26 April 2007

In between....


Rasa macam dah lama tak buat fob. Tetiba terasa rindu pulak nak buat satu..Kali ni bertemakan merah..hopefully boleh siapkan sefamily..tapi rasa mcm tak sempat je..maklumlah kan..makcik purak purak bz..ekeke.
Hopefully the kupu2 can berterbangan bersama familynyer tak lama lagi..Kalau rasa tak sempat..biakkan jerlah dulu..mana tau leh bina taman kupu2 kat Bayan Baru tak lama lagi...I'm delusional!!

25 April 2007

Pendibule Exchange..A Memoir.


Pendibule Exchange was completed at the end of March. This collage made by Ain is just to refresh the memory of the wonderful projects by my dearly beloved sticher friends..Walaupun kesemuanya mengaku kerastangan , newbie, beginner..but look at the end result...fuyooh...kalau meniaga ni..sure tak dapek org nk beli..masing2 takmo let go..hahaaha..cantik banget...Good job dear friends!! Absolutomente!!

21 April 2007

My framed projects.


















Don't you think that this framed Sunflower Pattern By EMS is a beauty? This is the second time I stitched it. First was for a partner during Hari Raya Exchange (organized by a local forum) last year. This is the second and it is for a dear cyber friend, Suhana who has helped me 'menjejak kasih' last year. As I was very touched with her help, I decided to send this as a token of appreciation...


















Another project by me was sent for framing last weekend. Coral Pattern by DMC. I stitched it with beads instead. Just love the sweet colors. I dunno yet what to do with it or where to hang it..probably at my new place later.*wink-wink*...(pray to God it will become reality). I have been doing nothing last night except staring at these two...and been saying to myself...you have been neglecting your beadstitch arent you eversince the obsession with completing the DMC floss sets...arent you? arent you?
Well..looks like my hibernating beadstitch WIPs is going to stay hibernating since I've pick up another obsession..joining exchange activities.......yeehaa!

18 April 2007

Al-Fatihah buat Makcik Bibah.

Seawal pagi ini, menerima panggilan dr kakak di KL. Katanya Makcik Bibah telah pulang ke rahmatullah pukul 4 pagi tadi selepas lebih seminggu di ICU Ampang Puteri. Inna lillahhi wainna hilaiirojiun. Tiada apa yangg boleh diperkatakan lagi. As expected….arwah sudah tidak boleh bercakap dan sudah tidak sedarkan diri semasa admitted. If I’m not mistaken..she’s abt 84 years old.

Kami jarang berjumpa…probably 2 tahun sekali. Selama ini hanya mengenali Makcik Bibah sebagai kakak my mom yang tinggal di Ampang Jaya. Masa kecil dahulu selalu mengkagumi famili makcik Bibah sbg English speaking family..They speak English macam kita berus kain tu..shreh shreh shreh…..lancar . Her husband (also an arwah now) and her are only government servants, tetapi kan org tua dulu2 yg tinggal di bandar, ramai yg berpendidikan Inggeris... So kiranyer mereka ni di mataku ialah org2 yg berpendidikan jugalah. Another reason why I admire her family..she is so close with her anak2. They are like friends..they can talk about anything. Now I wonder how her children is taking this loss..

She did visit me a few years back. Walaupun sekejap tapi sangat2 dihargai sebab dialah yg paling tua dalam salahsilah keluarga my mom and she still want to come to my pondok buruk….Dlm keuzurannya itu, digagahi juga bertongkat turun naik tangga.

Ketiadaan Makcik Bibah pasti kurasakan. Setiap kali hari raya arwah akan menziarah kami di hari raya pertama.( Opsss..sepatutnya yg adik menziarah yg kakak tetapi in my mom case ..terbalik kot sikit..) Habis diangkutnya semua anak beranak cucu cicit berkonvoi ke rumah. The last time I saw her was during raya two years ago. . She said to me …..Adik (that’s my panggilan manja among the family..okies….shhh..dont tell anyone!!)….lama betul cik Bibah tak pegi Penang. Teringin nak pegi tapi tak larat dah sekarang ni..jalan pun dah macam robot ni..sapa nak layan. Nanti org lain sebok nak shopping, cik Bibah sebok nak baring..She was saying it with laughter..


I didn’t get to see her during raya last year as I was in Pasir Mas, Kelantan.. Semoga rohnya dicucuri rahmat dan ditempatkan bersama2 org yg beriman dan beramal soleh. Amin.To Abang Hashim, Kak Chah, Abang Din dan Abang Lah…banyak2 kan bersabar yer.

16 April 2007

Monday Blues or..is it Blue Monday??

Hari ni...seawal pagi dah berjanji dengan diri sendiri..nak siapkan my needlebook for MDSE. Tetapi sekarang..dah pukul 11 pagi pun..mood nak stitch tu tak datang lagi. Masih terhangguk2 menguap depan pc ini..utk kali yg ke berapa pun tak tahu...Kerja pun buat sambil lewa jer.. tetapi makan tak sambil lewa plak..hairan bin ajaib kan dgn mood ni..tak reti bodek tuan langsung!!

Sambil2 membuka e mail..terbaca ramalan zodiak yg adik manis emailkan last week..hahahaha..jom kita buat perbandingan..
My DOB is 28 hb July. LEO woman tu. Kalau ikut zodiak..nampak cam bengis kan..singa betina. Cengei ..bak kata adik manis. My garang belom sampai tahap menakutkan sesiapa pun. Even my cats pun tak heran..melainkan kena babap kat kepala..the cats sure bertempiaran lari. kalau setakat menempik tinggikan suara..tak der siapa yg menangis lagi..setakat ini..hehehe.


LEO WOMAN
She will stand out of the crowd on the street. Leo woman normally tallor rather tall. You will hardly see a short thick woman. When shewalks she walk like a queen, confident and does not look around,though as if there is no one around her.
(My tots…tak betul ni..mana nak stand tall nyer..seniri pun tak cukup inci)

She will dress in her own style not according to fashion. She is confident of what she choose to wear. Do not buy cheap cloths wherethey sell in dozen for her as a gift, she will hate it. Also do notbuy cloths that do not reflect her confident personality. She likesunique and strange cloths and accessories. Being different is what sheloves.
(My tots…ini pun tak betul…I don’t like fashion. Sesimple mungkin bab berfesyen ni. Tak gila beli branded cloth juga tak gila beli bundle ..ekekeke. Ikut size poket la kan..tapi kalau shekali shekala melaram tu….pukul habes beb…wakakaka)

If you want to know her, take times and be patient because she isselective about people she mingles with. She's open minded, but yet she is not letting people get to close to her easily. She likes sweetwords and compliments, but not too much.
(My tots…yang ini betul..bukan berlagak tetapi mmg berat mulut..tak peramah. Melainkan dah kenal lama..mmg kena kelentong kaw kaw la..hehehe. Kalau jumpa pertama kali..ppl will always say..I’m a bit cold..not easy to warm up to people. Mana boleh overly peramah tak bertempat kang..nanti kena chop..ada masalah skru ke wiring ker…saper nak bertanggungjawab tu…. Bab suka kena puji tu..tifulah kalau tak suka kena puji ..tapi biarlah bersederhana..puji itew kadang2 keji…yg penting..IKHLAS beb..IKHLAS!!)

She smiles with anyone, but inside she thinks she is borne to be aleader. She likes to be in control because it is in her natureinstinct. She is a graceful woman , and she has a magnetic charisma,so expect tough competition.
(My tots..yg ini ada sikit tarak betul juga. I don’t simply smile with anyone. Mmg dah ada chop dr dulu lagi..Sombong. Walaupun senyum itu sedekah..tapi I never sedekah all the time…Memang dr zaman sekolah..selalu jadi ketua..bukan sebab berbakat memimpin ke ape..tapi sbb no nonsense nyer perangai..Takde nak merapu or gila2 tak tentu hala. Tapi sekarang dah banyak berubah..I donno where I pick up my sense of humor..sbb hidup tak boleh terlalu serius. Probably pergaulan dan kematangan usia mengubah persepsi kita tntg kehidupan..)

She is a very proud person, so do not do anything to challenge herconfident. She can be mad and act like a hurricane, and later can belike an innocent kitten, but do not fall for her O.K. She rememberseverything and likes to cherish her sweet memory, so if you find herold photo albums with her ex-boyfriend or love letters that will makeyou puke, take it easy. She is keeping her sweet memory does not meanshe still in love with the old fool, so you do not have to panic.
(My tots…of course I’m proud of my believes. Juga proud of my prinsip. Dan kalau diperlekeh tak tentu pasal,kenalah pertahankan. Tapi kalau dah mmg sah my prinsip tu merosakkan diri sendiri dan menyusahkan banyak pihak..tak rugi jugak kalau mengalah kan..kan ..kan..)


She will have many guys run after her, so if you have advantage of agood x-udground family, or a famous last name, a successful careerthen it's a plus. She hates to be poor and she thinks love will notpay bills.
(My tots…dgn rasa bersalahnya mengaku..hidup ini perlu mata duitan juga. Ayaq lioq saja pun tak cukup nak menampung segala2nya. Kalau beras, gula dan lain2 keperluan asas BOLEH dibeli dgn ayaq lioq...no hal bebeh. Kalau bling bling Mami Jarum boleh di beli dgn ayaq lioq saja…senang hidup Nana..kan kan kan…
Bab comei tu ka..ahakss..malunyer nak ngaku..masa zaman ‘kegemilangan’ dulu..mmg banyak la tukang2 orat tu..tapi that WAS dulu..now..tukang orat pun surrender…yg setia hanya lah seorang tu saja..dia pun tak boleh nak komplen banyak…sama2 dah tak ’ gemilang’ lagi..kuang kuang kuang!!)

She is a sport type and love sports. If you want to date her, prepareto spend big bugs, for your first dinner with her can not be a hot dogstand, but better be the best place in town. She is a generous person,so do not be surprise if she give you a gift more expensive than whatyou gave her. She likes extravaganza, no cheap gift, no cheap dinnerplease. Being poor or broke make her depress. If you do not have lotsof money, be creative and make your own gift for her. It's uniquequality and times spending making it for her is a big deal. You canthink economical, but do not be cheap.
(My tots…senang cakaplah..I’m not a picky eater. Kat mana2 pun boleh makan..warung tepi jalan pun okay..asalkan bukan warung tepi longkang busuk..yg tu kalau tak patah selera jugak..tak taulah spesis apa..kan kan kan.. Dalam bab memberi tu pulak..Memberi itu memang sedekah..walaupun tak murah dgn senyuman..tapi murah dgn pemberian..beri selagi terdaya..if you can put a smile on some one face..that is the best gift ..ever. You gain some..you loose some..that is the well balanced diet of life. Pandai2 aje berfalsampah senirik..)

Tetapi..yang nyata…betul atau tidak ramalan zodiak ini..I know who I am. I may not be happy with my self , with what I have done so far..during those 'for richer for poorer' times..I'm still content with what I've become so far. Mungkin tidak menjadi seorang ibu yg berjaya. seorang isteri mithali ,seorang jutawan atau seorang manusia beriman dan berilmu agama yang tinggi..there must be a reason behind it. Or simply..I dont work hard enough to do my best..

15 April 2007

This is how you do it..the togel pillow..ah ha..ah ha..

well.. for those interested..















This is the stitched piece (both sides)















Stitched both sides together. Leave a small opening to insert some fiberfill. Once filled, closed the gap.The pillow should really look like a pillow now..ahaks















Stitch the cording on the outer layer of the stitched edges. In this picture, I started it at the right hand corner of the pillow. Tack it with thread at the down side of the cording, as to hide the thread . Measure accordingly the length of the cording including the 'hanger'. move along the whole length untill you come back to the starting point.... that is ..the right hand corner of the pillow. Hide the end thread into the pillow..walla.!!

Another togel small hanging pillow..yikess!!


I have detour myself frm stitching for MDSE. Instead..I opted to continue my 'hibernating supposed to be bookmark'. Since I have these phobia with lace n ribbons..I do not want to finish it as bookmark..Gue belom habis belajar lagik..gi mana mau pandai2 sendiri jahit renda??

So..LIHATLAH DUNIA..INILAH BANTAL TOGELKU YANG TERBARU....MUAHAHAHA!!!

Memang betul2 togel kan?
Bila dah dapat ilham nanti baru nak tenggekkan macam2 kat situ..at the moment..juz make do with it simplicity..

12 April 2007

Update on my current WIPs ...................and diet


This week is a slow week for me. One incident happened to me two days ago. I guess I was effected by that. Anyway, rather than wallowing in self pity, I choose to stitch..but at a very slow pace..better slow than never, right??


















The photo shown here is for my Mother's Day Stash Exchange (MDSE). I still haven't decide on the finishing..stitching based on my instinct..that I can turn it into something gorgeous at the end of the day..hahaa...sooo over confident. This is what I stitch in between hours,daytime. Nightime ..no projects whatsoever..none..Nada!! And I still have few item to stitch. Can I make it on time? Well..I have to..by hook or by crook..


Psst...........my 4 days of low carbs diet was crashed today. My husband brought home 3 packets of dodol (a sticky sort of pudding/dumpling/traditional sweet delicacies..(I dont know how to describe it anymore) made of glutinous rice flour, loads of sugar and gallons of coconut milk..heheh..I'm exaggerating, aren't I?). I have a taste of it and regret it after taking a huge chunk..there goes my diet and have to start back as Day 1 tomorrow. It's always like this when I'm so called dieting.. It's a never ending story...aishhh.









11 April 2007

Thousand appologies .


What a bad friend I am. I failed to give credits when credits is due. Gosh..how can I forgot to write about this wonderful Pendibule I received frm my partner in the Yahoo Group Exchange Activity.

Ain gave me these beautifully decorated pendibulle ..full with beads. Plus..its smells like flowers. Along with few skein of DMC floss, buttons n a sample of sewn baby daisy beads pattern. How can I just keep it to myself?? I must let the whole world knows...hahahaha.
Tq Ain...I know it is 'ikhlas' from you..therefore . I accept it with 'keikhlasan too. muahsss

A gift that touches my heart..Part 2

Kenapa me melodramatic sangat bila bercakap tentang pemberian Adik Manis itu?
Pertamanya...pengalaman me dlm exchange yang pertama..(seperti yg diperkatakan di rumah lama iteww) tidak membawa kenangan manis. Macam2 andaian dan sindiran yg me terima dr partner yg sepatutnya menghantar gift.(terbalikkan?? kalau me sebagai penerima tak bising2 pun..si penghantar tu pulak yg kerek lebih). Kalau boleh me padamkan semua ingatan dan kenangan melibatkan diri dlm exchange itu..dah lama me padamkan. Its nothing to be proud about!!

Begitu juga pengalaman me dalam Exchange yg ke dua. Walaupun me dapat gift itu on time tetapi hasilnya adalah diluar jangkaan sama sekali. I did merungut here and there (that was when I'm not siuman..hehehe)but after a good look at myself and the concept of ikhlas and not ikhlas..me accept it as what it is, nor me do anything to repair or what not..

And all the gift I received after those two exchange was superb. No question raised by my not so siuman mind at all. And I did send out a few gifts to some..as apreciation of what they have given me before. And I only received positive feedbacks and admiration. And I was feeling great..on top of the world ..you may say.

But then..came along these gift from Adik Manis. I broke down when I opened and see what she send me. sebab pemberian itu bukan utk exchange activiti. She gave it becoz she value our friendship. Bukan paksaan daripada sesiapa. With work and her busy schedule..she still find the time to do something for me and to few others. She didnt juz menabur janji2 kosong. Thats why me terharu. And when I compliment her in a local forum..one person mis interprate or shud I say..misundestand..and out of nowhere she attacked me with god knows what nonsense. That is the difference between giving with sincere heart and taking things for granted..IMHO.

Sarang Tebuan Jangan Dijolok....

Semalam...tak ada ribut..tak ada hujan..tiba2 sarang tebuan yg sarat telah dijolok oleh seorang manusia yang tak faham bahawa....kadang2 ..berdiam diri itu adalah cara yg paling logik bila sedang berdepan dgn situasi yg kurang menyenangkan. Yang menghairankan..sendiri punya khutbah..sendiri jugak yg tak faham isi khutbah yg dibawa. Apakah yg patut kita gelarkan kepada org sebegitu...hipokrit?? cakap tak serupa bikin?? Ibu ketam yg cuba mengajar anaknya berjalan betul??
Kalau sendiri mengatakan perkataan 'ikhlas' itu subjektif..kenapa dipersoalkan pendapat org lain tentang ikhlas?

Ahh..what the heck...She asked for it..so..she'll get it. Whatever I wrote to her comes from the hati yg ikhlas...do not question that!!

10 April 2007

A Gift that touches my heart..


Yesterday..received these wonderful green coloured stitchers tool frm a lady friend that we love to call as Adik Manis. It was so sweet of her to send me these wonderful..wonderful..wonderful needlebook and pincushion. No words can express my appreciation. I'm simply stunned. I was very touched. Tiada bahasa yg lebih indah utk menggambarkan kegembiraan dan rasa terharu di hati ini.

Mus...terima kasih yg tidak terhingga daripada akak. Akak sangat2 terharu atas pemberian ini. Malah semasa menulis inipun, hati sebak sekali dan mata sudah berkaca2. Terharu kerana Mus menghargai persahabatan kita. Biar banyak mana pun perbezaan kita tetapi jika segala-galanya bermula dengan jiwa yang ikhlas, maka keihlasan itu akan terlihat...dalam jiwa yang memberi , juga jiwa yang menerima. Nilai tidak terletak pada material ini, tetapi kesungguhan menyiapkannya yang menjadikan hadiah ini lebih bermakna. Terima kasih adik manis..semoga akan ada lagi pemberian sebegini in the near future...muahahaha.

Fuhh..such a melodramatic moments..ngeh ngeh ngeh.

08 April 2007

Mood Yang Hilang

Hujung minggu yg membosankan.
Not doing much stitching..nor doing any cooking at home. Infact I dont know what I have been doing lately. I seems to be pre..or..cu..pi..yed..but actually I'm not. Havent even started on my MDSE..gosh..I need to rejuvenite myself..wahahaha...JK LOL.
so..sebagai permulaan, am thinking of dieting..a high protein diet seems ok..
ya..thats it..diet it is..will start on monday..so..tonight..am going to indulge all the carbs .
For 2 weeks..NO RICE AND NO CARBS AT ALL. I'm chalenging myself....can I do it?

05 April 2007

Sambal Jawa Sis Noreen.


We (the family) never like chicken breast!!. You know..the most healthy part of a chicken where there is no fat or whatsoever . Highly recommended by dietician especially when you are having weight or cholesterol problem. We only love satay..Other than that...we never drooled if it is served on the table.

That is what happen when we bought chicken. The breast will be left out..I will put it aside in a different container ,piling up lonely in the freezer., waiting for who knows when to cook it into something edible.

Then ...last weekend while chatting with Sis Noreen (another darling cyber friend) she gave me this recipe of Sambal Jawa..to help me clear up my stock.Well..it was edible all right!! I love it and everybody loves it too. A two thumbs up if u ask me to rate..ekekeke. Thank you so much sis..
So..sis Noreen..have I passed?
For those who want to try this recipe...here we go..hope sis noreen wont mind...exactly like she emailed to me...baru ori..tak gitu??
ok tis is the receipe for Sambal jawa. boleh foremen sendiri mengikut citra rasa masing2.

bahan2
ayam or daging lembu - sekilo
halia (utk blend n utk hiris)
bawang besar (utk blend n hiris)
serai (utk blend)
lengkuas (sikit je utk blend))
cili idup
cili boh
gula melaka (sedikit je)
santan (pati sebiji)

ok sekarang hiris bawang besar, cili idup, halia(hiris halus2).

sedikit halia(like my thunb), lengkuas (like my thumb), serai(2btg) , bwg besar(se biji) - blend, then cmpur kat cili boh. cili boh dlm 2 sudu makan.

Utk hiris - halia (3 kali my thumb), bwg besar (3 ke 4 biji ikut suka la klu nak byk bwg), cili idup (3 or 4 btg) klu nak pedas lagi campak 3 4 cilipadi.

so tumis the halia yg d hiris dulu, pastu masuk kan all the blended bahan. followed by the bwg, cili idup, then the ayam (di potong cube cube kecik, bukan cam your xs cube). masak ayam sampai 3/4 empuk or air da tak byk..

bila da 3/4 masak, masuk kan gula melaka n santan. then masuk kan sekeping asam keping. masuk garam.
makan ngan lemang or nasi empit.
psssssst: ni bukan ori sbb da foremen sendirik.

Pstttt...my wish list is to see sis noreen's thumb..ekekeke. Then I can really agak2 ...muahahaha

The Feeling is great!!

I was told by a Sis( a cyber friend) that she was jumping with joy when she received a gift from me. It is nice to know that you can do that to some one. A small tiny gift can put a smile on someone's face..it does boost your self esteem. Well...to sis Hida...knowing that you sincerely like my gift, makes me jumping with joy too..the feeling is mutual..wink-wink..
Well...honestly..the feeling is great!! It makes you want to give more..muahahaha..

03 April 2007

My Bunga Raya is almost finished!!


This is my progress so far with the bunga raya pattern. I'm loving every single inch of it. I plan to do another small pillow for myself for this coming Mother's Day. A mother with only a son to brag about, is stitching her own gift..what a pity!!


If you can recall, I'm using my so called creativity to match things up. The flower pattern is frm a Donna Kooler design and the sayings for the back is frm a Joan Elliot Sentiment and Sayings Design. I change the color used by JE to go along with the self made theme which is..RED IS IN THE AIR...So watch out for my finishing later on. Commonly asked question echoed by this statement is..how much later is later on??*wink-wink*

A simple tutorial for a simple bookmark

Here we go.. its a first bookmark from me, so didnt expect much frm it. It's a huge achievement for a person who is a total wreck at ribbons and lace. Frays is a 'wreck' best friend then..
















The stitched piece















Since I'm using fray as a finishing, I backstitched the edges using white floss. making it look like a frame.















Cut iron on interfacing material to match the stitched frame(blue thread frame)
















Iron on the wrong side of the piece. Untangled the cloth thread one by one until it reached the frame made by the white backstitch thread. U have frays there..walla!
















The bookmark from the back view.

Taraaa..my latest try out session.


I didnt do much last weekend. Actually. I did a little bit of this and a little bit of that..in the end nothing gets finished. But..I'm proud to say...I managed to finished my first ever bookmark. A very simple pattern (which I got frm the online Magazine..The Gift Of Stitching..with a little bit of add on since I find the simple pattern is indeed very simple and very small..)


I was trying the newly bought VENUS varigated floss and decide to do a bookmark with it. Since the patten is there..bla bla bla. I used blue floss insted of rainbow. I didnt like the color though . Its a very dull color and since its a try out session, I have to make do with what I have..

here you go...Now I can put my bookmark to good use, DK book now has a mate..hahaha