I’ve been meaning to have a look at the small chinese-goods stores in Chinatown for a long time now and finally got that chance during my lunch break today. There are so many goodies to be found in those shops not just for crafting but for decorating the home and cute little things for my daughter. But since I was on a crafting mission and had a limited budget, I had to stay focused, as difficult as it was.

After about almost an hour in one shop I managed to emerge with these: a framed paper-cut print for my little nook at home, various small silk (and cheap) purses (two of which I will pull apart to re-use the fabric), and a handful of little chinese cards that have notes of encouragement printed on them which will work well in some collages I’ve drafted up (I had to ask the shop-assistant to translate each one for me!).

With my lunch-break almost over I hurried over to The Invitation Gallery in the Paramount on Chine centre and picked up some gorgeous paper - vellum, printed and hand-made. I love the fact that because of the popularity of make-it-yourself invitations and scrap-booking, paper suppliers are producing more varied and interesting papers today. More goodies for use in my collages!

As I mentioned previously in my family blog, I’m currently going through a Japanese-arts-&-craft-funk at the moment and am spending some of my free time looking around the Net and places in the city for some Japanese inspiration. I have really enjoyed looking at the Japanese craft books that fellow craft-bloggers have posted up on their sites and thought it was about time I purchased my own.

I wanted to get a book on softies since I eventually want to start making Ava (and the soon-to-arrive bub) some soft toys in the future. Now, saying it is difficult to find Japanese craft books in Melbourne is an undertstatement! I finally turned to my trusty shopper - eBay - and found a seller in Australia who not only sells bags hand-made from vintage Japanese material, but also sells a range of Japanese books. If you’re interested, here is her online store on eBay: B’s Bagarama

I purchased a Japanese Felt Mascots Book from her and experienced a very smooth, hassle-free transaction - it arrived a few days ago and I am reviewing it with delight.

So many cute little mascots! And most could be adapted to bigger softies! Granted, I have no idea how to read the book since it’s all in Japanese, but thankfully there are tips like this one on the Net to help me out.

I have a little nook in a room upstairs in our house, which is my own little personal space. All I’ve got in that little nook is a desk with a laptop, pens, scrap pieces of paper, a desk lamp, trays for bills and other important documents, a bunch of framed photos of my family and loved ones, and my fabric collection stuffed into the little shelves on the side of the desk.

It’s quite functional but not very inspirational. I’ve been browsing around the Net for some affordable Japanese prints to brighten up my little nook. I stumbled upon Art.com and found a great section on Japanese Culture. There are so many wonderful prints to choose from - my head was spinning trying to decide which one I liked the best!

I haven’t yet chosen anything but I am especially drawn to the prints of Ando Hiroshige, a 19th Century Japanese artist. I love the colour, the form, and the fresh nature of his prints - three characteristics I’d eventually like my creations to have.

Here are just 3 of his prints reproduced and available on Art.com (from left to right: “Inside Kameido-Tenjin Shrine“, “Maples at Mama“, and “Snow Scene in the Garden of Daimyo” ).

Ahhh, decisions, decisions!

Here we are - my first post on my very own craft blog!

I’ve become quite smitten with fabric art/collage. I suppose it’s come from a mix of catching the ‘fabric-bug‘ from many of the craft blogs that I read regularly and a renewed appreciation for the simplicty and beauty of sticking different things together to make a unified whole. There’s something very relaxing and therapeutic about it.

So I’ve been spending a bit of time looking at fabrics in stores and online. My initial batch of goodies has yielded me a colorful palette (see below). I especially like the 3rd one down from the top - it’s called “Kimono” and gels well with my current love of all things Japanese-crafty.

So now it’s time to get down to business!