A Tiny Flower Motif

I started to take an interest in samplers after I bought 'Quick & Clever Cross Stitch' by Helen Philipps the other day. I found that samplers are so versatile and relatively easy to stitch. Besides, it's a great way to record information and special events in life. The colourful little motifs are simply irresistable too!

I plan to create my own sampler soon, hope I can squeeze some time out of my busy daily schedule. For now, I've created just a tiny flower motif, which you can use for your samplers.

My First Taste of Krispy Kreme

I had a day out with my girlfriends this afternoon. We dropped by Delicious to have a drink where two of them ordered the mango, lychee & kaffir blast, without anybody knowing what 'kaffir' actually means. At the end we found it was some kind of a disaster as the drink tasted like tom yum soup with ice. :)

I was seriously craving for doughnuts during the whole 'tea-session'. So it's definitely a pleasant surprise when my boyfriend told me that he bought some doughnuts from Krispy Kreme. I've been eagerly looking forward to try their doughnuts after reading The Sun a few weeks back, which reported about the huge crowd queuing for the doughnuts.

My boyfriend bought a box of six doughnuts, but I only remember to take a picture after we ate two! Those two flavours are Powered Strawberry Filled and New York Cheesecake, which are plain disappointments if compared to J. Co's Heaven Berry and Cheese Me Up. I guess the media did exaggerated this new doughnut outlet in town.

I like the design of the box, but definitely not the doughnuts... Krispy Kreme's texture is the plain old rough yellowish texture (which is similar to Dunkin' Donuts, and also a reason why I never like doughnuts). A few bites of the doughnut is already quite filling, which is why I've no intention of eating more... No offence to all Krispy Kreme's fans, but I still prefer the fine and light texture of J. Co's doughnuts, and of course, with better taste and flavours.

Viva forever, J. Co!

New Beauty Plans

I haven't been cross stitching at all for the past few days. Life has never been busier than this month; there are tight deadlines to meet, trainings to conduct and to attend. I've just conducted an online NetMeeting training through phone this afternoon, which was really an energy draining session in disguise. The attendee kept on asking questions before I managed to finish my sentence, so at the end I missed a few points because she just wouldn't stop interrupting.

Okay, back to the point. I guess my busy schedule, late night dinner (or has it become supper instead?) and the lack of quality sleep did left an impact on my skin. All of a sudden, I'm pretty aware of the danger of spoiling my precious skin, which is why I've suddenly become very beauty-conscious.

My first effort was starting to drink longan and red dates drink since yesterday morning. I swear to drink a cup every morning before going to work, so far I haven't break the promise yet... Good! Realising the fact that sagging skin kills even the most beautiful women, I took an interest in collagen. At the end of the day, I ordered a packet of Fancl collagen pills online, hoping that it might work a bit of wonder on my skin too. Then I waste no time rushing to get a box of pearl powder after work. I tried it on my skin as instructed last night; mixed with toner and gently pat on my face, then I applied my night cream as usual. When I woke up this morning, my skin really looks a bit finer and the pores become smaller. Voila!

To complete my whitening regime, I decided to try white pearl barley drink daily. Hope it'll show some mercy and whitens my face. Well, even if it doesn't, barley is still a nice non-fattening snack!

My toner is finished; not a single drop left no matter how long I turn the bottle upside down. I'm still considering which brand I should try next. Kiehl’s Rosewater Facial Fresh Toner seems pretty attractive, but does it delivers the results as promised? Anybody who are using this toner, do share your experience. I don't think my skin is able to endure another week without toner...

A Belated Christmas Bear

I started stitching this cute little bear project on March, but only managed to finished it about two weeks ago. It took a rather long time, as I wasn't able to work on it daily due to my busy schedule.

This little bear came in a complete set of chart, aida and threads; which was an exclusive free gift pack that comes together with "Cross Stitcher" magazine. The design was originally meant to be mounted to a Christmas-themed card, but I thought it'll be nicer if I just frame it and give to my boyfriend as a gift. He loves it very much and now the picture has its permanent place on his office's desk.

Currently I'm still trying to finish a chart of two hedgehogs from the Country Companions series, which is a complete cross stitch kit that my aunt bought for me. Then, I've to start stitching a birthday bear real soon...

My First Chart

I was inspired by this afternoon's blazing hot weather and created a "tea time" chart with cookies and lemonade. Both are my all-time favourites, so I wish to share this chart with all the cross stitch lovers who are reading my blog.

This is actually the first cross stitch chart I've created. I'm still experimenting with colours and patterns, as well as when and where to use the different stitches. It's very excited to be able to create my own chart, although it took me hours sitting in front of the laptop.

The design uses whole stitches, half cross stitch and backstitch. Do send me a picture if you've stitched the design, I'll publish it to show to other readers. You are free to use the charts as shown below, but please provide a URL link back to my blog if you wish to publish them either online or offline.

Hope you'll like the design, happy stitching!

Start Blogging Again...

I've finally start blogging again after a busy year. During that period, I travelled to Bangkok for the first time on a shopping trip, found myself a new job, learnt how to bake cakes and cookies, plus loads of other fun and interesting things.

Once again I picked up an "old flame" – cross stitching. It's a hobby I first started during my early days in secondary school, but discontinued after I went to college. It was not until I accidentally bumped into a past issue of the UK magazine "Cross Stitcher" in a book store, then only I rediscover the beauty and possibilities in cross stitching, and it now becomes one of my favorite past times.

This blog is mainly about cross stitching, some life stories and all the things I enjoy. My real life is hectic and stressful enough, so I hope to write something light and easy here. Just to balance up, I guess; or you may say, to keep me sane.