Just like that we are in May. Just like that almost two months have passed us by. Sorry about that. Well, not entirely sorry to be frank. I’ve been busy on the home front. Busy getting busy, busy getting my craft on. I started on Project Life this year and am truly enjoying the ride. It’s been nice assembling the pieces, getting tactile with the various bits. It’s pretty enticing and quite nice to just thumb through the pages so far. And would you believe it, we are on week 20 now. TWENTY. The year is flying by.

On the Sparkle Thots’ front, I’ve still been working on your orders. I’ve had the opportunity to work with brides, and to work with the loveliest of customers prepping special surprises and thoughtful gifts for their loved ones. I’ve tried hard to stick to the 3 day turnaround, and by and large, I think I met it. Shipping times however, appear to be slightly longer these days. With most agencies going the way of the 5 day work week. Yay to family time, boo to slower speeds. But I guess, the good things are always worth the wait.

I’ve retired a lovely ring and have listed a new Infinity necklace in its place. It is a modern day classic in my opinion and is available in both silver and gold. All parts will be 925 silver or goldfilled / vermeil. Such designs are made to last and the materials, with proper care, will allow it to retain it’s original shine. (Silver to come soon)

And here’s a roundup of the highlights of the week just past. Just in case you thought I’ve just been idontknow, sleeping the days away.

rokeby : a lovely mummies’ date | riding off into the sunset at bishan park | me and melissa’s, we go together | honey yuzu cupcakes, on a whim | zoku ice pop mania | hiding in plain sight, under a table | us | pretty new clothes for the ipad from lof

 We’ve been kind of busy tinkering with Swarovski pearls and crystals. Perfect for weddings and bridal parties. Dreamy weddings are ahead..! We love communicating with our brides prepping for their big day. Always fun and really makes you smile.

I did make a new friend. Say hi to the cricut. While not as versatile as the silhouette, it made a relatively easier entry into the world of paper crafting. It’s been pretty awesome so far. I’m currently working on two different albums; a Project Life album for pretty much every single day and a smaller one for just about anything that catches my eye.

Are you into scrapbooking? Come join the fun!

Swarovski pink pearls and gold. Paired with AB finish Czech glass? A heady mix of romance, and everyday cheer. Loving this combination so much, especially the pearls such that I have them in an assortment of sizes. Gorgeous in real life. The earrings are already in store and the necklace would be soon. You can go all matchy-matchy with these or get them separately. Your choice.

Thanks for hanging around… things have been crazy around here. The kids have been playing tag with the flu virus for a month (a whole freaking month and then some!) and work has taken a backseat. Orders have been going out as per normal but the muse has taken a sabbatical as well. I only managed to get the fingers crafting with these pearls. The colour just excites me.

So, till the next time, hopefully much sooner rather than later…

It’s interesting to watch the transformation of the ole neighbourhood that I grew up in suddenly become so hip and chic over the course of the last couple of years. Suddenly the obscure estate that I grew up on become ‘familiar’ to so many.

The newest kid on the block (in addition to Wimbly Lu, The Fat Cat, The Cajun Kings,  La Pizzaiola and well, Baker’s World), Rokeby opened just last weekend and up till tomorrow, is having an opening special of 10% off all items (except alcoholic beverages I think). Still having the occasional teething problems, it is quite the nice spot to chill. And the coffee, oh the coffee, yums.

What I liked was the thoughtful small corner for the children. A couple of small children’s tables laid out with an invitation to play, colour and have fun. My kids would have loved it, but they were at school (hah!). Worth a second visit. And maybe a third. Lunch dates girlfriends?

Oh, and they open early. From 9am right now. Perfect for a quick catch up when kids are at school.

Rokeby
15-9 Jalan Riang
Singapore 358972

… and rose quartz.

The lighting today was pretty good and I got some lovely shots of this pair of rose quartz earrings. I’ve always loved rose quartz. There’s something about pink that gets me all weak in the knees. I’ve hoarded these for quite a bit now and I think they are pretty hard to find. And they are oh so gorgeous in real life.

 Now available in the store.

Stories to tell of the kids…

Have you heard the absurd stories a child ‘reads’? K tells the most ridiculous stories sometimes. All modelled after her own experience or that of her beloved tv series (of which there are many). Somehow, she managed to spin the well known tale of baby Moses into a baby being rescued from pirates (Captain Jake and the Neverland pirates( by knights in shining armors (Doc McStuffins). And they all lived happily ever after.

J does a much better story. I guess he has been trained in school to spin stories from (wordless) picturebooks. Though him, being him, he does get a little too detailed. But it is interesting to note the advancement in languages (the spelling words he returns with and remembers still astounds me) and how he is able to start forming ‘compositions’. I look forward to the day he actually reads proper. I know some other kids can. Just not him.

Meantime… a short anecdote. We were telling the all familiar tale of the boy who cried wolf one too many times. We ended off with the underlying point :- the boy told too many lies. J just paused, pondered for a bit and then returned with this epic statement… ‘but it was just FOUR times!’

RRRIIIIIIIGGGGHHHT.

Yes, uber late but, there are 15 days after all. Life’s been one major roller coaster ride and things are just beginning to settle back to normal. We had a lovely holiday but it felt like we returned to insanity the minute we landed. J had this epic fall resulting in a swollen eye and K, the poor dear came down with bronchitis.

We managed to survive with the help of the extended family, and had some fun celebrating the Chinese New Year. New clothes, lots of food, no school and J’s birthday… what’s there not to like?! Plus, the husband was home for a fair bit of the time… SCORE.

School has since started for the kids though and on the shopfront, we have caught back up with the orders. We are prepping some new items to be launched so do keep a lookout for them. The blog itself is undergoing midlife crisis (whatever else do you term it?!). There has been some slight modifications here and there, and while the new style puts the reading format just that little bit easier, the formatting for the older posts has been thrown out of whack. But… let’s not go there. I’d promise you that in the posts to come, I’d be sharing snippets of the Project Life spreads. I’m kind of consolidating the personal blog and this, and doing some form of self censorship on what gets posted. Bear with me!

And because I’ve been trying my best to stay up to date with my Project Life album, I’ve been working on lil bits to add on to it. Like these overlays (or whatever you call it, I’m so not a real scrapbooker). Whilst I’ve been lemming a Silhouette, I can’t quite justify another equipment in the house just yet. And at such a cost. I’ve actually been lusting over one since it was released in the States much earlier and where the local shops did not carry. Yes, that’s how long it has been. I still drool over it and until and unless I actually get one, I’d just live and make do.

Like this. Craft punches punched in whichever way you like and to cut the rest out with a penknife. Add a background (or a photo), embellish even more and you have an easy peasy card.

Haven’t forgotten about ‘work’ either. We are looking at new ways to package your goodies and are excited by this new stamp. Gorgeous in our eyes. Yay / nay? Either way, we are pretty much in love with it!

p/s : we are counting down to our vacay! You have just under a week to get your Valentine’s Day orders in before we take off.

We are getting back into the swing of things. Slowly but surely. We are releasing petite pieces all over again. A fresh take on modern romantic jewelry. Minimalist yet packs a punch in style, meaning and elegance. Never under estimate the power of the humble necklace at pulling the look together.

Do hop on over to the shop to check out the newbies, the oldies and everything in between. Feel free to drop me a convo / email / comment if you’d like something customised. Also, do note that we’d be taking a short break in a couple of weeks so do remember to shop early!