SG50 Flea

So we had this SG50 flea some time back. Funny thing is, I wonder why wasn't the flea on the actual day itself ? Could it be because they anticipated lots of people going away for the long holiday? 

Made few more Insta pouches the night before. Absolutely love them. Jan bought the big insta bag. I've made another one since then. Jan, wheres my feedback!! You better write me a raving review hahaha.

Took some pictures for my Etsy listing. Love the grass colour contrast. Pouch comes with a long enough key chain and 3 mini rings for your keys. You can detach the chain which is really convenient if you want to just use the pouch for your cash, coins, and cards.

The wind was gushing madly on that day and we couldn't display the earrings flat on the table so we had to dump them on the baskets which is really not ideal. It drizzled for a bit midway but luckily it stopped after 5mins or so. Few stalls were already packing up, not sure if they decided they were done with the flea or they were preparing to move to the carpark area - which is the contingency plan. Luckily we didn't have to do that. It would have been a stuffy situation. 

It was supper sunny then. We started setting up the booth around 1245. Rushed to opposite to get some lunch first. Had trouble finding our table and then Conrad said it was better to move the table to another spot which is a good idea so we took so long before we could go and grab our lunch. I went up to grab sunblock. Definitely feeling the sun spots forming on my cheeks. Hope the Gili trip won't be burning new ones on my chub cheeks. Really am not liking them. Wearing my Uniqlo sun hoodie which I'll be dragging to Gili. Hopefully that'll save me from most of the sunburn.

They were giving out some kacang puteh and we chose ice gems. Are they super appropriate or what. I'm loving this picture. It will be the cover photo of www.iheartmacaroon.com soon.

#Playingwithnails

So these are the nail nonsense that I enjoy doing when I can be bothered to look nicer. Cant find the original pictures anymore so most of them ive screencapped from instagram. Just realised that they are not clear. Maybe instagram used to diminish uploaded picture quality? So annoying.

Instagram Obsession

So, I have been "obsessed" with Instagram everything since I downloaded the app for the second time. First time I deleted it after a while cos I didn't really know how it worked. Second time Jan told me to install and it was more fun since I have an active friend there hahahah. So now, Instagram is like my go to time killer - besides Pinterest and 9gag. If you want to follow me, my usename is @immech. My feed is displayed on the right bar. Feel free to stalk hahaha. Follow me and say hi though. Would be nice to know that someone friendly is actually reading all my jibberish.

These are just some Instagram inspired DIY stuff that I've made. I have also crafted a clay charm with my usename on it I think but it wasn't very impressive and I'm too lazy to search for the picture but I think it's still on my Instagram feed.

Everything you see here is for sale in my Etsy account. They are customizable also. Click here to view and order or drop me a message for custom order if you like. This post is about Instagram items only but of course there are many more handmade items there.

I think this is my first or second felt item. I wanted it for my keychain and my bag. You can simply pin this back with a safety pin to anything you like. I pinned it onto my DIY sling bag which I have painstakingly handsewn - I don't know what had gotten into me. When the creative juices are flowing, they flood hahahha (just like your period on day one/two #ew #tmi). I have never felt comfortable when people say ohhh you're creative blah blah because I feel like this isn't my original creation - Instagram is not my creation even though everything else was made by myself fresh from the oven. Maybe there are other similar products out there for sale but I don't know and I wouldn't say that there is one that is exactly the same as what I made.

I wasn't one of those people who appreciates handmade items in the past because I always think they are overpriced. You need to be able to appreciate the time and effort people put into crafting the items. The cost of materials might not be comparable to the final asking price but think about this, for a small "business", they buy raw materials at NON wholesale price so the cost of materials are already more expensive than mass factory produced items. The factories might be able to obtain a piece of raw material for 20cents but for people like us it might cost 5$ a pop. Well you never know. I definitely am not the kind who will buy hundred over pieces of raw material for something that can't sell as fast or I do not have the capacity to produce in a short amount of time. I guess what I'm trying to say is, you pay for the crafters' time and effort and maybe the number of curses I utter every time the needle pricks my hand hahahah

Now I can appreciate when I see handmade items going for a more than average asking prices but I might still spend a lot of time thinking before i decide to get them, most of the time I will think if I can make them myself, which I normally do. There is still a project I wanted to make for myself instead of ordering online because I felt it was a little out of my price range and I want to enjoy learning and making it myself. I really enjoy making these items. Sometimes I think it's funny when friends ask me if I made some stuff myself when I actually bought them. I don't know if I should feel offended or flattered since it can go either way - are you saying my purchased items looks "handmade"ish even though I paid so much for them or are you saying my handmade skills are very impressive that my purchased items can pass off as my handmade quality. Usually my first thought and response to that is WHATT HOW DARE YOU hahahahah 

This is the key/cash/card/coin pouch that I probably made first before the mini keychain. I remember drawing out the "prototype" (sounds so fancy siahhh macham engineer *pukes hahahha) in my journal and it's one of those that Jan says looks like a child's drawings - if you're reading this, Jan, F@RKY0U! It's cute ok hahahah..  The metal chain is detachable. I made everything based on what I would use myself - I want something that can keep my housecard or any loose items sometimes - like maybe my hair tie or extra keys that I only need once for that day/week or maybe battery sample I need to get when I go out later (yeah, so random I know, no one needs a sample when you need to get AA or AAA battery but if you wanna get a frickin tiny battery for your watch - the blahblah622 kind, you better bring your sample - or picture lah whatever you want, I prefer to manually compare and be sure), my many keys and i want to be able to just pull it out and have everything still attached together. I notice that I tend to rant off hahaha #oops. Anyway, this is the latest version. I notice that I keep changing up the look, sometimes it's to make things easier to sew for me and sometimes to improve the look. This is the best it has ever looked. You should see the first one - it's still on my Instagram feed. It's so ugly. I kept that piece for myself as sample sizing.

So this is my latest obsession. I wanted an Instagram sling bag for myself but I've decided to put this one up for sale first. I intend to make a bigger size and also another one of this for me, maybe slightly smaller? But I think this size is perfect. It fits my iPhone 6 Plus and all my make up stuff and other tingtongs I need to bring out. I added a base so it looks nice when you put in your items. You'll notice that sometimes some bag doesn't have a base and it tends to sag really badly when you dump in your stuff. I hate that look. 

The strap is adjustable. You just have to re-clip it according to the length you desire. The bag is fully lined. I really like when pouches or bags are lined. They look more expensive and proper, not some half assed made stuff. My first pouch wasnt lined and I just cut a line at the back for my ezlink card hahah. Yikes. I feel like making another sling bag soon for my Gili trip. 

This is the size comparison between the sling and the pouch. You can do an instagram inception - pouch within pouch hahaha. The decoden phone case is also listed on my Etsy. There are many versions available and they are all for iPhones mainly iPhone 5/5s/6. 

DIY Headband

I got this flower necklace from H&M. Thought it might be suitable for Jan but in headband form so I decided to DIY it myself. So i measured the length needed. Unhooked the necessary part so i can turn the leftover into a bracelet. #nowastage. 

Things you need would be:

The headband of course. Any kind you want. A lace one would be nice too. Or any simple metal necklace or chain that you like. 

Elastic band. 

2 squares of Felt fabric. Or any cotton fabric will also do I guess but it feels like usually they use felt. I just happen to have loads of these lying around. Black or colour that matches your hair and the elastic band would be good. 

Do a quick measure on your head. These end up above my ears. I think it will be better if you make sure its in between your ears or slightly below so when you wear it with your hair up you wont see too much of the elastic band. Make sure when you add in the elastic band theres a resistance aka not loose. It has to be a little springy so it will hold up when you wear it. Just do a quick mock measurement holding it up on ur head. I did a quick measuring, cut off the elastic band and then hold them up to measure again. Once you are satisfied you can start sewing. 

There are many holes in the flowers so thats a good thing in this case. You need to make sure that the sewings are tight enough since there will be a lot of tugging     later on. 

I sewed into many of the different holes  and also all around it. 

Cut out an almost square slab of fabric to cover each side of the sewed up parts. Dont need to be perfect. We can adjust it around and cut it to a better size later on. 

Glue around the area. This will help the fabric to stay put while sewing. Depending on the type of glue you use you will need to so this fast because some glue dries up fast and it will be difficult to push the needle through. Mine took a little while to dry but I also had to sew fast. Do not use superglue - the mini tube kind. They dry up extremely fast and when  that happens the fabric will be solid hard. You can forget about sewing anything through it. 

Just wrap around the fabric and make sure the part where the fabric ends overlap are in the inner part (part touching your hair that wont be visible when you wear it) and start sewing to make sure all the exposed  parts are stitched up. Make sure there is only a single overlap. If you overlap too many times the fabric will end up to be too thick and uncomfortable when you wear it. 

End result when worn. I think the fit is alright. Not too  loose and not too tight. My hair has been in this ponytail braid since morning. Kinda look like Elsa's hair from the side hahhaha. Not so much from the front or back. 

The flower design actually acts a little like a comb so the grip is better than if I were to use a plain chain. Maybe i will take a nicer picture next time when I bother to put on makeup and have my hair blown out ahhaha. 

DIY Friendship Band Watch Strap

We are heading to Boracay mid Nov so I went to dig out my waterproof watch and of course, its a goner. Straps broke in all places when I tried to put them on. Was thinking if i should just throw it away or just the the strap fixed. 2nd option i wont be able to get it back in time for the trip thats  for sure and i couldn't find a replacement option. Might not be worth it too. 1st option, well its 100m water resistant so its really damn wasted if i just throw this away. A diy strap will have to do. 

Pick whatever colour you want but id suggest the same theme as the watch. I ended up picking 6 colours. Exactly the same process as the previous heart friendship band i made. This time i picked another pattern. Something less complicated. 

You will need:

4stringsx6coloursx50cm strings.

Meaning you need 4strings of 60cm for each colour. 2for each side. Number of colours are flexible. For my size i found that 5 colours would be more fitting for the metal bar length. 6 strings are bit too many but I can still force it in. 

Clasps for both ends. 

In my case I have this razor blade charm that I wanna use and also the usual lobster clasp. 

Pass through one end of the string and when youve halved it, tie a knot to secure it. One side should have 2 sets of colours in reverse sequence. Same colour should meet in the middle. I think this is called the chevron pattern. 

Just keep braiding till you reach your desired length. It doesnt need to be very long because of the clasps that you will later use will add on the length. 

When you have braided enough, add on your charm or simply make a loop with the strings if you want. I have always wanted to use this rustic looking blade so im including it here.  

Make sure you knot both ends firmly and i use superglue at the end to make sure they dont fray. This superglue hardens the strings. 

Cant really see the braids from the top. Ithink  my wrist is small enough.  I think this is good. The braid might seem out of place a little. 

Ok. My face with the watch hahah. I have worn this while snorkelling and swimming in Boracay and it stayed put. The replacement straps serve their purpose well. Glad I made this instead of looking for an authentic Timex strap which will probably just fall off again after a while. I'm currently interested in getting a Pebble watch because of the rude watchface but is Pebble waterproof. Guess I prob only need one waterproof watch at any given time. Pebble is not pretty though. Maybe next time when they come out with a better looking design.

DIY Luggage Tag

Told Ed Im making a luggage tag for him so here I go. You will need:

3 rectangle slabs of felt fabric - different colour, 2 for the base and 1 for the lettering. You can use different fabric too but preferably something sturdy since it will be slammed around during check in. Actually felt is a little fragile for this purpose but i wasnt gonna get 2 yards worth of new fabric just to make this tiny luggage tag. 

One string. Use something sturdy too. I dont know what mine is called but Ive been using it for a lot of my DIY projects. 

Stuffings. Mine is polyester. The kind they used for stuffed toys. I dont really like this. It goes all over the place when I try to pry them apart but I havent researched on other stuffings I can use. Ive had this pack of stuffing forever. It lasts very long. 

Cut out 2 base rectangle pieces to the size that you want. Allow extra 1cm on every sides. This is to allow space for the inner sewings. 

Also cut out one square of the other colour for the letterings. Make sure size fits and is proportionate to the base. 

I wrote out the letters and then cut them out individually. Would be easier to further cut them into the letter shapes this way. 

This is what it looks like after every letter is cut. Was planning to make one for myself too but my name has 8 letters so that sounds tiring already hahha. 

When everything looks good, start glueing the letters on the base fabric. Do not use the mini super glue type. They dry up too fast, stiffen up the fabric and you wont be able to poke your needle through it. After the glueing, start sewing the sides of the letter or any kind of sewing you want to keep the letters stitched tight. I guess you can skip this part but I want it to look good and be more durable. The letters look a little poofed up once sewn. I like this effect. 

Align both rectangles, outer part facing out and insert the string in the middle portion. Id suggest you do a mock measurement on your luggage to see if the length of the string will be ok. 

Pin all sides together once aligned. I usually use paper clips. When i use needles they keep poking me. This will help with the sewing. They will usually shift around if you dont. Allow a good excess length for the string to be sewn inside. 

You need to sew all around the fabric and allow a small open space at the bottom or anywhere is also ok. This is for you to flip everything inside out once you are done sewing. 

I prefer to use sewing machine. Much faster and sturdier and also neater. If you dont have one, handsewn is fine. 

Pull out the string slowly through the open space. Use scissors or chopsticks or whatever thin and long to help to push out the inner part. Be careful with the poking. Felt will stretch if you are too rough. And the stretched look is not pretty. 

This is after the reversal. Starting to look good! 

Grab your stuffing. I prefer to use stuffing since I wanna make it look fat and poofy. If you want to stop here and not use stuffing you can also do that. 

Squeeze a little into the opening. If its not poofy enough just squeeze more till your desired poof. 

Once done, sew the bottom part up. This part wont look very nice hence I usually try to keep the area as small as possible but if its too small usually  i have problem squeezing the inner part out. 

Ta daaa. Not too bad. Colour doesnt match my luggage but Ed's luggage is white so I think it will pop out nicely.