Tea party on a Thursday

Unfortunately, I think my eleven year old sister has more social life than I will ever have in my whole existence. This week, her friends decided to wear fancy dresses and have the perfect tea party. And by perfect I mean: complete table setting, tea pots, fancy food, british accent, and of course, tea. Anyhow, in line with her playdate, my sister dragged me along to help assist her in making...... butterscotch brownies...? Truth be told, I wasn't so enthusiastic about the butterscotch idea because chocolate brownies are literally the best; however, what the tea party goer wants, she gets.

Oreos, Choco chips, & Macadamia nuts as toppings

Tea Party tableware from Melawares

adding the chocolate melt

final product!

I have to say, the brownies turned out to be great. The chocolate glaze gave out an extra burst of flavour, and my sister and her friends loved it! Hooray! Success! Hope you enjoyed looking through these high def pictures! Practicing my hidden talents! ;)

When Boredom Strikes: Bake

Apparently doodling wasn’t good enough to fill my endless pit of boredom. (you can read about it here) This time, I decided to bathe in the cool breeze, the gloomy weather, and the smell of rain... Boredom really drives you to do crazy things. I looked up some recipies and saw this gorgeous-looking picture of Nutella-cheesecake brownies that made my me want to eat forever. (I forgot to mention, I have an endless pit of appetite for good food too) I was easily persuaded to bake a batch of these Nutella-cheesecake brownies especially because of the thought of devouring the soft, heavenly, chocolate-y, treat. 

Here’s a bunch of pictures that’ll probably make you get up from bed and bake a batch too!

In case you were wondering, they tasted like heaven. My usual hunger and boredom was soon replaced by my excitement to try out my freshly baked creation. Man oh man was it a brilliant idea to make these luscious brownies. Perfect snack for this rainy weather!

When Boredom Strikes: Doodle

Why do I always get so bored? Maybe its the sickening summer heat that makes everyone so lazy to do anything… yeah, I think that’s it. The aftermath of my boredom usually leads to a social media stalking session… which is pretty pointless when you think about it. However, since my daily routine is consisted of being bored all the time, i’ve decided to make a post for myself, and or whoever is reading this as well, as an idea on what to do when boredom strikes. Hopefully, I won’t mention any trace of boredom ever again after making this “self-help from boredom” post.

One thing that’ll cure me from this infectious, lagging, annoying kind of disease (boredom) is a good doodle session. Doodling doesn’t necessarily have to be pretty; the whole point of it all is to let your imagination run free. (what’s wrong with me today, I sound like a yoga instructor) Honestly though, doodling is like entering this rule-free void where anything is possible… or maybe if you can take the easy path and daydream instead…whatever. Before I get lost in my thoughts again, here’s a bunch of doodling I did when I was infected by the B-disease...

Not bad, ay? Sometimes, boredom is the key to starting something. Hope you'll try at this boredom remover of a thing!

Too Cool 4 School DIY notebooks

Since school’s unwanted appearance in my life has arrived once again, it’s time for my annual pre-school DIY! For the past few years, i’ve been transforming plain notebooks into my own esquisitingly captivating school notebook. It has brought me more delight in writing boring and long notes here rather than a plain, dull, store-bought, notebook.

So first off…materials! (…well, duh! *rolls eyes at self*) I use scrapbooking papers, washi tape, double sided tape and scissors. “Really bo-ring materials” I know. This is your notebook so you’re free to add whatever you want; stickers, gems, glitter glue, your pet’s fur, food, …blah blah, basically anything! Annoyingly, I am required to keep my notebook reallyyyy simple, or else I might get a  *rolls eyes* infraction slip. Tsk, Catholic schools…  Anyway, hop on, and get ready for the DIY experience of yo’ life!! (what) vrooom…

Wrap your decorative paper around your notebook, stick some double-sided tape on each corner, cover the spine with some wash tape, ta-dah!

I watercolored a mini paper, sticked it, and vavoom, my own diy notebook! Looking forward to add more notebooks to my current collection! 

Here's a snap of all my previous ones...neat right!? I think I have a habit to pick yellow-green hues as the color for my notebook. Alrighty, hope you enjoyed my DIY post. getting ready for the new sCOOl year! 

Watercolor Wonders

During the past few months, I've been rummaging around instagram for some watercolor inspiration. Somehow no matter how hard I try, I couldn't figure out how to paint with the "watercolor" effect... Sadly until now, I can't say my watercolor skills have improved in any way... HAHAHA. On the contrary, I found some rather pretty instagram profiles which showcase their "to die for" illlustrations.

Here are some of my favourites:

1) Monica Ramos

My watercolor dreams started when I came across her website. Her work makes painting look so easy and carefree. There's always some sort of playful feeling that comes along when looking through her work that I think is caused by the effervescent nature of her drawings. Her illustrations are flamboyant, refreshing, and dreamy watercolor pieces that make me wish I could have her ultra cool painting skills. After looking through all pages of her tumblr (literally) my self esteem lowered from zero to negative one hundred.

Check out her work to get your self esteem crushed as well:

2) Annie Seo

Stalking her Instagram made the child inside of me jump out of my TV trance and start doodling. My "bored to death in school" doodles were inspired by her airy, (Asian?) cartoon-ish illustrations. Now only if my fine-lined pen could do the same thing...

oops, she can paint too

sigh.... maybe i'm better off at admiring


3) Anna Rifle Bond

Oh My Gee. This girl's works are like a gift from the heavens! Her handpainted illustrations are perfection! Her painting style and medium makes her work seem so surreal and vibrant and ..sigh.. perfect! She uses a opaque kind of watercolor (gauge) so the colours in every work looks solid and defined. In other words, perfect.

brb dead.

{DIY} Canvas Tote Bag

Usually, the unbearable summer heat makes me the most unproductive person ever. When a savvy DIY idea popped in my head, I knew it was a sign to get up from bed and start something. The heap of plain canvas tote bags lying around the house looked like they needed a hip new makeover. One Pinterest post led to another, and soon I was starting off with my very first DIY painted tote bag.

Here's a step by step version of my DIY tote bag process:

readying my materials

For this specific design, materials needed are a paint palette, bright paint tubes, a paintbrush, masking tape, and lastly, the canvas bag.

Stick masking tape on the spaces that will not be painted on as a border for your bag

Choose your preferred colors and start painting on the canvas bag

Tear off the tape when you've painted all blank spaces

Ta-dah! Not so bad for my first time!

Tips:

• Place a board inside the bag to prevent paint from staining the back part of the bag
• Make sure the amount of paint you mix for a certain colour is enough to sustain the whole painting process
• ENJOY

Whimsical Bookshelf pt 1

The droplets of sweat running down my forehead officially marks the start of my summer. The heat is inevitable and so are the unproductive first days of my summer vacation.... Although i'm glad school is over, I wish I had an idea on what to do next. With no more homework, projects, and deadlines due, what in the world can I do know? Not to mention that the temperature in here just wants to make me lie down in bed all day with the air-con blasting on full. Can I get any more productive?
Moving on from my complaining, I know what'll make semi-nerds like me beat the summer heat! Books! Although I find stalking people on social media entertaining, the one thing i'd rather do is to read. Instead of snooping through people's internet lives, why not freely discover an "outta this world" story that lies underneath one of those beautiful glossy front covers? Can you feel the scent of those freshly grazed book pages? The bliss you get when poured out hundreds of emotions and "feels" from it? Sigh, pure happiness.

Here are some of my fav fave favourite books! Whimsical Bookshelf Part 1 includes the ultimate teen angst, to the sentimental life "realization" and even the über "kilig-ness". Enjoy!

Attachments

book excerpt and image via

 

"Lincoln O'Neill can't believe this is his job now- reading other people's e-mail. When he applied to be "internet security officer," he pictured himself building firewalls and crushing hackers- not writing up a report every time a sports reporter forwards a dirty joke.

When Lincoln comes across Beth's and Jennifer's messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can't help being entertained-and captivated-by their stories.By the time Lincoln realizes he's falling for Beth, it's way too late to introduce himself.
What would he say . . . ?"

Although only meaning to be a light read, this book brought me so much more. Not even the most emotionless man on earth could resist the adorable quirkiness of the characters and the tranquil vibe the writing exuded. Lincoln, a supposedly "handsome geek", is the new late night email monitor of Nebraska newspaper's writing staff. Set in the 1990's, the ambience of the pre technology boom brings a comforting feel in my body. Lincoln's engaging attitude gave me no choice but to feel protective of this sensitive, struggling,  cute boy. As the transition from classic traditions to new age occurs, so does Lincoln's path to finding himself (and possibly a girl from his screen). This book captured my heart and for sure will steal yours too.

To All The Boys I've Loved Before

"Lara Jean Song keeps her love letters in a hatbox her mother gave her. They aren’t love letters that anyone else wrote for her; these are ones she’s written. One for every boy she’s ever loved—five in all. When she writes, she pours out her heart and soul and says all the things she would never say in real life, because her letters are for her eyes only. Until the day her secret letters are mailed, and suddenly, Lara Jean’s love life goes from imaginary to out of control."

O M G. Words cannot explain my reaction when I found out the book's sequel comes out a year after I fell in love with it. To All The Boys I've Loved Before left me in an emotional mess, an annoying cliffhanger, and a mega crush on a fictional character. Another great thing is, Lara Jean is asian, and has two sisters! Jackpot! So relatable! I couldn't stop but swoon from the sweet gestures of *......* to the super romantic lodging trip scene with *......* again. Gahhhh! My feels could not contain myself from reading it again twice (or maybe thrice). I couldn't be more desperate than to finally get my hands on the sequel coming out this May. 

book excerpt and image via

13 Reasons Why

book excerpt and image via

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker - his classmate and crush - who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah's voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out why. Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a firsthand witness to Hannah's pain, and learns the truth about himself-a truth he never wanted to face."

This book was definitely one of my intermediate school life eye openers. I remember reading this book after my friend insisted I borrow it from her. We were two tweens who wanted some thrill in our elementary lives. Three years later, I still remember the vivid, and intense feeling I got whilst scanning through the pages. The urge to find out what happened next was so forceful I was really tempted to ditch the whole story and proceed to the ending. As an innocent tween reading a young adult fiction about dark topics, I felt like I was transported into adulthood. The grungy feeling I got when entering the "emo" phase felt so surreal to me. Imagine a ditzy, happy-go-lucky pre-teen scanning through the electrifying contents of this dark, suspenseful book? Yup, the emo phase was definitely on.

Despite the hair-raising excitement I got from this book, I wish I read it later. Topics like depression and suicide seemed to be so glamorised in the story. As a gullible tween who wanted to be cool, this book made it seem that suicide was the way to end our problems. Luckily, I grew out of that "feeler-emo-punk" phase and distinguished the right thing to do when faced with trials:

Proverbs 3:5-6:Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.