DIY Desk Decor

Hello everyone!

It has been months since my last post and that's probably because I hardly had time for myself since school started in January. The semester had been really hectic and emotionally draining and I am just glad that it is finally over.

Since I moved in to my place in 2000, I didn't have a proper study area and I usually do my school work in the dining area. My aunt and my cousin who had stayed with me for the past few years, moved out recently and now my sister and I have our own designated place to study. The study room was a mess until the end of my semester and I am so glad I finally had the time to start organizing and decorating my space.

I did some DIY projects to personalize my space. I'll be sharing with you some of these projects in this post. If you are looking for some organizing tips, you can refer to my blog post here.

1. Noticeboard

For this project, you would need:

• Corkboard (I bought mine for $2 from Daiso. It's about 22cm by 30cm and 6mm in thickness) 
• Fabric of your choice (I got mine from an old pants) 
• Scissors 
• Glue/Tape

1. Cut out the piece of fabric according to the size of your cork board. I gave an allowance of about 2 inches for each side. 
2. Then secure the excess to the back using glue or tape. 
3. Stick it to your wall using a strong wall tape. I used 3M wall tape because it holds up really well and doesn't affect the paint on my wall.

2. Clipbard Dashboard

For this project, you would need:

• Clipboard 
• A4 sized paper of your choice (I chose a metallic black cardstock paper)
• Ribbon tape (or decorative tapes of your choice)
• Scissors

I did not document the process of this project because it is so simple and self-explanatory from the picture above. 

1. Place the A4 sized card stock paper in the middle of the clipboard.
2. Cut out the ribbon tape and use it as a border to secure the paper to the clipboard.

I got my ribbon tapes from Daiso at 4 for $2. I use this clipboard as a dashboard for my post-its. The reason why I did not use any glue for this project is firstly, it would be messy and by using tape I can change the design easily.

3. Mini Whiteboard Display

For this project you would need:

• Photo-frame (I found mine at home but you can get these at IKEA for less an $2)
• Whiteboard (I got mine from Daiso at $2)
• Scissors/Penknife
• Cardstock papers or photographs of your choice 

• Stickers or decals for decoration (optional)

1. Remove the plastic cover from the frame and use that as a guideline to how big your whiteboard should be.
2. Using either a scissors or penknife, cut out the required size from your whiteboard. I used a penknife to be more precise. 
3. Decorate your frame using stickers or any embellishments of your choice. I went simple with a polka dot decal that I purchase from Daiso. 
4. On the other side of the frame, you can choose to display some photographs or insert a cardstock paper like I did.
5. Now, you can write reminders one side and display photographs on the other side. 

4. Wall Display

For this project, you would need

• Printed Pictures (I printed some quotes on a 200gsm A4 sized paper)
• Black Tape

 Then I trimmed the sides and then pasted it on my wall. To make a simple border, just paste black tape along the sides of your printed cut-out. 

5. 

For this project you would need:

• Twine
• Tape (I used fabric tape)
• Pictures
• Paper Clips
• Scissors

1. Cut the twine according to your preferred length.
2. Paste the ends of the twine on your wall with your wash tape.
3. Now, just clip your favorite photographs or motivational quotes on the twine.

All these projects were very simple to make and you can probably find these materials at your home. Get creative and start decorating your workspace to make it more interesting!

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2015 Wall Calendar/Organizer

Hello everyone!

Firstly, I would like to wish you a Happy New Year! The year started really great and I went to Bali for a week before school reopened (which explains the delayed post). This holiday I had been busy with a few projects and I finally decided to start something small. When I made my personal planner last year, I received a lot of good feedback. Since I did not make a new one for myself this year, I decided to make a wall calendar for my family to write our family plans. 

And I present to you 2015 Paint Splattered Themed Wall Calendar!

Last year when I did my own planner, people asked if I was selling them. But unfortunately, I wasn't confident enough to sell them. When I started on this project, I was super happy with the turn out and I have decided to put the printable up on sale. It is a handmade item and I designed them on Photoshop.

I printed them in 200gsm paper using my laser printer. Although the photo is edited due to the bad lighting, it looks pretty much the same after printing them out. However, colors may vary depending on your printer so you may want to get it printed at a local printing store.

I am putting this up for just $5 SGD. If you have any questions regarding printing mode, leave a comment below!

Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/sg-en/listing/217801231/2015-wall-calendarorganizer? 

For Singaporean readers, if you guys are interested, you could email me via a contact form available on my sidebar or via instagram! You can make payment via bank transfer as well!

If you want me to print them out, additional charges would apply. Prices would vary depending on the type of paper, double-sided and postage. It also comes with a personalized cover page!

So for example, if you would like to get your calendar printed using 200gsm paper and have it double-sided it would cost $9.90 ($5 + $3.50 + $1.40 = $4.90).

As this is my first time doing this, I hope you could show me your support! If you do like this post, share it with your friends who would be interested. 

Thank you and have a great year ahead!

∞

DIY Watercolor Cards

Hello everyone!

It's the season of giving and almost everyone I know are getting gifts for their loved ones whether they celebrate Christmas or not. During gift giving it's always nice to slip in a note to thank the person or just give him/her your well-wishes. What better way to thank them than to make your very own thank you or greeting card? 

This project is super fun and easy to make and it doesn't take too much of your time. You can probably find all the materials at your home.

You would need some:

1. Thick White paper  (I used a 200gm paper and cut them into 74mm by 104mm) 
2. Paint of your choice
3. Paintbrushes
4. White crayon or candles

Let's get started!

Firstly, using your crayon or candle, write or design your personal greeting on the card. You can get even make it season by drawing some Christmas trees or reindeers. 

Next, just get creative! Mix your paint with water and start painting. I cannot exactly remember the water to paint ratio as different colors required different amounts of water so you might want to test it out on a used paper before trying it out on your actual card. You need to mix it with water so that when you paint over the design, it can be seen and doesn't get covered by your paint. 

I got my sister to join in the fun as it was super simple to make. We decided to make a few cards as I just went on a craft haul and I wanted to test the colors of my paint. 

This project can be done with your family members, friends and even children. Please use a newspaper as you do not want to get paint all over your floor (I learnt it the hard way). Above are several ideas in case you're looking for inspiration! To achieve different strokes, you can try them with different brushes or even sponges.

These are great not only for holiday season but any time of the year. Also, you can save some money on greeting cards. It is always nice to receive a card and it makes it extra special when it is handmade.

Merry Christmas!

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DIY Open When...

Hello lovely people!

This is a long overdue post. I had been so busy with school I was not able to find time to post anything. Now that I'm having my holidays I'm gonna try to stay more committed. 

In my previous post on DIY Scratch Cards, I had mentioned that I made scratch cards according to different emotions. So in this post, I would like to share with you how I organised them and a sneak peek of some of the cards that I made. 

All these were personally designed by me in Photoshop CS6. I made 7 different sets. This one is for my best friend to open when she is feeling happy. The words use on the cards are inspired by Pharrell William's Happy. The empty spaces were for me to write any quotes or messages.

This one is my favourite because they are all cheesy pick-up lines which both Roslina and I really love. Each card is personalised and it took the longest to design.

A closer look on one of the cards.

I put all of them in a small gift bag which I got at Daiso. They came in a packet where 35 bags cost $2. I sealed all of them with some of my favourite stickers. The labels were also designed in Photoshop CS6. 

Since this is the month of giving, I have uploaded a printable of the labels and 3 designs from the cards that I have designed. Feel free to download and use it if you plan to do this project for your loved ones. This can be a great Christmas gift especially if your loved ones are here to visit and have to travel once the holidays are over. If you would like more of these designs do comment down below as I might consider selling these. 

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DIY Scratch Cards

Hello everyone!

It's been a while since I've posted a DIY tutorial and there is a fun project I had been wanting to share with you. This project was part of my best friend's 21st birthday gift so I had to hold on this post for a while. Some time last year I was just scrolling through Pinterest and I came across a project where the receiver had to scratch off the cards to find out what their gift was. I thought it was a really interesting project and I wanted to put my own spin to it. 

These scratch cards are all categorised according to different emotions. For instance, if my best friend is overwhelmed with happiness she gets to scratch one of the happy cards. They contain a mixture of quotes and personal messages. I made a few different types which will be shared in another post. 

In this tutorial, I will share with you how to create this "scratch off" effect on any type of scratch cards. For this project, you would need:

Cards

There are a few printables available online for you to download and print out. If you are interested to see how mine looks like, leave a comment!

- Clear Contact Paper or Clear Tape
- Acrylic Paint (I used gold and silver)
- Paintbrush or Sponge
- Dishwasher liquid
- Scissors

Now, let's get started!

1. Cut out some contact paper or clear tape to cover the part that needs to be scratched out.

2. Gently cover the area that you want your receiver to scratch off.

3. Mix your acrylic paint with dishwasher liquid. 

The ratio is about 2:1 (for every 2 drops of paint, you would need 1 drop of dishwasher liquid). 

Mix them gently as you do not want too much bubbles forming.

This step is optional. 

I pasted some tape over the card as I wanted the painted area to be clean and neat. I could not find paper tape in my house so I used paper tabs instead. It definitely was not as effective as a paper tape, but it did a decent job.

4. Using a paintbrush or sponge apply the paint and dishwasher mixture over the area.

I used a sponge as it was more even as compared to the paintbrushes I had on hand. Do not worry if you can still see through the words. I applied 2-3 coats to completely cover the area. 

Once you are done, leave it to dry and it will look something like this.

In the image the first card is not completely covered due to the insufficient paint and bright lighting.

This is a fun project where you can do with a group of friends or family. There are so many different occasions where you can do this. For example, Birthdays, Mothers' Day, Fathers' Day, Parties and etc. If you did try out this project, tag me in any of the social media platform because I love seeing different versions of this project.

Get creative and have fun! 

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DIY Fabric Binder

Hello everybody!

It's been a while since I've posted and it's good to be back. If you had seen my previous post, you would have known that my laptop has died on me after 3 long years. It was a pain retrieving my photos and re-installing Photoshop on the shared computer. Anyway, I have figured out how to blog without my personal computer!

So today I will be showing you how to make a fabric binder. Last year I made my own planner and I was a little upset that I could not bind it due to the thickness. So after months of searching online I found reliable seller from Etsy and I was thrilled to start on this project. 

These are the materials that you would need:

Fabric and binder with rivet set.

You would need a fabric of your choice. I got mine from Daiso for only $2. This was supposed to be a lunch mat but it made it much easier for this project.

I bought a B6 binder from Etsy. This was inclusive of the rivets.

(link: https://www.etsy.com/sg-en/transaction/174749497)

My friend had a bad previous with Etsy previously where her item did not get delivered to her so I was a little skeptical when I made the purchase. But the seller was very friendly and I received the item within a week. 

Threads and buttons.

This is optional. This is needed for an additional step you may or may not want do.

Firstly, position the fabric and the binder according to how you want it to look like. 

I folded the fabric to make pockets. Do make sure the binder is placed in the middle of the fabric.

At this point, you can either use a hot glue gun or fabric glue to attach the sides. I did not have any so I got my neighbour to sew the sides for me using a sewing machine. You can get help from someone who knows how to use the sewing machine for this step.

Next, make 2 holes to insert the rivets.

This is how it will look like one you have attached the rivets. The rivets act as a button to secure the binder to the fabric.

This step is optional. I sewed 1 button to each side so that I can close my fabric binder. 

This is how the final product looks like. I used the pockets to store some coloured labels to keep it more organized.

My planner was too thick so I separated them into 2 parts - Jan to June and July to December. My planner looks more presentable and lighter to bring to school and I have never been so organised. 

If you have any queries while attempting this tutorial, do comment down below and I will be glad to help you with this. I am having my recess week now so I hope to queue some posts for you to read when school gets crazy the next 2 months.

Till then, have a great week!

∞

DIY 2014 Planner

Hello everybody!

I am back from my holiday and it seems ages since I've touched my laptop. 

With just a few days left before we welcome the New Year, some of you may be looking for a planner. It is always hard to find that perfect planner be it the design, font or pages. So, this year I decided to make one for myself. Just a few months back, I did a personalized planner for a friend of mine and I was so excited to do one for myself when my holidays started.

After much planning, I decided to have a instagram inspired minimalist theme. I invested about 5-7 days to complete the whole planner, from designing all the way to putting the whole thing together. The design was done in Microsoft Publisher and Adobe Photoshop. Let me take you through what I have in my planner.

To stay true to my theme, I first decided to make the shape of my planner square. For the cover, I used a thick cardboard and covered it with floral embossed paper. To add a girly touch, I pasted floral fabric tape on the sides. Then, I took some of my favourite pictures from Tumblr and cropped it to square images. I printed the pictures in sticker paper so that it is easier to stick on the cover. If I can say so myself, I really love that the cover gives me a soft and feminine feel.

For the front page, I added a binding cover sheet. This is for me to stock up my post-it notes. I am always scribbling notes and errands. I wanted to carry around the post-its with my planner and I thought that this was a good idea.

Year at a Glance.

Birthdays/Dates to Remember. 

2 years ago I had a planner where I had this page to take down birthdays and important dates and it was really useful as it gave me more space to take down information on my monthly pages. I tried squeezing in 2 months per page but due to the size and space I could only only put one month per page.

I used a cardstock paper as a divider for each section.

For each month, I printed pictures of my family and friends in square. Again, I printed this in sticker paper.

2-page monthly calendar.

Weekly calendar.

I like to be organized and I usually write down the things that needs to be completed that particular week. 

Budget sheet.

I like keeping track of my savings and expenses. Having a budget sheet at the end of each month would be really useful.

I am the type of person who loves using post-it notes for some reason. So at the end of each month I added a transparent sheet to paste my post-its.

Schedule Page.

While I was browsing through planners and pinterest for inspiration, I never fail to see schedule pages. Initially I thought I would have no use for it. After contemplating, I decided to add one page and laminate it. The reason for this is to maximise usage. I can write it using a marker and erase it so that I can use that page another day.

Task Page.

Similar to the schedule page, I laminated this for multiple usage.

Meal Plan.

Instead of eating school food, prefer packing home cooked food to school. As I usually plan my meals ahead, this will help me when it comes to grocery shopping.

Period log.

Hahaha, please don't judge. This keeps me prepared. Ladies, I'm sure you would understand. *winks*

Notes Page.

I wanted to keep this as simple as possible. I wanted the empty pages to paste cut outs and pictures.

I made a folder using leftover craft paper to slot in pictures and stickers.

I also added an envelope to store my movie tickets and receipts.

Definitely there were problems when I engaged in this project.

1. I wanted my planner to have so many sections that I forgot to keep track of the number of pages.

2. I used a 120gsm paper instead of 100gsm paper. This caused the planner to be really thick.

3. I should have done my research way earlier as the printing shops do not support hard cover binding. Plus it was too thick for wire binding.

I thought of making my own binder but I couldn't find the right resources and I did not want my efforts to go to a waste so I just used ring binders. This was not a bad idea as I could use it as a scrapbook also. The only problem is that it does not stay as well as most planners but it gives the self-made feel. Despite the challenges, the best part is that it was really cheap to make!

I had a few requests for personalised planners but due to time constraint I did not take any orders. Plus my toner was running low and my laptop needs to be reformatted. I made my planner in such a way that it has almost everything so that if I'm taking orders in the future I have a template to work with.

I am not sure if I will have the time to do another one next year but I am open to ideas and making printables instead.

If you are still wondering if you should get a planner, I will be making another post on how I use my planner. There are many printables you can purchase online if you plan to make one for yourself. Some bloggers are so generous that they provide free printables for their readers.

I hope you have enjoyed reading this post! Feel free to comment if you have any queries!

Let's enjoy the last few days of 2013!

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