For Easter, I made a carton of surprises for two little cuties. I filled each egg with stickers, rubber balls, cheerios, candy, tiny cute animal & fruit erasers. Instead of getting a separate basket, I used the egg cartons left over from all the eggs I used for making Easter dishes (hooray! to green crafts). Darker colors will probably work better on covering the writings on the carton, but I picked white and gold, because of what I believe Easter symbolizes (celebration of defeating death = hope). Hope this will help you to see egg cartons in a different light. :)
green crafts
Don't throw away those egg cartons!!!
ow that you've had many eggs cooked & decorated, you are probably left with many empty egg cartons. They can be up-cycled to many creative uses. Let's get crafty and be green all at the same time.
* little note: You can totally leave out the egg shells.
* little reminder: Succulents need very little water.
bita update : getting ready
For crafters and designers all over the world, spring brings the excitement of craft fairs. And this year, finally, I'm full of butterflies to say that blooms in the air is getting ready for it as well. It's a first and as for anything that's a first, I'm excited and nervous all at the same time. It's always been the simple joy reflected through a smile that I desire to witness through crafting and sharing these paper flowers. And what better place is there other than craft fairs where the personal interaction blooms in real time. Therefore, it's as if I've been getting ready for craft fairs from the time when BITA was just a dream. Every time I get nervous about prepping for craft fairs, I imagine the various reaction and the all the smiles I'll see and get excited all over again. Here are traces of the progress (also many more on my Instagram to the right). Hope it leaves you wanting to see in person...
swoon : cakes
I'm not a baker... I hardly buy large cakes... but then I stumbled across Half Baked : The Cake Blog and I was overwhelmed with the desire for cakes. Enjoy this with me.
DIY round-up : easter
Easter is just around the corner and it's time for kids to get excited. Easter is like Halloween in spring. We get to hunt for colorful eggs filled with goodies that they collect in a basket or many baskets (lol). Personally, I think it's much better than Halloween, because it's full of bunnies and pastel colors (much more filled with hope). Here are some awesome DIY sure to bring smiles. Happy Crafting!
wear green
Avoid getting pinched by wearing these greens. :) Wearable Planters
creative community : brika
Brika is a creative community... created by two women to bring together more creative women. That itself is enough to excite me. Enjoy & be sure to share.
yumiko higuchi
Yumiko Higuchi is an inspirational embroidery artist I recently discovered. Her work and designs are simple, yet so full. My favorite part is how she turns her embroidery into a "patterned" fabric to make clutches. Enjoy!
endless inspirations
Oh my... I'm enjoying embroidery so much. As a friend of mine (Rachel from Lupa & Pepi) has put it , it's my form of yoga. Yoga is not my first choice of exercise, it's just too slow for me (nothing against all the yoga lovers). I just personally prefer spinning, kick boxing or running (not that I'm doing any of it). Please laugh with me. :)
Anyway, embroidery is allowing me to slow down. It's totally meditative and creative all at the same time. So, naturally I created a Stitch & Knit pintrest board and it was so easy to fill it with inspirations. Here are some I would like to share with you.
bita choice awards
My favorite valentine's days cards...
Hearts Stitched Together by Dandee
I'm stitch crazy these days... so this one just stole my heart.
Astronaut Valentines by Dandee (again)
For all those boys that don't like too much pink & heart & kisses.
crafty adventure
Using my hands to create something beautiful fulfills a part of my heart & soul nothing else can. I grew up dreaming to be an artist and only to be an artist. My favorite childhood activity was always drawing and coloring. I fell in love with architecture because of drafting (by hand) and committed to my marriage with architecture because of my lust for model making. Now, I sustain my drive for architecture with the simple joy of crafting. I still love architecture, but because for anything and everything in architecture takes sooooo long to become tangible... I craft as a reminder, to myself, that I am a creative being. And with anything I love, I consistently look for new adventures in it. Whether it's a new tool or particular material, I can't help but walk into new crafty adventures. My latest adventure is embroidery. This phrase "drawing and coloring with thread" is what got be excited. I took a Creative Bug Embroidery Workshop by Rebecca Ringquist. It's so much easier than I ever expected and Rebecca is totally informative and inspiring. Here is the progress of my adventure.
cities calendar and tags
I'm sure you've all seen and may even own the beautiful Cities Calendar by Rifle Paper. One of my dreams is to travel around the world and I'm hoping it will remind me never to loose sight of that dream. I loved it so much that I had to use every bit of it. I used the colorful tags kit from Paper Source (mainly because the color palette worked so well with Rifle's colors). I'm debating if I should promise myself to keep these around until I actually give a gift I get from these cities... hmmmm. I'll let you know what I decide. :)
my valentine's day gift to you...
I've been working on some new flowers... And I'll present them to you on valentine's day as my expression of love to you. Take a peek at this one that is inspired by antique roses. Enjoy~
confetti love
Confetti can turn any moment into a party moment.
calendar collection
I consider calendars a collection of artworks you can change every month. I get the ones that I can cut the dates (once the month is over) and frame the art work or make cards with. Enjoy!
diy : advent calendar
Today is the first day of December... one of my favorite months. It's perfect that it starts on a saturday. So here is a collection of advent calendars you can make to decorate your home with the holiday spirit & anticipation.
cooking & eating
Thanksgiving is about many things... and one of the most important is cooking & eating so I came across Terrain. Enjoy!
Rebekka Seale - flower series
2013 owl calendar
One of my regular reads is Oana Befort, a whimsical illustrator. Through her, I found a great project by My Owl Barn. Go check out and your very own 2013 Owl Calendar for free. You can thank me later.
old & old = new
Designed by German artist Cordula Kehrer and commissioned by fair trade NGO Preda, this whimsical wastebasket is made by the indigenous Aeta people of the Philippines using traditional basket weaving techniques.
This basket, which combines hand-woven and sustainably harvested rattan with colorful plastic, asks us to consider larger questions about the nature of design, the role of the hand-made, and the place of craft-based cultures in a globalized economy. - Areaware
I love the marriage of old & new and even better is marriage of old & old giving birth to new. This is truly inspiring.