazing to see so many talented artists out there.  

Another interesting book is Little People in the City by Slinkachu.  It is a great reference for ideas and camera angles for doll photography.  You can also check out his recent work on his blog.  =)

Happy Tuesday!  =)

More Gardening Books

Since we're still working on the drainage in our yard, it means that I still have time to read more about vegetable gardening before our mini farm is ready to go.  The Gourmet Garden by Virginia Hayes has a few pages about growing mushrooms which is the only one so far I've found and is interesting to learn about it.

 Okay, this one doesn't have the most appealing cover but it is a pretty nice book, The Kitchen Garden by Alan Buckingham.  

 What's nice is that it covers a year round planner like what to grow and what to prepare.  The plant family section has all the details from the characteristics of common crops, growing and harvesting tips to my main concern, pest issue from different plants.  It also covers a brief explanation and solutions to common plant diseases. 

Happy Gardening!  =)

Artsy Books

Illustration Play

This lovely book features the extraordinary creations from twenty-three awesome artists from around the world.   From paper cutting to stitchery to patchwork, it is so amazing and inspiring to see the lovely works.  It also includes exclusive interviews with the artists which share the insight of their world.

 the sequel - Illustration Play 2

Happy Tuesday! =)

Nice Craft Book

Palm- Size Softies by Hitomi Takahashi, Mikiko Matsui, Akemi Tsubo

This lovely book has ones of the cutest little stuffed toys.  It covers 44 projects from little animals to dolls with pretty photos and detailed illustrated and written tutorials.  

 All you need is to pick the one and get the materials and get started!  =)

Happy Tuesday!

Paperdoll Booklet

It was a lovely long weekend, I hope you had a nice one too.  =)  We had a delicious traditional turkey feast on Thursday, headed out to the mall on Black Friday and tried to lay low the rest of the weekend.

I was so happy to find The Black Apple's Paper Doll Primer at the bookstore.  If you are a Black Apple fan, you'd probably heard about it already.  But if you haven't seen it yet, you have to see it in person.  The little booklet includes many many adorable and whimsical illustrations by Emily Martin.  It has lots of different lovely characters, vintage clothing and backdrops.  The clever thing about her paper doll is that the feet part stands as a base so that hopefully the delicate legs won't get bended over time.  It is simply a must have for Black Apple fans!

Have a nice week!  =)

Read & Eat

Gardening is one of favourite things to do.  That includes a lot of visits to the nurseries and reading a lot of gardening books.  There are two nice books I've read recently about vegetable gardening in small space.  They are both pretty easy to read and cover most of the basic topics like compost, pest control, plant characteristics and companion plants, etc.  And of course, a lot of tips on working with small space.

Grow Great Grub by Gayla Trail

One Magic Square by Lolo Houbein

I had a little spare time yesterday to catch a lunch at Corner Bakery Cafe.  I was glad I did.  The Pesto Cavatappi was so delicious.  It was very creamy and those crunchy breadcrumbs had completed the dish perfectly.

Have a happy weekend!  =)

Craft Hope

I was so delighted when I discovered the book, Craft Hope, by Jade Sims.  It is such a lovely story of a devoted heart who brings a lot of smiles around the world.  Please check out her website and the charities.  Get involved as simple as making some pillow cases and donate to ConKerr Cancer.  Together, we can bring more smiles to the world with one step at a time.

Happy Tuesday!  =)

Nice Books

I was so delighted to find another lovely craft book by Cath Kidston, Sew!. It covers many wonderful and mostly easy craft projects like Make!. I personally find the projects more practical in this book.beautiful little note books

A lovely lovely book by John Peacock, Children's Costume. This comprehensive book makes a very good and handy reference for my little fashion design projects.

Happy Tuesday!

Feature of the Week

The long sleeve dress patterns are finally coming along. Here's the first official one, the vintage child dress. The design is again based on vintage children clothing, cut and chop here and there and add a little mushroom favourite like velvet ribbon and pearl beads.

mintie dot vintage child dress

By the way, Dolly Dolly has a new book published back in August called Doll Snaps. It features doll photos from all around the world.(below are references from Graphic-sha website)adorable!!
Happy Thursday!

The Latest Recipe

I was debating between the latest Doll Coordinate Recipe 9 and 10. Judging by the cover, Recipe10 is definitely more interesting simply because it was written by Momolita. But when I did more research, I found some very adorable dresses in Recipe 9. So I decided to get it and wait to see on the 10 since it's not available here yet.

To my surprise, the lovely dresses are from Poupée Mécanique!! I can't explain to you how excited I was. It is awesome! Hopefully, I can learn some new techniques from the master doll dressmaker and get some inspiration for the future designs.Doll Coordinate Recipe 9

( ド－ル・コ－ディネイト・レシピ 9 )
by Dolly Dolly Books

Author: Various Artists such as by.echo, Poupée Mécanique, Momolita
Style: Casual, Gothic, Victorian, Vintage
Patterns for : Neo Blythe, Momoko, Tiny Betsy, etc
Difficulty: Easy to difficult

The new Recipe 10 by Momolita is called Animal Lover which features animal inspired fashion.Doll Coordinate Recipe 10

( ド－ル・コ－ディネイト・レシピ 10 )

by Dolly Dolly Books

Author: Momolita
Style: Animal inspired fashion
Patterns for : Neo Blythe, Licca, Tiny Betsy, etc
Difficulty: Medium to difficult

Have a wonderful week! =)

Hooray!

We're so thankful that the Chilean miners rescue was finally completed with much more than a happy ending. It is just wonderful to see the joy and hope it brought around the world, especially for the Chileans who suffered from the devastating earthquake earlier this year.

Speaking of positive things, I've been reading a little book called Positively Pooh. The mint and cream stripes cover is simply adorable. It features quote from A. A. Milne's original Winnie-the Pooh texts and the perfect illustrations by Ernest H. Shepard, definitely love it!
Happy Thursday!

Never Let Me Go

When we first heard of the movie, we felt in love with the beautiful trailer. Despite the mixed reviews(people either love it or hate it) had made us felt kind of fifty fifty, we decided to see it. After the movie, my feeling was in between the reviews, it was okay. But in the past few days, the more I think about it, the more I like it. It is those kind of movie which makes you think a lot.

As much as I like it, it is certainly not for everyone. But if you like the trailer, I would recommend to give it a chance. The movie is as beautiful and as subtle as in the trailer.

New Addition

The latest addition to my little doll library. =) This lovely book covers a lot of ruffles and fold details garments and features the most awesome yet vintage miniatures. They are simply too cute!

Doll Coordinate Recipe 8
(ドール・コーディネイト・レシピ 8)
by Dolly Dolly Books

Author: Yamamoto Yumiko
Style: Casual to Formal, European Vintage and Country
Patterns for : Neo Blythe, Momoko, Tiny Betsy, Odeco & Nikki, Misaki
Difficulty: Medium

My Recent Favourite Books

I've been reading a lot of home style and decoration books recently. They are mostly about cottage, country, vintage style. And here are my two favourite.

Easy Cottage Style by Liz Bauwens and Alexandra Campbell. This little book includes many many photos of different cottage style, from colour scheme to country to beach side.ShabbyChic by Rachel Ashwell. Yes, she is the designer having her beautiful home collection at Target. This lovely book shares many tips on the possibilities on flea market finds from antique furniture to vintage clothing.
Happy Thursday!

Time for the Fun Stuff

It has been extremely busy recently. Even though I know I won't have time to spare for the upcoming weeks, but just by flipping through these books and getting inspirations for my future projects, it's enough for me put a smile back up from my unintentionally frowned face.
Make! by Cath Kidston. I always like her retro vintage style. And now, here's the little book of wonderful projects in Cath's style. It covers items from floral embroidery on a plain cardigan to beautiful home decor. It's simply lovely!More Softies Only a Mother Could Love by Meg Leder. This little book covers twenty-two adorable softie projects and many different techniques in detailed instructions and photos.
And I definitely want to try this most adorable thumb print + illustration by the small object. Finally, something fun when it comes to thumb print.
Happy Thursday! =)