Caught Off Guard

Puchi is a little light sleeper.   You can wake her up even by on/off sound of a camera which makes it very difficult to take a picture of her sleeping.  But once in a while, if we're lucky, have the camera on in another room first and try our best to quietly sneak into the room, we can get a little sleeping shot of her.

afternoon nap

 caught off guard

Happy Friday!  =)

Feature of the Week

 It has been a long debate within my mind on the anatomy of the little yellow blossom dress.  If you like the little mix and match of navy pin dot last week, I hope you'll like this simple basic one with muslin pintuck bodice too. =)

Yellow Blossom Dress

Happy Thursday!  =)

Feature of the Week

It seems that it is not easy to find a nice piece of yellow fabric, at least around here.  Maybe I'm too fussy, but really there are only very limited selection in most of the stores.  Here's my latest creation with a recent found. =)

Dottie Yellow Blossom Dress

Happy Thursday!  =)

A Slice of A Quiet Valentine's Day

  I hope you had a wonderful Valentine's Day.  Mine was pretty simple and quiet.  It started with a mostly window shopping trip in a local mall and watching all those guys rushing in and out from stores with bags of presents.  The day was highlighted with a surprise rose from the information lady when I was asking some questions.  That was so sweet!  Plus a little bag of very delicious Valentine's cookie, I wish you can have some too.  =)

Once again, we found ourselves at this lovely family restaurant, the Storyteller's Cafe, in Downtown Disney at dinner time.  It had become our little tradition for the past few years.  It is one of our favourite restaurants there because it falls into the category between a packed family restaurant and a fancy restaurant where you can enjoy family style food at a nice decent setting.  We always go for the buffet as they have the freshest mix greens and my favourite chicken nuggets. 

Happy Tuesday!  =)

Feature of the Week

The little dress of the week is inspired by the budding blossoms in the neighbourhood.  The beautiful pink roses and the dark chocolate micro dot print reminds me a lot of the Valentine's Day.  =)

dark chocolate and rose dress

 The craftsmanship of this delicate print is simply superior.

 

Happy Thursday!  =)

Time for A Little Love Note

 It's that special time of the year again, hooray!!  It is always nice to send a little note to your loved ones and dear friends for the big romantic day.  I apologize for using the same one from last year instead of creating a new one.  But hope you'll still like it and can make use of it.  =)

It will be up for free download until next Monday.It's in pdf format and includes two cards per 8.5" x 11" printout.

Enjoy and Happy Tuesday!

Feature of the Week

This week we're back to the sweetness of baby doll dress.  Simple yet elegant, it's the best way to bring out the natural beauty of the little girls.  =)

blue strawberry field dress

pink dottie dress

Happy Thursday!  =)

The Little One

Puchi has always been the special little one in the house.  She brings us joy everyday, keeps us company for the most part (sometimes she likes to be alone) and cheers us up during the not so good times.  I have to admit that it was a pretty rough beginning when we first got her.  But after all the dramas, we are so glad and grateful that she is part of our small family and she has changed us a lot, in a better way.  =)
inspecting the new arrival

 resting underneath the voile curtain

Happy Tuesday!  =)

More Dresses

Here's a snap shot of the pretty dresses that I've been working on.  I guess romantic is not exclusive to pink and red, black and navy can be romantic too.

Happy Thursday!  =)

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!  =)

Feature of the Week

 This week's feature is for the sugar sweet girls.  The little dress is crafted of pretty soft pink polka dot fabric and beautiful French laces.  The pearl beads embellishments has made this lovely one very elegant.  Hope you'll like it!  =)

romantic pink dottie dress

Happy Thursday! =)

The Whimsical Playground

There is a very unique place at Pier 45 that I would recommend for antique lovers, the Musée Mécanique.  This big building is filled with antique arcade games and machines, the oldest one dated back to 1800s!  It was almost like we were back in time.

The little characters came to life as we inserted the magic quarter.  Those tiny miniatures were awesome.

 The monkey band

This shooting games was my favourite.  It was much more fun than it appears in the photo.  =)

 A typical scene at the seafood stalls of Fisherman's Wharf.  Delicious!

Happy Tuesday!  =)

Feature of the Week

Thank you so much for your patience!  =)  I'm glad to have at least one new piece to share with you.  The little red dress is finally completed with the finishing touch.  This adorable creation is totally inspired by Victorian Era fashion but without the lengthy bottom.  The heavy loaded details has reflected my obsession on lace  (American, European and Japanese lace were used).  =)  Hope you'll like it!

Scarlet Victorian Dress

 Okay, I really need to push my leftover holiday mood away and get back to the normal work agenda. =)

Happy Thursday!

Sweets Temptation

Last but not least, this was another wonderful foodie stop at the Ferry Building, Miette.  You wouldn't miss their lovely pink sign and adorable pastel European interior.

storefront stand filled with yummy cookies and bake goods

coffee and pistachio macarons

 homemade marshmallows

 chocolate tarte

 candies and French lavender drops

 They were all delicious but if I can only choose one, my top choice will be pistachio parisian macarons!

 Happy Tuesday!  =)

Something Romantic

Romance will be the main theme in the coming few weeks, as you know, the lovely Valentine's Day is coming up.  Or at least, I will try to make a little something romantic every week.  =)  The first little creation is still in progress and won't be able to make it to this week's update.  But doesn't mean that I can't share a sneak peek of it.  Hope you'll like it!  =)

We'll start off with our little classic romantic ruffle shirts this week.  Happy Thursday!  =)

Besides The Mushrooms

There was another very nice store in the Ferry Building, the Cowgirl Creamery.  It was hard to resist when I saw those stacks of artisan cheeses.  They made their own cheeses at their creamery and also carried a great selection of artisan farmstead cheese from American and Europe.  I was impressed by the great service from the very knowledgeable staff.

 Recommended by their friendly staff, the Wagon Wheel was one of their own creations which is a mild medium hard cheese.  It was great for snack.  I also tried it melted over pasta.  It blended in unbelievably well and was so delicious!!

Happy Wednesday!  =)

The Lovely Marketplace

Happy New Year!

I hope you had a nice holiday.  We spent most of the time visiting family here and there and were fortunate enough to have a mini day trip by the water in San Francisco.  It was our first visit at the Ferry Building Marketplace and we were so impressed by all the great food there.  They also have farmer's market outside the building every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.  It is a must go for foodie!

  One of my favourite stores was the Far West Fungi.  They had the most comprehensive selection of mushrooms I've even seen.  They were so beautiful and fresh.

 They even had mini mushroom farm for sale.  It's awesome!

 I regret that I was there after lunch and didn't have the appetite to try these lovely macarons.

  I should have at least bought some for afternoon snack, maybe next time.  =)  Oh well, at least I got some handsome dried mushrooms.  They looked tasty!

Happy Holidays!

Our winter break is going to officially start tomorrow!  Yay!!  I love working but I have to admit that I've been pretty worn out physically and mentally recently with all the planning on festivities and the new year. But before we go, Puchi would like send her regards to you too!

Merry Christmas!!

...be sure to stay warm and get well rested.

By the way, my dear friend from puppy52 has just started a website for her little adorable cats, Ginko and Yoshi.  The fur monkeys are always curious and naughty in a cute and hilarious way.  =)

As always, thank you so much for all your generous support and kind words.  I wish you and loved ones the most wonderful holiday season and all the best in 2011.

See you in the new year!  =)

Feature of the Week

It finally comes down to the last piece of the year.  I could have saved it for the new year but I just can't to share with you!  Ta-da ~ the little vintage child dress crafted with cozy velvet floral print and lovely round collar.  Hope you'll like it.  =)

Cozy Blossom Vintage Child Dress

Have a lovely Thursday!  =)

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! =)